Sportsmanship, insanity and the prison of recency

As the title suggests, we have a three-prong attack this morning.

First, let’s talk LeBron.

By now, you’ve heard that he left Amway Arena Saturday night after his Cleveland Cavaliers were bounced from the NBA Eastern Conference Finals by the upstart (and highly entertaining) Orlando Magic without shaking hands with his opponents or addressing the media.

“It’s hard for me to congratulate somebody after you just lose to them,” James told the New York Times Sunday after the team returned to Cleveland. “I’m a winner. It’s not being a poor sport or anything like that. If somebody beats you up, you’re not going to congratulate them. That doesn’t make sense to me. I’m a competitor.”

Sorry. Doesn’t wash with me.

I know I’m going to come off as a grouchy media guy here, but LeBron James has to be better than that. He has to walk up to Dwight Howard and shake his hand, even as confetti falls around him. He has to put on a suit and sit at the podium and answer questions after the loss.

Why?

Because he’s a superstar. Because his poster is on our kids’ walls and we want them to learn sportsmanship. Because, if we’re really serious about considering him to be the greatest player of all time, he has to be as classy off the court as is is dominant on it.

Because, 50 years from now, when people read the story of what happened in Game 6 of the 2009 Eastern Conference Finals, it won’t contain a quote from arguably the most important player of his generation.

Because if we have to watch him star in commercial after commercial, whether it’s the LeBrons or the puppets or just him sipping a Sprite, he should have to step in front of a microphone when he’s not selling something. Anybody can talk to the media when they’re winning. It takes a man to do it when he’s disappointed.

I don’t want to come off as not liking the man. In fact, I hold him up as what’s right about the NBA these days. He’s a well-spoken young man who’s generous with his time off the court. He’s a family man who’s close to his mother and, by all accounts, dotes on his two small children.

And I think he’s well on his way to surpassing Jordan as the best the game’s ever seen.

No, I’m not hating on him.

But I am disappointed.

College Baseball Gone Wild

You might have missed these two bizarre instances from this weekend’s NCAA Baseball Regionals:

1. Texas beats Boston College 3-2 in 25 innings on Saturday night/Sunday morning. The game featured Texas closer Austin Wood pitching 13 innings, including 12.1 innings of no hit ball while fanning 14. He threw 169 pitches – after tossing 30 the night before.

It lasted seven hours and three minutes.

Geez.

2. I was flipping through the channels yesterday when I stopped on ESPNU to see how Florida State and Ohio State was going. IT WAS 32-0 IN THE FIFTH INNING!!!

Oh my.

The Seminoles went on to squeak by, 37-6. FSU has 38 hits and 15 doubles in the win.

God bless aluminum bats.

Nadal flames out in Paris

I was playing tennis, rather than watching it, on Sunday morning when the biggest upset of the year went down at the French Open.

Rafael Nadal had his 31-match winning streak broken in Paris at the hands of Robin Soderling, ranked somewhere around 20th in the world.

Soderling’s no scrub, but when you consider that the world’s No. 1 player whipped him on dirt 6-0, 6-1 just a few weeks ago, this was a bit of a shocker.

Kind of makes that article I saw in the Wall Street Journal suggesting that Nadal was “unbeatable” a little silly.

Has anyone else noticed that, all of a sudden, everything we see in the world of sports has to be the greatest ever? Even my praise of Lebron qualifies, though I can back that up with video-game-like playoff numbers if you want.

Nadal is a beast on clay. He’s the best in the world on the crushed brick today. But is he the best ever?

Bjorn Borg was pretty good. He also won four French Opens in a row, like Nadal has done.

How good would the Swede have been if he had space age rackets and access to the modern training and dietary methods Nadal uses to fuel his seemingly endless supply of energy?

I don’t know.

Neither do you.

Enough of the fake caring

A reporter asked UNC coach Roy Williams if he’d take a pay cut in light of our nation’s struggling economy recently.

He answered the question as best he could, trying to be sensitive to people who are being hit hard by the current dismal economic climate.

This was after Connecticut coach Jim Calhoun ripped a “reporter” for asking him about his salary.

And, of course, Greg Norman, noted financial expert pro golfer, is suggesting that PGA players need to take a pay cut.

Why do people suggest this?

If Williams took a pay cut from his absurdly low $333,000 base salary, where exactly would that money go? Would it come to my house to help pay our heating bill? Would it come to my newspaper to keep them from having to continue making budget cuts?

No, it wouldn’t. It would go back into the UNC general budget, where it would be spent on something else that’s just as unstimulating to the region’s economy.

If Jim Calhoun took a pay cut in Connecticut, a state that has a $2 billion deficit, what exactly would it solve? If he worked for free, the deficit would still be $1.984 billion. What’s the point?

And Greg Norman, a wealthy, highly successful man married to a wealthy, highly successful woman needs to get over his own guilt. Sit on your yacht, drink some wine and shut the heck up.

I’m tired of the attack-the-rich mentality in this country. I’m tired of the notion that successful people who’ve worked hard – Williams, Calhoun and countless others – should feel bad about having money.

Just for the sake of clarity, I’m not rich. I’m 32 years old and have never made more than $40,000 a year. But I’m trying hard to become wealthy. And if I ever succeed, I’m not going to apologize for it.

The nation’s economic crisis isn’t going to be solved by attacking success. It starts with responsible spending from our local, state and federal governments and ends with responsible choices by everyone.

What’s next for Sirius/XM?

Well after much debate and discussion with the good folks at the FCC, Sirius and XM joined forces late last year to create Sirius/XM – and a monopoly in satellite radio.

Here we are just a few months later and Sirius/XM appears headed for either bankruptcy or a takeover.

Here’s what you need to know:

1. Will a takeover by the folks at Dish Network or Echostar mean that Sirius/XM can get around the three-year price freeze that the FCC put in place as part of the merger deal?

I don’t think so, though there is a provision in there that allows for “cost pass throughs.” I guess the note I got from XM recently telling me that my wife’s “buddy” subscription is going up $2 a month is a pass through thing…

2. What will this mean for the average subscriber?

If they file bankruptcy, big-name talents (see Stern, Howard) may have their contracts terminated in court-ordered cost-cutting measures. If they’re bought up by Dish (the more likely scenario), I can’t see much changing – until the long-term contracts with the NFL, MLB, NBA, etc. expire. Then, we may be in for some trouble as Charlie Ergen, the head honcho at Dish/Echostar, is notoriously hard to deal with at a bargaining table (see TV, Gol).

Are the other merger requirements being met?

Sort of. We have the “Best-of” packages available for both Sirius and XM users and Sirius has an a-la-carte plan in place, but the choices for compatible radios and XM programming packages aren’t really there yet.

Now what?

Frankly, I think Sirius/XM has run itself into the ground with big spending on the NFL contract and the Stern deal. Both make for great radio, but they overpaid for both. Ergen cas the cash to pump up the company – and even though I’d like to slap him for robbing me of Gol TV – he’s good at making money in the satellite industry.

Top 5 reasons to like soccer

I know that many of you still don’t have an interest in the world’s game.

No, not football. Nor basketball.

Or even golf.

I’m talking soccer. I don’t understand it, but I’m here to help you discover the game.

Here are five reasons why you should:

5. Lionel Messi – The guy’s a wizard. He’s just amazing.

4. Ray Hudson – A tremendous commentator on a channel I can’t watch anymore, Gol TV.

3. The crowds – All over the world, fans make the game what it is. Liverpool is a nice choice…

Or maybe a trip to Argentina would be better.

2. The WAGs – You think American athletes have good looking significant others.

My word…

 

WAGS

 

1. World Peace – If it’s true that sport can bring people together, then soccer is the sport with the best chance. All over the world (yes, here too) kids kick a ball around, dreaming of glory.

 

The World Cup will arrive in South Africa in the summer of 2010, and for those two weeks, civil wars will cease and people will gather together and watch their national teams play for the most coveted trophy on the planet.

 

It’s a beautiful thing.

Cleaning out the brain

A few things I’ve been meaning to get to…

1. I’m in the middle of  Day 18 without fast food. It’s really not all that bad. It just requires a bit of planning and discipline.

2. I’m really, really tired of hearing about the Dallas Cowboys. You’d think a team that’s gone 12 years without a playoff win would have a little harder time getting on H-Y-P-E, uh, ESPN.

3. I’m really, really worried about the newspaper industry. Gannett is forcing employees to take one-week furloughs, Media General has stopped 401K matches for 2009 and papers everywhere, including my own, are cutting staff left and right. I’m hoping I can tough it out, but I’m polishing up the ol’ resume, just in case. It’s just disappointing to me.

This is all I ever wanted to do, and I think it might be dying.

4. After more than 10 years, I’m letting my “Sports Illustrated” subscription lapse. It’s just not as good as it used to be. I’m tempted to get “ESPN The Magazine,” but the idea of me funding the four-letter makes me throw up in my mouth a little.

5. I just celebrated my nine-year wedding anniversary.

My wife rocks.

I’m just thankful she has poor taste in men…

Day 9

It’s Day 9 of the no fast food experiment, and honestly, aside from covering games and being hungry at 11:30 p.m., it hasn’t been too bad.

I miss spicy chicken sandwiches from Wendy’s and cheesy double beef burritos from Taco Bell the most.

Anyway, let’s run through the news items, shall we?

NFL

OK, show of hands. Who had the Cardinals in the NFC Championship Game, let alone hosting it?

The temptation is to take what we know (a 48-20 beat down on Thanksgiving night) and predict the Eagles will simply thrash them again.

But I like Steve Czaban’s take. The Cards are drunk and playing with house money.

And that makes them dangerous.

I’m also looking forward to another Steelers/Ravens slug fest. It should be a great defensive battle.

Is it too much to hope that the Ravens and Cardinals play in the Super Bowl? I just want to see ESPN spend two weeks breaking that game down.

MLB

Had an interesting discussion with my buddy, David Allen, recently on his sadness as a Braves fan on John Smoltz leaving after more than two decades to play for the Red Sox.

We were bantering back and forth about loyalty (on his side) and the fact that being a pro athlete is nothing more than a job (my side).

Then Bob Dalton settled it with this:

“Loyalty is a two-way street.”

Braves fans who are angry should send an e-mail to GM Frank Wren, who wouldn’t sign the 40-something hurler coming off shoulder surgery to a guaranteed contract.

I don’t know that I blame him if you look at it from a bloodless point of view. But the man is an icon.

Chipper Jones said it well.

“If you’re going to take a chance on somebody, it would be John Smoltz.”

Praising Bud

I’m going to do something I’ve never done before.

I’m going to praise Major League Baseball Commissioner Bid Selig.

Why? For having the guts to ignore a long-standing baseball rule allowing for games to become official after five innings and declare that no World Series game would be stopped before nine innings were completed.

Some people, mainly in Philadelphia, are whining. But while Selig’s reign will be remembered for the shame of the steroid era and the stupidity of the tie in an all-star game, this marks a stunning show of courage that none of his peers would dare display.

Remember when the incident between the Spurs and Suns resulted in the suspension of a pair of Suns’ players in the Western Conference finals a couple of years back? We had David Stern, hiding behind the rulebook and enforcing suspensions for guys who left the bench to check on Steve Nash, who had been checked, hockey-style, into the scorer’s table. It absolutely decided the outcome.

Can you imagine Roger Goodell having the stones to stray away from the rulebook in the best interests of the game? The No Fun League? You must be joking.

Good for you, Bud Selig. I don’t care if it takes until November. I want my baseball champion decided on the field.

OK, now I’m ready

I’ve let it simmer for a few days, hoping that time would help me to write something positive about Tommy Bowden’s nearly 10-year run as the head coach of the Clemson football program.

To be fair, there have been some achievements. He beat Florida State a few times, which had eluded most other Clemson coaches. He beat Tennessee once, back when Tennessee was still Tennessee. And there’s no question that, under his leadership, the talent level at the school rose dramatically over the last decade.

The results didn’t follow, however, and that’s why Dabo Swinney is now holding down the fort as the Tigers’ interim coach.

I’m not a “fire-the-coach fan.” My time in the business has helped me understand the challenges that coaches face. I know that Tommy Bowden is a decent human being and was far more upset about the joke of a season Clemson is having than I am.

But after almost 10 years without an ACC title, it was time for a change.

So, can the season be saved?

I wouldn’t bet the farm on it. The ACC title is likely out of reach with Wake Forest already being two games ahead in the league standings (with the head-to-head tiebreaker, of course).

The real question is this: How many games out of the last six does Swinney need to win to keep the job for 2009?

I think he needs to win either five without a bowl victory or four with one, but only if one of those is a win over South Carolina. Confusing? Sure.

But then again, so is everything else in Tiger town. 

As for the quarterbacking situation, all I can say is that inserting Willy Korn into the lineup came about five games too late for me.

Cullen Harper is a shell of the quarterback he was in 2007. Let’s see what Korn, who has been touted as the future of Clemson football since his junior year of high school, can do this weekend against a Georgia Tech squad that barely beat my alma-mater, Gardner-Webb, 10-7 last week.

If Swinney doesn’t get the full-time gig in 2009, here’s who I’d like to see:

1. Will Muschamp (Texas assistant) - Big-time personality with a lot of coaching skills. Will probably be the most sought after assistant in the land this winter. Would have to go get an offensive guy, but there are a few out there.

2. Gary Patterson (TCU head coach) – Has won at Texas Christian with second-rate facilities while competing with the larger Texas schools for talent and exposure. Probably one of the best defensive minds in college football, and his offenses haven’t been too shabby either.

3. Bud Foster (assistant coach at Virginia Tech) – Knows the ACC in and out, is a capable defensive coach and has the personality to lead a high-profile program. Would need a good offensive coordinator, though.

4. Skip Holtz (ECU head coach) – OK, the Cinderella thing at East Carolina hasn’t really worked out this year, but that program was in the tank before Lou’s son arrived in Greenville. I think he could do well in a bigger conference with more talented players at his disposal. Would need a good defensive coordinator, though. Maybe Vic Koenning would stick around? I actually think he’s doing a great job.

5. Swinney – I’ve heard a lot of good things about him. He’s the mastermind behind many of Clemson’s recent splashy recruiting classes, so if he can coach a lick, we could already have the right man for the job in house.

That’s my list. No, I don’t want Bobby Johnson, the Clemson grad who’s lighting up the SEC this year at Vanderbilt. He’s not what the program needs right now. And I don’t want Lane Kiffin or Bill Cowher, either. Aside from Pete Carroll, the NFL to college model doesn’t often work out that well.

So grab some popcorn and pull up a chair. The next few months at Clemson are going to be really interesting.

End of the road?

I hate to be melodramtic, but today is the most important day in Clemson coach Tommy Bowden’s career.

The Tigers, a preseason top-10 team, sit at 3-2 overall and 1-1 in the ACC. They face Wake Forest tonight in Winston-Salem.

A win, and the Tigers will still be in position to salvage what’s been a train wreck of a season with a run to the ACC Championship Game in Tampa this winter.

A loss, and I think Bowden becomes a dead man walking.

He’s 72-44 right now in nine-plus years at the helm. He’s never won an ACC title and he’s 3-5 in bowl games. In fairness, this is the only year in his tenure that his squad was the preseason favorite to win the league.

But Tiger fans are losing patience. Tigernet blogger Mickey Plyer called for a change of leadership recently, which would be a little like Karl Rove saying George W. Bush is a bad president.

I’m willing to settle for a win tonight and a berth in the ACC title game. Anything less, and there should be a coaching vacancy in the South Carolina upstate in 2009.

Other thoughts

• The National League Championship Series begins tonight as the Phillies and Dodgers battle it out for the senior circuit pennant.

Call me crazy, but I like the Dodgers in this spot. Manny Ramirez is playing like a man who wants to get a $100 million contract this winter (he does), Derek Lowe is pitching like the ace he used to be in Boston (we’ll see) and Joe Torre brings a mountain of postseason managerial experience to the Dodger bench (no question).

I don’t trust the Phillies. Aside from Cole Hamels and Brad Lidge, I don’t trust their pitchers to be consistent. And when Ryan Howard, Chase Utley and Jimmy Rollins don’t hit, the Phillies don’t win.

• In the American League, everybody is lining up to pick the Red Sox over the Cinderella Rays.

Here’s the problem. The Rays are a better team.

Why? They won the division that the Red Sox play in. They also have better starting pitching with Josh Beckett being nicked up for Boston. They can manufacture runs, which is the easiest and most effective way to score in nail-biting playoff games.

Boston has a serious edge in the bullpen with Jonathan Papelbon, but with Mike Lowell missing from the ALCS roster, the lineup won’t have its usual punch.

I may be the only one, but I like Tampa here.

• The spread offense era is over in Auburn as Tommy Tuberville fired new offensive coordinator Tony Franklin on Wednesday.

I guess being ranked 104th in the nation in total offense after a loss to Vanderbilt was too much for Auburn to take.

I’ll tell you this, though. If they don’t get their act together soon, they’ll get absolutely hammered against Alabama later this fall.

New soccer site

Some of you might be interested in my new project at the Observer.

http://blogs.fayobserver.com/soccer/

It’s a soccer blog, so perhaps that will mean that there will be less of that stuff here.

Or perhaps not…