Hello, friends. Well, the group stages of Euro 2016 are history, and they did not disappoint. There was plenty of drama, agony, pleasure, and triumph. Here are some of the best, and worst things that have transpired over the past two weeks in France.
The best Player: Gareth Bale
If going 58 years without playing in an international tournament is any indication, Wales is not a football power, which makes their unexpected rise to the top of group B ever so inspiring. At the heart of this is Gareth Bale. Not only has Bale had a great individual tournament (3 goals in 3 group games) he has raised his teammates level of play to the point where the fighting Welshmen are a dangerous side going forward. Players like Joe Allen and Aaron Ramsey are also in fantastic form, but the captain deserves the lion's share of the credit for this feel good story. The Worst Underperformer: Christiano Ronaldo
As overwhelming as Wales have been this summer, that's how underwhelming Portugal has been. Much like Gareth Bale deserves the most credit for Wales's performance, Christiano Ronald deserves the blame for Portugal's. Sure, Ronaldo has had a respectable performance by an ordinary man's standards, and his two goals against Hungary saved his country from elimination. But Ronaldo is not a regular player. He regards himself as the best in the world, and many share his opinion, which is why his inability to lead his country to a single win in the group stages is terribly frustrating. A quiet game against Iceland, followed by a missed penalty from Ronaldo against Austria put the overwhelming favorites in Group F on the brink of elimination. Luckily, Portugal was able to salvage a 3-3 draw against Hungary in the final group game. Nonetheless, when you think of how talented the Portuguese are compared to the other Group F nations and combine that with the fact that, if not for the expanded tournament field from 16 to 24 teams, Ronaldo's troops would be out of the tournament entirely, there is no question who the biggest flops in France have been so far.
At 29, Ronaldo is not a young athlete anymore, and it's time to wonder if he will ever have a signature summer on the international stage. If things keep going at this rate, CR7 will have to wait another two years.
The Best Team: Nobody
One thing that has made the first two weeks of tournament competition fun is that we still have no idea who is going to win the competition. Plenty of teams have played well, but none has marked their territory as the top dog. France, Belgium, Germany, and Spain were all looked at as possible favorites coming in, but of those four, only France and Germany managed to top their group, neither of which looked particularly impressive doing it. There have been pleasant surprises (Wales, Italy, Iceland), and there have been disappointments (Portugal, England, Belgium), but no dominant team has emerged for Euro 2016. The Worst Most Underwhelming: Portugal
As much as we here in America will hear about the underachieving of the English national team, no country was more underwhelming in the group stages than Portugal. At least England won a game. All the Portuguese could manage were three draws against sides that they were considerably better then. Portugal should have shown themselves to be men among boys in Group F. Instead they finished 3rd. Yes, they managed to qualify for the round of 16, but that does little to excuse the mediocrity. Hopefully, CR7 can lead his troops to a decent run in the knockout stages. If not, this will just be another summer of underachieving, which Portugal's fans have become accustomed to over the past decade. The Best Most surprising side: Italy
There were a lot of teams that have a case for being the tournament's biggest surprise, and I was quite tempted to give this honor to an underdog like Wales or Iceland. But neither one of those countries had as much pressure on them coming into the Euros as the Italian side. One of world football's most historic and successful teams, Italy is not what they used to be. In fact, coming in, some Italian fans and journalists had blessed this club as the worst in Italy's long and storied history. But so far, Italy is putting the doubters to shame. It was apparent from their 2-0 victory over Belgium in the Group E opener that the Italians had come to play, and the beat went on in their next outing, a 1-0 triumph over Sweden. Sure, Italy experienced a bit of a let down in the group finale, losing 1-0 to Ireland, but that was largely a product of head man Victor Conte resting most of his starters for the next round, as his men had already secured the top spot in their group.
It's one thing for a ''rah-rah, let's show em who we are'' country with nothing to lose making a run, but it does my heart good to see a nation that has a lot to live up to come through under scrutiny. Take notes, England. The Worst Fans: Hooligans
It's what a lot of misguided Americans think about when they think of football. Russia, England, and Croatia fans all behaved outrageously at some point during this tournament. As a result, Russia and England were both threatened expulsion from the tournament should this behavior keep up. It's a shame. Just a shame.
The best Fans: Iceland
I have to talk about Iceland in this post. Just couldn't leave them out. They play football with such energy and have somehow made their way to the knockout stage in their first ever tournament. As for the Iceland fans? 8% of the country is in France. Nuff said. With all due respect to the great fans of Ireland and Northern Ireland; Iceland takes the cake.
The Best Game: Hungary 3, Portugal 3
As good as the games in France have been this summer, there hasn't been a whole lot of scoring, which made Wednesday's group D finale so refreshing to the casual fan. Football can be beautiful regardless of the scoreline, but as fans, we like goals. Goals are fun. Goals are cool. The more goals, the better. Add all the goals to the drama of group favorites Portugal almost being knocked out of the tournament, and you had one hell of a game.
The Worst Game: Anything involving Russia
They sucked.
Euro 2016 has been great, and here's hoping the best is yet to come.
Let me clarify something. Just because I root for the Golden State Warriors does not make me a bandwagon fan. Here's a little story.
In October of 2014, I decided that I was tired of not having an NBA team to root for. Pittsburgh is where I live, and naturally, we do not have a team (and we never will; get over it). My cousin, Alex Gordon, who has contributed to this sports blog in the past, lives near San Fransisco and is a big time Warriors fan. Alex and I already had a bond over sports, and I figured it would strengthen that bond if I started following his beloved Warriors. So that's what I did. I had no idea that who I chose to follow would become one of the biggest bandwagon teams in all of sports over the next year and 1/2.
As all sports fans know, between 2014 and 2016, the Warriors ruled the NBA, going a combined 140-24 over 164 regular season games. The won the title in 2015, but the joy was tampered due to whiny Cleveland Caviler fans complaining about Kevin Scrub and Kyrie Irving's injuries. Nonetheless, the Warriors were the best team in the NBA that season, and they deserved to be the champs. The next season, however, should have cemented Golden State as a dominant dynasty worthy of being discussed with the greatest teams in NBA history. They won 73 games (a new world record)! And were one win away from completing what would have been, record wise, the greatest season ever. Then, the choking began.
It started out looking like a slaughter. In the series first four games, Golden State was in command. They were up 3-1. They were already the better team. All they had to do was win one of a possible two more games on their home court, where they didn't lose until early April. They had all the firepower and all the momentum. Then they blew it.
As the Neon Trees song says; "It started with a whisper.'' A whisper, in this case, was the suspension of Golden States All-Star forward, Draymond Green, for Game 5 at Oracle Arena. The whisper led to an eruption from Cleveland's two stars, Lebron James and Kyrie Irving, combining for 82 points, allowing Cleveland to stay alive for another game. Green's suspension was for a very strange reason, and there is no telling what he would have contributed had he been active. It's possible that the Warriors would have won game 5 and, thus, the title. But he wasn't active, and the Warriors weren't champs.
As the opening line from Ben Harper's hit "Amen Omen" reads; "What started as a whisper, slowly turned into a scream". "The Scream" started in Game 6 when a fired up Cleveland team pounded Golden State by a score of 115-101. The Warriors showed signs of falling apart that night, particularly when superstar Steph Curry threw his mouthpiece into the crowd after fouling out of the contest. The momentum had shifted. But, Cleveland still had to win another game in Oakland.
No problem. Sure, Cleveland had the momentum. Sure, Golden State's center, Andrew Bogut, suffered a nasty knee injury in Game 5 and would not be available. Sure, Cleveland clearly frustrated and flustered Golden State in Game 6. But who could be against the home team in a series deciding game, especially when the home team had the greatest home-court advantage in the NBA, possibly of all time? Well, Lebron James happened.
Before I explode on Golden State, I have to give credit where credit is due. The Clevland Cavaliers deserve all the credit in the world, and Lebron James deserves all the credit in every other Galaxy. The Cavs were determined. The had an entire city on their backs, and they would not throw in the towel. Kyrie Irving was fantastic, Lebron James was godly, and his performance in game 7 was the greatest Game 7 performance in the history of the game, as was his performance throughout the series. Without saying a word, James told his critics to know their role and shut their mouths. Regardless of what happens in the future, Lebron has cemented his legacy, and may one day surprise Michael Jordan as the greatest player of all time, much to the dismay of all the MJ blowhards who may or may not have ever watched Jordan play. So, congrats to the Cavs, and congrats to the city of Cleveland. Party on.
As for Golden State, here is the best analogy I could conjure. Say Leanardo da Vinci started painting what would become his signature masterpiece, "The Mona Lisa.'' Leanardo works hard on it for some time. Then, when he is about 95% done with the painting, he takes the board, brakes it over his knee, and destroys the entire thing. That's what the Warriors did with the 2015-16 season.
All they had to do was not lose 3 in a row. That's it. With all do respect to Cleveland, the team that was better overall lost, and no Cavs blowhard could ever argue that. The Warriors were a historically great team. The Cavs were just a good team that won 18 fewer games in the regular season, all the while playing in the Mickey Mouse eastern conference. It was annoying that the Warriors let the series go six games. It was embarrassing that they let it go seven games. It was shameful that they lost the whole damn thing. If I had been wearing a gold shirt in Oracle on Sunday night, I'd have thrown it in
the direction of the Warriors bench. In fact, I'm surprised that fans didn't do that. A gesture of that nature would have been fitting, almost appropriate for the circumstances.
Is winning 73 games still one hell of an accomplishment? Yes. Do the Warriors still have a good shot at winning a championship or three in shortly? Of course. But the sad reality is that because Golden State could not close the deal on what should have been "the year of good feelings", this season should be remembered as a failure. If nothing else, I'll get to prove that I am not a bandwagon fan by sticking with Golden State and not shifting to Cleveland ("because they are the team closest to Pittsburgh"!) I will leave you all with a Facebook post courtesy of my cousin Alex himself. I don't normally post long ranty things (or much of anything really), and almost never about sports, because I know that bothers a lot of people. With real world problems that need to be addressed I definitely understand why its petty to complain about a professional sports team losing that I am in no way directly involved in. I just wanted to say this Warriors team meant a lot to me. Having loved this team since it was starting Curry, Monte Ellis, Dorrell Wright, David Lee and Andris Biedrins (never forget) they got here through building chemistry and trust. No matter what you think of them, overrated, incredible, lucky, they played basketball the way it was supposed to be played at the games highest level. That's something that only a few teams in the history of the NBA can claim. They were totally unselfish, they played for each other, and everyone contributed. It was beautiful to watch, and I loved that so many people got a chance to see that through the course of the regular season and became fans. In the end they didn't lose because they chased 73. They didn't lose because Curry is playing hurt (the Warriors are too smart of an organization to play him if there was long term injury risk. The fact he missed three weeks of playoff intensity basketball is significant though). They didn't lose because Draymond got suspended, but I felt that the league had two different standards in the Oklahoma series and the finals. His suspension was definitely the turning point in the series. Its hard to play with a guy then without a guy then with a guy again at the highest possible level. I honestly think it cost them two games. That all being said to me they lost this series when Festus Ezeli went in with about five minutes left in the game. I love Festus, he's played great for the Warriors his whole career, but he wasn't being given the time or producing enough these playoffs to warrant having him out there at the biggest possible moment. I love Kerr's "stay ready" mindset coaching and I think its how you should do it, but it graphically backfired in these minutes, this was not the time or the place for it. The Cavs ran two straight pick and roles to get Festus switched on Lebron and he got fouled shooting a three and made a three. Six points right there. The final margin of victory was four. Who knows if the Warriors would have pulled it out had he not been in, but I'm sure they would have had a better chance. If Barnes needed a rest fine, put in Livingston, even Brandon Rush, but somebody that can switch without letting Lebron have whatever he wants. The NBA is a predictable league, and over the course of seven games the better team almost always wins. I didn't feel like that was the case this series, and though I'm obviously biased, but as someone who spends way to much time watching basketball, it bothers me that a team that played basketball so beautifully will be penalized historically because of all these fluke things that made it so they couldn't win a championship. (On a side note though, if it had to be against anyone im glad it was Lebron. If this finally makes people stop saying his finals record is trash, or he's never carried a team, and all this other junk on the internet I'm grateful. He plays basketball the way it was supposed to be played and should be talked about as one of the best to ever do it). sorry again about all this. Just needed to put it somewhere.
The man in charge (photo creds to nhl.nbcsports.com
The Pittsburgh Penguins are the champions of the world. Those nine words fill our city with great pride, as they damn well should. An unlikely team with unlikely heroes were as cohesive of a group as any I have seen; in any sport, in all my years as a fan. It's a damn good feeling, and if anything negative comes out of this, it's that we don't know when we will see it again.
As the Penguins victory drew near, I had a hard time thinking about what I would write if they won. I knew I couldn't talk about the players, as I did that when they won the Eastern Conference Finals. I knew I couldn't stress too much how this is my favorite Penguins team of all time, as I did that in the same article. Finally, as time dwindled down on Game 6 in San Jose, I settled on writing about the uncertainty of when we will be able to have this euphoric joy again. My message to all Pens fans that are assuming that the Penguins will win multiple cups within the next decade; don't be so sure.
The Chicago Blackhawks, New York Rangers, Boston Bruins, Detroit Redwings, Montreal Canadians and Toronto Maple Leafs make up the "original six", as between 1942 and 1967, they were all there was in the National Hockey League. In 1940, the Rangers defeated the Mapleleafs in the Stanley Cup Finals. As one of the NHL's flagship franchises, fans expected many more titles to come New York's way. In the 76 years since the New York Rangers have won but one Stanley Cup (1994). You think fans will savor it if the Rangers brought another cup to the garden?
In 1967, the Toronto Maple Leafs defeated Montreal to win their 13th Stanley Cup. What would the rabid fans of hockey's capital have thought if you told them they'd go 50 years before winning another? They probably wouldn't have wanted to live on the planet anymore. Another flagship franchise. Another long ass drought. The way the Maple Leafs are going, another half-century could very well go by without a title for the Leafers.
In 1955, the Detroit Redwings defeated Montreal in seven games to win their 7th Stanley Cup. It would be 42 years before they would win another. An image that I still think about is from the 1997 Stanley Cup Finals. That image is a Redwings fan pressing his face against the glass and breaking down crying tears of joy as his beloved Wings finished off the Philadelphia Flyers in 4 games. That's how championships affect people, and that's why no Penguin fan should take this for granted. It's cliche as all hell, but it's also accurate as all hell. You just don't know when it will happen again.
And if it does happen again, I don't think we will ever see another postseason in Pittsburgh quite like this one. Usually, over the course of a two-month NHL postseason, some series will be snoozers. For example, in 2009, the Penguins swept the Carolina Hurricanes in a forgettable four-game set. In 1991, the Penguins beat the Washington Capitals and an unremarkable 5-game series. The 1992 Penguins swept two teams on their way to winning the cup. 2016 was different.
There were no sweeps this time around, and only the opening series went less than six games. Even that 5-game set with the New York Rangers was a thrill ride (what's more exciting than knocking one of the best goalies in the world out of the game- twice?). Then there was the six-game set with the Washington Capitals in which there were three games decided in overtime, followed by that seven-game thriller with Tampa that was as evenly matched as any playoff series in Penguin history. Finally, everything climaxed with an evenly matched 6-game set with San Jose that saw two overtime games and no blowouts. There was never a dull moment this postseason, and we may never see something quite like this ever again.
Out of the Penguins 16 wins, 11 different players scored game-winning goals. Nine different players were named the game's first star, and even though the Penguins have the best player on the planet in Sidney Crosby, there was plenty to debate on who deserved to win the Con Smythe Trophy as the MVP of the playoffs. Phil Kessel, Matt Murray, and even Nick Bonino all had a case to win that award. To say that it was a team effort would be an understatement. It was beyond a team effort, and it was beyond special.
This article is not meant to be negative or discouraging. It is meant to help my readers realize that this thing may be even more special than they realize. So as Wednesday's parade dawns upon us, fans; do whatever you have to do. If you want to go down in the hopes of getting close enough to touch a player, go for it. If you want to stay home and watch on TV, go for it. If you want to do something else with your life, go for that to. But whatever you do, keep in mind what has recently occurred in our great city. Keep in mind what these guys went through to get their jewel. Keep in mind how unusually breathtaking these playoffs were, and keep in mind that this may never be relieved.
By: Joe Smeltzer
As a lifelong sports fan, I have seen plenty of legendary athletes pass away in my lifetime. In the past calendar year alone, we have lost Yogi Berra, Moses Malone, Ernie Banks, Frank Gifford and Ken Stabler among others. All of those deaths were hard to deal with, but early Saturday morning, we lost the greatest.
''It's hard to be humble when you're as great as I am.''
I'm not going to waste time explaining the basics of who Muhammad Ali was because everybody who is reading this blog knows that. I would, however, like to try and explain his greatness in a way that would reaffirm it to the masses.
There have been plenty of great athletes over the course of history, but it takes a special breed to be the best in the world in their field. It takes an even more special breed to be able to transcend the sport which they take part in, and it takes an almost godly type of breed to be able to become a cultural and political icon. Over his 74 years on this earth, Ali was able to accomplish all of these things. It's incredible to consider that a poor kid from Louisville, who's father abused him, who fainted the first time a girl kissed him, who learned how to fight simply because a bully stole his bicycle, could become the most iconic figure, not only in sports history but also anywhere else.
''If you even dream of beating me, you better wake up and apologize.''
Even Ali's most ardent admirers misunderstood who the man was. For the past 50+ years, Clay/Ali had always been looked at as an arrogant athlete who backed it up. While America has good reason to believe this, as Ali didn't give the most humble interviews in the world, this man performed one of the most selfless acts imaginable.
For those who don't know your history, the 60s were a turbulent time, to say the least. There were murders, riots, sex, drugs, and the need for peace. Many of our boys were getting drafted into the most controversial conflict in American history; the Vietnam War, on March 22nd, 1967, when Ali defeated Zora Folley to retain his heavyweight title for the 9th time via 7th round knockout. It was just a routine day at the office for the ''Lousiville Lip'', until it wasn't.
Why should they ask me to put on a uniform and go 10,000 miles from home and drop bombs and bullets on Brown people in Vietnam while so-called Negro people in Louisville are treated like dogs and denied simple human rights? No I’m not going 10,000 miles from home to help murder and burn another poor nation simply to continue the domination of white slave masters of the darker people the world over. This is the day when such evils must come to an end. I have been warned that to take such a stand would cost me millions of dollars. But I have said it once and I will say it again. The real enemy of my people is here. I will not disgrace my religion, my people or myself by becoming a tool to enslave those who are fighting for their own justice, freedom and equality. If I thought the war was going to bring freedom and equality to 22 million of my people they wouldn’t have to draft me, I’d join tomorrow. I have nothing to lose by standing up for my beliefs. So I’ll go to jail, so what? We’ve been in jail for 400 years.”
About that Vietnam conflict, Ali wasn't a big fan of it. So against it was he that when Uncle Sam called in March of 1966, Ali wouldn't answer. It's hard to type this without sounding cliche, but the man risked everything. He lost his title, which back then was the most prestigious in all of sports. He lost his reputation; who could ever root for a ''draft dodger''? The thing that amazes me about all of this is that for a man as brash, cocky, and arrogant as Ali supposedly was, how could he do something so selfless? Muhammad was no dumb cookie. Sure, he placed 376th out of 391 students in his high school graduation class, but he was as streetwise as they come. So he had to have an idea of what he was giving up.
But he also knew what he believed. Like many Americans, he did not believe in fighting the war, and unlike many draft dodgers, Ali did not hide. He did not flee to Canada. Ali did not take a medical issue. He never burned a flag. Although he did not fight, he did not cower either. He knew he was a champ, and he was determined to be a champ again once his sentence without bars was over. ''I am the greatest. I said that even before I knew I was.''
We could talk about the war all day, but Ali, of course, was a boxer. So let's talk about boxing. Boy, what a fighter he was. Heavyweight fighters tend to be brutal. The are big, scary, and overall, love to hit and hit hard. In all the years of heavyweight boxing, I can only think of two fighters who, if I were to watch their fights with the genius of Mozart playing in the background, would be able to blend the two beautifully together. The first is Joe Louis, who will always be the most perfect puncher of all time. The other is Muhammed Ali.
By the time young Cassius Clay rolled around in the early 60s, America had grown used to seeing the prototypical heavyweight. From Jack Johnson and Jack Dempsy in the early part of the century, down to Rocky Marciano in the 50s, heavyweights were thought of to be tough, tenacious maulers. But Clay wasn't like any of the greats that preceded him in the division. He was more like the middleweight icon, Sugar Ray Robinson. Clay described himself as a young man who was young, fast, handsome, and who couldn't possibly be beaten, and he was all of those things.
Clay hit hard enough. The fact that 37 of his 56 career victories were via some form of knockout would attest to that. But watching him fight was different from other guys. It was not barbaric. It was as smooth as the Jazz stylings of Duke Ellington and Louis Armstrong. He moved around, almost to the point where he was ballroom dancing. His punches were also smooth, and he brought beauty to boxing the way no MMA fighter could to their sport.
Another thing that fascinates me about this man is the fact that the Muhammad Ali that we remember most vividly was not at his greatest when it came to boxing. The truth of the matter is that Ali's prime was before he converted to Islam, before he dodged the draft, and before he fought Joe Frazier for the first time on March 8th, 1971 at Madison Square Garden. Saying this is in no way meant as a slight. The Ali that beat Frazier twice out of three, that mentally clowned George Forman in Zaire, and who defeated Leon Spinks to win his 3rd heavyweight title in what should have been his last fight, was legendary beyond comprehension. But from a boxing sense, all you need to know about what young Cassius Clay could do is captured in his first fight with Sonny Liston.
''The crowd did not dream, when they laid down their money, that they would see a total eclipse of the Sonny''.
To put it into perspective, the odds of young Cassius defeating Liston on the faithful night of February 25th, 1964 were about as good as the chances of Cleveland knocking off Golden State in this year's NBA Finals. Liston was everything that Clay was not both in the ring and out. He was a mauler whose object was to destroy anybody who dared step inside the ring with him. Outside of boxing, he was as serious as a heart attack with no sense of humor. Liston was bigger, stronger, and expected to dispose of Cassius within the first three rounds. In spite of the prognosis of doom, Clay remained confident, talking down the champion and talking up himself.
What was supposed to be a smooth sailing victory for the champ turned in to one of the most important nights in sports history. After six rounds of frustrating the hell out of Liston, the champ finally had enough. Liston's story was that his shoulder was bothering him, but as the controversial but intelligent boxing analyst Larry Merchant pointed out several decades later; "You don't give up the biggest prize in the world because your shoulder hurts. (Liston) quit,'' and that's the story that I find most believable. Clay was the champ, and the world would change because of it. My very favorite Clay/Ali moment happened in the post fight interview.
Liston would have his rematch, but it was hardly a fight. Clay knocked Liston out in what turned into this iconic image that is at the top of this post. If you haven't seen this by now, you haven't been watching sports closely enough. In Clay's next fight, he was no longer Cassius Clay. He was Muhammad Ali, due to his conversion to Elijah Muhammad and the Nation of Islam. After beating Liston, Ali's next opponent would be Floyd Patterson, who openly refused to call him by his new and real name. Ali disposed of Patterson, famously shouting ''what's my name'' after every punch, and rumor has it that Ali purposely refrained from knocking Patterson out so that he could punish him longer. Ali would have eight more successful defenses, none of which against particularly important competition, before he had his world turned upside down.
From March of 1967 through October of 1970, the champ was powerless. He had no boxing license, no title, and an awful lot of haters. But Muhammad persisted, and on October 26th, 1970, he was back in the squared circle, quickly taking out Jerry Quarry in the 3rd round via TKO. On December 7th, Oscar Bonavena came and went. Joe Frazier was next. ''Joe Frazier is an Uncle Tom. He works for the enemy.''
In the eyes of most people, the most controversial aspect of Ali's life was his decision to dodge the draft. But in my eyes, the most controversial aspect was how he treated Joe Frazier. The relationship between the two men inside of the ring is easy to explain. They were perfect compliments to each other, with Frazier as more of a street fighter and Ali more of a boxer. Together, they made magic, as two of their three fights were some of the greatest combinations of athleticism, endurance and theater in the history of sports (the middle bout was a snoozer.) Since boxing is an individual sport, Ali-Frazier were the fight games version of Bonnie and Clyde, Gilbert and Sullivan, Simon and Garfunkel, etc. Outside of the ring, the story is more complicated and more disheartening.
To sum up how things were between the two, when Ali lit the torch in Atlanta to open the 1996 Summer Olympics, it moved 99.9% of the world to tears. The other .1% was Joe Frazier, who is said to have stated that if he had been close to Ali, he would have ''pushed him into the flames''. So horribly affected was Joe Frazier by the names Ali called him (''Gorilla, Uncle Tom''), that even the horrible reality of Parkinson's disease could not soften the blows for the longest time. However, judging by this video, Frazier might have warmed up to Ali in his later years, so there is no telling what '"Smokin Joe'' would have to say about the man if he was alive at the time of Ali's death (Frazier passed away in 2011).
Although earlier in this post I stated my opinion that Ali was at his best as a fighter before he had his boxing license taken away, that isn't the Ali that gives me goosebumps. The away that gives me goosebumps is the one who, in the last stages of his career, took part in two of the greatest boxing matches of all time. The first took place on October 30th, 1974, in the wild world of Kinshasa, Zaire. Everything that applied to Mike Tyson in the late 80s applied to George Foreman in the 70s. He was a monster, and there was little doubt that he would mull Ali. After all, Foreman was just six months removed from his thrashing of Ken Norton in the second round, and less than two years removed from winning the belt from Joe Frazier in which Frazier was knocked down six times before the fight ended in the second round. Even one of Ali's biggest supporters, the legendary broadcaster Howard Cosell, openly stated that he did not believe that Ali could beat Foreman. But the champ had something up his sleeve. His first priority was to win over the people of Zaire.
I done something new for this fight. I wrestled with an alligator. I tussled with a whale. I handcuffed lightning, I thrown thunder in jail. Only last week I murdered a rock, injured a stone, hospitalized a brick. I'm so mean I make medicine sick."
He did this by connecting with them, talking with them, caring about them, and teaching them the now iconic war cry ''Ali Bomaye'', which means ''Ali kill him'' in the Lingala language. The crowd was all for Ali, but he still had to conquer the beast. And how did he plan on overcoming him? Have Foreman beat the living hell out of him, naturally. Ali figured that if he let Foreman pound him early by putting himself against the ropes, George would eventually tire out and allow Ali to go in for the kill. The ''rope-a-dope'' worked to perfection, and Ali finally capitalised by knocking Foreman out in the 8th round with, in the words of Foreman himself, ''the hardest shot I have ever been hit with''. ''The Rumble in the Jungle'' was great, but Ali's finest hour was yet to come. ''It will be a thriller, and a killer, and a chiller, when I get the gorilla, in Manila.''
Less than one year later, Ali and Frazier met again. Would it once again be at Madison Square Garden, as the first two were? Far from it. The rubber match of rubber matches took place in the Phillipino land of Manilla. The temperature in the ring is said to have been 120 degrees, but the two men duked it out for 14 rounds. I don't care what anybody says; this is the greatest fight of all time and will never be eclipsed. After round number 14, Frazier desperately wanted to come out for the final round, but his trainer, the honorable Eddie Futch, would not allow him to risk his health any further, taking off the gloves and telling Frazier that nobody would ever forget what he had done in that ring. The part that gravitates this fight to mythic proportions is that, as legend has it, Ali was ready to cut the gloves off himself before Futch called it for Frazier. It was a great triumph, but it took a lot out of both men, and should have been Ali's last fight. Sadly, it was not.
The man did have one last triumph left in him, as after losing his title to Leon Spinks, he defeated him in the rematch to win the heavyweight championship for the 3rd time. It looked like this would be Ali's last ride, but it wasn't to be. Two years later, Larry Holmes was next.
Please, for the love of god, do not watch the Ali-Holmes fight. Don't you dare do it. It will ruin your whole night. Holmes maimed Ali in what was one of the saddest events in the history of sports. After a fight with Trevor Burbick that nobody remembers, Ali's career was over. His next battle was with Parkinson's. Now, it is commonly speculated that Ali's disease was a result of taking so many blows, and while this is certainly plausible, it has not been proven 100%. Regardless of what caused Ali's condition, there's nothing I can say about it that hasn't been said already. It was tragic beyond words, and it is a shame that Ali could not be Ali for the last 30 years of his life.
On Sunday, I read an article that was critical of Ali's refusal to go to Vietnam. Wetheror not Ali did the right thing is up for debate, but now is not the time to be critical of ''The Champ''. He believed what he believed, and like many Americans, he did not want to fight. But unlike many Americans, he did not run away from it. He did not protest violently. He did not burn any flags. He just said he wasn't gonna go, and he didn't go. He stuck to his beliefs, and was more of man than we could ever give him credit for.
I ask all of you readers that when you speak of Muhammad Ali, don't refer to him as ''champ''. Plenty of people have been champs in the great history of boxing. But there is only one man who can be called ''The Greatest'', and his likes are not to be seen ever again. No athlete will ever be so smooth in the ring. No athlete will ever be so poetic out of the ring. No athlete will ever do as much outside of the sport. God bless your soul. For the first time in 30 years, you can talk with the best of them. You can float like a butterfly and sting like a bee just like the Ali of old. You are the Louisville Lip, the hero, the GOAT. You are in a better place. Rest easy.
How's everyone doing tonight? The NBA Finals are here. It's the rematch. A lot of things will have to go right for either the Golden State Warriors or the Cleveland Cavaliers for one of those teams to raise the Larry O'Brien Trophy in a week or two, and here are five questions each for both of the clubs that will need answering before the dust settles.
Question #1 Warriors: Just how different is this team from the club that went 73-9?
It's crystal clear that in spite of the fact that Golden State has made it to the Finals, they are not as dominant of a beast as they were from October-April. They are lucky as hell to be here, as the Oklahoma City Thunder had the Dubs halfway in the grave before an incredible comeback/choke led to the Warriors repeating as Western Conference Champs. The Warriors "struggles" date back to their quarterfinal series victory over the Portland Trailblazers. Even though Golden State won the series in 5 games, every game aside from the first one was competitive, and it took Steph Curry's historical performance in Game 4 to keep things from getting interesting.
It's quite simple. If the Warriors from Games 1-4 of the Western Conference Finals show up, then Cleveland will be licking their chops. If the Warriors from Games 4-7/the whole regular season show up, Cleveland will be doing what Cleveland is used to doing.
Question #1 Cleveland: Is the West too strong
The Cleveland Cavaliers are a good basketball team. Hell, any team that has LeBron James on it is a championship contender. However, it must be said that they have not had a path to the finals anywhere near as difficult as Golden State has had. Detroit, Atlanta, and Toronto are not elite, and it's a product of a conference that is not elite. Cleveland cannot control who they play, but to erase any doubt that they are the real deal, they need to give Steph and the boys all they can handle.
Question #2 Golden State: Will the splash be back.
The bread and butter of the Golden State Warriors is their shooting. If they can't shoot, they will have a hell of a time winning this series. If they can shoot, well, Cleveland knows how it goes.
Question #2 Cavs: We know Lebron will bring it; what about the rest of them?
Jordan had Pippen. Shaq had Kobe and Penny. Magic had Kareem. Bird had Parish and McHale. Duncan had/has Parker and Manu. Durant has Westbrook. Curry has Thompson. James had Wade and Bosh. James now has..... Irving?
There is no doubt that Kyrie Irving can play. He is a quality point guard and will be for years to come. But is he a superstar worthy of being the right-hand man to the greatest player of my generation? We might get our answer in this series. The Warriors have a great supporting cast to back Steph Curry, and Klay Thompson officially became an NBA superstar last Saturday in
Oklahoma. I'm not so sure you can say the same for LeBron's crew.
Kevin Love is not the force that he was in Minnesota. Tristen Thompson is an impressive rebounder for his size but hardly worthy of his $15,000,000 a year salary. J.R. Smith is a role player who thinks he's a basketball immortal. Channing Frye is dangerous from 3-pt range.
Without Steph Curry, the Golden State Warriors are still one of the better teams in the league. Who knows where the Cavs would be without "The King"? Maybe that question will develop a clearer answer quite soon.
Question #3 Golden State: So.... who is guarding LeBron?
The prospect of anybody from Oakland keeping LBJ at bay is nearly impossible. LeBron will get his, but how much he will get will be affected by whoever Steve Kerr decides to put on him. In my opinion, that man should be Andre Iguodala. As basketball fans should remember, the turning point of last year's series between these two teams was when Iggy was inserted into Kerr's starting lineup just before Game 4. Andre's performance both on offense and defense was a large factor in the Dubs taking the next three games and the title, and a lot of his contributions came from the way he defended #23.
Kerr knows what works, and I will be surprised if anybody else is checking 'Bron.
Question #3 Cleveland- Can Delly stop Curry?
It is true that in 2015, Matthew Dellavedova did neutralize Stephen Curry for a brief time. It's also true that Curry is a superstar who has turned into a megastar since last summer, while Dellavedova is no such thing. So, I would say no.
Question #4 Golden State: Will Draymond Green get suspended?
This may seem like a sarcastic, sort of comedic question, but it is not. We all know how important Draymond Green is to his ball club, and we also know how stupid he can be on the court at times. Draymond gave Stephen Adams a kick to the lower area that should have resulted in a suspension, and the league is likely carrying a zero tolerance policy into this series when it comes to Golden State's #23. Hopefully, Green will be cool enough not to be bothered by the league office.
Question #4: Cleveland: How much of a liability will Kevin Love be on defense?
Kevin Love will need to put on his big boy pants if the Cavs are to win this series. He needs to be better offensively. He needs to play an unfamiliar role of being the #5 and create easy scoring chances for LBJ. Perhaps most importantly, he needs to at least be adequate regarding defending the pick-and -roll.
There has been a great debate as the whether or not the absence of Love and Kyrie Irving prevented Clevland from being crowned champs last season. I have said for awhile that the answer to that question is no. The reason I say this is because neither Irving nor Love are great defensive players, so my theory is that Golden State would have just pick and rolled Cleveland to death and won the title anyway.
If Love is a defensive liability like he often is, I will consider my theory to be valid. Cleveland better hope Love proves me wrong. If he doesn't, well, familiar tears.
Question #5 Both Teams: Who will win?
This is it. This is the rematch. This is the series that everybody wanted. We have two great teams with stars everywhere. It's going to be fun to watch, but in my opinion, Golden State is the deeper and, overall, better team. They have come too far not to finish the deal, and if OKC couldn't finish them off after the massacres in games 3 and 4, I don't think anybody can stop the Dubs. That doesn't mean it won't be a hell of a fight. Warriors in 7.
