Idioms and Hubie Brown

Hear it here!

 

Time for a little fun.

There are sayings and phrases that you hear every day that everyone knows what you’re talking about. But when you really examine what they are, and look at them in a purely literal way, well, you may wonder what they REALLY mean.

Let’s examine a bunch of them.

IT IS WHAT IT IS.
But, what IS it, anyway?

TO MAKE A LONG STORY SHORT.
Most of the time that means it’s a story that goes on a lot longer.

THAT’S ON MY BUCKET LIST.
We all know it comes from the 2007 film The Bucket List.
It’s about a list of things to do before you “kick the bucket”.
I don’t think there’s a line from a movie that’s used more than that?

WE’LL TAKE A RAIN CHECK.
We know it’s a baseball term but what if the weather has nothing to do with it?

LONG TIME NO SEE.
No one would ever simply say “I haven’t seen you in a while”.

SAME OLD, SAME OLD.
Is what you’ve been doing that old?

SIX OF ONE, HALF A DOZEN OF ANOTHER.
That works if you’re good at math.

I HAVE A LAUNDRY LIST OF THINGS TO DO.
Is it always about sheets, pillowcases, shirts, and towels?

PICK YOUR POISON.
Who wants to make that choice? I’d rather not.

HERE TODAY, GONE TOMORROW.
What if it’s still here tomorrow.

IT’S THE ONLY WAY TO GO
Whatever it is, believe me, there’s always more than one way to go.

KILL TWO BIRDS WITH ONE STONE.
We always say we’re doing it, but isn’t it practically impossible to do?

NO PAIN, NO GAIN
Really, does it have to hurt?

WHATEVER.
I really have no answer to what you’re saying.

UNDER THE WEATHER.
So, if I’m not feeling well, what does it have to do with the weather, and how far under am I?

IT’S SUCH A SMALL WORLD.
You know that’s not the case so why do you say it?

EVERY NOW AND THEN.
In other words, not very often.

WE SHOULD GET ON THE PLANE.
Isn’t it better to get IN the plane? Getting on the plane won’t go well once it starts to move. Besides, no one ever says “Get on the car”.

Then, of course, there are the sports phrases we hear that make us roll our eyes.

THEY WANT TO GET OFF TO A GOOD START.
Really, I thought they wanted to fall behind early.

HE CAME TO PLAY.
I know he’s performed very well, but didn’t everyone else come to play as well?

THERE’S NO QUIT IN HIM.
Again, he’s battled back, but who out there has really quit?

HE’S A COMPETITOR.
As opposed to everyone else who just goes through the motions.

THEY CAN SMELL IT NOW.
They’re on the way to win, but what does that really smell like?

THEY CAN’T AFFORD TO MAKE THOSE KIND OF MISTAKES.
Sure they can, if they’re out to lose.

HE HAS ALL THE INTANGIBLES.
Not only is it hard to enumerate, it’s hard to spell.

THIS IS A CRITICAL PLAY COMING UP.
It sure is, until the next one comes along.

WE WON BECAUSE WE’RE A FAMILY.
But when we lose, we don’t speak to each other.

There are so many others we hear and use in everyday life and in sports.
I welcome our loyal readers to offer their contributions and they’ll appear at some point given proper credit.

Super Bowl Sunday is long gone, but there was another sports happening that day that bears recognition.

Hubie Brown, one of the great TV expert-analysts, broadcast his final game that afternoon when the Milwaukee Bucks hosted the Philadelphia 76ers.

The telecast was a salute to Brown, who, at the age of 91, that’s right, 91, wrapped up a coaching and announcing career that spanned well over half a decade.

Brown was my partner for the last two years of CBS’ national coverage of the NBA.

That was back in 1990. We then teamed up for several seasons on TNT.

I have written about Hubie in a past column or two, and cited his remarkable consistency in preparing, teaching, and delivering on television, precisely the way he did as a two-time NBA Coach of the Year. He led the Atlanta Hawks, New York Knicks and Memphis Grizzlies in the NBA and won an ABA championship with the Kentucky Colonels.

He gave 100% as a coach demanding the same from his players, and gave 100% in every game he broadcast.

You couldn’t fail to get an education in basketball when you listened to him, and I am proud to have had the honor of sitting with him courtside.

But the viewers were the real winners as they listened to the unwavering way he broke down the game every time he took to the air.

But if you step away for a moment, and think of anyone in any field working before an audience at the age of 91, you would have to shake your head in utter amazement at that achievement.

That’s what I think about.