The Blog Wiser Hot Seat: Larry Brown Sports

by Stan and Rupert, Ghosts of Wayne Fontes

It's another casual Friday at Epic, casual attire is preferred. And thus, we are opening up another exclusive interview session with select folks from around this here internet, better known worldwide as the Blog Wiser Hot Seat. Today's guest needs little introduction, Larry Brown himself. Yup, the only man to lead a College team to an NCAA title (Kansas '88) and a pro team to the NBA Title (Detroit Pistons '04).

Oops, not that Larry Brown...my bad. Joking aside, our guest of honor today is Larry Brown of Larry Brown Sports and The Fanhouse. You've probably read his work before, but if you haven't be sure to give his works a read, a link and a nod...it's good stuff. So without further ado onto the interview session.

Ghosts: First off, thanks for taking the time to share some answers to our somewhat basic and somewhat pressing questions (pending on how you look at it). Anyhow, we are big fans of your work on Larry Brown Sports and The Fanhouse and appreciative for the interview. For now, let's get down to business...shall we?

Normally, we always ask people to name a specific post they are most proud of or feel to be indicative of their best work. However, today we'd like to ask...has there been a post(s) that you had a good feeling about, but just didn't come out right or a post you regretted putting up? (Obviously, blogging is quantity and quality business).

LB: There have been a few posts I've had misgivings about as soon as I posted them, or shortly after posting them. Nothing I'd care to point out specifically however. You really think I need to point my critics in a specific direction?

Ghosts: Of course not. How long has Larry Brown Sports been in business and what if any plans do you have for the immediate future with the site?

LB: The first day of the site was January 4th of '07. In retrospect, I was pretty lost when I first started it, so things have come a long way. No future plans to record any albums. I just hope I can keep up with the format and standard I've set on the site -- sometimes it can get tough.

Ghosts: Sorry if this is a dumb question, when we think Larry Brown, we always think the great LB who helped lead our beloved Pistons to an NBA title. Is LB your real name or pseudo name you blog under? We have to ask...sorry.

LB: Haha, real name actually. I dabbled with a middle initial in college when I first started broadcasting games as my "on-air professional" name. While I got used to it, I never really felt comfortable saying Larry W. Brown. My whole life I was always just Larry Brown -- that's how I was known to all my family, friends, and acquaintances. Even though adding in a middle initial or going by my full first name -- Laurence -- would have distinguished myself more, it just never felt like "me." Besides, before long, nobody will remember that old man anyways. Does anyone even know where he's working these days? Pretty soon he'll be thanking me for making the name famous.

Ghosts: Have you ever considered the notion of blogging/writing as a career or are you already a full-time writer/blogger as a profession?

LB: I've considered it and wouldn't mind doing it full-time. Only problem is there are very few people who can do it full-time to the point where they're making livable wages. If I could find a way to make some decent money doing it, I would love to do it full-time. For the time being, I consider it a part-time job for which I try to put in full-time hours.

Ghosts: Are there any specifics about the blogosphere in general that tend to annoy you? Like spam email, whoring for links, the copycat stories, beating the dead horse on Michael Vick, etc?

LB: As a whole, the blogosphere is pretty enjoyable -- if it weren't, I wouldn't invest so much of my time surfing through it. I like sites that bring something new or different to the table. I enjoy the ones that will give me a story, show me a video clip, or present a style I haven't already seen five other places. Also, I think it's cool to send an email with a tip if you have something good, but I get annoyed by the people who spam you with every post they do. It's like crying wolf; people will pay more attention when you reserve your tips for what you feel are truly your best stories. Additionally, I have no problem with asking for links -- it's a good way to publicize your blog -- but I get annoyed when people constantly ask for links without linking back. In my mind, you have to reciprocate -- it's a two-way street. If I'm going to try and send you some love and traffic, I feel like you should try to make efforts to do the same for me. I've also started to get the feeling that many blogs are no longer writing for themselves or their audience but rather spending their time trying write a post strictly for the purpose of getting linked by a bigger blog. That gets annoying at times.

Ghosts: Aside from your greatest hits collection, do you have any running bits or features on LB Sports or the fanhouse?

LB: I try to link out to some of the stories I enjoy around the sphere as my first post of the day during the week -- I call that the Morning Paper. Sometimes I try to mix in an interview here and there. I also have a feature for a term I coined the sportadox which is an analytical break down of a game. I don't do that as frequently as I should. Another feature is the category of darwin nominees -- if you flip through that, you'll see some of the dumber, albeit enjoyable, stories that have taken place in the world of sports. As far as bits, ripping on Kobe Bryant, David Stern, Ookie, and some of the other clowns is always fun. At FanHouse, my area of coverage was the NL West, so I spent a good portion of the year on Bonds watch. You could say I'm not exactly his biggest fan.

Ghosts: Do you mind if we ask, but does your site/ads generate a fairly manageable revenue?

LB: Heh, if I lived in a youth hostile on Venice and didn't eat or purchase anything, I might be able to get by on my ad revenue. In all honesty, I never started the site with the intention of generating revenue, and I really think anyone who starts a blog for that purpose is in the wrong business. That being said, it's nice that I've been able to make a few bucks off the site.

Ghosts: You also blog for the Fanhouse, do you care to share with us how that gig came about for you? Has it been beneficial, what if any perks?

LB: I got in contact with Jamie Mottram who manages FanHouse about a year ago. I introduced myself to him over email, and sent a few sample posts I had done for NBX and my old Foxsports.com blog. At the time, FanHouse had just started, and I had begun to see it linked at a few places, starting with Deadspin. I got the sense that it was going to be pretty big, and that it would help if I could get in early on the ground floor. They had their NFL and NCAAF rosters set, and they were just setting up NBA and NCAAB. I decided to shoot way in advance and ask for a spot on MLB FanHouse since I figured they hadn't gotten that far yet. Luckily when the time came, Jamie offered me a spot to blog baseball for them and I happily accepted. As far as perks go, it seems like blogging for FanHouse has helped raise my profile as a blogger and give me more credibility. At the same time, it's a much larger audience so I've worked hard to manage the load and put out my finest work.

Ghosts: If you weren't blogging about sports what else would you write about?

LB: I've always been a sports freak, so pretty much everything I do and think revolves around sports. I dunno, I like chicks too, maybe Hayden Panettiere or the rise and fall of Jennifer Love Hewitt.

Ghosts: Who is your pick to win the Super Bowl?

LB: I'm actually contractually obligated to reserve all my predictions for AOL. Just kidding. I only have a 3% chance of being right, so I don't like my odds. Pretty much since the day they acquired Randy Moss, I crowned the Patriots' ass. I'll stick with that pick.

Ghosts: Do you gamble on the NFL?

LB: Now why would I answer something honestly that could potentially incriminate me? Truthfully, I haven't gambled on sports since losing big money (which at the time for a 19-year-old college kid meant a few hundred) on the first Ricardo Mayorga/Vernon Forrest fight. It's actually become quite legendary amongst my circle of friends -- one of those "sure things," "can't lose" bets. We all know how that turned out. I've participated in office pick 'em pools since elementary school, though now it's with more reluctance than before. I prefer to give advice rather than put my own money at risk :)

Ghosts: Who would win in a fight Steven Seagal or Jean Claude Van Damme (important to note this fight would take place at the apex of both men's careers).

LB: Dude, Van Damme, no contest. I never understood the allure of Seagal. Dude had a weak ass pony tail. And come on, Van Damme worked Chong Li and Tong Po. You really think that pussy Seagal would've had a chance against either of those two beasts? That's what I thought.

Ghosts: We know between Epic, the Ghosts, emails etc. that we spend a good deal of time (probably enough to get us fired from our real jobs) on blogging. Overall about how much time do you think you spend per week blogging?

LB: Hmm, between FanHouse, LBS, emails, reading other blogs, and keeping up with the sphere, I'm pretty confident I spend the equivalent amount of full-time hours blogging -- maybe like 40/week if not more. Of course, those are hours spent outside of the full-time job.

Ghosts: Big game this weekend. LSU vs. Virgina Tech who wins? And if you got LSU do they cover the 12.5 points?

LB: Va Tech looked pretty weak in their home opener -- and that's with the emotional boost too. I like LSU and I'd lay the wood.

Ghosts: Are the Detroit Shock becoming the next Dynasty in Basketball?

LB: I won't even dignify that question with a response.

Ghosts: We always have to ask, but are there any up-and-coming, maybe under the radar blogs that you've been reading lately that perhaps, most people haven't fully tuned into?

LB: Now, this is not because you guys are interviewing me, but I recently got turned onto Ghosts of Wayne Fontes and find it highly enjoyable. I love what 100% Injury Rate does on a daily basis, they might be slightly under the radar. The new look Mr. Irrelevant is pretty outstanding and has really come on strong. You Been Blinded, Obscure Sports Quarterly, and Signal to Noise could fall in the under the radar category of blogs I highly enjoy. I love Kissing Suzy Kolber and think Big Daddy Drew might be the single best blogger in the sphere -- if you're not reading his stuff, you're missing out. Same goes for We Are the Postmen, their writing style is exceptional, as is The Big Picture. And of course, I'm a big fan of the heavyweights like SportsbyBrooks, Deadspin, With Leather, Awful Announcing, Extra Mustard, and FanHouse -- particularly their bloggers like Michael David Smith, MJD, and Matt Watson -- they're all tremendous. You can take a look at my blogroll to see many of the sites I enjoy and/or have some sort of a relationship with.

Ghosts: It's pretty common for most blogs to play the "attack ESPN" card. What if anything is your stance on attacking ESPN?

LB: I think some of it goes overboard, while some of it is fair. They're a pretty easy target considering their omnipresence in the lives of sports fans. In all, I've always been of the mindset that there's no such thing as bad publicity (unless your Michael Vick). So regardless of whether or not people are picking on ESPN, I think it's a good thing for them that people care about their products as much as fans and bloggers do. It's much better to be in that boat, rather than that of Versus where you're begging to be noticed.

Ghosts: If you were Lane Kiffin.who do you start on Sunday? Culpepper or McCown?

LB: Heh, I would've re-signed Tuiasosopo and ran the wishbone. I can't remember ever seeing a worse offensive NFL club than the squad the Raiders trotted out there last year.

Ghosts: What does your fantasy football team look like? Your stud, your sleeper, your chances?

LB: I have quite a few teams -- it's a habit err addiction I'm trying to break and have actually been better about lately. I've literally been playing fantasy sports since first grade, back when we used to calculate crap out of the newspaper. We'll just stick with my 10 team keeper league. Grandmama, Bush, Gore, and Brees were my keepers. Pam Anderson thinks my team's stacked. It's much better than the days when Carl Pickens was my first round pick. I'm pretty much assured of a playoff run in all leagues in which I participate. Somehow I wound up with LenDale White on all the teams I drafted. I guess we have the same taste in burgers. I'm hoping Maurice Jones-Drew has another big year, he's an amazing player.

Ghosts: Is A-ROD going to hit 800? And more importantly, will finally flourish in the post-season putting a majority of his critics to bed?

LB: If he stays healthy, I'll say yes. And thus far in his career, he's been able to avoid major injuries, so I guess I'd have to give him the nod for now. As far as the postseason goes, I don't think he'll flourish in the playoffs this year. A large reason why I don't think he does well in the postseason is well, for one, because it's a small sample size. Vlad Guerrero flamed out just as badly for the Angels last time they got eliminated but nobody talked about it because it's trendy to pick on A-Rod. More importantly though, in the playoffs, you're no longer padding your stats against the worst pitchers in the league (to be fair, A-Rod has pretty much crushed all pitching equally this year). In the playoffs, you're facing the best starters in the league, no No. 4 and 5 guys in the rotation, and you're facing closers for two inning saves all of a sudden. It's not easy for anyone to produce when you're facing nothing but Johans, Sabathias, Becketts, Lackeys, and Verlanders every game. There are very few hitters who hit good pitching consistently -- guys like Sheffield and Giambi. Most have their success against the inferior pitchers in the league. Also, I think Yankee fans and media members who say A-Rod needs to prove himself this year in the playoffs to be a considered a true Yankee are expressing an idiotic notion. Without A-Rod putting up this type of MVP season, the Yanks wouldn't even be in the playoff race.

Ghosts: What are your thoughts on Epic Carnival? Be brutally honest...please.

LB: Aside from the color scheme and tiny, ant-sized font that's difficult to read, I like it. I read many of the contributors on their independent blogs prior to their collaboration on EC, so naturally I'm going to enjoy their work elsewhere as well. I'm just not much of a Laker/LSU fan.

Ghosts: And that's about it. Thanks again for your time and effort. And as always, keep up the great work on LB Sports and the Fanhouse.