Millennial Culture

[Da Coach]

The Phoenix Suns of the NBA are 12-25, and they just suspended one of their top players Markieff Morris for insubordination, for throwing a towel at head coach Jeff Hornacek.

http://www.slamonline.com/nba/report-suns-suspend-markieff-morris-for-throwing-towel-at-coach/#8kqAgEiYhJDZvJHA.97

Here is an interesting article about the Phoenix Suns' struggles, and the owner's perspective on what the problem is. He doesn't try to shirk taking some responsibility, but he also blames something he is calling the "Millennial Culture"-

http://www.slamonline.com/nba/suns-owner-calls-out-markieff-morris-and-teams-millennial-culture/#lC4v4PoOW62GJdqj.97

[lefty]

There is a lot to be dissected regarding the Millennials .......many industries are trying to figure them out.

[tornado]

flappers (look it up), hipsters, beatniks, greasers, mod, counterculture, hippies, rockers, yuppies, punks, me-generation, GenX, GenY, millennials...
..and if you go back even further there were Bolsheviks and Bohemians..
we have had them every single decade since forever...nothing new here...but they have become way more self-centric and far less connected to society and culture...

[Da Coach]

Here is another similar case of the inmates running the asylum, and it is in the central Illinois area.
Last week, Henry-Senachwine High School announced that they had cancelled and forfeited their games last Tuesday (Jan 5) against Peoria Heights, Friday (Jan. against Galva, and Saturday (Jan. 9) against Weathersfield. They reportedly were unable to field a boy's varsity basketball team-

http://www.bcrnews.com/2016/01/07/mallards-grounded/aduspix/

http://www.galvanews.com/article/20160107/NEWS/160109600

Little information has been released by the school officially, but multiple sources are reporting that the reason is that all the players, except for 2, have quit the team and refuse to play for their coach.

http://www.pjstar.com/sports/20160108/henry-boys-basketball-forfeits-due-to-player-boycott

[tornado]

the irony in the story in the 2nd link -
that Henry is cancelling their game vs. Galva - and yet Galva had not played a game since before Christmas when they had quite a bit of turmoil in their program as ...

http://wqad.com/2015/12/23/galva-boys-basketball-season-suspended/

I guess the Jan. 8 game was gonna hopefully be their first game back with a newly appointed coach, but
wonder if there's ever been an IHSA game cancelled when BOTH teams had mutinies or were coachless or weren't fielding enough players willing to play ball

[Chico]

Hate to see this happen to 2 such powerful, ha, programs. Some day they will regret it. The sooner the better.

[tornado]

Chico, I know you are being a bit tongue-in-cheek...
but my kids have gone to play many times to Henry, Galva, Midland, Lowpoint-Washburn, and lots of those little towns...
..and there are TWO things that stand out to me as MARKEDLY different that what you see in the city...

-first - in some sense - the ability for those kids to play ball is the only thing that they have to do - especially in the winter- they and their fans look forward to it more than a lot of kids do

-and 2nd - it's "the only game in town" so to speak -- and many in the entire community still show up for these games...even old folks who have lived their entire lives in those communities and haven't had kids in school for 40 years..
Just like the scenes from "Hoosiers" and "The Rookie" - the high school program is kind of seen as belonging to EVERYONE and they all feel involved and part of the program...and sit around the barber shop & the cafe endlessly talking about the program & upcoming games.
Maybe they're a small town and don't have a lot of talent but they take their sports seriously and often have intense rivalries with the other surrounding communities.
This hurts more people than just the students.

[Chico]

I know. My point wasn't a knock on the fans. But the fans can't go to the games if the poor mistreated players boycott the program.

[tornado]

yup- this all started when the boys wanted to wear earrings and claimed it was their right because the girls wore 'em and then the parents, who should have slapped their kids and said "whattya wanna wear an earring for?" - instead backed their kids and fought the system to get their way.
Now those parents wanna tell the school who to keep on the team and who not to cut and even who to play and what plays to run.

[Chico]

yup- this all started when the boys wanted to wear earrings and claimed it was their right because the girls wore 'em and then the parents, who should have slapped their kids and said "whattya wanna wear an earring for?" - instead backed their kids and fought the system to get their way.
Now those parents wanna tell the school who to keep on the team and who not to cut and even who to play and what plays to run.

Earrings? Maybe there's room on the girls team?

[wily coyote]

Can you say U Of Missouri. They should have kicked those kids off the football team and sent them a bill for 1st semester room and board. I worked many games in Henry and poor John Anderson is turning over in his grave. I feel sorry for the 2 kids with common sense and hope they can get some kids walking the halls to join the two . Don't know their coach but if he has problems the school should address that when appropriate and unless it is something serious wait until after the season is over.

[Chico]

can you say u of missouri. They should have kicked those kids off the football team and sent them a bill for 1st semester room and board. I worked many games in henry and poor john anderson is turning over in his grave. I feel sorry for the 2 kids with common sense and hope they can get some kids walking the halls to join the two . Don't know their coach but if he has problems the school should address that when appropriate and unless it is something serious wait until after the season is over.

+100

[tornado]

Henry situation

http://www.pjstar.com/sports/20160111/player-walkout-surprised-henry-basketball-coach-steve-self?rssfeed=true&utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

[Da Coach]

JMHO... so this is the second article in the PJ Star about this issue at Henry HS, and still the PJS has not reported one word about what the reasons were for the players quitting, what the problems are they have with the coach, and what the issues were that were stated on the petition the players signed. The coach referred briefly to these "reasons" when he was quoted in that article saying, "that the reason cited in the petition seemed “very limited” and “not something worth being fired for.” So it must have been some rather specific reason.

And I find this curious- none of the players who quit or their families attended this special meeting that was called just to discuss this matter. It seems to me that if there was some issue important enough to organize a boycott, sign a petition, quit the team, and demand the coach be fired, then they ought not be so cowardly and attend the special meeting and give their side of the story instead of sabotaging the basketball program and going into hiding.

Obviously dozens of people (families of the players who quit, the school board and the personnel at the high school, and half the town of Henry) know what these reasons are and what the petition actually said. But for some reason, the PJ Star does not want to bother to actually do some questioning of people and find out the truth and report it. They basically report just what we could have learned from reading Twitter.
Great journalism!

[tornado]

they don't want to report hearsay, unless it is the erroneous facts of a players' arrest, the completely unfounded claims of an accuser or a player departing the program, or the false vendetta of long-ago fired employees who are given a forum by the PJStar