The NBA was dealt a huge blow to its “Machismo” image yesterday when former player, John Amaechi, revealed that he still plays Nintendo. This was done on the hills of the February 20 release of his upcoming book, entitled, “I Love Joysticks”.John Amaechi said that this book is a huge weight off of him and that he could no longer hide who he really is.
“Whew!!! I needed this. You all don’t understand the relief that my inner person has now that I have gotten this off my chest. It was hard, but I am happy with my decision. Yes, I still play Nintendo. I realize now that this is something that I was born with. Don’t listen to people who say that playing Nintendo is a learned trait, because it’s not. With the negativity that is associated with this revelation, do you think people who play Nintendo choose to go through that? We don’t. We just want to sit in our basement, in front of our big screen, and play Tetris or Legend of Zelda.”
John formerly played for the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Orlando Magic, and the Utah Jazz. Several of his ex-teammates were asked how they felt about John’s breaking news.
“The fact that John has done this, maybe it will give others the confidence to come out and admit that they still play Nintendo as well. Whether they are retired or not,” voiced Grant Hill. Tracy McGrady said “My only concern is how my teammates perform on the floor. What they do in their personal life is of no concern to me. Just don’t try to play Nintendo with me.”
Perhaps the most famous athlete to first admit that she plays Nintendo, Martina Navratilova, praised Amaechi for his decision.
“It's hugely important for the kids so they don't feel alone in this world to know that they are not the only ones who love Nintendo. We are role models. We are adults, and we know we are not alone as far as playing video games, but kids don't know that," she said. "He will definitely help a lot of kids growing up to feel better about themselves when they get 47 and still love to play Super Mario Bros."
Lebron James, however, said he didn’t think that a player openly admitting to playing Nintendo can survive in the league.
“With teammates you have to be trustworthy, and if you play Nintendo and you are not admitting that you do, then you are not trustworthy," James said. "So that's like the No. 1 thing as teammates -- we all trust each other – if you play Nintendo then we all play Nintendo. You've heard of the in-room, locker room code. What happens in the locker room stays in there. How can we be teammates if you are playing Nintendo and I’m playing X-Box? It's a trust factor, honestly. A big trust factor"
John Amaechi says he knows that this will cause some eyebrows to start being raised like The Rock, but he feels that in the end, the NBA will be better off with people openly admitting what they do in their personal lives.
“Look, I know that this is something that initially is a big shock factor. But, I’m telling you, just wait until 6 years from now. Players, whether former or current, are going to be making headlines all over the country with their admissions of still playing video games. Then you’ll see. I mean it’s not like I’m coming out saying I’m a homosexual or something, I just love Nintendo.”
“I’m happy that John came out with that,” said Dwayne Wade. “It has given me the courage to come out the closet and admit that I still play Nintendo also. Me and my homies have all-night Nintendo parties. But we only play Tecmo Bowl and Double Dribble. Tetris or Legend of Zelda is totally gay.”
No comments:
Post a Comment