All-Star Weekend Brings Out the Best in the NBA

The NBA is back! During the offseason, with scandals involving referee Tim Donahey and Knick's coach Isiah Thomas, the NBA was in bad shape and the league in general was getting criticized left and right for having an image problem. This weekend, basketball fans experienced a complete turn around. The all stars put on a show in New Orleans on and off the court. On the court, Jason Kapono put on a shooting display in the three point competition and Dwight "Superman" Howard had the arena rockin' with his high flying creative dunks. More importantly about this weekend, is what went on off the court. Commissioner David Stern and many of the league's all stars were all over New Orleans lending a hand in NBA's rebuilding project. Seeing video footage of these millionaire all star basketball players helping a city in need was a sight like nothing else. When we look back on Stern's reign as commissioner, this is something he will always be remembered for. He saw a great city in pain and he did everything he could to ease that pain. Thinking back on the weekend, the images that remain in my head are those of stars such as Jason Kidd, LeBron James, Chris Paul and many others rebuilding homes and playing with children. It is great to see such star athletes working together to restore one of the greatest cities in the world. After this weekend, many people can see that New Orleans is back and so is the NBA.

Legacy on the Line

With seven Cy Young awards under his belt, over 350 wins, and over 4,600 career strikeouts, Roger Clemens is without a doubt one of the best pitchers of all-time. Coming out of retirement more than once to pitch better than ever well into your 40's is unheard of. Many people think he is a freak of nature, some admire his insane workout routine, and now people are able to credit all of his accomplishments to the use of steroids and human growth hormones. It is sad how one's amazing accomplishments can be thrown out the window so fast.

“I took no shortcuts,” Clemens, 45, told the committee. “Somebody’s trying to break my spirit in this room. They’re not going to break my spirit. I did it the right way, and I worked my butt off to do it.”

“I have helped taint our national pastime,” McNamee said. “Make no mistake: When I told Senator Mitchell that I injected Roger Clemens with performance-enhancing drugs, I told the truth.”

While watching the congressional hearing the other day I was, like everyone else, trying to find out who was lying. “Someone is lying in spectacular fashion,” said Rep. Tom Davis of Virginia, the committee’s ranking Republican. Who ever is lying is going through great lengths to do so.

I have a few questions about this whole thing. What would be McNamee's motivation for lying about something like this, if him and Clemens were such good friends? If Clemens did cheat, why wouldn't he just come clean like his good friend Andy Pettitte? If both sides are so confident in their version of "the truth" why not go to the good ol' polygraph? And is it so hard for these congressmen and women to learn how to pronounce these names correctly?

NFC vs. AFC. . . Battle of the Best?

Did you know the NFL held it's Pro Bowl, their version of an All-Star game, on Sunday? Don't feel bad. Not many people did. After the Super Bowl, fans tend to forget about football. Football players themselves don't even seem to care about the game too much. After their Super Bowl loss, Tom Brady and Randy Moss dropped out of the game. Their were many other players who did not play due to injuries. Whether they were serious injuries or little day-to-day bruises, it is understandable why a player wouldn't want to play in a game that doesn't mean anything. The Pro Bowl is clearly the least interesting of all the major sports All-Star games. The other games are appropriately placed in the middle of their seasons when playoff talk is beginning and intensity is high. With football being such a contact sport and injuries being so likely to occur, no one has ever really thought of having the game another time or just getting rid of it all together. I have an idea that will solve two problems in the NFL. The NFL should hold the Pro Bowl in the week between the championship games and the Super Bowl. This is during a time where fans all over the world are anxiously waiting for the big game. This only presents one problem: all-stars on the two Super Bowl teams would not be able to participate because of the possibility of injury. The game could also be played in the same city as the Super Bowl, rather than in Hawaii. I believe the game would draw a much larger amount of viewers, but this is just one sports fan's opinion.

An Inspirational Message

After an embarrassing 0-2 start, the New York Giants received a visit from U.S. Army Lt. Colonel Gregory Gadson. Gadson was patrolling the streets in Iraq when an IED struck his car. Colonel Gadson lost both of his legs. He spoke with the Giants prior to their week 3 victory in Washington which was said to have turned their season around. Gadson spoke to the team about keeping their poise and fighting their way through the bad times. He spoke of the importance of teammates and being there for eachother through the good times and the bad. His story greatly inspired wide receiver Plaxico Burress. After scoring a big touchdown against the Redskins, Burress unselfishly gave the ball to his new friend. They were from the same area of Virginia. Burress stayed in contact with Gadson via text messages. When Gadson heard of the Giants making the playoffs he wanted to do something more. He got fitted for prosthetic legs and was standing there waiting for the team when they arrived in Tampa. Colonel Gadson even sat on the sidelines in below zero temperatures in Green Bay. After the interception in overtime of the championship game, Corey Webster showed more of that unselfishness that Gadson spoke about by handing him the ball. Gadson was quoted saying that he felt like he was a part of the team and in a way, he was. In an interview before the Super Bowl, several players such as Antonio Pierce and Osi Umenyiora said they would give Gadson their Super Bowl ring if they won. That is how much he meant to that team. Of course, Colonel Gadson was in Arizona to watch his team destroy history and take down the New England Patriots.