Kevin Love received a lot of praise for his article in Players’ Tribune addressing mental health, the stigma involved with seeking help, and his own experience with panic attacks in the middle of a game. The piece was likely difficult for Love to get out, but it was warmly received by other players in the league and seemed to start a conversation that shouldn’t be a shameful experience.
That said, SNL’s Pete Davidson did have a problem with it thanks to his own battles with mental illness. While peppering some praise for Love’s piece and him opening up about his struggles, Davidson made a point to say that he’s been dealing with his own issues since he was a kid and they don’t exactly correlate perfectly with Love’s issues.
There are plenty of jokes at Love’s expense, mostly about his uncle Mike Love from The Beach Boys, but the main point of the segment might not be what he’s saying at all. If anything, being able to speak freely and openly about issues like mental health — especially on a comedy show — is a big deal and something Davidson has been doing a lot during his time with SNL.
I think Pete Davidson’s bit about Kevin Love went over some people’s head. He was making a point that it doesn’t matter how rich or famous you are, you can still have a mental illlness. He wasn’t actually making fun of Kevin’s panic attack. #SNL
— Beth (@BethHoller) March 18, 2018
Plenty of folks will take it at face value and think it’s just a big dig at Kevin Love’s panic attacks, but it’s likely bigger than that. Also, it’s supposed to still be funny in the process. He’s still making jokes while opening up on TV and discussing something most people wouldn’t admit to a few years ago.
If anything, it’s a segment worth watching and deciding for yourself. Most of Davidson’s Weekend Update appearances are like that, but this one might stand above them slightly. And it fits with the title of Love’s piece, “Everyone Is Going Through Something.” It just tosses in a few jokes about free throw percentages and Mike Love being the worst Beach Boy.
(Via SNL)
