Of Course Ellis Lied; He Had a Rep to Protect

Sometimes, liking sports can put you in a serious pickle. For instance, Monta Ellis is an undeniably dynamic player whom many enjoy immensely. We, and his team, will miss his presence tremendously in the season's first month or so. However, he will now forever be known as "the moped guy." From the San Francisco Chronicle:

Monta Ellis was riding a moped when he severely injured his left ankle last month in his native Jackson, Miss., sources close to the Warriors guard told The Chronicle on Wednesday.

The 22-year-old tore a deltoid ligament in his ankle and sustained a high-ankle sprain in what one of the sources labeled a "low-speed" accident. Ellis underwent surgery Aug. 27 and is expected to be sidelined for at least another two months.

And "low-speed" on top of that. Look, at least we expected nothing less of space cadet Vladimir Radmanovic, who hurt his shoulder snowboarding and then, like Ellis, lied about it. Radmanovic is a flake who dresses weird. Had this happened to somone like him, it would've all made sense; him on a moped, falling off a moped, crucified on his own moped, makes sense. But you don't expect Monta Ellis to be caught dead on a scooter, much less be taken out by one. This is the guy who grew up in an area of Jackson where the courts were too dangerous to play on. I guess money really can change you, make you go soft. Or maybe that huge new contract quite literally went to his head and ruined his equilibrium.

I'm sure I'm not the first person to say this, but it's so obvious: Ellis didn't lie to avoid disciplinary issues. He did it to save face. Let's just pray it doesn't come out he'd been on a Vespa.

This post originally appeared on the Sporting Blog. For more, see The Sporting Blog Archives.