President Obama says he knows basketball. We’re not so sure. Credit: Getty Images
Clark: Yeah, but I will have a degree. And you’ll be serving my kids fries at a drive-thru on our way to a skiing trip.
Will: Yeah, maybe. But at least I won’t be unoriginal.
– Good Will Hunting, 1997
What’s more harsh than calling someone a liar and a cheat? Calling someone unoriginal, of course.
There are millions of unoriginal followers out in the open during this particular week on the sports calendar. It’s NCAA tournament bracket time, and suddenly everyone agrees that Louisville is going deep because they’re pissed at their seeding, Wichita State won’t make it past this weekend because they’re the weakest No. 1 seed in years and didn’t play anyone in the regular season, and that Harvard will upset Cincinnati.
The more followers the better for Warren Buffett and his no-chance-in-hell $1 billion offer, because nothing ever, EVER goes as planned in the Big Dance and being a follower typically gets you nowhere when it comes to winning pools.
If you hadn’t heard, the Leader of the Free World picked his bracket this week and while we know President Obama won’t be winning any of Buffett’s money (insert Republican conspiracy theory here), we do know that B.O. has the lamest bracket of anyone in the continental and non-continental United States.
On the surface, it appears as though Obama’s somewhat of a gunslinger as he picked a No. 4 seed to win the whole damn thing. But to anyone who watched ESPN’s Selection Sunday show three nights ago knows, picking Michigan State is the ultimate “follower move.”
ESPN analysts Dick Vitale, Digger Phelps, Jay Bilas, Seth Greenberg and Jay Williams all picked the Spartans to win it all on Sunday night, which amounted to one of the more ridiculous segments ESPN has produced in the past … week.
REALLY?!!! You’re all on the Spartans!? There are 68 teams in this thing! This is widely considered to be a “wide open field!” And EVERYONE agrees that Michigan State is going to win it all???!!!
Even more maddening – Obama almost always picks teams from “red states” to win the title. Memo to the Prez: You don’t have to win the midwest anymore. You’re not up for re-election. Let Hillary deal with the folks in North Carolina that are upset with the Democratic Party that you picked a Providence upset. Go out on a limb and pick a UConn (cheap alma mater plug) or a Syracuse (who’s to say they can’t regain their swag?) or even some West Coast hippie school to win it all.
Picking a bracket is a wide open chance for a President to be careless. Instead, the leader of the free world became a Worldwide (Leader) follower – the worst kind of thing you can be in March.
Follow Metro Boston sports editor and columnist Matt Burke on Twitter @BurkeMetroBOS
