Grizzlies owner Michael Heisley appeared on The Chris Vernon Show yesterday afternoon and submitted to a 37-minute interview. It was noisy and combative in part because Vernon, always animated, asked tough questions and backed them up with a solid understanding of the way the NBA works, a combination Heisley rarely confronts in his local media appearances. The tenor of the interview was also a result of Heisley’s seeming inability to control his tone when challenged.
It seems like Heisley thinks his bluster is charming — or maybe he just doesn’t think about it at all — but as he’s pushed himself further and further into the spotlight as the team’s chief spokesperson and acknowledged decision-maker, his manner has instead become increasingly tiresome and counterproductive. Needless to say, this was a borderline-embarrassing performance for the owner of the city’s only professional sports franchise. This doesn’t all come through on a transcript, and I’m going to focus here primarily on the content of some of the things Heisley said, but I encourage anyone who hasn’t done so to listen to the interview. You can do so here or also on iTunes, where the show is now available for download. The audio reveals much more than mere words can suggest.
Rather than go through the entire interview — and really, there’s enough there to warrant that — I’m going to jump around and pull out a few exchanges and assertions that demand commentary. Even being selective, this is too long for one post, so I’m breaking it into two posts.
