If you aren’t sure what hack-a-shaq means, it is when the opposing team will foul a player on the other team who is a terrible free throw shooter instead of letting the other team run their offense.  Shaq is the notorious recipient of this type of strategy because he is such a terrible free throw shooter.  During these 2008 playoffs, the San Antonio Spurs had no problem implementing this strategy against Shaq and the Spurs.  And then the ensuing argument started…..Should the NBA make it a rule that no team can run the hack-a-shaq strategy?

I say absolutely not!  This is a completely legal strategy and i have no problem with it at all!  Think about it.  A professional basketball player has the opportunity to go to the free throw line almost every time down the court.  Most NBA players and coaches would love it if the other team did this because they would have the opportunity to get easy points without any time running off the clock.  However, since Shaq is such a terrible free throw shooter, some people are saying that this strategy is not fair and the NBA should make it illegal!?!  I don’t agree with that at all!  Plain and simple, Shaq should be able to make his free throws.  If he were to make 4 out of 5 or 5 out of 6, then the other team would probably stop fouling him.  It just comes down to the fact that this is a person who is getting paid millions of dollars to play basketball and he can’t make free throws.  That is not any other team’s problem!  That is Shaq’s problem and he needs to step up and make his free throws. 

It is about time voters in the NBA gave Kobe Bryant the MVP award.  This award has been long overdue!  Everyone knows that Kobe Bryant has been the best player in the NBA for the last 5 or 6 years.  He was the scoring champion in the NBA the previous two seasons.  I mean, seriously, how is this his first MVP award?  Yes, his team is much better this year.  But, exactly what did Kobe do differently this year that he hasn’t done the many years before?  Statistically, his numbers are not as good as they have been.  

So has Kobe never received the MVP award before this year because he didn’t have good enough players around him?  People certainly can not use the excuse that this year is the only year that he has made his teammates better.  Give me a break!  The only reason anyone knows about Walton, Farmar, Turiaf, and Vujacic is due to Kobe Bryant.  He hasn’t done anything differently this year than he has in the years past.  This year the Lakers were able to give Kobe the sidekick he has been asking for in  Pau Gasol, who can  make shots and take a little pressure off Kobe.  And due to that reason, voters think that he is a completely different player and deserving of the MVP award?

I am just arguing that Kobe is only being Kobe, and if he is deserving of the MVP award this year, then he has definitely been deserving in the years past.  But thankfully, the voters have got their heads screwed on straight this year and have given Kobe the award that he has deserved for so long!

In order to make a valid argument about which sport has the Worlds Greatest Athletes, we should first gain a better understanding of what defines an athlete… right?! (Look at your ceiling, then your lap, and repeat)…

Thanks for nodding!

Ok, now that you agree, lets get down to business. According to dictionary.com, an athlete is defined as, “A person possessing the natural or acquired traits, such as strength, agility, and endurance, that are necessary for physical exercise or sports, especially those performed in competitive contexts.” So really, by definition, Everybody and their dog qualifies to be an athlete…

This could be problematic.

But don’t worry, there’s light at the end of the tunnel. Dictionary.com, also defines an athlete as, “A person trained to compete in sports.” Now isn’

t that much better! Well, ok, its not that much better but lets compromise and use this definition anyways. (By the way, what exactly defines a sport?)

So, yes while we may argue that basketball, football, baseball, soccer, tennis, etc., have the best athletes, in order to be just and fair, we must compare and defend them against athletes competing in NASCAR, golf, billiards, table tennis, fishing, and competitive hot-dog eating, etc. (Any underwater basket weaving champions out there?)

Alrighty then, in conclusion, an athlete is not strictly defined by their strength, agility, and endurance but rather, by their years, months, or days of training that enabled them to compete in a given sport. Make sure to keep this in mind when defending your choice of the Worlds Greatest Athletes.

(Somewhere neighborhood pizza eating champions, like me, smile!:)