Random Sports Reflections

Some random sports reflections...

*I'm not really a big golf guy (that and tennis are probably the two sports that I enjoy the least watching) but this year has been interesting to say the least.  So far in the two major tournaments (the Masters & the US Open) that have been played, the two winners (Bubba Watson & Webb Simpson) are strong & vocal followers of Jesus.  Simpson's twitter profile describes himself as this: " *sinner* loved by a Savior".  I really am encouraged that more and more athletes are vocal about their faith in Christ, and that they are using the platform that God is giving them to point back to Him.  Very cool indeed.

*After my last post about Manny Ramirez, he recently asked for his release from the A's.  It didn't seem like they were going to promote him from AAA and so he wanted to see if he can get back into the big leagues another way.  I don't know if he will find another team but I do wish him the best.

*The NBA finals are going on and for the first time in my life I've not watched one game of the Finals, even though I am able to (I wasn't able to watch any back in '09 because I was in Poland and it's like a 7 hour time difference).  The reason?  Simply put Oklahoma City is in the finals.  Anyone that knows me, knows that I lived in Seattle and did ministry work there for 3 years.  I was there the final years that the Sonics were in town before they moved.  So I know better than a lot of people how people in Seattle feel right now about the Thunder, because I saw a lot of what went down firsthand.  I can't bring myself to root for the Thunder let alone watch the games.  Because I remember what the ownership did.  To me, they brought to light the ugly side of sports.  As much as I didn't like LeBron James and how he handed "The Decision", that wasn't as bad as what the Thunder ownership group and David Stern did to the city of Seattle.  Growing up I was a huge NBA fan.  But now, the NBA is like 4th or 5th (behind NFL, MLB, NHL & soccer).  I hope that someday Seattle gets a franchise back.  But the consequences of what happened with the Thunder still continue to leave a bad taste in my mouth.

*Speaking of soccer, right now in Europe there's a major tournament going on called Euro 2012.  The top 16 European countries are competing in a tournament to decide the top team in all of Europe.  The tourney is held every four years and this year it's being held in Poland & the Ukraine.  I'm happy that Poland is getting to co-host the tourney (sad that they got knocked out of the tourney a few days ago).  I loved going over there a few years ago and spending the summer as an intern doing ministry work.  I continue to pray for the people of Poland (specifically those in the city of Krakow) and major international tournaments like this are a great reminder to pray for countries.

The NBA Finals: Where Retro Happens

It's June which means it's time for the NBA Finals. A time where given the last ten years there have been very few good series. But this year could be one of those good series. The Los Angeles Lakers vs the Boston Celtics. Two perenniel powerhouse teams. One of the most storied rivalries in all of sports.

It is a rivalry that spends decades. From the 60s with Russell vs West to the 80s with Bird vs Magic to today. Most people are calling this the dream matchup between Kobe and the Big Three (Garnett, Allen, Pierce).

Personally, while I think this will be a good series, I think it won't match in comparison the times in the 80s when the Lakers and Celtics were dominant. That was an era in basketball that was tremendous. I probably was spoiled as a child growing up watching such great basketball. The whole NBA was great but just to name players off these two teams with the "Showtime" Lakers with Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, James Worthy, A.C. Green, Byron Scott, Micheal Cooper, Kurt Rambis and the vaunted Boston Celtics with Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, Robert Parish, Dennis Johnson, Danny Ainge, Gerald Henderson and Bill Walton (who was just hanging on there at the end). But I named those guys off the top of my head without having to look them up and look how many guys I named some 20 something years later. I would be hard pressed to name the starting five for many teams in the NBA today.

Those series in the 80s were tremendous. Games where both teams scored well over 100 points. Several Hall of Famers on each team on the court at the same time. Great arenas like the Boston Garden and The Forum.

I say all that to say that while I'm excited about this year's finals for the first time in a few years, it doesn't compare to those years growing up watching guys like Larry and Magic. Then again, I'm sure there are kids now that say this is the best basketball. That's the thing about growing up.

Prediction: Celtics in 5