Technician Online

March 4th, 2007

Not a Latta respect

To North Carolina fans, senior guard Ivory Latta is an icon.

When she puts her hands up to excite the crowd, the Tar Heel faithful cheer. When she makes a free throw or hits a three-point basket, the crowd erupts. And when she yells at the refs, so do the fans.

But Latta is far from a role model – she happens to be one of the most annoying and arrogant players in college basketball.

If her personalized license plate on her car, which boasts her name and number isn’t enough, then maybe her on-the-court antics will do.

She whines, complains, pouts and stomps around on the court when things don’t go her way.

Before the ACC Championship game against N.C. State, the referees had to warn her before the game to keep it low key. But knowing Latta, that’s impossible. Minutes into the game, the same ref had to go to her and tell her to calm it down.

Opposing fans have taken note. One sign during Sunday’s game read “Ivory stop whining.” Ironically, the sign was held by a 10-year-old kid.

But North Carolina coach Sylvia Hatchell thinks her guard is a perfect representation for the University.

“All the little kids were calling her name,” Hatchell said. “She’s done so much for the game of basketball and every little kid in American thinks they can play Division I basketball.”

Maybe these kids should model her language. The multiple F***’s during Saturday’s game were nice. So are her traditional attempts at getting in fights – all with less than a minute remaining in the game.

On Saturday, she tried to get in a Maryland player’s ear, then on Sunday when senior guard Marquetta Dickens fouled her, she quickly jumped at Dickens. During the Tar Heels season finale loss against the Blue Devils, she tried to go after Duke’s Abby Waner.

Well, OK. She’s just a little aggressive.

Maybe she’s humble? Nope, try again.

“I get it from Chris Paul,” Latta said of her spin move. “I watch Chris Paul and Raymond Felton…I definitely got it from him.”

Later, she explained how she did a fantastic job motivating her team.

“I had to get my teammates into it, hype and ready,” Latta said. “I think I did a great job.”

When I think of a role model, I actually picture the complete opposite of Latta. I envision a team player, a carefully-spoken person and one who respects opponents.

So for all of the people who look up to Latta, she’s too short for that. Start looking elsewhere.

This entry was posted on Sunday, March 4th, 2007 at 10:04 pm and is filed under Women's ACC Tournament. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.

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