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His image appears everywhere – gracing magazine covers, touting sports drinks on tv and now serving as a Dunkin Donuts brand ambassador in Asia.
He dominates basketball coverage nearly every time we tune into ESPN Sports Center.
Ubiquitous off the hardwood, he’s omnipresent on the basketball court too. He can play point guard on offense, match up on the wing against the opposition’s best perimeter player and, when necessary, defend 7 footers in the paint.
However, his presence never seems to surface in the most likely place fans expect an NBA superstar to be seen – the 4th quarter of basketball games.
Inexplicably, the NBA’s biggest star has made the smallest impact on the grandest of NBA stages during the final twelve minutes of marquee games.
Lebron James was not out of rhythm, as some surmised, during last year’s NBA Finals against the 2011 NBA Champion Dallas Mavericks.
However, when needed most, he’s mysteriously been out of sight as basketball fans have clearly seen. Invisible. Absent. Checked out. M.I.A. Nowhere to be found.
From his NBA Finals appearance with the Cavs in 2007, to a disappointing showing in the Eastern Conference Finals in 2009, to June 2011’s NBA Finals fiasco in South Beach, to last month’s unwillingness to take the final shot with the ball in his hand in the closing seconds of the NBA All Star Game in Orlando, Lebron James continues to perpetuate his 4th quarter disappearing act.
It seems as if search and rescue teams need to be deployed, trained investigators dispatched and NBA insiders involved to locate Lebron during crunch time.
I wonder what NBA Commissioner David Stern thinks about where his league’s king without a ring goes once the horn sounds at the end of the 3rd quarter of a key NBA game.
Theories abound on the Missing One’s enigmatic behavior and perplexing disappearances. Scribes have speculated that Lebron James shrinks away from the immense pressure of stardom. Competitors claim he voluntarily disappears, knowing he can’t compare to Kobe or MJ.
Exasperated fans have fumed because James’ 4th quarter performances belie the NBA MVP’s brawn, bravado and basketball brilliance. Yes, fans have waited and watched for his excellence, but he continues to wilt when his skills are desperately desired.
So, the obvious question begs for an answer. Where will King James be in the waning moments of the approaching 2012 NBA Playoffs when the Heat eventually square off against the Chicago Bulls, and then probably against the Western Conference Champs?
Will the Witness withdraw, wallow away and leave us wanting…again?
Or, will this Prince of Akron rise triumphantly in regal basketball splendor and become the fabulous finisher and 4th quarter warrior we’ve all waited for him to become?
Basketball fans around the globe are watching, earnestly hoping that the Miami Heat superstar does not disappear again. And the king without a ring will finally get his bling.
Straight talk. No static.
MIKE – thee ultimate talking head on sports!
http://www.facebook.com/theemikefans
 FC Barcelona's Lionel Messi - Source Wikimedia Jeroen Bennink Following yesterday’s performance on the soccer pitch, Lionel Messi needs a new nickname.
Calling him the Atomic Flea just doesn’t do it for me anymore.
Messi personifies all the panache of other soccer legends boasting far better nicknames like The Genius – Montenegro’s Dejan Savicevic for this mid-fielder’s uncanny passing and ball handling ability, The Berlin Wall – Italy’s Fabio Cannavaro for his fortress like defense, and Magic Feet – Portugal’s Cristiano Rinaldo for this striker’s masterful, quick footwork.
Sure, this bitty Argentine “flying bug” buzzes by hopeless defenders as if they were frozen in time. Yes, Messi handles the ball effortlessly while wisping through wallowing mazes of would-be tacklers. And, of course, this 2011 World Player of the Year’s delicate, pin point, one-touch passes glide unobstructed through the narrowest of openings.
And certainly, this pint-sized FC Barcelona prodigee makes a mockery of the common misperception that “bigger is always better” in sports. The 5’7″ 145 lb. Messi proves that size doesn’t really matter because you can never measure the indomitable spirit that drives athletes regardless of their physical size.
But, give me a break, referring to this amazing athlete as a flea doesn’t come close to capturing the Catalanian striker’s unparalleled brilliance on the football field.
Scoring five goals in a UEFA Champions League game versus a formidable foe in Bayer Leverkusen warrants the name change. Messi’s UEFA quarterfinal masterpiece would be like Kobe Bryant dropping 65 points in a Western Conference NBA Playoff Series, Arian Foster running for 300+ yards in an NFL Playoff game or Derek Jeter going 7 for 7 in a World Series Game.
So, let’s make up a new moniker, sanction a sexier sobriquet and christen him with a new killer cognomen, but let’s lose the Atomic Flea label…quickly!
Straight talk. No static.
MIKE – aka Mike Raffone – thee ultimate talking head on sports!
Become a Fan @ http://www.facebook.com/theemikefans
The doubt crept in months ago. However, he held his tongue, while the only NBA team he has ever known quietly shopped him around the league.
The whispers of speculation then quickly turned into sounds of eager footsteps running swiftly to Central Florida from as far away as Phoenix, Northern California and Toronto. Yet, he never felt compelled to justify to the press or his teammates why he was a better fit than Steve Nash, Monta Ellis or Jose Calderon to play point guard for the Magic.
The squeaking sounds of sneakers hoping to head south soon morphed into Amway Arena murmurings as disgruntled Orlando fans witnessed the 30 year-old struggle through the first half of this abbreviated NBA season. But, as expected, he continued to play hard despite being dinged, while comporting himself as the consummate professional.
And, the groans from the Magic fans paled in comparison to the unexpected, unintentional personal sting of betrayal directed his way from his friend and teammate for the past seven seasons. However, he never complained when his All Star center Dwight Howard coveted other All Stars like Chris Paul, Rajon Rondo and Deron Williams over him.
Now, a week after the NBA All Star break and a week before the NBA trade deadline, Jameer Nelson is still the Orlando Magic’s starting point guard…and the six footer from St. Joseph’s should remain in that position for the rest of the season.
In spite of a less than stellar year statistically, in spite of the media circus stemming from the Dwight Howard trade distractions and in spite of a limiting left knee strain, Jameer Nelson is still the Magic’s best choice to direct the 25 – 14 Magic into the 2012 NBA playoffs.
The price of trading Nelson is too steep. Not only will the Magic have to part with too much additional talent to obtain an elite point guard, but they would also lose a pillar of the Central Florida NBA franchise who enjoyed an All Star year until he tore his labrum before the Magic advanced to the NBA Finals against the Los Angeles Lakers in 2009.
Nelson must remain in Orlando as the Magic’s man at point. History supports my claim.
Poised as a ball handler, Nelson has turned the ball over only 2.1 times per game during his career.
A deft penetrator and willing distributor of the ball, Nelson has averaged 5.5 assists per game during his career.
Though slowed by a nagging knee injury this season which has impacted his shooting, Nelson is a 39% career three point shooter. Therefore, teams will be even more reluctant to double down on Dwight Howard with Nelson and other excellent long range shooters like Hedo Turkoglu, Jason Richardson, J.J. Reddick and Ryan Anderson in the line up.
Most importantly, Nelson is a leader, the quality leader that Coach Stan Van Gundy and GM Otis Smith had hoped Dwight Howard would become. The Magic cannot afford to lose this veteran’s maturity, grit, solid defense, ball protection and ability to knock down big shots or free throws during critical times in an NBA playoff game.
Expect Nelson’s knee to hold up in the second half of the season. Then, the trade rumors will be quickly forgotten, the murmurings of the Magic fans will be mute and the screeching sounds of footsteps will be those of Jameer Nelson’s as he leads the Magic past the first round of the NBA playoffs into an Eastern Conference showdown with the Miami Heat or Chicago Bulls.
Straight talk. No static.
MIKE – aka Mike Raffone – thee ultimate talking head on sports!
It wasn’t quite the U.S. hockey team’s 1980 “Miracle on Ice” victory over the U.S.S.R.
 US Soccer's Clint Dempsey - Source Wikimedia Author 20 However, it was a global soccer shocker nonetheless.
This week’s U.S. soccer team’s stunning 1 – 0 upset of four time world champion Italy on Italian soil ranks as one of the most celebrated wins in American soccer history…even though the match in Genoa was just an exhibition.
The Yanks have never defeated the historically dominant Italians in all eleven matches when they’ve taken the pitch spanning the past 78 years.
So, through the eyes of a star studded Serie A side, losing to an universally understood underdog U.S. squad, is anathema and comparable to an NBA all-star laden U.S. basketball team falling to Venezuela, Egypt or Denmark.
31st in the most recent world FIFA rankings, the Red, White and Blue bested the 8th ranked Azzurri although the superior Italians outshot them 19 – 4.
This surprise victory is certain to force FIFA followers to take note of a newly transformed American team comprised of both wily veterans and a core of electric, yet unproven young talent.
Pesky Clint Dempsey’s goal in the 55th minute proved to be the Mike Eruzioni game winner for the U.S. And, goalie Tim Howard repeatedly rejected the Italians’ advances in Genoa much like “Miracle on Ice” goalie Jim Craig stymied the powerful Russians in Lake Placid over 30 years ago.
Sure, the parallel may be a stretch, so whistle me for a yellow card or banish me to five minutes in the penalty box for crazy comparisons.
However, what can’t be argued is that the 1 – 0 shocker in Italy serves as Jurgen Klinsmann’s signature win since assuming the helm as U.S. Soccer’s national team coach last year, and the 1 – 0 shutout victory will immediately boost the U.S.’s FIFA world rank.
And, the Yanks’ soccer shocker over the heavily favored Italians should bolster the U.S. team’s confidence as it begins its qualifying round in June for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil where a “Miracle of the Pitch” against the perennially powerful European and South American squads is now more likely to happen.
Straight talk. No static.
MIKE – aka Mike Raffone – thee ultimate talking head on sports!
 LA Lakers' Kobe Bryant - Source Wikimedia Author Sgt. Joseph A. Lee Los Angeles Lakers’ Kobe Bryant fractured his nose during yesterday’s NBA All-Star game in Orlando when the Miami Heat’s Dwyane Wade fouled him hard during the third quarter of the West’s 152 – 149 victory over the East.
However, if Bryant was going to suffer an unfortunate injury in this annual meaningless NBA game, too bad the 14-time NBA All-Star didn’t bite his tongue instead, thus rendering him speechless for a time…like for the rest of the NBA season!
As the growing legions of NBA fans, I am also growing weary of the biting, brash burble unbecoming of this global athletic icon.
Arguably, Bryant is the game’s finest finisher and ranks among the top ten players of all time. But, his constant bickering of officials, unnecessary belittling of opponents, boorishness, once again, outside his marriage and overall bumptious behavior have grown tiresome.
Kobe’s less than enthusiastic response and apparently envious reaction to the media frenzy surrounding New York Knicks’ Jeremy Lin’s improbable rise from anonymity to NBA darling appeared to rankle the self-absorbed Bryant.
And, yesterday’s snarky, screaming dare to an incredulous Lebron James to, “shoot the (expletive) ball,” during the closing seconds of a ceremonial and generally unimportant basketball game roiled me and the countless others who desire so much more from this magnificent player and five-time NBA champion.
How ironic that the new Nike Kobe System 7 television commercial aired repeatedly during this weekend’s NBA All-Star coverage. In the satirical commercial, Kobe counsels the self-empowerment guru Tony Robbins’ coached mogul Richard Branson on achieving success upon success upon success.
After a smug dissertation in this Nike sneaker ad, Kobe quips to the Billionaire Branson that he could do better and says, “good luck, Richard Branson, make me proud.”
Well, how fortuitous and poetically appropriate that this tongue-in-cheek Nike ad would air during the NBA All-Star weekend when Bryant’s every word and move, past and present, would be scrutinized. The Kobe System 7 commercial is far more poignant that any casual observer could easily overlook.
Kobe’s very own words directed at Richard Branson should more importantly be speaking to him. The splendidly talented shooting guard may have exceeded all of our expectations for what he has accomplished on the basketball court during his stellar 14-year career.
However, basketball fans would agree that Kobe Bryant should listen to his very own, playful admonishment of Richard Branson. Because the future Hall of Famer could also do better, much better, in how he comports himself off the court with the press, teammates, opponents and women, most importantly, his estranged wife.
So, go ahead, Kobe. Do better, much better, off the court.
And, make us proud of you, not only as a 14 time NBA All-Star, but more importantly as an influential, socially relevant global role model whose every word and action, but on and off the basketball court, impressionable fans are carefully watching.
Straight talk. No static.
MIKE – aka Mike Raffone – thee ultimate talking head on sports!
http://www.facebook.com/theemikefans
The heat finally got too hot for Jeremy Lin…at least for now.
Last night in an eagerly anticipated matchup with the surging Miami Heat, the NBA’s unfathomable new phenom got roasted as the New York Knicks’ sudden new star melted under the searing lights of a national TNT television audience.
Lin struggled from the opening tip, much to the chagrin of the legions of Linsanity followers who have chronicled his every move during the point guard’s unlikely three week emergence from NBA Development League player to two time Sports Illustrated cover boy, to owner of the number one selling NBA jersey and, most importantly, to a place in the hearts and minds of nearly every sports fan on the planet.
The humble Harvard kid wilted last night, looking heavy legged and haggard on the American Airlines arena’s hardwood floor. Knicks coach Mike D’Antoni cleverly commented on Lin’s lackluster performance, “it’s hard to be Peter Pan everyday.”
Yes, it was evident that the intense media scrutiny and unending personal demands on Lin’s time have certainly taken their toll on this new NBA star’s strength and endurance.
And, it was even more apparent that the Miami Heat were waiting to blister this new NBA wonder. The suffocating, endless defensive pressure from Heat point guards Mario Chalmers and Norris Cole clearly contributed to Miami’s relatively easy 102 – 88 win over the obviously overmatched Lin and his equally tired and overplayed Knicks teammates.
Lin succumbed to the Heat’s scalding, smothering ball pressure, turning the ball over eight times and scoring only eight total points on 1 – 11 shooting from the field.
The heat may have been too hot last night for Jeremy Lin in the Heat’s “kitchen” in Miami. However, let’s not count this kid out just yet as burnt toast and dismiss him as a shooting star that quickly illuminates the dark night sky before diminishing. Because Miami is a terrific team with arguably the NBA’s best defense.
However, Jeremy Lin can play and will learn to handle the blistering defensive heat from opposing teams that he’s certain to face for the remainder of the NBA season.
And, from what we’ve seen from Lin so far, his future play on the basketball court will be responsible for raising the thermostat on his competition and roasting them during future NBA games on TNT or ESPN.
Straight talk. No static.
MIKE – aka Mike Raffone – thee ultimate talking head on sports!
 New Oakland A's Manny Ramirez - Source Wikimedia Author Keith Allison Me, myself and I have always been the only three people on the planet that newly signed Oakland A’s Manny Ramirez has ever cared about.
And, baseball fans, not only in Oakland, but also around the country, should be dreading what this dastardly designated hitter will do next in his unexpected return to Major League Baseball.
Yesterday, the oft-maligned, mercurial Manny made many murmur when the Dominican born slugger inked a $500,000 per year minor league contract with the Oakland A’s, his sixth and hopefully last major league team.
The recalcitrant Ramirez’s return to MLB was met with the same mix of cynicism and guarded optimism reserved for what a Terrell Owens NFL signing or an Allen Iverson NBA signing would yield.
The controversy, unprofessionalism and intrigue that have followed the petulant Ramirez during stints with the Cleveland Indians, Boston Red Sox, Los Angeles Dodgers, Chicago White Sox and most recently with the Tampa Bay Rays are certain to surface again in Oakland with the A’s.
How Ramirez’s LA Dodgers Manny-wood antics with all their distractions will return is not necessarily guaranteed, but is widely expected by everyone who has ever watched this terrifically talented hitter tear the cover off a 90 mile-per-hour fastball.
Manny will be Manny with no regard for what he leaves on the base paths behind him.
Expect this malcontent, once again, to march off the field, knock over a water cooler, shove a locker room attendant, ignore the press and then kick the cat when he gets home.
Because that’s Manny being Manny without any concern for anyone or anything except himself. There’s no you or we or us in Ramirez’s company of friends, but merely me, myself and I, which beckons me to ask…
Why don’t paying fans use their collective clout and send a signal to MLB management that Ramirez’s boorish behavior has grown tiresome?
Why should we once again tolerate the nonsense from this 12 time All Star?
Why haven’t his previous teammates collectively kicked Ramirez in the keister?
Why haven’t A’s faithful slowed down Northern California servers with tweets, blog posts and nasty emails decrying the signing of this dreadlocked lout?
Why did A’s management soften its style and succumb to the silly theory that the soon to be 40 year-old Manny will actually help a team that finished 3rd in last year’s AL West with a 74-88 record?
How unconscionable for Major League Baseball to allow Ramirez back on the field again after violating the league’s drug policy for a second time.
Without doubt, the Ramirez signing will dominate sports news today. And, speculation will continue and questions will linger about how Ramirez will acclimate in Oakland before his anticipated return versus the Kansas City Royals on June 2.
However, when you only think in terms of me, myself and I, and your whopping $205 Million in career earnings has been safely secured in the bank, it’s easy to understand why….. Manny will be Manny again…just this time with the A’s.
Straight talk. No static.
MIKE – aka Mike Raffone – thee ultimate talking head on sports!
http://www.facebook.com/theemikefans
Just steps away from Broadway on New York City’s biggest stage this weekend NBA’s Jeremy Lin was once again the SHOW!
Captivating a sold out Madison Square Garden as well as a fixated network television audience, Jeremy Lin’s scintillating play on the basketball court is worthy of another Broadway type encore performance.
Lin directed a resurgent New York Knicks squad past the defending NBA champion Dallas Mavericks before an electric crowd of basketball loving New Yorkers while mesmerizing entertainment stars as well as sports celebrities alike in attendance.
The initial explosion of Linsanity has now yielded to a more sane, but genuine, level of respect and admiration for Lin’s improbable overnight ascendance as the NBA’s least expected, but universally popular, new star. In spite of all the hoopla surrounding the point guard’s basketball background and cultural heritage, Jeremy Lin has quickly proven that he belongs on the NBA hardwood with the ball in his hand and an adoring public at his humble feet.
In a star studded Madison Square Garden and ABC / ESPN broadcast booth, Lin’s star shone the brightest. Beloved NBA Hall of Famer Magic Johnson cooed generously about the overall excellence of Lin’s game.
Spike Lee, sporting a throw back Jeremy Lin #4 Harvard jersey and garish Elmer Fudd hunting hat, led innumerable cheers for the Big Apple’s newest and now biggest star.
Facebook’s Jeffrey Zuckerberg, spotted smiling behind the Knicks’ bench, witnessed firsthand why Lin’s lore has recently dominated his social network and other social media sites.
And, big screen stars like Kevin Costner and Eva Longoria rose regularly from their courtside seats to cheer Lin’s big shots as well as mastery of the screen and roll with his New York teammates. Lin scored 28 points and dished out 14 assists in another performance that dwarfed everything the nearby Broadway stages had to offer.
Don’t expect the curtain to fall anytime soon on what Jeremy Lin has accomplished in such a short period of time.
George Benson may have crooned that “the neon lights are bright on Broadway. ” However, he could never have imagined just how brightly Jeremy Lin’s light could shine just a few blocks south at Madison Square Garden as well as on every television, computer and mobile device around the globe.
Straight talk. No static.
MIKE – aka Mike Raffone – thee ultimate talking head on sports!
http://www.facebook.com/theemikefans
Has the “king without a ring” really become this delusional?
Does the capricious number six from South Beach actually think basketball fans, especially those in Cleveland, believe his recent revelation?
Has the coveted NBA championship crown he imagines perched atop his 6’8″ frame pressed so forcefully against his brain matter that it’s now causing the two time NBA MVP to utter such ridiculous nonsense?
Lebron James’ speculation about returning to the Cleveland Cavaliers after his contract expires with the Miami Heat seems as believable as Kobe Bryant pledging never to stray again in a future relationship or Allen Iverson claiming he lost most of his NBA fortune to unwise philanthropic endeavors.
Call this another Lebron James public relations train wreck or another disengenous disaster - certain to sully basketball fans again against this wildly talented basketball player. Lebron needs to learn how to guard his tongue a lot better than defending any opponent he’ll ever check on the hardwood.
James’ calculated comments concerning his potential return to Cleveland appear as transparent as the nylon nets dangling from the basketball rims in the Quicker Loans Arena where he’ll lace up against his former team tonight. Lebron’s premeditated prognostication is pure poppycock!
It doesn’t take a psychiatrist to read right through this “would be king’s” flimsy fabrication that he would ever consider a return to the Cavs. James offered this specious speculation in anticipation of the raucous “welcome” the perennial all-star is expected to receive tonight from the fans and city he ceremoniously spurned two summers ago.
Does Lebron actually think the fans in Cleveland would buy into the hallow hope of his shallow words? Or, are James’ words part of a premeditated strike to mitigate the avalanche of criticism he’s certain to receive this evening? Well, these answers are about as obvious as the unparalleled basketball ability number six possesses.
I’m sure that embittered Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert will agree too and should respond to Lebron James’ comments…..as soon as he can stop laughing.
Straight talk. No static.
MIKE – aka Mike raffone – thee ultimate talking head on sports!
http://www.facebook.com/theemikefans
The NBA Linsanity surrounding the New York Knicks’ point guard Jeremy Lin has
ridiculously turned into racial hyper-sensitivity.
Yesterday, the Linsanity meter reached another high although it had nothing
to do with Jeremy Lin’s performance on the basketball court.
With Linsanity permeating every segment of society, it was only a matter of
time that someone somewhere would be offended by all of Lin’s media focus and
decry the creative, clever or at times cheesy expressions acknowledging this NBA
season’s top story.
And, with Lansanity appealing to sports loving fundamentalists, atheists,
elitists, leftists, anarchists and even Boston Celtics alike, it was expected
that some silly offense would be taken, an outcry staged and blogs like mine
would be written to challenge those wielding overly eager trigger fingers of
racial and cultural hyper-sensitivity.
During last night’s game in New York, MSG innocently posted an image of
Jeremy Lin’s smiling face emerging from a fortune cookie with the accompanying
thin white paper reading,”The Knicks Good Fortune.” Yes, that’s all it took for
cries of racism to echo throughout New York City and in every media outlet on
the planet.
Although most sports fans who saw the gimmicky photo laughed it off as a
clumsy attempt at humor, a few easily agitated dissidents immediately
over-reacted and vehemently voiced their disdain for MSG’s “racist portrayal of
a Chinese American.”
MSG, an acronym for Madison Square Garden and not, ironically for the Chinese
food additive mono sodium glutamate, naively attempted to celebrate Lin’s
heritage and the good, no great fortune, this Harvard educated rookie has
brought to the Knicks team during the it’s current seven game winning
streak.
No malice was intended. No racial spite was inferred. And no racial offense
should have ever been taken.
What’s crazy, or Linsane, is that some hyper-sensitive, acutely over-reactive
ninny would make issue over MSG’s amateurish attempt to recognize Lin’s meteoric
rise and universal popularity across all sports, all races, all socio-economic
groups and any guys named Tom, Dick and Harry as well as Jose, Mohammed and
Wang.
By claiming that a picture of Jeremy Lin in a fortune cookie is racist, then
so would saying that during the last seven games #17 has been hotter than extra
spicey general Tsoa’s chicken or that his draining a dagger three pointer with 1
second left to beat the Raptors in Toronto earlier this week is because he’s got
rice-water in his veins. Come on, man!
So, allow me to get right Lin your face. Let’s continue to celebrate each
other’s cultural differences without ever disparaging them.
Let’s continue finding levity in what makes us unique without any malintent.
Now that the NFL season is over and sports fans have stopped Tebowing, let
them all start Linning and enjoy this wonderful Linderella story in spite of
some peoples’ feeble attempts of humor.
BTW, by calling this is a Linderella story should not be interpreted as a
homophobic slur and does not in any way insinuate that Jeremy Lin is gay.
Let’s embrace our differences in the same way Linsanity has enraptured our
hearts.
Straight talk. No static.
MIKE – aka Mike Raffone – thee ultimate talking head on sports!
http://www.facebook.com/theemikefans
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