You actually may not be aware that since the MLS Is Back tournament, the Whitecaps have been playing. They have been playing Toronto FC and the Montreal Impact.
If you haven’t heard, I can’t blame you. The Canucks were on a playoff run. It was a stressful summer. There is lots going on.
I can however, blame the Whitecaps.
During this pandemic, not only the Vancouver Canucks were off, but the CFL season has been cancelled. Which means no B.C. Lions. Yet, they have won once since they have returned.
The Whitecaps have made more news off the field news than they have on the field. And, not in a good way.After bringing in Mark Pannes as CEO in the offseason, a few short weeks later, they decided to go with Axel Schuster. They recently did another shuffle bringing in a chief revenue officer and a chief marketing officer.
This is no criticism on Schuster. Time will tell if he is the right person for this job. But the Whitecaps have a consumer confidence issue. Who’s leading? Who’s starring? Who is the face of this franchise? And how has this team contributed back to the Vancouver and BC market?
The best marketing strategy is winning. And the Whitecaps haven’t really done that. Since they have returned from Orlando, they have won 1 game and lost 4 heading into tonight’s game against the Impact.
The on-field struggles combined with the off-field PR issues have put the Whitecaps behind the sporting landscape. As the Vancouver Canucks showed in the summer, this city is starving for sports success. Hopefully the end of the year, the Whitecaps can turn this around,
Let’s go back to June 13, 2019. The Toronto Raptors won their first NBA Championship. Not only that, but they were also the first Canadian team since 1993 to winMajor Sports Championship. Sorry, I’m not counting the Grey Cup or the MLS.
The biggest reason? The number 1 reason? Kawhi Leonard.
In what was the boldest trade in Canadian history, Masai Ujuri traded DeMar Derozian, Jakob Poeltl, and a protected 2019 first-round pick for Danny Green and Kawhi Leonard. Leonard was going to be a free agent that was unlikely to come back.
Now, to be fair, the Raptors handling of Leonard was nothing short of masterful. We learned the term “load management “. But Kawhi gave the Raptors swagger. That swagger led to the “shot” vs the 76ers. He was, and US media will debate this, the best player in the NBA last year.
The Toronto Raptors would not have won the NBA Championship without him. Period. End of story. And I will get into this in another post. But Kawhi Leonard is the most important Raptor in history. It was him, not Vince Carter, not Tracy McGrady that took the Raptors to the championship level. And we will, and are seeing the impact Kawhi had on basketball in this country.
But, my oh my, how quickly the Raptor fans forget.
Last night, Kawhi Leonard and the Los Angeles Clippers were eliminated by the Denver Nuggets last night. Yes, they blew a 3-1 series lead. But they were more than willing to take shots at Kawhi. Kawhi should have stayed in Toronto they said. This in spite of the fact the Raptors are also out of the playoffs.
How quickly the Raptor fans forget. So let’s look back.
Kawhi never hid his desire to play in Southern California. He bought a house in San Diego. He was a Lakers fan growing up. It would have taken a lot for him to come back to Toronto. If you listen to most Raptor discussion last year, this was known.There was hope. Real hope. Remember the plane following his car, allegedly, from Pearson airport to downtown Toronto.
But this is what it came down too is this. Kawhi, like Lebron before him, wanted his players on his team. The players have the power in the NBA. He wanted Paul George. The Raptors were hesitant. They couldn’t make it work. Kawhi moved on.
But let me say it again. The Raptors would not have won the NBA Championship without Kawhi Leonard.
While it didn’t work for Kawhi and the Clippers, guess what? It didn’t work out for the Raptors.They are still missing that superstar.
But, the story last night, and what most Canadians are excited about is, Jamal Murray. The Kingston Ontario product was THE STAR last night. His 40 points last night outscored Kawai, Paul George, and Lou Williams 24 last night. He now has 4 of the Denver Nuggets top 10 playoff performances in their history.
He is quite possibly this generation’s Steve Nash. The new face of Canadian basketball.
Canadians and Raptor fans should be happy for Jamal Murray.It’s a great story. But they also shouldn’t forget what Kawhi Leonard did for the franchise and this country. That would be fickle.
Stigma-a mark of disgrace associated with a particular circumstance, quality, or person
Dak Prescott is the quarterback of the NFL’s most valuable franchise, the Dallas Cowboys. For some, this is the most important position in professional sports. Not only because of his position, quarterback, but he is the quarterback of America’s Team. Prescott admitted this week about struggling with depression. He was grieving the loss of his brother.
In an interview In Depth with Graham Bensinger, Prescott said this.
“Honestly, a couple of days before my brother passed, I started experiencing depression,” “I didn’t know what I was going through, to say the least, and hadn’t been sleeping at all. But for one night, I sleep the best I’ve slept, missing 10-plus calls from Tad and giving my dad enough time to come in my bedroom and tell me what happened. So I woke up after the best night of sleep I’ve had in 2020 from the worst news — some of the worst news I’ll ever get.”
“When you have thoughts that you’ve never had, I think that’s more so than anything a chance to realize it and recognize it, to be vulnerable about it,” Prescott said. “Talked to my family, talked to the people around me simply as I did at the time. Some of them obviously had dealt with it before, was able to have those conversations and then reach out further just to more people.”
Because of who Prescott is, the number 1 Quarterback on the most popularfranchise, it prompted discussions around the NFL. This includedSkip Bayliss from Undisputed. For context, this is the full quote.
“I have deep compassion for clinical depression, but when it comes to the quarterback of an NFL team, you [Shannon Sharpe] know this better than I do, it’s the ultimate leadership position in sports, am I right about that?” Bayless said on UnDisputed “You are commanding an entire franchise… And they’re all looking to you to be their CEO, to be in charge of the football team.
“Because of all that, I don’t have sympathy for him going public with, ‘I got depressed,’ ‘I suffered depression early in COVID to the point that I couldn’t even go work out.’ Look, he’s the quarterback of America’s team …
“The sport that you play, it is dog eat dog. It is no compassion, no quarter given on the football field. If you reveal publicly any little weakness, it can affect your team’s ability to believe in you in the toughest spots and it can definitely encourage others on the other side to come after you.”
Many, including myself, have been quite critical of Bayliss’s comments. Siting admiration for Prescott’s vulnerability, which is what a leader does. Even this Tweet from Sportsnet’s Dan Murphy.
Within the last 10 years, there has been a more of an openness to outwardly discuss mental health. Initiatives like Bell Let’s Talk have certainly helped.Dr. Bonnie Henry has talked about the importance of our mental health during our COVID19 crisis. This is leading to more people reaching out.According to this article in the Kelowna News, Aaryn Stecker from the Interior’s Health CMHA said they saw an increase of between 30 and 50 percent call volume during the COVID Crisis.
However, that doesn’t mean Bayliss’s opinion is as rare as we think. Especially around sports where they can be high expectations of competitiveness and winning. In her 2017 Ted Talk, Victoria Garrick said;
If you have ever had an injury, torn a ligament, sprained an ankle, I just want you to raise your hand.”
Awesome, that’s like, most of the room. That’s pretty common.
Now I want you to raise your hand if you have had depression and anxiety
“Small amount of hands raised.”
“You can put your hands down.”
Did you feel that tension or that awkwardness we created together? Did you maybe judge someone who raised their hand? Or were you afraid to raise your own hand because of what people might think?
1 in 4 people suffer from a mental health issue. Which is 25% of this room right now.
If we are to strictly follow this 1 in 4 number, think of it this way.
Of the 31 players the Vancouver Canucks took to the NHL Bubble, 8 would struggle with mental health.
Of the 53 men on the Seattle Seahawks roster,13 would struggle with mental health.
Of the 29 Vancouver Whitecaps, 7 would struggle with mental health.
Yet if stars like Elias Pettersson, Bo Horvat, Russell Wilson, or Alphonso Davies admitted to a struggle, they would face the same stigma from many.
The public stigma is one thing to deal with. However, there is another gremlin that is important to realize. It is a private stigma. And for this, I’m going to be a personal experience
In 2018, I got my “dream” job. I was going to be a Producer at a radio station in Kamloops. For the record, the dream was the radio station, not Kamloops. But I got the job! I was on the road to success.
I was living in Vancouver at the time. I had to move to Kamloops and start in a couple of weeks. But, I had a positive attitude. I’m willing to do whatever it takes to get to the “top”. So it would be no problem to find a place and work would be easy! Right? Well, it wasn’t.
I bounced around from Airbnb to Airbnb until I found a place. I was also working 12 hour days to line up guests. I was so overwhelmed and so unaware that I was overwhelmed. I was so deeply stressed with nowhere to turn.
I finally found a place to live in. However, a couple of days later, it was decided I was not a fit for the job. They let me go.
I was depressed. It was a huge risk, that I didn’t have a cushion to back me up. But as I look back on this, it didn’t start as a low, sad, depression. I was trying to be undaunted, determined, and “positive”. I wasn’t going to let my circumstances knock me down. But they were knocking me down.
A friend of mine who was a health care professional messaged me. And, this is what she said to me.
Hi Kev,
I’m sorry that this job didn’t work out for you.
I wanted to check in with you, because there are many people who care for you and are in your corner.
From my professional experience, this year you have experienced MANY, of the life experiences that rate your stress level in the ‘high’ level
Check out the article of the list of life events that are stressors
This being said not to drag it out to the open, but to shed light on it so, as to work with it and change it.
I want to show love and with honesty and grace, I think you might be at risk for depression (situational depression) or for having suicidal thoughts which can lead to action.
But, I couldn’t get help.I was strong. I had faith. I needed to be positive. I have to bounce back. Anything else would be a failure. That was my private stigma said. And that fight was worse than any public shame could give. Because that is what held me back.
But, She was right. As much I was trying to keep “up”, I had a very severe mental breakdown.It led me to move back to Vancouver and come back to school.
In any competitive situation, sports, dance, acting, and yes even radio, you are going to have your ups. But you are also going to lose. Things won’t work out your way. Circumstances will hit you hard. Perhaps harder than it “should”. There is the public stigma that speaks to you. But don’t forget about the private stigma that speaks loudly as well.
No matter who you are. Star player on the team. A reporter for the team. Somewhere in the middle. You are not alone.1 in 5 will experience some sort of mental illness. It’s ok to get help. Publicly or privately.
As I close this, I want to share something that my counselor gave me.
This is a wheel of feelings. In any situation, you will not feel one thing about something. You will feel several. I have used this wheel to work through thongs I’m feeling and it helps. I hope it can help you.
Before 2020, the news and sports were considered separate. The news is real life. The economy, jobs, current events, and, of course, politics. Sports was the diversion, the escape, the comfortable distraction for the things that truly mattered. Papers and newscasts would separate the news section and the sports section. Unless it was a major event, rare would they crossover.
That was until this year. Or, if you want to be more specific, March 11. That was when Oklahoma Thunder head medical staffer Donnie Strack ran onto the basketball court of the Utah Jazz vas Oklahoma Thunder game and say don’t play. And we learned Ruby Goebert had COVID19.
Slowly but surely, the NBA, the NHL, Major League Baseball, CFL, tennis, racing, and golf put everything on pause. This spilled into the lower levels. Junior hockey paused. USports paused.
Sports stopped. Not because of a strike, or a lockout. But, ]something that hasn’t happened in 100 years. A global pandemic.
Sports fans sat. And waited, And waited. We got by reliving some of our favorite sports moments, The 2011 Canuck Stanley Cup run. The 1994 Canuck run. It served us for a time. But, we missed sports.
However, on May 25, three words were uttered that pushed sports into the news.
“I Can’t Breathe.”
Those were the final words of George Floyd. Floyd died after a police officer pressed his neck for close to 10 minutes. For many of us, it shook us to our very core. It was a recognition that something was wrong. We all wanted to do something. In the midst of a pandemic, there were, and still are, protests. Sacrificing times of social distancing to lend their voice. This included professional athletes. NBA, WNBA, NFL, MLB, tennis, and golf. Even the normally politically quiet NHL spoke out.Players likeZdeno Chara, Tyler Seguin, Matt Dumba,and Evander Kane were standing, speaking, educating.
While many were supportive, there were voices saying something different.
“Stick to sports”
“Just dribble”
“Shut up and play”
The demand of keeping sports in sports.
When sports returned, they, like a lot of us, know there needs to be a change. We saw steps on the need for change. Matt Dumba gave a powerful speech when the NHL returned.
For many, it resonated. From many perspectives, the words rang true. It was their desire. Yet, for some, these words came out.
“Stick to sports.”
“Just dribble.”
“Shut up and play.”
Then, August 23. Jacob Blake is shot in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Not once. Not twice. Seven times. It sounded like a collective and loud “ENOUGH” !. The Milwaukee Bucks led a walkout of their NBA playoff game. This led to the rest of the NBA doing the same.was slowly followed by MLB and the NHL doing the same.
Again, many understood. But, those voices again.
“Stick to sports”
“Just dribble”
“Shut up and play”
This weekend, the NFL returned. With some places with fans, some without. They also had an expression of unity.This was met with some booing. And while there are deeper reasons for the opposition, the premise being held is that they don’t want sports to be political. They value the comfort of the escape. They want the distraction.
Yet, they forget that sports have always had a voice in societal change. It has always left a mark in our world. Here are some examples.
-Jesse Owens. Winning the Gold in 100, 200, 4X 100, and Long Jump in 1936 in Berlin. As Adolf Hitler is watching.
-Jackie Robinson. The first African American player to play Major League Baseball.
-Muhammad Ali. Converting to Islam, Cassius Clay changed his name to Muhammad Ali. He also refused to go to the military.
Even closer to home, Terry Fox. His run on led across Canada raised money and awareness for cancer and inspired Canadians.
The reality is while sports can be an escape, more often than not, sports has been a catalyst for change. Some of the most influential and admired voices of our time are professional athletes. Athletes who have overcome their own systemic oppression and odds to get where they are today. Athletes who have seen fellow athletes, friends, and even family members struggle through this oppression that held them back.
Not only in the news and sports, for too long, our culture has also lived in a form of separation. The haves and the have nots have been divided. And, to use a sports term, the playing field isn’t level. On more than one level. Whether it be about racial injustice, social injustice, or financial injustice, there is a growing understanding that what we are doing is not working. The privilege is real. It’s not something we can escape from. It’s not something we can drink a beer to get away from. It’s not something a weekend nap can take away. This is something we all need to face and get on the field to help.
We may have lost our escape and it hurts. But in the long run, the wins will feel great.
