THE LAST FIVE ...

Closing up shop
- Wednesday, Aug. 02, 2006

It may be time for a change
- Wednesday, May 17, 2006

Entry in the air
- Friday, April 21, 2006

Still here
- Thursday, April 20, 2006

Music of the moment
- Wednesday, March 1, 2006

Or ... BE RANDOM!


GOOD READS

101 in 1001
American Road Trip, 1998


OTHER PEOPLE

Chupatintas
Dancing Brave
Fugging It Up
Kitty Sandwich
Mister Zero
Sideways Rain
Ultratart
Velcrometer


THE BASICS

My crew
Latest
Older
Notes
Our host
Profile

Tuesday, Feb. 4, 2003 - 1:32 p.m.

My thoughts on LeBron

I love how I'm on the internet doing research for work when I get the urge to look up something of personal interest, and 20 minutes later, I realize I'm reading Sidewaysrain instead of working.

So now back to work.

*********

As this saga with high-school basketball player LeBron James drags on, I've gone back and forth over my feelings about it.

I'm annoyed at all the attention he's getting and how everyone's writing about how he's already the top pick in the NBA draft in June. It hurts college basketball when the best players in the country don't even set foot on campus.

But at the same time, this kid is not only good on the court, but clearly smart ? a 3.5 GPA and he's been on the honor roll. He might not be that bright, however, seeing as how he took two vintage jerseys from a store owner and didn't see how that might be in violation of Ohio's code for amateur athletes. (Basically, the code says an athlete may not reap gifts or benefits as the result of his athletic fame.) So after they scrutinize his mother's gift of an H2 to him for his 18th birthday (she provided the loan paperwork) and let him go on that one, they nail him for taking a gift from a store owner.

First thing: The jerseys are overpriced. One Gayle Sayers football jersey and one Wes Unseld basketball jersey should not add up to $845, particularly since they're replicas and not even authentic. Second, they overreacted. Of course the kid shouldn't have accepted them and he shouldn't be allowed to keep them. But to suspend him for the rest of the season? I don't think so. Tell him to give them back and sit out two games ? one game for each jersey.

Punishing him this severely is ridiculous. Would they have done it if he weren't on the cover of Sports Illustrated last year and if he hadn't had games televised live by ESPN? If he were a baseball player ? just as talented in his sport and known around the area ? would they have watched him so closely? I doubt it. Then there are some who are bringing the fact that he's black into the conversation.

I don't understand what good it does to kick him off the team. It's not hurting him any: He's not going to college and no NBA team is going to pass on him in the draft because he took some free stuff offered to him. As at least one editorial commented, it's hurting his teammates. It's hurting the kids who were hoping to ride him all the way to a state title, who will someday tell their friends and children that they played with NBA star LeBron James. It's even hurting the teams St. Vincent-St. Mary's play, those that are looking forward to the challenge of facing a player who, by Halloween, will be donning an NBA jersey (which he'll be given, free).

I find it similar to the parents who, at my former grammar school, forced the disollution of the "gifted and talented" program because they said it was detrimental to the students who weren't in it. That's ridiculous. The G&T program was for a select few, the top two percent of the class. It was a chance for them to engage in more challenging work. If we're going to take away that program, then we should look at how much we need those classes that go a little slower to help those who have trouble grasping a concept work at their own pace.

So what if James is so good he dominates the competition? Maybe he'll be only average his first few years in the NBA, but college isn't an option for him now (the NCAA has already said that because of other infractions at summer camps, he wouldn't be eligible on a Division I team). Whether or not he's capitalized off his fame, he hasn't received any on-court advantages, which is the only thing I can think of that would warrant disqualification for the remainder of the season.

But that's just me ? a guy who's two measly high school letters came in cross country.

Previous page: The happier moments of the weekend
Next page: Quick and painless

� 1998-2004 DC Products. All rights reserved.

Yeah, sorry I have to be all legal on you here, but unless otherwise indicated, all that you read here is mine, mine, mine. But feel free to quote me or make fun of me or borrow what I write and send it out as an e-mail forward to all your friends, family and coworkers. Just don't say it's yours, you know?