Believability is big for anyone, and for me, I’m no different. I believed Kobe. He had the support of his wife (whether genuine or not) and he even had some tears. Whereas Tiger appeared a bit mechanical and rather distracted. For me, it was like he’d practiced using that camera and I just wasn’t feeling him… Wait, and did you see how “too through” his mother was with him (LOL!)? Her body language was priceless.

Overall, the subject is sad in that it is so common and so I’m glad they both chose to apologize. I would like for those who come out to apology to maybe come out without a script… You know, free style a bit. I’m all for notes, an outline, or a bulleted list, but having the entire speech written gives more of a politician look. And, well, uh, I’m thinking the idea is to stay away from being compared to a politician.

To the contrary, this 4-time NBA champion-having, MVP-totting, Olympian-possessing specimen of an athlete is the team. A well noted analyst said it best in saying that no one is going to tell Kobe he’s not going to play. He will tell them… and that goes for the owner down to the coach. I mean he’s out with some injuries, not awaiting arraignment for some gun charge. It’s not even a matter of that. It’s about the  respect. There is such a lack of it.

I believe the team has been playing so well in Kobe’s absence because of their respect for him. They want to make him proud. They want him to know they can pick up the slack while he’s working on getting better.

Man… just because your mom or wife leaves for a week for a conference, does that mean you would rather do without her for good (Uh, choose your answers carefully. LOL!)?

I’m referring to the four that’s now two… the NFL Playoffs. All four teams had great stories, something worth noting, or something else worth cheering about. Let’s see, we had the Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans Saints, New York Jets, and the Indianapolis Colts. All great teams, right? So, it left little room for me to pull out the tantalizing story or the horrible offense created by some player… Now, that’s not to say there weren’t any, but you get where I’m going here. 

Now that there’s two: the Saints and Colts, I find myself in the same predicament. The Saints, with the forever after story of a lifetime and the Colts with their dominating play, what is a girl to do? It’s rare that the two best teams end up being the last two standing, so this is poetic justice. But, between the two I’d go for the Saints… Come on… A team who loved by the community and who has done so much to bring their community and people back to where they once was? It’s a no brainer.

And so I shrug a little less.

Gilbert Arenas of the Washington Wizards brought like four, unloaded guns to the locker room and was actually playing with them. What? This guy is a crack up, but in a very bad way because he’s acting as if he’s totally clueless. Now, for the record, I’m not a fan of Arenas… I believe he doesn’t take his role on the team or his talent seriously and it’s a shame because so many would love to trade places with him.

Now, its a felony situation that he has now pleaded guilty for and he’s been indefinitely suspended from the NBA… By the way, even after the incident was in the news, this guy talks smack about the boss of the NBA, David Stern, saying that the guy was mean (among other things). Arenas will be sentenced on March 26th and why… because he brought guns to work, played around with them, didn’t take the situation seriously, and made insensitive gestures before a game depicting shooting actions. Why? That’s all I ask… Why?

Okay, so for those who didn’t see the Indianapolis Colts and New York Jets football game let me just bring you up to speed. The Colts are really, really good and the Jets are not. The end. In fact, up until this game, the Colts were perfect for the season (14-0) and all of it went down the drain with this one decision… take the starters out.

Now, we can talk about the culture of the team and that this decision is one that they’ve made in previous seasons… or, that it’s important to preserve the athlete’s health and not take any chances at the end of the season. But, man… a perfect season? And there stood Payton Manning and his supporting cast all standing there on the sideline, with the crowd’s “boos” filling their helmets (…that they still were wearing, I’m sure in hopes of their numbers being called back up…).

I mean, obviously, I try to relate these things to my life to try to get answers and analyze what has happened, but nothing… I can get nothing. I just keep seeing myself running track and turning that corner to the final stretch and then hearing a whistle, followed by Coach telling me to come on out and do some stretches to get ready for the next race. You know, totally ignoring that I was a few feet from the finish line and moreover, winning… Wow!

The Cleveland Cavaliers and L.A. Lakers face off and I’m not thinking LeBron will be doing too much dancing during this game… Hey, I’m not a hater at all. I’m just thinking he’s gonna need all his moves for the court. Oh and yes, this is the first time the two have met since the Cavs new acquisition of none other than, Shaquille O’Neal.

Don’t miss it…

Happy Holidays!

Point: Should the way people feel about a professional athlete or their actions off the field (court, ice, whatever) determine his or her on-the-field results or status?

So, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar has cancer. Yes. Specifically, its chronic myeloid leukemia. He was diagnosed, late 2008, but just recently shared it with the world. This Hall of Fame NBA basketball legend decided to share his disease as a way of saying that a cancer diagnoses doesn’t mean an automatic death sentence (Crazy, huh?).

Jabbar is fortunate that what he has is treatable. And even with this, he still experienced the common fear associated with this reality that death is around the corner. I just applaud his bravery and his heart that, even in this state, he’s still teaching and being a pillar of strength.

He appears to be such a great guy and, man, what a humbling spirit.

But, really I just wanted to give Shaq a huge shout out, his propers, for paying for the funeral expenses of that little 5-year-old girl, who was raped and murdered. There’s really no where to go with this story because, for me, its too disgusting to expound on and I don’t want to give the baby’s murderer and mother (yes, mother) any more publicity.

Shaq was touched, as any sane human being would be, by the situation and what a way to make a difference.

I do send out regards to that baby’s dad and extended family.

I mean, in general, no one likes to get old (Heehee… I have bones that crack to songs. LOL!), but we all know its a fact of life. It’s just that I’m sure it can be confusing in professional sports because when a person is hitting the age where life is really just beginning, that same person is over the hill within the NBA (or any other professional game)… And that’s where Iverson is finding himself. But, he’s not aging gracefully. LOL!

It’s just a crack up because he’d rather not play at all versus coming off the bench. The non-graceful part is that he’s not accepting that he’s older now and isn’t as explosive as he once was. Kenny Smith on Inside the NBA laid out a clear case of how Iverson isn’t the “Anwser” that we once knew him to be and the film made it so apparent. He was missing shots, stumbling over his own feet, getting beat on the ball, and not pushing the ball up the court… It was actually sorta sad because Iverson was the truth back in the day.

What I think is unfortunate is that he’s definitely bringing a cloud of shame over his head by being so opposing and by being in such denial. At this point, what choices does he have? I personally don’t think he should leave the game, because those checks would make me think twice about retiring (LOL! I’m just saying.). But, then what are his choices? I can’t believe I’m seeing him in a Grizzlies uniform. Wow!