No. I stand by it. The lack of effort. The antagonism with the fan base. The excuse-making. The coach trying to tell people we had a good season last year when he had no idea what “good” looks like.
Ballo post game comments
- Thread starter Tony Warwick
- Start date
This team has underachieved but I don't understand calling them unlikeable. I don't llike how a few of them play but I don't dislike them.
After a Boiler fan on TOS flexed on this disgusting information about death wishes/threats my thoughts were that all fan bases have idiots and the large fan bases like an IU, KY, UNC etc are unfortunately going to have more of them. I fear that we will continue to see this crap given the toxic combination of highly paid players, inconsistent performance and social media.
Coaches cannot keep the kids off line and there is no good way to hold idiots accountable.
Sad
After a Boiler fan on TOS flexed on this disgusting information about death wishes/threats my thoughts were that all fan bases have idiots and the large fan bases like an IU, KY, UNC etc are unfortunately going to have more of them. I fear that we will continue to see this crap given the toxic combination of highly paid players, inconsistent performance and social media.
Coaches cannot keep the kids off line and there is no good way to hold idiots accountable.
Sad
first off, IU fans are great. If anything they have been too supportive over the years, too patient. I haven’t seen boycotts at AH over the years. I haven’t seen paper bags over people’s heads. Maybe people have tried, and they were just confiscated. But, even looking at away or neutral venues, our fans are great,
To the money thing, yes, that is the new reality. Not to mention the portal. This isn’t the Brian Evans era where we can watch a player be redshirted and then play four years. You might see that at some schools, but not at IU. Money (and players playing for 3 schools in 4 years) does make it harder to root for them. But, it shouldn’t make anyone “hate” that player.
I think it’s also a bleed over from people being too emotional in their feelings toward Woodson.
This. I don't buy that several guys were getting "death threats". How could an IU fan care that much?
I agree. 99.9% of IU fans are knowledgeable and have been supportive. Hard to imagine another fan base that would hve hung in there for twenty+ years and still sell the place out and follow on TV. This is a small message board cmpared to some others . There is a thread on BTB about the coaching search that is approaching 3,000 pages in six weeks
C'mon, haven't heard that anywhere but you, and well, like I said that's below 0 credibility now. Link the source on that? As others have said, if it's a goofy ass post from a goofy ass fan board (as I assume it was, if it even really happened), it's reprehensible, but not all that surprising. When you start taking big money, and play like crap, it's going to bring out loonies, both ours and other fanbases.
Ballo said he was getting threats so I don't think it's fair to go after people/posters for believing him at his word. There's also a facebook post going around that Woodson's early retirement was due to death threats and stalkers and leaving for his family's safety. Given that there's no proof of Woodson actually saying that, I am less inclined to believe that one.
Now I have no clue if any of the above is true (i would assume none of us do). However, I bet someone said something to Ballo (I don't think he would just make that up). Now how bad that something was and whether or not it came from an actual IU fan is unknown. We have had players in the past show photos of hate mail they have received from "fans" so obviously we either have some nutbags in our fanbase or nutbags pretending to be in our fanbase. The post about woodson could be completely fabricated by some idiot trying to stir up sympathy or could have some truth. Hoping/Thinking it is the former because I really don't think Woodson is voluntarily leaving.
Anyway, criticizing players/coaches for their performance should be fine. Threatening/stalking is not. Hopefully those crossing the line are turned into police.
I used to have that site bookmarked, but haven’t been there since the last search. 3000 pages? Is that a typo? How many posts per page?
When you run out of excuses for another disappointing performance, some have been enabled to throw down their race card.
Everyone lives life under a death threat. We spend our whole lives dealing with this threat of imminent death. It usually goes without needing to be said. Not for Ballo, it’s his grievance, his excuse.
Everyone lives life under a death threat. We spend our whole lives dealing with this threat of imminent death. It usually goes without needing to be said. Not for Ballo, it’s his grievance, his excuse.
Sorry, as I said, Zeke has proven repeatedly she'll fudge facts to match her emotions. Sadly, one of a handful of posters that I can't trust anything she says.
Honestly, at this point, IU basketball reminds me a lot of poorly run AAU teams. Their play on the court is wildly inconsistent. There's often no rhyme or reason to what they're doing, how they're subbing, etc... And then how the coach, and many of the players are responding to it... Any of us that's been to AAU events knows the teams that walk around in between games loudly complaining to anyone that will listen how they "got screwed"...for whatever reasons. Many of them after losing by 30+ points.
Neither do I. One of the things I do under my death threat is to look both ways twice before driving my car onto a street. Oh, and if I see another person with a gun my fight or flight instincts take over, particularly the latter.
He is saying someone threatened his life for his poor play. Not sure why you're trying to misrepresent that into something else.
I have wondered if it doesn’t start with roster construction and recruiting (including the portal). Woodson is responsible, but I’m not convinced that he is in charge. I’d be curious to know how we end up with the players we have, and the role that people “outside” of the program play.
That's one of those statements that is probably best to not even comment on. As its obviously awful, horrible, whatever other bad descriptions you want to use...
But when its used as some sort of false equivalent to our entire fanbase... well, then he's open for criticism on that. No one should ever be allowed to issue death threats. I wish those people could be arrested, beaten, had their own families threatened, etc...
Ok...we done with that part of his comment?...Ok? Cool... Now lets dig in to why this team is 19-13, very possibly missing out on another NCAA tournament, despite having the highest "payroll" in the conference.
It stinks too, I think Oumar played his ass off for IU. He was largely very good. He did play hard. But now he's going to be largely remembered for how it ended. Kinda similar maybe, to how he's going to allow a few unhinged asshole fans to over shadow the thousands upon thousands that supported him and cheered him on all year long. Not judging him on that, probably no way to disassociate it. But similar for IU fans hearing an over 1million dollar man get up and complain about the fans/people that made that happen for him?? Maybe???
I didn’t either. I was assuming he was the only one complaining of death threats and they were race inspired. Maybe I’m overthinking it. Perhaps it was simply, “Hello, Omar?…Omar Ballo? I’m a deranged psychopath on campus who’s going to blow your brain out if I don’t start seeing more double doubles in your box score.” Forgive me for assuming “black-ass brain”.
I didn’t read the comment but I doubt anyone would approach him in “real life”. I’m guessing he’s spending time on social media.
Pretty obvious there are two sides of the coin on this, at least for me.
Heads: Ballo can say whatever the hell he wants, and if you're upset by those comments and think he's soft and can't handle the heat, then i'd say you're soft and are hyper-analyzing what a 22yr old said after his last game of collegiate basketball. Quit being a snowflake fan.
Tails: Play better. And Mike Woodson (or was it Leal) should have never made the "True Fans" comment. That was divisive and unconstructive towards the fan base. Woodson's lack of accountability made us fans take it out on the whole team.
Ballo seems like a decent human being. He's young. He'd also kick all of our asses in a one-on-one fight. Let the man grieve.
Heads: Ballo can say whatever the hell he wants, and if you're upset by those comments and think he's soft and can't handle the heat, then i'd say you're soft and are hyper-analyzing what a 22yr old said after his last game of collegiate basketball. Quit being a snowflake fan.
Tails: Play better. And Mike Woodson (or was it Leal) should have never made the "True Fans" comment. That was divisive and unconstructive towards the fan base. Woodson's lack of accountability made us fans take it out on the whole team.
Ballo seems like a decent human being. He's young. He'd also kick all of our asses in a one-on-one fight. Let the man grieve.
It’s just disappointing he felt the need to say it to the media and I’m triggered to assume (wrongly) Ballo’s sensationalized comment was race card related.
It’s been a frustrating year for everyone choosing to follow the IU basketball program. That’s the bad news. The good news, you ask? It’s either almost over or over already.
JFC, if there really are multiple players getting actual death threats, I sure as hell hope the cops are involved. It's not that difficult to figure out who is actually behind @IUburner4trollingplayers
If it's just mean words, close your DMs or ignore them.
If it's just mean words, close your DMs or ignore them.
To my limited knowledge, Ballo, along with other players, have been playing under duress of death threats, as he stated in the BT required post game news conference with coach and his appointed players.
I went back to look and have to edit this.
It is only 2,200 pages at 25ish posts per page.
AND
It is a revived thread from the last search.
He mentioned DMs
No mention of race.
He seems like a good kid and very well spoken. Always pissed me off when Dakich trashed him.
Having coached AAU for eight years I can attest, and it has only gotten worse since I left
It’s not just “large” fan bases. Peyton Sandfort of Iowa has publicly talked about receiving death threats.
And it’s not just social media. I recall in the days before social media that public personalities would receive death threats by mail. Just a sad commentary on the less than one percent of the population who would do such things.
What a load of crap. Does the girl who got raped get blamed for wearing a short skirt? Come on. I'm replying to you, but this whole thread is disappointing. We're talking about DEATH THREATS to kids/players/employees who play a GAME.
Absolutely, the large fan bases just have more of them. Hell, I saw a post today that a couple of Purdue idiots got into a kerfluffle in the tunnels with USC players last night, so the small fan bases have idiots as well as you say.
Regarding Ballo's comments, that was my point about media training. True or not, he had a mic in front of him and let his emotions go. We are in the middle of a high profile coaching search and while many programs have fanbases with the passion that match IU's, we are in the news cycle painting us as "crazies" who make death threats to players.
I'm sure that most coaches understand that this comes with the territory, but if a highly sough after coach has two options, similar programs, similar salary, do you think a coach will take the challenge of turning around IU with all of the pressure that comes along with it? Especially with Ballo's comments so fresh in his mind?
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