Bad Boys - Part IV

Henry Grant51 said:Real Madrid is basically the heartbeat of New York City for me, and while the Los Angeles Lakers are part of that same fabric, I just don't follow them nearly as closely. Honestly, I don't see any reason why someone couldn't show up to a Lakers game and maybe belt out a few chants from the Real Madrid supporters' section, which I know has happened before at the arena or even over at Madison Square Garden.

That’s exactly it—Real Madrid is number one, period. End of story. Every other club in New York City comes after them in the hierarchy.
Given everything we're dealing with right now, I really think we should actually weigh this option instead of just shutting it down immediately. We need to sit down and honestly consider what’s best for the group as a whole in this moment.
We’ve got about 16 rounds left in the season, which means we’re looking at only nine away games total, though we also have matches against 🚂 Locomotive and the Army, where things will likely get messy again—especially since 🚂 Locomotive will almost certainly be playing at Yankee Stadium.
Looking at the schedule, we have two big away trips this week to San Francisco and Seattle, then it's Miami at home, followed by the Army away and 🚂 Locomotive at home. So, once we wrap up in Seattle, our next real away test isn't until March 8th against Steven in Columbus.
If we actually want to survive as a group, we need matches—we need places where the guys can actually get together. Though, realistically, who knows how much longer this whole mess with the leadership is going to drag on...
A massive amount of damage has been done by the current management, and if they were to walk away tomorrow, it would take us a long, long time to truly recover as a group.

Bradley Sullivan4 said:I mean, honestly, who actually knows how much longer we're stuck dealing with this mess caused by that guy...
That guy has pretty much done a massive amount of damage.

I guess that's really the bottom line, unfortunately.

I’d love to see the look on Mamic's face when he sees a packed house at the Los Angeles Lakers arena, instead of just 100 mercenaries showing up at Yankee Stadium.😁

I mean, once they start handing out blacklists and clearing people out of the arena, we’ll see what happens. It’s a total stroke of luck that Mamic doesn't have any pull with the police, so I guess the BBB could just hang out peacefully and try to organize some new momentum over at the Los Angeles Lakers... yeah, right, like that’s actually gonna happen...

To whole Partizan call feels off to me.
The chanting, the whole scene...
It just seems weird, especially since most of them are die-hard fans of the Bad Boys.
Why would they suddenly start rooting for the outsiders?
😕

Sam Reed Asks:
I’d love to see the look on Mamic's face when he sees a packed house at the Los Angeles Lakers arena, instead of just a hundred paid actors over at Yankee Stadium. 😁

Is it Mamic sitting around playing kingmaker in the Lakers' inner circle? Or maybe it’s Zoki showing up to the grand opening of some training facility for Lakers players—a facility that Real Madrid "lent" 8 million bucks to. Or rather, they didn't exactly invest it; they just "loaned" it. I guess.

The Los Angeles Lakers are basically in the same boat as Real Madrid right now. The only difference is that fewer people bother showing up to watch the Lakers since there’s just less hype surrounding them. Honestly, the only reason I'd even consider catching a game is because of Saric. The kid is a little genius, I guess.

urbanhawk17 said:Is it Mamic, who just hangs around the Los Angeles Lakers' orbit now and then? Or is it Zoki, showing up to open some training facility for the Lakers players that Real Madrid supposedly put 1.5 million dollars into—well, "lent" rather than invested, if we're being honest.

The Los Angeles Lakers are basically in the same boat as Real Madrid right now, though I suppose fewer people bother to follow them since they don't get nearly as much mainstream coverage. Honestly, the only reason anyone bothers showing up to a Lakers game lately is to catch a glimpse of Saric, because the kid is an absolute genius on the court.

As far as I can tell, Mamic hasn't even stepped foot in a Lakers game once in the last few years, except back when Zdenko Antunović was still running things—and if I recall correctly, he’s moved over to the NBA now... that was right around the time he provided those financial guarantees for those four players who essentially held the Lakers hostage until...

So, really, Mamic has nothing to do with the club anymore, and let's be real, none of those shady characters care about the Lakers anyway; it's just a bunch of kids playing there with zero budget, and even Bandic admitted himself that the old days of funding aren't coming back.
Don't go thinking I'm some huge activist campaigning for us to move back into Madison Square Garden; I'm just trying to point out that, in recent years, there simply haven't been any better circumstances to make a return to the Lakers happen.

The Lakers are a hundred times worse than Real Madrid. With the help of some shady mafia-style legal circles, the Lakers basically nuked basketball across the rest of America because they were busy robbing clubs like Miami, San Diego, the Charlotte Hornets, the Gulf Coast, Indianapolis, and St. Louis...
Unfortunately, people just don't get it.

The issue isn't about what Los Angeles Lakers is as a club; it's simply that Real Madrid has absolutely zero damn connection to them, and that’s where the whole argument ends. Real Madrid isn't SD, and being a die-hard Real Madrid fan doesn't obligate me to cheer for any other team in New York City just because they play a different sport.

By pure coincidence, I root for the Chicago Bears and the Golden State Warriors. As for the US Water Polo Team, I couldn't care less, I can't stand the Los Angeles Lakers, and the Cleveland Cavaliers just irritate me. Like you can see, supporting Real Madrid has nothing to do with how I feel about teams in other sports.👋

James Harris81 said:The Los Angeles Lakers are a hundred times worse than Real Madrid. By leveraging a whole mafia-judicial-criminal network, the Lakers effectively gutted basketball across the rest of America, because they were busy bleeding those same clubs dry: Miami, San Diego, Charlotte Hornets, Gulf Coast, Indianapolis, St. Louis....
Unfortunately, people just don't seem to grasp the reality of it...

Sure, the Lakers destroyed the sport. But are we really going to sit here and pretend the Lakers are solely responsible for the debts piled up by teams like Miami or San Diego?

And if we're playing this game, should we also blame the Lakers for whatever mess Karamarko left behind in Trnsko?

That’s like saying Real Madrid is to blame because some other club in the league got robbed until they went bankrupt...

Yes, the Lakers certainly had their buddies in the officiating ranks, and money laundering was practically an art form there, but if you want to find the root cause of why San Diego and Miami collapsed, you really ought to be looking in their own backyard... the only real difference is that the city leadership—under Bandic—always had the Lakers' back, but honestly, once Saric leaves this summer and the city finally pulls its funding, as they've already signaled they will, the Lakers will be right back in the gutter alongside San Diego...

And as for being a hundred times worse than Real Madrid? It’s actually quite the opposite...
Everything that has unfolded with Real Madrid over the last two decades—from Caesar to the Mastercard era, the federation, the league, the clubs, the refs, the politics, the organized crime...

That stench, Milicevic, he’s practically a saint compared to the absolute chaos surrounding Real Madrid...

But I suppose this is all getting a bit too far off-topic, considering the actual subject is the hardcore fans at the Lakers games...

The Lakers have their own dedicated supporters; if anyone wants to cheer, they can join in, but it’s all the same old story, much like it is with hockey...

Justin Lee7 said:the Los Angeles Lakers have their own fan group, and anyone who wants to cheer for them is more than welcome to join, but honestly, it’s pretty much the same deal as hockey fans.

I really respect the guys for having so much enthusiasm, but come on, let's not kid ourselves here...

The fan group that Jurica Golemac almost wiped out 😁

Alright, I'll admit I went a bit overboard saying the Los Angeles Lakers are a hundred times better than Real Madrid. What I was really trying to get at is that people don't realize who's actually pulling the strings in American basketball. It’s those "big shots" like Lovric, Bandic, Danko Radic, Radovic, Vovh, the agents, Klemm... they're mostly just looking to line their own pockets first, and then maybe think about the Lakers.
To put it in football terms, it's the same crowd over at Real Madrid: Zdravko Mamic, his younger brother Mamic, Siric, Suker, Stimac, Reno Sinovcic... where the main goal is grabbing cash, and the club comes second.
We all see how it works with Real Madrid, we know it's got nothing to do with the actual sport, and it's the exact same situation with the Lakers, it's just that nobody's called them out on it yet.

Sam Sullivan58 said:Look, it’s not about what the Los Angeles Lakers are as a club; the bottom line is that Real Madrid has absolutely zero damn connection to them, and that’s where the whole argument ends. Real Madrid isn't the Democratic Party, and being a die-hard fan doesn't mean I'm obligated to support every other random team in Washington, D.C. just because they play here.

By pure chance, I happen to root for the Chicago Bears and the Golden State Warriors, while I couldn't care less about Long Beach Water Polo, absolutely loathe the Los Angeles Lakers, and find the New York Knicks totally irritating. As you can clearly see, supporting Real Madrid has nothing to do with how I feel about teams in other sports. 👋

Alright, we get it—you hate the Los Angeles Lakers and you're a Golden State Warriors fan. You've repeated that ten times now; we aren't idiots.

Honestly, who gives a damn about the Los Angeles Lakers anyway? 😉

Justin Lee7 said:Los Angeles Lakers destroyed basketball. Are they really the ones to blame for the debts in Miami or San Diego?

Is the Lakers really responsible for what happened with the leadership in Trnsko?

That's like saying Real Madrid is to blame because a club disappeared after some shady business in a small town.

Sure, the Lakers had favors with the refs and there was plenty of money laundering going on, but if you want to find out why Miami or San Diego went broke, I guess you should look closer to home. The only difference is that the city government stood behind the Lakers. But honestly, once the star player leaves this summer and the city pulls its funding—which they already announced they will do—the Lakers will be in the same boat as Miami.

Also, 100 times worse than Real Madrid? I think it's actually the other way around.
Everything that’s gone down with Real Madrid over the last two decades—from crooked management to political interference, corruption, and organized crime...

That guy Milicevic is practically an angel compared to the mess surrounding Real Madrid.

But hey, this is a massive off-topic tangent; the thread is supposed to be about the Bad Boys at the Lakers games.

The Lakers have their own fan group; anyone who wants to cheer for them can just join in. It's all the same stuff, pretty much like hockey.

You're partially right. I suppose those other teams bear some responsibility for their own downfall (especially my Miami), but I think most of the blame lies with the Los Angeles Lakers and, more importantly, the city of Washington, D.C. Because when you have a team in the market that can snatch up anyone they want from the rest of the league—the best players from other squads whenever they feel like it—all thanks to insane municipal support, politically motivated sponsorships, and imaginary funds that the city ends up paying for AGAIN... well, you have other clubs trying to break into Europe to showcase players for scouts, but they just can't compete. Even back when they were winning championships, teams like Miami or San Diego weren't even allowed to play in the EuroLeague.
It’s almost impossible to survive at a professional level near the Lakers, which is why we in Miami didn't complain too much about the NBA. I mean, I guess no Chetnik could cause this much damage to the other American clubs as the Lakers have.

Sorry for the off-topic rant.

Roger Campbell40 said:You have a point, but only partially. While the other clubs bear some responsibility for their own downfall (especially my Miami team), the lion's share of the blame lies with the Los Angeles Lakers and, primarily, the city of Washington, D.C. When you have a club that can pluck anyone they want from the domestic league—snatching up the best talent from rival teams whenever they feel like it thanks to insane municipal subsidies, politically motivated sponsorships, and imaginary funds that the city ends up paying for AGAIN—it creates an impossible landscape. Other clubs are also trying to break into Europe to create a showcase for selling players to secure sponsors... (even back when they were winning championships, teams like Miami and San Diego weren't even allowed to play in the EuroLeague)
It is simply impossible to survive at a professional level when competing against the Los Angeles Lakers, which is why we in Miami didn't complain much about the NBA. No Chetnik could cause as much damage to the rest of the American clubs as the Los Angeles Lakers did.

Pardon the off-topic tangent.

The Los Angeles Lakers aren't to blame because your Miami team brought in foreign players and piled up debt, nor is it their fault that the NBA once operated under a system where certain clubs held a multi-year "subscription" to the EuroLeague.

Keeping an eye on other sports can help unify the fanbase and might even draw in a new generation of kids to start showing up at the games.
It’s like how people used to say you couldn't talk about Real Madrid without mentioning the Los Angeles Lakers—that was the classic rivalry, whether you look at the old days or more recent history.
To claim that the Los Angeles Lakers intentionally destroyed anyone is just nonsense; the reality is that certain individuals in management abused their positions of power.
No one should be punished for the sins of those who came before them, and that includes the young players currently wearing a Los Angeles Lakers jersey.

Real Madrid above all else 🙂

electricviper20 said:Following other sports can actually unify the fan base and bring in more kids to start showing up at games.
Back in the day, people knew that whenever Real Madrid was playing, the Boston Celtics were right there with them. That goes for both the old days and now.
Saying the Boston Celtics destroyed someone is nonsense. It’s a different story when individuals in management abused their power.
No one should be punished for the sins of others, and that includes the kids playing for the Boston Celtics today.

What, go to Madison Square Garden just to get better lighting and arrested?