On Going Overboard

Here are the nomines in the ESPY Best Male Athlete category:

Roger Federer
Payton Manning
Lebron James
Ladainian Tomlinson
Tiger Woods

Let's kick it Sesame-stylee and ask which one of these things is not like the other?

If you answered LEBRON FREAKING JAMES you are correct.

Lebron kicks ass at basketball and he goes to the rim probably better than anyone in the game, maybe -- excluding Shaq and Wilt and, really, all centers -- ever. But Lebron James has one major flaw: he's not even the best player in his own league.

How the hell can you be "best" if you clearly aren't the best in your own waters?

For the record, I think this sort of award/title is pointless. Ditto for "all-time great" lists. How great would Babe be with the type of technological scrutiny that goes into the scouting report nowadays (not to mention he likely couldn't crank cigars, get smashed and bang hookers, which boosted his career HR total by 241)? How great would Ali the promoter be with today's non-stop media train (TO anyone?)?

But, really, Lebron...nope.

Find me one category -- other than minutes and hype -- that Lebron lead last season and I will fart on my hand, bottle the fart and smash myself in the face with the bottle.

On a per points basis (Points + Rebounds + Assists) Kobe Bryant is the best player in the NBA. Lebron does have better Steal/TO and Steal/TOF which likely led to more team points, but not enough to over take KobMe Cryant.

And there aren't any baseball players on the list, WFT? What about arguably one of the best baseball players ever, Barry Bonds (for the record: before 2000 Bonds was on a pace for 700 dingers), or A-Rod who is hitting like he was in a domestic dispute episode of Cops?

How about Michael Phelps? The guy only won 6 gold medals in the last Olympics. No freaking biggie (Lebron's medal total in same Olympics: Ziltch...in fact Phelps would be the only guy on the list with a medal) And hell, how about dropping 4 new world records this year. But, nah. Lebron -- whose only record held is "Most Fingernails Digested in a Single Year" -, yeah, farrrr better choice.

Or with the Olympics including the X-Games now, Shaun White or Kelly Slater? NEWS FLASH: those guys don't suck at very hard things to do. Things some would even consider athletic.

Since this dumb award isn't confined to US athletes -- given the presence of the Swiss Beast -- what about marathon runner Robert Kipkoech Cheruiyot who has owned the Boston Marathon 3 times in the last 4 years? Or Liu Xiang, the Chinamen who set a new 110 meter hurdle record this year and stands to win Gold again in Beijing? I WATCHED A RACE OF HIS AND HE BEAT 6 BLACK GUYS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This is why people hate what the sports media has being churning out latley, it always reeks of cold cash and marketing.