The media landscape has undeniably evolved. Gone are the days when a columnist could call an athlete a “punk” in the paper, shaping their reputation as a pariah for the public to chew up and spit. Today, that usually plays out on social media, not in print. Still, you don’t see journalists like Bob Ryan anymore, who would take a player like Antoine Walker to task in such a public, brutal manner. It’s a lost art — if you want to call it that — but it was a reality of the past, and it’s something Walker has had to reckon with over the years.
Rick Strom of The Rick Strom Show allowed Walker to reflect on the harsh words from Ryan that defined his career, pulling back the curtain on what it was like to be on the receiving end of such ruthless commentary.
“The simple fact of the matter is that Antoine Walker is a punk,” Ryan wrote. “Antoine Walker is such an arrogant, misguided, yes, punk, that there’s nothing either M.L. Carr, Rick Pitino, or The Pope could do with this kid.”
“His juvenile mugging is classless. It irritates opponents – yes, Antoine, people on other clubs really do hate you – and it embarrasses the organization.”
“He is a classic product of the modern basketball system. He is an AAU baby who has never worked at anything other than basketball in his life, and who has only met one coach – Rick Pitino – who has ever told him ‘no’ about anything. He is arrogant and clueless about his profession.”
“He is merely a punk who can play a little basketball. Join me in wishing him well at his next destination.”
Ouch. “I confronted him and expressed my displeasure in the article,” Walker recalls. “I asked him and basically told him to keep his comments strictly to basketball. I was not appreciative of some of the language he used, and he was taking it to a step that was going to become bigger than basketball. So, we had this conversation, and I basically told him, ‘I’m gonna let you slide, but don’t come around me. You can write what you want to write. If I go 0-for-18, obviously, that’s your job; you’re gonna write it. But keep any personal attacks about my name out of your mouth.’”
Walker stuck to that boundary. According to him, Ryan never approached him for an interview again. “Obviously, when a media session was in the locker room, I’m pretty sure he’d be in the back, surrounded in there, and get comments. We were in the playoffs a couple of years, so he covered us pretty closely. I don’t know what he was writing at that point; I just kind of channeled him out. But as long as he didn’t say anything I felt was a personal attack, everything was fine. If I go 0-for-18, write what you’re supposed to write. I won’t stop you from doing your job, but the personal attacks had to stop.”
Walker is grateful, though, that this all happened in a time before social media took over the NBA. “There’s no telling what that could have led to,” he explained. “Stuff gets picked up. You start creating rumors and things about players. You don’t know how that could’ve affected me, my marketing opportunities off the court, or how other teams may have perceived me. I mean, Bob Ryan’s a very respected and legendary reporter, so when those types of guys make those comments, people tend to listen. You have to be careful in those situations.”
Now, Antoine Walker would speak to Bob Ryan. He understands the intricacies and challenges of the job, but he also knows the importance of maintaining professionalism. He recognizes that you can be critical of a player’s performance without making it personal.
That’s not intended as a slight against Bob Ryan; he’s a legend in his own right. However, 1998 was a different time. What was acceptable back then — the blunt, often ruthless criticism — doesn’t hold the same place in today’s sports media landscape. The rules have changed, and so has the way we engage with one another. The game might remain the same, but how we talk about it — and about the players — must keep up.
