If you guys are bill simmons fans,

How can the right place, right time point be used as a knock. I think that you'll find a lot of successful people got to where they were by being in the right place at the right time. Why would Bill go from ESPN.com to boston.com? They may have money, but I doubt their pockets are as deep as ESPN's. And he's still getting read by 18-35 year old guys and he's on the most visible sports website there is.

I know I'm probably becoming the Simmons-apologist of the board, and that's not really my goal. I used to like his writing a lot, but his style has gotten a little worn out. I agree with all of the cracks on his cracking voice and I think he's an idiot for knocking the newspaper industry because that one minor setback allowed him to land in the current job he has. But all of that said, I just think that he gets ripped for weak reasons on here. If you don't like reading him that's completely understandable and I have no problem with that, but to say he doesn't have talent is pretty much flat-out wrong. I think some part of the bashing has to be out of jealousy, I know I wouldn't mind making his salary and getting to sit on my couch all day and write about my favorite teams twice a week, and I'm assuming I'm not the only who feels that way.

 

So did the Girls Gone Wild guy. There will be no genius dust available for either.

 

Not a knock. Not jealous. Just sober, clear-minded recognition of the fact. Beneficiary of a perfect storm of circumstances in his favor. Good for him.

 

If the mark of talent is writing about your drinking buddies, your favorite teams or anything within a two-mile radius of comfort zone, then, yes, Simmons has talent.

 

The pictorial is very impressive. Straight hair girl in the suds, yum.

 

What pictorial?

 

If the mark of talent is writing in a way that a large group of people enjoy reading, find entertaining or can relate to, then, yes, Simmons has talent.

 

See, "Albom, Mitch" or "Steele, Danielle."

 

I don't read either of those two, but I'm going to assume that to be as successful as they have been that they must be talented. I understand that no "real" journalist can give any credit to Simmons, and the only reason so many "regular" people read him is because they are idiots and we are all so much more intelligent than the general public.

You don't have to like Simmons, there are plenty of writers that I don't like, but just because I don't like them that doesn't mean that they don't have talent.

 

On that I'm done with this topic, I really don't care enough to keep it going as long as I already have.

 

This can be a mark of talent.

It sure as shit isn't very often, though.

 

Because he functions best as a regional columnist. Half his inside jokes are about Charlestown, Holy Cross and Fanueil Hall bars. His mailbags used to be side-splitting funny, at least for me.

It doesn't work as well on a national level. I thought he was at his best when his audience was geeked-up Boston yuppie men who got sauced on the weekends and were in on the jokes. Maybe it's my attitude changing, but I just think he's gotten stale. Maybe a move would rejuvenate him.

He brings great insights at times, he's just not bringing it (in my possibly worthless opinion) with the edge he had six or seven years ago. Doesn't make him horrible, it's just the way things are. I used to read him religiously at bostonsportsguy.com. Now? I'll go a month or two between reading his work, and I don't enjoy it as much, for whatever reason.