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The Chat House
With Tony Kornheiser
and Michael Wilbon
Washington Post Columnists
Friday, Aug. 3, 2001;
2:30 p.m. ET TIME CHANGE!
Are you a sports junkie? Can't get enough of Tony Kornheiser and Michael Wilbon fighting each other in the sports and style pages of The Washington Post? It's your chance to talk to both gurus LIVE!
Wilbon will make his triumphant return to The Chat House TODAY, but will be flying solo since Kornheiser is on vacation.
Submit questions before or during today's discussion.
Editor's Note: Washingtonpost.com moderators retain editorial control
over Live Online discussions and choose the most relevant questions for guests and hosts; guests and hosts can decline to answer questions.
Washington, D.C.:
So let's see. Tony goes on vacation and coaches get fired.
Michael goes on vacation and the Caps get the best player in the world, the Redskins lose a big headache and the Wizards appear to have made some good moves.
Michael, nothing personal, but when are you going on vacation again?
Michael Wilbon: Good afternoon and welcome back to The Chat House Summer Vacation edition. Tony is gone for all of August and Mike was gone for all of July. Mike will be joining you on-line for most of August so fret not. This seems like a fitting first question/comment to start with I think! We missed you! Mike is actually kind of still on vaction. He's joining you by phone from the beach. --Mary
If you want to arrange it, I can do it now! And FYI, I'm still on vacation until Monday morning. Right now I'm driving Ocean City, MD to Bethany Beach, DE and I'm doing this out of the GOODNESS of my heart on a day when work should be treated as four letter word I'm CHATTING b/c I LOVE YOU GUYS so let's get started.--Mike
Rockville:
Mike,
I know it just happened, but do you have any take on why the Sixers moved Tyrone Hill and Jumaine Jones for Tractor Traylor, Matt Harpring and Cedric Henderson?
Michael Wilbon: My answer is what? Are you kidding me? This really happened? They didn't tell me about this at the 19th hole of Lighthouse Sound when I walked off the golf course a few minutes ago. So this come as a complete shock to me. But I can tell you this: the Sixers were not that happy w/Tyrone Hill and his post season performance. Tractor Trailer gives them some inside power, inside muscle, which if you remember the series w/Lakers was a big issue. --Mike
So, that's why you were late! Golf! Of course. -- Mary
Of course golf! What would you have me do on vacation? Windows? --Mike
Golf! --Mary
North Carolina:
Mr. Wilbon,
What is your opinion on the Redskins camp thus far? How different from Norv's laid back attitude is it?
Michael Wilbon: Camp is 4 days old. So, even if I had been at Redskin camp, it would be foolish to make some definitive statement about the difference between this summer and the previous 7. But, it's safe to say b/c of the difference between Norv and Marty, that Marty's camp is going to be more..... let's us the word militaristic. Nobody has ever used the words "laid" and "back" when talking about Marty. But I have not been, thankfully, within 200 miles of Redskin camp and hope not to get there for another 7 days. --Mike
Washington, DC:
Hey Michael,
How about a nod for Lance Armstrong's inspiring third consecutive Tour de France victory.
Its early, but you can you see anyone else who could top him for SI's male athlete of the year?
Thanks...
Michael Wilbon: It is not too early to speculate on that honor. He's my front-runner. The 3 year run he has put together, taking into account his battle w/cancer, is one of the extraordinary feats in recent times. It's very difficult b/c he is doing something that the American sporting press and the sporting public don't care about in the main. But that doesn't diminish how extraordinary it is. I am in awe of Lance Armstrong. --Mike
Me too. Lance rocks. --Mary
Hopkins, Minn.:
Mr. Wilbon --
Thank you for the gracious letter concerning the death of Korey Stringer. However, I don't understand why you are so convinced that it's a commonality for a player to die from heat stroke. This was only the second on-field heat related NFL death in 22 years. It seems to me they are pretty safe.(obviosly not safe enough, though) Anyway, please explain your rationale.
-- Mike
Michael Wilbon: Is the NFL the only level of football you care about? If you read our paper this morning, you will see a story reporting somewhere between 16 and 18 heat related football player death since 1995. You don't find this to be all too common? It's frighteningly commonplace to me. High school and college football are HUGE cultural forces and young men die EVERY single summer without exception. I could care less about the NFL. Unfortunately, what Stringer's death does is it it forces all the people who only care about the NFL to look at what's going on at the high school and college levels. Are those lives less important b/c they don't belong to the NFL? --Mike
Thornton, Colo.:
Michael: After learning of Mr. Stringer's death, I quickly wondered -- what are they doing in pads when the heat index got so high? And secondly, why were they wearing dark purple, instead of white jerseys? Presumably, as you know, the white jerseys were probably worn by the Vikings offensive players, but when it gets that hot, the smart thing to do would be to have EVERYBODY wear white, and then use lightweight but different colored vests, if they were to scrimmage. You and I wouldn't wear dark colors to play golf when it's 95 degrees and 90 percent humiditiy -- why are these guys wearing 'em to play football?
Michael Wilbon: I don't know how much difference that makes when you're exerting yourself the way these men are and you weigh between 270-360 lbs. I seriously doubt a white jersey, in contrast to a dark jersey, would have made a difference in trying to save Corey Stringer. But your point is well taken in that these people should be doing everything humanly possible to reduce the risk. And that includes taking off the damn pads when it's TOO HOT. I had a fascinating call today from someone who wondered about the escape of heat and whether heat could escape Stringer's head given his hairstyle and that he might have had his helmet on. I'm not expert on this stuff. I have no idea. It would be interesting to put some of these questions to an NFL trainer. --Mike
DC:
Mike,
The Caps got Jagr. Thoughts?
Michael Wilbon: It's GREAT. What other thoughts did you expect other than it's great? Unlike my friend and tag team partner, Mr. Tony, I don't think this makes the Caps the favorite in the East. I think the Caps need another player to pull up alongside NJ. But, this gives the team every reason to feel they can seriously contend. It brings a TON of excitement and MCI ought to be the place to be this fall, winter and spring b/c of Jagr and maybe Jordan. --Mike
Michael Wilbon: Oops. Stand by folks. Cell phone just dropped out. Mike is going to call me back. --Mary
Baltimore, MD:
Mike,
Regarding the death of Korey Stringer, isn't one of the problems in sports and more so in the NFL, that players push beyond themselves because of peer pressure of being called a sissy even by the media and the fans who always glorify players who play hurt?
Michael Wilbon: That's a way too simplistic view of it. They push themselves b/c that's what they've done since they were 10 years old in order to become pros. You know how many times I've seen guys vomit on the sidelines and keep playing in every sport? Hundreds! You don't become a professional athlete w/out pushing your physical limits. This is how they become pros. If they don't, they become me and Tony and do The Chat House. They shoot 86 at Lighthouse SOund and not 67. I knew Corey Stringer. I mean chances are no one in The Chat House knew him. I knew him and I liked him and I'm not going to say for one minute that he was stupid b/c he pushed himself. Of course he did. Yeah, it's peer pressure and it's societal pressuer and it's pressure from within to be as good as you can be and you can't do that if every time you get hot or sick you say I'm going to go and have an ice tea now. The dumbest thing I've heard over the last 48 hrs "You should listen to your body." Shut up. If men listened to their bodies, there would be no professional football. Nothing that has ever happened on a football field has ever been safe or recommended. Every bit of it is insane. Don't tell me that athletes shouldn't push themselves. That's what they live for. That's why they do what they do. I'm sick about Stringer, but how many times do you think he's vomited on the sidelines in his life? Chris Carter got this right when he said "it doesn't make sense. You can't explain this. You can't reason this. No one knows what to make of this." It's tragic. It's just depressing that this guy is dead, but let's not make athletes porcelain dolls. --Mike
NYC:
Mike - Welcome back. Without giving specifics, where do the Wilbons vacation. And do those places have satellite access. A man needs to stay connected, doesn't he?
Michael Wilbon: Great question. I love that question. I'm happy to be back or almost back. And yes, I have satellite in Bethany Beach, DE. --Mike
Michael Wilbon: More on the last question: I've been watching the Cubs a lot and getting pissed off the last 2 days as they blow 3 runs leads back to back in San Diego. These pinheads are going to break my heart, I can just feel it. It's going to be 1969 all over again. --Mike
Alexandria VA:
Assuming MJ does NOT play, do you think the Wiz are doing a decent job at building a team that will be a good foundation for years ahead...
Michael Wilbon: Yeah, I actually do. I think they are going to be the overlooked story of the summer. These additions through the draft and free agency and trades should make for a much better team even if Jordan doesn't play. Remember: this is a team that used to go year after year w/no first round pick. But now, since February, the Wizards have added 4 1st round picks (Alexander, E. Thomas, Kwame Brown, Brendan Haywood) while giving up nothin'. That's good. That's good management. Are any of these guys going to make us forget Magic and Bird? No. Well, Kwame may do that one day. But, the point is to get better as fast as you can and Jordan and Rod Higgins have done a really good job since February. Even the re-signing of Laettner is important b/c if they don't want to keep him, they retain him at a salary cap # that will help faciliate potential trades and that's how you build a team, usually not w/spectacular moves, but a couple of flashy moves and some other subtle ones. --Mike
Washington, DC:
Have you met Kwame Brown since Lez Boulez drafted him? Sat down with the kid, interviewed him for a while? Just curious.
Michael Wilbon: Yes I have and when I think back to what I was like at 18 or 19, it leads to me feel that he's pretty damn impressive. I don't think many of us had his poise at 19. --Mike
Fairfax, Va.:
Hi Mike,
Please don't take offense at this, but I watch your TV show. You are very handsome and you should smile more. You always look grumpy. Please smile more. Thanks.
Michael Wilbon: Laughter. That's funny. --Mary
Thank you. But, I hate smiling. I leave smiling to Tony. I'm the designated angry one. --Mike
College Park, MD:
Mike, I'll spare you from the Redskins questions - You gonna go see Rush Hour 2?
Michael Wilbon: Ha! You know I'm not going to see it. What is w/this Jackie Chan/Chris Tucker stuff? I'm not seeing that junk. I didn't see the first one and I ain't seeing this one. I've been railing on that movie to everyone on vacation w/me. --Mike
I saw Planet of the Apes. --Mary
How was it? --Mike
Weak. The ending was bad. --Mary
I saw America's Sweethearts. Anything w/Catherine Zeta-Jones can't be bad. --Mike
Bethesda, MD:
Mike,
Welcome back, almost! Four words for you -- Brett Hull, Washington Capital.
What do you think?
Michael Wilbon: I kind of like that idea. I realize he's no great 2 way player at this point in his life, but don't the Caps have enough 2 way players. But don't they have enough players who can play defense and work the corners and fore check and back check and control the blue line? A guy who can get you some easy goals, it would seem to me that the Caps STILL need that. ANd if you've got Jagr and Bondra, how much defensive attention can a team pay to Brett Hull when he's the 3rd the best offensive player on the team? But somehow if we had George McPhee in The Chat House right now, he would talk us both out if it. --Mike
Washington, D.C.:
Mike,
Tony is trying to take credit for the trade that brought Jaromir Jagr to Washington. Does he have a case?
Michael Wilbon: Please. --Mike
Fairfax, Va:
Do you have a ferret? I just got one too!
Michael Wilbon: Freak. --Mary
Just kidding. --Mary
College Park, MD:
America's Sweethearts? Dude if you want to see Zeta-Jones, just rent the Mask of Zorro -- she's much hotter in it, it costs less, and is a MUCH better movie.
Michael Wilbon: She was hotter in that. It does cost less, but I didn't the Mask of Zorro was any great movie. Plus, this way I get Julia Roberts and Catherine Zeta-Jones for the price of one movie. So it's actually cheaper! Take that ferret! --Mike
Ann Arbor, Mich.:
Which do you think the best Redskins team ever was -- 1972, 1982, 1983, 1987 or 1991?
Michael Wilbon: I am not a Redskins historian. I did not grow up in Washington. I covered the NFL, not the Redskins, in my days as a reporter. So we would have to have a guest in the Chat House to intelligently answer that question. In 1972, I was 13 years old hoping and praying that Dick Butkis and Gale Sayers could make one trip to the playoffs (which they couldn't). So, I'm not the guy you want to have on your side in the bar room debate. When the Skin were playing all those games in the 80's and early 90's, I was off covering Bill Walsh's 49'ers, Bill Parcells's Giants, Ditka's Bears, Elway's Broncos, Glanville's Oilers, Bo Jackson's Raiders, Marino's Dolphins... but not the Redskins. --Mike
Burke, VA:
Say it ain't so, Mike. Washingtonian reports that you and da man are in serious negotiations to do a daily show w/ESPN that would cause you both to leave the Post. Would you seriously give up the chance to give up writing thoughtful prose for the chance to yammer before 12-year-olds and a lot more money?
Michael Wilbon: Of course.... it's no secret that Tony and I have been approached by ESPN. But, we hope we can have our cake and eat it too which means writing our columns and doing TV.
And what about The Chat House? --Mary
First and foremost, we are newspaper guys.... but so were Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert...ain't that wishful thinking? There are plenty of people out there who do both. --Mike
College Park, MD:
I humbly appologize Mike, your Julia Roberts + Zeta-Jones for the price of one logic is brilliant.
Michael Wilbon: That was pretty good wasn't it? I thought of that one my own. It actually is a pretty good movie. I'm going to try to see The Score this weekend. --Mike
I've heard that's good. --Mary
Greenbelt, MD:
Hi Mike--
Some columnist on ESPN wrote yesterday about how Jordan was playing as well as he did when he left the league. He made this evaluation after seeing Jordan play with middle-tier NBA players. I have my doubts until I see him with Shaq, Kobe, Iverson, or Carter.
What are your thoughts?
Thanks and I hope you have a wonderful vacation. And Mary, have a fab weekend.
Michael Wilbon: Thank you. I don't know who from ESPN said this.... I doubt it was my close friend David Aldridge. But nobody know how the heck good is until he steps on a court in November. We can't tell b/c he played some pick-up games against Penny Hardaway. We can't tell how good Jordan is going to be until he steps on a court in November. I hope he can be as good as he was, but you can't tell off of some meaningless junk games in July. ---Mike
Thanks! I will. Great weekend to lay out by my pool!--Mary
D.C.:
Mike -
What are the 3 best golf courses out by the beach?
Michael Wilbon: A tie for first: Lighthouse Sound and Baywood with Bear Trap Dunes right behind them. Baywood, which I had never heard of before a couple of months ago, is just stunningly beautiful and Lighthouse Sound, lives up to what is now, quite a bit of hype. Of course, it's easier for me to like it having just shot a personal best round of 86... thank you for asking.--Mike
Alexandria, va.:
Hey I thought this was supposed to be about ferrets!!!! Let's talk about the little carpet sharks. Weasel power! So, does Mike have a ferret or not?
Michael Wilbon: No I don't have a ferret. --Mike
Yeah, you do. You have a stuffed one in your office that I gave you. The Chat House mascot. Tony has one too. --Mary
Washington, DC:
To the guy with the Greenbelt question,
The author of the article on Jordan is a guy who should know what he's talking about, having watched him for years: Rick Telander, Sun Times.
Michael Wilbon: Thanks for the heads up. Yeah, Rick has watched him for years and he's a good friend of mine (a fellow NU Wildcat). I gotta call him tonight. It's quite a pronouncement. I love Rick, but I wanna know how he knows. I wonder if Jordan even feels the same way. --Mike
Michael Wilbon: Shout Outs:
To Jake Bradfield at Camp Letts! You better read those clips. There will be a pop quiz! Have fun. --Mike
Shout out to Mary's blind date from this week: you're a slug. You blew it buddy. --Mike
I need some better blind dates! Please God. Actually, the guy was VERY nice. Just not my type. I can't be mean. --Mary
Shout out to Neville Waters, who can almost hear my shout out b/c he's here in this house w/me, but for local people who know Neville, they should know, he's leaving DC in the next few weeks to go to Columbus, GA where he'll be Director of Marketing for the NBA's Developmental League team, the River Dragons. So, Neville will not be around to lend support to me and Tony. --Mike
Silver Spring:
Mike-
Bear trap dunes is terrific course. Have you played the Newport Bay course at OC Golf and Yacht club? Beautiful course that requires a lot of different shots and well placed balls off the tee.
Michael Wilbon: That's what I heard, but I never got to it. I just played the 3 courses I mentioned and tried to do other vacation related things like go to the beach and sleep 18 hours a day. But if I ever get back here (back to DE beaches), I'm fairly certain I'll play that courses b/c I didn't get around to it this time. --Mike
Chocolate City:
Will this be the first time that Washington-area sports fans will look past the Redskins season in order to get to the Jordan and Jagr shows coming to an MCI Center near you?
Michael Wilbon: Very good question/observation. I certainly hope so. It's really frightening all these people who are these Redskin Camp heads who hang on every word coming out of Carlisle in August. As if any of it means a darn thing! Those people should take off their jerseys now, put them in the hamper, put on a pair of shorts and t-shirt, take a book and go to the beach and try to not say the word "Redskin" for 2 weeks. It won't make you less of a fan. In fact, it may make you a better one. Now, this isn't last year when you had Deion and all these fabulous people coming in. It's just camp, lots of sweating and heaving going on. Try to enjoy your weekend and leave camp to the professionals. --Mike
We have to go. Mary has a hot, blind date now. --Mike
Uh, not. I do have another job I need to get back to. But I love you people! --Mary
Mary and I will back next Friday before Pre-season Game 1 which I know will cause many of you to hyper-ventilate. Cheers. --Mike
Mike and I will be here in The House through most of August until I go on vacation (at the end of August). I'm headed back to Australia! Yeah! Enjoy your weekends. Good to be back. We missed you! --Mary
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