Who are the certain columnists that you read no matter what the topic is on? Columnists that you respect their opinion even outside of sports?

Who are the ones that you avoid on every occasion? Columnists that have no talent and you have yet to understand how they're employed...


Love:
Michael Rosenburg - This guy is talented. He is very humorous and often comes through with a solid opinion. Every once in a while he misses (see last week's article on Marinelli), but usually he is a very good writer.

Jason Whitlock - Sometimes he tries too hard to see a different point of view, but this guy knows his shit. I love reading his articles.

Hate:
Drew Sharp - He is a terrible columnist so he tries to play devil's advocate on every situation so he will get a rise out of people. Talentless. Worst of all, he's always on ESPN as the columnist from Detroit. I don't want that asshole being what other fans think of Detroit.

DJ Gallo - Page 2, ESPN. I have never read an article of his that I thought was funny/interesting. He tries so hard to be funny, but he is humorless. If you want to read an article that will actually make you cringe at the failed attempts at humor, read his. How he has his own feature on ESPN is beside me.


Any others?

Love
Keith Langlois - I love his integrity and objectivity.
Chris McCosky - Modesty and unquestioned foresight.
Stephen A. Smith - Tells it like it is, with flair.

Hate
Hollinger

This is actually not a full list but I've spent probably too much time on it as it is:

Columnists I enjoy or enjoyed (still working out which I love and these are in no particular order):
Wojo
Michael Rosenberg
O'hara
Jerry Green
80's and 90's Mitch Albom
Whitlock (Motown's spot on about him though)
Peter King
Gregg Easterbrook
Ralph Wiley
Hunter S. Thomspon (I have to admit I liked his football column for Espn)
Peter Gammons
Ric Bucher
Marc Stein

Read all the time but my love or hate depends on the column:
Drew Sharp
Bill Simmons (too much a typical Boston sports fan for me to love)
Rick Reily (too pretentious for me to love)
Gene Wojciechowski
Scoop Jackson
Today's Mitch Albom
Marty Burns
Almost every hockey columnist (none ever impress me consistently)
Dr. Z
Frank Deford
Phil Taylor

Hate:
Hollinger
Jack McCallum
Charley Rosen
Rob Parker
Over half of everything written on Espn's Page2

LOVE

- Michael Rosenberg- Free Press
- Jon Paul Morosi- Free Press
- Marc Stein- ESPN
- Jayson Stark- ESPN
- Bill Simmons- ESPN (sometimes his Boston-bias is annoying, but he's fresh, original, smart, and informed)
- Ken Rosenthal- FOXSports (by far, the best MLB insider in the business)
- Tom Kowalski- MLive
- A. Sherrod Blakely- MLive
- Bob Wojnowski- Det. News
- Peter King- SI
- Will Leitech- Deadspin.com
- Whoever does those UniWatch columns on Page 2


HATE

- Drew Sharp- Det. News
- Rob Parker- Det. News
- Rick Rilley- ESPN/SI (I loved his book "Whos your Caddy", but his articles have become bland, and he's basically become a sellout by jumping ship to the world wide leader)
- Marty Burns- SI
- John Hollinger- ESPN
- Ivan Maisel- ESPN
- DJ Gallo- (to follow up on what MoTown said, I bought his sports satire book about a year ago, and I found my college textbooks to be funnier)

I also hate David Thorpe and his stupid Rookie Ranking columns, and I hate Beano Cook when he does ESPN chats and only answers questions about Notre Dame.

I hate Mariotti. But this is based off his appearences on Around The Horn. I don't read columns.

LOVE




HATE


- Rick Rilley- ESPN/SI (I loved his book "Whos your Caddy", but his articles have become bland, and he's basically become a sellout by jumping ship to the world wide leader)


I actually like Reilly. But again, I don't read columns. So this is based off his appearences on ESPN.

I hate Mariotti. But this is based off his appearences on Around The Horn. I don't read columns.


Mariotti doesn't write columns anymore...

Journalism is dead.

Mariotti doesn't write columns anymore...



Was he not a columnist?

Was he not a columnist?

In the loosest sense of the word, yes.

I hate all communists.

Sounds like I might be in the minority here, but I find Jason Whitlock to be incredibly un-enlightened. I think there are definitely "some" race issues in the grand spectrum of sports and he does indeed do a good job of speaking his mind, but his propencity to turn NUMEROUS situations race issues. It is an old bit that he has used up one too many times.

Oh, Jemele Hill. I hate that cunt.

I hate columnists who don't conduct their business in the city their supposed to report in.

the Lions kept slinging it and slinging it until, in the fourth quarter, like a parachute suddenly opening after several failed attempts, a silky smooth finish made you forget the bumpy drop.

Seriously, he can't possibly keep a straight face as he writes this crap anymore can he??

He's always writing for Oprah now. Even his columns.

It's painful really. I remember his column was the first thing I wanted to read after any Detroit sports event. It had become a part of the event itself.