Even with the advancements of meds and psychoanalysis, today’s athletes and sports executives seem to have a false sense of reality that only a win or winning can solve.
Words and terms such as polarizing, self-absorbed and disconnected are used at times to describe them and their insular world. For example, New York Knicks President Phil Jackson re-signed forward Carmelo Anthony to a bloated, no-trade, extended contract last year and allegedly wants to trade him this year. They’re no closer to winning a championship since the star Olympian re-signed, but most times, it takes time to build a successful team. Instead of running a system that compliments the talent and skill set of its players, the triangle system of basketball, which hasn’t been embraced by NBA players since Jackson coached Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant, continues to be instituted in the Knicks offensive system.
In an interview for ESPN with rapper/actor Common, tennis star Serena Williams, who won the women’s finals at the Australian Open this weekend, stated, “If I were a man, I would have 100 percent been considered the greatest ever a long time ago.”
Although Williams may have the upper back strength of Mike Tyson, and she is undoubtedly one of the greats, but how can she realistically be considered the greatest unless she has defeated the greatest contemporary male tennis athletes of her time? That argument was used to question the legitimacy of the greatness of past Major League Baseball teams and players before Jackie Robinson, Larry Doby and Negro League players were integrated into the MLB in 1947.
Give San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick all the credit in the world for not standing during the national anthem before his team games, for taking a stand, for protesting the injustices of the United States of America, but his efforts were diminished, lessened somewhat when he stated that he didn’t vote in November’s presidential election.
“Trump’s campaign slogan, ‘Make America Great Again’ is fundamentally flawed because America has never been great for people of color,” noted the QB, who also began sporting an Angela-Davis style afro.
New York Giants receiver Victor Cruz has just now come to the realization that the excursion that he and teammates Odell Beckham, Sterling Shepard and Roger Lewis took on their day off to hang in Miami with Trey Songz and Justin Bieber before their Wild Card playoff game last month was a bad idea. “Looking back on it, it definitely wasn’t worth it,” Cruz said.
With all of the good that LeBron James does, it doesn’t overshadow his comments about the lack of commitment by his team, who must pay a penalty of $50 million in luxury taxes because of overspending on players’ salaries. All this publicity during a time when it’s being reported that retirees from the city of Cleveland are having their pensions cut.
In a disgruntled tweet about his Cleveland Cavaliers team, one of James’ statements said, “I’m not mad or upset at management ‘cause Griff [David Griffin, the Cav’s GM] and staff have done a great job. I just feel we still need to improve in order to repeat, if that’s what we wanna do.” Considering their expenditures, it’s the Cavs’ contention that “James’ criticisms were misguided, and that the team needs to improve from within.”
Compound all of this turmoil with the current feud between James and former player, now television analyst, Charles Barkley, and like any hopeful fan, you just hope that they and some others will begin to get it, to maybe understand.
