Power Outage

I first tried to play the devil's advocate. Possibly, due to the 34 years of the NBA Dunk Contest, maybe contestants are just running out of ideas, and if all has been done, it is unfair to ridicule them. Then I realized, there is absolutely no way to beat around the bush on this one; Saturday Night proved to be the worst Slam Dunk Contest since the tradition started in 1976. While Nate Robinson became the only player to ever reel in 3 Dunk trophies, the NBA has to be tempted to place an asteric next to his name, due to the unworthiness of his three opponents. Shannon Brown ran the whole court only to dunk from a few feet in front of the foul line and merely switch hands in the air. Gerald Wallace threw the ball up to himself, gathered with much tenacity and threw down a reverse dunk, while Demar Derozan, who gave one of the only highlights of the night with his ever so unoriginal "Invincible dunk," didn't back up his "I'm gonna be better than Jordan" smack with his mediocre throw downs. Even Robinson, who tempted the crowd by bringing Cowboys cheerleaders onto the floor, only to not use them, gave us dunks that were less than arousing even to the amateur dunk contest viewer. Charles Barkley, acting as the say as you feel annoucner, proclaimed that some of last night's dunks were average game dunks, and none were worthy of the high scores that the judge's table was dishing out. Chuck and I are both wondering where the dunk contest has gone. Where is the creativity of the Super Man cape? The swagger of jumping over your opponent? The skill of the pass or the art of the set up? Where is the showmanship, like when Gerald Green blew out a candle on a cupcake while dunking, or when Vince Carter hung on the rim by sticking his elbow inside of it. The problem with the dunk contest is not that the players aren't athletic or skilled enough, but that they are not big enough or smart enough. Last night Kobe Bryant walked onto the floor to assist teammate Shannon Brown, and it was the biggest adrenaline rush I got the whole night. It was followed by a traditional alley-oop followed by a two-handed jam; stuff I've seen in the High School gym. The point, is that the Dunk Contest that was once so popular and exciting, is now a sinking ship, and the only way to save it is by adding Star Power. The NBA has to go out of its way to get the biggest stars into to next year's contest, so in the event that all dunks are taken and all that is left is a mere tomahawk from the baseline, at least we will know the name on the back of their shirt. I love the Dunk Contest, it is my favorite event of the All-Star weekend, but something has to happen in the next 364 days to turn the light back on.

JD

Walking Tall

Kobe Bryant and Derek Jeter could tell you what it's like being part of historically elite franchises where excellence is demanded, and mediocrity is measured by fingers without rings. But as the saying goes, when the going gets tough, well, the tough get going; and what Jeter and Kobe could also tell you about, is standing alone, on top.

On September 11th, 2009 Derek Jeter singled to right off Orioles' Pitcher Chris Tillman, and with one swing of the bat became the all-time Yankees hits leader. With 27 World Series pennants, and names like Yogi Berra, Lou Gehrig, Babe Ruth, Mickey Mantle, Roger Maris, Reggie Jackson, Bill Dickey and others highlighting their Hall of Fame, Derek Jeter, the small shortstop from Pequannock, New Jersey had more hits then any other Yankee, ever. Similar story; February 1st, 2010, in a losing 44 point effort versus the Memphis Grizzlies, Kobe Bryant passes Jerry West on the All-Time Los Angeles Lakers scoring list. Like Jeter, Bryant arose from a crowd worth reckoning with including, Elgin Baylor, Ervin 'Magic' Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, James Worthy, and even Shaquille O'neal. Kobe Bryant scoring more points than any other player in a Franchise that has 16 NBA Championships, appeared in 30 Championships (NBA Record), and has more Franchise records than any other team in the League.

Two of the most storied Franchises in their respective sports, and two of those franchise's most storied players, grazing the courts and fields of this generation is not only amazing but extremely lucky for today's sports fan. How many times have we said that there will never be a better Laker? or a better Yankee? Countless. Now I am saying it again, and while I know that those predictions are always hollow, can we see anyone coming along and matching the greatness of Jeter or Bryant? Will there ever be a player who outscores Kobe? Out hits Jeter? Not only are we lucky, but we are downright privileged to be watching two players who have proved the sports world wrong. They topped everyone when everyone was said to be "un-toppable," and now we can only wait to see who rises and proves us wrong next.