Stan Van Gundy Upset, Curses on Live Radio
On Florida Marlins manager's firing: "Are you sh---ing me?"
I try to keep my observations varied but just like a couple months ago when Tim Donaghy became the national darling of sports talk radio, Stan Van Gundy is quickly becoming an offseason gem of an interview subject.
Just like Donaghy, credit the Dan LeBatard radio show for figuring this out and going to the well as often as possible. A day after the Florida Marlins fired manager Fredi Gonzalez, Van Gundy went on 790 AM in Miami and began railing on owner Jeffrey Loria for the firing:
"I was a Marlins fan until (Wednesday)."
"I haven't decided if my t-shirts and hats are getting burned or go to goodwill."
"That (firing) was so ridiculous and Loria's comments. That was it for me."
"Does he really believe that? That he's all about winning? And he's probably delusional enough that he does believe it I guess. That you can have one year the lowest payroll in the league and come back with the 3rd lowest payroll in the league but think you're all about winning now. It's mind boggling to me but I guess to Jeffrey Loria, it's not."
"He's got every right to do with his team what he wants but this one's just crazy and his comments really got me. He wants to come out as this guy who's, 'I'm really committed to winning.' And he's saying to the fans, 'We're going to do everything we can to make this happen.'
Are you sh---ing me? C'mon! You're not doing anything to make it happen."
After the interview, the hosts claimed to have hit the "dump" button so that the curse word was not heard over the air. Perhaps that's the case but on the podcast, the word is clearly heard followed by a "dump" in audio that is about 2 seconds too late.
Either way, it's not really someone cursing on live radio that's notable here. It's the fact that a current coach of an NBA franchise is getting angry enough at a Major League Baseball franchise owner that he would let himself slip like that on live radio.
Van Gundy goes on to make a very appropriate comment concerning "accountability" and the misuse of the word in modern society.
"I like Larry (Beinfest), don't get me wrong but I love when people say that: 'I'm accountable.' Really? Did you lose your job yesterday? In what tangible way has Larry Beinfest been held accountable for putting that bullpen together. It's nice of him to say he's accountable. I don't see it. There was one guy held accountable. One guy. Fredi Gonzalez. I don't see anyone else taking responsibility in any tangible way. They threw it all on one guy."
In admonishing the Marlins President for his comments in the wake of Gonzalez's firing, Van Gundy brings up an excellent point that goes well beyond baseball or sports. When someone tells you they're holding themselves accountable, it should also be asked what specifically they mean by that beyond raising their hand and uttering the words.
