--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The difference is as basic as between a…" description: "\"“The difference is as basic as between a professional football player and a rabid fan. One is a performer in a harsh, unique corner of reality; the oth..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/17d/hunter-s-thompson-278_ball-player_the-difference-is-as-basic-as-between-a_3013528.jpg" --- # The difference is as basic as between a professional… ![“The difference is as basic as between a professional football player and a rabid fan. One is a performer in a harsh, unique corner of reality; the other is a cultist, a passive worshiper, and occasionally a sloppy emulator of a style that fascinates him because it is so hopelessly remote from the…” quote by Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/17d/hunter-s-thompson-278_ball-player_the-difference-is-as-basic-as-between-a_3013528.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/17d/hunter-s-thompson-278_ball-player_the-difference-is-as-basic-as-between-a_3013528.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/17d/hunter-s-thompson-278_ball-player_the-difference-is-as-basic-as-between-a_3013528.jpg) > ““The difference is as basic as between a professional football player and a rabid fan. One is a performer in a harsh, unique corner of reality; the other is a cultist, a passive worshiper, and occasionally a sloppy emulator of a style that fascinates him because it is so hopelessly remote from the reality he wakes up to every morning.”” [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A professional performer masters a unique reality, while a fan obsessively imitates from a distance. **In simple terms:** Professionals excel; fans imitate. Key Takeaway Seek mastery, not mere imitation. Themes sports culture identity Mood analytical thoughtful Type philosophical critical When to use this quote - career development - fan culture - media criticism - personal growth Key Concepts performance obsession authenticity Questions to Reflect On - What drives the desire to emulate? - How can one balance admiration and originality? A Different Perspective Fans may find value in admiration without imitation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Difference](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/difference/) [Every morning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/every-morning/) [Football player](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/football-player/) ## Related quotes > [I don't think I realized right away that I was switching from being a fan into being a performer. I've always tried to maintain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-brownstein/i-don-t-think-i-realized-right-away-that-i-was-switching-from-being-a/) [Carrie Brownstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-brownstein/) > [The way people reacted to me in dressing rooms and so on was incredibly aggressive. They know every record and they seem to think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/the-way-people-reacted-to-me-in-dressing-rooms-and-so-on-was/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [I am a longtime, rabid fan of Jonathan Kozol.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-tsing-loh/i-am-a-longtime-rabid-fan-of-jonathan-kozol/) [Sandra Tsing Loh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-tsing-loh/) > [When the Warriors are on, my wife keeps away from me. I'm a rabid fan, and my language sometimes is not too good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-west/when-the-warriors-are-on-my-wife-keeps-away-from-me-i-m-a-rabid-fan/) [Jerry West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-west/) > [I got into writing to become a 'Star Trek' writer. I was a rabid fan. I had shelves and shelves and shelves of action…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-fuller/i-got-into-writing-to-become-a-star-trek-writer-i-was-a-rabid-fan-i/) [Bryan Fuller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-fuller/) > [“Over the past two years, he had become a rabid fan of some cartoon involving anthropomorphic turtles who knew karate and battled evil.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-taylor/over-the-past-two-years-he-had-become-a-rabid-fan-of-some-cartoon/) [Phil Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-taylor/) > [“You have a rabid fan following that would buy your phone bill in hardcover and still manage to wank off to it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tiffany-reisz/you-have-a-rabid-fan-following-that-would-buy-your-phone-bill-in/) [Tiffany Reisz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tiffany-reisz/) > [I think what makes a good show is obviously a rabid fan base.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-rash/i-think-what-makes-a-good-show-is-obviously-a-rabid-fan-base/) [Jim Rash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-rash/) > [I didn't quite understand for a little while just how loyal and rabid that fan base is for 'Gilmore Girls' until I started to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-gunn/i-didn-t-quite-understand-for-a-little-while-just-how-loyal-and-rabid/) [Sean Gunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-gunn/) > [Behind many players with an African background, and I've met a lot of them, there is a clan and sometimes a whole village, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralf-rangnick/behind-many-players-with-an-african-background-and-i-ve-met-a-lot-of/) [Ralf Rangnick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralf-rangnick/) > [The goalkeeper also should not be the one with the most contact on the ball. In almost every league and every country, the goalkeeper…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralf-rangnick/the-goalkeeper-also-should-not-be-the-one-with-the-most-contact-on/) [Ralf Rangnick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralf-rangnick/) > [I was a good football player, and I had a chance to play with some great players.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwayne-johnson/i-was-a-good-football-player-and-i-had-a-chance-to-play-with-some/) [Dwayne Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwayne-johnson/) > [MOST AMAZING FOOTBALL PLAYER IN THE ENTIRE WORLD && IN REAL MADRID](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/most-amazing-football-player-in-the-entire-world-in-real-madrid/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I competed every day as a professional football player... You've got to like competing. That's how your team gets better, when you have competition…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herm-edwards/i-competed-every-day-as-a-professional-football-player-you-ve-got-to/) [Herm Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herm-edwards/) > [I have friends in other industries but if I am training for a wrestling match, I would turn to the best wrestler to train,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-aries/i-have-friends-in-other-industries-but-if-i-am-training-for-a/) [Austin Aries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-aries/) ## More by Hunter S. Thompson > [“There was also the fact that sending a penniless writer to get $135 worth of beer was — as Khrushchev said of Nixon —…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/there-was-also-the-fact-that-sending-a-penniless-writer-to-get-135/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [“Cases of champagne and scotch lay broken in the street, and everyone I saw had a bottle. They were screaming and dancing, and in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/cases-of-champagne-and-scotch-lay-broken-in-the-street-and-everyone-i/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [No music + Bad TV = Bad mood & no pages.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/no-music-bad-tv-bad-mood-no-pages/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [By disgracing and degrading the presidency of the United States, by fleeing the White House like a diseased cur, Richard Nixon broke the heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/by-disgracing-and-degrading-the-presidency-of-the-united-states-by/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [No one holds command over me. No man. No god. No Prince. What is a claim of age for ones who are immortal? What…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/no-one-holds-command-over-me-no-man-no-god-no-prince-what-is-a-claim/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [“The person who doesn't scatter the morning dew will not comb grey hairs”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/the-person-who-doesn-t-scatter-the-morning-dew-will-not-comb-grey/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [Hope rises and dreams flicker and die. Love plans for tomorrow and loneliness thinks of yesterday. Life is beautiful and living is pain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/hope-rises-and-dreams-flicker-and-die-love-plans-for-tomorrow-and/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [If we get chased out of Iraq with our tail between our legs, that will be the fifth consecutive Third-world country with no hint…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/if-we-get-chased-out-of-iraq-with-our-tail-between-our-legs-that-will/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [At age 22 I set what I insist is an all-time record for distance hitchhiking in Bermuda shorts: 3,700 miles in three weeks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/at-age-22-i-set-what-i-insist-is-an-all-time-record-for-distance/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [Paranoia is just another mask for ignorance. The truth, when you finally chase it down is almost always far worse than your darkest visions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/paranoia-is-just-another-mask-for-ignorance-the-truth-when-you/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [“No doubt they all Got What Was Coming To Them. All those pathetically eager acid freaks who thought they could buy Peace and Understanding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/no-doubt-they-all-got-what-was-coming-to-them-all-those-pathetically/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [“For several months they'd been drifting toward political involvement, but the picture was hazy and one of the most confusing elements was their geographical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/for-several-months-they-d-been-drifting-toward-political-involvement/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [He wandered into the Newsroom and asked for a job the same way he’d walk into a barbershop and ask for a haircut, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/he-wandered-into-the-newsroom-and-asked-for-a-job-the-same-way-he-d/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [There's no point in getting into politics at all unless you plan to lash things around.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/there-s-no-point-in-getting-into-politics-at-all-unless-you-plan-to/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [There’s a lot of things wrong with this country, but one of the few things still right with it is that a man can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/there-s-a-lot-of-things-wrong-with-this-country-but-one-of-the-few/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) [Explore all 765 Hunter S. Thompson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) ## More Ball player quotes > [Thinking about the things that happened, I don't know any other ball player would could have done what he (Jackie Robinson) did. To be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pee-wee-reese/thinking-about-the-things-that-happened-i-don-t-know-any-other-ball/) [Pee Wee Reese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pee-wee-reese/) > [There is no doubt in my mind and I know in my time, there will be a Canadian basketball player playing for Toronto Raptors, 100%](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masai-ujiri/there-is-no-doubt-in-my-mind-and-i-know-in-my-time-there-will-be-a/) [Masai Ujiri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masai-ujiri/) > [I have friends in other industries but if I am training for a wrestling match, I would turn to the best wrestler to train,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-aries/i-have-friends-in-other-industries-but-if-i-am-training-for-a/) [Austin Aries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-aries/) > [And I want to do it the right way, like everybody else, not just a famous figurehead that gets a job because he is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shaquille-o-neal/and-i-want-to-do-it-the-right-way-like-everybody-else-not-just-a/) [Shaquille O'Neal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shaquille-o-neal/) > [I competed every day as a professional football player... You've got to like competing. That's how your team gets better, when you have competition…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herm-edwards/i-competed-every-day-as-a-professional-football-player-you-ve-got-to/) [Herm Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herm-edwards/) > [“I can’t wait to knock you up and have a whole team of little baseball players around this place!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-sterling/i-can-t-wait-to-knock-you-up-and-have-a-whole-team-of-little-baseball/) [J. Sterling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-sterling/) > [MOST AMAZING FOOTBALL PLAYER IN THE ENTIRE WORLD && IN REAL MADRID](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/most-amazing-football-player-in-the-entire-world-in-real-madrid/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [My older brothers were both basketball players so I just grew up around the gym.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brook-lopez/my-older-brothers-were-both-basketball-players-so-i-just-grew-up/) [Brook Lopez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brook-lopez/) > [I'm a basketball player, so I want to do whatever I've got to do to be on the floor and I'm prepared for that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tyrese-haliburton/i-m-a-basketball-player-so-i-want-to-do-whatever-i-ve-got-to-do-to-be/) [Tyrese Haliburton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tyrese-haliburton/) > [“Seeing yourself in print is such an amazing concept: you can get so much attention without having to actually show up somewhere. While others…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/seeing-yourself-in-print-is-such-an-amazing-concept-you-can-get-so/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [People say baseball players should go out and have fun. No way. To me, baseball is pressure, I always feel it. This is work.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-eckersley/people-say-baseball-players-should-go-out-and-have-fun-no-way-to-me/) [Dennis Eckersley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-eckersley/) > [Canada is a country whose main exports are hockey players and cold fronts. Our main imports are baseball players and acid rain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-trudeau/canada-is-a-country-whose-main-exports-are-hockey-players-and-cold/) [Pierre Trudeau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-trudeau/) > [“The great thing about baseball players, from the point of view of personal hygiene, is how seldom they break a sweat.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/the-great-thing-about-baseball-players-from-the-point-of-view-of/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [A lot of scouts and people are enamored with athleticism and youth. So they take that any day over mature, high-quality basketball players.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-brogdon/a-lot-of-scouts-and-people-are-enamored-with-athleticism-and-youth-so/) [Malcolm Brogdon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-brogdon/) > [I'm a baseball player. I've done this my whole life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-sale/i-m-a-baseball-player-i-ve-done-this-my-whole-life/) [Chris Sale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-sale/) Browse all 1,395 Ball player quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“The difference is as basic as between a professional football player and a rabid fan. One is a performer in a harsh, unique corner of reality; the other is a cultist, a passive worshiper, and occasionally a sloppy emulator of a style that fascinates him because it is so hopelessly remote from the reality he wakes up to every morning.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Hunter S. 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