Gary Parrish weighs in on retiring Wade's Jersey

[Sir Lawrence]

He has no problem with MU so honoring Wade:

http://www.sportsline.com/collegebasketball/story/9986178

[PuertoRicanNightmare]

The fact that it's being discussed and pointed out in several publications/websites...no matter what the opinion of the author...is not a good reflection on the decision. As I said yesterday, what was the rush to do this?

Also, this article defends the jersey retirement and uses the fact that the university didn't name the library after him or any avenues, etc. However, we DID name a leadership award after him just LAST YEAR!!

[ilovefreeway]

I question your logic that talking about it = bad

Lets look at every editorial page and see all the bad ideas that happen in this country every day.

[spiral97]

so who WAS the journalist who was

in his second year of college, and he's approached by the New York Times and offered a great job with a great paycheck that is simply too good to pass up. Five years later, same guy wins a Pulitzer Prize. For the third time. And his old school decides to name the journalism building in his honor because he is the most recognized and accomplished journalist to ever darken the building's doors.

and, if the journalist wasn't a made up one, what is that journalists view on this?  Would be interesting to see if it was an undercover jab at someone.

also not too sure about his

It's just that I like the idea of a grown man with a hand buzzer.

comment... too much danger that it could be taken out of context.

[BuzzSucksSucks]

I'm pretty sure he was making the point about the double standard with athletes, and how, in the hypothetical situation with an academic all star, there would be no second guessing.  I doubt the example he cites refers to anyone in particular.

[thisists]

http://cbs.sportsline.com/collegebasketball/story/9986178


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sorry, i did a seach for "parrish" and didnt see the previous post on the topic. thanks for the merge.

[SoCalwarrior]

Friday Look Ahead: Since when does a degree define success?
By Gary Parrish
CBS SportsLine.com Senior Writer
   
Marquette retired Dwyane Wade's jersey.

For some reason this has irritated people.
   
Randolph Morris and Kentucky have a great opportunity against Florida. (Getty Images)   
Whether it was a columnist or talk show host, a fan on a message board or man on TV, the sentiment has been that Marquette violated some code in retiring the jersey of the person who is arguably the best to ever play at the school. The argument is that Wade never earned his degree from Marquette and thus should not be bestowed with such an honor, which -- if you don't mind me saying -- is just about the dumbest thing I've ever heard.

Marquette didn't name the library after Wade.

Or the administration building.

Or even a street on campus.

It merely retired his basketball jersey, which is a perfectly reasonable move considering Wade is a hell of a basketball player who led the Golden Eagles to a Final Four and brought an untold amount of attention to the school in two seasons of competition.

He entered Marquette as an academic question mark.

He worked to gain his eligibility.

Married his high school love.

Had a son.

All the while, Wade flourished, and I remember talking with him one day in Chicago before his second season at Marquette and being blown away. Here was a young star athlete juggling school, basketball, a marriage and fatherhood, and he seemed way too mature for someone his age. Can't say I expected him to one day be among the best players in the NBA, but it was pretty clear the guy was unique, and it had nothing to do with crossovers or triple-doubles.

So what's not to honor?

And why is a degree a prerequisite for recognition?

Some people could play 20 years at a school, earn eight degrees and never make a difference one way or another while others can secure a lasting legacy in a much shorter span. I mean, does anybody debate the impact Carmelo Anthony had at Syracuse in just one season? Please. When you think of Syracuse basketball you will forever think of him, and that should be the standard by which retired jerseys and rings of honor are judged.

Who made an impact?

How big was it?

Degrees are nice and all. I'm glad I have mine. But given a choice between a multimillion-dollar contract and college education, you, me and everybody else would withdraw from classes quicker than Tywon Lawson can go baseline to baseline. No need to apologize for getting rich at the age of 21. That's why Wade didn't graduate, remember.

But because this is an argument typically used by journalists, let's flip the script and apply the same standards. Imagine there's a phenom writer in his second year of college, and he's approached by the New York Times and offered a great job with a great paycheck that is simply too good to pass up. Five years later, same guy wins a Pulitzer Prize. For the third time. And his old school decides to name the journalism building in his honor because he is the most recognized and accomplished journalist to ever darken the building's doors.

Does anybody have a problem with this?

Does anybody care that the guy never graduated?

Of course not.

And that's why nobody should care that Marquette honored Dwyane Wade.

He was a great basketball player.

So they retired his basketball jersey.

Best I can tell, that makes perfect sense.

[muwarrior87]

couldn't have said it better myself, that's exactly why they did it. and he is still planning on returning to get his degree...and he was crying after the presentation of his jersey retirement....this is just as big a deal to him as it is to us, I doubt, in a million years, he tought anything like this would happen to him and is probably counting his blessings every day. nothing wrong w/ the jersey being retired.

[Desert_Eagle]

You're absolutely right, muwarrior.

I personally think that the point about schools honoring 'distinguished alumni' that, for example, dropped out and started their own wildly successful business, is a great argument. These people are held in high regard by their respective universities despite not graduating, yet we get upset when the same thing happens, but with an athlete. I personally think its ridiculous. Plus we all know that Dwyane deserves his jersey to be retired, who cares about when we do it.

[AlienWarrior]

If you own a business i.e. Marquette U. and one of the people who is part of your BUSINESS generates millions of dollars during and after his/her tenure ,wouldn't you honor that person ? That's my analogy and I'm sticking to it .Retiring Wades #3 is only the beginning of what MU should do .