2 Championships!

In the span of 24 hours 2 leagues crown 2 champions. In the NHL the Pittsburgh Penguins erase a 3-2 deficit to claim Syndey Crosby's first Stanley Cup Championship.In the NBA Kobe's Lakers closed out a tough series versus the Magic to claim there 15th title. It's been said by many that Sydney Crosby is the air apparent to Wanyne Gretzky and Kobe Bryant is the air apparent to Michael Jordan. Let's began by realizing who we are really talking about here. Gretzky once scored 92 goals during the regular season. Crosby's highest goal total is 36 goals in a regular season. Jordan's career highlights read 6× NBA Champion, 5× NBA MVP, 14× NBA All-Star, 6× NBA Finals MVP, 1× NBA Defensive Player of the Year, 10× All-NBA First Team, 1× All-NBA Second Team,9× NBA All-Defensive First Team, 1985 NBA Rookie of the Year, 1985 NBA All-Rookie Team, 3× NBA All-Star Game MVP. Kobe has won 4 Titles (3 with the most dominate player of his era Shaq) and 1 league MVP. Need I say anything more. Jordan and Gretzky are the greatest players their sports have ever seen. They transformed their leagues, their teams and the sports. Crosby has a long career ahead of him but Gretzky's shadow may prove to be too large. Kobe could play another 20 years and will never eclipse what Jordan's was able to accomplish in his career. So let's crown the young champions but keep it all in perspective.

Don't get me wrong, Kobe is one of the greatest talents the NBA has ever seen. But is he better than, Magic, Bird, Dr. J, Wilt, Russel or West. All players who in modern history critics have made a distant second to Jordan. Jordan won his last title with the Flu and still won finals MVP, which he shared his accolades with his teammate Scottie Pippen. Jordan elevated the play of his teammates. Can you name two other good players during the Bulls championship runs besides the Worm and Pippen? Winning championships doesn't make you the greatest player ever. It's one of the ingredients. Bill Cartwright won 3 Championships does this make him a better player than Garnett or Ewing for that matter. Championships are a part of greatness, but not the sum of all parts. HAPPY FATHER's DAY TO ALL!

written by

Nadir Hasan

nadirnhasan@gmail.com

brought to you by Nsight Entertainment

Lebron James, King or Jester

After a game 6 loss to Orlando, Lebron James sat dejected on the Magic's hardwood. Moments later he walked off the court without congratulating Dwight Howard and his teammates. This leads us to the question of sportsmanship. What is sportsmanship? Did "King" James quick exit display poor sportsmanship? And why when Lebron displayed similar behavior in last year's playoff exit to Boston and the Finals lost to San Antonio in 2007 was this questioned never raised. Lebron James is an amazing talent, perhaps potentially the greatest talent the game has ever seen. But James is still a young man who is maturing under an immense spotlight. He is not just a team's best player, or a league's poster child. He has been dubbed the air apparent to the NBA's greatest star Michael Jordan. For a man under the age of 25 the pressure and expectations are very overwhelming. Lebron James is developing as a great basketball player and professional. But let's not forget he's also maturing as a man. Did we soon forget how long it took Chicago's #23 to win his first title. And how that same man won 6 titles in 8 years. Jordan ruled with a trusted partner in Pippen who is one of the NBA's 50 greatest players. Bron has been crowned yet he hasn't claimed his kingdom. Let us not forget every King needs a solid court to rule effectively. James needs help! But he also needs to make the players in his court better. That being said in an athletic environment you should always give your opponent credit for beating you. This doesn't mean you have to shake hands or even speak with you adversary but be a good professional and speak with the media. Use the media to credit your opponent with the victory. I don't believe that there should be a uniformed way to credit the victor, but you should always acknowledge there ability to overcome and gut out the win. Lebron has to set the example for the men following him into battle. I don't agree with how he handled the situation but Lebron James is feeling the pain of a city that he grew up in. There failures and hopes, history and dreams. He wants to be there savior. He fell short this season. The talk of 2010 continues to grow. No matter what happens in 2010 if Lebron doesn't win a championship in a place where he is the fan that has experienced the frustrations of ALMOST ISN'T GOOD ENOUGH, he will forever feel like he failed Cleveland. So instead of calling him King James let's say he's Prince, a King in training. Lebron will be crowned one day soon, but he hasn't climbed the top of the mountain yet. Being the best player in the NBA isn't the same as being the King. For Cleveland's sake let's hope that the Cavaliers organization does what needs to be done to crown themselves a KING!

written by

Nadir Hasan

nadirnhasan@gmail.com

brought to you by Nsight Entertainment