Blought #25: Let Greats be Great!

Last week Le Bron joined NBA Legend Oscar Robertson as the only two players to be ranked in the top 25 in both assists and points all-time. While this is a pretty amazing feat, the story to me isn’t about what Brondo did but rather what he said. Bron made it clear he didn’t want to be compared to Big-O, as we basketball fans know him by.

Le Bron issued a statement after the game saying "I think what we get caught up in, in our league too much, is trying to compare greats to greats, instead of just accepting and acknowledging and saying, 'Wow, these are just great players,'" (Courtesy of Dave Mc Menamin, ESPN). I completely agree.


After the NBA-ABA merger of 1976 there have been several perennial Elite players for each generation or era. The “Post Merger” era elite was Julius “Dr. J” Irving. Magic and Bird were the elites of the “New NBA Era” after David Stern became commissioner. Jordan reigned as the elite of the “90’s Era” while Kobe was the king of the “New Millenium” era leaving Le Bron as the elite of this current era.

It irks me when fans, real fans and not haters of a certain player compare Le Bron to Jordan or Kobe. It’s hard to compare a 6’8” 250 pound forward with a 6’6” 216 pound guard.

Let’s just focus on playing style for a second. If anyone should be compared to Jordan it should be Kobe. They’re the same size at 6’6” with Kobe being listed as four pounds lighter than MJ. Tale of the tape shows both of them were great shooters with unbelievable clutch factors and their slim frames made them finesse slashers versus bruising slashers like Bron.

Bron’s closest comparison in my opinion is Karl Malone. Malone was freakishly built making him a hard match-up for many of his contemporaries. The same can be said for Bron. Anything else used in this argument is irrelevant. Championship rings can never truly measure a great player. Basketball is still a TEAM sport meaning you need a good TEAM to win rings.

Courtesy of: NFLspinzone.com

Too often I hear people compare Tom Brady and Peyton Manning of the NFL. Sure Tom has four rings to Peyton’s one but that doesn’t necessarily make him better. Peyton owns more statistical achievements. Tom Brady always had a solid defensive unit while Peyton majority of the time had better offensive weapons. For every single argument on both sides you have a counterargument.

It’s like arguing with a friend over what food tastes better. You both have different palettes so nothing will taste the same to you as it does to your friend. The same can be said with sports. You’re going to favor what you like more than what you dislike

Like Le Bron said, let’s just accept and acknowledge great players. In a few years the “Big Business” era will begin and we’ll be sitting around talking about the good old days when Le Bron, D Wade, Kobe and CP3 ruled the league, and we’ll miss it.

Cavs Offer Relief for Browns Fans by Giovanni Castelli

The Browns are once again stinking up the joint with a 2-5 record, a 36-year old journeyman starting at the most important position in the NFL while continuing to be a perennial loser since their return in 1999. Lucky for us, the Cavs‬ are back which for Cleveland sports fans is a good thing. They are a really good team, boast the best player in the world and are once again favorites to represent the Eastern Conference in the NBA Finals.

Let's just say the end of October each year has come to signify the end of Browns season and the beginning of Cavs season due to the Browns constant futility on and off the field. Today when asked about the QB situation I heard Mike Pettine say: "If you don't laugh you cry." Really?! I say that when something utterly BLOWS!! Which in my mind means Pettine knows his QB's BLOW!!

I just heard Tony Grossi say "It's not that difficult to get a QB!" As if he was yelling at the front office. What a joke the Browns are right now. New uniforms, a stadium makeover, a couple new mascots and a dog named SWAGGER (this team has no swagger!) can't cover up the DOG POOP product that has been put on the field since 1999.

Thank God LeBron came back. With the Cavs being the favorites in the NBA, the Browns can now go about their business sucking through another losing season and missing another opportunity to not LOSE a generation of fans. And they wonder why we go to the Muni-Lot at 6am to drink. That's the only time we have fun on Sundays. It seems that every time we leave the stadium we do so mad and disappointed due to another Browns loss.

On that note, see you Sunday Browns. You mean, abusive douche.

But more importantly. GO CAVS!!!

Blought #2 'Mike and Us 90's Babies'

In recognition of His Airness’ upcoming 50th birthday, I've decided to share my thoughts on his impact of American culture in the eyes of a 90’s baby (I’m old enough to be nostalgic now).Other than  Kobe and Lebron most of us 90’s kids don’t have much memory of any other player who has dominated the game of basketball. I could bring up Shaq or Dirk but Kobe and Lebron are the only players comparable to MJ. By the time we could begin recollecting any memories of Mike he was past his prime and glory days. He was drafted in ’84, won his first ring a month before I was born, and  retired when I was about six. When you look at Lebron, the guy who has dominated the NBA since I was about twelve, idolized Mike. The guy who most kids looked up to in my generation, idolized the greatest ever. Talk about leaving your mark on the game.

MJ’s legacy isn’t exclusive to the court, but American culture period. One of my favorite movies ever starred Mike himself. In Space Jam, the world’s greatest basketball player was playing alongside Warner Bros. cartoon elite. Mike didn't put on an Oscar winning performance or anything, but watching that movie at five years old was better than an All Star game. The movie was so huge, it even garnered it’s own shoe, the “Space Jam 11’s”

It doesn't matter how much basketball you watch, how many times you’ve seen  Space Jam, or even if you don’t care about the man, the largest impact Jordan has left may be his shoes. His shoe brand has had 28 official player models and a few other models including the Phat and Spizike. Jordan and his shoe has dominated the sneaker culture for almost three decades. That’s a pretty impressive stretch. Kids who have never even seen him play line up for his shoes on those early Saturday mornings (I've been to my share of releases).

What else can you say, the man practically created the endorsement. He endorsed the hot dog you ate, the white t-shirt you spilled mustard on,  and created the shoe that had you wanting to be “like Mike”. Mike has not only left his impact on the game of basketball, but he’s left an impact on American culture as a whole. From my 90’s baby eyes, that impact is pretty big.