Krayeske vs Calhoun Revisited

Posted by Adam Hart February 23, 2009 at 2:56 am

I’m not here to say who’s right and who’s wrong. But I will anyway.

So here is the man with all the questions — Ken Krayeske. This freelance journalist got under the skin of UConn men’s basketball coach Jim Calhoun after Saturday’s win over USF. I suggest watching the confrontation now, if you haven’t already. I also suggest checking out Freida Pinto. She’s from that statue-hogging film Slumdog Milli…….so hot.

To get it out of the way now, I think Krayeske was totally in the wrong on this one. You don’t ambush a coach after a game with that type of questioning. If you want to ask about crybaby budget stuff, set up a interview for that express purpose. Post game press conferences are not the time to be pushing forth one’s personal crusade.  Oh, and I’m not a UConn fan or anything.  I do not even really appreciate Jim Calhoun, either.

Here we go. Time to analyze Krayeske’s defense, as told to NECN’s John Moroney on Sunday (in the above video player):

“Of course I was nervous — I’m challenging a man who is revered as a Greek hero,” Krayeske said. “He’s famous the world over. He’s won two National Championships. His face is plastered all over billboards in Connecticut, for Comcast, he used to be a Webster Bank spokesman. If he ran for public office, I think he would landslide. He’s just a very popular man. And, yeah, I’m nervous — of course you are. I’m going to ask a question that is very unpopular.”

Typically, when I know I’m doing something that no one is going to like, I don’t do it.  Crazy approach.  But that’s why they call me Adam ‘Wild Man’ Hart. …….Fortunately, that is not true.  I wonder which Greek hero Calhoun would represent.  Maybe… Achilles?  Yeah, his only weakness being post game tirades (terrible, terrible language).  And stolen laptops.

From Krayeske’s own account of the incident:

He said that I should talk to him after the press conference, but I was fine discussing it there. This isn’t the place, he said. I suggested it was. He raised his voice, yelling like I was one of his college basketball players who failed to get back on defense.

He raised his voice because he suggested that you shut up, and you didn’t. He said he’d talk to you outside, but your hint gathering was subpar.  And we all know Calhoun doesn’t yell at anyone to get back on defense.  Hasheem Thabeet is a one man blocking machine.  (Back to the NECN interview.)

“He can say that he gives $12 million back to UConn, but at the end of the day it’s still the athletic department budget and we’re still subsidizing the athletic department,” Krayeske said. “It’s still part of the university, and they’re still capitalizing on the name and it’s getting money from the state.”

Capitalizing on the name??? UConn is known for two things: 1) Men’s basketball 2) Women’s basketball. That is it.  And Jim Calhoun vaulted the Huskies into the national spotlight.  If anything, UConn capitalizes on Calhoun’s success.  Hence the $12 million the coach claims he brings into the school.  And all this noise Krayeske’s making about other, less prominent sports in need of Calhoun’s paycut moneys is ridiculous.  This is America, brosef.  It’s survival of the fittest.  Nobody watches women’s rowing National Championships, so why should Calhoun subisidize that team’s efforts?  Title IX?

“I’ve gotten probably 100 plus e-mails right now, many of them have been from people calling me things that I can’t say on television and I wouldn’t even tell me mother,” Krayeske said. “I think the viciousness of the response is directly proportional to the truth that I might have touched upon.”

“Don’t worry Johnny, they’re just jealous. That’s why they make fun of you — they know that you’re better than them and that they’re just big meany heads.”

“Attack me all you want. I’ve been through it before,” Krayeske said. “I feel bad for my family; I don’t want them to have to go through this kind of stuff. But, the questions need to be asked and if I have to be sacrificed at the altar to ask the questions, then so be it.”

Don’t mind if I do. Well, not the sacrificing at the altar part. That’s a little over the top. …A lot over the top. But I do enjoy the verbal attacks.

That’s all I’ve got. There is much more I could pick apart, but I’ve got to catch up on some sleep. Oh, and Krayeske seemed perturbed that no one reporting the story mentioned that he attends UConn Law. So, there you go.