narcissism 07/08/2010
Posted by sportretort in Sports.Tags: cleveland cavaliers, lebron james, nba
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James is ALWAYS ready to pose
In an act that smacks of shameless self promotion and inflated ego, LeBron James will announce what team he will grace with his presence on a one hour live special. ESPN will televise the “I love me some me!” ‘event.’ What, did they run out of Australian Rules football games to show? At least there will be an ego on the network for an hour that is even more self-centered than Craig James.
The chalk cloud signals that it is time for the LeBron James show
So far, King James is nothing more than a clown prince who is the dead center of his universe.
Pretender 05/12/2010
Posted by sportretort in Sports, Uncategorized.Tags: chicago bulls, cleveland cavaliers, lebron james, michael Jordan, nba playoffs
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James was overshadowed by the Celtics all game long (AP Photo/Mark Duncan)
Can we now stop the comparisons with Michael Jordan? The only thing Jordan and James have in common is an ego as big as all they come. The difference between them is that MJ had a heart to match that ego. And the stones to fight. James needs to man up and grow his grapes, and build some heart. Perhaps a trip with Dorothy to visit the Wizzard is in order. FIFTEEN POINTS??? In his 179 playoff games, Jordan NEVER scored so few points.
James is no MJ
To be sure, Nike will continue to pay him his millions. The NBA will continue to fawn over him. After all, he is the King! He represents all that the NBA has become. A mere shell of itself. A joke compared to what it was when MJ and Bird and Majic were the persona of the League. But come playoff time, the Clown Prince will continue to step aside for true basketball royalty. Just like he did again last night. The King is dead. Long live the Clown Prince!!
Nike and the Jester: A Tale of Arrogance 07/22/2009
Posted by sportretort in Sports, Uncategorized.Tags: basketball, dunk, jordon crawford, lebron james, nba, nike
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It’s out!! It’s out!!! YAWN!!
A few weeks ago, Jordon Crawford of Xavier University dunked on LeBron James at a Nike basketball camp. That
James probably wishes he could make this whole mess would disappear in a cloud of chalk
should have been the end of it. Crawford had a story to tell his teammates when he got back to school. Perhaps some camp attendees would tell a friend or two. But the whole thing would have had the life span of a mayfly. (Note: the mayfly has a life span of 30 minutes to 1 day.) A free lance photographer was filming at the camp, and caught the dunk on tape. Shortly after, and this is second hand so I will not vouch about the veracity of the account, James was seen talking to Nike people, and then the tape of the dunk was confiscated. Apparently King James could not be seen being dunked on by a camp participant. As anyone could have predicted, the story of the dunk and subsequent seizing of the tape got out and became a public relations nightmare for James and Nike. All anyone could talk about is that it had to be an awesome dunk for James to be worried about it. The thing is, if nothing had been done, the clip would never have even seen the light of day. Who gives a rats rear end about some summer camp action? It was James again acting like a clown, the Court Jester, that drew attention.
And what about Nike? Why the h e double hockey sticks is Nike doing seizing the tape? Nike may sell shoes, but
The mayfly has a lifespan of a day or less, longer than this story would have lived if James was king instead of a jester
apparently they think they invented the game, too! What a crock of horse dung that decision was! Nike should stick to designing bad uniforms for the Oregon Duck football team. Well, Nike relented and released the dunk. It is nothing, as we suspected. Less than nothing. (If you must see it, here is the link: http://ebaumnation.com/2009/07/22/jordan-crawford-dunks-on-lebron-james ) You have to ask, what gnat’s brain thought it would be a good idea to supress this?
Of course the dunk took on a life of its own. And James was raked over the coals again and again by sports commentators, bloggers, and even by Conan O’Brien. James may have been named the NBA MVP last season. He may be KING JAMES, but the only thing biblical about him is the arse he made out of himself the last half of the season, during his early playoff exit, and now this episode. He is no king. He is the Jester. As long as he makes himself the centerpiece of all things, he will never be a winner. The king is dead, long live the Jester!
Monday Musings 06/01/2009
Posted by sportretort in Sports, Uncategorized.Tags: cleveland cavaliers, detroit red wings, lebron james, los angeles dodgers, manny ramirez, mlb, nba, nba playoffs, orlando magic, sportsmanship
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Some random thoughts on a Monday.
LeBron James and Cleveland will be sitting it out again in the NBA Finals
LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavs lost game 6 to the Magic in Orlando. LeBron walked off the court at the end without a congratulatory handshake to any one from Orlando, not even his Olympic team mate, Dwight Howard. Perhaps he was hurting. That’s the excuse every one gives. But when asked about it the next day, James prattled on about how he is a winner. I guess that means that when others shake hands after their loss, they are losers. Lets not forget that it’s all about LeBron. Winner? Just what exactly has James ever won besides a High School Championship?Hell, Al Bundy has more class than James has shown. Winner? James again has shown that he has no class. Ever heard of Sportsmanship, LeBron? I’m beginning to question if you will ever be a winner.
One good thing about the Magic win. Perhaps we are now done with those annoying LeBron Kobe puppet ads.
In Baseball, the fans vote for the starting lineup for the all star game. They are dangerously turning this vote into a joke. Dodger outfielder Manny Ramirez is in the midst of a 50 game suspension for testing positive for a banned substance. (He did NOT test positive for steroids, so please quit reporting that he did, talking heads at ESPN!) Currently he sits 4th in NL outfield votes. Top 3 start. How can you vote for someone that is suspended for drug violations. Barring rain outs, Ramirez should return to the Dodgers July 2 or 3, just before the all star break. The Commissioners office has said that if he is voted in, he would be ineligible. Guess they forgot to read the agreement in place with the players association that says the commissioner can not disqualify player otherwise eligible for the game based on a positive test. This could get ugly. I hope it will not come down to this. Come on, fans. Don’t vote this guy in.
One final thought. Since the US taxpayers now own large chunks of GM and Chrysler, two of the biggest employers in the city of Detroit, can we now get the Red Wings to dump those ugly, Soviet Union inspired uniforms? PLEASE!!!
Ugliest uniform in professional sports?
The Jester 05/27/2009
Posted by sportretort in Sports, Uncategorized.Tags: cavs, cleveland cavaliers, king james, larry bird, lebron james, magic johnson, michael jordon, mvp, nba, nba playoffs, orlando magic
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LeBron James of the Cleveland Cavaliers is a great basketball player. He is known as the King. It is a moniker that he enjoys. But it is also one he has not earned. As the MVP of the NBA this season, there is no doubt that he is the
The king is always center stage, complete with props
current Crown Prince of basketball. But there are still lessons that must be learned for this man who would be king.
The Cavs had the best record in the NBA this season. As such, they had home court advantage for the duration of their playoff run. Had is the key word. They trail the Orlando Magic 3-1 in the best of seven Eastern Conference finals. Were it not for a miraculous last second 3 pointer in game 2 by James, the series would be over. In reality, it is over now anyway. In the NBA, only 4% of the teams that have been down 3-1 in a series have come back to win the series. The Magic have beaten the Cavs 5 of the 7 times they have met this season, so it is difficult to see how the Cavs can be only the 9th team to win a series out of the now 191 to have fallen behind 3-1 in a series. Some call James the best ever. Others say he is the best in the game today. But he has yet to win a ring. Kobe has 3 so far. Larry and Magic had several each. Michael had 6. James needs to win before he can be mentioned along with these greats.
Life can be a harsh teacher. Remember the last few weeks of the season, when the Cavs were full of themselves? Mugging for the camera? The pregame skits?
The Cavs yuk it up before a game late in the season.
The mock home run trots, the mock picture sessions recording the great Cavs? The boasts of a championship in the bag? Those were heady times for the James gang. I have no doubt that the good feelings ran high. But the memories of those few weeks of good times have faded all too soon. It is easy to celebrate a championship in April. But that celebratory feeling has melted away before June. To make a memory that will last a lifetime, you must wait and celebrate after you have actually won something. A championship can last a lifetime. But it must be earned with hard work and effort. I have no doubt that James will accomplish that at some point in his career. But it will not be this year. This year life had a cruel lesson to teach. I wonder if James has learned it.
It is hard to be a King when you act like a Court Jester.
Fantastic Finish Friday 05/23/2009
Posted by sportretort in nhl, Sports, Uncategorized.Tags: chicago blackhawks, cleveland cavaliers, last second victory, lebron james, nba, nhl, orlando magic, overtime, patrick sharp, playoffs
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If you are a sports fan, Friday evening was for you.
In the NHL, the Blackhawks return home to Chicago for game 3 of their Western Conference Finals. After dropping the first 2 games in the best of 7 series in Detroit, the Hawks need this game to stay in the series. And they get off to a fast
Patrick Sharpe tallied the game winning marker for the Blackhawks
start. Midway through the first period, Chicago has a 2-0 lead. About the time Chicago scores their second goal, the city of Cleveland begins to rock.
In the NBA, the Cleveland Cavaliers are tipping off game 2 of their Eastern Conference Finals against the Orlando Magic. The Magic came from 16 points down to steal game one, and the Cavs are trying to salvage a split before the series shifts to Florida for games 3 and 4. The Cavs jump out quickly, amassing a 14 point lead at the end of the first quarter on their way to opening up a 23 point lead.
Back to Chicago. The first period ends with the score 2-0 Blackhawks. They then add a goal 45 seconds into the 2nd period, increasing the lead to 3-0. Looks like the Hawks are on their way to an easy victory. Detroit scores a power play goal with 5:22 left th the period. Then they score again two and a half minutes later and the 22 thousand folks at the United Center start squirming in their seats. Finally, with just 59 seconds left in the period, Detroit knots the score at 3-3. The action is fast and furious in the 3rd period, but there is no scoring and the regulation time ends 3-3. Overtime is on the way.
As the Hawks and Wings play to a stalemate in Chiago, the Cavs once comfortable lead is slowly evaporating. The large lead has been widdled down to 6 by the Magic at the end of the third quarter. That is about the time OT begins in Chicago.
This is the second straight game in this series to go into overtime, with Detroit winning game 2 with an overtime marker. This time it is the Blackhawks who make short work of the Wings as Patrick Sharp takes a pass just to the left of the Wings net and buries the game winner 1:52 into overtime. The Hawks avoid the 3-0 hole and now will skate into game 4 with a chance to tie the series at 2.
As Sharp’s heroics are ending the hockey game in Chicago, the Magic are attempting to take a strangle hold on their
The Cavs LeBron James hit the last second 3 pointer for the win
series against the Cavs. With just under ten minutes left in the game, the Cavs hold an 82-73 lead. Things are going to get interesting. Over the next 3 minutes, the Magic hold the Cavs scoreless and tie the game at 82. The score remains tight to the end and with one second left the Magic’s Hedo Torkoglu made about an 11 foot jump shot to put the Magic up 95-93. Cleveland calls timeout, but all seems lost. The time out allows the Cavs to advance the ball to mid court, but with one second left all there is time for is a desperation catch and shot. It appears that the Magic will have a 2-0 lead in the series heading home for game three. Then the miracle happens. LeBron James catches the inbound pass at the top of the key, turns and lofts a rainbow towards the basket. The buzzer sounds while the ball is in flight and James finds gold at the end of the rainbow. His shot finds nothing but net, and the 3 pointer gives the Cavs a 96-95 victory as the stunned crowd of over 20,000, silent as could be just seconds before erupts into bedlam! The Cavs grab momentum heading to Florida.
There is nothing like playoff action! And the last channel button on your remote.
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