How's Obama at hoops? His trash talk is politically correct.
| Washington
President Obama plays basketball Thursday night with an illustrious group of cabinet secretaries and members of Congress. Thirteen Democrats and two Republicans. All men, but who鈥檚 counting?
We鈥檙e not sure about the hoop skills of Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner or Interior Secretary Ken Salazar or, for that matter, most of the other guys invited (see list below). But we do know there will be at least two genuine athletes on the floor 鈥� Education Secretary Arne Duncan, who played professional basketball in Australia after college, and Rep. Heath Shuler (D) of North Carolina, a onetime quarterback in the NFL.
We also know that pickup hoops is part of Mr. Obama鈥檚 fitness regimen, and that one of his regular partners on the White House court is Reggie Love, Obama鈥檚 personal aide, who played on Duke University鈥檚 championship team in 2001 and was later captain.
And who can forget that during the campaign while visiting US troops in Kuwait? So we know Obama鈥檚 got game. But what鈥檚 it like to play with him?
Vic Lombardi, a sportscaster at CBS4 TV in Denver, knows. Mr. Lombardi played twice with Obama during the campaign 鈥� once before the future won the nomination, and again on the day Obama delivered his big acceptance speech at Denver鈥檚 Invesco Field.
A pick-up game in Denver
The first time, in May 2008, came about by sheer happenstance. Lombardi was at the gym, and there was Obama, so Lombardi introduced himself, he told the Monitor in an interview last spring.
鈥淗ey, listen,鈥� Obama said, 鈥淚 have members of my staff here, five or six guys, we wanna play full court, you go find a few guys.鈥�
So, Lombardi says, 鈥淚 went back up to the weight room, told four or five guys, 鈥楬ey, Barack Obama鈥檚 downstairs, you wanna play basketball?鈥� Most of them looked at me like I was an alien. But I managed to get four to five guys down there, and we proceeded to play ball for a good hour, hour and a half.鈥�
鈥淚t was pretty cool,鈥� says Lombardi. 鈥淗e covered me, I covered him. I was watching him the entire night. He plays really hard, played smart.鈥�
Apparently Obama plays hard enough to destroy a sneaker. Lombardi says in the third game of the night, Obama was running down the court, and it looked as if his shoe was coming apart. 鈥淚t got a little dangerous out there, so he backed out and said, 鈥業鈥檓 just watching from here on out.鈥� 鈥�
Politically correct trash talking
Is it true that Obama likes to talk trash out there on the court?
鈥淣ot the kind of trash-talking I鈥檓 used to hearing, trust me,鈥� says Lombardi. 鈥淭his is what you call politically correct trash-talking.鈥�
鈥淢ost of the talking he did was to his own teammates. Very rarely in pickup basketball do you see a guy gather up his teammates before or after a game, huddle 鈥榚m up and give instructions. It just doesn鈥檛 happen, but he was doing that. He was showing the natural leadership role. After we beat him the first game, he got his guys together, and said, 鈥楬ere鈥檚 what we need to do 鈥︹��"
What is politically correct trash talk?
鈥淢ost of the talk was directed towards ... the guys he knows. He would have never talked trash to guys he didn鈥檛 know. That鈥檚 sort of a no-no in basketball. Like Reggie Love -- he was like, 鈥楥鈥檓on Reggie, you gonna miss all night? I thought you were better than that Reggie.鈥� 鈥�
So it鈥檚 motivational politically correct trash talk.
鈥淓xactly. I turned in my A-game that day, I couldn鈥檛 miss. I almost felt bad. I couldn鈥檛 play him too aggressively, I didn鈥檛 want to break his nose with an unfortunate foul. He was pretty crafty with his left hand. Every time he got me down low, he found a way to score.鈥�
Is it true that he likes to fake right, then go left?
鈥淗e normally likes to, what they call the up-and-under move, where he has the ball, fakes one way, waits for you to jump, then ducks under you. That was the favorite move that I noticed.鈥�
He doesn't like to lose
Just how competitive is Obama?
鈥淗e鈥檚 pretty competitive. He was upset when they lost鈥�. He knew the score. Every single time down, he said the score out loud. He played defense pretty hard, and he did not want to lose, let鈥檚 put it that way. After they lost the first game, they got together, tried to find a way to win. After they lost the second game, he was still pretty desperate to win. He did not wanna lose, he wanted no part of that.鈥�
There was no ref, right?
鈥淚t鈥檚 the honor system. When you鈥檙e playing with the future leader of the free world, it鈥檚 the honor system times three. Most of the time, when you鈥檙e playing pickup basketball, you鈥檙e trying to get away with as much as you possibly can, but when you鈥檙e playing with him, you almost call a foul on yourself. 鈥榊eah, I traveled, I鈥檓 sorry鈥�.鈥� It was really odd, I鈥檓 not used to playing that way, where you鈥檙e incredibly honest. It鈥檚 almost like a bunch of pro golfers playing basketball. The honor system reins supreme.鈥�
When Obama came back to Denver in August 2008 to accept the Democratic nomination, Lombardi got a call. How bout another game with Obama? Uh, yeah!
鈥淗e鈥檚 got an amazing memory,鈥� says Lombardi. 鈥淗e had met me once. He came up to me, remembered my name, remembered my game, described my game to his friends鈥�. Considering how many people he has played basketball with, that鈥檚 amazing.鈥�
Turns out, that second time 鈥� the day of the nomination speech 鈥� Obama didn鈥檛 really play.
鈥淗is aides wouldn鈥檛 let him,鈥� Lombardi says. 鈥淗e sort of shot around, and he gave a little play-by-play of what was going on, because a lot of his friends were there. Most of the guys that played basketball with him in years past, high school buddies, guys from Chicago, they were all there.鈥�
The White House Thursday night pickup list:
Secretary of Housing & Urban Development Shaun Donovan
Secretary of Education Arne Duncan
Secretary of the Treasury Tim Geithner
Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar
Rep. Mike Arcuri (D) of New York
Rep. John Boccieri (D) of Ohio
Rep. Brad Ellsworth (D) of Indiana
Rep. Jeff Flake (R) of Arizona
Rep. Baron Hill (D) of Indiana
Rep. Jay Inslee (D) of Washington
Rep. Frank Kratovil (D) of Maryland
Rep. Rick Larsen (D) of Washington
Rep. Patrick Murphy (D) of Pennsylvania
Rep. John Shimkus (R) of Illinois
Rep. Heath Shuler (D) of North Carolina
-----
Follow us on .
