The NBA is in the midst of a painful lockout and the NFL has just recently righted the ship.  But while these two sports are working out the kinks, you should partake in a sport that is cruising along smoothly in the middle of a great season.  I know some of you think I’m talking about baseball, but fortunately for all of us, I’m not.

     I’m talking about the wide world of track and field.  Now before you say anything, I know the Olympics aren’t until next year but it’s actually happening right now! In fact you can tune in to the World Championships going on next week.  But now you’re probably wondering, is there anybody I would know?  Well let me throw one name at you.  Usain Bolt.  Ok now I’m starting to see some looks of recognition.  Here’s the names of some other present track stars: Allyson Felix, Tyson Gay, Jeremy Wariner, Lolo Jones, Asafa Powell, and Carmelita Jeter.  These are some stars of just the track.  I haven’t even mentioned the stars of the field events.

     For me, there are two things that make this sport so compelling to watch.  I firmly believe that track & field shows athletes in their purest form.  In basketball and football for example, you have superb athletes who can run, jump, and throw with the best of them.  But they don’t necessarily have to excel at all those aspects.  They have other attributes they can rely on to keep them competitive.

     Most track and field athletes don’t have that luxury.  They focus on that one skill, whether it be running, jumping, or throwing.  And they have to because, unlike most other sports, they don’t really have teammates to rely on to help get a win if they’re having an off night.  Not including relays, track is one of the few sports that focuses almost exclusively on individual performance.  So as a result, they train to be the best on the planet, not just the league.

     The other thing I love about this sport is that it’s truly international.  It’s just fantastic to see so many different countries represented and knowing that not only are these athletes trying to win but they’re proudly representing their country every time they set foot on the track.  Everyone talks about the big sports: basketball, football, baseball, and hockey.  But none of them are nowhere near track and field when it comes to global representation.  You get countries from the U.S. to Ethiopia to New Zealand and no matter how different each country is, the competitors are equals when they put on that uniform.  It’s always a beautiful sight to see all these different countrymen and women gathered for one common purpose: to win and take pride in their country while doing so.  Now that’s a world class athlete in the truest sense.

Josh Riley

Something random that you like that is basketball related.

WELL IT MAY NOT BE RANDOM BUT I JUST LOVE GOING TO A PARK OR A GYM AND HEARING THE BOUNCE OF THE BALL ON THE HARDWOOD OR THE ASPHAULT….I KNOW IM A NERD BUT ITS A GREAT SOUND LOL

A basketball secret/confession you have.

MY VERY FIRST BASKET IN A GAME HAPPENED WHEN I WAS IN 2ND GRADE…AND I SHOT IT AT THE OTHER TEAM’S HOOP LOL

What you think is the best rivalry:

by far.

When LeBron James thunders down the lane it looks as if he’s parting the sea of defenders, like a modern day Moses, en route to a rim shattering dunk.  However, the ability to part things isn’t the only commonality between LeBron and Moses.  They also both have achieved unparalleled individual greatness.  Among other things, Moses parted the Red Sea, he was a prince of Egypt, and he received the Ten Commandments.  LeBron James has won two MVP awards, led the Cavaliers to the finals in just his fourth year, and earned the title of arguably the game’s best player.  The greatest thing these two men share is the desire to lead their people to the promised land.  For LeBron, it’s leading his teammates to an NBA championship.  For Moses, it was leading the Israelites to the land of Canaan, the land that God promised them.

               They both fell short of their goal.  It wasn’t because of a lack of ability; instead it was their attitude that failed them.  When Moses was leading his people through the desert they quickly became parched.  So God told Moses to speak to the rock and water would pour out.  But Moses had become increasingly frustrated and upset with the people constantly complaining about the lack of food and water, even after they had been provided with these very things.  So in his frustration, Moses struck the rock twice with his staff.  Because of this direct disobedience to God, he was not allowed to set foot in the promised land.  Fast forward over 2000 years and LeBron James is about to suffer a similar fate.  With about three minutes left in game six, LeBron decided to settle for second place.  And that was displayed plainly in his body language.  Like he had in those previous fourth quarters, he showed his frustration by becoming timid.  He jacked up ill advised threes, became allergic to the paint, and stood around dribbling the ball while the offense got stale.

                I’m sure James would be the first to say emphatically that that wasn’t the case and he very well may be right.  But how many superstars have you seen disappear like that in pressure situations and still win?  Kobe Bryant would not have five rings if he didn’t bare his teeth like some rabid animal and hit shot after cold-blooded shot.  And not even a high fever could keep Dirk Nowitzki from being unstoppable in the fourth quarter.  Those guys refuse to let their teammates down and they both firmly believe that as long as the clock is ticking, they have a chance to win.  I didn’t get that from LeBron.  But I think this is a blessing in disguise for him.  He had the opportunity to see how a team truly operates and Dirk showed the type of leadership that’s needed to inspire and empower his teammates.

               Now unlike Moses, who was too old to have another shot at the land of Canaan, LeBron has a chance to learn from what this season has shown him about character and put it to use in his continued quest to gain entrance to the promised land.  But is he willing to accept the challenge?  That’s a question only he can answer.

reachhard:

Look, I love the NBA and all, but seriously this lockout is flat out ridiculous.  You mean to tell me that some rich fools can’t work it out and compromise when in the end, they’re all millionaires anyway?  So wait, lemme get this straight – even after taking a pay cut, the lowest paid player in the NBA is still making about seven times more than the average US yearly income of $50K?  I have no sympathy at all for both the players and the owners.  None.  When these dudes are “downgrading” from a Bentley to a Lexus next year to cut costs, cuz Lord knows, times gonna be hard for them, just know that I’m usually saving up two months in advance to be able to afford a ticket to watch the Lakers at the Staples Center.   And when these dudes are going down to just two bottles of Ace of Spades Rose whenever they in the club in order to “cut corners”, just know that the equipment managers, trainers, team and arena staff that supported the players and owners throughout the season will be penny pinching and trying to find ways to support their families while there is absolutely no NBA activity going on.  Now at the very least, this lockout will be depriving fans like me, the pleasure of watching NBA basketball for the foreseeable future until an agreement is reached.  And mind you, these are the very fans that make it possible for these owners to make money off these NBA teams and for these grown men to be paid millions for playing a child’s game.  All because some rich dudes fighting over a pile of money.  C’mon man, that’s like two people fighting over some potato salad at the buffet.  In the end, ya’ll gonna eat anyway.

Another sports team that plays in one of your favorite teams’ arena (e.g., the Clippers at Staples Center if you like the Lakers, or the Blackhawks if you like the Bulls, the Flyers if you like the Sixers, etc.) If any.

Do you like the Eastern conference or the Western conference better?

the west is much more competitive but the east is coming up!

A player you think will be really good one day

yes he’s great now…but if he develops a respectable jumper and hits his free throws he will be unguardable.

The gap between the end of the NBA finals and the beginning of the NFL feels about as big as the Grand Canyon.  And what do I have to fill up that space?  The never ending game of baseball.  Granted, going to a game can be fun with the right group of friends.  But you need them there to help you pass the time between each swing, which can be interminable. 

It’s probably the only sport where you can get up and go to the bathroom, buy a couple of hot dogs, chat with a friend you ran into, and get back  just in time to see the same batter adjust his gloves and helmet AGAIN!  People argue that baseball is about patience and refined skills and that the sport is timeless.  I say you’re absolutely right.  It takes enormous skill to find creative ways to stay awake during a game, such as counting the sunflower seeds at your feet or people that AREN’T wearing a hat or realizing that the vendors roaming the aisles are much more entertaining than what’s happening on the field.  It takes immense patience to keep from tearing your hair out as the batter takes twenty minutes to step back into the box and then does ten practice swings that he should’ve done in the on-deck circle.  And timeless?  That is so true because the more Time a game takes it’s increasingly Less likely that I will stay.  Whenever you see more boardgames and books at a game than at a Barnes & Noble, that’s usually not a good sign.  You would be better off going to Barnes & Noble.  So if you decide to go to a baseball game in the future, be sure to have a survival kit with you.  Trust me, you will use it early and often.

Josh Riley