After five years with Boston Sports Journal, I have decided to move on and accept an opportunity to cover the Celtics for Sports Illustrated. Today is my last day.
I’ve honestly been struggling with what to say here because I don’t want to sound pretentious. I’m just some guy who loves to write about basketball and the Celtics. Someone else will do this job, probably just as well or maybe even better, so there's no need for a drawn-out soliloquy. I’m not that important.
At the same time, I didn’t want to just tuck this into the end of an irreverent notes column because it downplays what BSJ has meant to me over five years. I felt like I wanted to say a proper farewell to the readers, and to Greg Bedard.
Greg not only gave me an opportunity to land on my feet after my last gig, he trusted me to craft the coverage how I wanted. I got to try new things, some of which worked better than others. I quoted Robert Frost and Homer Simpson and everything in between, and aside from maybe a snarky text to bust my chops, Greg let me roll with it and see how it landed.
I’m happy to say that I feel like most of these landings went smoothly, which I thank you for. You are spending your money to read about your favorite teams, and giving you a product that you enjoy is satisfying. I compare it to the restaurants my dad owned when I was growing up. Seeing a room full of people eating the food we cooked was an amazing feeling, even if the process of making it sometimes got stressful and tiresome.
I appreciate all of our interactions, even the ones that weren’t exactly positive. As I leave, I hope that everyone understands that above all else, I gave you my genuine best effort in hopes of making your Celtics experience a better one. I have never done any of this for myself.
I love basketball, I think, differently than most. It has given me everything positive in my life, and so I owe it a debt that I repay on a daily basis through my coverage. I never know if something I’ve said or written will be shared between parents and children, siblings, or friends. Maybe a point I made will lead to a conversation, a debate, or some other kind of interaction that will help grow a bond. I know what sports can mean to relationships, and all I want to do is help that along somehow.
I believe we are all on our own individual paths in life. My path intersected with all of yours for the past five years, and for that I’m truly grateful. I thank you all for the love and the lessons I’ve learned over my time here, the last of which is that I really do suck at not being pretentious.
- John
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We can't thank John enough for his incredible work ethic and for his terrific coverage of the Celtics for us. He was great to deal with, always a pro, and I think his analysis was top-notch as a former college player. We wish him and his family nothing but the best, and we'll continue to be big fans.
Obviously, we'd love everyone to stay at BSJ forever, but that's not very realistic considering we have a fairly hard salary cap. We're very proud of the former BSJ staffers who have gone on to bigger and better things, especially the under-the-radar writers/analysts many did not know well before BSJ — namely Karalis, Brian Robb, and Conor Ryan. Just like those guys, we're looking for the next Greek Freak, B-Robb, and Mr. Dunkin' Iced Coffee.
I just wanted to let you know that BSJ is a) as financially secure as it's ever been, b) we're committed to continuing the same strong, near-daily Celtics coverage that we've had since our inception, and c) we're close to making a hire who will continue to have a strong background in film and analysis. All I ask is a little patience while things get ironed out (this is the second straight time we've had someone inform us of their exit during the holidays/postseason Patriots run. Fun!). Bobby Manning will help bridge the gap until everything is in place.
I also wanted to thank you for your patience with the update to the platform. I know it has not gone very smoothly. Judging by the decrease in Support Requests in the last week or so (I have gotten backed up with the postseason; I will get to them all), I think the latest update (hopefully) solved most of the issues (if you're still having issues, a log out and back in should do the trick). Adam Bertram, who runs the back end, is going to do a Q&A sometime next week, so you can vent away.
In any event, thank you again for continuing to support BSJ and independent journalism. We literally would not be here without you, and it would be that much more difficult for the Karalises, Robbs and Ryans to show their stuff during a crazy time in this industry.
— Greg Bedard