The Truth Was Way Worse (Eddy Curry, The Player's Tribune)

[Andrew]

The Truth Was Way Worse

Not everything is a joke, bro.

The crying-laughing emoji doesn’t apply to literally everything in the universe. Not everything is hilarious.

I mean, you know what isn’t funny? Here you go … here’s something that isn’t funny.

And indeed, Eddy Curry went through some stuff that definitely isn't funny. Can't say I'm not guilty of making jokes about his play and whatnot, and he was a running gag among NBA fans for a while there. He's certainly experienced a very dark side of being a professional athlete, though.

I'll admit to some mixed feelings reading the piece. The fact that he was unfaithful doesn't make the murder less wrong, less tragic, but it makes it a very messy and complicated situation. I remember hearing about it back in the day, but not that he was married to someone else. Maybe that was mentioned and I just don't recall it now, but it makes a terrible event even messier. He's obviously had to deal with feeling a ton of guilt over how it went down; I imagine it's cathartic for him to talk about it now. Messed up to say the least.

The bit about him not loving basketball at first and basically being pushed into it because he was tall puts his career into perspective. He was often criticised for being lazy and unmotivated, but considering that he was following a path that he was more or less forced onto, rather than it being a dream he pursued, his lack of drive makes a lot of sense. And of course, as a player who went directly to the pro ranks out of high school, overnight he went from being a schoolkid to someone making a considerable amount of money and being a name talked about by fans and media members alike, without the right people to look out for him.

It sounds like a lot of people preyed on his kindness, from those guilt tripping him into a handout to those who were outright committing fraud and stealing his money. For whatever faults he might've had as a basketball player, his infidelity and all that stuff, he didn't deserve that. I know a lot of people don't have much sympathy for celebrities and athletes because of the fame and fortune, but bottom line, screw freeloaders and con artists who are false friends preying on someone's kindness and good nature.

I think my biggest takeaway is that Eddy's wife Patrice is a saint. Standing by him with love, support, and forgiveness, taking in Nova's son and treating him as her own, and just basically being a rock. He made a lot of mistakes, but marrying her clearly wasn't one. That's a great person right there.

[mp3]

For all the jokes I actually believed a lot in Eddy Curry when the Knicks traded for him, if he had of come into the league in 1990 when I started watching basketball when the centre was a dominant figure I think he would of been one of the best players in the game.

I haven't seen the Players Tribute on him but I know he had some health issues to begin with and then when in the mid 2000's the big man was being fazed out, I remember Isiah Thomas saying that and thinking that's ridiculous he's just making excuses for Eddy but he was right and it's one of the biggest mistakes I think the league has done by transitioning to a 3 point game or positionless basketball but Eddy Curry like so many other players fell by the roadside

[Andrew]

The article is heavy, but worth a read. Curry was out of the league by the time the three-point revolution occurred, and reading what he wrote, I think that was inevitable; not only due to the tragic events he endured, but the fact that making it to the NBA wasn't a childhood dream like so many other players.

[mp3]

I didn't know that he never dreamt of playing in the nba, that sounds like Andrew Bynum where he was a football fan Not a basketball fan but his mother didn't want him getting hurt and because of his size was pushed into basketball.

Eddy might of been gone before centers were shooting threes but he was definitely there when teams expected there centers to step out and hit a 15-18 foot jumpshot and it was cringy to watch because it just wasn't his game, I also remember thinking back to when he was traded to the Knicks that his baby's mother was killed in public with his kids with her too, that I can not imagine how you continue playing so soon after must of had side effects later on.

[Andrew]

Yeah his article goes into all of that.

[mp3]

Cheers il check that out Andrew, I must admit that reading the Darius Miles article months ago definitely made me look at the player differently and I don't dislike Eddy, I probably think he gets the blame for been traded for and not living up to the deal but it's not always the case

[Andrew]

All too easy to overlook the human side of celebrity and professional sports, I suppose. Money can't buy everything, and fame has its downsides, after all.

[mp3]

Absolutely, I think as you get older like myself (and your good self) you learn more than theses players are in fact like you said human and have families,have problems, have other issues and having money doesn't fix that.

[debiler]

That's some dark shit right there. I can't condone the man's decisions, but I'm also not in a position to judge him in any way. As mp3 said - there's a story behind every failed NBA star, as much as there is one behind every successful one. We can only imagine what it would be like to be in his position, but we'll never be able to really understand or to see the world through the eyes of a 19 year old kid who suddenly gets a buttload of money to do something he doesn't really, deeply enjoy.

I used to condemn players like him when I was younger - people that were just gifted with the physical attributes to be a great basketball player, but not much else, really. I started to fall in love with basketball almost 30 years ago and have been playing ever since. Today, at 40 years old, I still play whenever I can and as long as my knees and my back will allow. I love this game with all my heart, and I will keep playing until I can barely walk anymore. Throughout my whole adolescence, I just wished that I had been born into a different body or getting that late growth spurt you read about in NBA stories. But no, I stayed at 5'9 and that was it. Back then in the late 80's and 90's, when you were short, you didn't play basketball over here in Germany. You played soccer. That was what all your friends did, so you did, too. I come from a small village in southern Germany, so there wasn't even a hoop around, let alone a court to play on. Even the nearest big city had no basketball team worth mentioning. It was pretty much a wasteland basketball-wise. So, being naturally athletic, able to run like a deer, I played soccer. And I experienced the same thing Mr. Curry did: repetition bore enjoyment, although the love for the game was never as innate and pure as my love for basketball. That's why I bounced around minor league soccer teams until it was time for college. And wouldn't you know? There were actual players there. People who shared my love and passion for the game. Sports wise, those were the best years of my life. Until I blew out my left knee and after recovering from that, my back at only 24 years of age. I still go out and play every chance I get, I don't mind that my back will be sore the next couple of days and I will barely be able to go up the two flights of stairs to my apartment. Just for the love of the game. My wife keeps shaking her head and puts up with my constant bitching about not being able to move, but she knows that it will always be a part of who I am.

Why am I telling this story? Because I come from the same place as Curry - doing something you didn't actually love but rather convinced yourself you should enjoy. I just was lucky enough to be no physical anomaly like Curry and therefore, the temptation to just "do it for the money" was never there for me. As a result, I have no demons, a wonderful personal life and a steady job that pays the bills and then some. I am content and happy. But sometimes, I just wonder what would have been if I had been taller. So I guess that's where most of the ridicule towards failed athletes like Curry, Kwame, Morrison or Darko is coming from: "You were given all this talent and physical gifts, and you chose to do nothing with it. I would have. Serves you right." But it's never that simple, is it?

[mp3]

Our countries are very alike lol I grew up in Liverpool where football wasn't a choice, the only choice you had was if you were a blue or red!

I too fell in line till I was 11 and started playing basketball, by 13 I was getting pretty good and started playing national League. People at the school, friends etc couldn't get there head around why I wanted to play this sport over football as at that age I was also good at football, I was treated like I turned my back on them for quite some time

[debiler]

Our countries are very alike lol I grew up in Liverpool where football wasn't a choice, the only choice you had was if you were a blue or red!

I too fell in line till I was 11 and started playing basketball, by 13 I was getting pretty good and started playing national League. People at the school, friends etc couldn't get there head around why I wanted to play this sport over football as at that age I was also good at football, I was treated like I turned my back on them for quite some time

I feel you, man. Also, I just wrote "soccer" for all the others to understand what I mean and that I wasn't writing about "hand-egg" instead.

[Murat]

Turkey is in a similar case. Unlike you guys (Germany and England), our teams fail, which occurs as a higher pressure over players and coaches. There are a lot of players that had huge traumas that affected their whole career, just for little mistakes on the field. Imagine this: you are the goalie of one of the major clubs, the ball slips in your hands, goal, you lost the championship (actually you had an above-average performance for the whole season) then in a few years, you find yourself in 4th division. There are players that lost their families in such chain-reactions.

Most of the children in Turkey are forced to step into youth systems of teams if they have sport-friendly bodies, or doing above-average. Every single person who was tall in their childhood is forced to join basketball teams. There exists a major social pressure in my country at every single thing, which is the reason for most of Turkish people are sad recently, because they are not in the jobs they want. I never thought Curry was a bad player, it was clear that he was an unlucky player. Glad he is alive and doing well.

[mp3]

It must not be easy my friend, Enes Kanter has spoke up, well used too about issues in Turkey.

[Murat]

It must not be easy my friend, Enes Kanter has spoke up, well used too about issues in Turkey.

His case is more about a battle between an Islamic clique (Gulen) and government, whose once managed to administrate Turkey together. Kanter was supporting the Gulen clique (graduated from one of their schools). Then the relationship collapsed, government issued a warrant on Gulen's squad. They even had one for Kanter (I will never get this, is he a politician? just played ball and supported Gulen, lol).

Otherwise, Enes is correct about most of issues in Turkey. I believe he was chosen as one of the scapegoats in the "cleaning" of Gulen clique from government, but the incorrect one.

[mp3]

I saw on twitter early in the season that they even went as far as to censor him out during coverage of a Celtics game on Turkish tv

[Murat]

I saw on twitter early in the season that they even went as far as to censor him out during coverage of a Celtics game on Turkish tv

That's right. If Celtics had made the finals when he was on the rosters, it would not be televised on Turkish TV.

[[Hyperize]]

Man, my eyes nearly popped out of my head.

[Murat]

You get used to that kind of BS when your governments are on a consistent level of BS things for more than 10-20 years. A majority of Turkish citizens are similar to ones that supported Trump in 2016 POTUS elections. Difference is, they have the major command for more than 50-60 years, while in USA, there is a balance. At least you guys are aware that Trump will at worst leave in 2024, while our current president will probably "leave" by death.