Monday Tip-Off: Just Keep Scrolling
We’re at midcourt, and the ball is about to go up…it’s Monday Tip-Off! Join me as I begin the week here at the NLSC with my opinions and commentary on basketball gaming topics, as well as tales of the fun I’ve been having on the virtual hardwood. This week, I’m tipping things off with some advice for 2026: just keep scrolling.
Nothing is for everyone. I wish I could phrase that more eloquently and profoundly, but when it comes down to it, that’s the way it is. This is as true for content on the internet as it is for TV shows, movies, music, video games, or basically anything else you can name. Not every YouTube video will be appealing to you. Not every forum, Reddit, or social media post will concern a topic that you care about. Not every article that I or anyone else writes will be interesting to everyone that happens to stumble across it. Even if you’re the intended audience, it still may not be your thing.
That’s OK, but somehow, too many people still take great exception to encountering something that they’re not interested in. Now, you could say that there are far more important matters in the world, but that’s kind of my point here. If the worst thing that happens to you today is that you’re suggested a video or a social media post that just doesn’t interest you, I’d argue that it’s been a pretty good day! And yet, some people still can’t help lashing out with snark and outright hostility when either the algorithm or a creator they follow delivers content that’s completely inoffensive, but simply not their cup of tea. It’s ridiculous because there’s an easy solution: just keep scrolling!
As was the case when I muttered about the silliness of confidently incorrect gotchas last year, there is an inciting incident here. I’ve been making a point to post more on our various social media channels beyond simply promoting content that’s on the site. On top of being beneficial for our accounts, it’s also a good way to share media and trivia that may be of interest to our fellow basketball gamers. It doesn’t make sense to hold everything back for my articles, and not everything demands an in-depth feature. The algorithm can be fickle – even when it comes to delivering posts to followers – but some of those posts have gained traction, and they’ve generally been well-received.
Admittedly, that’s what I should be focusing on. Not everything will hit the algorithm or be universally loved, but the response has been positive enough to encourage me to keep doing what I’m doing. I’ve also been online long enough to realise how negative a vocal minority can be, and that combating toxicity on the internet is like trying to push back the ocean with a broom. Nevertheless, I feel compelled to say something. If there’s the smallest chance that a handful of people can be shamed into being better, it’s worth a shot. Besides, considering how easily people get riled up, I’d argue that the advice to just keep scrolling is good for our collective mental and physical health, too.
So, what had me rolling my eyes and muttering “just keep scrolling” this time? Well, a couple of posts that gained traction drew some unnecessarily snarky responses from people they clearly didn’t appeal to, but the one that inspired this article was about a quirky player age glitch in NBA 2K18. I posted a couple of screenshots showing the bug in the Roster Viewer, and noting that it doesn’t happen in MyLEAGUE. Most people seemed to enjoy it, recalling seeing it themselves in NBA 2K18 and other games, or mentioning that they learned something new. They were numerous likes, re-posts, shares, and comments from people who appreciated some gaming trivia.
And then, I received a notification about a reply on Threads: “why are you telling us this?” It’s not the most aggressive negative response I’ve received to a social media post, including this very one – more on that in a moment – but the tone was clear. There was no mistaking the condescending hostility to something entirely harmless that just happened to land on the For You Page of someone who doesn’t care about basketball gaming trivia. Obviously, I’m neither the first nor will I be the last content creator that receives such a comment, but there’s some added irony in this case. When I took a look at that person’s profile, it seems they’re also producing gaming content!
In other words, someone who should know better, because they too are putting their unsolicited opinions out into the world due to their passion about gaming and interest in content creation. Don’t get me wrong. Comments like that are bratty no matter who is posting them. However, there’s an extra layer of myopia and entitlement when a content creator who’s sharing their work and trying to find an audience scolds anyone else for daring to post something that may not appeal to everyone. Mind you, a glance at this creator’s content suggests they’re the kind of person who sneeringly uses terms like “sportsball”, so perhaps hearing about a basketball game irrationally upset them.
That brings us to our next thoughtful and enlightened response, this time coming from Facebook. This person was considerably blunter about their lack of interest in the age glitch in NBA 2K18 and other games, stating “who the f— cares?” Well, quite clearly they didn’t, but the responses from many other people across all of our social media platforms indicates that they do – if I may be equally blunt – give a f—. And here’s the thing: it’s more than alright that they don’t care about an age glitch in NBA 2K18 and other titles. Neither of these people owed me their interest or a positive response. An expression of disinterest is arguably still feedback that one can then heed or ignore.
With that being said, there’s something childishly selfish and self-important about responses like that. Now, you might say that’s inevitable when so many young people who still have some growing up to do are online and engaging in social media, but when you look at these people’s profiles and they’re far too old to be acting that way, it’s rather sad! Look, I’m sorry that they were let down by an algorithm that latched onto my attempts to grow our audience, but it’s pretty easy to hit those three little dots and tell the platform you’re not interested, or even mute or block an account if you have to. Or you could – you know – just keep scrolling, ignoring what isn’t for you.
After all, it takes more energy and effort to engage with something you’re completely disinterested in that it does to just keep scrolling. That speaks to the much larger issue here: the self-important desire that only our opinions and the things we’re interested in should be allowed, and the tribalistic foot-stamping that occurs when we encounter differing views or an interest that we don’t share. It’s the energy that fuels hatedoms; people who aren’t content to simply dislike or be disinterested in something, but make a point of showing their disdain for it, harshly judge anyone who likes it, and then get way too mad that other people are talking about it. They can’t just keep scrolling by.
Naturally, we’ve encountered this within the basketball gaming community, whether it’s pouring cold water on people’s enthusiasm, trying to silence valid criticism and constructive feedback, or mocking anyone who just wants to have competition in the space. Since this is the part where someone brings up free speech, I’m not saying that we shouldn’t be allowed to do that, though platforms are free to insist on decorum as they see fit. Rather, “just keep scrolling” is a response to people who aren’t making a pleasant, insightful, or otherwise meaningful contribution to a conversation they aren’t even interested in. It’s pushing back on a poor attitude, and advising they chill out.
Moreover, it’s a healthy approach when you’re confronted by something you don’t like or have no interest in, particularly if it’s something as mundane and uncontroversial as trivia for a game you don’t play or care for. I speak from experience here, as someone with over 100,000 posts on an internet forum. That’s not a flex; that’s me admitting to getting into enough drawn-out debates and fanatical squabbles to realise that it’s OK to walk away from the conversation, or steer clear of it to begin with! It’s also more fun to enjoy the things you like than be bothered by the things you don’t. No, a snarky response doesn’t take long to type, but why bother when you can just keep scrolling?
This is why I unashamedly curate my feed across all social media platforms. I have no time or energy for rage bait or posts that simply don’t interest me. If I’m recommended a video on YouTube that definitely isn’t for me, I don’t click on it and then Thumbs Down and leave a comment about how I’m not interested and won’t be watching it. Depending on the video, I may attempt to curate further recommendations with the “not interested” and “don’t recommend channel” functions, but at the very least, I just keep scrolling. That goes for other platforms, too. “Not interested”, mute, and maybe even block, but for the most part, I’ll just keep scrolling past posts that aren’t for me.
There’s no way to not sound like an old man yelling at clouds here, but for the record, once again I’m well aware that this isn’t anything new with online discourse. To that point though, I can’t help thinking that it’s something we should’ve gotten over long before now, especially when we can curate our feeds somewhat effectively. And if we venture beyond that curated feed into the realms of the For Your Page, then frankly we’re asking to be exposed to the occasional post that we don’t like or have no interest in. If you encounter something that isn’t objectionable beyond not being to your taste, it’s easy enough to just keep scrolling. If you get upset, then that’s a “you” problem!
Frankly, it speaks to a lack of curiosity and maturity when someone can’t just keep scrolling past anything they’re not interested in online. It underlines how everything has become a zero-sum game. It’s not enough to get what you want; it has to be at someone else’s expense. “I can’t gain unless someone else loses!” It’s the arrogance to believe that our preferences make us superior or correct. It’s the audacity to instruct someone to “delete your page” when you disagree with a valid, well-reasoned post, or you’re not interested in their content. It’s the childishness of expecting to be catered to exclusively, and lashing out when anything that disinterests you crosses your path.
Sure, we can trot out that weathered thought-terminating cliché and say that it isn’t that deep. I disagree. I believe it’s an immature behaviour that we should avoid. Not only that, but “it’s not that deep” doesn’t hold water when people who can’t just keep scrolling clearly care enough about encountering something they dislike or don’t find interesting amongst millions of other posts that they have to respond to it. Also, “who cares” always falls flat when the general response indicates that a majority of people did find it at least mildly interesting or entertaining. Again, you’re under no obligation to like everything or any one thing, but don’t fall victim to the false consensus effect!
If nothing else, there’s some wry amusement in being hit with a “who cares” – in this case, in the form of “why are you telling us this” – from a content creator who’s also posting about video games. It’s a stunning lack of self-awareness for someone with an even more niche following, and who’s likewise discussing the minutia of the hobby, to balk at someone else sharing trivia or an anecdote. I’ll admit that I did get a kick out of someone replying to him “because it’s cool” and calling him a geezer (even if he is probably younger than me). Granted, it’s a bit hypocritical to cheer on snark after I’ve decried it, but it’s nice to see pushback against people who just can’t keep scrolling.
Needless to say, we don’t need to wait and hope that those people will learn how to interact more politely. If you don’t care to engage, mute or block without guilt. If you’re a content creator, you needn’t entertain any hostile responses – especially from someone who isn’t your audience – out of some warped notion that free speech means everything that’s said has equal merit. When people spammed our Forum with replies of “who cares” or “boring”, we kicked them out without regret. Likewise, you can tune out anyone on social media who refuses to just keep scrolling. I’m sure it’s not the last time that I’ll roll my eyes at replies such as these, but that’s all they deserve.
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