Rings & Stats: Live by them, die by them

Rings and Statistics are just like a sword in the world of sports: You live by them, and you die by them. These are two valuable things to analyze an athlete by in terms of current or all-time ranks, but it comes to a point where if your not careful, you could become obsessed with them and over value them without putting them in proper perspective. Rings, as we all know, are a team achievement, but that is only half of the story. It is also how well a player raises his level of play while elevating the play of those around him that puts him further among the all-time greats. This is why Michael Jordan is so far ahead of everyone, because not only does he have 6 championships, but he was the Undisputed Leader of his team as he raised his game as well as the game of others such as Scottie Pippen, Paxson, Rodman, etc. Jordan also won 6 Finals MVPs, which means that he was the most dominant player every year they won the championship. When you factor in his career playoff avg. of 33.45 ppg (NBA Record) along with his 10 Scoring Titles, 10 All-NBA First Team Selections, 9 All-NBA Defensive 1st Team Selections, along with the rest of his body of work, the case is completely made for him to be the G.O.A.T. He did it all, and there were no holes in his game. Not only could he be a scoring leader, but he could also win! We also know that Bill Russell won 11 rings, as well as 5 MVPs. However, he cannot be called the greatest because of that alone. His career field goal pct. was .440, which is not great at all, especially for a center. He is still among my top 6 of all-time, but that hinders him from even being at no. 2 for me. Wilt Chamberlain was an absolute animal, both as a scorer and rebounder at 7'1" 275 lb. The only man to average 50.4 ppg, 25.7 rpg ('62), score 100 ('62), grab 55 boards in a game (11/24/60), along with a total of 7 scoring titles, and 11 rebounding titles. Chamberlain also had career highs of 37.6, 27 rpg ('60), 38.4 ppg, 27.2 rpg ('61), and 44.8 ppg, 24.3 rpg ('63). Those are eye-popping numbers, but ironically, Wilt shrank in the playoffs when it really mattered!!! Wilt's giant stats dropped in the postseason. Chamberlain's regular season career scoring avg. was 30.10 ppg, but his career playoff scoring average was 22.5 ppg!! Wilt was clearly a ball hog, who cared more about his own numbers BEFORE his team's success. This is why he only has 2 rings! He is disqualified as well. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, the All-Time Scoring Leader, who also has 6 rings like MJ, but a record 6 League MVPs. However, like Wilt, Kareem's production dropped. Not as much as Wilt, but slightly.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar:
http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/a/abdulka01.html


That is called putting things in perspective. This is why I CANNOT understand Kareem's ridiculous letter to Scottie Pippen where he degrades Michael Jordan's career and legacy by saying Wilt was greater because of STATISTICS, but fails to mention how Chamberlain ran away in the playoffs. However, he goes on to close out the letter by bringing up Bill Russell's 11 rings and saying THE RING IS THE THING!!! Dude, you brought up stats with Wilt first!! I respect Kareem and love what he did for the game, but he was WAY OUT OF LINE!!! As I eluded to earlier, Wilt had holes in his game, MJ had none. MJ has more scoring records in the regular season and playoffs than Wilt. Jordan faced a larger depth of talent than Wilt did in his time.

Michael Jordan:
http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/j/jordami01.html

vs.

Wilt Chamberlain:
http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/c/chambwi01.html/



Once again, I am putting both stats and rings in perspective, ladies and gentleman. Kareem is not the only one to devalue Jordan's greatness. A sportswriter named Elliott Kalb, aka "Mr. Stats" wrote a book called "Who's Better, Who's Best in Basketball", where he overvalued stats so much that he not only put Wilt ahead of MJ because of that, but he even painfully overrated Shaq and put him as NUMBER 1!!! Nothing but hot garbage!!! When you call yourself, "Mr. Stats" I should not expect more or less anyway. Of all people, he put Shaq no. 1? How could you live with yourself?!! The guy finds every excuse in the book for his case about Shaq, including using numbers from his Orlando & L.A. Lakers years that are not even worthy of putting him there!!! Yes, Shaq was the best in the NBA during his 3-peat years, and Kobe was CLEARLY the sidekick. However, he dominated when Hall of Famers like Hakeem, Robinson, and Ewing, were well past their primes and making their exit. The only guys at his position that he could throw around were Alonzo Mourning, Rik Smits, Sabonis, Shawn Bradley, Mutombo, and Divac. None of these guys could lace the sneakers of guys like Hakeem, & co. Shaq got schooled by Dream in the '95 Finals after leading the league in scoring. O'Neal was also swept in Orlando by the Bulls, who had no HOF Center in '96, and by the Spurs in '99, with Duncan & a past-his-prime Robinson. During the end of his 3-peat run toward '03, when Shaq's weight had begun to expand, it took a toll on his body, which caused his game to slowly decline. Mr. Kalb also glossed over the fact that, like Wilt, he was a TERRIBLE free-throw shooter, and how he missed numerous games because of his lack of conditioning. Shaq has NEVER averaged over 30 ppg, even at his peak with weaker competition. However, he never mentions this at all with him. Diesel is still in my top 10, but at #8.

Here are Shaq's totals:
http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/o/onealsh01.html

I also learned that Kalb's ranking was done by votes from older writers and older players, which is why he has Bob Cousy & Bob Pettit ahead of Hakeem Olajuwon. How can you look at me with a straight face and say that?!! Yes, both men were great players and pioneers in their own way, but NEITHER can hold a candle to The Dream. When you look at Cousy, he had a HORRIBLE career shooting percentage (37.5 %). Out of a 300 game stretch from '51-'60, Cooz ranked FORTY-SECOND in field goal pct. (37%). Are you kidding me? As for Pettit, yes he is an NBA champ ('58), 2-time MVP ('56, '59), 2-time Scoring Leader, with career averages of 26.4 ppg & 16.2 rpg. However, just like Cousy, he thrived in the pre- Russell, Wilt era, where players where slower, shot too much, shot poorly and could not jump. Once the color of the league started to change with more black players like Wilt, Russ, Elgin, etc. Pettit could not dominate the way he did before. He beat Russell once in the Finals ('58) because Russ was injured, but lost to him three times ('57, '60, '61). He too, like Russell shot within the 44% range. Hakeem was a perfect combination of footwork, athleticism, and quickness. He was a great offensive player who was the best ball handling center of all-time, and he was very well-rounded defensively in shot-blocking, rebounding and steals. He dominated both ends of the court effectively. The best player in the '90s next to MJ. The man had a total of almost 6,000 combined blocks/steals in his career, along with career highs of 27.3 & 27.8 ppg in '94 & '95 with a career high 14 rpg & 4.6 bpg in '90. Not only that, but he RAISED his level of play in the playoffs with 25.9 ppg, 11.2 rpg, 3.3 bpg, .528% shooting. He did all of this while playing against larger competition such as Shaq, Ewing, Admiral, Mailman, Barkley, etc. and beat them all!!!


Hakeem Olajuwon:
http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/o/olajuha01.html

Bob Cousy:
http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/c/cousybo01.html

Bob Pettit:
http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/p/pettibo01.html

That book was a poor man's version of Bill Simmons' Book of Basketball at the most and I did not even spend one dime on it and neither should you!

The same thing goes even for football. Joe Montana and Jerry Rice are generally considered the G.O.A.T.s of their position, not just because of rings, but how they performed WHILE leading their teams to those Super Bowl wins. Both Rice and Montana were not only terrific players in the regular season, but they raised their level of play higher in the PLAYOFFS!!! Like Jordan, they turned the heat up when it mattered most. We all know Rice's track record as the Undisputed greatest WR of all-time, because of his multiple records, but he also holds every postseason receiving record. There are those who detract Rice's greatness by saying he was great only because of his QBs (Montana & Young). However, Jerry carried his own weight with his work ethic, conditioning, athleticism, football IQ, and his ability to run the perfect route to separate himself from the defender. Rice's play making was among the best as he could run a short or medium route and turn it into a bigger play for the TD. He knew how to time his route so that he could stop to be in the right position to leap and pull the ball down, whether he was in single or double coverage. If it was all about his Quarterbacks, then John Taylor & Dwight Clark would be at his level as HOFers and All-Pros with his same numbers. Jerry used these same abilities that I have just mentioned to not only win 3 Super Bowls, but to be the most UNSTOPPABLE receiver in each game!!!

Jerry Rice:
http://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/R/RiceJe00.htm

As for Montana, he is the greatest QB of all-time, because he was the perfect combination of post-season & regular season QB as he was not only the best in the Super Bowl, but he also had one of the best regular season winning percentages of all-time (.713). Joe was also extremely accurate and a great decision maker when throwing the football, with his 92.3 QB Rating and 63.2 competition % as proof. The rest of his numbers speak for themselves.

Joe Montana:
http://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/M/MontJo01.htm

This is what separates him from the John Elways and Dan Marinos because, even though both Marino and Elway have more yards & TDs, Joe raised his game further than them in the playoffs, along with outplaying them in the Super Bowl. This does not degrade either player at all, but it is all about putting things in proper order.

Dan Marino:
http://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/M/MariDa00.htm

John Elway:
http://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/E/ElwaJo00.htm

In closing, my point of writing this is to put things in perspective. Statistics and championships should be talked about in moderation. We should not overemphasize stats and awards, because that devalues rings. At the same time, we should not do the same when bringing up rings, because that devalues the rest of a player's resume. Dan Marino, Cris Carter, Karl Malone, John Stockton, Charles Barkley, etc. never won a ring. Does that mean they sucked? No way!!! They just did not win, nor raise their level or their teams level of play to the absolute highest point. Each man is still Hall of Fame worthy. The objective is not only to win, but to play at the highest level in the process while making others better. Jordan did it, Magic did it, Montana and Rice did it as well.

ESPN: Stupidity at its highest

Recently, I found a video of ESPN's Ric Bucher's Power Ranking of the NBA's Top 7 players where he has Kobe at number 1. Obviously, Kobe is a marketing machine and a cash cow for their awful and sagging ratings which is why he is there. However, the biggest surprise and insult to the intelligence of fans like myself was how Bucher left Kevin Durant off of the list altogether and put his sidekick Russell Westbrook!!! Westbrook? Are you kidding me? One of the BIGGEST shotjackers in the league!!! Kevin Durant is the BIGGEST reason why Oklahoma City is having their tremendous success, because the team becomes better when they revolve their system around him. Westbrook was ranked no. 7, while KD was left off of the list completely. Bucher's lame excuse was "Well, we know that Kevin Durant is a scorer and he has lead the league in scoring, but Westbrook can do more at his position." If that was the case, then why is it that Durant's only competition at Small Forward is LeBron. Westbrook is a terrific playmaker and can slash like a two-guard, but at the end of the day, it is about winning games, and who gives you the best chance to win. For the Thunder, Kevin Durant is the obvious answer. I can name at least 5 point guards who I could take over Westbrook:

1. Derrick Rose
2. Chris Paul
3. Rajon Rondo
4. Derron Williams
5. Stephen Curry
6. Russell Westbrook

Top 2 Small Forwards:
1. Kevin Durant
2. LeBron James

As I remember, Westbrook was THE reason as to why they lost to the Dallas Mavericks in the Western Conference Finals, because of his missed shots and turnovers that ultimately cost the Thunder their first trip to the Finals against Miami. Westbrook threw so many bricks, he could have built a new stadium by himself. This ranking was a complete insult, and I had to address it right away. Here is the side by side comparison and you tell me who you would build your team around if you were OKC:

Kevin Durant:
PPG: 26.5
RPG: 6.9
APG: 3.3
BPG: 1.2
SPG: 1.1
FG%: 50%
3-PT%: 36%
FT%: 84%
MPG: 36.1

Durant's Efficiency Rating (EFF) is +24.93
Westbrook's Efficency Rating is +18.87

Russell Westbrook:
PPG: 20.5
RPG: 5.0
APG: 5.5
BPG: 0.1
SPG: 1.7
FG%: 45%
3-PT%: 28%
FT%: 80%
MPG: 33.3

You cannot look at me with a serious face and say you would take Russell over KD. That is like saying Bob Cousy was a better player and more valuable than Bill Russell, or saying Clyde Drexler was better than Hakeem, Kobe over Shaq, Parker over Duncan, etc. Cousy, Kobe, Parker and Drexler got their rings BECAUSE of those guys. You could even throw in Magic if you want to, but he carried more weight on his team. Their roles were to be the sidekick and make sure their franchise centerpiece got the ball. That is Westbrook's primary role. He is the POINT GUARD!!! As the PG, you are suppose to make plays and make your team better!! The more he shoots, the more he kills his team!! In '73 when Tiny Archibald led the league in SCORING, his team won only 44 games!! He KILLED his team, because of that!! The more Westbrook has the ball the lower OKC's chances are of winning!! OKC is a great team with a huge upside with rings in the future, and the only way that they can go forward is to feed KD the ball. Durant's points are down because they are getting James Harden & co. more involved, but he needs to be the key centerpiece!! The man is having an MVP level season again, and he is even closer despite a drop in points while making others better. Kobe is on the downside, Wade & LeBron are inconsistent, Nowitzki has slipped, which leaves even more room for Durantula to win the award. You could trade Westbrook for D-Rose, CP3 or Rondo and the stock would not drop one bit. If you want to agree or not, that is fine by me. With that said, KD gets MY vote for MVP!!!

The Rise & Fall of the WWE & World Heavyweight Title

For years, the cornerstones of the WWE (WWF) and NWA/WCW have always been their heavyweight titles. These titles were the proud flagship titles that were proudly worn by the likes of Hulk Hogan, Bret Hart, Ric Flair, Steve Austin, The Rock, and others. Each of these men wore the title with dignity and respect, both for themselves and the company that they represented as the top guy in the business. As I listened to a recent podcast, I could not help but remember and reminisce about how great the World Title once was, which is what drove me to write about it. The World Title signified that you were the very best in the company and in the business and that you had no peers. That title meant that you were a bullseye for every up and coming star and that you had to constantly fight to keep your spot. The men that I just mentioned wore the title with respect and worked extremely hard for their spot and to carry the torch as long as they could, while performing at a very high level night in and night out. A true world champion was one who had great talent and skill inside the ring and professionalism and maturity outside of it. When you have that title around your waist, you are suppose to put on classic and memorable matches while helping to bring out the very best of yourself but your opponent as well. Longtime fans such as myself tuned in every night to see who the champ was going to face and how he was going to overcome, because the World Title was always a proud title with the highest form of prestige and value in the business, far above every other title. The main event match for the World Title in both WWF and WCW was what I always looked forward to because each promotion had a great champion that I had fun watching. Growing up, I was a huge WWF fan, because of Bret Hart who was at the time the WWF Champion.

The Winged Eagle Belt was perfect for a guy like him. When I started watching wrestling, Bret was the Champion, and he captured my imagination like no other because of how great he was as the champ. It was only a coincidence that one of the first guys that I had seen was the world champion and an awesome one at that. The Hitman was a ring general, using his scientific technique, submission wrestling, wrestling IQ, quickness and heart (no pun intended) to win. His matches with HBK, Flair, Austin, Undertaker, Owen, Bulldog, etc. were brilliant. Bret was a guy that I could watch without ever getting bored, because of how fast-paced he was with his technical prowess. Bret's reigns as champion in his prime ('93-'97) were classic. That is what I called a true champion. The Excellence of Execution for me was the torchbearer for the '90s from a World Champion standpoint, until Stone Cold/The Rock took over in the Attitude Era and carried the company to new heights as they traded the belt back and forth.

The Nature Boy Ric Flair was without question for me, the torchbearer of the '80s as the NWA Heavyweight Champion, because of his terrific persona, in-ring ability, promos, and feuds with Harley Race, Dusty, Sting, Steamboat, etc. As I was listening to this very intense discussion about the World Title (The Big Gold belt specifically), I could not help but agree that this title was the worker's title, and Flair was the face of that championship. As you can see that during wrestling's golden era, Hogan and Macho Man were the mainstream champs for the WWF in New York, while Flair was NWA Champ wrestling in different territories and around the world. The business was at its apex during this period, because of the drama that Hogan created during his feuds and matches with the likes of Savage, Piper, Andre, etc. Both titles were held with very high prestige, where you did not have to worry about any celebrities wearing them. Mr. T was Hulk's buddy, so no one had to worry. Buyrates were awesome, and the characters were believable with stellar matches overall.

Today, the title has taken a HUGE downgrade!!! The prestige has dropped tremendously, with the boring and monotonous title reign of John "Cyborg" Cena, who has ZERO technique in the ring, overbooked, awful matches, forced delivery as a super hero character and worst of all, his five moves of doom, including his 5-year old knuckle shuffle. When you look at the great WWF Champions, from the mainstream champions such as Hulk Hogan, Macho Man, Stone Cold, The Rock and Warrior to the worker champs such as Bret Hart, Cena has brought in the WORST PPV Buyrates of any champion. Ratings have taken a huge nosedive, and fan support from longtime fans has fallen off, because of how repetitive his delivery is and how un-entertaining he is. That piece of garbage spinner belt has dropped the title's value dramatically, like never before. Cena has officially monopolized the main event picture, because even though CM Punk has the title, the belt is customized for Cena to keep. Even when Edge won and had it customized with the Rated R logo, you knew that it was going back to Power Ranger Cena. Stone Cold had the customized "Smoking Skull" Belt, but it was only for a short period of time, especially compared to how long the spinner belt has been around, which is going on 7 years so far. Bobby Heenan once said that comparing Hogan's WWF Title to Ric Flair's World Title was like comparing "Ice Cream to Horse Manure". Well now, the Ice Cream (World Heavyweight Title) has now become vomit, and the WWE Title has REALLY become horse manure. I really cannot take it seriously when you put the belt on a Real World reject like The Miz. I still cannot take him seriously because of that, when you look at the guys who have worn it long before him. How the mighty have fallen. Both belts stink.

The Big Gold Belt has even been modified to where the plate has been made even more round, with the WWE logo on it. Vince always finds a way to tamper with things that were great and put a stain on them. Cena-mania has polluted the WWE and squandered the prestige of the richest prizes in the sport, and WWE needs to clean up the toxic waste that John Cena has created very fast, and start from square one by disposing of the spinner belt and bring back the Winged Eagle, as well as re-modify the WHC and make the front plate smaller and find other guys to push to make it a more valuable title. Watching these great belts go to waste makes me cringe and cry inside.