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Ladies and gentlemen, meet Kyle "Alpha dog" Lowry

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  • #31
    Puffer wrote: View Post
    I hate to be a stickler, but words have meaning. Just because it is my perception that "a glass of milk" means a black lumpy mineral that burns with a high temperature doesn't make it true. The fact that I hear a term, never look up the definition in a dictionary or in wikipedia or any other authoritative reference, and therefore cobble together something that I have deduced from the context I have heard it in. So...just to be clear:

    MacMillian Dictionary

    alpha male- noun- singular alpha male plural alpha males

    1. a man or male animal that behaves in a confident or threatening way

    Cambridge Dictionary

    alpha male -noun

    specialized the most successful and powerful male in any group

    a strong and successful man who likes to be in charge of others

    Encarta Dictionary

    al•pha male (plural al•pha males) noun

    1. dominant male animal: a male in a pack of wolves, or a similar pack or troop of animals, that other members submit to and follow and that takes priority in mating with females

    2. dominant man: a man who controls the activities of a group and to whom others defer ( informal )

    World English Dictionary

    Alpha male — n
    the dominant male animal or person in a group

    Urban Dictionary

    alpha-male

    1) the dominant member of a pack of wolves.
    2) any person with a dominating personality, causing the assertion of or struggle for leadership in almost any situation.

    Wordcraft

    alpha male – a male in a pack of wolves, etc., to whom other members submit (in humans: dominant man; a man who controls
    the activities of a group and to whom others defer)

    Urban Dictionary

    1.Alpha dog

    1. The leader or authority in a group, especially in a group of friends.

    2.Alpha dog

    1. The leader of a pack that rolls several dogs deep.

    2. No leash can hold him, and his tail wags for no one. [meaning, he's not easily amused]

    3. Alpha Dog's bark is in equal proportion to his bite.

    Wiktionary

    alpha dog -noun (plural alpha dogs)

    1. A dominant dog; a dog that is an alpha male or alpha female. Often used figuratively.

    Now you can take your pick from that bunch, but the suggestion is that the "alpha dog" is the one that says, "This is how things go around here." Not necessarily the one with the best shot in the last two seconds of a close game. I can see an "alpha dog" saying "Gimme the rock" for the last play, but it that guy has a 24% three point shooting average, coach is going to sit his ass down.
    Again .. this is semantics .. but I think you are proving my point. Im not saying that, say, JR Smith, is an alpha dog. Or Steve Kerr. Or Mo Pete. Or .. [the list goes on of guys who have the ability and balls to hit a last shot].

    I talking the guy who, the last 10 or so possessions in the game (every game), when everyone starts to tense up, carries the team. Might be through hitting big shots, might be through beating his man off the dribble, as others have mentioned might be through defensive stops.

    There are certain players who fit this bill. Who you just know that the ball is going through them. If you ask 100 people - 100 out of 100 would tell you the clutch play will run through them. Derrick Rose. Kobe. MJ. Undisputed alpha dogs.

    Even LBJ and KD have had difficulty establishing themselves as alpha dogs on their own teams (in part due to other great players - westbrook and wade .. in part due to LBJ's past shyness at the end of games).

    I put a lot of weight in this term. I think your definitions above support my claim. If I was to guess, there will be a bit of an identity crisis on this team down the stretch. Should the ball go to AB in the post? Lowry off the dribble? Maybe (gulp) DD? If Lowry is an alpha dog, as some think .. then I see him taking control of the situation and taking the bull by the horns to make sure the right thing happens. There shouldnt be any doubt whos hands the ball will go through with 8 on the shot clock and the team needing a key bucket. We will see .. but Im not convinced.

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    • #32
      mountio wrote: View Post
      Again .. this is semantics ...
      Agree 100%. It is semantics. As I said, words have meanings. If we mix the meanings up, nobody knows what we are talking about.

      As to who's the alpha dog...most people agree that Casey is the closest thing this team has to one, but that's not what they mean of course. Which of the players is going to assume that role?

      It doesn't seem to be in Andre's nature.

      I think if Demar tried to assume that role his team mates would laugh.

      In basketball, because the guys don't have to actually fight it out amongst themselves to see who gets to sit beside the coach, skill is a big component. Clearly the AD has to be skilled enough that he has respect from everyone else. That pretty much means he needs to be one of the top 2-3 players in terms of skill set.

      Also needs to be someone that can push through pain, exhaustion, bad luck, and a big deficit to keep on playing and also be effective. That's really what people mean when they say someone "took over a game." They are talking about a player that was able to bring focus to what he was doing so that he made no mistakes, he shot the ball like he could in practice, he didn't become a black hole but made the right passes. One of the reasons Steve Kerr could make those game winning three pointers was that Jordan knew enough to draw and kick, but the team put the ball in his hands because he would do what it took to win (even if it meant passing...cough, cough Bayless).

      In addition, an AD doesn't get intimidated, and isn't afraid of a physical confrontation, if required. An alpha dog is confident of, if not winning, then making sure his opponent winds up in the dust beside him with a steady stream of bright, red blood coursing out of his carotid artery.

      Not immediately clear who on the Raptors fills that bill, but it might be Lowry.

      Just my opinion.

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