For the first time in a very long time, the city of Cleveland may finally have some luck and good fortune on their side. This is because their Favorite Son, Lebron James, actually has an allegiance to his hometown and said in an interview that will air Friday on “Larry King Live” that Cleveland “absoultely” has an edge over other cities looking to uproot James out of Ohio. I don’t know why anyone would be surprised, as I’ve said before that Cleveland is still the best place for him to play if he wants to win a championship and create a legacy, but some people need to hear it before they believe it. James has said he hasn’t made a decision yet, but I think that he’s just biding his time. The chances of another team being able to afford James and either Dwayne Wade, Chris Bosh, or Joe Johnson are extremely low, and that is the only reason why I can see James possibly leaving his hometown. If any city were to have their heart ripped out by a player bolting for another team, then Cleveland would be it. However, I just don’t see that happening.
I just got done watching the Rafael Nadal vs. Nicolas Almagro quarterfinal match at the French Open, which brings the count to: Number of French Open matches watched: 2, Number of NBA Playoff games watched: 1. Due to the number of upsets on both the men’s and women’s sides so far, this has been a pretty interesting Major to follow. Both Roger Federer and Serena Williams went down in the quarterfinals, and although that means the casual fan is less inclined to watch the finals, it just shows that the gap between the “best” and “the rest” isn’t as far as many people would think. In fact, this is the first time since 2004 that Federer has not reached the semi-finals of a Grand Slam tournament. This means that Nadal is the favorite to win, but in the words of Lee Corso, “not so fast my friend!” The man who upset Federer, Roger Soderling, is an extremely talented player on clay, and played exceptionally well in last year’s French Open Final against none other than Federer. If Soderling meets Nadal in this year’s Final, then it is definitely a match worth watching.
Since I tried to get a press pass to this event (although for whatever reason I found it impossible to attain one), I’ll comment on the news at the Memorial Tournament. I’ve seen a lot on SportsCenter about Tiger Woods’ neck, and how it might affect him during the tournament. Um, correct me if I’m wrong, but is it really that big of a deal? It’s not the U.S. Open; it’s the Memorial Tournament. I’m sure I’m going to get a lot of angry comments from my readers that live near the Muirfield Golf Village, but it’s the truth. I understand that he’s trying to defend his title, but does that automatically make it a bigger deal? Those are just my thoughts, so if you disagree, let me know in the comments section.
Yesterday I said that I would give my thoughts concerning the last two polls that I have put up for my readers to vote on. The first poll was “do you think that MMA style fighting should be a club/sport in high school”. I was very pleased with this poll, as it was the most voted on poll the blog has ever had. The results were close, as “No” edged out “Yes” by just one vote. I’m going to have to agree with those who said no. One of the arguments for having MMA style fighting in high school is that it has proven to be safer than both football and boxing, with fewer injuries sustained during MMA style fighting than in the aforementioned sports. However, one of the reasons this may be so is that the number of individuals that participate in MMA style fighting is small compared to the number of football players in high school and college. Also, high school athletes normally do not have the body control that professional MMA fighters have, which means that the number of injuries would likely skyrocket if the sport were offered to high school students. A club that teaches high school athletes the basics of MMA style fighting would not be a bad idea, but having sanctioned tournaments for high school students would be.
As for the “who is currently the worst franchise in pro sports” poll, the results show a tie between the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Detroit Lions. It’s tough to choose between which franchise has been better at being bad, but I think that the Pirates have a slight edge over the Lions in that department. Although the Lions defined futility two years ago with their 0-16 season, they have at least shown a desire to get better and improve their franchise. I honestly don’t think that the Pirates have. Outfielder Andrew McCutchen is one of the few bright spots on the team, but chances are he will be traded for a slew of young players that won’t demand as much money. It’s the nature of the beast for a small market team, but it’s still frustrating to see. Of course, it has to be ten times as frustrating for fans of the team. Then again, how many Pirates fans are there?
Check out the newest poll I have up for you guys, and if you know someone who still hasn’t seen the blog, let them know about it. I plan to continue posting more frequently, so let them know they’ll actually have something current to read if they decide to check out the blog. Thanks guys.
– K. Becks
I think you should comment on the creative motivation used by Doc Rivers for the Celtics
I probably won't do that, seeing as how I have very little time to talk about anything except for the World Cup for the next few days.