The fury of Tiger

After having a day to digest Tiger's frenzy at Pebble, I can't help feeling a little giddy. I hear and read so many negative comments regarding Tiger's "on course" behavior. "He swears like a sailor", "he can't keep his composure", "he disrespects the game." What ever happened to passion? To the intensity only a true zeal for the game brings? Tiger's surge of emotion on the 16th was nothing short of inspiring. I, for one, appreciate the range of emotions we get to see from him. If you've ever played golf, you know how elating and yet how tumultuous it can be! We all should remember it's not just a game he's playing against himself and his peers, but for his livelihood as well. There is no higher competition than that. I don't recall the media ever attacking Jordan for his tirades at his teammates. He was givin a pass because he was competitive, but Tiger's not? Where are we in sports when dedication and a lust for the game is condemned? Sports is a game of high emotions. If there is love for the game than shouldn't we expect to see the opposite? A rivalry should be just that a rivalry! Thats how Tiger plays the game, he's old school in a sense. Compete with fervor and intensity, chance the consequences! I know i'll keep cheering at every fist pump and cursing at every bunker shot. I can only hope to see a little more of that kind of thirst in this great game of golf.

Who is Andrew Bynum?

So is it just me or has Bynum been way over hyped? I mean really, for a big man to average 15 and 8 this season and 10 and 6 for his career while never playing a full season due to copious amounts of injuries, can't we now say he's been over sold? I'm not saying he's not a good player, just not a great one. Yet he's spoken about like he's already a complete player, an allstar even. I don't know about everyone else but I would expect more out of an allstar than 9 and 7 for the playoffs and an even worse 9 and 6 for the finals.

Now I know people will sight injury, but doesn't that just go further to prove this point? He's never played a full season and still gets paid 15.5 million. To put some of this in better perspective lets go to the numbers. David Lee had 20 and 11 this season (only playing about seven more minuets) and gets payed less than half of what Bynum does, Luis Scola (who played the five alot this season) played virtually the same minuets as Bynum yet had 16 and 9. Oh, and he was only payed just over 3.3 million! Even Brook Lopez, posted 18 and 8 and he's a rookie. But lets look at it another way. The average big mans career now lasts about ten seasons, Bynum's in his fifth. If he was going to be the superstar everyone thinks, wouldn't he already be there? Dwight Howard had 20 and 13 his fifth season, Shaq had 26 and 12, Kareem had 27 and 14, hell even Al Jefferson in his fifth averaged 23 and 11! And that list could go on and on with guys no one else even considers to be superstars.

I think it's time we put away the gold stars for this guy. Until he proves otherwise, he may just be an injury prone Andrew Bogut, (16 and 10 this season while playing almost identical minuets) a good player who has loads of room to grow. I know, I know, I can hear all the Laker fans out there say, " ya, but imagine what he could do if he was healthy!" But thats just it, all we'll ever be able to do is imagine. Ask Portland fans how they feel about imagining how great an injury plagued big man can be. When it comes down to it, that just isn't good enough in this league.