Shoutout to Youtube for making this all possible. I know I’m not the only one who’s Facebook blew up around 9pm last night when the dunk of the year (so far) went viral. The announcer on NBA.com said Kendrick Perkins life just changed and I wouldn’t disagree. I wonder if anyone said anything to him in the locker room? Did his teammates console him, or did they try not to make eye contact? Did his ears get hot when he saw the highlight again? Did his nose itch? Did his Mom watch the game?
When you’re doing your thing people always say, “Keep up the good work.” It’s like they see you going hard and they’re like, “Damn if they just keep doing this, they’re gonna get somewhere.” I mean look at Lebron. How many times do you think he’s heard the phrase, “Keep up the good work,” or better yet, “good game?” Yeah, he has no jewelry but can you deny how far he’s taken it already? He went from a high school phenom to a global icon in less than a decade, and with no signs of slowing down. We’re seven days into the 2012, so let’s not forget how far we’ve come, and just as importantly, let’s not forget how far we’re going.
I always wondered when I’d see this happen in a game. Something straight out of NFL Blitz. You’ve got to give it to Jerome Simpson for even trying this though. It almost looks fake, except it isn’t. You think he was planning and practicing this for a while, or was it just a spur of the moment move? Regardless I can’t stop watching it.
Bill Russell is recognized by many as the greatest basketball player of all time. Of course Michael Jordan fans will rebuke, as will any others who view scoring as the number one measure of a player’s prowess, but no player dominated the game to the degree which Russell did, or made the impact that he did. Among a laundry list of accomplishments, Bill Russell won an unprecedented 11 championship rings in 13 seasons and was the first African-American coach of any major sport.
His name was Razor Ramon. At 6’7″ and nearly 280 pounds he dominated much of the competition in the WWF as one of the preeminent Intercontinental champions of the 90′s. Most notable for introducing the ladder match to the WWF alongside Shawn Michaels at Wrestlemania X in 1994, Razor, whose real name is Scott Hall has seen his career and life deteriorate before his very eyes. Falling prey to the deadly combination of drugs and alcohol, today Hall is a shell of the man he used to be. Struggling to carve out a life for himself despite his addictions, the one time champion was in a turbulent free-fall when ESPN documented his rapid descent. A searing portrayal of a man, Hall’s story is a another cautionary tale about the dangers of fame, celebrity and excess.
Cliche though it may be, I think it’s worth restating every once in a while. The destination is cool, but the journey is really what it’s about. Everybody wants to blow up, particularly if they’re doing their thing exceptionally well. But once you’re there, you’re there, and there’s no turning back. As far as Mike goes, I think a lot of us are pretty well acquainted with his journey.
I remember sitting in Ms. Kennedy’s classroom, rifling through sports biographies as fast as I could, absorbing any and all information that might help me become a little more, well, like Mike. Stories about Michael — how baseball was his first love, or how he rocked the number 23 because he just wanted to be half as good as his brother, who rocked 45 — I learned the mythology like Bible-belt kids learn the gospels. Like any good story though, Michael’s is as inspiring today as it is was when I was ten. Just another reminder that sometimes, where you come from is just as important as where you take it to.
Strip down to your briefs, hop on the weigh scale, grab some queens and receive bees. A competition native to the Shaoyang, Hunan province of China, this not so ordinary competition pits two competitors against each other to see who can attract the most bees to their body. Rearing queen bees to attract the rest of the swarm, the competitors stand on a weigh scale for an hour. The winner is the one who weighs the most. The competition pictured above was from a contest between beekeepers Wang Dalin and Lv Kongjiang. In the end Lil’ Wang won out attracting 57 pounds of bees in the hour. Peculiar & extraordinary indeed.
“There are a lot of boys that are stronger than me that could be great champions, but they can’t fight temptation. Temptation is all around us! Pretty girls with their chests big and ripe.”
How hard is it to take that leap? To consciously venture into the unknown, unaware of where or how you might land. How hard is it for your mind to get your body to do it? Sometimes nearly impossible. It seems like we face cliffs throughout the day. Whether it be asking a girl out, or telling your boss how you really feel, a lot of times we have the chance to act without knowing how shit’s gonna turn out. It can be scary. But how often do we take those chances? Probably not enough. Some say it’s better to play it safe. But here’s the catch, every time you do take that chance you grow a little stronger, a little more confident and a little more assured, no matter what the outcome is. I’m not saying if everyone’s jumping off a cliff, for you to do it too, but simply put, take chances, especially the ones where you have more to gain than to lose.
Case was always up on the hoop prodigies first. “You heard of Derrick Character?” he’d ask me. “You heard of Qyntel Woods?” he’d say. I haven’t found myself too juiced off many high school prodigies since Lebron. I mean Louis Williams on Philly because he graduated ’05, and Derrick Rose had those two bashes in high school. But since then, there really haven’t been too many hoopers that have truly dominated. Maybe John Wall…
But have you heard of Austin Rivers? I’m sure some folks have. He’s actually Doc’s son. Born in California, he graduated high school in Florida, acquiring two state championships in the process. He’s going to Duke next year, where he’ll probably stay for a year if the NBA ever comes back. A nasty jab step and a vicious crossover characterize his game as of now, but who knows where he’ll take it to. Take this with a grain of salt, remember this is a mixtape and not a game. But don’t forget where you first heard the name Austin Rivers.
For hoop fans, a lockout has to be the most hurt idea imaginable. In short, declining profits for some teams means raising the question of whether players deserve less money. More specifically, it’s a bunch of exorbitantly rich folks asking considerably less rich, but still very rich athletes to take a pay cut. For many of us, the notion that a dispute like this one could put a stop to something as dope as NBA basketball seems questionable, to say the least.
For those of us who find the idea of the lockout, or say Kobe or Lebron taking their talents to Beijing more than a little ridiculous, Malcolm Gladwell might serve as a voice of reason on the subject. In a recent piece for Grantland, Gladwell outlines what he sees as the problem, making the case that a basketball team isn’t exactly a business in the traditional sense of the word. Read on for a brief history lesson, and some insight on race, culture and the business of professional sports.
“Winners, I am convinced, imagine their dreams first. They want it with all their heart and expect it to come true. There is, I believe, no other way to live.â€
It looks like Danny MacAskill’s at it again. Expertly shot by Stu Thomson, MacAskill’s latest film entitled Industry Revolutions captures the cyclist in some rather desolate environments that prove optimal for him to do what he does best. Things get a little ridiculous around the 2:35 and 4:20 marks respectively, although the whole film is pretty extraordinary in itself. It seems like cycling’s been on the rise since Lance dropped those livestrong bands years ago, and now we’re starting to see the truly gifted emerge within the field. With folks like MacAskill and Nigel Sylvester doing their thing on two wheels, hopefully the world will soon realize that life is better on a bike.
I’ve really gotta pat myself on the back for keeping these Kobe posts to a minimum on the Bowties. You know how much of a fan I am. And I also know how much some of you hate him. But polarizing figures can be compelling, hence why we choose to celebrate them. Conducted during his junior year of high school, this short interview captures Bryant in the midst of his teenage years. Captured five years before he touched his first championship ring, and eight years before the incident in Eagle County, this video now serves as a relic of the past. Gaining significance through hindsight, it’s crazy to see where he started, but even crazier to see what he’s become.
