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True Fans Part Three
Posted by: Josh Thompson on February 1st, 2011
The author's views are entirely his or her own and may not reflect the views of the Utah Jazz.It’s amazing how quickly attitudes and opinions can change. After the fantastic road trip that the Jazz had back in November everyone was talking about the potential of the Jazz. I wrote a post about how “true fans” shouldn’t ever pick against the Jazz. I even had the audacity to say that the Jazz had what it takes to win the championship this year.
Now, only a few short months later it’s all gloom and doom. We’re talking about lineup changes and trades. Many of us are very frustrated. I’ve even heard some fans wondering if the Jazz can make the playoffs.
Deep down, I think we all know that the Jazz will rebound from this bad stretch. The Jazz are consistently a good team. We’ve got Jerry Sloan at the helm and awesome management behind him. On the court we have three all-stars, rising stars and some rookies with great potential.
But what if the Jazz don’t come back. What if they don’t make the playoffs? What if they don’t make the playoffs for the next 15 years? What would this mean for Jazz fans? Is there a breaking point for Jazz fans? At what point do we decide to leave the Jazz behind and not look back?
Truly it would be difficult to stay with them. If we really love the Jazz we can and will stay faithful to them. We’ll continue to talk about, blog about and think about the Jazz. We may even have to find ourselves saying sheepishly, “Guess what, I’m a Jazz fan.”
So why would we stick around? Why not move on? The reason is because once the Jazz do finally win a championship, and they will, we can take pride in knowing that we stuck with them. We would know that we are true fans – not fair weather fans.
So what do we do right now? All that we can do – go to the games, be positive and accept that the Jazz are going to have tough times. We can also be grateful that the Jazz aren’t the Chicago Cubs or the Red Sox prior to their recent successes. The Jazz are a relatively young organization. We need to be patient and hope, really hope, that the Jazz will win a championship. If not this year then the next. And if not next year, the year after that.
This is not for the faint of heart. The Jazz have a way of making you believe that they really have a chance. Then they rip your heart out and remind you that every team has ups and downs. Unfortunately the Jazz’ downs are as intense as their ups. Sticking with the Jazz and keeping faith in them is like having a significant other that means the world to you and then cheats on you. They feel sorry and you forgive them, give them your trust, and then they cheat on you again. Repeat this about 100 times and you have what the Jazz can do to you. We know though, that at some point the Jazz will deliver a championship and it will have been worth it.
Times are tough right now. Hang in there. The Jazz can and will win a championship. They are our team and they need to know we support them.
GO JAZZ!
Replies: 9
Views: 827
9 Responses
So the Jazz are a cheating lover?
I’m sorry, but anyone who forgives a cheating lover past cheat #1–if even that–is an idiot, delusional, and probably has self esteem lower than a legless midget doing the limbo. You’re ASKING to be cheated on at that point, and I can guarantee you will be. So good luck with that.
I want the Jazz to know I’m not a fan they can cheat on. I demand respect. And if you treat me like trash, I WILL leave. So you better behave, Jazz. Because my fandom is worth more than being cheated on, and you’ll realize that after I’m gone.
The Jazz are not a cheating lover either, so you can jusreverse the rolls on the above response.
Lol, it wasn’t MY analogy, Larry. Did you read the post? (I believe this is at least Josh’s 2nd post to reference cheating, which I think is extremely weird, honestly, and just had to take the analogy further).
And I’ll stand by what I said about it. I hope the Jazz (both players, coaches and management) realize how invested so many fans are in their team, and that the decisions they make can affect that relationship. Fans should demand a high level of play, good management decisions, and a dedication to winning because in the end, it’s the fans who pay all of those guys to do what they do. If you don’t demand those things, don’t be surprised when you don’t get them.
Also, for my good turn daily, here’s a little sentence to help you with the rolls/roles problem:
The role-player eats rolls with dinner.
If my response comes across mean, maybe it’s because I’m still bitter about losing to the Nets/Wizards/76ers/Warriors and being .300 in our last ten games.
The Jazz right now stink,suck whatever you wish to think about them right now you are probably not alone in the sentiment. Every family has there dysfunctional moments and the Jazz are no exception but i believe they will overcome whatever problem it is there facing.
Yo KC – You’re probably right – I’m out of my mind by saying that I would always be a Jazz fan no matter how well they fare. I’m setting myself up to be disappointed and hurt. I don’t demand respect as a fan. Do I appreciate it, sure, I love to have my fandom rewarded. I’m just saying that I’m going to stick it out through thick and thin.
This is only my first post to mention cheating though, so it’s not a topic I dwell on
I did make a comment on Mr. Mccann’s post a couple days ago and mentioned cheating there. That’s actually what gave me the idea for this post.
@parralax – good analogy. I like it.
GO JAZZ!
Great article Josh. I’m really happy with this stuff. I know it sucks to see your team lose, and it’s a true testament to being a fan if you can stick with your team when they’re not playing well. I know it as a baseball fan of the New York Mets, who I feel are always like the Jazz in that they have the potential to go all the way but the downs are just as killer as their ups are amazing.
Still, I’m going to be a fan of the Jazz to the end. Even if they are playing like crap and are in a down period, I know that in the end they’ll be just fine.
Hi everyone. My first post here, hope people don’t throw stones at me.
I’ve been reading every post in this forum for a while, but haven’t written anything for a simple reason – I’m a rookie regarding basketball, and have much to learn and little to contribute. But this post made me want to write.
I’m not following basketball nearly as long as you – it’s not that easy in Brazil, and I guess it was impossible before League Pass.
I support a local soccer team who didn’t have much aspirations when I was young.
One day we won a national cup – a thing that seemed SO much more difficult than the Jazz winning the NBA – and on that day (one of the happiest of my entire life) I thought about how none of the people who supports the teams who tend to be on top will ever feel what I was feeling. And that’s because I was always there. I saw the struggles, the small victories, the huge losses, and it all flashed in my mind when I realized we were actually going to win.
Using the cheating metaphor, I don’t see my team as a wife that cheats – I see it as a son who makes mistakes. It can let me down, but won’t erase my love. On the other hand, it’ll definetely feel like cheating if I ever attempt to turn my back on them – even more if I decide to support other.
Forgive my English (remember it’s not my native tongue) and my lack of basketball knowledge, but I wanted to tell you to keep supporting your Jazz through the adversities – that’s when the team needs you most, and it pays heavily when it overcomes the problems.
And well… I guess Jazz nation stretched it’s boundaries even during a losing streak (but I swear I didn’t bring bad luck when I started watching every Jazz game)
@Eduardo – Thanks for the comment! You’re right, I think that a better analogy might be as a son who makes mistakes. You don’t ever stop loving a son. Thanks for your comment!
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