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fh84
02-12-2012, 10:22 PM
While going on to laude Austin's performance against UNC in his power rankings, Mike Titus on Grantland starts his part about Rivers like this:

"Even though he's the cockiest freshman I've ever seen and his face is just asking for a fist to be thrown into it, there's no denying that Austin Rivers is one talented sum I'm a real wanker for saying this.I'm a real wanker for saying this.I'm a real wanker for saying this.I'm a real wanker for saying this.I'm a real wanker for saying this.. One of my Twitter followers (@realjoshuasmith) suggested that because of his performance against North Carolina on Wednesday night, Rivers earned the right to be referred to by his real name this week instead of ARPF,5 and I have no choice but to agree. " (ARPF according to Titus stands for "Austin Rivers' Punchable Face")

While it's clear, he really doesn't like Duke, I can't believe a somewhat "serious" sportswriter (don't even want to call him journalist) would write something like that. Especially about a 19 year old kid, no matter if he likes Rivers or not.
Here is link: http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/7562443/titus-top-12-power-rankings-week-9-including-kentucky-austin-rivers-rest-week-college-basketball
I am looking for his email but haven't found it yet. Does anybody else want to shoot him an email? :mad:

slower
02-12-2012, 10:45 PM
While going on to laude Austin's performance against UNC in his power rankings, Mike Titus on Grantland starts his part about Rivers like this:

"Even though he's the cockiest freshman I've ever seen and his face is just asking for a fist to be thrown into it, there's no denying that Austin Rivers is one talented sum I'm a real wanker for saying this.I'm a real wanker for saying this.I'm a real wanker for saying this.I'm a real wanker for saying this.I'm a real wanker for saying this.. One of my Twitter followers (@realjoshuasmith) suggested that because of his performance against North Carolina on Wednesday night, Rivers earned the right to be referred to by his real name this week instead of ARPF,5 and I have no choice but to agree. " (ARPF according to Titus stands for "Austin Rivers' Punchable Face")

While it's clear, he really doesn't like Duke, I can't believe a somewhat "serious" sportswriter (don't even want to call him journalist) would write something like that. Especially about a 19 year old kid, no matter if he likes Rivers or not.
Here is link: http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/7562443/titus-top-12-power-rankings-week-9-including-kentucky-austin-rivers-rest-week-college-basketball
I am looking for his email but haven't found it yet. Does anybody else want to shoot him an email? :mad:

Titus is an ex-Ohio State benchwarmer who writes for Grantland. All you need to know.

mbd1mbd1
02-12-2012, 10:58 PM
You might also want to know that his first name is Mark, not Mike.

fh84
02-12-2012, 11:03 PM
My bad, you're correct, Mark Titus is his name. it's been a long day.

mo.st.dukie
02-12-2012, 11:36 PM
I really, really hope Austin hits several more daggers before his career at Duke is over. It is completely ridiculous how people have these preconceived notions of who he is as a person and player. If he stays at Duke for 3 years (I know, highly unlikely) he could rival J.J. and Christian for most hated Blue Devil ever, he may not even have to stay that long. For some reason people have this automatic hatred for the kid and I have a feeling a lot of it has to do with him growing up in a wealthy family and then choosing Duke (seen as the place for wealthy, privileged kids to play basketball). I don't even want to hear about cockiness. Remember the tweets from P.J. Hairston? That was cocky. Have people not been watching all the crap Terrence Jones does? But of course those guys play for UNC and UK so they are protected by the media.

subzero02
02-12-2012, 11:48 PM
He's got more swagger than any freshman I've ever seen at Duke, including JJ. I enjoy it though and welcome it... So long as it doesn't affect team chemistry. I do know one thing, if he wore the wrong shade of blue he'd be the most disliked Heel since Makhtar.

uh_no
02-12-2012, 11:57 PM
Titus is an ex-Ohio State benchwarmer who writes for Grantland. All you need to know.

All you need to know :P

muzikfrk75
02-13-2012, 12:40 AM
"punchable face"?

Yeah, he's definitely overdoing it with the hate.

Mike Corey
02-13-2012, 06:44 AM
Many of the contributors to Grantland are neither writers nor journalists.

Like Bill Simmons, they're attention-seekers, guys that can put many words together and tell a compelling story--many compelling stories--that pull in hits, which is the pull for advertisers...and for employment with ESPN.com.

Shane Ryan does a very nice job with his work for the site, though I am biased toward his work.

As to Titus' punch line, just let it go: he's drunk on the Kool Aid. Titus doesn't know how to critique his game, so he critiques his face. It is perhaps how he reacts to a woman entirely uninterested in him. Rather than understand, he denigrates.

The sad thing is that he has an audience for his jabs, and an employer unwilling to block them.

jipops
02-13-2012, 09:18 AM
It is interesting how a display of confidence by a player on any other team is simply just another college player displaying confidence. But on Duke, of course, any player that displays that same level of confidence or cockiness has to be one of the biggest jerks in all of college basketball.

I guess Titus never watched Rashad McCants play.

roywhite
02-13-2012, 09:24 AM
It is interesting how a display of confidence by a player on any other team is simply just another college player displaying confidence. But on Duke, of course, any player that displays that same level of confidence or cockiness has to be one of the biggest jerks in all of college basketball.

I guess Titus never watched Rashad McCants play.

IMO, those perceptions can carry over to officials.

I see Andre Dawkins get technicals, and Daniel Ewing for another example, for actions that don't draw that call when done by other teams.
Not that it is a huge deal, though perhaps it will seem like a big deal if it figures into the outcome of a game.

slower
02-13-2012, 10:07 AM
Many of the contributors to Grantland are neither writers nor journalists.

Like Bill Simmons, they're attention-seekers, guys that can put many words together and tell a compelling story--many compelling stories--that pull in hits, which is the pull for advertisers...and for employment with ESPN.com.

Shane Ryan does a very nice job with his work for the site, though I am biased toward his work.

As to Titus' punch line, just let it go: he's drunk on the Kool Aid. Titus doesn't know how to critique his game, so he critiques his face. It is perhaps how he reacts to a woman entirely uninterested in him. Rather than understand, he denigrates.

The sad thing is that he has an audience for his jabs, and an employer unwilling to block them.

Although, in (partial) defense of Grantland, some of their writers are excellent (Chuck Klosterman and Brian Phillips, just to name two) - much better than Rick Reilly-level work.

cruxer
02-13-2012, 10:08 AM
In fairness, some of Austin's rep comes from before he even landed at Duke and is based on his Twitter comments. Nicknaming himself SubZero and stating that he didn't fear Lebron didn't go over too well in some circles. I like a little brashness, especially if one can back it up.

I wouldn't get too worked up over the hyperbolic language on any blog, even one underwritten by the wwl. Their job is to get eyeballs any way they can and ridiculous, outlandish language is a sure-fire winner.

-c

Chicago 1995
02-13-2012, 10:17 AM
Titus's blog is written with the snarky, tongue in cheek tone that much much of the internet world speaks these days.

Don't take this stuff so seriously.

Billy Dat
02-13-2012, 10:49 AM
Titus's blog is written with the snarky, tongue in cheek tone that much much of the internet world speaks these days.

Don't take this stuff so seriously.

I agree If you don't like the tone of sites like Grantland, don't read them. Up until last year, Mark Titus was a bench warmer on Ohio State who became famous via his blog, ClubTrillion.com. The name came from the idea that, as a bench warmer, your stat line often looked like the number One Trillion, as in, one minute played followed by a long list of zeros in the other stat categories. He clearly says he is anti-Duke because of Duke's success, give major props to K, but takes shots where he feels like it. With the internet offering zero barrier to publication, there is always going to be a sliding scale from highly professional journalists to hacks. Personally, I am interested in Titus because as a just-graduated player, he is very close to the current crop of players and has some interesting insights.

Personally, I think Titus provides better insight about Duke than Grantland's Shane Ryan who is supposed to be a huge Duke fan. Ryan spent many words in the post-UNC game article talking about how Tyler Zeller is the most hated Tar Heel among Duke fans. Does anyone on this board feel that way? I think the Black Pidgeon has that title sewn up.

MChambers
02-13-2012, 11:09 AM
Personally, I think Titus provides better insight about Duke than Grantland's Shane Ryan who is supposed to be a huge Duke fan. Ryan spent many words in the post-UNC game article talking about how Tyler Zeller is the most hated Tar Heel among Duke fans. Does anyone on this board feel that way? I think the Black Pidgeon has that title sewn up.
I can't understand why anyone would hate Tyler Zeller (not that any players should be hated). He's a very good, clean player. Doesn't whine, isn't particularly rough, doesn't travel on 90% of his possessions.

dukebluesincebirth
02-13-2012, 11:13 AM
This is the second time that I've heard/read mention of Tyler Zeller being Duke's most hated TarHeel in recent weeks... I don't get it. I've never had a problem with Zeller for any reason. In fact, I've often thought that he would've looked great in Duke blue. I really don't hate any of the current tarheel players. If I had to choose a most disliked, I guess it would be the Wounded Falcon.

Mike Corey
02-13-2012, 12:59 PM
I agree If you don't like the tone of sites like Grantland, don't read them. Up until last year, Mark Titus was a bench warmer on Ohio State who became famous via his blog, ClubTrillion.com. The name came from the idea that, as a bench warmer, your stat line often looked like the number One Trillion, as in, one minute played followed by a long list of zeros in the other stat categories. He clearly says he is anti-Duke because of Duke's success, give major props to K, but takes shots where he feels like it. With the internet offering zero barrier to publication, there is always going to be a sliding scale from highly professional journalists to hacks. Personally, I am interested in Titus because as a just-graduated player, he is very close to the current crop of players and has some interesting insights.


Fair enough.

I've been a fan of Titus' storytelling. I just don't think it's funny or appropriate, now that Titus has graduated to a professional writing gig, to even snarkily suggest someone is punchworthy.

And very true to the commenter above that Klosterman and others are top-flight. I should not have spoken with such generalities.

Devilsfan
02-13-2012, 01:26 PM
You all have to forgive Titus. Sitting that long on the bench for the Buckeyes must have given him irreversible brain damage. Guess we just didn't realize where his brains must be located.