So here we have it: grown men — some athletic, and some not so much — arguing about money. Now, we’re not talking about a work-study paycheck or Eagle Bucks. We’re talking big money, contracts that pay out $10 million per year type money.
It’s kind of sad the NBA owners and players can’t come to an agreement and end the lockout. The owners are making millions, and so are the players, so can’t we all just get along?
The first two weeks of the season were canceled, and next, the first month will be lost. The way things are going, the first half or the entire season might get canceled.
So, here are the ten things I will miss about the NBA if the whole season is locked out.
10) The holiday games. Christmas just isn’t the same anymore. I never get what I want, and I hate waking up early to see my youngest sister open seven presents to my one, which is usually a pair of socks. Sad.
So, the Lakers against the Heat, or the Celtics against the Magic, are games I will sorely miss, if Christmas turns into a basketball-less holiday this year.
9) The random tattoos. I must admit, I really wanted a sleeve tattoo. For what reason? I have no idea, but Chris Andersen, or Birdman, as some may know him, sure does make it look cool.
Kenyon Martin of the Denver Nuggets rocks a kiss tattoo on his neck. If he can do it, why can’t I? Maybe I can get a tat on my neck of a $5 bill like DeShawn Stevenson has. Yeah, a $5 bill.
8) TNT’s Charles Barkley. Enough said.
7) The All-Star Game. What am I to do without the greatest sports spectacle ever? There is nothing like NBA All-Star Weekend.
The NFL Pro Bowl does not equate. The MLB All-Star Game is a joke, and who knows if the NHL even has an All-Star Game. Do they?
6) Kobe Bryant fighting father time. Kobe is getting up there in age, and I don’t think he is the best player in the NBA any longer. It will be interesting to see how the 33-year-old plays during this phase of his career.
He can go the Michael Jordan route and find other ways to dominate the game without being the top-flight athlete, or he could go Vince Carter’s way and try to do things his body is not capable of. Nonetheless, I can’t even witness his transformation.
5) Blake Griffin. Need I say more?
4) The development of Rajon Rondo’s jumper. Will the basketball gods finally bless the Boston point guard with one? Lord knows he needs one. How embarrassing must it be to know that defenders plan not to guard you?
3) The Finals. It’s arguably the best sports series known to man. Every game is crucial, and every game is played like it is the last. How much fun was it to watch LeBron James fail in last season’s loss to the Dallas Mavericks?
2) Free Agency. How frantic was the last offseason? LeBron signed with the Heat to play with his best friend. Joe Johnson got a six-year, $119 million contract for who knows what, and the Lakers lost their youth. The balance of the league could change with upcoming free agents such as Dwight Howard, Chris Paul and Deron Williams.
1) Going to my first Wizards game. Call it a run of bad luck, but the only team I have seen live has been the Los Angeles Clippers. And that was before the Blake Griffin era. Now I live in Washington, D.C. and am ready for my first live look at some kid named John Wall.
Please, give me my NBA back!
