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 right 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.
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?
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 clean image. Is that because they are going to the league too young? They lack the structure of college, suffering to break even while attending. They have never been rock bottom, like most college students.
Will O.J. Mayo help improve the image of the NBA? No matter what, his image is already tarnished. He could eventually be the best player in this draft. But he will always be known as the player that accepted benefits in the famous court of public opinion.
More corruption. More problems for Stern and the NBA.
What can they possibly do to improve its image? I can’t think of anything. The NBA is in trouble.
You enable them. Yes, you. No sense in denying it.
Every single time you click onto the internet, you are enabling them. Every single time you touch your television remote, you are enabling them.
You can’t avoid it. Even if you are standing in line at the grocery store, the magazines on display are enabling them.
As soon as we figure out there is somebody around that runs faster, jumps higher, or hits a ball farther, we begin the process of enabling them. If they can sing, dance, and act, we don’t enable them immediately, but eventually we will enable them.
We put them in a different class. We treat them like royalty. We make them local superstars. Everywhere you look there are poor people, middle class people, rich people, and then these superstars. They are a separate class. These superstars come in all shapes, sizes, colors, and from all of the financial backgrounds. No demographic matters for the ones we choose to enable.
They come from the big city, small town, and the country side. They also come from other countries.
Eventually, some of our local heroes will turn into regional heroes. Some of those will move onto be some of the most recognizable faces in our society, not just nationally but globally.
We being to enable them earlier than ever. We know how fast they run, jump, and how well they hit even before they graduate high school.
At some point, even the ones that we enabled from birth will fall off the wagon. Some will not be able to resist the novelty of being enabled. Temptation will creep in, and they will make a wrong choice along the way. Thankfully, a good percentage of them were taught how to be enabled and will never make a negative headline other than a missed tackle, a thrown interception, or a ground ball between the legs.
Some are so good at what they do that they can continue to make wrong choices even after suffering the wrath of the law. We will continue to enable them. We will always take a chance on the ones that made poor choices. We want to be the ones that enabled them to get back on the right track.
We have made our bed, so we have no choice other than to sleep in it. When we continue to make superstars a bigger-than-life-itself-issue, we must suffer the fallout that comes with it.
When we see a former Mouseketeer suffer an aforementioned meltdown, all we can do is watch in awe. After all, we were the ones that enabled her to act this way in the first place. We continue to enabler her by making her a big deal.
When a player in the NFL gets arrested not once, not twice, but more times we can even count, we should close the book on his chance to be enabled. Somebody out there will give him another chance to be enabled again. It has become our human-nature.
There is a public outcry when we, the enablers, watch our heroes being hauled off in handcuffs. How could this happen?
We demand answers when their names are linked to probes involving steroids and HGH. Even though that every single person reading this would do the same thing had they been enabled for a better part of their life, we act like hold a higher sense of morality and would never stoop to such low measures.
Nah, not us. Keep lying to yourself, enabler. You are not going to be in a movie any time soon. Your name is not on the back of any jersey available at the local mall. Your hit single will not be made on your Xbox playing Rock Band or Guitar Hero.
So, in a sense, you are guilty as charged for excessive enabling and are sentenced to eternity in the Sin Bin. And no matter what comment you leave calling this enabler everything in the book, you and I are guilty. You didn’t log onto FoxSports.com to check the weather, did you? I didn’t have a hankering the entire day to write about the weather, did I?
It’s my opinion, so it must be right.
Signed, One of many enablers
(Note: I will never use the word enabler again. Promise. I annoyed myself, too)
Always wondered why Tennessee guard Chris Lofton seemed off the entire year. Where did the Lofton from his junior season go? How could a pure shooter see his average drop from 20.8 points per game to 15.5 in just 12 months?
Oh. That’s why.
Lofton was had a cancerous tumor removed one week after Tennessee finished the 2006-07 season with a loss to Ohio State. Instead of going public with his battle, Lofton played his senior season without excuses. After all, it was the main reason why Lofton wanted to avoid going public.
Lofton wanted no excuses. Well, that’s his reasoning anyway. Suddenly, 15.5 points per game seems pretty solid. And it comes with a huge asterisk. Not sure if there is a type style or a font to make this asterisk big enough.
What guts. Lofton showed the entire country what the term intestinal fortitude means. No pun intended, since it was testicular cancer.
Lofton could have redshirted and had every excuse in the book to back him up. He could have quit altogether. Instead, Lofton gutted it out.
That is what a true leader would do. That is what a winner does when the chips are down. And Tennessee is suddenly not just a women’s basketball school anymore. Lofton and his Volunteers could play, holding down the top spot in the rankings for a week last season after beating Memphis. Could we go as far to say that Tennessee’s basketball program is better off than its football program? Couldn’t be.
Actually, Tennessee has become a hoops hotbed with one of the best coaches in the country in Bruce Pearl. Even the best X’s and O guys need a player to carry the team on his shoulders. Lofton was that guy, and then some.
Lofton hit 118 three-point shots in his senior season, a career high. That’s stroking it. The three-time All-American may not look like an NBA player, but then again, only about half of the players in the league are worth a damn anyway. Lofton is worthy of a spot on a roster. Without question.
You can’t question his toughness. There is no debate. It was the gutsiest thing these eyes have seen in a lot of years. If NBA players were ever judged on character, Lofton would pass with flying colors.
Lofton is now one of my favorite players ever. This happened overnight. I can’t sit here and tell you what it feels like to have cancer. I thankfully wouldn’t know. But I can imagine it is hell. Imagine going through the trials and tribulations of this potentially tragic situation, and still having enough guts to get out on the court and do something you love.
Quitting would have been easy. Redshirting would have been excuseable.
Toughness comes too cheap these days. That is until Lofton went public with his issue. Yes, basketball players can be role models too. Especially if they are wired like Chris Lofton. If the NBA passes on a player like Lofton, they ought to be ashamed of themselves
“I will go down with this ship And I won't put my hands up and surrender There will be no white flag above my door I'm in love and always will be”
Thank you Dido. However, the irony of this subject is that I am bringing out the white flag on this SuperSonics moving to Oklahoma thing. Wondering if there are lyrics about NASCAR somewhere out there to some country beat about the white flag on the last lap during a race. Probably Track 3 between the songs about losing your girlfriend and your Chevy pickup breaking down. With a dog on your lap. Drinking a beer. While driving. Sure it’s out there. Somewhere. No ONSTAR. It doesn't reach to where you are. In the middle of nowhere. No cell phone bars.
If you haven’t noticed, I have decided to throw fuel into the fire about the Sonics pending move to the Oklahoma City area. I have played both sides of the fence, brilliantly I might add, using sarcasm and abundant stereotypes about those from Seattle and Oklahoma City. Basically whatever people from Seattle could say about Oklahoma, I would use it as ammo. Whatever people from Oklahoma had to say about our friends from the great northwest, I would use it as well.
I will say this; in my 12 and a half year military career, I learned one thing early on. No matter where you are from, no matter what sort of household you were raised in whether it be rich or poor, black or white, from the East or West Coast- deep down inside everybody is the exact same. We have different upbringings that make us who we are, but things that are funny to somebody from California are funny to somebody from Maine or Missouri.
Seattle sounds like a nice place that gets a lot more rain that I’m used to. But that’s not all bad. When I think of Seattle, I think of music for obvious reasons. I was in high school when the whole grunge thing was ‘alive’ (no pun intended) and kicking. I was into rap in Junior High. But bands like Pearl Jam changed me forever and is somewhat to blame for whom I am today. Had they not helped shape me, I would not have discovered what I did in Europe. No way would that have happened. Any questions check out my MySpace page.
Oklahoma City reminds me a lot of home in the Omaha area. Except it’s more spread out, a lot bigger, and the people have different accents. Nebraska is a special place, but Oklahoma is top class when it comes to the people. They are not hillbillies, they are just laid back. Nobody is in a hurry here in Oklahoma, except for some reason when they drive. Horrible drivers.
There is a huge stereotype about people with Southern accents being stupid. Completely untrue. But that's the World we live in today. They have some different things to say sometimes, things I'm not used to being from eight hours north of here. "Gimme some sugar?" The first time I heard that, I honestly had no idea what it meant. Just like my Australian ex asking for the "torch" one time. "Huh?" Oh... flashlight. Gotcha.
Seattle fans raise very valid points about this move. Can Oklahoma City sustain a franchise long-term? That’s a damn good question, actually. What happens when the novelty wears off? What happens in seven years when the Sonics are 20-62 and missed the playoffs for the seventh straight year? All good questions.
The novelty never technically wore off with the Hornets. However, I will say this with the utmost respect and honesty. The last two or three months of the Hornets being in Oklahoma City, it was not as big of a deal as the first year and a half. In my opinion, that is very concerning.
No move to another city is ever pretty. There are always pro’s and con’s. I feel terrible for the city of Seattle. No fan base sells out the building on a consistent basis when the franchise doesn’t put a winning team on the floor. To expect them to sell out every game is not realistic. Quite sure there wasn’t a problem in the mid-90s when Seattle was one of the best in the Western Conference.
Clay Bennett, the majority owner of the Sonics, didn’t buy the team to keep them in Seattle. For those who say he had every intension of keeping the team in Seattle are lying to themselves. But you can’t blame Bennett for buying a team that was struggling in terms of having a building that wasn't up to standards in order to give his Oklahomans a basketball team. He carefully picked a team that was on the market and using smart business sense, decided to move a team that could not financially keep them.
It’s not Seattle’s fault for that. They had to bend over backwards before to keep the Mariners and Seahawks at home. Seattle is a lot more of a major league city than Oklahoma City. However, Oklahoma City is ready for at least one franchise. Money doesn’t grow on trees. The people of Seattle are already paying on two brand new stadiums, two of the best around I might add. They are still paying for the Kingdome, now a memory.
Oklahoma City voted to bend over backwards in order to upgrade the Ford Center. Having just spent hundreds of millions of dollars to upgrade the city, they voted to upgrade a building that is pretty new just to get an NBA team. You can’t blame them for stepping to the plate to ensure they, too, would become a major league city.
Seattle will have basketball again. The Hornets maybe? I understand the Blazers are probably out of the question. Expansion? Possible. There are lots of positives about having an NBA team in Seattle. Can’t really think of any negatives.
Just like there are not many negatives for Oklahoma City. This is a positive thing for the future. It gives them another identity instead of being known for a tragic bombing and tornado.
There are no right answers here. That’s my opinion, so it must be right.
My sister and grandma are fixin’ to go down to the city to get tickets. They like to give me sugar. They are the same person, so it’s not all bad.
Seems that this boom from down yonder is coming sooner than we thought. We hope they call this team the Sooners. BOOMER!
That Clay is a good ol’ boy. He made a lot of money in the Texas Tea business. I reckon he likes basketball and bought a team to move it to us.
But these people that are losing this team keep pitchin’ a fit. We ain’t never done nothin’ to them northwestern types. We don’t understand why they don’t like us so much. Gee willikers.
The people in town are paving the street today. Seems they don’t want the new team to have to use the dirt roads that lead to the Ford Center.
Them Seattle types wouldn’t #### on Mr. Bennett if he was on fire. They think he’s as dumb as a sack full of hammers. They get all swole up when his picture is on the radio.
We ain’t got television in Oklahoma yet. They reckon they might get it in a few dad gum years.
I better go now. My Papa wants me to go find food for tonight. I reckon I might shoot myself a squirrel. Those are usually mighty tasty this time of year.
Bricktown buzz blasts boom, bringing Bennett big bank.
Soon (to be) Oklahoma’s Sonics.
Note: Portland will be in Seattle in two years anyway. Don’t understand what the big deal is. Paul Allen’s “no” vote speaks loud and clear. “Seattle will think I’m a hero. Especially when I bring them professional basketball in a few years.” Bet you a cup of Starbucks he steps in to ensure the lease ends sooner than expected. Watch that space.
I had plans to write something about college football today. Instead, politically correct tree huggers, only politically correct until it is convenient for them at least, have gotten in the way. This caused a change of plans, obviously.
Seattle still hates these ####. A lot. The ones that say they have no ill-will towards hillbillies from Oklahoma are lying to themselves and the rest of the nation.
Seems that the suicide cases in the not-so great Northwest are pinning its hopes on keeping the Seattle SuperSonics on email. And a 19th Century attempt to get back what they sold. Get out the blankets infested with chicken pox.
Ironic, since Oklahoma is the one that has more of the Native American history. Oklahoma means “red people”. Hopefully the NCAA doesn’t catch wind of it. They might make Oklahoma change the name in order to be politically correct to Native Americans. So not only are people from Oklahoma hillbillies, they apparently are “red people” as well.
Sonics former, and I stress former, owner Howard Schultz is attempting to undo his purchase because apparently, the Oklahoma based ownership group led by Clay Bennett had some email traffic talking about the potential of a move to Oklahoma City. According to the tree hugging local media, this is in breach of contract because Bennett promised to act in “good faith” to keep the Sonics under the umbrella.
Seattle SuperSonics fans suddenly feel that its franchise has the same history as the Baltimore Colts and the Cleveland Browns. Fine. Lie to yourselves then. Other than one NBA Championship in 1979, what else have they done? Got drilled by the Chicago Bulls in the NBA Finals in the mid-90s? If they want to keep the SuperSonics name and its 25 uniform changes over the past 20 minutes, more power to them.
Key Arena was built in 1995, with a capacity of 17,098. How could the fans of Seattle not see this coming? Why build something and not make it up to NBA standards? Why not build a facility of at least 20,000 fans? Had Seattle had done that; this potential move is a dead-issue.
Oklahoma City rounded up the broken down covered wagons and put together a pot of gold to build the Ford Center in 2002 with a capacity of 18,036. The arena was “almost” NBA ready, because back when it was built, there was no reason to even conceive that the NBA could ever play on its floor other than in exhibition games. Boy, times have changed.
Seattle fans want to point out that they are the 13th or 14th, depending on what you look at, ranked media market in the nation, much larger than Oklahoma City’s 45th ranked media market. So why seven years later, how can Oklahoma City get it right, when Seattle got it so wrong? Man, these undereducated hillbillies got lucky, I guess.
If you are making this point that Oklahoma City is not ready 15 years ago, not many would disagree with you. You would be hard-pressed to find somebody in Oklahoma City that would feel they were ready for a professional sports franchise.
After the Murrah Bombing in 1995 and one of the costliest natural disasters in American history with the 1999 F5 tornado, Oklahoma City has gone through an amazing transformation into the 21st Century. Bricktown is a booming business district in downtown Oklahoma City with tons of restaurants and night clubs and includes, ironically, the Sonic Restaurants World Headquarters.
Oklahoma City has grown up fast. When the New Orleans Hornets needed a home after another natural disaster, Oklahoma City stepped up and gave them a home for two years. The Hornets even gave Oklahoma City fans the nickname of “Loud City.” Sellouts were aplenty. Locals even took a break from hunting for its own food in order to catch a game or two at the Ford Center.
Chris Paul became a local legend. The players loved Oklahoma City, but understood that they would eventually have to return to hurricane ravaged New Orleans.
Not only did these ignorant in breeders prove that they are more than capable of permanently becoming home to an NBA franchise, they were among the upper echelon in NBA attendance. The Hornets were 11th in NBA attendance in 2005-06 with an average of 18,168. Not bad for the 45th ranked media market in the country. That placed them 12 places higher than Seattle, which was 23rd. Last season, Oklahoma City ranked 15th with an average of 17,830, which was 10 places higher than Seattle.
“Loud City” is ready. Season tickets will be snapped up quicker than the Sonics can get here. Hopefully the moving trucks will be able to navigate its way through the Oklahoma prairie. There was a plan to put the first paved street in Oklahoma City by November, which is when the 2008-09 season is going to start.
They might even put in a stop light to fight traffic.
Updated at 5:00 pm CST : Memphis coach John Calipari has shot up to the top of the list in Oklahoma State's search for a new Men's basketball coach.
According to unidentified sources speaking on a condition of anonymity, Calipari will decide by Wednesday whether or not to interview for the position. If he interviews, a $6 million signing bonus similar to what would have been offered to Kansas coach Bill Self might be available.
Should Calipari fall through, the search moves on to Kentucky coach Billy Gillespie. Gillespie has yet to sign a contract at Kentucky and apparently is interested in moving on. Gillespie was rumored to have called Texas A&M to ask for his job back after Kentucky’s November loss to Gardner-Webb.
With the Wildcats losing two players from this past season and missing out on the top recruit in the state in Scotty Hopson, Kentucky will have a rough year in 2008-09. Hopson has signed with Tennessee.
‘Melo Needs to Mellow
Never been a big Carmelo Anthony fan. Saw him in person a few times, never been all that impressed.
Last night at around 4 am, Anthony was arrested on a suspected DUI offense in Denver. The defenseless Nuggets have fought tooth and nail to get into the playoffs, eventually overtaking Golden State for the eighth spot in the Western Conference by a half game.
Last night, the Nuggets posted an impressive victory over Houston, 111-94. Just a few hours later with three games left to play in the regular season, all pivotal towards its playoff aspirations, Anthony greeted his team with a distraction.
The NBA has suspended players for less. Anthony, who admittedly has improved since last seeing him in person, averages 25.8 points and 7.4 rebounds. Both impressive statistics, but he is not the best player on his team. Allen Iverson has been since setting foot in Denver, and always will be until either he retires or moves on.
The Anthony-Iverson pairing has worked extremely well. In any ordinary season, the Nuggets would comfortably be in the playoffs already. But not 2008, where two worthy playoff teams will be golfing early this year. Namely either Denver or Golden State and Portland.
This is another case of a player with all the talent in the World putting himself in front of others. Say what you want about Iverson, but he has never done anything like this, which is why Iverson is one of the top five in our generation. Iverson once injured his elbow diving for a loose ball in a meaningless game with his team up by 25 in the fourth quarter. If that is not the definition of team player, what is?
Anthony could have been a legend in college had he stuck around after leading Syracuse to the title in 2003. Anthony could be a perennial All-Star as he, along with Iverson, is one of the top five scorers in the league.
With Anthony, something has always been missing. Not sure if it’s his deplorable defensive effort, or what it is. Maybe this is it. Maybe we saw this coming.
Could there be worse timing for it? Anthony could have just erased an entire season of effort. And for what?
Tiger Finishes Second
No grand slam this year for the best athlete this century. Tiger Woods finished a lowly second place at the Masters and watched South African Trevor Immelman stepped up to claim his 15 minutes with the victory.
Woods didn’t play his best and finished second. Repeat, second! If Tiger is not the most dominant athlete ever, what is the definition?
We keep hearing about who is the “next” person to challenge Tiger. Nobody. Tiger stunk it up over a four-day period over the weekend according to his standards, and lost a golf tournament. It is amazing when the story becomes somebody not winning rather than focusing on Immelman’s well-deserved green jacket.
Tiger is not only the best athlete of our generation; he is the best of all-time. Michael Jordan, for how great he was, had other players around him. Muhammad Ali talked his way into the equation by proclaiming himself the greatest of all-time. Joe Montana still had the likes Jerry Rice and John Taylor to catch his precision passes.
Tiger dominates an individual sport. It’s literally him against the World. And he does it so easily.
Many say golf is boring because of Tiger and his dominance. I would have to politely disagree with those who say that. Dominance draws neutrals to the sport. We hate dominance, but when it occurring, we have to stop for a second to watch it. Just like the aforementioned Bulls and 49ers, a lot of people hated them, but watched their every move. We tell our children about how great Jordan
