In 1990, Johnny Gill sang a song called “Fair-weather Friend”. For those of you who don’t remember that song, the chorus went like this:
I won’t be a good weather friend
I’ll be there until the end
Even through stormy weather
And again
Is there anything worse in sports than a fan of good weather? Being a fan of good weather is like betting your friend on a game and telling him that your little brother will pay the debt if you lose. Or how to pick the winner of the Superbowl … after the Superbowl. You have nothing invested. Fans of good weather are ruining sports. It was easy to cheer on the Lakers or Celtics in the ’80s, the Bulls in the’ 90s, or the Patriots as soon as Drew Bledsoe lost his job to Tom Brady. It is easy. It’s easy to root for Tar Heels basketball or even Red Wings hockey, but picking a team and sticking with them during stormy weather is the sign of a true fan.
In no other area of life is it “okay” to have a good time. If you knew that you have a friend who will run whenever problems arise in your life, you would not be friends with that person. Now that my Lakers are fighting in these playoffs, I have the Cleveland Caviler fans giving me pain. Seriously, Cavs fans? I didn’t know there were Cavs fans. I thought they were a myth like the Yeti. 99% of these “Cavs” didn’t even know the Cavs existed 10 years ago, and the 3 people who did thought they were the Calves and couldn’t understand why the team is named after a baby cow. These are the same people who couldn’t name 5 people on the team who weren’t named LeBron, Mo, or Big Z.
I understand that everyone wants to support a winner. I understand. What irritates me is when a fan in good weather gives the fans a real shame for their team. The reason is this; Good weather fans don’t understand how much a true fan hurts when their team loses. If the Cavs are beaten in the playoffs, the fair weather fan will be disappointed for a few minutes and then move on. Whereas a true amateur team loses and their day is pretty ruined.
They have etiquette in sports on the court, now fans must have the same off the court. It’s okay if you want to be a fan of good weather, but you have no right to give someone else a hard time for their team. There are some who became Cavs fans when LeBron was drafted, that’s great. I understand others like the Cavs now because they are winning. Penalty fee. I understand that people are drawn to a team by winning, but I hope all these Cavs fans will stick with their team when 23 has a new home at Madison Square Garden. Hopefully then we’ll see if they can handle the rain.