Changing Teams?

(Of course this item has nothing to do with Philly sports, but look at the alternatives. I could post about how I'm neither excited nor turned off by the Adam Eaton signing. I'm indifferent. Or, I could continue to rip the Birds. I figure I can take a day off from that pursuit. The Flyers are actually playing better, but I'm not expecting that to last. I will be at tomorrow night's game though to if the O&B have made any real progress. As for the Sixers, you all know I no longer care about this franchise. Although, I did hear that AI is leading the league in scoring once again....yawn.)

It's not every day that you receive news that a friend has changed teams. However, I'm here to share a recent surprising revelation from a big sports fan's change in allegiance from one team to another. (Don't worry...names will be withheld to protect the guilty.)

As you may expect, this information was not shared willingly. My buddy was forced to come out of the closet, so to speak, with his team change by a friend. I have to admit his reasoning for his switch was a bit shaky. He explained that he decided to switch allegiances because the star player of his former team scored a goal which eliminated his country's national team in an international tournament. Frankly, I was flabbergasted by this explanation.

Did I decide to switch NHL teams when Flyers goalie Antero Niittymaki backstopped Finland to a win over the US Olympic team and knocked them out of the tournament? Hell no! After decades of following the Flyers, I'm Orange and Black to the core, my friends. But using my buddy's line of reasoning, I'd be looking for a new NHL team to follow.

I started wondering if there is additional reasoning behind his decision. Has his "old team" fallen on hard times? He roots for other teams that have had their share of rough times. Plus, he lives here in the Philly area and has seen first hand how we live and die with our pathetic teams. So I figured this couldn't be a plausible explanation. However, after a little research, I've learned that his "new" team has become very successful in the last couple years while his "old team", has experienced some hard times of late. This surprised me. As every fan knows, you very simply have to live with your teams through thick and thin. You can't go running into the arms of a hot new team because your old team has grown a few warts.

In any event, I feel it is our duty to convince my friend that this was a horrible decision. I hope this post has opened his eyes. This guy has to realize that everyone in Philly would love to stop rooting for the Birds, Phils, Flyers and Sixers and find successful new teams, but we just can't do it. We don't have the heart. At least for me, these teams have become like family members. I can't picture myself rooting for another team.

If anyone has any other advice for him, please add it to the comments section. I don't think it's too late to convince him that he's made a mistake.