Tacos > Winning

Near the end of Game 2 of the first round playoff series between the Lakers and Denver Nuggets last night a familiar chant broke out from the Staples Center faithful.  There were just a few minutes left, and the Lakers were clinging to 6 point lead.  Was the crowd shouting "DEFENSE", trying to will their team to a huge defensive stop?  Were they yelling "M-V-P" for Kobe Bryant, as he stood at the foul line trying to put the game away?  No.  Instead, they erupted with one of the most awful and embarrassing chants in sports:

"WE WANT TACOS!"

For those that are unaware, the Lakers run a promotion with Jack in the Box (a local fast food chain) that if the Lakers win at home, and hold the opponent under 100 points, every fan in attendance receives a voucher for 2 free tacos.  While this is a clever marketing strategy which admittedly adds a splash of drama to the end of games, it has taken on a life of its own.  To me, there is nothing more embarrassing then the home crowd of the greatest NBA franchise in history urging their team on for free tacos instead of a mere playoff victory.  Have these fans really lost all perspective on what is really important?  I could semi-understand if these tacos were gourmet or hard to find.  But Jack in the Box tacos?  It's a fucking fast food burger place!  Ordering tacos there would be like going to a seafood restaurant and ordering kung pao chicken.  And that's not to mention that the majority of these fans probably will never use these voucher anyway, thus avoiding a night of sitting or kneeling over the toilet.

These have now trumped a good old fashion playoff vicotry

Unfortunately this is not isolated to Los Angeles.  In Chicago they run a similar promotion where if the Bulls score 100 points at home and win, the crowd gets free Big Mac's.  Derrick Rose, the MVP and the face of the franchise, actually had to apologize to the fans back in February after missing 2 free throws with 4 seconds left that would have put the team over the century mark.  This was despite the team winning and Rose finishing with 32 points and 9 assists.

I can wrap my head around Chicago fans booing and being pissed about missing out on Big Mac's.  I mean, they haven't really had long history of success, (their first championship coming less than 20 years ago) and have had to endure some pretty terrible teams since Jordan retired.  But the Lakers have been winning championships since 1948.  That's all we strive for and that's all we care about.  Until free tacos came along that is.

I understand the concept of free stuff.  Everyone likes winning and getting something for free that they otherwise wouldn't have possessed, but come on Lakers fans.  Let's readjust our viewpoint to what really matters and put our team above shitty low grade tacos and stop with that horrendous chant.  It makes us look petty and misguided, like we're from Boston.

By the way, the Lakers won 104-100, with that 100th Nugget point coming with 2 second remaining.  I just hope that the win and a 2-0 series lead was a nice consolation to the fans missing out on their beloved tacos.