This Week In Sports

I'm back like I never left (but I did). And what better way to start back blogging than to give a recap of the crazy things that have happened in sports in the past 7 days. Here's a few of the headlines that caught my eye.

Richard Sherman's Outburst

Unless you've been under a rock, I'm sure you've heard that the Seattle Seahawks defeated the San Francisco 49ers to head to the Super Bowl. However, that has been overshadowed thanks to the Seahawks' cornerback Richard Sherman's postgame interview with Erin Andrews. If you missed it, then here you go.

 



 

I don't know about anyone else, but I was shaking my head and cracking up all at the same time. SIR! As a former athlete and a competitive person by nature, I totally understand that your emotions can sometimes take over. I just hate that it had to happen on national television with a white lady interviewing him. Erin Andrews has since said that she loved the interview and was not intimidated whatsoever. However, we ALL know that the media loves to create a big story out of nothing and has continued to talk about an interview that lasted less than a minute. Sherman has been painted as a thug, which is the furthest thing from the truth. He has even apologized since then. So can we all move on please? The 25 year old is an intelligent Stanford graduate who let his emotions get out of hand. It happens to the best of us. Let it go!

 

Darren Sharper is a Rapist?

 

This story broke my heart because Darren Sharper has always been my NFL crush. The former player is now (or was) an analyst on the NFL Network. This past weekend, it was reported that he was arrested in LA on suspicion of rape. Wait, what? Apparently, he is being investigated in connection with 3 separate sexual assaults. SMH! I wouldn't put anything past anyone, but I really hope this isn't true. A man that fine has to have women throwing themselves at him. Why rape someone? Again, I hope the allegations prove to not be true. Everyone is guilty until proven innocent, but I don't know about this one.

 

Vince Young Has Filed For Bankruptcy

 

Another day, another "broke" athlete. Of course, he probably still has more money than me right now, but he apparently has spent/lost millions. Maybe I'm crazy, but how can you make so much money and have close to nothing left only several years later? Athletes (and entertainers) have to do better with their money. I'll just leave it at that.

 

Luol Deng Faces the Bulls

 

That didn't even feel right to type. I'm still upset with the Bulls management for letting Luol Deng go for a number of reasons. Yes, I understand it will help us in the future, but I'm not okay with it right now. Tonight, we must face off against him for the first time as a Cavalier. I'll be pulling for my Bulls, but I'll definitely be cheering for Lu everytime he scores as well. He was a vital part of the Bulls squad for nearly 10 years, and he's just an all-around great person. So, I'll always cheer for him no matter what team he is on.

 

And that is just a few of the sports headlines that caught my attention over the past week.

My Crazy and Emotional Personal Journey to Derrick Rose's Return

April 28, 2012. I remember like it was yesterday. My friend and I decided to hit the bar and celebrate the start of the Bulls postseason.  As far as I was concerned, we were on our way to the Finals in a few months. We just had to conquer several teams along the way, starting with the Philadelphia 76ers. Easy, right? We were the #1 seed in the Eastern Conference facing off against an overly confident #8 seed. According to Evan Turner, the Sixers were happy to face the Bulls since the Heat were a tougher team for them. Oh really? Well, let the games begin. That Saturday afternoon, they did.

Throughout the game, the bar would cheer for every massive dunk, every great defensive play, and every time a Bulls player connected from beyond the arc.  Although it was only Game 1, we were well on our way to winning this series. So, while finishing my second martini with the Bulls up by 12 and less than 2 minutes on the clock, you couldn’t prepare me for what would happen next. Derrick Rose was bringing the ball up the court and started to drive towards the basket. This was all normal. However, suddenly he went down. That could be considered normal as well during a physical game, as the defensive-minded Chicago Bulls are known to play. Only problem is, he didn’t jump back up and head back down the court. Instead the game came to a halt as did the city of Chicago. The United Center began to chant MVP as the trainers worked on Rose. At the bar, we all sat trying to figure out what could possibly be wrong. It would be a few hours before we would receive the official word….the 2011 MVP Derrick Rose had torn his ACL. Deep, long sigh.

I remember getting on Twitter when I first arrived back at home. Some Miami news source had taken to their Twitter page to report that Rose had torn his ACL. Ummm, how would you all know first? Although something told me it was true, I refused to believe them. The Chicago Bulls and the Miami Heat DO NOT like one another and neither do the fans. Trust me, I know firsthand. So, of course I just knew this was a practical joke that stupid Miami press was playing on the Chicago Bulls fans. It wasn’t April 1, but it was still April. This HAD to be a joke. It just had to be. Then, I turned to Channel 5 news, and my heart sank as they announced that Chicago’s native son, Englewood’s pride and joy, little brother in my head Derrick Rose had torn his ACL. Once the Bulls announced it the next day, it was really official.

Yes, he had gone through injuries all season and missed 27 games, but I wasn’t prepared for this. If anyone knows me, they know my love runs deep for the Chicago Bears and the Bulls. I will defend my teams until the day I leave this earth. I remember traveling with my family down to Grant Park each time the 90’s Bulls would win the championship. My dad would come home with t-shirts, and I would wear them proudly throughout the year. I was already preparing for the Bulls to take the title, and then the unexpected happened. I still had faith in my team and continued to watch even without Rose, but we went onto lose the series to the Sixers in 6 games. Deep, long, dramatic sigh.

There was nothing to do but rebuild and prepare for Rose’s return to the court. During the offseason, we signed Kirk Hinrich again and added the loveable Nate Robinson. While no one can take Rose’s place, I must say we had a pretty good squad. But I, along with the rest of the Chicago Bulls fans awaited The Return. I watched commercial after commercial from Adidas hyping us up for Rose’s return to the court.  I know that’s not an injury to play with, and I definitely wanted him to follow the doctor’s orders. But I still waited anxiously. Then, came the day when we found out he was cleared to play. To say I was excited is an understatement. I just knew we would see him take the court after the All-star break, right? Wrong. Week after week, I would hear the rumors fly that this was the night that Rose would return. We were doing great without him, but there’s just a sort of je ne sais quoi that Rose adds to the team. His explosive, fearless play was definitely missed. Needless to say, after much hype and speculation, he never returned for the 2012-2013 season. After a hard fought playoff run riddled with sickness and injuries, the Bulls lost to the Miami Heat in Game 5 of the semifinals and were eliminated. Oh well, it was time to look forward to the 2013-2014 season and The Return.

On October 5, 2012, one day after his 25^th and 18 months after he went down and Chicago took a collective sigh, D. Rose returned to the court to face the Indiana Pacers. If this was someone’s first time watching him play, they would never know he had suffered a torn ACL. It was still the same Derrick driving to the basket, creating contact and finishing as only he can do. So, why was I smiling yet cringing on the inside? Even for his return to the United Center on October 16 to face the Detroit Pistons, I jumped around like a crazy fan at home as the crowd roared on the TV and the announcer introduced him. But I went back to cringing as the game went on. Yes, I have wanted to see Rose back on the court since forever. Now that he’s back, I can’t seem to handle it. Seeing him fall to the floor every time he gets knocked down takes me back to April 28, 2012. I know, I know. I need to get it together, but I’m a fan who takes every loss and injury to heart, especially injuries to my favorite players. He looks like the Derrick of the past as he plays, but I think of him as a fragile individual now. But again, I need to get it together and take my crazy emotions out of it. He’s out there playing fearlessly and with ease. He’s still the same Rose that all Bulls fans have grown to love. Therefore, I just need to sit back, relax and watch as he does work (maybe through my fingers and with a cup of chamomile tea to calm me down – don’t judge me lol). No matter what, I’ll still be tuned in to every game as he hopefully goes for an injury-free, MVP-worthy season and leads my Bulls to the Promised Land known as the NBA Finals. Let us pray, and let’s go Bulls!

How I Fell Out of Like with LeBron James

For those of you who know me and my total disgust with everything that is the Miami Heat, you may find it hard to believe that I was once a Lebron James fan. Let me tell you why that all changed...

So, it was June 26, 2003. I had completed my first year of college about a month beforehand. My dad had just celebrated a birthday the day before. The San Antonio Spurs were crowned the 2003 NBA champions after defeating the New Jersey Nets. And now, it was time to look forward to the 2003-2004 NBA season. On this night, David Stern stepped to the podium and announced,

''With the first pick of the 2003 NBA draft, the Cleveland Cavaliers select . . . LeBron James.''

 And just like that, the city of Cleveland had a reason to celebrate. I mean let's be serious here. People weren't necessarily saving their pennies to attend a Cleveland Indians game. The Cleveland Browns had celebrated a playoff appearance the year before, but they were still a joke. Then, here comes The King, as he affectionately became known as. Grant it, he was a high school phenom, but now it was time for him to take the NBA, actually the world, by storm at the tender age of 18. Was he ready for such a challenge? You better believe it!

I don't even need to go into detail about LeBron's career. We all know what he accomplished while in Cleveland. He was the 03-04 Rookie of the Year, 6-time All-Star, 2 NBA MVP's. And like I said, that was just while in Cleveland. He pretty much carried that team on his back. Yes, it's a huge back, but it wasn't meant to carry a whole team. Yet, that's what he did. Thanks to him, they made it to the Finals in 2007 against their current opponent the San Antonio Spurs. Of course, one man can't carry a team. Therefore, they were swept. I'm praying the Spurs win the current series as well, but I digress. Back to the story.

Anyway, what does all of this have to do with how I fell out of like with LBJ? Glad you asked. Fast forward to May 2009. The Cavs were facing the Orlando Magic in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals. As had been the case so many times before, his supporting cast let him down, and they lost. No finals for the Cavs. So, what do players do at the end of a series? They shake hands with their opponent. Nope, not LeBron. He moseyed on off the court...and skipped the press conference following the game. Umm, what? Strike 1. This bothered me because I was once an athlete, and never once did we not shake our opponents hand after the game. That's just bad sportsmanship, especially since he was probably more upset with his team. Therefore, why shun the Magic? But whatever, I got over that, kind of.

Then came Strike 2. After the 2009-2010 season, it was no doubt LeBron was pretty much done with the Cavs. And I, for one, didn't necessarily blame him. Like I said, one man can't carry a team. So I, like most people, knew LeBron wouldn't return. He, along with a plethora of other players including D. Wade and Chris Bosh, were free agents. For some reason, this group of friends thought it would be fun to pretty much play games visiting teams to see who was making the best offer. The only problem is I believe that they already knew where they were headed. So, on July 8, 2010 came The Decision and the infamous phrase,

"I'm going to take my talents to South Beach and join the Miami Heat."

Listen, LeBron, all of that WAS NOT needed. I guess he thought all would be forgiven since The Decision raised money for charity. I mean, that's all fine and good and all, but no. We didn't not need to see him and that non-existent hairline sit on our tv screen and tell us what him, Pat Riley, D. Wade, and Chrissy Bosh already knew. Like I said, that was Strike 2.

THEN, before I could even get over my annoyance from The Decision, here comes the welcome party...which I was not here for whatsoever. Ugh! I just got upset thinking about it all over again. Why are you all celebrating before even playing one, single, solitary game together. Have several! And then you go on to predict not one, not two, not three....well you all know the rest. Needless to say, Strike 3. You're out, and I'm out.

I'm a HUGE basketball fan. My heart aches when my team (hey, Chicago Bulls!) lose. I love the game, and I respect great players. I'm not a Kobe fan due to his cheating ways, but there's no denying his talent. The same goes for LeBron. I respect his game tremendously. He's clearly the best in the game currently. There's no denying that. But what I'm not here for is players turning this game into a joke with their antics. Go out and play the game, and leave the theatrics for those with a SAG card.

I would love to still support LeBron as I did when he first came in the league. Here was a guy born 3 months after me (although he can pass for my great uncle) representing for young, black kids and young adults. From what I can recall, I don't remember hearing about him caught up in any mess off the court. He came in and dominated the game and still does. However, somewhere along the line, he became the type of player I love to hate...ok dislike. Maybe once he leaves the prima donnas down in Miami and joins another team, I can fall back in like with LBJ. But until then, this remains my story for how I fell out of like with LeBron James.