Wednesday, January 27, 2010

Changing Face of the Point Guard in the NBA


It is truly evident that in the NBA, the game is changing. Old timer's of the game have feared it for years, the kind of game where there is less focus on team and a more run-and -gun style of individual basketball. If you follow the game on any level, you know that everything starts with the point guard. The point guard is the general, the control the balance, and the flow of the game as a whole. The leaders. Now this is by no means saying that the point guards of today don't fit these characteristics, because many of them do. But the fact remains that the style they go about doing it is without a doubt changing. When you think of the traditional point guard, names like John Stockton, Pete Maravich, Earvin "Magic" Johnson, Bob Cousy, Oscar Robertson, Nate Archibald, and the list goes on. Those guys set the standard for what a point guard should be, the orchestrator of the offense. Today?? hmmm. There might be one guy in the league right now who resembles the traditional point guard style of play, and thats Steve Nash. Jason Kidd was definitely one of the best point guards ever to lace up, but his time has passed. Oh I could throw Chris Paul in there too. But that's only two. TWO! The game used to be filled with guys like this. Today, the prototypical point guards are guys like Deron Williams, Derrick Rose and Rajon Rondo. It used to be absurd for any point guard not to be able to make a jump shot, even more a free throw. Anyone in my COMM 410 class can probably do both better than Rondo. Now I love Williams and Rose, they're all-stars and the faces of their franchises. But they are the proof that the game is for sure changing. Again I'm not necessarily saying for the worse, well, yea I kind of am I guess. I love the NBA and always will. But is there really a question why the game has continued to drop in popularity since the 90's? The game is different, and people had been used to a much different game for such a long time. And it all starts with the point guard.

Wednesday, January 20, 2010

Athletes Aid Relief Efforts in Haiti


Professional athletes worldwide are often criticized for the millions of dollars they inherit, and the irresponsible things they do with it. (Like buying weapons and bringing them to unnecessary places for instance.) But not often enough do athletes get credit for the volunteer work and other Samaritan-like deeds they do on a constant basis. To read the remainder of this column, click here

Friday, January 15, 2010

Where the "King" Shall Land His Throne

There might be one good thing that arises from catching the flu; and I don't mean missing class. Besides taking a break from academics, the flu offers you endless hours of watching television, checking Facebook, and glancing at Twitter updates. One thing I noticed that has been in the headlines for a while, but I never paid much attention to, was about Cleveland Cavaliers guard/forward Lebron James. At the end of the 2009-10 season, the National Basketball Association's (NBA) coined "chosen one" will be a free agent, and be the sole focus for nearly half of the entire league. The entire off-season this summer will be a circus as a matter of fact, where superstar names such as Chris Bosh, Amare Stoudemire, and Dwayne Wade will be under the radar as well.

But the most interesting story to me is Lebron James. He is the only one that seems to be talked about on a daily basis, as if it is understood that all the others will remain the centerpiece for their prospective teams. As much of a critic of the young superstar that I am, I can't deny that he is the future face of the NBA. Lebron's biggest flaw however, is that he doesn't and won't have is what it takes to bring back the NBA to its former heights. He will never be able to do for the game of basketball what people like Michael Jordan, Larry Bird, or Magic Johnson did, and it's not all his fault. None of those players I just mentioned had television cameras and news reporters in their faces before they were a high school upper-classman. What those players did have although that the so-called "king" lacks is selflessness.

to read the remainder of my column on Lebron James, click here

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

I hate the cold. But I love sports; especially this time of year. That pretty muchsums up the fall season for me as a sports fan. Yes, the time of year when the leaves start changing and the temperature starts dropping just happens to also be the most electrifying period of time in the world of sports. Or at least should be…

Click here to read the full column