American football- definitely a sport, one of our most physically demanding ones.
Basketball- sport. Our athletes get paid too much to play it. But when dudes can jump 15-feet through the air and throw a round object through something that is 10-feet high, yeah. Women's basketball- the game in its purest state.
Baseball- cemented sport status. Hand, eye coordination off the charts. You can be fat and be a baseball player, though. Which gives people like me hope. (except for the fact that I could not hit an 80-mph fastball)
Hockey- sport. The ability to play a game with an object while ice skating is unreal.
Pro wrestling- not a sport. It's the male version of 'As the World Turns'. Professional wrestlers, however, are athletes.
Bowling- despite its ball and score status, anything you do better the more drinks you have is not a sport. Bowlers are not athletes.
NASCAR- not a sport. What's wrong with calling it auto racing? NASCAR drivers are not athletes. Formula One drivers are the best in the World. Just because you can drive 500 miles in three hours and turn left (mistake edited) sometimes up to 2,000 times does not make you an athlete. Beat me in the 40. When I see a Mark Martin press conference, I don't see an athlete. I see a very confused old man that does not understand the definition of 'retire already'.
Soccer- absolutely a sport. Some of the things they do with their feet is mind-boggling. A central midfielder runs up to 10 miles in 90 minutes, sometimes at full sprint. Have fun with that.
Track and field- no ball, but it is a sport.
Tennis- yes, it is a sport. I would consider myself a very good tennis player, but not in the big picture. Ping-pong- not a sport (see bowling).
Billiards- (see bowling and ping-pong)
Hunting and fishing- anything we do to put food on the table is not a sport, which is why we are seeing a wealth of hunting and fishing networks developed for television. Somebody somewhere agrees with me.
Video games- not a sport. Anything that has a warp zone is not a sport. In fact, this is ruining sports. When they develop a Wii that has the smell of grass blowing out of it, we are onto something. A Wii itself, however, is borderline. (this just in, as long as you play 'Wii Sport', it is a sport and is granted waiver status)
Tour de France- why is this popular? They are more athletic than NASCAR drivers, but when was the last time a NASCAR champion was suspended for HGH? No. It matters once a year for a few weeks, and we don't hear about it other than that. And, it's in France. Nothing French is a sport, sorry.
Dog shows- not a sport. Has a history of being on ESPN for some strange reason.
Spelling bees- why are these on ESPN? Seriously. "Little Johnny averages 10.4 correctly spelled words per bee (WPB), tops in the country for a 12-year old speller. However, his numbers are down from last season's output of 10.9 WPB, which ranked him fourth in the nation. He is being recruited by some of the best boarding schools in the country."
MMA, UFC- not a sport, but fun to watch nonetheless. They are tough, wouldn't mess with any of them. So I guess it is a sport if they are standing in front of me. "Sure, it is a sport. Just don't hit me."
Boxing- sport. More strategic than MMA or UFC.
Women's softball- Fine, it is granted sport status. But it's boring. Get a great pitcher and watch two hits per game. Is the paint dry yet?
Fencing- nothing Tom Cruise does is a sport. He set football back 20 years by his role in 'All the Right Moves', before he was cool. Then he was cool, now not so much.
Golf- Tiger Woods is an athlete. This is one of the only sports where you can do everything right and still play terrible.
Rugby- those dudes are crazy, no pads. Running full sprint for 80 minutes. Yes, most definitely a sport.
Curling- anything that you need a broom to play is not a sport.
Hurling- yep.
Australian Rules Football- get longer shorts, mate. But sure, why not?
All sports- allow anything injectable, snortable, lotionable, or smokeable. We want to see a 400-pound dude hit 100 home runs in a season whilst running for 2,500 yards and 45 touchdowns in the NFL, and oh by the way win the Tour de France, hold the WWE World Heavyweight Title while pinning his opponent spelling 'appoggiatura'.
And for damn sure, hot dog eating contests do not belong on a sports channel. This is not sports tickerable, nor should there be a contest for it. On this day, I am starting People for the Ethical Treatment of Hot Dogs (PETHD). Ban the hot dog eating, or invent something better to put on TV during this time.
Ribeye steaks on the grill; ones that taste like angels.
Fireworks.
For a man that has put on a military uniform for nearly 13 years of his life, sacrificing family-life for building sand castles in places where they talk funny, I have a different view of what independence actually means.
We entered the American Empire quite some time ago. It is just like the Roman Empire and any other empire you can think of out of your history books. For well over 200 years, we gained independence from Great Britain and went straight to work on being a World power.
Independence is not about being a World power; it is about how we got there. It is about the ones that sacrificed for us to be at this point all throughout our great history. It is about our families being able to go out for a barbeque and not worry about being mortared.
We enter these conflicts because we want to save our right to throw some hot dogs and hamburgers on the grill every July 4th with family and friends, because that is the American way.
Entering the United States Air Force in 1995, I had no clue what freedom meant. I wasn’t sure what we were independent from no matter what we learned in school in our history classes.
My life-changing experience came while temporarily assigned to Aviano Air Base, Italy as operations against Kosovo were kicking off. On the Armed Forces Radio Network, my supervisor and I were listening to then President Clinton deliver his speech announcing that bombing operations were imminent.
During this speech, 10 F-15Es were running at the same time, full of bombs. After President Clinton finished his speech, the aircraft started taxiing. In one or two minute intervals, they took off into the Italian night. Two hours later all 10 of them returned safely, completely “slick”. Meaning, somebody somewhere got messed up really bad by the bombs that were loaded on these aircraft. They were gone from every single F-15.
Then, it hit me. I understood what freedom meant. I understood how we got to this point.
Now, I understand why we are in Iraq and Afghanistan. Fighting once again for the very freedom others have already temporarily provided. So instead of taking a few minutes today to complain about gas prices, NFL contracts, and why we are in Iraq, think about the ones that are in the line of fire not able to enjoy this day quite the same as we are today.
They see fireworks of a different kind. Not celebratory fireworks, ones that could end their lives instantly.
Instead of worrying why we are there, support them. We signed on the dotted line and we have no choice in the matter. For the ones that signed up pre-9/11, it was a different World back then. But we all knew there was a chance we would need to step up to support and defend our constitution.
Supporting and defending is our job. Pretty soon, the job will be done and our World will be safer.
Three words that sum up this whole Seattle versus Oklahoma City debacle. Despite all the negativity, all the talk in Seattle, in short, Clay Bennett and Oklahoma City won.
This is more than financial. This is principal. This was not about Bennett’s intensions with the franchise, albeit clear from when Seattle refused to build the franchise formerly known as the Supersonics a new house. With good reason, since they are still paying for a domed stadium that is no longer standing. And two others that guaranteed Seattle at least two professional sports franchises in the future.
Had Seattle not played its cards right, it could have been out of the professional sports business temporarily altogether. However, the city refused to be held hostage for a third time. Makes financial sense, really.
There was no other viable outcome to this monstrosity. Just find it ironic how suddenly before this verdict came down, we have a settlement? Why not two months ago, avoiding this whole circus in the first place? Why not in January?
Clearly, Seattle wanted to wait until the last minute once again to make Bennett sweat. Seattle did everything in its power to ensure Bennett looked like the bad guy right up until the very last breath when it was its intension to accept the offer in the first place.
Which is why the timing of the email’s, or should I say banter between friends, was ironic. Which is why they acted as if they wanted the Sonics to be a lame duck team for two years. Because at no matter the cost, they wanted to throw mud in Bennett’s face and allow this franchise to be doomed in the short-term.
Now, the hillbillies have a team they can call their own. A city must put its two-year lust for the Hornets behind them, shedding the New Orleans name. Hopefully the Hornets didn’t copyright the “Loud City” name. In just two years, the NBA crazed fans in the heart of America already have an alias.
Where does Seattle go from here? The NBA would be absolutely insane not to return to Seattle in the future. Under the right ownership, until the right circumstances, Seattle clearly deserves an NBA team.
Just in this World we live in today, just not its NBA team. Temporarily. In five years, maybe sooner, another Supersonics product will be running up and down the hardwood in Seattle. Expansion? Doubtful.
Which team would be tempted by the huge Seattle market? Two franchises immediately jump to mind. Portland for logistical and ownership reasons. A mere suggestion of that in the past was met with Seattle and Portland fans lambasting me over and over again despite the fact that I’m not even a real Oklahoman in the first place. Still believe the Portland’s team could blaze its trail a little further north.
Memphis? They have moved before, from Vancouver. There is a rumor that grizzly bears actually do not exist in the Memphis area. Can you Google that?
Ah. I was wrong. They have a zoo.
Would Seattle support another NBA team? "We have 30 million reasons why we have support for a future NBA team," Seattle city attorney Tom Carr said.
Okay. Cool. I was always wondering what happened to the former publicist for Terrell Owens. Now I know. I knew she would eventually resurface somewhere, just never thought in Seattle.
Damn the irony.
This whole argument had no winners, other than Oklahoma City. Not one to gloat. Hold on.
I screwed up when calling the ticket phone number. It’s 1-888-618-HOOP. Kept confusing the last three letters with an I-C-K. (For you Oklahomans asking "Where dat dad gum letter on the phone, hun?", HOOP is actually 4667. See, they don’t make keys for letters, unless you have a keypad for your cell phone... blackberry... whatever the case may be)
Do they have a separate number for people in Seattle to leave nasty messages? (1-888-####-O-F-F) Wonder how many prank calls the ticket line will be getting? Mark it down for two more after the four of you that read this. The other two will look for my number after reading this. They are from Oklahoma. Trouble is, they can’t read a phone book. Guess I’m in the clear.
It is just what the Oklahomans will do when they find me that worries me. Maybe they can find me, tie me up, stick me in the back of the pickup, and dump hot Starbucks all over my face.
Nah. One cup costs minimum wage in these parts.
In all seriousness after my equal opportunity bashing (tree huggers… apologize for my typing tourettes), my family may or may not attend an NBA game, just as if the Hornets were here. Just something that seems wrong (basketBALLS) with watching a red, white, and blue team called something other than the Sonics play in the NBA.
That’s just plain wrong. Will Ice Cube go back and change his lyrics to his 1992 hit ‘Today Was A Good Day’?
“It's ironic, I had the brew she had the chronic
The Lakers beat the Supersonics…”
Today was a good day for some, not all. Never thought I would leave a blog with Ice Cube lyrics.
But I know talent when I see it. I know the difference between draft day gem, and draft day bust. There are very few players I would pay good money to watch. In this evening's NBA Draft, these players went 1-2-3.
Three players, three freshmen, three Hall of Fame talents.
Forget how the three of them measured out in the pointless NBA Draft workouts. When these three get between the lines, they are capable of taking over any basketball game at any level.
Derrick Rose, out of Memphis, is going home to Chicago to help a franchise at the cusp of returning to its glory days under Michael Jordan. Rose will not be able to wear his favorite No. 23, but he likely won't mind. As far as leadership qualities go, Rose is off the charts.
In college at Memphis, Rose was a man amongst boys. He was unstoppable, doing whatever he wanted. Rose made the players around him better.
Michael Beasley had a strange trek to realizing his dream as the second pick in the NBA Draft. Beasley will join up with Miami, ready to drop 20 points and rip down 10 boards every single night.
His stock dropped when his originally thought height of 6'10" was made two inches shorter. It won't matter. Beasley is a Most Valuable Player in the NBA in five years. He could still improve and average in the neighborhood of 30 points and 15 rebounds a game. Beasley is that good. No player in the league will be able to stop him.
Then, O.J. Mayo. We heard about Mayo long ago, all the way back in sixth-grade. Mayo was learning his trade to be an NBA player. He was NBA ready as a junior in high school. Mayo can flat out play. I had been harsh on Mayo, growing tired of the hype. Mayo proved me wrong at USC.
Kevin Love is also a potential Hall of Fame talent. So is Eric Gordon. Gordon is going to shock a lot of people, wherever he goes.
This could be the best draft class of all-time. Get your tickets now.
If you peruse the headlines, it appears radio personality Don Imus is at it again.
Well, that is according to a populous that has devolved into one that has no sense of humor and has dwindled into political correctness overload.
Clearly, Mr. Imus was attempting to make a point. African-Americans are arrested for things that white America would not be arrested for. Even though we are getting deeper into the 21st century, we still have a long ways to go before most, not all, people view people of minorities equally.
The cornerback formerly known as ‘Pacman’ has been a human police blotter since he was drafted by the Tennessee Titans out of West Virginia. We have lost count on how many times he has been arrested. But once the floodgates opened for Adam Jones with his criminal history, the water rushed in and soon his life was turned upside down.
Imus was absolutely wrong in his description of the Rutgers women’s basketball team when he called them “nappy-headed ####.” In a morbid way, the Rutgers team should have sent Imus a thank you card for his wrong choice of words.
Very few people knew Rutgers had a women’s basketball team before the incident. Rutgers women’s basketball became national news overnight. It was media exposure for the wrong reasons, but at least it was something. Negative headlines are not always necessarily a bad thing.
Imus’ point was this; after Jones was given his negative headlines for his brushes with the law, it did not take much for police to arrest him. He could have been in the wrong place at the wrong time and had nothing to do with some of these incidents, and he could have been arrested for these actions just because he was ‘Pacman’.
Imagine the police when Jones showed his ID card. “Oh, you’re Pacman?” Pretty much guilty at that point, which is why Jones was smart to lose the 'Pacman' moniker.
Jones has paid the price for his antics, or what have turned out so far to be alleged antics, facing a harsh and unwarranted year-long suspension from the National Football League.
If Jones looks at law enforcement the wrong way, it is a news headline the following day.
Through time, we see these headlines and form a biased opinion on a certain individual without getting the chance to know the whole story. The media blows these things way out of proportion in a society inundated with negative news headlines. Negative news sells.
But it is the same news media that took five seconds out of an entire radio show done by Imus and immediately painted a negative picture without telling the entire story. Again, negative news sells.
Imus obviously doesn’t get to a nationally syndicated level by being an ####. After losing his job the first time for his comments about Rutgers, no person in the World is stupid enough to make the same mistake twice. And somebody please explain to me how his comments about Rutgers were actually racist in the first place. Inappropriate? Yes. Racist? How?
Jones will return to the gridiron this fall and will begin the grueling path to rebuild his career. He will get a second chance to be able to display his abilities on the football field. Our politically correct general public can be very forgiving for those who are athletes.
But we will never forgive Imus and we will continue to mince his words, jumping to conclusions whenever he says anything that is remotely questionable for the rest of his career. Imus was attempting to make a point sarcastically when common sense is no longer that common. He is not being a racist but in our touchy, feely civilization, we will twist and tangle his words and try to make a story out of nothing.
Jones was arrested for committing a crime and we will eventually forgive him, welcoming him back with open arms. Imus tarnishes his name and career over statement made about a women’s basketball team, and we crucify him?
Cristiano Ronaldo has worn the famous red Manchester United shirt for the final time after Real Madrid has kidnapped Ronaldo, holding a club of equal importance hostage.
In his final match as a Red Devil, Ronaldo scored United’s only goal in normal time to help his soon-to-be former club win its third European Cup with a penalty kick victory over Chelsea.
Ronaldo will take his 42 goals in all competitions and his green Nike football boots to Real Madrid this summer after his native Portugal was ousted from the European Championships following a 3-2 loss to Germany.
Manchester United can say he’s “not for sale” all it wants. Ronaldo is as good as gone thanks to an overly aggressive pouching campaign by Real. The outcry in Manchester will be loud, but it will matter little. Warm up the boo-birds as they will be raining the typical course of boo’s towards the 23-year old one-time wunderkind. When the two footballing giants lock heads at Old Trafford in future UEFA Champions League fixtures, Ronaldo becomes a target.
Many players in the World are under the misconception that a move from Old Trafford to the Bernabeu is a step in the right direction. Ronaldo's potential move is lateral. Moving from Manchester United to Real Madrid is like moving from Manchester United to, well, Manchester United, just in another country.
Every player has its price, including Ronaldo. Even though Ronaldo has proven time and time again that he is the best player in the World as we speak, even he has a price tag. Manchester United will not let him go cheaply. It will take far more than the current World record fee to get Ronaldo to Spain, a figure in the neighborhood of 75 million British pounds (125 million Euros).
The current World record transfer fee already belongs to Real Madrid when they wooed Zindedine Zidane from Juventus (Italy) for 46 million pounds (76 million Euros). It would take likely double that offer to secure the skill and finesse of Ronaldo.
This is where some people would start to rip Ronaldo, which would be completely unfair in this case. If a player with Ronaldo’s talent wants to make a lateral move from a club that helped mold him into who he is today, by all means, there’s the door. It is tough as an avid Manchester United supporter to admit it but if his move is driven by financial desires, please go to Real and do not let the door hit you on the way out.
Ronaldo forgets the supporters that picked him up after being vilified in the English press during the 2006 World Cup. United teammate Wayne Rooney was sent off in the quarterfinal round, a game Portugal went on to win in a penalty shootout. Ronaldo was involved in the incident that drew Rooney’s red card, and responded by winking to the Portugal bench.
While Ronaldo was booed all over England for his antics, it was the United fans that backed him. It was Rooney that forgave Ronaldo for his almost unforgiveable actions on the World’s grandest stage.
Wearing the No. 7 shirt at Manchester United is an honor. Names such as George Best, Bryan Robson, Eric Cantona, and David Beckham made No. 7 what it is today. By all means, Ronaldo did nothing to diminish the importance of the shirt. Ronaldo was brilliant in his time at Old Trafford. But along with the shoes to fill with the famous squad number, a player must be focused on the task at hand.
At Manchester United, anything less than an English Premiership title and a solid run in the FA Cup and the UEFA Champions League is a disaster. If your top player has his mind in Spain, no matter how talented he is, your whole squad suffers.
The Sir Alex Ferguson that has transformed the club into the superpower it has become believes no player is irreplaceable. Not even Ruud van Nistelrooy, David Beckham, or Jaap Stam, some of the top players in our generation to operate on a football pitch.
Take the 75 million British pounds, take 35 percent of that figure, and go buy Ronaldinho from Barcelona. The dazzling Brazilian clearly is on his way out of Barcelona as he is not in the future plans of new manager Josep Guardiola.
With a fresh Ronaldinho, you get a player that could be equally as good as Ronaldo if he finds the form that made him one of the best players in the World, if not THE best player in the World. By acquiring the services of Ronaldinho, you also get another leg up on Chelsea and Manchester City, who have been keen on snagging his signature.
No true supporter of a club would want a player not 100 percent committed to the cause. Ronaldo has been excellent and has earned every single moment of praise that has come his way while in England.
It is time for him to leave and Manchester United need to sell him while his value is at peak levels.
Impossible is nothing. But when you are Texas Tech University’s football program, impossible is still, well, impossible.
Pundits, or supposed experts, seem to like Texas Tech a lot to win the Big XII South Division in 2008, outgunning the traditional big guns named Texas and Oklahoma do to it.
The Red Raiders have a scheme offense that has produced a long list of one-year wonder signal callers. These quarterbacks have put up consistently outstanding numbers through the air after sitting in Mike Leach’s system as understudies.
Enter Graham Harrell; by far the most highly-touted of quarterbacks ever to ink a letter of intent to Lubbock Harrell came to Lubbock out of Ennis High School in Brownwood, Texas with as much hype as any other quarterback in the country.
As a sophomore in high school, Harrell put up Texas Tech-like numbers as he threw for 3,972 yards and 53 touchdowns while leading Ennis to the 4A-II state championship.
It was obvious early on that a potential marriage with pass-happy Texas Tech would be a match made in heaven.
As a freshman in 2005, Harrell threw for 422 yards in mop up duty as the clipboard holder for Cody Hodges.
In 2006, Harrell had 4,555 yards passing and 38 scores while leading the Red Raiders to a 4-4 record in the Big XII and the Insight Bowl. In the bowl game, Harrell led Texas Tech on a furious comeback to defeat Minnesota 44-41 in overtime. Tech trailed 38-7 in the third quarter before Harrell erupted for two passing scores and a rushing touchdown to spearhead the comeback.
Last season, Harrell simply lit up the scoreboard by throwing for 5,705 yards and 48 touchdowns. Part of the reason for his success was the emergence of redshirt freshman wide receiver Michael Crabtree. In a 49-45 loss to Oklahoma State, Harrell threw for 646 yards, five touchdowns, and did not throw an interception. Crabtree hauled in 14 of Harrell’s strikes for 235 yards and three touchdowns.
So suddenly thanks to the potent combination of Harrell and Crabtree, our college football experts are going out on a huge limb by picking Texas Tech to win the Big XII South this season.
At last check, Harrell and Crabtree have yet to line up on defense. Texas Tech’s defense has been paltry since Leach took over in Lubbock. Understandable since Texas Tech’s offense scores with lightning quick fashion and in bunches. Texas Tech’s defense allowed 24 points or more in eight of 13 games last season and ranked 10th in the Big XII in rushing defense.
To be fair, Texas Tech did rank first in the league against the pass, allowing just over 188 yards per game and was third in the Big XII in total defense. This performance is light years better than previous outputs in total defense. Truthfully, Texas Tech was tops against the pass in 2006 and second in 2005.
The offense, without a doubt, will be outstanding as it returns 10 starters. The defense will not be too shabby either, returning eight from a decent unit.
It is easy to ascertain Texas Tech will be very good in 2008 and potentially could be bound for a solid bowl game such as the Cotton Bowl. But winning the Big XII South and a date in the Big XII title game against more than likely a Missouri?
The non-conference schedule, traditionally one of the weakest for a school in a BCS conference in the country, is not going to be terribly difficult. The Red Raiders open against Tulsa, travel to Nevada, then return home to host SMU in a game that could easily eclipse 150 total points against June Jones’ air show, then the cupcake of the slate in UMass.
It is the Big XII schedule that will derail this team. It opens at Kansas State, not an easy task with a more experienced Josh Freeman running the show in Manhattan. They then host a rebuilding Nebraska. Last time the Red Raiders hosted the Big Red; Leach opened up the proverbial can of whoop #### and unleashed a 70-10 beating that makes the term woodshed seem awfully polite.
After Nebraska the Red Raiders have back-to-back road trips to Texas A&M and Kansas, visits from Texas and Oklahoma State, teams Texas Tech lost to in 2007.
Here is where this whole Big XII South Division run could go haywire. The most difficult of tasks is a trip to Norman to face a very good Oklahoma team that has national title aspirations, and rightfully so. Texas Tech then will host an improved Baylor team hoping to sneak into a bowl game.
Fact: Texas Tech has not won in Norman since 1996. In 1996, Oklahoma’s head coach was named John Blake and the Sooners finished 3-8, not winning a game in Norman. In fact, home losses that season included setbacks to Tulsa and TCU. Another setback was a 73-21 loss to Nebraska.
Other than in 1996, as you can see which should be a huge mulligan for Oklahoma, Texas Tech has never beaten Oklahoma in Norman. More importantly Leach, the former Oklahoma assistant, has never beaten his old boss in his own backyard.
Fact: Texas Tech has not won 10 or more games in any football season since 1976. For all the hype surrounding Mad Mike and his program, it is hard to fathom that the Red Raiders have never won more than nine games since the inception of the Big XII. They have flirted with double digits, including last year, but have failed to break through.
Fact: Texas Tech has made only three New Year’s Day bowl appearances in its history. All three were trips to the Cotton Bowl after the 1938, 1994, and 2005 seasons. The Red Raiders participated in the Cotton Bowl and have amassed a 0-3 record.
The impossible part of this equation is the trip to Norman. Harrell had one of his worst starts in his career the last time he made a visit to Oklahoma. He is a better player today than he was in the 34-24 loss as a sophomore, but Oklahoma has not lost a home game since TCU shocked the World and beat the Sooners to open the 2005 season. Before that you have to go back to 2001 to find when Oklahoma lost a conference home game.
Texas Tech, barring injury, will likely get over the 10-win plateau this season. It would be a massive disappointment if the Red Raiders dropped another average 9-win season into the history books.
Texas Tech will finish third in the Big XII South behind Oklahoma and Texas yet again. They will finish no better than 10-2 in the regular season and go to the Cotton Bowl.
Sometimes pundits go out on a limb because they want to be the one to predict the snowball’s chance right every so often. But, not this time.
The Big XII is too good and Texas Tech is still Texas Tech. It would take a herculean effort for the Red Raiders to find them in the top two, let alone winning the division for the first time. Harrell and Crabtree should be Heisman Trophy candidates whether they are the product of the system or not. Numbers don't lie very often, and these two are legitimate stars.
As for the Red Raiders as a whole, try again in 2009. That is if Leach sticks around.
Hate to go out on a limb here, but that is what sportswriters get paid to do. We get paid to make the general populous step back for a moment and think about something so off the wall, you would have never realized it without us. Which is why we get paid to write, and you supplement our income by reading what we write. It’s simple math, really. Not much quantum physics here.
The sky is blue. We take it for granted. Pretty common knowledge. This is not mind-boggling stuff.
Michael Jordan is the best basketball player of all-time. Tough to argue, though there are some potential arguments out there that can make for a heated debate.
Instead of beating around the bush, let’s get right to the point. Tiger Woods is the best athlete in the entire history of civilization. Ever. Nobody comes close. Not only is Tiger Woods the best athlete ever, Woods is also the most important athlete of all-time.
What the World witnessed on Monday was what champions are made of. Tiger Woods had every reason in the World to lose the US Open. He had every excuse in the book to use had he lost. Instead, no. On one leg, Tiger Woods did what he seemingly always does; win a major golf tournament.
Before his injury and even before he started making major winning a habit, Tiger was arguably the most influential athlete in our generation. Tiger brought new people to the golf course, people of all skin colors. His legacy on golf and professional sports is a modern day equivalent to Jackie Robinson. We give No. 42 his due credit for changing the face of professional sports, but we take Tiger for granted.
Tiger might not have had as many barriers to overcome in order to unleash his supremacy on the links, but he made the racial stereotype in golf essentially non-existent. Tiger is so good at what he does on and off the golf course that we sometimes forget the fact that he is a minority in the first place. Robinson would sure be proud.
The US Open was not Woods’ most dominant performance in his 14 major tournament victories, but it was his most important. Tiger was ripe for the picking all weekend long, but Tiger versus the field turned into another Tiger Woods Show.
He needed to play 19 extra holes as the least opportune of times. As the week wore on, Tiger’s limp got worse. Yet, Tiger still managed to win, and win with a million dollar smile on his face.
Tiger is why athletes were role models in the first place. Tiger is a breath of fresh air in a society filled with more bad apples than good ones. Tiger gives us a reason to believe that somewhere in the World; there is some good news in a society filled with bad news.
No man crush, save the crush part for his wife. Even holding his daughter after winning yet another piece of silverware for the collection, Tiger did it with a class and style rarely seen these days.
Tiger will shut it down for the rest of the season as he will get another surgery on his knee, and the rest of golf will try to take advantage and somehow, someway catch Tiger Woods.
Not happening in the foreseeable future. If his last tournament of 2008 was any indication, it will take a superhuman effort to beat Tiger on a bad day with a bad wheel.
Tiger will not win every single major he enters, but he will hoist his coveted silverware and don his green jacket more often than not.
Tiger is a role model, and a damn good one at that. What we can do as casual observers is watch in awe as he dominates his profession like nobody before and be able to tell our grandchildren about the greatest athlete our eyes have ever seen.
Tiger is that good, and a heckuva nice guy to boot. He is so good that even a blogger that doesn't like anything can take time out to write something nice for a change.
Knew the Lakers didn’t have it in ‘em. Knew Kobe would revert to his old self, heaving up prayers right and left when the game was on the line. Knew Phil Jackson needs a real center to win a championship in Los Angeles.
Apologize for not buying into the Los Angeles Lakers hype machine. There are plenty Lakers that are easy to like, Kobe Bryant not being one of them. Nice performance, superstar. His one assist came late in the game when Boston was already in celebration mode. 7 of 22 from the floor, a true championship performance.
Where’s Shaq when you need him?
O’Neal has exactly one more title than Kobe since the two famously parted ways. You know, when Kobe ran him out of town. The most likeable player in the NBA. Yes, him. Shaq. Kobe was not even the best player on the floor during this series. In fact, he was far from it. MVP should stand for Most Valuable Putz.
For a player that changed his number to be one better than Michael Jordan, he couldn’t hold MJ’s socks. Michael stepped up when his team needed him most. Michael’s teams didn’t go down 3-1 in any series.
Michael took things his shoulders and put the Windy City on his back, winning six World Championships. How many NBA Finals’ did Michael and his Bulls lose? Zero.
Which is exactly how many titles Kobe will win in Los Angeles. Why? Because it won’t be long before he is demanding a trade publicly, again. It will be merely a few more days before Phil Jackson is sent away to his layer in Montana, never to be heard from again.
The Lakers need to part ways with Bryant now while he still has value. They have a nice center piece to build around in Pau Gasol, who did nothing to lose the Lakers this series. He only took seven shots in Game 6. They have a hopefully healthy Andrew Bynum to build around. They have good role players, in other words, pieces to a potential championship puzzle.
A puzzle that should not include Kobe Bryant. I have been extremely critical of Kobe Bryant, and rightfully so. My respect for Bryant ended before he even played an NBA game after demanding a trade from Charlotte due to his potential “marketability.” Can’t fault the man for his business sense. His demand actually worked and he has conned most of the American public into the delusion that he is the best player in the game.
This series proves otherwise. If you want my respect, don’t run the best center in our generation out of town, one that seems like the most laid back individual in the entire league. Kobe could have had six rings by now, equaling Michael Jordan’s ring count. And with his age, 10 rings would not be out of the question.
He could have already been regarded as one of the best players to ever lace up sneakers in a society that sometimes judges greatness on rings rather than actually dominance on the field. Don’t run somebody out of town, then turn around to demand a trade a few years later.
Shaq today is better than anybody the Lakers had. There, I said it. You read it right. Shaq right this second is still enough of a presence in Jackson’s offense to make a damn good one-two punch. Shaq 10 years from now is more of a threat than anybody inside other than Greg Oden, who will be winning championships with Portland sooner rather than later.
Kobe did this to himself. It is going to get worse before it gets better. We saw the demise of a supposed superstar today. And his name is Kobe Bryant.
Inevitable delayed, for at least a few more days. In a mere 48 hours, Titletown U.S.A. will be celebrating another World title*.
There is no denying it. Boston has become the sports capitol of the United States*, churning out World titles right and left. First, the cheating Patriots*. Then, of all things, the Red Sox reversed the self-induced curse to win two World Series crowns*. The best franchise in the entire city will win on Tuesday night for what is seemingly its 400th NBA Championship+.
Too bad nobody outside of Boston cares. What is it that makes your Average Joe hate Boston so much? Is it the accent? Is it because we can’t make fun of the Red Sox anymore? Is it because we like to watch that ball go through Bill Buckner’s legs every October?
The Celtics were easy to hate back in the old school short shorts days of the NBA. We hated Larry Bird because his dominance made no sense. We hated McHale’s elbows as they cleared the way for his potent post moves. We hated Parrish because we had no idea why he was such a viable force in the paint.
This is why it is easy to hate Tom Brady*. Which is why it was easy to hate Roger Clemens* even before we realized he was a lying, cheating phony that would throw his own family under the bus to clear his murky name.
We have 13,000,000 reasons to loathe Bill Belichick**. Sorry, Coach. We were unclear on why we can’t stand you. Is it because you act like you are better than everybody else? Is it because you talk down to people? Is it because you have finally been exposed? Guess it couldn’t be because you acted like a four-year old when you lost the Super Bowl to the New York Giants. Nah. Maybe it’s because you are still trying to copyright the term “19-0”*.
There is a common theme here. The city formerly known for its dislike for tea products and its infamous revelry is now known for cheating and winning titles. Could Danny Ainge have bent the rules in order to bring Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen to Boston?
What’s the difference between what the Florida Marlins used to do and what the Celtics are doing right now? “Hey, let’s buy ourselves a title.” Paul Pierce and Tony Allen are the only two players on the roster playing any sort of valuable minutes that were actually drafted by Boston. Not even Glen Davis, if you want to call the two minutes he played in Game 5 valuable.
Holy Matt Damon, Batman! Where is Larry Legend when we need him? Wake up Ted Williams. Send him to Steve Grogan’s house.
Nothing like the Boston Cheat Party. Nothing like watching Kobe lose in Game 6. Nothing like watching Kevin Garnett and his OCD for 48 minutes on Tuesday night, finally winning something of meaning other than high school titles in South Carolina and Illinois.
And Garnett does have some serious Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. Never seen somebody so superstitious in my entire life. But I guess when you win a ring, its okay. Or, I guess it’s okay if you buy yourself a ring*.
At least the rock band Boston was actually from Boston^.
Legend:
*- Denotes Asterisk.
**- Denotes average coach that slightly bends the rules, thus World titles should not count and he should be thrown out of the NFL forever.
+- First 399 were legitimate.
^- Band popular in 1970's when society was going through a "transitional period", therefore chart success not valid.
Oh joy. Another Lakers vs. Celtics tilt in the NBA Finals. Except, there is something missing. Not sure what it is, but something doesn’t feel right.
It’s not the Lakers mismatched purple road uniforms. It’s not the old Boston Garden and its dead spots all over the place.
Wait, this sucks. We are getting screwed. No Magic? No Bird? No bald Kareem? No McHale?
This stinks. Big time.
21 years removed from the last time these two met in the NBA Finals, so much has changed. The NBA used to be watchable. It used to be really good stuff. Each player from the best on the roster until the very last scrub could actually play. Now, maybe a few players on each team are any good. Very few have something called a mid-range game. Very few can make a free throw more than 8 out of 10 times. Very few can properly play defense.
This final proves how much the NBA has regressed since Magic and Bird made the league what it became. Read my words carefully. NOT ONE player in this series is as good as Magic, Kareem, Worthy, Bird, or McHale. Got that? Am I clear?
Not Kobe. Not Gasol. Not Garnett. Not Allen. Not Pierce. When these players are mentioned along with the upper echelon of talent in your league, it means the product is a watered down version of its former self, except with overpaid athletes running the show.
Kobe proved how much of a phony he was without Shaq. He never was able to take the Lakers to the Finals all alone, much like he thinks he could and should have. So, the Lakers had to bring in Gasol in order to give Kobe a fighting chance. Had they not made a move, it was another summer of Kobe whining to be traded, again I might add. Remember, this is a player that demanded to be traded minutes after being drafted because he was too good for Charlotte.
A trade for Gasol, and look what happens. Who is the most valuable player for the Lakers? Sure isn’t Kobe. It’s a player from Spain that probably rides the bench in the league 21 years ago in Gasol.
Garnett, Pierce, and Allen would not have made it without each other. Not one of them. Garnett is too unselfish and is a player that barely is an All-Star in 1987, Pierce shoots too much, and Allen’s best days are well behind him.
The Lakers have white home alternate uniforms. The Celtics have 25 versions of green alternate uniforms, surely all for the NBA to make an extra buck. So tell me how this is compared to the Lakers vs. Celtics series of old? This is a sham.
We have to hear about how Phil Jackson is the best coach of all-time. He and his triangle offense. Jackson is the most overrated coach of all-time. Did you read that correctly?
Jackson came into prominence as the head coach of the Bulls, who had this player named Michael Jordan. You might have heard of him. Jackson’s offense made Scottie Pippen a career, we can give him that. Without it, Pippen is a journeyman for a maximum of seven years in the league.
Jackson did what Doug Collins was going to do very soon in winning the title with the Bulls. Jackson was just a CBA coach before he was gift-wrapped a career coaching in the NBA.
After leaving Chicago, what’s this? The Lakers with Shaq and Kobe? Charles Manson could have coached that team to the NBA title a few times. Jackson is to NBA basketball what Roy Williams is to college basketball. Both have had success handed to them on a silver platter. Imagine if either of them had to actually earn their respective careers.
At least in the Super Bowl, we get new commercials to look forward to. In the NBA Finals, we get no less than four nights of crappy basketball and promos for television shows that are not even good enough to be played during the fall season. If something goes horribly wrong, we might get seven nights of terrible basketball. We hope to avoid the latter. We need to see our re-runs of the shows we missed during the season or the new reality shows that are playing this summer only.
Where do you sign up for that? Maybe they should move the Finals to ESPN Classic. Or maybe even ESPNews. Maybe the players should come out in really short shorts. Oh wait, the Lakers already did that. Maybe the NBA should allow the Lakers to sign Magic Johnson, and the Celtics could sign Larry Bird. I would rather watch them play one-on-one seven times playing to 100 than watch one quarter of these finals.
At least they didn’t change their number because they wanted to be one better than Jordan (Kobe). At least they didn’t demand trades.
Hold on. There are some seven year olds down the street shooting baskets on an 8-foot hoop. This will be more entertaining than the NBA Finals.
Man, woman, and child. One of them made a free throw from 15-feet. Can you believe it?
He might have been the most popular Oklahoma player in the state of Nebraska. That because he nearly quarterbacked the Sooners to the impossible in the real “Game of the Century” in 1971, a victory over the Cornhuskers on Thanksgiving Day. Former OU quarterback and Lieutenant Governor Jack Mildren, called in Oklahoma the “Godfather of the Wishbone”, has passed away at 58 due to a long battle with stomach cancer.
Mildren came to Oklahoma out of high school from Abilene, Texas. When he took over the duties as signal caller in 1969, he set numerous Oklahoma passing records. In 1970 as a junior with the Sooners struggling, Coach Chuck Fairbanks installed a wishbone offense. Mildren was the perfect architect for the new offensive philosophy, leading Oklahoma to the Astro Blue-Bonnet Bowl where they tied Alabama.
In 1971, Nebraska and Oklahoma were atop everybody’s poll entering the season. The hype surrounding the “Game of the Century” started in October when ABC started running commercials letting America know where the catch the game.
Both teams mowed through their opponents. Oklahoma bombed the likes of USC, Texas, and top five Colorado en route to entering the game unbeaten, as expected. The Sooners beat Pitt 55-29 and Kansas State, 75-28. Nebraska did the same. Its closest game was a 31-7 victory over Colorado.
Finally, the big day. The nation watched the two battle at Owen Field in Norman on a cold, windy, dreary day.
After Nebraska witnessed future Heisman Trophy winner return a punt for a score that Sooners backers and Mildren always have adamantly said was a clip, a play that would become the most popular play in Nebraska football history, the Huskers dared the Sooners to beat them through the air. After all, Nebraska’s defense was number on in the nation, allowing more than seven points only on two occasions the entire season.
Mildren and high school teammate Jon Harrison damn near did the trick. The two hooked up four times, twice for touchdowns, as Oklahoma took a 31-28 lead with seven minutes to go.
Nebraska traveled the length of the field and scored the go-ahead touchdown as battering ram Jeff Kinney bowled over the goal-line with 1:38 remaining, taking a 35-31 lead.
Had Mildren been given more time to move the ball down the field, he probably would have pulled the Sooners through. It was a shame somebody had to lose on that day. Some still say the Nebraska 1971 team was one of the best ever assembled. They would eventually go on to beat Alabama in the Orange Bowl 38-6 to win the National Championship. Oklahoma would be lost in history after losing the game. What could have been. If Mildren could have led Oklahoma back, they would still be talked about today. Mildren’s team might have been Oklahoma’s best-ever team.
Rodgers’ punt return was probably the single best individual effort in college football history. But, Mildren and Oklahoma fans were right. There was a huge clip that was missed. The officials were probably trying to figure out how Rodgers could maneuver his way through the crimson clad Oklahoma defenders. There was a clip on the Nebraska 44 as Rodgers was zigzagging his way to paydirt.
Mildren was the vice chairman for Arvest Bank and he had a radio show on WKY 930-AM every single day. In fact, Mildren was on the air the day before his death, displaying the same toughness he showed on the gridiron as an option quarterback.
The least I expected yesterday was to hear of his passing, just minutes after jokingly writing a blog declaring my candidacy for the Presidency (a blog since deleted due to its poor timing and taste). When you hear of things like this, it puts things in perspective.
I didn’t always agree with everything he had to say on the radio. In fact, I disagreed with him an awful lot. He bled Sooner red. He was Sooner through and through. Sometimes his accolades on the field get lost in the shuffle. He was a big-time homer, but I guess when your mere presence in the program made it better by just being there, he gets a free pass.
Mildren didn’t seem to mind. He deserves a lot better to be honest. And maybe since he’s no longer here to deflect the credit away from himself, which he often did, we can make him the legendary player he was.
They say only the good die young. The state of Oklahoma lost a hero yesterday. And his name was Jack Mildren.
Coming out of the book of “if I’m going down, the rest of the NBA is coming down with me”, embattled crook and former NBA official Tim Donaghy has pointed the finger at coaches and players, saying their relationships with other officials has impacted the outcome of games.
Where did the NBA go wrong? When did David Stern lose control?
Out of the big three professional sports leagues in America, the NBA used to seem like it was the most in control led by Stern. Suddenly, the NBA is full of players that can’t play and has gone overseas to find players that can actually successfully complete a bounce pass.
I’ve been anti-NBA for a long time. When Darius Miles was drafted, it was official. The NBA had lost its mind. Miles was terrible. He couldn’t hit a shot from outside two feet. He couldn’t play defense. He couldn’t pass. He was more concerned with how his headband looked. He could dunk, and that was about it.
We are forced to watch players like Stephon Marbury. We wonder how he could make so much money. We wonder who signed off on that deal. And he wonders why new coach Mike D’Antoni wants nothing to do with him. Trouble is, the Knicks can’t release him without parting with large sums of money that could rebuild half the countries in the World. Nobody wants Marbury.
The NBA playoffs should probably interest me, but they don’t. I like to watch players like Tim Duncan, Chris Paul, LeBron James, and Kevin Garnett. Can’t stand Kobe Bryant for some reason. Maybe because he thinks he’s better than Michael Jordan. Michael Jordan might be better than Kobe will ever be today.
Okay, fine. Probably not.
Which is worse? A league with alleged corruption, or a league filled with accusations of performance-enhancing substances?
The NBA has had a gambling problem for a long time. Look at Charles Barkley. Look at Michael Jordan. I have always maintained in my great theory of sports conspiracies that Jordan was suspended for gambling the first time he retired. His move to playing baseball made no sense. Why would he come back wearing No. 45? To repay a fine to the NBA, forfeiting all monetary proceeds for the jersey number change?
Jordan’s retirement and return time table made no sense. Stern, being the smart commissioner he is, wanted to save Jordan the public embarrassment of facing a lengthy gambling suspension. After all, Jordan was the face of the NBA. And since he left for good, the real Jordan we remember with the Chicago Bulls, the NBA has never been the same. His comeback with the Wizards didn’t count.
I’m in the minority on that subject, but nothing you can say can sway me your way. Sorry.
Even the best players in the NBA, for the most part, lack the squeaky
