Ty Watches "Air"

Yesterday I went to see the movie "Air". This movie is very new to me. I didn't even know that this was being made. I had zero idea that Ben Affleck and Matt Damon were together again, I definitely didn't know they were making a movie about Nike and I sure as hell had no idea it was about Nike signing Michael Jordan. This is all in my wheelhouse. I love movies like this. I read "Shoe Dog". I like when Affleck and Damon work together. And I am a Nike guy, even though I cannot wear their shoes anymore. So when I found a time that worked for me, I went to the theater to watch.

I loved this movie. Again, it is right in my zone. This is what I am into. I liked "Moneyball", and this movie reminds me so much of how that one was made. There is hardly any basketball in this movie. My son wants to see it. I had to explain to him that Michael Jordan is barely in this movie and you only ever hear him say "hello". This movie is all about the pursuit and eventual signing og Jordan. This movie is about the making of the first Air Jordan's. This movie is about the people behind the scenes and all the hard work and loops they had to go through to sign Jordan.

Damon plays Sonny Vaccaro. Say what you will about Vaccaro, but he was a revolutionary in the shoe game and he is a person I respect. Damon nailed it. From the opening scene to him gambling all the way through his endless pursuit to sign Jordan was pitch perfect. I bought him. I was in. I want to see more of this character, although Vaccaro is a real person. Affleck plays Phil Knight. Say what you will about Knight, and he has done a lot of wild stuff, the dude built an empire. Affleck played the newly minted millionaire version of Knight. He answered to the board. He was hesitant to take chances. He did a wonderful job playing this role in that time of Knight's life. I also bought into him giving in to Vaccaro's obsession near the end. Jason Bateman was incredible in this movie. He played Phil Strasser, who was one of the first bigwig basketball guys at Nike. Bateman played Strasser as a little more stated and quiet than he actually was, but it was needed to play off of Vaccaro. Bateman had his moments. He had some nice speeches. He has a great head of hair. All in all though, he was very good in his very understated role. He was the comic relief in this movie and he nailed it. Matthew Maher played Peter Moore. He is the creator of the first Air Jordan's. He also created the symbol that we now always see when you buy Jordan Brand products. He was a genius and he was portrayed as such here. Chris Tucker played Howard White, one of Jordan's best friends and close confidants. Tucker was so good. He embodied the person he was playing. I watched some videos of the guy he was and he nailed it. Marlon Wayans was only in one scene, as George Raveling, and the story about the "I Have a Dream" speech he gave was moving. Chris Messina was tremendous as Jordan's agent, David Falk. The back and forth between him and Vaccaro was spectacular. And then we have Viola Davis as Deloris Jordan. She was the absolute star in this movie. She and Damon were amazing, but Davis' portrayal of Jordan's smart, savvy and brilliant mom was exquisite. I can see why Jordan said he wanted only her to play his mom. This cast is the only cast I feel could pull off a movie like this. They were all tremendous.

"Air" was great. I can watch movies like this all the time and never get bored of them. I like to see how the sausage is made if you will. I also like to see where everyone in the movie ended up. I know of Vaccaro, Jordan, his mom and Knight. But to read about Strasser, Falk, White and Moore, that is what I am here for. I am a sucker for biopics featuring a topic I love. I love basketball. MJ is the GOAT. Air Jordan's are the coolest basketball shoes ever. I am a Sonny Vaccaro fan. This movie had more than enough to keep my full attention.

Go check this movie out. It is more than worth your time. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

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Let's Talk About How Wrong Channing Frye is About Michael Jordan

Yesterday I talked about the final two episodes of "The Last Dance" and mentioned how some modern day players are crazy for suggesting that Jordan isn't the greatest to ever play. I mentioned Channing Frye because he was the first person I really saw take this stance. He is wrong.

Frye’s comment, and I quote, was "he only had one job and that was to just score. He did that at an amazing, amazing rate. But I don't feel like his way of winning then would translate to what it is now. Guys wouldn't want to play with him". This is a loaded statement from a journeyman bench player his entire NBA career. In fact, the only reason Frye is still even being talked about is because he played with LeBron, who many current day players, and young kids, think is the greatest. If it were anyone that didn't play with LeBron, this would be totally pushed aside. But, I kind of want to break down this comment piece by piece, and I am not the only person to do this recently. Scott Van Pelt, of ESPN, dragged him the other night. He did actual research, and proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that Frye's statement was absurd. He mentioned the scoring, but also mentioned how he was all defense all the time. Jordan might be the best perimeter defender the game saw in the 90's. I guess Frye didn't research that. Richard Jefferson, a former teammate said that all Frye was doing was "trolling a bit online". I know they're friends, but come on, this is more than "trolling". Jefferson even went on to text him, telling Frye, "it's not the time or the place". Then Tracy McGrady, on "the Jump", went on to quote things Jordan did outside of scoring. He mentioned that he was the 87-88 Defensive Player of the Year, had two seasons where he had 200 steals and 100 blocks and earned all defense nine times, tied for a NBA record. McGrady also said, "he did way more than just score the basketball, he won Ships". That is a tremendous quote. Also, before I get dragged, I know Frye has one title, but he barely saw the floor on that Cavs team. His title is like Jeremy Lin getting a ring last year.

Look, I am a big time proponent of calling Jordan the GOAT. RD and I have discussed this, I have written about it numerous times and I talk about it during any basketball conversation I have. "The Last Dance" only further proved that. But lets take that dive into Frye's statement now, as I assume his perception is LeBron is the GOAT. I think LeBron is the second or third greatest ever, but Jordan is so far ahead of the second place guy for a myriad of reasons. Frye made the "only a scorer" comment. Bull shit. Tracy McGrady and Scott Van Pelt proved that wrong with statistics. My eyeballs proved that wrong by growing up watching him play. I was a die hard Sonics fan as a kid, and I remember that 72 win team shellacking everyone except Shawn Kemp in the Finals. They stopped everyone else. The guards couldn't do a damn thing against Jordan and Pippen. I bet you the Suns and Trailblazers and Lakers and Jazz fans all have the exact same memories. Or what about the Dream Team stifling Toni Kukoc? That was all about Jordan deciding he wanted to stop him. He had no other reason to do that, other than to show people he could stimy the best European player at the time. Jordan was a defensive force to be reckoned with. Also, he had to be the captain and coach on the floor. He had to place everyone, he ran the show, he set guys up and put them in the best possible spot to score. Just ask Steve Kerr, John Paxson, Horace Grant, Scottie Pippen, Ron Harper and a myriad of others. Once he began to trust teammates, they got shots they were never getting before. As for the scoring, that was the only thing Frye got “right”. Jordan is the greatest scorer ever. He was able to get to the hoop in the toughest, rawest and hardest era to do it. He played in the NBA when you had to be crushed to get a free throw. Look at the way the Pistons, Knicks and Pacers played him. They tried to hurt him, yet he still got 30 plus regularly. I don’t think any modern guy could handle being roughed up like Jordan was. Today’s players gripe about EVERYTHING. If they miss a layup, they look at the official. They get a little tap, they flop. There is so much complaining, it has slowed the game down. Imagine how James Harden or LeBron would react to someone throwing them to the ground. They would have a hissy fit. Jordan went out, got tougher and dominated. He could also shoot. Remember six threes against Portland? The shot to win the title in 98 over the Jazz? The shot over Craig Ehlo? Yeah, Jordan was a scorer Channing Frye, he’s the best scorer EVER.

Then Frye had the most telling thing ever in his statement with the “it wouldn’t translate to today. Guys wouldn’t want to play with him”. That says so much more about the current state of the NBA than I think Frye wanted to reveal. First off, and I’ve said it before, the star players in the current NBA are soft. LeBron, Harden, Doncic, KD, Steph and Klay, Kyrie, all they do is bitch and moan when they don’t get what they want. They also act like fake tough guys. Today’s stars are posers. They think they’re tough, but they’re not. They couldn’t handle the physicality that Jordan took on a nightly basis. Look, I think LeBron would’ve been a great player in the 90’s, just like Karl Malone was. I also think these Jordan would’ve beat him, and beat him bad. He would’ve made it his mission.

Which brings me to Frye’s final thought, “guys wouldn’t want to play with him”. You know what, Jordan wouldn’t have wanted to play with them, he would’ve wanted to beat them. Modern NBA is consumed with the “super team”. From the time Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen joined Paul Pierce in Boston, the NBA changed. It all became about stacking the deck. No one wanted a challenge. After Boston, we had the “Heatles”. Then LeBron going back to Cleveland, but only if they traded for Kevin Love. Then there was KD joining the 73 win Warriors. And now we have KD and Kyrie in Brooklyn, Kawhi and Paul George on the Clippers. And LeBron all but forcing the Lakers to trade their future for Anthony Davis. Stars don’t want a challenge, Jordan did.

Channing Frye has accomplished more than I could ever dream of, but this was a Skip Bayless or Colin Cowherd esque statement. It was dumb, poor timing, reeks of resentment and jealousy, but most of all, it was flat out wrong. I’m glad he’s getting ripped by everyone because he should be. This was a Bill Simmons, and The Ringer, type dumbass statement that shows the younger generation doesn’t know much about 80’s and 90’s basketball, and are prisoners of the moment. Jordan is the GOAT. There is no question anymore.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing, the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast, and the greatest basketball writer on the internet.

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Ty Watches "The Last Dance" Parts 9 and 10

"The Last Dance" ended last night, and it may be the single greatest documentary series that has ever existed. I don't feel like I am being a prisoner of the moment. I don't think it has anything to do with the lack of sports, although that definitely helps. I think this is the greatest documentary series ever because it is about the greatest basketball player ever, and it is directed by one the best sports story tellers of all time. "The Last Dance" has every single ingredient to make it as perfect as it was.

Now, spoiler alert out there for listeners to out podcast, but I will give my feelings on the documentary as a whole on the next pod. Today, I want to continue with my review of the most recent episodes. Last night finished it off with 9 and 10, and they were magnificent. The series continued to get better, and last night was no exception. Episode 9 went straight away into the 98 East Finals against the Pacers. This was one of two series that went to 7 games during the Bulls double three peat. This was also, probably, the toughest series for any Jordan led team, prior to the Pistons. The Pacers had the style of team that could compete with this Bulls squad. They had big, nasty guys. They had a veteran point guard. They had quickness and electricity off the bench. They had an old sharp shooter. They had size. And they had Reggie Miller. They could have won this series. They could've ended the dynasty one series early. But they didn't. Too may mistakes, miscues and poor rebounding and free throw shooting doomed them. Also, the jump ball between Rik Smits and Jordan was a play I never, ever thought about, but was played out to show how important that one moment was in this series, and I will never look at it the same ever again.

They shifted from that series to the 97 Finals against the Jazz. They showed a lot of stuff from there. We got some great back story on Steve Kerr. His story was very, very in depth, heartbreaking and showed his character. It made me like him even more. We also got the real truth behind the infamous "flu game". As I suspected, and a ton of others did, it wasn't a stomach flu, it was food poisoning. To hear Jordan confirm so quickly and assuredly made it hit home even more. And to see the way he came out and played, after going through something as awful as food poisoning, the guy is not human. That was cool. I also liked getting to see Jordan's kids and hearing them talk about their dislike for Utah and why their mom wouldn't let them go to games there. It was nice to finally hear from someone in his family.

They shifted back to the Pacers series and we got all the intel that I mentioned, and so, so much more. Reggie Miller is underrated, Scottie Pippen is one of the best defenders ever, Larry Bird could coach, Steve Kerr was a sharp shooter and Jordan was an absolute killer. It was awesome to see them break down the series the way they did. We also got to hear about his close relationship with one member of his security detail, and that was a nice story to see how that gentleman took on the fatherly role for Jordan after his dad was killed. It was all great.

Episode 10 was all about the 98 Finals and the aftermath. This was a tremendous episode. To see them talk about how they went about winning, how tired mentally and physically they were, how they laid it all out, it was amazing. Also, big props to Scottie Pippen for playing through that horrible back injury. He really showed his mental toughness, and to do what he did with that injury is astounding. Also, props to Dennis Rodman. Sure, he is an asshole, he skipped out on practice to go wrestle, he wouldn't talk to anyone, but the dude laid it out on the court every game night, and he was the best pest and rebounder that the Bulls have ever had. He also hit four straight free throws in a critical moment for the Bulls, and that is just amazing.

But this was all about MJ and his willingness to put this team on his back and carry them to their 6th title. The things he did in game 6 of the 98 Finals was spectacular, especially the last minute of that game. The Bulls were down 3, and he goes and gets a quick layup. I mean, guys tried to stop him, but he is Michael god damn Jordan. If he wanted to get to the basket he got there. Then, to get the strip on Karl Malone, and bring the ball up and hit that jumper, I mean, there is no better way to go out than that. I know he came back to play for Washington, and some may say he pushed off Byron Russell, but I will always look at that jumper as his last moment. That personified his greatness. That sequence proves for the billionth time that he is the greatest to ever play basketball. I have a piece tomorrow about current players calling him out, Channing Frye I'm talking particularly to you, and they are all full of nonsense. But I will save all that for tomorrow. Jordan proved time and again, when he wanted to win, he was going to find a way to win.

Then the aftermath of that, what followed after the 98 title was wild. Everyone wanted this team back, they wanted to see if they could go for four straight, to win seven in nine years. And I think they would have. If they were able to pull it off, they could have done it. And to see Jordan's reaction to Jerry Reinsdorf's explanation as to why they had to split this team up was something else. Jordan said he didn't agree, and laid out a scenario where they could have done it all again. We were left thinking, what if, but what we got from the 90's Bulls, and Jordan himself was witnessing greatness that we may never see again.

This, and I will keep saying this, is the great documentary series that has ever existed. It is, by far the best sports doc ever, and dare I say, the best documentary ever made. "The Last Dance" is a rare achievement we don't see that much today, and that is being a perfect movie being perfectly told. I love this and I cannot recommend it enough. I will rewatch this maybe a billion times. It's the best. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing, the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast, and the greatest basketball writer on the internet.

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Ty Watches "The Last Dance" Parts 6 and 7

I just finished up the most recent episodes of "The Last Dance", and this is why I was so interested in this doc. This is the stuff I was here for. These are the episodes I have been waiting for. This is the kind of new information I wanted to see, and hear from the man himself, in Michael Jordan. I was so enthralled by everything I watched.

The first episode talked about the first three peat. The team, and Jordan getting to that level, and all the stuff they went through after the third tit;e. This was when Jordan retired the first time. This was when his father was tragically killed. This was when all the theories came out that he was "forced" to retire by David Stern due to his gambling. All the people refuted everything, but still, seeing them questioned, and seeing them kind of shift and look around when they answered, it was glorious. I don't believe that Jordan was forced into retirement, but I also don't think he left to simply play baseball. He was at the top of his game, he was winning every year, he was making a ton of money and he was the biggest star in the world. I think he wanted a new challenge. He mastered the game of basketball, so I think he wanted to try to conquer a different sport, a sport he grew up playing, and falling in love with due to his dad. I think the passing of his dad was the main reason why he walked away. That, and that he was so tired from carrying the Bulls to three straight titles. The stuff with his dad was so upsetting and sad and just miserable too. To see the media drag him the way they did back then, that was disgusting. I cannot fathom what the media would do today. It would have been ten times worse. I will say, to see Jordan, his mom and brother talk about this was pretty upsetting, but I respect that they did it. It had to be really tough for them, but they still did it.

Then they shifted to his demeanor with his teammates. This was the stuff I have been waiting for. They touched on it a little in episode 7, but they really went into it in episode 8. In 7 we got to see Jordan going after a young rookie, Scott Burrell. The stuff he stood up to, the stuff he dealt with, the way he handled it, he is a much better dude than I am. He was a pro, and he knew why Jordan was doing what he did. We also got stories of him and Steve Kerr getting into it. He used to shit talk guys like Jud Buechler and Luc Longley. He went in on anyone that he felt didn't meet his standards. Jordan is the GOAT, and I would have hated playing on his team. But, he did win, and he helped to squeeze out every ounce of talent his teammates had.

They also talked about him coming out of retirement the first time, and how he had to reshape his body multiple times because of switching sports. Jordan was nothing if not maniacal when it came to getting the best out of himself. We also got to hear about the incredible pick up games that would go on while Jordan was filming "Space Jam". The people who made that movie built him a gym, and he had players fly in from everywhere to compete with him so he could get back into basketball shape. This was the season after the Magic ousted the Bulls in the playoffs. The only time I believe a Bulls team MJ was on, after getting past the Pistons, that didn't win a title. Reggie Miller, during a talking head interview talked about how MJ must have been a "vampire" because he filmed the movie all day, played games at night, lifted and did this everyday during the course of making "Space Jam". That was a special moment from this doc.

We also got a look into the 72 win Bulls team. This was the year after Jordan came back, the fight with Kerr during practice, and the way that Bulls team ran roughshod over the rest of the NBA. That team still irks me because they beat my team, the Supersonics, but damn it were they impressive. We also got more of the asshole Jordan during this season, and this part of the doc. I mentioned Burrell and Kerr, but he did this to everyone on the team. They asked him if he ever regrets being so mean, being described as a "mean person", and he said no, very bluntly I might add. He didn't care if he hurt your feelings, as long as you helped him win. I also liked that we got to see Gary Payton heavily interviewed during this episode, he is my second favorite Sonic ever behind Shawn Kemp. He was a great defender, and an even better shit talker. He talked about how he locked Jordan up to help the Sonics win two games in the Finals, and they showed the film to Jordan, and he kept laughing, and simply stated, "Payton didn't stop me, I had other things on my mind for those two games". We come to realize that Father's Day was the day of game six, and this was the first season, and Finals his dad wasn't at. The Bulls proceeded to dominate the Sonics to win the title, and they show Jordan just collapse in the locker room. I would be lying if I didn't say I teared up at this moment. It was a gut punch indeed. They finished the episode off with the East Finals in 1998 against the Pacers, and Reggie Miller saying that he was going to be the guy to retire MJ. Another great line from Reggie Miller.

These were the two best episodes to this point, and it has me so excited for the last two. It's bittersweet though because I don't want this doc to end, but I am so excited to see how they finish it. I imagine it is going to go out with a bang because, with every episode to this point, it has just gotten better and better and better.

This is an amazing docu series.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing, the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast, and the greatest basketball writer on the internet.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

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SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing. 

Ty Watches "The Last Dance" Parts 4 and 5

Episodes 5 and 6 of "The Last Dance" aired last night, and like the first four, this doc just continues to get better and better, and more revealing. I love this whole thing, and I am actually a little upset that there are only four more episodes. There are only two more weeks. I could watch this for another 10 to 20 episodes easily. That is how intriguing and wonderful this has been.

In episode 5 we got a look at a little bit of everything following the Bulls first title in 1991. We also got a dedication to Kobe Bryant prior to the start. The first part of the episode started with the 98 All Star game that featured the two going head to head. We even got a talking head interview with Bryant, and it was eye opening to hear him say the things he said about Jordan. Hearing him talk about his importance, and how if it wasn't for Jordan, he wouldn't have been the player he was. He even said how much he disliked the comparisons, and people asking who would win one on one. He all but squashed that, and let it be known that Jordan is the GOAT.

From there we got a glimpse into the 92 team that repeated. This was great because we got to see this team really rise to dominance, and see Jordan kind of take basketball to a whole other level. BJ Armstrong even said that he wasn't playing basketball anymore, he was simply out there to find new ways to win. That is how dominant, and great and maniacal he was as a player. The matchup between him and Clyde Drexler was supposed to be close. It wasn't. This series featured "the shrug" game, where MJ hit 6 threes in the first half, and scored 35 in the same half. He outplayed Drexler every step of the way. He said that he wanted to show how much better he was, and that it pissed him off that they were even comparing the two. Jordan is better, and will always be, and he proved that.

We also got a look at the Dream Team where, once again, and as usual, Jordan was the alpha. He was the dude. He was the guy. The video tape of a practice game was awesome. The way he and Pippen dominated Toni Kukoc was wild. They wanted to prove Jerry Krause wrong, and while Kukoc turned out to be a fine player, Jordan and Pippen proved they were better, and more important.

The episode also got into his cultural impact, what with his shoes and commercial appeal. It had to be hard to be Michael Jordan. That was the big takeaway for me from episode 5.

Episode 6 starts off with how hard it was for him to deal with the fame. It seemed like he had no time to just be alone, or away, or with his family. He was pulled in a million different directions. From there we dig into his gambling. This added to his competitive nature. There is a scene where he is betting with his handlers who can get a piece of change closest to the wall without touching it, and when he got beat by one of the dudes, you could tell it irked him very much. We then shift back to 93, with the Bulls working on their first 3 peat. This was also when they started to dig a little deeper into his gambling, referencing Sam Smith's wonderful book "The Jordan Rules". This was the same time they started to try and dig up dirt on him. They figured he couldn't be as perfect as he appeared. This is the episode I have been waiting for. This is where it got grimy and gritty and down and dirty. Apparently Horace Grant was the first one that spoke up, but it seems like there were plenty of other people. Jordan said it was Grant, but Grant said he didn't say a word. Who knows, but I do know that Grant wasn't too thrilled with the attention that MJ and Pippen were getting over him. But being the genius of basketball that he was, his play didn't waver a bit. In fact, he just kept getting better. It seems like it fueled him.

Then we shifted to the rivalry between the Bulls and Knicks in the early 90's. The Knicks tried to be the new era "Bad Boys", but the Knicks weren't as dirty, and easier to root for. They also weren't nearly as good. They did some stuff. They went up 2-0 on the Bulls, we got the famous Starks dunk. But, other than that, they were no real threat to the Bulls.

We did shift from there back to his gambling, which people blamed for the Bulls dropping the first 2 games. This was also when we meet a guy named Slim Buller, who was a badass dude that gambled with him all the time. Apparently, Jordan spent a good amount of time with this gentleman. This was when people started to really push on the gambling, and if he was an addict or not. This was the first time I have seen Jordan a little defensive in the talking head interviews. He was near over explaining what he was doing. But, as he is want to do, he responded as he always did, and came back and dominated the Knicks in four straight games. We also got to see the epic game 5 finish, with Charles Smith getting blocked four times, right at the rim. Poor guy.

That win pushed the Bulls to their third finals appearance in a row, this time to face the Suns and league MVP Charles Barkley. That series was an okay one, but it still gave Jordan the platform to prove is greatness over everyone else, which he did. This 6th episode started to show more of the asshole that Jordan was, and maybe still is, and that was great. I have been waiting to see this side of him. This was one of the things at the very top of my list that I wanted from this doc. It closed out nicely with them getting ready for the 98 playoffs, and as I am every Monday now, I cannot wait for the next two episodes.

"The Last Dance" has been so worth it so far, and it is only going to get better and better the rest of the way. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing, the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast, and the greatest basketball writer on the internet.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

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Ty Watches "The Last Dance Parts 3 and 4

I just finished episodes 3 and 4 of "The Last Dance", and just like the first two, this is amazing. This is exactly what I, and all other sports fans, have been craving. The show is starting to dig deeper and deeper into all the things that went into this last run for the 90's Bulls.

Episode 3 was focused on Dennis Rodman's addition to the team. First off, Rodman is a crazy dude, but man was he an excellent basketball player. I do not agree with his politics, he is crazy as I said, he is still a little loony, but man could that dude defend, be an enforcer and grab rebounds. Hearing him talk about his early days in Detroit was like taking a class on how to judge angles on the floor, and I loved every single second of it. When he talked about taking friends to the gym at 2 and 3 in the morning to shoot and miss shots just so he could watch how it came off the rim was astonishing. Talking about watching film of how big time players would shoot, and the way the ball would rotate, was like the coolest lesson I could have learned as a young player. His tenacity on defense, and his willingness to do the little things, the dirty work, it was amazing. But, he did come with a ton of baggage. He started to lose it late in his Pistons career. He really lost it while he was in San Antonio. And, while he gave in to the greater good of the team while playing for the 90's Bulls, he was for sure going through some mental issues. He had, and still has, some serious issues, but I say again, the dude was such a uniquely gifted player. He was also another one of these super small school guys who made it big in the NBA in the late 80's and early 90's, and it was because he was willing he work his ass off. He seemed to work harder than almost anyone else in the league at that time. It was pretty eye opening. My favorite part was when the director showed Rodman, Scottie Pippen and Phil Jackson the video of Jordan reacting to Rodman saying he "needed a vacation". That was epic.

Episode 4 picked up with Rodman on his "vacation", and we got a one on one interview with Carmen Electra, Rodman's girlfriend at the time, and again I have to point out the people they are getting for this doc are amazing, and she described Rodman perfectly. She talked about his constant partying and how much fun he liked to have and even spoke on when Phil, Scottie and MJ came to Vegas to pick him up. That was hilarious, and I imagine what must have been going through her head when this happened. We shifted from there to learn more about Phil Jackson. This episode was his episode. They talked about his childhood, his love of Native Americans, how much he wanted the game to be a team game, his work with Tex Winter, his playing days, his drug use and how great of a coach he was. I have said many times that I think Greg Poppovich is the greatest coach in the NBA ever. But I am now wavering because of the way we see how Jackson worked with the greatest ever. How he got him to buy in. How he made him realize that he needed his teammates to help him. MJ may have liked Doug Collins more, but Jackson was the perfect coach for him and that team. Poppovich has the best system, and it will always work. But, Jackson is the best at dealing with major, major personalities. He knows how to handle super duper stars. And while Jackson is the weird hippy guy, he knows the game very well. Well, he and Tex Winter worked together very well. I feel like this episode was kind of an ode to Winter. He is the genius behind the Triangle offense, Jackson was just the face. But, I came away from episode 4 really admiring Phil Jackson. I was also happy because they started to show the real asshole side of MJ in the middle and near the end of the episode. They talked a lot about the rivalry between the Bulls and Pistons back then, and this is when true MJ started to come out. He hated the Pistons, he did what he took to get over that hump, and man oh man does he despise Isaiah Thomas. Again, they showed him a video of Thomas explaining why the Pistons walked off when the Bulls finally beat them, without shaking their hands, and you could see Jordan, who is 57 now, seething with anger. It was another great moment.

"The Last Dance" has been truly wonderful so far, and I fully expect it to continue that way. While this is on, every Monday I am going to write about my thoughts with each viewing. I cannot recommend this doc enough people. It is a wonder. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing, the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast, and the greatest basketball writer on the internet.

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Ty Watches "The Last Dance" Parts 1 and 2

"The Last Dance" made its much anticipated premiere, two months early, last night and it was everything I hoped for, and so much, much more. Sports fans are craving something, anything, that we can rally around and talk about and be excited about and be in the forefront of the media, and that finally happened for the first time since early March, in a good way.

"The Last Dance" is going to be focusing on the 97-98 Bulls team primarily, but this ten part docu series is clearly going to be touching on so much more. The first two episodes had so much stuff in couple hours that I hadn't heard or seen ever before. I am a rabid NBA fan, especially this particular era they are focusing on, and there was so much new information that I didn't even know I wanted.

The first episode primarily talked about the early Jordan years. We see him becoming the dominant force he was to be when he was at UNC. We heard from guys like James Worthy, Roy Williams and Billy Packer about how there was something special about this kid. They talked about his natural ability but also his almost maniacal work ethic, how he wanted to be better than everyone else, how he practiced longer and harder than anyone. They focused on his want and will to be the best. He told Roy Williams that he wanted to be the best guy at UNC, and Williams told him he had to work. Well, he worked his tail off, and we all know about his dominant career in college. He won a title, a player of the year award and was easily a lottery pick. They then shifted to his rookie year, and that was eye opening for me. He went to a, and I never knew this, what was a moribund Bulls team. They were being outsold by indoor soccer teams and plays in their own arena. Then Jordan comes, blows up, and all of the sudden they are selling out every game. The players on the current team realized pretty soon how good he was. They knew very early on that he was the best player on the team by a very wide margin. Some of the stuff they talked about that I never knew included how much drugs the Bulls players did when he was a rookie. Jordan didn't do this, instead, he lived on his own and just set a laser focus on the game. That was what separated him early on from everyone else.

Outside the Jordan aura, I learned how much the players, especially Jordan, really loathed Jerry Krause. They despised that man, openly picking on him in public. I also learned that Jerry Reinsdorf is a very quiet man, who tries to stay out of a lot. I found out that Rod Thorn truly wanted Hakeem in the draft. I also heard how other players and coaches never, ever thought that Jordan, a 6'6 guard, could lead a team to a title. And they started to show his real attitude near the end of the first episode, when the 97 Bulls traveled to Paris for an exhibition, and Jordan looked like he just wanted to leave, and that all the hubbub there was beneath him. He also showed that he didn't, I don't know if respect is the right word, that he didn't care about guys on the team that weren't Dennis Rodman, or mainly Scottie Pippen.

That is where the second episode takes us. We get to hear all about Pippen. He was a player that, as a kid, I didn't think was actually as good or important as he truly was. Now that I am an adult, and have studied the game a ton, I know I was wrong, and how great and important Pippen was. The whole thing was about how Pippen is the greatest number 2 ever in the NBA. I won't call him Robin because I feel like that is disrespectful to Pippen. I also learned that Pippen was a small college kid, who was so painfully shy, that he signed a ridiculously awful contract way too early in his career. He signed a seven year deal worth 18 million dollars. I mean, can you believe that. Can you fathom a world where Pippen is the sixth highest paid player on the team where he is clearly the second best option. That is nuts. He should have made triple that for what he gave to that team, and what he gave to Jordan. This episode also really dug into the aggressiveness and fight that Jordan had. He would yell and scream at his teammates in practice. He would tell them exactly what he thought of them. He didn't care about feelings, he simply wanted to win. And if he had to hurt your feelings to do that, he would do that. He was ruthless, he was a winner and he expected the best effort out his teammates no matter what. We also got a little look into his childhood in this episode, with some interviews with his brothers, and again, this was totally eye opening. It shined a new light on MJ's competitive edge. It showed how this started so young, and drives him still today.

These first two episodes were like a fix for me. I felt that urge for sports on my TV was given to me. It was amazing. I watched it in real time, which I never do. I am so very, very, very excited for the next eight parts. Sunday cannot come fast enough so I can watch the next two episodes. I love this, I love that ESPN pushed it up so we can watch something we all crave and I love that I get to watch a truly all access look into the life of the greatest to ever play the game of basketball. Watch this docu series. I implore you. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing, the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast, and the greatest basketball writer on the internet.

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Bill Laimbeer is a Stupid Head. Jordan is the GOAT.

The other day Bill Laimbeer, who I have never liked, appeared on an ESPN early morning talk show and was spouting off his usual nonsense. He came right out and said, without hesitation, that LeBron James is easily the GOAT of the NBA.

Now, what he said is not untrue, well, the GOAT thing is wrong, but why he thinks LeBron is the GOAT makes a little bit of sense. He said he runs like the wind, is 6'8 and 280 pounds and is unstoppable. That is all true, but everyone knows that about him. In fact, statements like that are why I like to compare LeBron to a player like Magic. They are unicorns. They are different. They are great. They are Hall of Fame players. They are champions. But, Michael Jordan is the GOAT. There is no question.

I have had this conversation with tons of people. RD and I argued this very thing on the podcast awhile ago. I have been lucky enough to watch both guys play in their primes, and I have no doubt in my mind that Jordan is a better basketball player than LeBron. Personally I think LeBron is the third greatest player of all time, behind Jordan and Kareem Abdul Jabaar. LeBron is the prototype player for the new generation. He can play any position. He makes worse players better. He went to a million Finals in a row. He came in with humongous expectations, and has more than lived up to them. LeBron is an all time great. But he is not the greatest. He has lost many more Finals than he has won. I believe he has a 3-6 record in the Finals. Again, it is amazing that he has made nine Finals, but he only has three rings. He is like the modern day Jerry West. Great player, but flubbed when it came to the Finals. He would also have only two titles if Draymond Green wasn't a selfish asshole. He also is a fake, wannabe bad guy. When he blocked Steph in the Finals a few years back and flexed and mean mugged him, that was one of the fakest acts of toughness I have ever witnessed. LeBron can be a great defender, but only when he wants to be. Look at last season for example. At one point in a game Kyle Kuzma had to physically push LeBron to guard his man who was wide open at the top of the key. That guy went on to make an easy bucket.

LeBron is also too nice of a guy to be the true GOAT. He doesn't have that psychotic mentality that true GOATS possess. LeBron wants to be friends with everyone. He also has had to team up with stars, make super teams if you will, to become a champ. He couldn't do it in Cleveland his first go round. That team was awful, but they got easily dispatched by a far superior Spurs team. He had to team up with Dwanye Wade and Chris Bosh in Miami. He then had Cleveland force a trade to acquire Kevin Love. And this past off season, he and Rich Paul made it a point to get Anthony Davis to LA. LeBron is never the guy, Jordan was always the guy.

LeBron is an amazing player, he is the GOAT of the 21st century, but he is not the best player ever Bill Laimbeer. That title goes to MJ in a walk. I know that Laimbeer has some ill will towards MJ. He was part of the "Bad Boy" Pistons, and they all hated the Bulls and Jordan. They also used to beat them routinely. The Pistons were the team that Jordan had to figure out before they went on their dyanstic runs. The Pistons were the first team to get away with roughing MJ up. And it worked for two seasons. Then it didn't. MJ found a way to assert his dominance, and the Bulls took over. They beat the Pistons, and the Pistons were so sore about it, they walked off the court without even shaking hands with the Bulls and Jordan. I know Isiah Thomas was blamed for this, and he and Jordan have their own history, but I am sure Bill Laimbeer was a big advocate. He was the biggest punk of a team that was filled with some wild dudes. Laimbeer was a fine player, but on that team, he was like the 7th or 8th most important person. Isiah Thomas, Joe Dumars, Dennis Rodman, Rick Mahorn, Chuck Daly, they were all much more influential and held much more weight than Laimbeer. Laimbeer was a role guy on a very good team. Jordan was the face of the league for decade. Once they figured out the Pistons, it was a wrap for anyone else. And Jordan took that mantle and never let it go. He didn't have to team up with guys in their prime back then. Sure, Scottie Pippen was his teammate, but the Bulls drafted him. Jordan never asked to play with Barkley or Bird or Magic or Olajuwon. He wanted to beat those guys, and he did. He also made guys like Steve Kerr, BJ Armstrong, Luc Longley, Ron Harper and Bill Wennington household names. He also loathed and wanted to beat everyone. He is the prototype psychopath that has one thing on his mind, and it is beating the man in front of him. Be it practice, a game or a title, Jordan would find a way to beat you. And after he beat you, he would humiliate you. When Karl Malone beat him for MVP one year, Jordan went out and lit his ass up in the Finals. When people thought Clyde Drexler may have been better, Jordan destroyed him and the Blazers in the playoffs. He left no question about who was the best.

This is one of the first times I have ever seen a player from the older generation not take Jordan's side. But, coming from someone like Bill Laimbeer, I shouldn't be surprised. He is bitter and angry and just wants to say some dumb shit so people like myself will keep his name out there. This is a dumb take. I almost feel like he is applying to work at The Ringer with stupid ass hot takes like this. Oh well. Jordan is the GOAT, and there is no denying it. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing, the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast, and the greatest basketball writer on the internet.

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LeBron James is Not Michael Jordan Great

With his exceptional play in these NBA playoffs, the talk of "is LeBron better than MJ" has started up again. I'm here today to put a stop to this nonsense as best I can.

First off, I never thought I'd say this, listen to what Scottie Pippen has been saying. These guys are 2 different types of players in 2 different eras of the NBA, so they cannot be compared favorably. If we had done this in the past, why not bring guys like Bill Russell, George Mikan, Kareem Abdul Jabaar and Oscar Robertson, just to name a few legends, into the debate. Those guys are never brought up because of the eras they played in. So, like Pippen says, this whole MJ vs LeBron debate is moot. LeBron plays in a much softer, score as many points as you can and lets all be friendly era of basketball. Jordan played in a rough, gritty, knock you down and make sure you are hurt era of basketball. While I like the current NBA more than the 80's or 90's, I think there is no question that the 80's or 90's was tougher, with better players. Names from that era include Jordan, Pippen, Ewing, Isaiah Thomas, Joe Dumars, Magic and Bird, Karl Malone and John Stockton and Reggie Miller. If I'm not mistaken, all of those guys are in the Hall of Fame. And while there are great players now, Steph, LeBron, KD, Westbrook, Dwayne Wade and Tim Duncan, they do not hold the same weight, not yet, as the guys I mentioned from the 80's and 90's. They are, without question, better players. And while the current guys can become great, none of them, and that includes LeBron, hold the same aura as these guys from the 20th century. I'd rather have any of those guys on my team than anyone from the 21st century of NBA basketball. Yeah, I said it. So we can throw the eras out of the conversation immediately. Also, if prime MJ played in this current age of the NBA, he would average anywhere between 50 and 60 points a game, easily. Imagine MJ, with all the restrictions on defense, and his will to get better, adding the three point shot to his game, how much he would dominate. He would absolutely be a killer right now in the NBA. No question about it.

When I sit down and really think about it, really hard, there is no way that LeBron is a better basketball player than MJ. I love LeBron. I think he is great. He is definitely top 5 of all time NBA players. He has had a monstrous, and highly successful career. He has molded his game and gotten better every year. He is like a fine wine, except better. The things he is doing right now, after 15 years in the league, is undoubtedly one of the best things I have ever witnessed. So yes, I realize his greatness, but he is no MJ. LeBron has gotten fat off of horrific competition. When you look at the "toughest" teams he has had to face, teams like the Pacers, led by Roy Hibbert, before Paul George was great, or the Celtics with the rotting corpses of KG and Paul Pierce, or a super young, not yet ready Thunder team, when they had Westbrook, KD and Harden, are all over it. This isn't nearly the competition that MJ had to face. He had Starks and Ewing and the Knicks led by Pat Riley. Or, earlier in his career, the Bad Boy Pistons led by Thomas and Dumars. Or the Lakers with Magic and Kareem and Byron Scott. He faced the likes of Barkley in the Finals with the Suns. He dominated the Jazz, led by Stockton and Malone. He had to beat up on the Trailblazers when people thought that Clyde Drexler was as good as him. He dominated the Sonics led by Shawn Kemp and Gary Payton. I mean come on, the competition is not even close. Jordan had the much stiffer players and teams he had to beat, and he not only beat them, he dominated them.

Which leads me to another reason why this isn't even a debate. LeBron is friends with every other current star. Sure, he may play tough when he blocked one of Steph's shots 2 years ago, but off the court, they are buddies. This I am sure of. He has also openly admitted that some of his best friends are Carmelo Anthony, Chris Paul, Chris Bosh and Dwayne Wade. In fact, I think the only guy he doesn't like is Dan Gilbert, and that is for good reason. I bet you he even thinks Lance Stephenson is an okay dude. MJ hated everyone, including his teammates. You may read that and think, well that makes him a miserable person. I see it differently. He expected the same amount of greatness out of his teammates, which was impossible, and not only wanted to beat his opponents, he wanted to embarrass them. He was a killer on the court through and through. He wasn't friends with Ewing or Malone. People say he and Charles Barkley were friends. I just think they gambled together. People say he was friends with Charles Oakley. No way. He just needed a body guard. Case in point of his need to embarrass players, look at the Dream Team, and what he did to Toni Kukoc in the 92 Olympics. Kukoc was the Bulls new guy that would usher in a new era of Bulls basketball, and not only did Jordan take this personally, but he convinced Pippen to as well. And boy oh boy did they dominate and frustrate Kukoc in the one meeting. It is a thing of beauty. So, while LeBron wants to befriend everyone, Jordan just wanted to win. I'll take the winner over the friendly guy any day.

Finally, back to the Pippen thing, they are 2 different types of players. LeBron wants to involve teammates and only take over when it is absolutely needed. LeBron also only goes hard on defense when there is an opportunity for a highlight play. LeBron whines a bunch, just like most other modern players, constantly to the refs. And LeBron, I say again, I think he is one of the greatest, might be the most uncoachable player in the history of the NBA. LeBron is more Magic, but a better, and much, much bigger scorer. Jordan took over from the start. Jordan did everything on the floor. Jordan was a bulldog defender. Jordan, while he veered from time to time, holds Phil Jackson and Doug Collins in high regard. But most importantly, Jordan never lost when it mattered the most. He was undefeated in the Finals. He won those Finals for the Bulls. He was the guy they went to when they needed it most. He never took games, let alone plays, off. Jordan was the perfect basketball player.

This is a pointless debate started for pointless reasons. We all want to say that we saw the best, so we will hold onto anyone at the current moment that we might think is the best. Hell, I hear people now saying that Mike Trout is the greatest baseball player ever. Slow down on that. I also hear that LeVeon Bell is the best running back ever in the NFL. Or even crazier, back to basketball, that Steph or Westbrook are the greatest point guards ever. That is all nonsense. Maybe my kids will look back and think that LeBron was the best ever, but I know that Jordan is, was and always will be the best NBA player ever. There is no debating this.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing, the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast, and the greatest basketball writer on all the internet. He also does think it is awesome how LeBron handled the MAGA hat wearing douche in his last game.

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Sorry Jordan, LeBron is Way Better than Kobe

This past week Michael Jordan has been talking a whole lot to the media. Over the last week, Jordan has talked to the media more than he did for the majority of his professional career. I've got to say, I love that he is finally being outspoken, especially when it comes to all things basketball. He is the GOAT, so his knowledge and criticism and "hot takes" on the game, I believe and agree with mostly.

For instance, that dumbass Lavar Ball being the typical blowhard that he is, claimed he could beat MJ in one on one. He has said this about other former players, most notable Charles Barkley, and of course he is extremely out of his lane. If he thinks he could score one single point against Jordan, he is clearly crazy. I love that Jordan came back and said that he could beat him one legged. I would go so far as to say that Jordan could beat him even if he had no use in his legs, had his right arm tied behind his back and he gave Ball a 10-0 advantage in a game to 11. Jordan would not only beat him, he would physically and emotionally hurt him. It would be a massacre. And for Ball to say that he and his son Lonzo could beat Jordan and one of his sons in 2 on 2, again I say, shut your god damn mouth. Jordan would again own the elder Ball, and because they are Michael Jordan's kids, they have that killer instinct, and while they may not be as talented as Lonzo, they would get in his and his father's head, and they would win easily. As Omar said, "you come at the king, you best not miss". Michael Jordan would own him, and I'm glad he let that be known to the world.

Jordan did say something else this week that I have to say, I disagree with him. This is a very rare thing for me, because, as I stated earlier, I agree with pretty much everything MJ does and says. He was asked in some interview earlier this week if he thought Kobe Bryant was a better player than LeBron James. He thought about it and said that he thinks Kobe is the better player because, "there is something about 5 rings compared to 3".

Now, right off the bat, I disagreed with him. If we are going strictly off championships, and I have been on record many, many times saying that I think Jordan is the greatest basketball player ever, and one of the greatest athletes ever, then that makes Bill Russell the best basketball player ever. He has 11 titles. No one is even close to that, including Jordan. Also, again going on rings, that would mean that Robert Horry is just as good as Jordan and Scottie Pippen. Now, I love Bill Russell, and he is maybe the 3rd or 4th greatest player ever, but he is nowhere near the player that Jordan was, and I think, if they played in the same era, Jordan would have smoked him. And with Robert Horry, come on. He is a great clutch shooter, the best in my opinion, but he is not even on Kobe or even guys like Russ, KD and Kawhi's level. But, he has those rings.

Looking at other sports too, does Jordan's comments mean that he thinks Eli Manning and Peyton Manning are better QB's because they have 2 Super Bowl rings as opposed to Aaron Rodgers one? Or, is Trent Dilfer a better QB than Dan Marino because he has a ring and Marino doesn't? Does this mean that Paul O'Neill is a better baseball player than Chipper Jones? Does this make David Freese better than Adrian Beltre? You cannot compare championships to how good a player is. I'd much rather have MJ than any other basketball player. I'll take Aaron Rodgers any day over any QB, including Tom Brady. Give me Chipper Jones and Adrian Beltre if I'm going to start a baseball team with those players in their primes.

Going back to the main reason for this blog, lets compare Bryant to James. For me, LeBron is the far superior player in every facet of the game. LeBron, while being uncoachable at times, and a hard guy to play with, when you gain his trust, he believes in you no matter what. This is a dude that will put his full faith in someone with championships on the line. He doesn't always have to be the reason the team is a winner. The same cannot be said about Bryant. It always had to be about him. The Lakers were only good when he was good if you ask him. Never mind how badly he crippled that team 3 years ago, he still felt that he was great, even though his game clearly deteriorated. As a distributor and "point guard" of the team and focal point of the offense, again, James by a landslide. He is so good at finding the open player, attacking the rim and running the offense. The only thing Kobe has on LeBron here is a jump shot, but I'd rather have a 6'9 280 lb force attacking the rim than a 6'6 200 lb pound jump shooter any day. The only players that I think "see" the game the way LeBron does is Jordan and Magic. As far as defense, LeBron is way, way, way better on that end of the floor. He is one of the better chase down shot blockers ever, and he usually guards the opponents best player, or at least their best offensive player. Kobe Bryant was a fake All Defense performer. They just put him on the team to pet his ego. He is, in my opinion, one of the most overrated defenders to ever play in the NBA. LeBron, when locked in, is one of the better defensive players in the NBA. Finally, when it comes to durability, LeBron wins this one again by a landslide. He NEVER gets hurt. It is amazing how healthy he has ben his whole career. He has never, ever had a horrible injury. Some say it may be PED's, I just think he keeps himself in tremendous shape. We all saw how Kobe Bryant's career ended. Two torn ACL's, and many ankle sprains and bruised ego's throughout his whole career.

When you really break it all down, LeBron James is far and away the better player between the 2. I think Jordan is the greatest ever, obviously. LeBron is somewhere in my top 5, possibly top 3. Bryant, he is outside my personal top 10. He is very far behind MJ, LeBron, and even guys like Tim Duncan and Kevin Garnett, Shaquille O'Neal and Hakeem Olajuwon. I also think guys like KD, Steph, Kawhi, Russ and even someone like Giannis Antentekoumpo are going to surpass him in the very near future. So while MJ is right on almost everything, he is wrong about the Kobe vs LeBron debate. LeBron is much, much better.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing, the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast, and the greatest basketball writer on the internet. 

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LeBron Will Never, Ever, Be as Good as Jordan.

Today was supposed to be about how dominant both the Warriors and Cavs have looked so far in the playoffs. Granted, they're both going to meet in the Finals for a third time, but the Cavs, and LeBron, laid a total egg last night. Let's talk about it.

LeBron had 11 points after going for 30 plus in 9 straight games. He just flat out disappeared last night. Sure, he wasn't needed in the first half, the Cavs were up by as many as 21 points. Kevin Love was hitting threes, Kyrie was making jumpers and getting to the rim and Thompson was out rebounding everyone. Then, the third quarter happened. Yes, the Celtics started making shots and playing very good defense, but where in the world was LeBron?

This is why I don't think LeBron will ever surpass Michael Jordan as the GOAT. Jordan never disappeared like LeBron always seems too, especially in the playoffs. This isn't a one time thing with LeBron either. He's been in the league for 14 years, and there's been multiple times that he just seems out of it or even disinterested. He's an incredible, wonderful, awesome basketball player, but sometimes, he just doesn't feel like playing. That's a problem when you want to be the best. Try to find one time Jordan had moments, in the playoffs, where he just decided to mail it in. He not only never had these moments, he only ever thrived. Even when the Bulls weren't the dynasty Bulls, he still showed out. He was the guy that put up 63 in Boston Garden against a vaunted Celtics team, led by Larry Bird. He came to play every night against the "Bad Boys" Pistons team, no matter how many times they put him on the floor, cheap shot or not. Jordan not only gavemaximum effort always, he also wanted to destroy you.

LeBron doesn't seem to have that side to him. He is fake tough when he wants to be. Jordan was real tough and dominant. LeBron is the best player now, but he has too many friends in the league. No one was Jordan's friend, especially on the court. Jordan was never hugging other players and high fiving opponents before and after games. He wanted to rip their throats and then stomp on them. LeBron, and most modern stars, are too friendly.

That is another reason there will never be another MJ. Jordan is the best. LeBron's performance last night further proved that to me. Like I said at the top, I was ready to heap a ton of praise on him. He looked locked in like never before, which is saying something for him. He was demoralizing everyone in his path. He was ruthless. But, we got fake tough, whiny, disinterested LeBron last night, and that stinks. Look, the Cavs are still going to beat the Celtics, probably in 5 games, but that performance by him left a bad taste in my mouth. LeBron is great, probably top 5 ever. But, if he continues to have games like last night in the playoffs, he will never surpass Jordan. Jordan is the best, and the most ruthless. LeBron is incredible, but he comes and goes as he wishes, and he's too friendly to be the best.

The fact are as follows, LeBron is still incredible, but he's not Michael Jordan, and he never will be.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing, the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast, and the greatest basketball writer on the internet. 

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

Lavar Ball, Terrible Sports Father, Needs to Shut the Hell Up

Please Lavar Bell, stop talking

I'm a basketball fan. You all know this by now. I'm also a coach/instructor as well. You all already know this too. So, what really gets me angry is a mom or dad who thinks that their child is so superior to someone else's child, and they are very vocal about it.

Look, I'm a dad and I want what is best for my kids and I think my kids are very athletic, but I'm not loud and brash about it. The same cannot be said for Lavar Ball though. Now, I'm not blaming the kids at all in my piece today. The three kids involved cannot be blamed for their father's words and actions. In fact, I think Lonzo Ball has proven that he is a fantastic basketball player. He has exploded for UCLA this year and has made them relevant again. He has awesome court vision, is a great set up shooter and loves the game. Lonzo Ball is awesome. But, for his father to come out and say that he is better, and will be better than Steph Curry, is ludicrous.

Steph Curry was great in college and is one of the three best players in the NBA. He is unequivocally the best shooter I have ever seen in my lifetime. He is a multiple MVP winner. He has an NBA title. I mean, Steph Curry is a once in a generation player. Now, that is not to say that Lonzo Ball cannot get to that level, I personally think he will be a very good pro, but I do not think he will even scratch the surface to being half as great as Steph Curry is. Curry is a Hall of Famer. I'll put that in writing right now. We do not yet know with Lonzo Ball.

Ball is a great college basketball player, but so was Adam Morrison, and that is who I think of when I watch Lonzo Ball now. Morrison was incredible in college. He was such a phenomenal scorer and producer for Gonzaga while he was there. He was the "guy". He was who the team looked to when they needed a big play. Then, after three flops in the tournament, Morrison was a top 3 pick. From there on out, he was a terrible pro. I mean, he was very, very bad. He never got up to speed in the NBA. He was always a step too slow. He lost his shot. Sure, he has a couple of titles, but it is because he was fortunate enough to be on the Lakers bench, as the 11th or 12th man, when they had Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol and an engaged Andrew Bynum. I hope for Lonzo Ball's case he doesn't have the same fate. I hope he is a great pro and has a long and illustrious career. I genuinely enjoy watching him play basketball. I also really liked watching Adam Morrison when he was in college.

For Lavar Ball to say that his son is better than Steph puts so much undue pressure on his son, and it is incredibly unfair to him. I get that he is his kid and he pumps his child up, but in this day and age you have to watch what you say. This is just ridiculous. Like I said, I do not blame Lonzo Ball at all for this, this is all on his father for being a loud mouth, brash, arrogant and selfish stage dad. I thought he would have backed off after saying this nonsense, but he has only gotten worse from there.

Recently one of his sons, who is a sophomore, scored 90 plus points in a game. That's wonderful, but when they showed the highlights, the kid played no defense and just kept letting it fly. I have coached kids like this, that just want to shoot the ball and do nothing else, and for the most part, it is due to a parent yelling from the sidelines for their kid to do nothing but shoot. Basketball is more than just offense. Yes, you need to put the ball in the basket, but you also have to give effort on the other end. That is how guys like Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Bill Russell, Scottie Pippen, Klay Thompson and Kawhi Leonard have become great pros. They all worked extra hard on both ends. Putting up 30, 40, 50 and even 60 points sometimes doesn't matter if they gave minimal effort on defense, and their team loses. But, Lavar Ball made sure to let the world know that his 16 year old son scored 90 plus points in a game, and that he was the next big thing.

I have read and heard too many stories about kids that are going to be the next big thing that never pan out. I read the Lamelo Ball story, and I immediately thought of guys like Freddy Adu, Felipe Lopez and Darius Miles. They were going to be the next great stars. They were going to strike it rich and have long and fruitful careers. Well, Adu is playing soccer somewhere over seas I think, Felipe Lopez flamed out in college, and the last thing I heard about Darius Miles, he was detained at Lambert Airport in Saint Louis for possession of an illegal firearm. These stories are way more common than say a LeBron James or Bryce Harper story.

To make matters even worse, Lavar Ball recently said that he wants a one billion dollar shoe deal for all three of his sons. First off, he said billion, not million. Who does he think he is? This is asinine. No one has a one billion dollar shoe deal, except LeBron James, and that is a lifetime deal. Lavar Ball has one son that is a surefire NBA player, Lonzo, but what if Lamelo and LiAngelo don't make it? What if they can't cut it in college? Or, if they make it to the pros, what if they turn out to be like Austin Rivers, Jimmer Fredette or, the previously mentioned Adam Morrison. At least Rivers is still in the NBA, but no shoe company is clamoring for his endorsement. This is just flat out nuts to demand this type of money. I wouldn't go near this family with a ten foot pole if I were Nike, Under Armor, Adidas, Reebok or any other big time shoe company. These kids have no guarantee that they will be super stars. They are not LeBron or MJ or Barkley or anyone else that has/had a major shoe deal.

I must say this again, I wish nothing but the best for the kids. But, their father is out of line. What makes Lavar Ball the worst though was his most recent statement. He recently said that he would have "cooked" Michael Jordan in a game of one on one back in his day. This is the same Lavar Ball that played one year of division one basketball at Washington State and averaged 2 points a game. During that very same season, Jordan was averaging 30 plus points a game in the NBA for the Bulls. Ball said he would've "backed him down, called every foul and make Jordan shoot jumpers", and he would have beaten him. This is just flat out stupid. This would be like me saying that I could beat Lavar Ball in one on one in my heyday. I'm a pretty good rec league and pick up basketball player, but I did not play in college, barely played in high school and I am way out of shape. Lavar Ball would crush me in one on one. He was good enough to play college basketball. I was barely good enough to play high school basketball. So, for him to think he could, not just make it a game, but beat Michael Jordan one on one is just ridiculous. Not only would Jordan beat him, he would shut him out and clown him anyway that he pleased. He could toy with him, shoot jumpers if he wanted, then take him to the basket with ease. Jordan is so competitive too, that he wouldn't even make it fun for Lavar Ball. He would want to kill him, not just in the game, but emotionally as well. I love that Charles Barkley came out recently and challenged Lavar Ball to a game of one on one. This is the most egregious comment, of many, that Lavar Ball has made.

I'll say it one more time. I do not blame the kids for their father's words. He is a blowhard and a loud mouth. It would be best for him and his family to just be happy that his kids colleges are basically paid for, and that he may have one or more kids good enough to be in the NBA. But, I'm sure he will say something else very dumb during the tournament. He cannot seem to help himself.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He thinks parents that yell at their children during sports events must be the best parents ever. Why else would they make themselves the center of attention at a child's event? Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

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Give it Up Tim Tebow

Tebow is not getting to first base anytime soon

Why won't Tim Tebow just give up, and give in to the fact that he is destined to be a commentator on ESPN for the rest of his life? He is very good at doing that, or hosting shows that have to do with pumping people up. Basically, he is a good looking young man, that had his shot at the NFL, couldn't cut, but has found something that he really thrives at doing. He is really, really good on TV, much to my surprise.

With the news that he is going to be holding a workout for 20 MLB teams this week, he still hasn't given up on his pro sports dream. There are many, many problems with his new plan to become a pro baseball player. First off, as I have already stated, he is great on TV. He exudes charm and professionalism while doing television spots, or talking college football. I do not like Tim Tebow, the person, at all, but damn, he is good on TV. He should just stick with that. He is really good. Next, he hasn't played competitive baseball since he was in high school. Sure, he was a decent high school player, he hit over .400, and had some power, but, I played with kids at my high school, who had no shot at the pros, that were much, much better baseball players than Tim Tebow. High school baseball is not that tough. you have to be incredibly good, Bryce Harper good, in high school, to be considered a top prospect that can make the majors at a very young age.

This leads me to the next problem with Tebow and playing pro baseball, he is 29. I know that is young in regular life, but in pro sports, that is ancient. Sure, baseball players can play well into their late 30's and early 40's, but the guys that have careers that last that long, they have been playing professionally since they were in their early 20's. Late 20's, early 30's in baseball, that is getting near the twilight of your career. Take Albert Pujols for example. When he broke into the majors, he was considered an older rookie, at 21 years old. Sure, he proceeded to be dominant for the next ten years, but when he left the Cardinals for the Angels, at 31, his career has fallen on harder times. He is not the feared hitter he was when he was younger. He was only 2 years older than Tebow is right now before his career kind of started to break down. Pujols is an all time great, but he is 36, and many people consider him past his prime. Hell, they considered him past his prime when he was 32 or 33, only three years older than Tebow currently is. Why would a team want to take a chance on a guy that may only give them one, two years tops, of good baseball.

Another player to look at, one that may not be as famous, or as respected as Pujols, Ryan Howard. Here's another 36 year old player, that was great for one or two years, in his early 20's, that has fallen off the map. He doesn't have really what it takes to be as feared as he once was. He gave the Phillies three great years, but after getting hurt, and older, he is not the same. His best days were in his mid 20's. He was younger than Tebow when he was mashing the ball, but now, he just doesn't have it.

That is just 2 examples of players that were great when they were younger than Tebow currently is, that have fallen on rough times. You could even look at some other people that have tried the whole crossover from one pro sport to another. Michael Jordan comes to mind first. He is the greatest basketball player of all time, but he could not hack it in double A baseball. He barely hit over .200, and he went back to basketball ASAP. Russell Wilson, who was drafted out of high school to pro baseball, also couldn't hack it in double A, hitting in the low .220's. Deion Sanders was great at football, and he was decent at baseball, gaining the leadoff spot for a pretty good Braves team in the 90's, but he was not nearly as good at baseball as he was football. He was also much younger when he played both sports professionally. The most famous person, that was successful at playing two pro sports at a very high level, was Bo Jackson. Tim Tebow is not even close to being anywhere near Bo Jackson's athleticism, and he never will be.

Basically, this all seems to be a publicity stunt, or he just won't let this dream of being a pro athlete die. He had his chance at pro football, and he couldn't cut it. He couldn't make the reads, the throws or run an offense the way it needs to be run professionally. Sure, he may be better than some teams second and third string QB's currently, but no NFL team is going to give a 29 year old washed out, spread option QB, that can't throw, a contract. It's not happening. And with the MLB, I mean, who is going to sign a guy that is almost 30? You don't sign with a team and then immediately become a pro, unless you are Robin Yount or Ken Griffey Jr, both hall of famers. You have to go through the minors. You have to take your lumps, and if you are lucky, you get called up after two or three years of bouncing around on buses and staying in dingy motels. I don't think Tebow can handle, or even wants to handle, that lifestyle. He is used to the finer things in life now. He had his shot, and he had a very short career in the NFL, but he made it.

I know hundreds of thousands of people that would give an arm to have his NFL career. He needs to let the dream die. No GM in the MLB will sign him. He is too old and too much of a distraction. Major league baseball likes to draft young kids, usually 18, 19 or 20, and let them grow in their minor leagues system, and then bring them in the pros when they are 21 or 22. That's how it goes.

Sorry Tim Tebow, but your pro sports window has passed, and just let the dream die. Pro baseball is not happening for you.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He once held an open workout for professional soccer. The problem was not Ty's age, it was the fact he did not like soccer and therefore was not good. Follow Ty on twitter @tykulik.

The Thunder are Winning by Taking Draymond Green Out of the Series

Basketball shoes were designed for running, not kicking

I am sure many of you NBA fans all think Draymond Green should be suspended for kicking Steven Adams in the crotch during game three of the Western Conference Finals last night. I agree that Green should miss at least one game, he totally did it on purpose, just look at the follow through after the foul was called, but I'm not going to write about why I think he should be suspended, I'm going to write about how, for the very first time in his young career, Draymond Green is being over matched and having a difficult time guarding multiple positions, which he has done so well since the Warriors emerged as the best team in the NBA.

Guarding multiple positions was Draymond Green's thing. He could go out and guard the point and 2 guards, then use his muscle to guard bigger opponents. He made Mozgov obsolete in the Finals last year. Green has shut down guys like Anthony Davis, Tim Duncan, Blake Griffin, Kevin Love and many other big men. He has also had some success against smaller guys like Kawhi Leonard, Damien Lillard and Jimmy Butler. Basically, when he was asked to guard someone, he found some way to stop them, no matter if they were bigger and stronger or shorter and faster.

Part of what made him successful at doing this was his mouth. Teams need players like that if they are going to contend. Everyone has that one player that is a great trash talker. Sometimes its' the best player on the team, like the Bulls dynasty. No one was a better trash talker than Michael Jordan. Sometimes it's the second best player on the team, like the 90's Sonics and Gary Payton. He was a world class trash talker. There's also guys like Kevin Garnett, Wilt Chamberlin, Bill Russell, the list could go on and on. That was one thing that Draymond Green has that has set him apart, but there is something about this Thunder team, and mainly Steven Adams, that Draymond Green cannot figure out, and he is letting his frustration boil over, and it is making him play way below his skill level.

Now, I, like almost everyone else, enjoy this Warriors team, with Green being the lone exception. I think he is in the perfect situation for his skill set. Had he left this team last year in free agency, he'd be a marginal all star, at the very best. But, I'm a Thunder fan through and through. That is my team. I have mentioned multiple times that I was a Sonics fan as a kid and I followed the team when they moved to Oklahoma City. So, the fact that one of their players, who is not an offensive threat by any stretch of the imagination, is getting in Draymond Green's head, that makes me very happy. Steven Adams has lodged a permanent spot in Green's brain, and no matter how many times he tries to say it doesn't bug him, just watch the way Green carries himself on the court when Adams is out there, it's affecting him. Draymond Green has been more whiny and way less effective on defense every time that Adams steps onto the court. This all started in game one when Green was ice cold from the field and OKC switched every pick and roll. They basically let Green stay wide open if he was more than 10 feet from the hoop, and that clearly bothered Green. He was a non factor in game one, but the moment he hit one three on Adams in game two, he was yelling and screaming in Adams face. He had given some cheap shots in the first two games of the series as well.

Green, in my opinion, thinks he has to have the biggest bark because it will scare these bigger, slower, non offensive threat guys into turnovers. Well, the opposite has happened with Adams. Steven Adams has looked incredible in this series so far. He isn't scoring at some high clip, but he is rebounding, playing tremendous defense and he is in Draymond Green's head. Steven Adams is doing to Green what Green has done to other guys that are much better than Steven Adams. Last night was the big indicator that Green is playing mad, and that makes him play poorly. When Green went up for that shot, he was clearly fouled, but I think he figured he could get a cheap shot in, a la Kobe Bryant flaling his legs on every jumper he ever took. When Green followed through and kicked Adams squarely in the balls, I was at first doubled over in pain myself because that looked like it hurt like hell, but being an OKC fan, I was happy because I knew that Green would be off his game the rest of the night. To kick someone in the balls, that is defenseless, that is about as low class as you can get in the NBA, And his nonsense about not doing it on purpose that he has been spewing today, stop it with that. We all saw it and no one follows through unless they are intending to hurt someone. I'd have so much more respect for him if he just admitted he did it on purpose, but we know that won't happen.

After the incident last night, Draymond Green, and the Warriors for that matter, were toast. at that point, it was a 10 point game, but the Thunder never looked back after that. And to prove the fact that Adams and the incident are still affecting Green, look at his performance the rest of game three. Every time he rolled on the Warriors deadly pick and roll play, he either blew a layup, was blocked or was complaining to officials that he was fouled. There was one instance where he rolled, got the ball and Durant, who is not known for his defensive presence, jumped straight up in the air and nearly pinned the ball on the backboard. Then, to make matters worse for Green, with his team down by what seemed a million before halftime, he had one of the worst shooting fouls I have ever witnessed in a basketball game. Russell Westbrook threw up a three quarters court shot with less than 2 seconds left and Green barreled into him like it was game seven of the finals and they needed the ball back. Westbrook stepped to the line and buried all three free throws to put OKC up by 25 at halftime. In the second half Dion Waiters blew right by his defender, met Green at the hoop and dunked on his head. Dion Waiters posterized Draymond Green. That is a sentence I never thought I would write. Dion Waiters is a very average NBA player, and to dunk on someone that people consider to be one of the best defenders in the game right now, that is downright embarrassing.

I feel like it's a combination of a lot of things, but I think it mainly boils down to one simple fact, Draymond Green may not be this elite defender and one of the best players in the NBA. I know a lot of NBA writers, very respectable ones at that, think he is an MVP candidate, but he has looked very mediocre against a bigger, faster, stronger and more athletic team. He cannot bang with OKC's big men and he cannot guard their quicker players, they are too fast for him, even Dion Waiters. The Warriors need his best to beat OKC, and I think they still win this series, but if Green continues to play like he has, it will be very tough sledding for the real players that matter on the Warriors. And no, that list doesn't necessarily include Draymond Green. Not with the way he has played so far. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He knows bush league basketball because he has played in the rough and tumble world of rec league basketball for over a decade. Ty is on twitter, go follow him @tykulik.

Old NBA Players Need to Let the Warriors Play on the Lawn

Get rid of those peaches and Curry could still hit over 50% of his shots

Tracy McGrady, former NBA allstar, said on a recent episode of ESPN's "The Jump" that, Steph Curry being the first unanimous MVP just shows you how "watered down" the league has become. I've got a lot of problems with that statement.

First off, I love McGrady, the basketball player. He was explosive, athletic, a good jump shooter and one of the few prep to pros that had a very good, perhaps hall of fame career. But, why did he feel the need or urge to say this? Why condemn the greatest shooter of all time? Why do all the retired pros seem to hate this specific Warriors team? It doesn't begin and end with McGrady's criticism, many other hall of famers and legends have been very dismissive of this Warriors team and of Steph Curry. Oscar Robertson, possibly the greatest point guard of all time and the only player to ever average a triple double over a full season, doesn't think that they are as good as we all think they are. He seems to think, that had this team played during his era, they would have been average at best. I love you Oscar Robertson, but come on. This Warriors team is historically great. Scottie Pippen is another hall of famer that has brushed this team to the side, saying, that the 1995-96 Bulls would have swept them out of the playoffs. At least he put them in the playoffs, but a sweep, get out of here. The Warriors would win at least one game because Curry would put in 40 and Thompson would put in another 30 and Draymond is a more athletic version of Dennis Rodman, and he can score. No way a sweep happens. Sure, put Jordan on Curry, he'd have a tough time, but he would still make some shots. And yes, you could put Pippen on Thompson, but he would still find a way to get to the rim and that would open up driving lanes. But, who is going to guard Draymond Green, Andrew Bogut, Shaun Livingston, Andre Iguodala, Harrison Barnes, I mean, this Warriors team is loaded with depth, something the 95-96 Bulls didn't really have . So no, no way would it be a sweep. And Bill Wennington chiming in, echoing what Pippen said, shut your god damn mouth Bill Wennington. You were lucky to even be a part of such a great team. The Bulls could have, and did, see Luc Longley, win with basically anyone playing center. Hell, I could have played center on that Bulls team and they would have still been great. Bill Wennington is a blow hard. Screw him. He isn't 1/10 the player Bogut is, so he can shut the hell up.

Then there is my all time favorite basketball player. A man I adore and have tried to model my rec league game after. A player I have looked up to since I was in the 5th grade, Charles Barkley. He has not had one single nice thing to say about this Warriors team or Steph Curry. He has been anti Warriors since they ran through the playoffs and won a title last season. He said they didn't really earn the title because they didn't have to face anyone that was great or at full strength. I disagree strongly with that. He said that a jump shooting team could never have long term success in the NBA. The numbers clearly prove him wrong. He said that Curry was too little and too oft injured and would have never made it in his day. Well, Curry is lighting the league up now, and when he comes back from injuries, he looks even stronger and better, which I thought was impossible. The only reason he wouldn't have made it in the NBA in the 90's was because of how dirty and aggressive it was. I look back at 90's basketball, which I loved, my Sonics were legit, but it was brutal. There isn't a whole lot of highlights, unless you single out Jordan, unless it is a hard foul or some kind of brawl. The most "important" moments that are shown on highlight reels from the 90's is stuff like the big fight the Knicks and Heat had, when Jeff Van Gundy grabbed hold of Alonzo Mourning's leg. Or when Barkley got into it with any number of big time players. Or when John Stockton would set a screen and knee someone in the crotch. The list could go on and on and on with all the dirty stuff that went down in the NBA in the 90's, so yeah, maybe Barkley is right on Curry getting roughed up during his era. He was also on "PTI" recently and he said the only way that he would put this years Warriors team, the team that won 73 regular season games, in the annals of historically great teams, is if they win the title. That's fair, but he said they would only be the fourth best team of all time. He had the 96 Bulls, the 86 Celtics and some other team I can't remember ahead of this Warriors team. That's insane! They are historically the greatest regular season team of all time, statically too! They won 73 games! That will never happen again! I love you Charles Barkley, but you are wrong on this one.

The Warriors are a really, really great team. Hell, even LeBron James is trying to poke holes in this team because they are the talk of the league and not him. He said Curry deserved the MVP, but then posed the idea that the MVP isn't based on stats, but one players ability to make a team overachieve, as if to say, he obviously thinks he should be the MVP. Get the hell out of here with that nonsense. The older LeBron gets, the more crazy and more entitled and more prima donna he gets. LeBron is one of the greatest players of all time, but he is a spoiled rotten little brat. The attention isn't on him for once, so instead of using that as motivation, he complains to the media about what a real MVP means. What a punk. He is clearly an only child and he has clearly never been pushed aside like this on a basketball court. Get used to it LeBron, the Warriors are younger and better than you and the Cavs and it's going to be this way for a long time.

All this brings me back to McGrady's watered down quote. The league is not watered down. The NBA is as good as it has ever been right now. The games are exciting. The players are exciting. The players are relatable. The NBA is experiencing a huge boom right now and I think the retired players are a bit jealous. LeBron is jealous too. They all want to chime in with their two cents, but the fact remains, we will never know who would win or who could have also been unanimous MVP choices because all these players bitching and moaning are done playing or selfish assholes. The facts are there. The Warriors have the greatest regular season record of all time, no matter what Oscar Robertson, Tracy McGrady, Bill Wennington, Scottie Pippen, Charles Barkley or LeBron James says or thinks. Curry is, and will always be known as, the first ever unanimous MVP. No comments or jealously can take that away from him. The retired players need to let it go and get over it. I'm sick and tired of the whole, "back in my day" crap. Things evolve and change, it's a way of life. You can take it as it is, or you can complain. I choose to admire the Warriors and Steph Curry, it's way more fun.

One last thing, a lot of the retirees complaining about the Warriors and Steph Curry are all time greats, but I haven't heard the GOAT, Michael Jordan,say one bad thing or suggest that his teams would have beaten up this Warriors team. That's the true sign of a champion, he doesn't need to say things, he just does them. I wish these guys would take another lesson from Jordan and keep their mouths shut. One can dream.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. When he and the head editor play basketball, the game is quite dirty. They are both big, hairy, and sweat a lot. That is the recipe for smelly dirt. Follow Ty on twitter @tykulik.

Thank God the Kobe Era is Over

Tomorrow the Sun will rise on a better NBA

Ed Note: Check out Ty's initial reaction when Kobe announced he was going to retire.

Tonight marks the final game in the 18 year career of Kobe Bryant. Now, I'm not going to shower him with praise and talk about how great of a player he was, I'm going to do quite the opposite in fact. You may or may not have heard me already bash him on the mini podcast this morning, but in this blog, I'm going to really roast him.

Let's get the very few nice things I have to say about him out of the way first. Yes, he was a great scorer, top five all time perhaps. Sure, he won 5 championships. Yes, he was a multi all star and all NBA performer. And yes, he stuck with one team his entire career.

Now, thankfully that's all out of the way. I feel kind of dirty for saying anything nice at all, but it beared noting.

Time for the very long list of things I dislike about him and why I think he is one of the most overrated super stars of my generation. Let's start at the beginning. He declared for the draft straight out of high school the year after Kevin Garnett. First of all, I think he was mad that someone got to do that before him, but Garnett is one year older, so there was nothing he could do about that. But, it was the way he declared that has me dislike him right from the start. Bryant is only 4 years older than me, so when he declared, I was 14. The arrogance and cockiness with which he announced his decision was downright absurd. He acted like he was the best thing since sliced bread. Wearing sunglasses in doors and smiling like an asshole the whole time. What a douchebag. When Garnett declared, he seemed humble and happy at the opportunity. Not Bryant, he was cocky from the beginning.

Then, to have his agent tell teams he wouldn't work out for them, I mean, who in the hell does he think he is? He was an 18 year old that hadn't really done anything of note against any real competition. There is no way I would have drafted him based on that alone, but I would never draft a teenager, that's just me.

Then, the shadiness that went into him being drafted by Charlotte, then traded to the Lakers was beyond belief. If this kid was so good, how come 12 teams passed on him in the draft? The people who think that the draft lottery is fixed should definitely look at this moment as one of the catalysts.

Then, he gets in the league and is immediately upset at his lack of playing time on a perennial playoff contending LA Lakers team. I ask again, who in the hell did he think he was at 18? Veterans are going to get the minutes over a teenager on a good team. That's the way it has always been.

Then, when he did get his chance, he was a ball hog and a very porous shooter. He never looked for the open man, he only looked for his shot. He didn't care how the play was drawn up, he only cared if he got the shot. So, he was a terrible teammate from the moment he was drafted into the NBA.

Then, he did put in work to become a good scorer, but he didn't really focus on much else. I don't care what anyone at ESPN, Bleacher Report or Sports Illustrated says, he was not the leader and not the reason those Laker teams won titles. Had they not went out and acquired Shaq, and let Kobe be the leader, they would have been lucky to be a playoff team. Shaq made them a dominant force. But, was that good enough for Kobe, to be a multiple title winner? Of course not, because he was not the focal point of that team. The offense ran through Shaq and Kobe hated that. How selfish do you have to be, that you feud with, probably, the best center to ever play basketball? Why not just be happy to be the number two option on a perennial title contender? Kobe got dealt the best hand he could have ever imagined when the Lakers signed Shaq, but instead of being happy, he decided he wanted to feud. Kobe could never get along with Shaq, and that's a shame. As I stated, he was mad that Shaq was the man, but he also couldn't deal with the fact that everyone liked and knew that Shaq was a better player and teammate. This also drove him nuts, which, in turn, drove me nuts. He would openly complain about Shaq and Phil Jackson to the media. He would drag their names through the mud at any and every opportunity he got. What a childish act. Even when Bryant was accused of sexual assault, which I will touch on in a bit, he tried to turn the tables and say that Shaq fooled around too. Basically, he was DeAngelo Russell in the early 21st century. I mean, what a jerkoff.

Then, the front office gave in to their bratty, whiny star and traded Shaq away. Now, Kobe was the focal point of the team and guess what, the Lakers were mediocre at best. Sure, they'd win 43 or 44 games, but they never seemed to get out of the first round. Bryant proved he could not lead a team, no matter how many shots he took. But, some people will say, he won a title after Shaq left, but I will say, he didn't win until he got Pau Gasol, another top tier center. Bryant himself cannot lead a team to titles, he needs at least one other superstar. You know who never needed another star player to win titles, Michael Jordan. And, don't give me that whole Scottie Pippen is an all time great bull shit. Pippen, in the lone season where he was the main man on the Bulls, he sat out crucial moments in critical playoff games and the Bulls were very mediocre. Pippen may be the luckiest player to ever play in the NBA. Jordan was, and will always be, the GOAT. Kobe Bryant isn't a tenth of the player that Jordan was. Hell, I'd take Jordan right now before I'd take Kobe.

Then, after fracturing another relationship with another all star, Gasol left and the Lakers returned to mediocrity.

Then, the injuries started to pile up.

Then, the tanking began.

Then instead of taking a back seat to the new, younger nucleus, Bryant decided he needed to sign a two year extension that paid him 20 million a year. How did he expect to get this money and to get back to the playoffs, I will never know. He single handily crippled the Lakers franchise with this abomination of a contract. The Lakers couldn't go out and get the high profile player that Bryant needed if they wanted to compete again because Bryant's contract ate up all the extra cap space they might have had. They could get meetings, but they couldn't sign anyone worth noting. Yeah, they got Steve Nash, who was on the very back end of his career and rarely played, and yeah they got Dwight Howard, but he and Bryant feuded because Bryant seems to hate big men, but those teams were never very good.

Then, after Nash retired and Howard signed with the Rockets, the Lakers went into full tank mode, but they were still being led by Bryant. They tried to win again by drafting young talent, and boy has that planned completely backfired. Julius Randle broke his leg during his very first game as a rookie. We all know what's going on with DeAngelo Russell now. And who are they going to take this year? Either Ben Simmons, who may or may not be a head case, no one seems to know, or Brandon Ingram, who is good, but needs to gain weight and put in a lot of time to get used to the long NBA season. This team is a dumpster fire and it's because of Kobe Bryant. He is also, according to stats, which I don't usually care about, the worst shooter in the entire NBA this, his final season. And oh yeah, the Lakers are 16-65 at the moment. Tell me the last team led by Jordan that was under .500? None.

I cannot wait for tonight's game to be over so I can stop hearing about "Kobe's Farewell Tour". He stinks now and his team is historically bad. They are irrelevant. In a season where the Warriors should be the one and only story, Kobe Bryant has found a way to take that from them. He is selfish in every aspect of his life. The Warriors should be the top story on every sports news station, but when I turned on ESPN this morning, they were talking about Kobe's last game. They felt that a 16-65 Lakers team playing a 40-41 Utah Jazz team was a bigger story than the Warriors going for 73 wins tonight. What a crock of shit.

Bryant's terribleness goes beyond the court into his real life as well. As I said earlier, he was accused of sexual assault. First off, what kind of monster physically forces themselves on an unwilling person? The scum of the Earth only does stuff like that. Then, he admitted to having relations with this woman, but assured the media that it was consensual. Even if it was consensual, he was married at the time. So, that makes him a double scum bag. He allegedly forces himself on this woman and he is cheating on his wife at the same time. He is a real piece of human garbage. I know people will say stuff like, that's the past and he's made up for that, but you know who will never forget that day? The lady he may have forced himself on. She will always remember that, and that will always haunt her. He is also a terrible role model for his young teammates and young kids in general. He doesn't lead a team so much as he berates people who won't do things his way. He is, and always will be, selfish. He thinks his way is right, even though his way is ball hogging and yelling. I don't know of many athletes that get better or try harder when they get berated. That's not a quality teaching method.

Plus I cannot stand this whole "Kobe's Farewell Tour" and the #ThanksKobe bull shit. This farewell tour has been a giant jerk off session for his massive ego. He goes into visiting arenas, shoots 3 for 30, and visiting players shower praise on him. What a crock. He is way past his prime and he should have retired 5 years ago. Great players like Russell Westbrook, Kevin Durant, Chris Paul, LeBron James, they are all stroking his ego even more, telling him what a role model he's been to them. Bull shit. You guys would have been just fine had he been a run of the mill NBA player. Don't give in and tell him he is great, that's what he wants to hear. I also don't buy that he is some kind of nice person now either. He always has been and always will be a selfish asshole that only worries about how he looks. I guarantee if it were LeBron James and not Kobe Bryant retiring, Bryant wouldn't say one nice thing about James. He would not even open his mouth.

So, instead of lavishing him with praise like most other publications and websites will be, I'm going to say screw you Kobe Bryant. You have always been an ass, and you will always be an ass. You're an ungrateful piss ant that has never been satisfied with having the finest things in your life. You're a curmudgeon. You're a whiner. You're way past your prime. And you are no role model to me or my family. I'm glad I won't have to hear from you anymore after tonight. Good riddance and I hope you never resurface on a basketball court or an arena or on a television broadcast of any kind. I don't want to see your face or your overbite anymore. Goodbye forever.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture Editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. Do you have passion like Ty? Come write for us. Also make sure you follow Ty on twitter @tykulik. 

LeBron Keeps Himself from Being One of the Greatest Players of All Time

How can LeBron be unhappy in Cleveland?

I was reading stories on Bleacher Report and ESPN and SI.com yesterday, to make myself angry I'm sure, and I came across one where LeBron James said that he hopes one day in the future, he gets to play on a team with Dwayne Wade, Chris Paul and Carmelo Anthony. He said he wants to play with his friends and he feels that this ultra super team could be created with him taking a significant pay cut. He also seems to believe that they could play together for one or two years and win a ring or two. Then, I was watching "PTI", as I do everyday, and Kornheiser and Wilbon brought up this same topic and they had very differing ideas. Wilbon seems to think that this is totally okay and had no problem with it. Kornheiser was the total opposite. He said that LeBron is always looking for a better situation than he is currently in. He said that LeBron is never happy with his current team and he is always looking to pair with a super star or two.

I couldn't agree with Kornheiser more.

I know that Wilbon can't fully tell the whole story because he is, for the most part, a basketball writer and he has built relationships with these guys, but he is also, notoriously, very biased towards teams and players he likes personally. He won't say a bad word about Derrick Rose, Jahlil Okafor, anyone from Chicago really, and he won't talk bad about the Cubs, Blackhawks or Bulls, no matter how good or bad they are. He is a very, very biased journalist, and that shouldn't be how he carries himself in his profession. Kornheiser is also biased for any team from Washington, but at least he has the guts to call out super star players.

I totally agree with Tony Kornheider about LeBron and this current story. Why would he say something like this right before the playoffs? Each team has about 12 regular season games left and while he should be preparing to lead his team to the finals again, he is opining to play basketball with his friends. Also, since he returned to Cleveland two years ago, they have let him do whatever he wants to do. He wanted them to trade Anthony Bennett and Andrew Wiggins so he could play with Kevin Love. The front office obliged. He "wrote" some phony coming home letter, trying to win back the fans that burned his jersey when he first left. The front office and Sports Illustrated obliged. When he complained about Kyrie Irving not passing enough last year, he went out and passed up every shot to "prove" that he was the teams true point guard and then bad mouthed Kyrie Irving on Twitter the next day. The front office didn't say a word. When they made the finals last year, he couldn't say anything that wasn't glowing about Tristan Thompson, basically spitting in Kevin Love's face. The front office did nothing about this. This season, they started out 30-11, but LeBron was upset with David Blatt and he wanted his buddy, Tyronn Lue, to be the head coach. Within a week of LeBron openly complaining to the media, Blatt was fired. Once again, the front office obliged their star player. I remind you, Blatt helped lead this team to the finals last year and had a 30-11 record when he was let go. Lue hasn't really set the coaching world on fire, going something like 14-8 or 15-7. Those aren't Red Auerbach numbers by any standard. LeBron still goes out and openly complains to the media about Love and Irving daily. He claims it's hard to play with Love "clogging" the lane. Bull shit. Love just sits at the three point line while LeBron dribbles for 20 seconds and shoots. He complains that Irving isn't a true point guard. Sure, he doesn't pass all that much, but he is a phenomenal ball handler and a great scorer. Also, LeBron, you wanted these two guys. You told the front office to keep Irving and to go out and trade for Love. It was your idea. He then had the front office get rid of Anderson Varejo, sign Tristan Thompson to a max contract, trade for Channing Frye, re up Matthew Dellavedova and not worry about the draft. But, none of that was good enough for him because they didn't sign Joe Johnson after the Nets bought him out. He really wanted Joe Johnson, and he let the media know it.

So, in less than two years, he has gotten his way, like a spoiled rotten little brat, but he still isn't happy with what he has created. I'm not the first, and I won't be the last to say it, but he is the star player, coach and GM of the Cavs. When they do all this, at his beck and call, it makes him the guy pulling all the strings. Don't get me wrong, I think LeBron is one of the greatest players of all time. He is a champion, multiple MVP winner and will go down as one of the best of all time. But, since his return to Cleveland, I'm beginning to believe that he is a whiner, a prima donna and possibly, the most uncoachable player of all time. Then, this story comes out. Sure, it sounds nice, but I guarantee, within two months, he would be unhappy with his role on this super team. He would clash with Chris Paul because they are both ball dominant players. They both need the ball in their hands at crucial moments. Paul is also very hard headed and would definitely fight with LeBron. He is very old, in basketball terms, right now too. Carmelo Anthony is a ball hog and has proven that he can't come up in clutch moments. This would drive James nuts. I also think the amount of iso ball and threes that Anthony takes would take it's toll on James very, very quick. He has already played with Wade, and they won two championships, but he was old during their last trip to the finals as teammates, and he would be extremely old if they team up again. Wade is also only good for about 50 quality games nowadays, so just imagine how few games he would be able to give his all in a couple of years. This all sounds good and well to James now, but I know he would get frustrated and fed up quicker than he has in his return to Cleveland.

What it all sums up to, I'm sick of James complaining and blaming everyone else for the faults of the team he has personally created. Quit opining for stars and deal with the hand you picked. Sorry that the Warriors and Spurs are historically good and one thousand times better than your Cavs team, but these are the guys you wanted. And stop saying this stuff to the media because it opens you up for criticism, which you don't handle well. Stop bitching and moaning like a baby and be happy that you get to play a game for a living and you make millions upon millions of dollars doing it. You also already have two rings. Charles Barkley would trade his whole career away for one of those rings. Also, Michael Jordan never openly complained about his teammates and he also won with guys like Steve Kerr, Bill Wennington and Luc Longley. Jordan would never want to make a super team just to win a title, he would will lower level pros up to his level and win with them. This complaining and whining is why you will never be as good as Jordan. This current story also proves why you will never be at Jordan's level. You are a great, great player, but you are also a world class whiner and you always think the grass is greener elsewhere. It's very off putting.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. His basketball knowledge was acquired through years of rec league trash talk. Follow Ty on twitter @tykulik.

Ty's Mount Rushmore of Sports Greats

I was also quite the athlete back in 1760's

Much like my previous Mount Rushmore of Comedians blog I did a few weeks ago, today I'm going to do something similar, but I'm going to talk about my four sports idols. I'm going to do one player from baseball, basketball, football and college football. College basketball, with the lone exception of the Fab five, whom I love, no one single player has left a lasting impression on me. Same with hockey, which I know absolutely nothing about and soccer, which I also know nothing about. I know how to play both sports, but I never really watched hockey or soccer on a regular basis. In fact, I never watched hockey or soccer ever, they just aren't my thing. But, basketball, baseball, football and college football are my thing. I love all four of them and there has definitely been multiple players that have left long lasting impressions on me. It was really tough for me to pick out four single players, but I trudged through and figured it out.

Are you ready? Here it goes. 

Let's start with major league baseball. So, my favorite player of all time is Jackie Robinson, but I never saw him play. I was born in 1982 and all I know about Jackie Robinson is the history and how truly great of a player he was. But I was around and I watched Tony Gwynn play a ton of baseball. I am a Cardinals fan, but I'm a bigger Tony Gwynn fan. He is the best hitter that I have ever watched. His approach at the plate was like no one else. He had 20/10 vision and he could literally see the seams on the ball, making it easy for him to pick what pitch was coming at him. He could spot a 90 mile per hour fast ball as easily as he could spot a 75 mile an hour curveball. He regularly hit .350 to .375 every season he played. He even flirted with .400 many times during his career. You could also mark it down in pen that he would get, at least, 200 hits every season. He was a pretty decent outfielder as well. He was great at tracking fly balls and he had a pretty above average arm. Sure, he played right field, but in the pros, right field is just as tough as any other outfield position. When I got to see Tony Gwynn play live it was always a teaching moment for my father, who was also my little league coach. He had me watch Tony Gwynn more than any other baseball player I can remember. My dad used to tell me how great of a hitter he was and that it was important for me to watch how he played the game. Tony Gwynn was the consummate pro. He never got involved in off field stuff and he was always looked at as a great teammate and a great player. Tony Gwynn is in my personal top ten of all time great baseball players. He doesn't get the credit he deserves, but he is an all time great, no matter what anyone says.

When it comes to basketball, the best player and my favorite player is Charles Barkley. I know this is a departure from the soft spoken and humble Tony Gwynn, but I love Charles Barkley and I've tried to model my game after him since I was 10 years old. He is an undersized, a little overweight power forward that rebounded and scored with the best of them. When he came in the league with the 76ers, when they were actually competent, he got to learn from the great Daryl Dawkins. That was a great mentor for him to have. Then, when he ended up in Phoenix, his career took off. This was when I really started to love the way Barkley played. He was brash, he was arrogant, but he was great. His matchups with the Bulls and Michael Jordan were epic. They would trade points and the games were always close, but he could never get over the hump. That was not for lack of effort, the Bulls were just the better team. Charles Barkley became a legit star when he was in Phoenix. While he was a Sun, that was when he did his whole "I'm not a role model" campaign for Nike. While that commercial made my friends dislike Barkley more than they already did, my love for him grew from there. This was the one time in my life that I can say that I liked the arrogance that an athlete was putting out there, and even though he didn't want to be a role model, he became an even bigger role model to me. I even love him now on his NBA show on TNT. He is the best basketball commentator on the best pre and post game basketball show on TV right now. Not only did I love Barkley as a player, but I like him even more as a TV personality. It gets no better than Charles Barkley for me.

When it comes to NFL football, I'm going to go back to a player with humility and who was/is very humble. The best offensive football player that I have ever watched, and he is one of my all time favorite players, is Barry Sanders. When I was a kid, I was still a Packers fan, but I loved watching Barry Sanders more than any player the Packers threw out there. Barry Sanders was the most athletic and the most graceful athlete, with Bo Jackson maybe being the lone exception and challenger, that I have ever watched. Barry Sanders made a three yard run more exciting than anyone else going for a 90 yard TD run. He would be stopped behind the line for a 6 yard loss, break multiple tackles and make multiple moves, run up field and get 3 yards and it was thrilling. When Sanders was in his prime, he was the Lions offense. Sure, they had Herman Moore and Scott Mitchell, but who really remembers those two guys? That Lions team was all about Barry Sanders. He never had the help he needed, but he made the Lions a perennial playoff team and guided them to at least 10 wins a year. I would stop everything I was doing, be it playing outside or playing video games or playing baseball, basketball or football with my friends, whenever Barry Sanders was on. He was must watch TV. And talk about being a humble pro. He never celebrated or did dances or put the spotlight on himself. He'd get a thirty yard gain and walk back to the huddle and get ready for the next play. He'd score a TD and he'd hand the ball to the officials and high five his teammates. He was the epitome of how to play the game and act like you've been there before. I love Barry Sanders. The day he retired, at the absolute prime of his career, I was shocked. I thought it was a joke or a hoax. He couldn't really be leaving football, he was just about to break the all time rushing record and he was the best in the game. But, he really walked away, never to return. I give him credit now, walking away without any serious injuries and his mind still fully intact, but at the time, I was upset. I felt robbed of seeing, at least, 10 more years of great football from Barry Sanders. But, he did the right thing for himself and his family and I understand that now. Barry Sanders in the greatest running back of all time, in my opinion.

Now, we get to my absolute favorite sport and my absolute, unquestioned favorite player of all time. The sport is college football and the player is Charles Woodson. I've written a whole lot on the site about Woodson, but he is the greatest football player I've ever seen, especially when he was at Michigan. I have a ton of all time favorite Wolverines. Guys like David Harris, Jarret Irons, Anthony Thomas, Tim Biakabutuku, Brian Griese, Marlin Jackson, Mercury Hayes, Tai Streets, I could go on and on and on, but no one is better than Charles Woodson. He was the best. His covering skills are unmatched. Teams purposefully threw away from him because he could pick off anything. Go back and look at that interception he had at Michigan State, the one handed one, it's incredible. While he was a lock down corner, he was also an electrifying kick returner and receiver. He could take a punt to the house at any time, look at the 1996 game against OSU, and he was a great over the middle receiver, look at that 96 OSU game again or earlier that season against PSU. He was just phenomenal. He is also the only primarily defensive player to win the Heisman. The day he won the Heisman, Michigan basketball, led by Louis Bullock and Robert Traylor, upset number one Duke and it was my birthday. It was a great birthday and a great day to be a Wolverines fan. Charles Woodson was also just a good guy. He was a great teammate, a great player and a great representative of Michigan football. He is the best defensive football player that I've ever seen and when he was starring at Michigan, that's when my true love for them really, truly started. Charles Woodson was the catalyst. I love absolutely everything about Charles Woodson. Of the four athletes I've mentioned, Woodson is number one and the first face that would get carved into my personal Mount Rushmore.

So there you have it, my Mount Rushmore of pro and college athletes. There's a lot of other people I could have mentioned, but these are the four that stood out to me. These are the four best, and my favorite, athletes in what I consider the four major sports.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture Editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man podcast. Do you like reading about Ty's Mount Rushmore of Athletes, well you can listen to him tell his stories on the X Millennial Man. Make sure you give it a listen and rate us on iTunes. When you are done listening, read more from Ty on twitter @tykulik.

Welcome Back NBA Dunk Contest

Practicing for the 2025 dunk contest

This past Saturday, I witnessed one of the greatest dunk contests I have ever seen. The dunk contest has fallen pretty far the past decade. It was long and boring. Contestants got as many tries as they needed, dragging the contest past the two hour mark, easily. The contestants weren't that good either. Sure, you'd get a Blake Griffin, although I think he's very overrated, or a John Wall or even a Dwight Howard, but for the most part, we got guys like Nate Robinson and Terrence Ross. These guys are all phenomenal athletes and freakishly athletic, but we didn't get the stars that the fans wanted.

Back in the 80's, 90's and early 2000's, we got the biggest stars to compete in the dunk contest. Guys like Larry Nance, Julius Erving, Michael Jordan, Dominique Wilkins and Vince Carter, just to name a few, regularly competed in the dunk contest. Those were some of the best competitions. The coin flip showdown between Jordan and Dominique was so, so incredible, even though Dominique got totally screwed out of the win. When Dr. J was in the contest, he was doing things no one at the time was doing. I didn't see that one live, obviously, but the videos of his dunks are awesome. When Larry Nance was in, he looked like he was floating through the air. It was majestic. Then, in 2000, I witnessed what I consider to be the greatest dunk contest ever. I don't remember the other contestants, but I sure as hell remember Vince Carter. He did some of the most incredible, mouth agape dunks I'd ever seen. The "hand in the cookie jar dunk", going between his legs on a bounce pass, throwing it off the side of the backboard, I mean, it was just insanely athletic and so impressive. I remember sharing his sentiment, after doing the windmill off the side of the backboard, that the contest was over. You could see him mouthing the words, "it's over", and he was 100 percent correct. He absolutely dominated that dunk contest. The fact that I don't even remember his competitors shows you how incredible his dunks were. After that contest, I was sure that the dunk contest was going to be as great every year. I was very wrong.

The All Star weekend dunk contest became boring, as I said before. Too long and no stars. Some will tell me that the Blake Griffin contest, when he dunked over a car, was exciting. I say you are wrong. Who cares that he jumped over a car. It would've been impressive if he dunked over the top of the car, but he went over the front hood. I bet the majority of NBA players can do that exact dunk with no problem. The Blake Griffin hype was at it's peak then, and his dunk was way overblown. Like I said, he is overrated. Some will also throw out the Nate Robinson back to back wins, but those were incredibly boring and his dunks were not even close to what Spud Webb did when he won. Spud Webb only had three chances to do his dunks. I believe that Nate Robinson, whom I enjoy, went on for almost thirty minutes before throwing down one impressive dunk. He had unlimited time and attempts. You give any NBA player that much time, they will come up with something great. Other people may even think that the Dwight Howard win was impressive, but he barely did anything. Also, he's a 7 footer, he better damn well do something impressive. But, he didn't really do anything impressive at all, unless you count wearing a Superman cape as impressive, I don't. So, yeah, the dunk contest was in a real rut.

Last season Zach Lavine of the Minnesota Timberwolves, made it kind of exciting. The pool of contestants still wasn't that good, but the highlights the next day of what Lavine did had me and a lot of others intrigued. He did some really cool stuff that kind of hearkened back to the good old days of the contest. Then came this past Saturday night. The contestants, once again, weren't household names, but two of the four are big time jumpers. Hardcore fans of the NBA know all the contestants and know that Zach Lavine and Aaron Gordon are world class leapers. They can "jump out of the gym". The other two contestants, Will Barton and Andre Drummond are decent athletes too. Barton is a freakishly good jumper. No one knows him because he plays very sporadically on a pretty bad Denver Nuggets team, but he can jump. Andre Drummond is an All Star, but he's not known for his dunking ability. He's a rebounder and defender. Both Barton and Drummond failed to impress, but Barton not doing well was the only shock to me. Drummond didn't belong in this contest. Then, Lavine and Gordon owned the rest of the night. Aaron Gordon went first and his first attempt was awesome. He soared through the air and completed a bounce pass between the legs windmill. It was awesome. Then, Zach Lavine did a 360 windmill, behind the back reverse dunk. It was something I'd never seen before and I was hooked. They traded one awesome dunk after another. Gordon brought out the Magic mascot and did a between the legs grab off the mascot's head dunk. Awesome. Lavine then proceeded to catch an alley oop from the free throw line dunk. Phenomenal. Then, Aaron Gordon did the best dunk I'd seen since Vince Carter. Using his mascot again, he took the ball off his head again, but then he put the ball underneath his legs and reverse slammed the ball. It was the best dunk I have ever seen. Go watch it right now, it is so cool. Then, Lavine did some more stuff from the free throw line, including a windmill from the free throw line. That takes so much leaping ability and so much athleticism and Lavine made it look easy. The two of them traded 50's from there on out, until Lavine finally won in a dunk off. Watch the whole duel, it is awesome.

This was the best dunk contest since 2000 and probably the best dunk contest of all time. Aaron Gordon and Zach Lavine brought it back from the dead. The dunk contest was appointment TV when I was a teenager, then it was really bad for a decade plus, but if it continues to be anywhere close to where Saturday night was in the future, I will be in front of my TV every All Star weekend to see the dunk contest. It was that awesome.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man podcast. He once saw the head editor to an epic double jump dunk. It is a slam dunk to follow Ty on twitter @tykulik.

Thank God Kobe is Finally Leaving

The hoop will not miss Kobe, even if he misses it nearly 70% of the time

Over this past weekend Kobe Bryant announced his retirement from the NBA effective at the end of this season. I saw and read the story via The Players Tribune and my only thought was, "this was two years too late".

Now, I have a long standing dislike, some would say hatred, of Kobe Bryant the player and the person. I dislike Kobe Bryant the person because he seems like a curmudgeon that got away with sexual assault. The incident in Denver should have sent him to jail. I wholeheartedly believe that he had relations with that lady against her will and he got away with it. Why else would he buy his wife a very gaudy, very expensive piece of jewelry if he was innocent? No man or woman that is innocent would buy someone a gift to cover it up. That just doesn't happen. Then, he goes and changes his number from 8 to 24 and claims he's a new man. No, you are still the same person that forced yourself on an uncooperative woman. Daniel Tosh has a great stand up bit about him. The long and short of the bit is him changing his number and making a commercial saying things like, "hate me because I'm a champion", or "hate me because I work hard", but Tosh claims, and I agree, that, "no, we hate you because of the sexual assault". Hilarious and very, very true.

Kobe is also just a terrible teammate. I guess, this is where I transition into why I dislike Kobe Bryant the basketball player. When he first came into the league, he was gifted with having one of the greatest centers of all time fall into his lap. Shaquille O'Neal signed a free agent deal to be a Laker the year Bryant was drafted. So, Bryant should have been thrilled by this, right? The exact opposite. He constantly fought and complained with Shaq and the Laker front office. He wanted to be the man. Never mind the fact that Shaq was leading the Lakers to three consecutive titles and was opening the whole floor for Bryant, that wasn't good enough. He needed to be the franchise player. So, the Lakers caved and let Shaq walk. This was one of the dumbest decisions I've ever seen made in professional sports. A year or two after Shaq left, he went to the Miami Heat, they won a title. This was pre LeBron. This was Dwayne Wade in his prime. Wade showed how to play championship ball with Shaq. Instead of bitching and moaning about shots, he picked his spots and did whatever he had to do to win the title. After Shaq left, the newly led Kobe Bryant Lakers struggled. Sure, Bryant was putting up numbers, but the rest of the team suffered. Nobody else got the ball and when they did, if they missed a shot, Bryant gave them a death stare. They made the playoffs, but they never got out of the second round. They were languishing. 

In the summer of 2005 the Lakers rehired Phil Jackson, who said he'd never coach Kobe Bryant again. He came back to coach Kobe Bryant because that's what his girlfriend and partial owner of the Lakers, Jeanine Buss, wanted him to do. Phil Jackson is a great coach, and he gave Kobe Bryant another title, but it wasn't because Kobe Bryant willed his team to a championship, it was because the Celtics blew it. Boston should have won that series, but Kevin Garnett got hurt and Ray Allen got old and Paul Pierce cannot do it alone. Detractors and Bryant fans will scream and holler that he won that title for them and they wouldn't have been close without him, but that's not the case. Phil Jackson is one of the greatest coaches of all time and he figured out how to use the whole team around Bryant's ego. That's how they won that title. 

Look at the way he's "leading" this young, god awful Lakers team. Instead of mentoring the young core they have, he belittles them to the media. For example, the other night they got blown out by the Warriors and his comment was, "I could've scored 80 and it wouldn't have mattered". First of all, you can't score 80, not when you're shooting less than 35 percent from the field. Second of all, help these young guys out, don't just toss them off like trash. The Lakers have some good young players. Guys like D'Angelo Russell, Juilus Randle and Jordan Clarkson have the makings of being good NBA players, but Bryant's constant belittling is doing nothing but making these guys hate him and not perform to the best of their abilities. 

People say Kobe isa big competitor, yet look at how he handcuffed this franchise with his terrible contract. How much more money do you need? Do you need to buy your wife more gaudy jewelry? Two years, 44 million dollars. No wonder they can't sign any big time free agents. They can't afford anyone because they are paying the corpse of Kobe Bryant 20 million dollars a year. Now, he is one of the all time greats when it comes to scorers, but anyone would be if they shot the ball as much as Bryant. I don't have the stats in front of me, but I'd be willing to guess that in his 20 year career, he's led the league in attempted shots 14 or 15 times. He is also one of the most overrated defenders in the history of the NBA. The fact that he made multiple All NBA Defense teams is laughable. He made those teams because of his name, not his defensive ability. He was and still is a terrible defender. He can't guard anyone. 

To all these people coming to his defense, come on, Kobe Bryant is an asshole and you know it. You don't have to like someone because they play the same game as you. You can respect him, but you don't have to like him. And the comparisons to Michael Jordan need to stop forever. He will never be Michael Jordan. He won't even be Scottie Pippen. If Kobe Bryant played anywhere besides LA or New York, he wouldn't go down as one of the all time greats. Just think if he stayed in Charlotte, the team that drafted him. Would we still look at him as one of the greats? Even if he had the same stats? I don't think so. 

So, as I close it out, I say again, you should have quit two years ago when you blew out your Achilles. You haven't been the same competitor in ten years and you've handcuffed the Lakers franchise for the next couple of years. I hope this make you happy and I hope you retire during the year instead of at the end because you won't make it. You're either going to get hurt again, or you are going to look real bad like you have the first quarter of the season. You aren't doing anyone any favors by staying in the league. It's best for you to leave now. I can't say it enough, go away and never come back. 

Kobe will NOT be missed.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture Editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man podcast. He gave up Sprite and went to 7up when Kobe got his endorsement deal. Follow Ty on twitter @tykulik.