The Big Dogs... of College Football

How do you figure out which team is best???

College football is incredible.  We’ve talked about this often before on this blog.  It’s an amazing thing, not always for the right reasons one might argue, but always intriguing beyond any doubt.  We’ve always known the only real problem regarding College Football.  It’s an intense and fantastic game, but there are far too many division one teams to ever really know who the best one is.  

Two years ago, right here at the Underdogs we posed a solution.  And since then, the conferences have been doing their best to acquiesce, as we near toward super-conferences and a much better chance at order in NCAA football.  And the Bowl Championship Series itself is going to take a backseat to a four team playoff in two years, which everyone can agree is at least a step in the right direction.

Wow.  I’m impressed.  Basically, College Football has been listening, and most importantly, they’ve taken steps to remedy their obvious problems.  Obviously these are problems that should have been dealt with many many years ago, but c’mon… we’re not going to split hairs here.  The four team playoff that will be implemented after next year will go a long way in helping with the fan's overall frustrations.  At least we will be debating who is 4 and 5, rather that who is 2 and 3.  And the majority of the determination for the championship will be decided on the field, instead of being determined largely by talking heads and computer hypotheticals.            

Notre Dame has been a feel-good story...

That's not to say that the new format won't be flawed, that goes without saying.  But for years, the argument against a playoff system was always that, without one, each game of the regular season really meant something, and that is a good point.  But I've always thought that point was limited, because you can have both.  Each game of the regular season will still mean something, but once we get that playoff format, the discrepancies in scheduling will finally be more evenly recognized.  One loss teams that play a tougher schedule will still have a chance to get to that final game, even if there are two undefeated teams in the mix.  It's a huge positive step for the sport.  College football is as compelling as ever and will only get better by the time the new playoff is instituted.
  

But they won't feel good against these guys.  Sorry.    

And with that, the Matchup has been set for the 2013 Championship game.  
Alabama against Notre Dame!  
Hmmm... Who's going to win that one?  By 30?  
Yup... Alabama. 

Even the Underdogs can't pull for the Underdogs this time... Sorry Josh,
We out.
Thanks for reading!

Baseball, Miles, and the non-fan anti-jinx...

As I fly from DC back to LA I am reminded of that strange impulse that I have to write while traveling.  I think its more so on trains, there is something inspiring about them, but planes can be included too.  How efficient they are.  Basically they are just people moving machines, and everyone who boards knows this, (well except for small children I suppose,) but pretty much everyone realizes that they must sit in a small space for a couple of hours, so they might as well make the most of it.   Many writers have been inspired on trains for this reason.  I think the brain secretly likes being utilized in this way.  The body is useless right now, time for thoughts to take over! 

So reflecting on my short trip to DC, there are a few things that come to mind.  First off, I got to see an old childhood friend, my best friend from the 5^th through 7^th grades, Mike Anderson who now lives in Glen Burnie, Maryland.  The last time I saw Mike was in the summer of 1991, I remember it well.  We had been friends in England, when both of our fathers (and his mother too,) were stationed overseas at now defunct Air Force bases, borrowed from the Royal Air Force, by the US military.  We both moved from there in 1990, but I visited Mike in 1991 in Denver, Colorado where he had moved.  It's hard to believe that it’s been more than twenty-one years.  (Feels more like forty-one.)  

In a bizarre twist, the only two times I’ve ever been to an NFL team’s training camp were both in Denver.  Once with Mike in 1991 and then again in 2010, when the Lady Underdog and I saw the rookie Tim Tebow and his innumerable entourage of jersey-wearers, (before he had played a single second in the NFL by the way.)  

Mike met up with the Lady Underdog, Lakisha, and I at the Knicks-Wizards game downtown at the Verizon center.  We had a beer and talked about the old days.  We were transient, growing up (he even more so than I was,) but while I’ve continued that trend into my thirties, seemingly traveling more so than naught in my career, he has settled down in MD, living there for the last ten years.  Hopefully I will get to that place soon.  Imagine it!  The same place… for ten years!  

New and OLD faces on the Knicks bench... 

It was great to hear about Mike’s family and what’s been going on for the past two decades.  And the Knicks looked pretty good against the Wizards, pulling away in the closing minutes.  Even though they may be older than (the proverbial)… dirt!  More on that later.

Anyway, the aforementioned, greatest baseball weekend in Washington DC history ended up being a bust.  Crazy.  But I told Emily and Kevin that I think it's a good Omen.  I don't know a single couple that got married on a night when both of the local home-town teams won series-deciding playoff games, that are still together.  It's just better this way. No need to tempt fate.    

At the wedding reception, there was buzz about the Nationals and their huge early lead against the Cardinals, but no one seemed to care about the Orioles loss to the Yankees.  I think that was mainly because all of the older generation guests at the party were out-of-towners, and all of the younger in-towners had probably only been in town since around ’04 when the Nationals arrived.  The Orioles had already lost by the time we got back to the hotel that night, but the Nationals still had a chance.  They had given up their early lead but still were leading 7-5 in the ninth, so I stopped watching thinking they were going to take it.  The next day Lakisha and I walked all over DC and had a blast.  We even stopped by the ballpark and I just assumed they would be playing there the next day.  I didn’t realize until the following day, that… oops, they had, in fact, LOST that game 5 to St. Louis.  What???  That’s why baseball is a great game.  So unpredictable.  And that’s why this post-season has been nothing short of amazing!

Fast forward to tonight, when I ran into my friend Miles, from the Bay area.  My mind flipped back to three weeks ago, when he came into the bar all bummed out.  “Looks like the Giants are out of it.  They lost the first two at home.”  He looked so sad.  Instinctively I wanted to cheer him up, so I said, “Hey, don’t worry, they’ll pull it out!”  “Nah, they have to win three on the road.” he moped.  “Nope,” I said without hesitation,  “They got this Miles, they’ll come back, don’t worry.”   Of course, they then made history, winning three in a row on the road to advance on to the National League Championship Series.  A week later, he had that same look.  Like a true fan, he wears his heart on his sleeve, so I could see the genuine pain in his expression.

“Down three to one,” he lamented, “looks like we’re really done this time.” 

The last game this year had already been played...

I hadn’t watched any of the games, but there was something about how honestly hurt Miles looked, and somehow, I just knew that the Giants were going to come back.  “Nah, they got this brother,” I said solidly, “they’ll win this one in seven.”  Of course, if it was my team I would never be so brashly optimistic.  When you’re not emotionally invested you have the luxury of irrational confidence.  For some reason, when it is your team, and you really care about the outcome, you almost have to protect yourself by assuming the worst.  You cannot take that leap, because if you do, you’ll blame yourself for jinxing the team!  So weird right?  We have nothing to do with the outcomes whatsoever anyway.  It’s illogical to think that we do, but that doesn’t stop us does it?  Ahhh, sports fans.  We have issues.

Anyway, so tonight Miles came into the bar looking very happy, a huge smile on his face.  “You called it!”  he said giving me a big hug.  “You said it, both times!  Amazing right?  We’re going back to the World Series!”

Obviously, I can’t take any credit for San Francisco’s second historic turnaround.  No sane person would think that way, but maybe that’s part of the fun of being a sports fan in general.  We are connected to the games, and we care about the outcomes, but we are literally helpless to affect them one way or the other.  So it stands to reason that because of the absence of any real control, superstitions eventually crept in and became a staple in sports-fandom.  That’s why countless fans throughout history have blamed themselves for losses, for years, because their team lost, when they forgot to wear their “lucky hat/shirt/socks/kimono.  You name it, the true sports fan can use it, to blame themselves for any loss.  

“I jinxed em!  They were winning until I TURNED ON THE TV!” 

Rational people say that’s ridiculous.  And they’re right.

But we have a World Series coming up.  It's Detroit vs San Francisco, and anything can happen, so all you true fans better get out your old lucky rally caps, that have never been washed of course.  Dust off those lucky shoes or stretch into that lucky sweatshirt, because if your team is going to win this thing you better show some consistency!    

But seriously, I think we should all just act like Miles, and have some fun during these games.  Because we’re all playing with house money at this point right?  Gotta enjoy it while it lasts. 

Baseball is a beautiful game.  And so is life. 

Thanks for reading.

Underdogs OUT!

One Night in DC...

So the aforementioned one-game playoff between the Orioles and the Rangers actually did come to fruition last week.  Baseball tried actively to destroy the marriage of Catia and Alex!  I honestly never thought it would do such a thing. 

I happened to be in Vegas that night (a story for another day) and didn’t really watch, but at one point, while walking the strip I caught a glimpse of Baltimore players on TV smiling and giving interviews, so I figured somewhere in New York, Catia was being let down gently.  That same night, that complete debacle of an ending happened between Atlanta and St Louis, when the incredibly inept and inane infield-fly-rule finally reared its long-standing ugly head on a national stage, and ruined a baseball game.  It was bound to happen eventually.  But who cares about that?  That’s just scenery.   

In the game that really mattered, Alex’s Orioles took down Catia’s Rangers.  I was really only slightly worried, but I needed to test the waters, so I texted Alex, “It’s not so bad… she can just be an Orioles fan for a while.”  Y’know marriage is a two-way street after all.  He got me back, “Indeed.  She’s still in mourning, but insists she’ll be good to go by tomorrow.”

I love it.  Even among the true fans, love still conquers all.  It’s very good to know that this marriage is safe!

Speaking of which, I’m in Washington DC this weekend with the Lady Underdog, for a wedding.  Lakisha’s best friend from high school is tying the knot so we flew in from LA.  We came into town last night just as the Nationals were pulling off a dramatic ninth inning win against St Louis, forcing a winner-take-all game five tonight.  Then later in the night, after we saw the Knicks play the Wizards (more on that later,) the Baltimore Orioles won in extra innings against the Yankees.

Setting up a… you guessed it, winner-take-all game five for the Orioles and Yankees tonight in New York.  And incidentally, in addition to the obvious David vs Goliath appeal, the Orioles and the Yankees split 18 games this season and they are 2-2 in this series, so this is basically the rubber match for a best-of-25-game series.  Incredible.  It's going right down to the wire seemingly even to the most minute detail.  And of course, the Nationals have never been in a position like this.  

So let’s examine.  Everyone in this town is either an Orioles fan or a Nationals fan, (and anyone who is a Nationals fan probably used to be an Orioles fan, (back before the team brought Major League baseball back here from Montreal in 2005.)  And even then, the Nationals have been a complete after-thought until recently.  So basically the Orioles are playing in their most important game in 15 years, and Washington is hosting their most important baseball game in 75 years, on the same night.  I would guess that when Emily and Kevin planned this wedding, they didn’t realize that it would be taking place on DC’s single most important baseball night, of all time. What a night to be in Washington!   

Both games will take place at the exact same time as this wedding and reception.  As an outsider, it will be fun to take a look around the room at various times to see who is checking their phones, who is half listening to conversations, who is sweating, or who is smiling.  Depending on the updates and outcomes, all of these are possible.  We will only be a short distance from Nationals Park up near the National Mall, so maybe we’ll even hear the roars of the crowd.  Amazing.  And all of this is just the backdrop to the best day of Emily and Kevin’s lives, as she walks to him down that aisle.

Well, I don’t think they have anything to worry about.  I mean, if Catia and Alex’s marriage can survive baseball’s second ever one-game playoff, then there is hope for us all.
Let's go O's!!!  

Underdogs Out! 

The Baseball Playoffs... and the OjedaBergs

Last time on the Underdogs, while I was filling everybody in on my trip to the Rose Bowl and waxing on the sports notions of this town, Los Angeles, I was a little bit premature in my dismissal of the Dodgers and the Angels from the post-season.  The Angels are just out of the running recently, but the Dodgers, even though they are ten games worse than their down-the-interstate compadres, still have a slim chance at sneaking in to the playoffs, if they win out.  So there is still is some hope for more October baseball in LA, my mistake.  I had completely forgotten about the Major League's brand new playoff format.  I know what you’re thinking  “What?... Change in baseball?”  Yes.  History is happening  

It’s a whole new world for the Major Leagues. The Wild Card teams from each league actually have to earn their playoff spot now because of this new format.  Two non-division winners will get in this year and they will play a single game to… um… I guess, decide who the actual wild-card team is.  A one-game playoff in baseball!  Crazy.

The Rangers have been miraculous the last two years.

So they basically just added a play-in game, while the division winners get a night off.  I’m not sure if I love it or hate it.  Where would purists come down on this?  Ah, whatever.  I love it.  More drama!  And it seems to have worked for the Major Leagues as more games were relevant down the stretch.  So here we are in the thick of it, and the question at this point isn't, "who's getting in", but rather "who will have to play in that pesky one-game-win-or-go-home matchup."  Which we all know is an absolutely terrifying proposition for a baseball team.    

And as you would expect, the consequences of how these situations play out will undoubtedly affect many things.  Ticket sales, franchise worth, historical significance, player salary leverage, manager and front office clout, and of course, the all-important fan bragging rights.

But could we be adding to this list, an outstanding marriage as well?

A brilliant couple.  And two huge baseball fans.

Previously mentioned here at the Underdogs, have been the exploits of my friends Catia Ojeda and Alex Goldberg (affectionately known as the Ojedabergs) who are both huge baseball fans.  We have lived vicariously through Catia these past two years while her Rangers have made amazing runs to the World Series, last year losing in a devistating seventh game.  Alex has been pulling for them too during this time (naturally, because that’s what you do in a marriage… when your team is out of it, that is.)  But this year is shaping up much differently, because for the first time in fifteen years the Baltimore Orioles are going to be in the playoffs as well!

And as you might have guessed, Alex is a die-hard Orioles fan.  So for the first time ever, Alex and Catia’s relationship is going to be tested, in a rather unique way. 

It has been well documented that this wonderful couple's first (and by some accounts only) real fight was baseball related.  We all know the tale.  It was a magical night in Boston at baseball’s greatest park.  It’s the Red Sox against the Rangers; they have amazing seats just above the dugout, and Catia is obviously decked out in blue.  She is obstinate against the Red Sox faithful.  She’s serious.  Alex is a Ranger fan for the evening as well of course, but then late in the game something changes.  It’s the top of the seventh and the Boston pitcher has a perfect game going.

Figuring that this is only a regular-season game, one of 162, and that there have only been 23 perfect games in baseball’s immense history, Alex, perhaps swayed by the crowd or his deep love for baseball, starts to root for the perfect game.  You know, like a baseball purist would.  A fan of the game.  The notion of history right there to be witnessed.  She’d understand that right?  Well.  As it turns out… no. 

She considered it the deepest form of betrayal, and still does to this day.  It’s amazing that in the three years that I’ve known her, whenever this story comes up, she truly becomes angry once again.  That’s passion.  That’s a true, real fan.  No matter what happens, you don’t abandon your team.  So when a Ranger batter at Fenway that night, finally broke up the perfect game with a single up the middle, in an otherwise silent stadium, she bolted up out of her seat and yelled joyously “YESSSSS!”  She was defiant.  Uncompromising.  Elated.    

Baltimore has won 92 games, with an 9 run differential.
That is simply unbelievable.    

Simultaneously of course, Alex's priority was no longer their argument, but instead it immediately switched to the task of making sure they made it back to their hotel safely that night.  That's baseball baby! 

So anyway, here it is, 2012.  And if the Oakland A’s win their last two games, there could be a one-game playoff between the Texas Rangers and the Baltimore Orioles.

Would the baseball gods do this?  Would they be willing to potentially sacrifice such a beautiful union of souls?

Of course, if this doesn’t happen, it is possible that their two teams could meet later in the AL playoffs in a seven game series, but if it came down to just one game.  For all the marbles.  That intense pressure.  That extraordinary die-hard fan adrenalin.  Do we have any idea what might happen? 

As always, we must just accept what is.  If it is meant to be it will be.  But if it happens... don’t think I won’t be a little nervous that night.   

Thanks for Reading,

Underdogs out.  

Red vs Blue... at the Rose Bowl

Ah, LA in September.  Living in this great city around this time is so interesting.  The baseball season is winding down and both the Dodgers and Angels are almost out of their respective playoff races.  The NFL season has just started and, as everyone knows, the second biggest market in the United States that used to have two NFL teams, at the same time, is entering its nineteenth consecutive season without one.  That alone is an amazing fact to consider.  There is no professional football in America’s second biggest market and one of the most revered cities in the world.  Although perhaps that’s just a technical distinction, as we’ve joked here before, because they do still arguably have a pro team… the University of Southern California Trojans!  Zing!  Aw, but, c’mon, they’ve paid their penalties for that!  Or one hopes so at least, (in so far as it is possible that is, given the inherent hypocrisy of the major College-Football-Program scene.)

The Stadium was actually packed.  This was halftime.  

Anyway, the lack of an NFL team doesn’t really seem to have much affected the sports nature of the city though.  People are extremely passionate about their Dodgers, and USC for their football, and UCLA for their college basketball.  UCLA is legendary in hoops, but a perennial after-thought during the football season.  So when a few of my Nebraska friends (some living here already, others flying in direct) told me they were coming in for a Huskers game against UCLA, I thought, “great, shouldn’t be too hard to get a ticket.”

I live in Culver City, just south of Westwood, where the beautiful UCLA campus nestles into the landscape.  I have been there a few times, once for a basketball game at the immortal John Wooden’s court, and a handful of other times just to hang out in the area.  Friends of mine across the country, who went to school there, are always jealous to know the times that I’ve stopped into the great ice-cream spot Diddy Riese for a bite.  They just can’t stop talking about that place! 

But on the football front, I hadn’t thought much about UCLA.  There certainly wasn’t a large football stadium on or near the campus, so at first I didn’t even know where they’d play their games.  Stupidly, as it turns out, because of course they play in Pasadena… at the Rose Bowl!  That stadium has to be used for something else right?  Not just the Rose Bowl!  Suddenly I got excited.  I’d love to go to the Rose Bowl, hang out with friends, and watch their storied Nebraska team dismantle the overmatched Bruins.     

What a beautiful afternoon for a football game.  Located just north of the Ventura Freeway in the Arroyo Brookside park, the stadium is everything that you’d imagine it to be.  You can just feel the history.   Outside of the stadium there is a Carnival with rides and games, and when you get in to the stadium, there are more outdoor concessions surrounding it.  But once you’re actually in, no frills, just football, the way that it should be.  Simple.  And you can tell that the UCLA faithful like it that way.  They believe in their team even though, given their spotty history, no one else in the country does. 

As I expected there was a huge contingent of red within the stadium, entire sections in fact.  The Husker state represented enormously and enthusiastically.  I have to note here the particular phenomenon that I experienced, having worked twice now, in Nebraska.  They LOVE the Cornhuskers.  It’s beyond just football.  I’ve seen that level of passion frequently in American college sports, but never before had I seen an entire state so united behind one flag. 

While I was in high school and college in Florida, for instance, the state was split between the University of Florida, Florida State, and even the Miami Hurricanes.  Texas has the Longhorns, Texas Tech, Texas A&M, Baylor. Even Oklahoma has Oklahoma State.  In Nebraska, it’s one team.  One.  And it’s so clear.  If you ever talk to someone from Nebraska, just mention the Huskers and they beam.  It’s their birthright.  And they’re proud, because they’ve had great years.  Three national championships in the last eighteen years and a whole bunch of Big 12 championships bring that kind of devotion.  And especially after joining the Big 10 last year, I’ve pulled for the Huskers to win that conference.  Because, c’mon, it’s about time Ohio State and Wisconsin had some competition (cough cough, sorry Michigan friends.)  Coming into the game, the Huskers were ranked number 16 in the country, UCLA, not at all.    

So as I drove to the game, I was expecting a big win, but my more educated Nebraska friends were cautious.  They weren’t crazy about what they’d seen from their team so far.  One of my favorite moments during the game, was when the UCLA fans, wanting to give the Nebraska faithful some grief, started chanting, “OVER-RATED”… clap clap, clap clap clap, “OVER-RATED”… clap clap, clap clap clap!  Steve looked at me and Erinn and said editorially… “Yea!  You think we don’t know that already???” 

Nebraska fumbled away a few chances... 

It was a thrilling first half with a lot of scoring, including a 90 yard touchdown run by Nebraska quarterback Taylor Martinez.  The second half got tighter, but there were still clutch plays on offense and defense.  It basically came down to one play, one that Nebraska desperately needed.  It was a short route that should have been a touchdown.  A Husker wideout broke right and was completely alone by the sideline, a clear path to the endzone before him.  Martinez saw him all the way, and so did the entire stadium.  The UCLA fans groaned, Nebraska fans stood in anticipation, it was a broken defensive assignment!  He was wide open.  The receiver appeared to be looking right at Martinez as he threw it, but then something strange happened.  He froze. 

... as the diehards held their breath.

As the ball was coming toward him he waited, his arms down.  He waited, and still waited.  The ball passed right by his helmet, his hands still down, and suddenly he flailed his arms awkwardly as he saw something in his peripheral and realized what had happened.  But it was too late.  He hadn’t even seen the pass.  I’ve never seen anything like it.  He saw Martinez throw.  Did he think he faked it?  He must have lost it in the lights, although to me, because of the angle, it didn’t seem like that was possible.  Either way it was a huge blow for the Huskers.  The ball landed out of bounds, as the red throngs watched in disbelief, and the drive ended with a field goal.  And it wouldn’t be enough, because UCLA had no intention of letting this one slip away.  

The Bruins made some wonderful plays on offense and eventually it carried them to a thrilling and improbable win.  The underdog came up big against the storied Nebraska program.  But even Husker fans have to admit this is a feel good ending.  Not only was the UCLA football team an underdog in this game, and an underdog within their own city, but they are underdogs on their own campus!  Second class citizens to the hardwood heroes.  

You could feel some of those demons being exorcised last night, as they realized their achievement.  The crowd was obviously extremely excited, but you could also see the surprise underneath.  Like this was new territory for them.

Today UCLA is in the top 25 at number 22, and Nebraska has slipped out.  And while I feel bad for Steve, Scott, Chris, Erinn, both Joes, and all the rest of Husker Nation, I’m not too worried for them.  They still have a chance to come out of the Big 10, and I’ll root for them against everybody in that conference.  And it was great to hang out with you guys while you were here.  Thanks for the invite!    

But meanwhile, I’ve found a new interest in the PAC-12 and the upstart UCLA football team.  Can the Bruins ride this momentum?  Can they become a Cinderella Story and shock the world by de-throning USC while finally claiming this city for their own?  After seeing them last night, I think they can.  

And wouldn’t that be Rosy?

Thanks for reading.

Underdogs out!

Olympic London...

The last time the Olympics happened it was in Beijing.  It was only four years ago, but it seems like much more.  I had been in Beijing in 2006, and Seoul, Korea as well that year, where the first Olympics that I remember happened in 1988.  (Okay, I remember Carl Lewis and Ben Johnson.)  The Olympics was amazing then and it is amazing now.  

A friend of mine made a point the other day.
One that I had never thought of.  Everybody runs.
It's not specific, like water polo or archery.
It's just, simply running.  And this guy is the fastest ever.  

In sports, our perfect tournament is College Basketball’s NCAA Final Four, our greatest American sporting event is the Superbowl, the baseball pennant races are historic, and the greatest international event is the World Cup.  But the Olympics is something completely unto itself.  It is so much more than a sporting event.  It is a wonderful testament to us.  To mankind, to civilization.  It is right at the heart of what captures our imaginations; humans pushing their physical limits on a global stage, and bringing people together.  It’s beautiful. 

Thinking hypothetically about a utopian planet.  Thinking about advanced beings living in peace and harmony (the stuff that science fiction has touched on for 50 years) it would seem like the way to that place for those (real or unreal) societies must have included an event like this.  Along the evolution to a higher understanding, in becoming a brilliant conglomerate of sentient beings that don’t need war or wealth to validate their existence, something like the Olympics must have taken place allowing for the eventual enlightenment.  Think of how far we have come on this planet, just in the last hundred years.  Before the internet and a general acceptance, or at least understanding, of the many different cultures in the world, the Olympics was at the heart of it.  Forcing people from distant countries to look at each other.

Yes, it was in the spirit of competition and patriotism and sometimes tensions ran high, but intermixed was the notion of an eventual global oneness.  Think of what that was like a hundred years ago.  What was it like, in that time, to realize that people that don’t look like you from places you’ve never been and will probably never go, really aren’t that different from you after all?

That deep down, we all want the same things.

Those notions have to be the precursor to the (at least now) imagined advanced civilizations of science fiction.  And because of it, the Olympics is still the preeminent sports event on our planet.  It brings everyone together in ways that nothing else could.  It's what we keep saying about sports.  It transcends.  It truly has a beautiful and amazing power.    

But outside of the bigger (or intergalactic) picture, the beauty of the Olympics for me has always been the attention that is brought to so many sporting events that normally don’t enter into the global conscience.  Handball, water polo, archery, fencing, diving.  There are no mulit-million dollar contracts waiting for these athletes (even if they win gold medals.)  They are complete amateurs, in it for the love, in it for the passion.  

London was filled with these hopefuls this summer.  And as we watched the closing ceremonies last night I realized that, one of the greatest cities in the world may have pulled off the perfect Olympics.  I was going to go, but I didn’t.  Man.... I definitely should have :)

To all my British friends.  Thanks for the invite.  Sorry I didn’t make it. 

But the Underdogs were alive and well.  
And you guys nailed it!

Thanks for reading.
Underdogs out.         

The Anti-Underdog...

Kinda hurts to see it right?

In the wake of the Miami Heat’s likely, then-un-likely, then-likely again, championship capper to their NBA season, everyone knows that one of the biggest questions in sports has been answered.  Would LeBron ever climb the mountaintop?  Asked and answered now.  And just as sure as I was that Oklahoma City would win in the Finals coming off their incredible series against the Spurs, was the fact that Miami was better.  They matched up incredibly defensively against the Thunder and just took the life out of them.  Something that I truly thought was impossible.  Well, I was wrong.  (Unfortunately for underdog fans everywhere too, because it’s only going to get harder from here.  Yikes.)  Last year we narrowly avoided it, but here we are.  Our worst fear realized.            

Anyway, I can’t think of anything more predictable, or typical, than a psychological retrospective on LeBron James.  Or perhaps introspective.  Either way, in spite of the idea’s complete unoriginality, I’m going to do it… because it’s just so fascinating!  Why?

Because he is and has always been, the opposite of an underdog.

Okay.  Here’s where we start. 

High School, with NBA headband

There’s never been a more talented player in NBA history than LeBron.  In that regard, he is the best ever.  But, that doesn’t tell the whole story.  He is also a product of his time.  Jordan, Magic, Bird, Kareem, Oscar, Wilt, Russell, West; they were all products of their time too, but none of them were times like these.  LeBron grew up a celebrity.  He was a superhero at age 15.  He was on magazine covers and ESPN aired games because he was in them.  He could have been the number one pick in the NBA draft after his sophmore year… of high school!  Other players have been there maybe, but never in an era where that kind of ability could be worth $300 million.  It’s just pure economics.  What would you do?  How would you be?

As Jordan was transcendent, he was made possible by Magic.  Magic was made possible by Doctor J.  Doctor J was made possible by Jerry West and Elgin Baylor, who were made possible by Oscar Robertson.  All of basketball’s greatest can be traced back through the generations.  It’s just the nature of things.  It’s evolution.  Inevitably players get better and the game changes.  Wilt was an anomaly; his numbers, biblical.  Baylor moved like no guard ever had before.  Magic was a 6-9 point guard who challenged all of the conventions of that all-important position.  And Michael was… Michelangelo. 

So what is LeBron?  A hybrid of all of the above.  The inevitable result of generations of natural selection.  He can do anything on the court; play at any speed, above the rim or on the perimeter, he can defend any position.  From a basketball point of view, he is truly miraculous.  But that’s the easy part.  That doesn’t begin to explain things.

It takes incredibly hard work to get to where LeBron James is.  It takes an amazing work ethic and attention to detail, but where is the source of that passion?  What is the driving force?  For Jordan it was a lifelong desire to disprove the naysayers, no matter how long ago he was doubted.  For Magic and Bird, it was the need for one to out-do the other, but before that, they were doubted too. 

For James, it isn’t so simple.  He was never doubted.  It all seemed so easy.  His desire to become great probably started early in high school out of fun and a sense of pride for himself as he started to live up to his growing fame.  But then it expanded into an extraordinary opportunity to make ungodly amounts of money, to support his family and friends.  And as with any business venture, there must be multiple motivations, and that’s where it becomes fascinating. 

He is a product of a yes-man life-style, an AAU system that pretty much pre-ordains NBA millions; did anyone ever give him tough love?  Who was going to give him honest advice?  Who was going to really coach the guy?  It seems like no one even really tried it.  Almost like he was too good for that or something.  He was never heavily scrutinized.  Never villified.  But that all changed in 2010 when he shocked the world by joining his biggest rival in Miami in one of the most awkward live events in television history.  It was unprecedented and remains so. 

After seven years in Cleveland, giving every ounce of his energy, all of his blood sweat, and tears, to an organization that did very little to help him, he decided to leave.  Not for New York, and the chance to resurrect the wayward Knicks, not to Chicago, where he would have had the best chance to win, but to Miami.  Where Dwayne Wade practically plays the same position!  It made no sense to the traditional sports person.  You’re supposed to want to demolish your rivals… not join them!  It baffled us.  But therein lies LeBron James.  How could we possibly know what we expected him to do?  He grew up in the light, and has been living in a glass house ever since.  A never sleeping media covers and dissects his every move, desperate for any content they can supply to an insatiable sports public.  If he bought a different kind of toothpaste it would be news.  How does that affect someone psychologically? 

Like most of us, he wanted to be liked.  And because he cared, he paid attention… he wanted to know how people viewed him, and he tried to say the right things.  But the problem was it always seemed like he was trying to say the right things.  So it never seemed genuine.  And sports fans hate this.  He seemed too aware of things.  Because he was; and as the first athlete to be subjected to this kind of scrutiny he was basically one big case-study on the affect that mass-media and an empowered public, (through twitter, blogs, facebook, and podcasts) can have on someone’s psyche.  What happens to you?  Can you ever be real?

For years LeBron couldn’t figure it out.  He towed the line between defiant bravado and a universal need for acceptance.  He craved it too much and it showed.  And it over-shadowed the fact that he is most likely the best basketball player we’ve ever seen.  It’s bad news for the rest of the NBA now, because in the Finals, he figured it out.  Simply put:    

Nothing that anyone said (media or fans or other players) mattered. 

He finally dug deep, and just let it be about basketball.  Easy to say and think I guess, but maybe not so easy to do.  All he had to do was play the way that we all knew he could play, and let the clock run out.  And he was absolutely brilliant.  For years, I’d been so happy that he seemed to have ignored this fact.  But now that he’s unlocked this drive deep within himself, it stands to reason that he will be able to go back to that place over and over.  And frankly, it’s going to be downright scary for the league; and bad for underdogs everywhere. 

But then I guess, someone has to do it.  Should we thank him?  After all, where would underdogs be without… the anti-underdog? 

You know his name.

Well we will find out starting next year, because this is our new reality.
From now on, in the NBA, ugh... the Heat is on.                          

The Thunderstorm...

I am still in shock from what I saw four nights ago. 

The Spurs dominated the first half, clicking on all cylinders.  They looked as good as a basketball team could possibly look while cruising to an eighteen point lead.  Everyone was contributing and it looked like we were headed for a game seven. 

But then the second half happened.  Wow.

The Oklahoma City Thunder made every possible adjustment on defense, locking in and shutting down the high octane Spurs, and at the same time they somehow raised their offensive game to a level I’m not sure I’ve ever seen before. The Spurs did not collapse, they were collapsed.  They didn’t blow the lead, it was outright snatched from them, in every way. The Spurs played great in this series, but the Thunder were even better, and they left absolutely no doubt.  They are the best team in the league.     

Let’s put it this way.  If you watched these games you'd have to think that the Spurs would have beat the Heat in 4 and the Celtics in 4, maybe 5.  Right?  And the Thunder just beat them.  It’s true folks.  The Eastern Conference Finals was only a formality.  The NBA champion has already been crowned. 

Even so, I do want to talk about the East a little bit.  It was a great shame for America that the Celtics dropped game six so hard at home the other night.  Wasn’t it?  It’s hard to explain what happened.  Or even what it looked like.  You would think that the Celtics might have been tired, or that injuries had caught up to them, (or their well documented age,) but on the court it just looked like a lack of effort.  Everyone was a step slow, Doc Rivers couldn’t inspire them, and they looked like a different team from what we had seen so far in the series. Even Rondo didn’t seem as aggressive as he had been up until then, and he seemed about half as fast as he had been earlier in the series, (or maybe that’s just an optical illusion after watching Tony Parker against Russell Westbrook.  The fastest I’ve ever seen.) 

Which leads me to a point (or tangent) that I’m sad and shocked that I haven’t heard anyone make on ESPN yet… here we go, ready?  Ahem.

It looked like the East and West were playing two different sports!

Didn’t it?  San Antonio against Oklahoma City was unbelievable basketball.  Fluid, exacting, they spaced the floor perfectly, great passing, great transition games, and great defense.  And so fast!  It was incredible that the older Spurs could keep up, but they did.  Nothing was arbitrary in that series.  They were both meticulous, and well coached, always moving the ball, making the extra pass, almost always getting a good shot.  It just turns out that Oklahoma City was the better of the two.  But what would they have looked like against the Celtics in that last game? (when they really started clicking, at a level that I’m sure even surprised them?)  They would have won by 50.  Against the Heat?  They would have won by 50!  I’m telling you.  There is no way either of those teams would have stayed in the same building with them.  They are that much better.  Or at least they were against the Spurs. 

For Miami everything is arbitrary. There is never any flow.  Do they ever run an offense? LeBron makes it look okay when he is making shots, and he has been miraculous so far in the playoffs, because he’s that good as a player, but Miami has serious issues on offense.  Issues that they would never have if Gregg Popovich was their coach.  By the way (quick tangent within the tangent) Could you IMAGINE how good LeBron would be if Pop was his coach.  Woah, that just got really scary.  Anyway, I would have loved watching the Spurs absolutely dissect and dismantle the Heat in that hypothetical series.  It wouldn’t have been close.  And it would have been so wonderful to see.

But here in reality, all we get is the real, so it’s The Thunder against the Heat in the NBA Finals.  Which is definitely a great matchup.  For the league and for purists, and for the public.  It has everything that you’d want.  Big Three vs Big Three, LeBron vs Durant, a team hastily constructed against a team organically grown, glitz and glamour vs… well, Oklahoma City.  I love where this can go.  There is intrigue galore.

I just hope that Scotty Brooks can get his team hyped up and focused enough to continue playing as well as they were when they closed out the Spurs.  Because if they can play to that level then it will be a sweep.  Miami would have absolutely no chance.  But if the Thunder “play down,” as can very often happen in sports, especially with young teams, or if they get caught up in the sideshow of the Finals; or if they get intimidated by the fact that two of the best three players in the world are on the same team, against them, then Miami may have a chance in the series. Miami is a good high screen, perimeter defensive team, because of their length, and that’s the Thunder’s strength, so one might give them a fighter’s chance.  But if the Thunder play like they did on Thursday night… there is no chance.  None.    

So a lot of this will depend on Thunder coach Scotty Brooks.  It’s like he has the keys to an untested, hyper-dynamic marvel of technology.  No one is really sure how much it is capable of yet, including him.  Attitude will go a long way.  Maybe he needs to hypnotize them into believing they are still playing the Spurs.  The team that pushed them to a supernatural level.

The Thunder deserve the title.  They went through the Lakers, Mavericks, and Spurs to get here.  Three teams that combine to account for 10 of the last 13 NBA Championships.  Meanwhile, the Heat struggled with Indiana, and bumbled their way through an injury depleted East.  But as we know, there is no justice in the NBA playoffs.  You have to show up.  It's zero-zero, right now.        

So there you have it.  

There's the rub.  Once again.  It’s Luke vs the Death Star.

So this must be Return of the Jedi, right?  (We need a picture of Kevin Durant with a light saber and LeBron James with a heavy hooded cloak.)  

Let’s do this America…

It’s time for the NBA FINALS!