For a guy who highly prefers a masterful pitching performance over an inartistic slugfest – and who has a pair of Tim Lincecum jerseys in his closet – the first two days of the baseball playoffs were truly a treat.
Michael Jordan
Visit to home office shows Coach K living a dream with Team USA
I went to the Garden a week ago to watch Team USA play France. And as I watched Mike Krzyzewski sit on the bench, studying his players and working the refs, it brought me back to an October night back in 2000, when I sat in the home office in Mike Krzyzewski’s basement.
Krzyewski is about as close to a living legend as there is in his profession. But he has dreams and aspirations, just like the rest of us. And it was a remarkable opportunity to get a rare window into what Coach K himself would define as success.
Air of hypocrisy: Jordan’s typical shots at LeBron ring hollow
On an April night back in 2003 at the MCI Center, I sat courtside to watch a baton passed unwillingly from the former king to the future King.
An 18-year-old LeBron James used an array of circus shots and sensational dunks en route to 34 points at the Jordan Capital Classic.
And up in a skybox, wearing a garish jersey from his clothing line and flanked by Warren Sapp and Patrick Ewing, a shadowy figure glared down at the teenager set to inherit his crown.
Missing the point: Blame directed at King should fall elsewhere
Note: This is courtesy of SportsAngle executive editor Frank Pepe, also of Trumbull Island. I could not have said this better myself.
After turning in the worst playoff performance of his career, LeBron James might only have one more game of basketball left this season. Problem is, the most talented and accomplished young player on the planet famously has aspirations beyond athletics.
A celebrity and an outsized personality, the small forward has traditionally been selfish and petulant after his Cleveland teams’ eliminations, a fate he’s met with since first reaching the playoffs in 2006. Of course, until Tuesday, he’s been mostly excellent in these losses. So what happened early this week? Was he injured, defended well, or was he simply thinking about his dinner reservations?
Rarified air: Evolution of Mayweather keeping all eyes on him
Floyd Mayweather’s systematic destruction of Shane Mosley on Saturday night wasn’t the most exciting fight, as per usual. But it was a rare chance to see an athlete at the absolute top of his craft, and one who knows perfectly how to market himself at the same time.
Rubbernecking public fuels Tiger’s Nike-orchestrated reascent
The only surprising thing about Tiger Woods’ overnight resurgence into the living rooms of mainstream America is that anybody could possibly be surprised it happened that fast.
Counterpoint: Rethinking New York’s impending Summer of LeBron
I had a summit at an East Village bar last night with two members of the SportsAngle brain trust – Frank Pepe of Trumbull Island and Mr. Han, the self-appointed U.S. ambassador to Iceland – and our conversation of course veered toward the Summer of LeBron.
Rearview mirror: LeBron-mania reaches its zenith in Trenton
(Note: I originally wrote this during the fall in conjunction with the release of “More than a Game,†but while writing about the Primetime Shootout this weekend, I grew nostalgic for the greatest high school performance I had ever seen at the 2003 Shootout. I usually don’t re-up posts, but indulge me here. Stuff’s about to get crazy with LeBron as July 1, 2010 approaches, but I contend that this game in Trenton was a snapshot in time that will never be duplicated.)
There’s a movie that came out in theaters this weekend that I can’t wait to see. It has extra meaning to me and I find it particularly inspirational. I’d go as far as to go on record and say it’s the feel-good movie of the season.
Obviously, I’m talking about Zombieland, with the great Woody Harrelson.
Okay, I admit, I’m just kidding. Though I do plan to see Zombieland, I’m referring more to More than a Game, the documentary chronicling St. Vincent-St. Mary’s, the high school team that featured a young man named LeBron James. Considering my personal experience with that era of his life, the movie holds extra meaning to me.
As you may have noticed, this site has covered LeBron pretty closely – from his impending cataclysmic free agency, to his relationship with rappers, to his complete dominance of the media. Well, that’s not new. Long before SportsAngle’s hiatus, when LeBron was still technically in high school, we decided to follow him every step of the way.
Master of puppets: Mayweather massacring Manny with mind games
The biggest surprise with the Manny Pacquiao-Floyd Mayweather drug testing argument is that I actually at one time hoped this fight would come off without a hitch. I guess that plays into my desire to have a big fight happen for once with none of the nonsense and posturing that usually goes into this sport. But that’s unrealistic.
One felled swoosh: Perceived perfection led Tiger to flawed existence
It appears that after all this time, what the world might have really wanted is for Tiger Woods to be flawed, because it brings him down to everyone else’s level.
When someone appears to be too perfect, it makes people uncomfortable. It forces them to face their own deficiencies. And for so long, Tiger was just too damned perfect.