Everyman Barack Obama

Sports Illustrated journalist S.L. White conveyed a refreshing take on Barack Obama, a man about sports, a man about relations, a man about change. In the vignette, Obama took time off from his busy campaign trail to engage in a game of pick-up basketball with White, an intimate encounter that spoke volumes about Barack's character and potential leadership initiative.

For one, Obama did not (scratch that--would not) offer up any political posturing, nor would he impose the foundations of his campaign on White throughout the course of a rather intense hoops battle.

Furthermore, Barack's courtship with his current wife Michelle was as much a make-or-break deal as his bout in the Pennsylvania primaries. Ever the basketball fanatic, Michelle asked that her brother Craig Robinson challenge Barack to a game of basketball to determine his worth as a potential husband. Silly, you say? Michelle actually offered sound perspective on the whole ordeal: the etiquette and temperance displayed on-court might very well sum up a man's countenance and character. Now THAT'S a woman with knowledge about the male psyche: we are a truly competitive breed, whether it be about the game we are competing in or the game our team is playing in. In addition, it's how this said individual or squad goes about their competition: with arrogance or dignity? It appears as though Barack lived up to the latter.

As this article further evidenced, Obama is tireless in his efforts to succeed, and yet, he has taken the time to portray an ordinary, down-to-earth persona by taking part in a spirited contest of basketball. He has immense potential to bestow upon our nation viable insights on race relations that no leader before him ever has. He is a man about image, a man of quiet confidence, and a man of forgiveness; after all, Obama has treated the game of basketball, 'his first love,' as a gift, not the remembrance of an absent father. When it comes to values, I appreciate Barack's valiant attempts at conveying to us a remarkably sound candidate, even in spite of the obstacles thrust upon him (inexperience, preacher affiliation, questionable commentaries on voting demographics, etc.). 2009 will bring an era of change, and I wouldn't be put off at all if the sports-minded Barack Obama were the vanguard leading us through these exciting times.