In my last blog I talked about the NBA and how some players are set up to take on the role of becoming the next "Like Mike." However, I feel as if I was not giving credit where credit is due. I think the same could be said for my readers as well.
With the NFL season in the thick of things the Cowboys are a hot topic and Wade Phillips being on the hot seat or not. So when it comes to the NFL coaches are publicly given credit for succeeding or failing. (Bill B. for the NE Patriots last year on 4th down vs Indy.) With the NBA though, I feel as if I need to be giving more credit to Phil Jackson.
Yes, players win games but in the NBA why are coaches not given as much credit or media attention for bad decisions like they are in the NFL? Phil Jackson is trying to win his 12th title as a head coach! That would tie Bill Russell, and he was a player. Jackson already owns the record for most rings among coaches, and he has two rings back from when he played in the NBA with the NY Knicks in 1970 and '73.
So with all those rings and the capability to win another 3 peat (this one with the Lakers, 1st one was with the Bulls) how is he not the face of the NBA? He coached all the "great" ones. He made MJ who he was in the NBA, and has done the exact same with Kobe. The NBA needs to figure a way to get this man as the face of the NBA once he retires and to think he is 65 years young! Jerry Sloan is 68, Joe Paterno is 83, and when Joe Gibbs coached in the NFL a big deal was made about him and he was 67.
I just do not understand how NBA coaches seem to not get as much media attention at times or their recognition might get swept under the rug at moments because the stars of the league get the attention. Yes, they are the ones who either hit the game winning jumper or not, but look at a QB in the NFL, his outcome gets reflected back to the head coach.
Monday, October 25, 2010
Monday, October 18, 2010
Who is the next "Like Mike" in the NBA?
In class we discussed how Michael Jordan is arguable the greatest figure in all of sports. However, I want to stick just to the NBA in this blog.
MJ has the 6 rings, the Hanes commercials, the shoes, and the swag. He had the swagger of a champion. All those reasons tie in to him being the best ever at his sport and everyone else is a distant second. As a Cavaliers fan I always thought LeBron James would surpass the greatest of all time. After this past summer, it is safe to say my feelings have changed. Yes, I am sour about it, so is every other Clevelander. But there is also reasoning to it. LBJ has yet to win a title. He has won the MVP award twice, but rings is where athletes are measured. Whether or not LBJ wins 1 or 6 rings with the Miami Heat, it will not do a damn thing but keep him behind Jordan. LeBron has taken a lot of scrutiny for becoming teammates with other superstars in the league. The greatest player should not need superstars around him. Yes a supporting cast is nice, and I think it is safe to say James had that this past season.
Another player on the list of becoming the next MJ should be Kevin Durant. This dude is sensational. He is barely old enough to drink and is in his third year in the league. He won the NBA scoring title last regular season and should be favored to repeat this season. He took the Oklahoma City Thunder to the playoffs in just his second NBA season! The guy can hit a jump shot from anywhere, and what makes things even better.. He signed a contract extension this past summer to stay with the Thunder for at least four more years. Talk about a great talent and does not let his head get to big. Everyone wants to say Cleveland is a bad city for marketing, how about the state of Oklahoma!?! Obviously, this young man has a lot of work to do and plenty of rings to win, but it is safe to say he is off to a fantastic start.
The final player I want to bring up has already peaked and is on the decline in his career. When I say decline, I do not mean that he can not play, just stating that he is getting older. Kobe Bryant, just won his 5th ring with the Los Angeles Lakers. Okay say what you want about the man: was in the media for rape, ran Shaq out of town, and demanded a trade just two-three years ago. Instead, LA steals Pau from Memphis and they have not stopped winning since. Kobe is known as the best closer in the game, he can hit any shot at anytime and there is no one else in the NBA a coach would rather have in the final minutes of a game. With a championship this year he will equal MJ. Kobe also has the longevity to continue playing at least four more seasons, therefore the potential to win more rings than Jordan is fairly high. He has is own shoe, maybe it is time for him to come up with his own brand. Time for Kobe to start marketing more, but the question is why? He does not need the money, and where he is at in his career, he just wants to win that 6th ring. Also, the man loves the NBA and that is his focus, staying healthy and relaxing when off the court.
In the end, NBA fans need to embrace this magical season that is about to start in 8 days. If you are not a Lakers fan, then you hate to see them keep winning. However, with Miami's big 3, the Boston Celtics and Durant's Thunder it is well known that the title run will not be easy for any team this season. So instead of harping over what cannot be changed it Cleveland or Toronto, why not sit back, relax and be thankful that we all could be witnessing history. (Sorry Cavs fans, I know when you read over the word witness what comes to mind.)
MJ has the 6 rings, the Hanes commercials, the shoes, and the swag. He had the swagger of a champion. All those reasons tie in to him being the best ever at his sport and everyone else is a distant second. As a Cavaliers fan I always thought LeBron James would surpass the greatest of all time. After this past summer, it is safe to say my feelings have changed. Yes, I am sour about it, so is every other Clevelander. But there is also reasoning to it. LBJ has yet to win a title. He has won the MVP award twice, but rings is where athletes are measured. Whether or not LBJ wins 1 or 6 rings with the Miami Heat, it will not do a damn thing but keep him behind Jordan. LeBron has taken a lot of scrutiny for becoming teammates with other superstars in the league. The greatest player should not need superstars around him. Yes a supporting cast is nice, and I think it is safe to say James had that this past season.
Another player on the list of becoming the next MJ should be Kevin Durant. This dude is sensational. He is barely old enough to drink and is in his third year in the league. He won the NBA scoring title last regular season and should be favored to repeat this season. He took the Oklahoma City Thunder to the playoffs in just his second NBA season! The guy can hit a jump shot from anywhere, and what makes things even better.. He signed a contract extension this past summer to stay with the Thunder for at least four more years. Talk about a great talent and does not let his head get to big. Everyone wants to say Cleveland is a bad city for marketing, how about the state of Oklahoma!?! Obviously, this young man has a lot of work to do and plenty of rings to win, but it is safe to say he is off to a fantastic start.
The final player I want to bring up has already peaked and is on the decline in his career. When I say decline, I do not mean that he can not play, just stating that he is getting older. Kobe Bryant, just won his 5th ring with the Los Angeles Lakers. Okay say what you want about the man: was in the media for rape, ran Shaq out of town, and demanded a trade just two-three years ago. Instead, LA steals Pau from Memphis and they have not stopped winning since. Kobe is known as the best closer in the game, he can hit any shot at anytime and there is no one else in the NBA a coach would rather have in the final minutes of a game. With a championship this year he will equal MJ. Kobe also has the longevity to continue playing at least four more seasons, therefore the potential to win more rings than Jordan is fairly high. He has is own shoe, maybe it is time for him to come up with his own brand. Time for Kobe to start marketing more, but the question is why? He does not need the money, and where he is at in his career, he just wants to win that 6th ring. Also, the man loves the NBA and that is his focus, staying healthy and relaxing when off the court.
In the end, NBA fans need to embrace this magical season that is about to start in 8 days. If you are not a Lakers fan, then you hate to see them keep winning. However, with Miami's big 3, the Boston Celtics and Durant's Thunder it is well known that the title run will not be easy for any team this season. So instead of harping over what cannot be changed it Cleveland or Toronto, why not sit back, relax and be thankful that we all could be witnessing history. (Sorry Cavs fans, I know when you read over the word witness what comes to mind.)
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Video Games
Here we are almost mid October and football season is the majority of the talk. However, NBA pre-season is going on, the hockey regular season is a week in and baseball has reached its final four. Yet, FIFA Soccer 11 is the number 1 ranked video game sold worldwide. http://www.vgchartz.com/
That is astounding, I love that soccer video games are growing in popularity. Could this be because people still have World Cup fever? It is possible, but for the most part I would have to say it is because this poll is taken worldwide and soccer is the most popular sport over in Europe. There have been over 1.3 million copies sold worldwide of FIFA! Better yet, that is just for the Playstation3 alone, XBOX has sold over 885 thousand copies. There is another soccer game outside of FIFA. Pro Evolution Soccer 2011 also made the top 10 list. It is the 3rd most game sold, the PS3 version. The XBOX version holds the 10th spot. This poll was constructed on the 2nd of October. The game was released just days before then. Could the numbers be that large in America?
Well, no. http://www.vgchartz.com/
FIFA is not even the most popular video game sold in America. Halo: Reach followed by Dead Rising 2, are the top two video games sold. FIFA 11' for the XBOX and the PS3 take up the 3rd and 4th spot. So even with the release of NBA2K11 happening recently, FIFA is the most popular sports game sold. That says a lot to me. In a class where we discuss the 3 main sports in America as Football, Basketball, and Baseball, Soccer is the most popular sports video game sold right now. It is fair to say that people do not like to play soccer in real life, but the video games are a lot of fun. This could be the reason why FIFA is selling over 198,000 copies combined between XBOX and PS3. Pro Evolution Soccer 2011 did not make America's list.
I am just amazed that the NBA video game with Micheal Jordan on the cover did not even make the top 10 in America. Basketball is very popular here, safe to say more popular than Soccer. That is not the case though when it comes to video games. For soccer fans in America, you can only hope that all the people who purchased FIFA 11' trade their controller in for some cleats and start to play outside!
That is astounding, I love that soccer video games are growing in popularity. Could this be because people still have World Cup fever? It is possible, but for the most part I would have to say it is because this poll is taken worldwide and soccer is the most popular sport over in Europe. There have been over 1.3 million copies sold worldwide of FIFA! Better yet, that is just for the Playstation3 alone, XBOX has sold over 885 thousand copies. There is another soccer game outside of FIFA. Pro Evolution Soccer 2011 also made the top 10 list. It is the 3rd most game sold, the PS3 version. The XBOX version holds the 10th spot. This poll was constructed on the 2nd of October. The game was released just days before then. Could the numbers be that large in America?
Well, no. http://www.vgchartz.com/
FIFA is not even the most popular video game sold in America. Halo: Reach followed by Dead Rising 2, are the top two video games sold. FIFA 11' for the XBOX and the PS3 take up the 3rd and 4th spot. So even with the release of NBA2K11 happening recently, FIFA is the most popular sports game sold. That says a lot to me. In a class where we discuss the 3 main sports in America as Football, Basketball, and Baseball, Soccer is the most popular sports video game sold right now. It is fair to say that people do not like to play soccer in real life, but the video games are a lot of fun. This could be the reason why FIFA is selling over 198,000 copies combined between XBOX and PS3. Pro Evolution Soccer 2011 did not make America's list.
I am just amazed that the NBA video game with Micheal Jordan on the cover did not even make the top 10 in America. Basketball is very popular here, safe to say more popular than Soccer. That is not the case though when it comes to video games. For soccer fans in America, you can only hope that all the people who purchased FIFA 11' trade their controller in for some cleats and start to play outside!
Monday, October 4, 2010
Lets Play Ball!
Here we are on the 4th of October and the major league baseball regular season is finally over. Wednesday begins post season play and needless to say, I am not exactly thrilled for more baseball. Maybe it is because this is football season or with the weather getting colder I would not want to sit outside and watch a baseball game. A 162 game season is extremely to long and by looking at this article on ESPN.com I am not the only one to think so.
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=5645950
So what I am trying to say is how about we show some love to the game of cricket. After the guest speaker session of Adrian Turner, I was stoked for the game of cricket. If American's knew the rules to the game of cricket, I think it is safe to say that the game would be more popular in the United States. The downfall to hockey and soccer not being as popular in America is because the scores of those games are very low. The same case can be made for baseball, for the most part people think the game is to boring. Now that I have learned some of the rules to the game of cricket, there are a few reasons why I think the game would excel in the United States. Cricket games have scores that could reach as high as 600 points! Yes, that is an insanely high number and teams usually score points in the 200 range, either way I would rather watch that then a 1-0 baseball game. These cricket players are athletes too! They are out there fielding the ball with their bare hands! They are sprinting from one wicket to another scoring as many points as possible while the team in the field chases the ball down. (For Baseball fans, a wicket does not look like a base, but it has the same meaning. Instead of four bases in baseball, cricket has two wickets.) People may wonder how teams score so many points, and the reason is because a "home run" is worth six points. If the ball leaves the park via a ground ball then it is worth four points.
Cricket is a very interesting sport, however trying to describe it in a text format is pretty much impossible. It would be nice if it could get some public attention around the United States. I actually would not mind practicing the game or even attending one. But being a realist I know cricket will not ever become part of an American tradition so lets bundle up and get ready for baseballs post season.
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=5645950
So what I am trying to say is how about we show some love to the game of cricket. After the guest speaker session of Adrian Turner, I was stoked for the game of cricket. If American's knew the rules to the game of cricket, I think it is safe to say that the game would be more popular in the United States. The downfall to hockey and soccer not being as popular in America is because the scores of those games are very low. The same case can be made for baseball, for the most part people think the game is to boring. Now that I have learned some of the rules to the game of cricket, there are a few reasons why I think the game would excel in the United States. Cricket games have scores that could reach as high as 600 points! Yes, that is an insanely high number and teams usually score points in the 200 range, either way I would rather watch that then a 1-0 baseball game. These cricket players are athletes too! They are out there fielding the ball with their bare hands! They are sprinting from one wicket to another scoring as many points as possible while the team in the field chases the ball down. (For Baseball fans, a wicket does not look like a base, but it has the same meaning. Instead of four bases in baseball, cricket has two wickets.) People may wonder how teams score so many points, and the reason is because a "home run" is worth six points. If the ball leaves the park via a ground ball then it is worth four points.
Cricket is a very interesting sport, however trying to describe it in a text format is pretty much impossible. It would be nice if it could get some public attention around the United States. I actually would not mind practicing the game or even attending one. But being a realist I know cricket will not ever become part of an American tradition so lets bundle up and get ready for baseballs post season.
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