My Mt. Rushmore

On Saturday, Jordan's post about what his sports Mt. Rushmore would be got me thinking. He wanted to know who other people would choose for their mountains, but, since I write for the site and can do basically whatever I want, I decided, the hell with it. I'm making my own post. None of this comment section business for me.

Without further delay...

1. David Robinson - One of the all-time "good guys" in sports. Not to mention, the soon-to-be Hall of Famer could play ball. Would've been even better, far as championships are concerned, if it wasn't for some doofus named Mike.
2. Tim Duncan - Another one of the "good guys", but I love him because he dominates, and doesn't need to shout to do it. Excited when he needs to be, funny in private quarters, Duncan's boring as all hell, but he's the ideal athletic role model on the court, though maybe not the ideal personality off it for the media.
3. Derek Jeter - Come on. How could any Yankee fan near my age not put him here?
4. Warrick Dunn - Another "good guy", catching a theme here? Dunn's always been a favorite of mine as a Buccaneers fan. The fact that he's such a little guy that's had such a good career (one that will almost definitely be overlooked by future NFL fans) really stands out.

The Bigger Problem

I can't help but look at this whole situation with Alex Rodriguez and think, maybe it's not his fault.  Maybe, it's ours.  

Not for doing steroids.  No, that's certainly his fault.  Not for the "pressure" to do steroids, because I don't buy any of that garbage.  No one had a gun to his head, he decided to ruin his legacy, not us. 

What I mean to say is, maybe it's our fault for even taking him (and other celebrities and athletes, for that matter) so seriously.  What makes Alex Rodriguez a role model?  The fact that he can hit a baseball a long way, the fact that he can range to his left and has a cannon for an arm?  I understand how society is set up, and that as a guy in the public eye, making as much money as he does, there are expectations people like he and Michael Phelps need to live up to.  But, maybe that's the problem.

We seem to be constantly in shock and surprise when our favorite athletes and musicians and actors/actresses get caught for doing the wrong things.  Whether it's domestic abuse, or cheating in the sport they play in, or drug possession, or saying racist things, these guys aren't perfect.  In fact, they're just like us.  Some of them are good guys, some aren't.  Some you'd be friends with, others you'd never want to even talk to.  So why, because they play basketball or can rap or play a guitar should that elevate them so?

I happen to be a fairly fortunate sports fan.  Growing up, my favorite player was David Robinson, whose only crime was that he was a bit too religious early on in his career.  Following Robinson, I idolized Tim Duncan and Warrick Dunn and Derek Jeter, all players that have (thus far, fingers crossed) stayed far away from negative press and quite in the positive realm.  That's just one person's experience.

Yet, there has to be at least one Albert Belle fan out there.  One Vince Coleman fan.  One Rae Carruth fan.  One Notorious B.I.G. fan (guilty).  Point is, we've all liked celebrities that we may not have liked personally.

But, that's OK and that's how it should be.  What we pay to see is what they do in between the lines, on the CDs, in the movies.  That should be it.

Don't you think it's a bit odd that even President Obama commented about A-Rod?  Or that the government seems to be knee deep in this whole investigation?  Shouldn't we have more pressing issues to concern ourselves with (ahem, government)?

In no way am I excusing A-Rod of what he did.  It bothers me to no end, as a Yankee fan and as an idealistic fan of baseball.  But, if I stopped rooting for players or musicians based on what they did in their personal lives, I'd really be at a loss.  I couldn't listen to any Kanye West songs, three quarters of the NFL and NBA I'd have to ignore.  It would be awful. 

Would it be great if every player was like Tim Duncan (OK, more exciting than TD, but you get the point)?  Sure.  But, that ain't the way it goes.  

Some are jerks, some are not.  If anything, this whole episode should prove that we need to stop putting these athletes and stars on such pedestals.  All they seem to do is let us down.  

Tim Duncan and Tony Parker Benched For Being Annoying

Well, that's what Gregg Popovich said.

"Parker makes the All-Star team and becomes hard to deal with, so we're going to sit him and teach him a lesson," Popovich joked.  "Duncan says he wants to renegotiate his contract, so I said, 'Sit, I'm not talking to you.'"

Boy, that Pop is quite the card, a real wild man.  In a game against a team seeded only one spot (and now by only one game) below them in the standings, the Spurs decided it would be best to rest Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili, and Michael Finley.  Four of the top five scorers, all out.

No real reason was given as to Finley's absence, though one would have to assume simple old age.  As for Manu, the reason given was an alleged "hip contusion" suffered at some point in the previous night's overtime win at Golden State.

Currently the Spurs are in the midst of their annual Rodeo Road Trip, and last night's game in Denver was the second of a back to back, which is never easy in the NBA.  However, the Spurs have off until Sunday, when they head east to face the Celtics.  Even if all these guys needed a night off, the next four days of rest wasn't enough?

Now, I'm not going to question Gregg Popovich on anything other than his facial hair decisions.  The man's won championships, built teams on late first and second round picks, and seems to always make the right decisions.  Though, it does seem a bit above and beyond to rest these four guys for no real reason when three of the last four years one game would've made a huge difference in the standings.

Fans at the Pepsi Center in Denver must've really been excited.  Kenyon Martin was out with tonsillitis, Chauncey Billups left the game early with a sprained ankle, and any Spurs player worth a damn was wearing warm ups or a suit.  

Scary thing?  The Spurs almost won, led by Roger Mason and rookie of three NBA games Malik Hairston. 

Sometimes, I guess, those unruly, out-of-control guys on the Spurs need to be taught a lesson.