Why I like sports...

I like sports. I can honestly say I spend more time on sports (playing, watching, reading, analyzing, researching, thinking...) then any other leisures in life. On the tail end of Miami Heat winning their 1st NBA championship, I figure I oughta capitalize on this high and scribble some reasons as to Why I like sports...(in no particular order)

1) Giving praise to God. Some do it...some don't. But when they do...I get teary eyed. Dwyane Wade gave all the praise and glory to God as he accepted his NBA MVP trophy. How true is it that everything we have comes from the Lord? Thank you for acknowledging that in front of the world.

2) R-E-S-P-E-C-T. Aretha Franklin sang it... the players demonstrate it. You respect your coach. You respect the other players. You respect the National Anthem by removing your hat and standing up. Respect is 60,000 fans boo-ing Bonds as he comes to plate, only to have that very same 60,000 fans clapping when he hits a Homerun. Respect is Roger Clemens getting a standing ovation as he walks off into the sunset (the first time) during the World Series in Florida. Respect is when a player who gets tackled, gets up, slaps the tackler on the butt and continues play.

3) Vindication... ahhhh.... Montana got forced out of San Francisco, only to come back and beat the Niners (probably the only time I rooted against my Niners). John Gruden destroys the Raiders after being forced out of Oakland by Al Davis. Shaq shows the world he can do it without Kobe and Phil... when the Lakers barely make the playoffs. Don't we all have that same urge to say, "I told you so!!"

4) Miracles. "Do you believe in miracles?!?" Famous words from Al Michaels as the US Hockey team defeats the Goliath Russian in the 1980 Olympic Hockey Semi-Finals. The team that comes out of nowhere to and overcomes the impossible, with the winners, cheering not cuz they just won, but cuz they didn't lose. And the loser being so distraught, they can't even breathe.

5) Cheering in spite of... This is very close to R-E-S-P-E-C-T. But whenever any player gets hurt, the entire stadium stops. Fans, vendors, teammates, opposing team. Every single person stops and starts praying. When will you ever see a bunch of 300 lb men, holding hands, kneeling in a circle, praying for the well-being of another man? And when the injured gets up... winning and losing doesn't even matter any more. All that matters is the person is okay.

6) Get away from it all. People need ways to R&R. A baseball game, or a football game or anything, for 3 hours, helps a person escape from the realities of life to relax that 5 lb tissue in between the ears.

7) It's healthy! Albeit, the steroid (HGH) era is definitely the Joker to this Batman. And sitting in front of a TV with a sausage hanging out of your mouth with a beer in your hand is anywhere near healthy. But playing sports, in the words of YMCA, enriches the "mind, body and spirit." It builds the body. It builds friendship. It builds commamarderie.

8) The halftime show. Franchises have taken the halftime show to a whole new level now. The Superbowl spends more money for that 7 minutes of entertainment than the venue itself (tongue in cheek). At a recent Warriors/Rockets game, the Warriors invited a bunch of Chinese acrobats to perform with Thunder dunking sky high dunks. It's also the perfect time to make a run to the bathroom. (Stadium bathrooms deserve it's own posting, someday).

9) The Underdog. Unless you're part of the fine few, born with the looks of Brad Pitt, the wallet of Bill Gates, the brains of Albert Einstein... you're the underdog. You're always finding ways to get ahead in life. It's you against the world. And anytime there's a team out there who can defy all odds to make it where they are, you can't help but root for them. They can lose, but just the fact they've triumphed over stigma of being an "underdog", they're already winners.

10) It's the ultimate reality show (minus the Vegas stakeholder influence). Is there any other form of entertainment that reveals a person's true feelings? Tears from winning, tears from losing. Anger and frustration from bad officiating. Utter humdrumness from complete insouciance that can flip and flop at a moment's twist? It's pure.

11) The Wave. Anytime you have so many people doing the same thing in unsion, you have to be give props. Heavily despised in baseball... but we'll save that for another entry.

Preliminary list... this list will definitely grow....