Updated throughout the day with quick takes from staff.
First, the quote from Roy Williams that has sparked outrage:
"Our massage therapist told me, she said 'You know, Coach, what happened in Haiti is a catastrophe. What you're having is a disappointment.' And I told her that depends on which chair she was sitting in, because it does feel like a catastrophe to me, and that's because it is my life."
What Williams DID NOT say: UNC's season is worse, or equal to what happened in Haiti, or that UNC's season is in any way comparable to Haiti, or that what happened in Haiti wasn't the most godawful thing ever, or that he's unsympathetic to the plight of the island. See, the massage therapist is the one who made the connection between the two, not Williams.
What Williams DID say: He thinks UNC's season has been a catastrophe, not merely a disappointment.
To quote Spencer Hall, my colleague here at SB Nation: "The offramp to Outrageland is the first place a writer will go, even if they have to jump the median to get there."
Next exit just so happens to be Outrageland. Dashiell Bennett at Deadspin turns on his blinker, calls Williams a "clueless dick" and proceeds ...
You heard that right. A 2-6 ACC record is a catastrophe—if it happens to Roy Williams. Remember, this is a conversation he had with his massage therapist. You know who I bet could use a massage right now? Evan Muncie. He was pulled from the rubble of a Port-au-Prince marketplace ... YESTERDAY. Twenty seven days after the earthquake struck. You know what his first words were? "Wait, they lost to Maryland? Holy shit, the Tar Heels suck balls!"
A simple Google search reveals a host of bloggers who also claim Williams compared his team's woes to the disaster in Haiti. Which should teach Roy Williams a lesson: Don't mention the word "Haiti" ever again.
15 comments
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Sorry, Chris, you got it wrong.
If you look at the context, Williams’ massage therapist was clearly saying that UNC’s woes pale in comparison to the Haiti disaster. And the comparison does NOT depend on what chair you’re sitting in.
UNC should censure Williams for this callous remark. He should be required to tour Haiti and see for himself what catastrophe looks like. The relative misery of plunging from NCAA championship into mediocrity vs. losing your home, your family and your friends is not open to debate unless you are a sociopath.
by rickmbari on Feb 11, 2010 10:23 AM EST reply actions
Correct. And Williams, based on the quote, doesn’t disagree with that sentiment. He simply says that he considers UNC’s season to be a catastrophe. Whether that’s an exaggeration or not is a separate issue, but he never directly compares UNC’s season to Haiti.
by Chris Mottram on Feb 11, 2010 10:44 AM EST up reply actions
In Order To Understand Williams' Comments And The Context
You have to actually read them. I don’t think many people are interested in doing that.
by Andrew Sharp on Feb 11, 2010 10:48 AM EST up reply actions
"that depends on which chair you're sitting in"
does disagree with the sentiment.
by rickmbari on Feb 11, 2010 11:04 AM EST up reply actions
It disagrees w/ the sentiment that the season is a disappoint, not a catastrophe.
by Chris Mottram on Feb 11, 2010 11:22 AM EST up reply actions
Which, compared to Haiti, it is.
And let’s not forget that he was not responding off the cuff to a Haiti comparison made in public, HE brought up the comparison himself by telling the story. He needs to go see Haiti – he’ll come back thanking his lucky stars that his version of catastrophe is a mediocre basketball team.
by rickmbari on Feb 12, 2010 10:59 AM EST up reply actions
got to be kidding
These comments just prove that people will seize any opportunity to display their own moral superiority. Parsing his words to figure out what he meant, trying to take it in the worst possible way, then jumping on thier own interpretation in order to get on a high horse over it, just to make the point, “see how much better I am than Roy Williams?”
Ridiculous.
by markandcat on Feb 11, 2010 11:21 AM EST reply actions
Roy Williams pulls the woe is me crap all the time
I don’t think he actually means that the Tar Heels not making the NCAA’s is a comparable to several thousand people dying, he just lacks tact. No it isn’t actually all that offensive but its not exactly the brightest thing to do either.
He is a coach, and every coach at every program has a down year, he can live through a single year not making the tournament, he isn’t going to be fired. With three final fours and two national titles in the last 5 years, I am less than willing to give him the sympathy he seems to be asking for.
Hailtotheorange.com
by Joe Kutsunis on Feb 11, 2010 12:32 PM EST reply actions
Was he asking for sympathy?
I think you’re reading way too much into this, as well. Agreed: Bringing up Haiti in any context lacks tact. But I don’t think he was asking for anyone to feel sorry for him by admitting this season has been awful.
(For the record: I’m a Maryland fan and in no way am I a Roy Williams or UNC supporter.)
by Chris Mottram on Feb 11, 2010 12:46 PM EST up reply actions
i guess what I am saying is
how catastrophic can a season be coming off of a national championship? Ben Howland seems to have handled a similarly disappointing season without having to make more out of it than it is.
By calling his season catastrophic and for no good reason bringing up Haiti, Williams is only giving his critics ammunition and making a bad season worse than it is.
Barnes, Bullock and Marshall are coming in next year, in the grand scheme of things this year is a reloading year in an up year for the ACC. It happens.
Hailtotheorange.com
by Joe Kutsunis on Feb 11, 2010 1:20 PM EST up reply actions
UCLA's situation Is not the same
They had nowhere near the expectations UNC had, they weren’t ever ranked. UNC was ranked 6th in the preseason, and relative to the expectations everyone had before the season has definitely been a catastrophe.
by illlwill on Feb 12, 2010 2:24 AM EST up reply actions
*relative to the expectations everyone had before the season, it has definitely been a catastrophe.
by illlwill on Feb 12, 2010 2:26 AM EST up reply actions
disappointment != catastrophe
by rickmbari on Feb 12, 2010 11:01 AM EST up reply actions
What’s so disturbing about this is not that Williams was insensitive enough to offhandedly make such a thoughtless comparison. It’s that he is so self-centered that he felt compelled to repeat this little vignette to a few dozen reporters as some sort of pearl of wisdom.
Roy’s decision to share this little anecdote with the greater public clearly highlights his narcissistic personality disorder, which at this point appears to border on psychopathy.
Everything is all about Roy. When Roy gets pricked, he thinks the entire cosmos is supposed to bleed for him.
by stickdog on Feb 11, 2010 7:00 PM EST reply actions 1 recs
Exactly.
Well said, and rec’d.
by rickmbari on Feb 12, 2010 11:01 AM EST up reply actions
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