Sportsfan

I was discussing some work-related stuff with my officemate today when another co-worker passed by. "Dude, that much!" he said as he sauntered past.

"What was that about?" I asked.
"Oh, he was referring to the Lakers just losing to Denver last night." my co-worker replied.

This then lead to a discussion about how much I disliked the Lakers. I mentioned that I liked Luuuuuuuuuke Walton and Rony Turiaf, but Devean George and Brian Cook were softies. We even talked about the Sacramento series from way back, when Mike Bibby "fouled" Kobe with his nose, handing the Lakers a ring.

The question remained, though, as to why I disliked the Lakers. It's actually a pretty silly reason--growing up, my sister liked the Lakers, so naturally, I gravitated towards the Celtics (mostly because of Larry Legend).

This got me thinking about the Sports Teams I liked and disliked:

PBA - Philippine Basketball Association
Liked:
Crispa - because they were Toyota's archrival
San Miguel - because they were the successor to Crispa
Northern Consolidated/Cement - because of Chip Engelland's sweet stroke

Disliked:
Toyota - because my sister loved them
Ginebra - because of Jawo, who I considered "dirty" (but was loved by millions)

NBA
Like:
Celtics - at least during the 80's, with Bird, McHale, Chief, DJ and Ainge); not so much now
Spurs - because of how self-effacing Tim Duncan is
Rockets - because of Yao Ming, the Great Asian Hope
Pacers - because of Reggie Miller

Dislike:
Lakers - because they're the Celtics' arch rival, and because they seem too smug
Knicks - because of their ugly style of play during the 90s. Loved the jawing between Spike Lee and Reggie. Now they're just pathetic.

UAAP - Pinoy College Hoops
Like:
DLSU - my alma mater. Although the recent school scandal kinda makes it hard to root for them. Still, though, the Limpot years are fondly remembered.

Dislike:
Ateneo - La Salle's archrivals. Think of this as Duke and North Carolina in the NCAA. Both considered "elitist" schools
FEU - because of the championship they won in the boardroom against DLSU. Take it to the court, folks! Talks a lot of smack against DLSU. Heck, everyone hates DLSU anyway.

NCAA College Hoops
Like:
Duke - because of a comic I read when I was a kid called Blue Devil
UCLA - because they're the local team, and a couple of my close friends are alumni

Dislike:
North Carolina - because they're Duke's archrivals. I still don't understand why Duke is almost universally loathed (kinda like DLSU), when the Tar Heels seem just as smug.
Connecticut - because they didn't try during the just concluded Tournament, despite being the best team on paper (unlike Duke, who did try, but were so obviously overmatched)

NFL
Like:
Indianapolis Colts - big fan of Peyton, despite the fact that he's probably never going to win the big one
Pittsburgh Steelers - because of Sgt Slaughter look-alike Cowher; I'm happy he won the Superbowl, but was disgusted by the officiating.
San Diego Chargers - duuuuuuude.

Dislike:
Oakland Raiders - because they try hard to maintain their "thug" image, when they're actually just pathetic. Plus their fans scare me.
NY Giants - because of Jeremy Shockey. Although I'm trying to like Eli.
New England Patriots - because they got smug after they won, and just keep beating up on Peyton (heh).

College Football
Like:
USC - because they're the local team
UCLA - ditto, although in a game between UCLA and USC I'd have to go with the Bruins
Notre Dame - because I'm Catholic by default

Dislike:
No one, really.

MLB
Like:
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim - because they're the local team
Seattle Mariners - because of Ichiro. Started liking them during the Griffey/A-Rod/Buhner era. Buhner looked like one mean SOB.
St Louis Cardinals - because of Mark McGwire

Dislike:
NY Yankees - because they're the Evil Empire
Boston Red Sox - the very first time I liked in the MLB, I slowly grew to dislike them after they won the World Series. Their fans just got smug.

Going over this list, I found a couple of common denominators between certain teams I disliked:
* They're usually labelled as "dirty" (Raiders, Knicks, Jaworski teams)
* They're dominant, winning several championships, and are smug about it (Lakers, Yankees, Patriots)
* I just like being opposite with my sister (Toyota, Lakers)

My preferences will evolve, though, as I grow older and crankier. Who knows, maybe at some point I'll start disliking the Colts as well (unlikely, since they'll never win the Superbowl). Heh.