Bad move by the L.A. Lakers trading Derek Fisher in the mid-season, especially since he helped put them out in the second round of playoffs. But Oklahoma City sure welcomed him in with open arms. Finally a player with serious playoff experience. At the beginning of this basketball season I stated that either L.A. Clippers or Oklahoma City Thunder would be the champions this year. Now the OKC are in the finals; first time appearances for most of the players. Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, James Harden, and more – it’s time to learn what a ring feels like on your finger. They gotta win it all. In the Eastern Conference, Boston Celtics are up on Miami Heat 3-2 in the series. I don’t personally favor either of these teams, but I’m really hoping for the Heat to make it in the finals just so I can see Lebron James choke again and OKC strut over “The Big 3” on their way to grab their trophy.

Go Thunder!!

Tiger Woods is back baby!!

One of my all time mentors, Tiger Woods has just set another goal for himself. With his 73^rd PGA Tour Victory on Sunday at the Memorial Tournament, he is now tied with Jack Nicklaus for 2^nd place in most wins. Only 1 man left to defeat and that’s Sam Snead who sits pretty with 82 wins.

This was Tiger’s first victory since 2009 and was well deserved. With all the mental and physical anguish he has been through in the past few years, it’s about time things were looking up for him. Tiger has set a standard in sports by being so untouchable. He shows determination and never gives up – The true mentality of a leader.

Golf is a game that anyone can play, just like anyone can learn to ride a skateboard. But where can the game take you in life? It’s how hard you try and how you express yourself while doing it that makes you a man or a mouse. If you practise a lot, and always show confidence, chances are you will end up being pretty good. These 2 sports are very similar. They’re not Team Sports, they’re Solo Sports. You practise and play in the same locations a lot, you enter tournaments against others who are known as the best in the world, and when it comes down to it – it’s just you and your brain that succeed. Even when the world is against you and keeps pushing you down, the chance to overcome and be amazing again will always be there.

Go for it…

I was on an airplane the other night coming home from Ontario and I caught this amazing documentary on TV. The story of Reece “Goose” Tatum, the one time leader of the Harlem Globetrotters, and definitely someone who broke many boundaries in the world of racism. The documentary includes commentary from other historic father figures of the black community such as Oscar Robertson, Ernie Banks, and even Bill Cosby. These guys were all around during the times of struggle where the white man thought they were the superiors to all other races and made sure everyone knew it. A disgusting period of time which I am glad I wasn’t born to see.

The story starts out displaying some awesome, and almost unbelievable baseball tricks with the Goose just messing around with the baseball. His skills of deceptive magic were amazing. You just have to see it to understand it. I thought it was astonishing to learn that he was a baseball player by heart, not a basketball player, and it made me think of Michael Jordan and how he was totally the same. It made me very glad that both of them ended up on the NBA floors because they were both the leaders of change in how the game of basketball is played today. The Goose was credited with introducing the no-look pass and the no-look hook shot, while Michael Jordan taught us how to fly through the air for hours at a time. And they could both juggle a basketball like nobody’s business.

Reece Tatum was a baseball player in the Negro League on a team called The Indianapolis Clowns, and his magical talents were discovered by marketing genius, Abe Saperstein, who brought him into the basketball spotlight as the new leader of the Harlem Globetrotters (who weren’t actually even from Harlem) and the times began to change. Tatum would actually play Center even though he only stood approximately 6’ 3”, but due to his creative means, along with an 84” arm span, nobody could stop him from finding the basket. With the mixture of comedic genius and athletic skills, the Goose would help to attract major audiences, and it was planned for the Harlem Globetrotters to play against their first NBA Team – the “all white” Minnesota Lakers, the best team in the NBA. This was a major historic event as the Globetrotters took the win, and were immediately challenged to a rematch. They won again.

This was in an era, where African-Americans were not respected by all parts of the United States and sadly, no matter how big of a superstar you were, you were still black. You had to drink out of specified water fountains, and stay in certain hotels only. Unbelievable… But Reece Tatum was one of those men who opened the doors for the African Community to be respected as human beings across North America.

The story goes on and gets better. The Goose left the Harlem Globetrotters due to disagreements with Saperstein and began a new team called The Harlem Magicians. He had kids and took them with him on tour wherever he went. The Goose was a hero. He was respected by so many well known individuals, like Ray Charles and Sonny Liston, and of course anyone in the history of basketball or baseball. He was there to help change the world.

A tragic accident where he lost one of his sons drove Tatum into a bad state and he ended up passing away at a young age. The days of The Goose were over, but the impact he had made on society was there to stay, and the memories of The Goose would live forever.

Reece Tatum was eventually welcomed into the Basketball Hall of Fame recently, and his son, Reece Tatum III, was there to accept the honors. He had been there with his Dad through the good times and the bad, and no one respected him more. He quoted his Dad on stage with a statement that almost made me cry:

“Things change very slowly so pay attention, because if you don’t pay attention we will repeat where we’ve been before, and we don’t want to go back ever.”

What a statement. It explains a lot in my own life. And now I have another person to relate my being to. I break this statement down to what it means to me:

Believe in yourself and others will believe in you;

Trust people fully, only when you’re looking at them;

Change the world to make it better for everyone, and make sure that the changes have been accepted;

And never give up on your dreams.

He brought joy and laughter to everyone around him. Check out some of the links below and enjoy.

Classic comedic basketball footage of The Goose

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3cjtEP2NHQg

Classic comedic baseball footage of The Goose

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PunxRJZzn6A&feature=related

View the induction speech by Reece Tatum III

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=moljx66W_yw

Learn more about the Harlem Globetrotters

http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/harlem-globetrotters-play-their-first-game

Click here to see the original promotional commercial for the documentary

http://www.thesportsfanjournal.com/columns/ed-the-sports-fan/espn-to-air-documentary-on-legendary-harlem-globetrotter-reece-%E2%80%9Cgoose%E2%80%9D-tatum/

I’ll tell ya straight up – Golf is one crazy game…

Being into sports my entire life, I’ve always been competitive, and I know the fact that there are things out there that affect your life and you have absolutely no control over. I’ve done huge flip tricks down massive gaps on my skateboard, bushwacked through the trees at uncontrollable speeds on my snowboard, hit massive home runs in baseball, and slam dunked basketballs on 10 foot nets, and I have to emphasize how tough it is to be good at golf. Anyone can swing a club and make solid contact, but these pros are intense. They know exactly how far they’re gonna hit the ball, and what spin to put on it, and the dime to land it on. This year’s Masters Tournament was hardcore. All 4 days saw a different group of leaders. The talk of the town was Fred Couples leading after Friday, then Phil Mickelson stepped it up and Freddy went downhill. As quick as you climb to the top, it’s sooooo easy to lose your footing on the side of the mountain. After Saturday, it was Peter Hansen, Phil Mickelson and Louis Oosthuizen sitting pretty in the top 3. We all know Phil, but who the hell are these other 2 guys? Peter Hansen had a Saturday that every golfer dreams about where it was practically impossible for him to not get it in. There was a magnetic force coming out of the centre of the earth to this guy’s ball and it was pulling it into the holes. But Sunday came early, and once again the leaderboard was about to shuffle. Louis Oosthuizen started the day off right with a world record – scoring a Double Eagle/albatross on the 2^nd hole. For those who don’t understand golf, the par for the hole is 5 shots, Oosthuizen scored in 2. An unbelievable shot, but an even more unbelievable amount of pressure to now stay in the lead and win this entire tournament. Phil was falling apart bad at the beginning but did make a strong come back in the end. Peter played steady the whole day, but both fell short a couple strokes. The surprise of Sunday was Bubba Watson sneaking his way up to tie for first place right near the end of the round. Bubba started the day playing side by side with Oosthuizen so the ambition was definitely there to win. With his signature pink driver, and carefree swing, Bubba rose to the top and took Louis to sudden death. Both had terrible luck in the playoff holes and tied again. It was here where Bubba showed his skill was greater on this day, and Oosthuizen’s luck had finally run out. An amazing shot on the 2^nd hole that will be remembered by golf fans forever, but still no green jacket for Louis. The win went to Bubba Watson and the tears were flying. What an intense day. It reminded me of watching the Street League skateboard contests how it’s always “do or die” and if you mess up once, you lose…

Some people don’t consider golf a sport, but I have to argue to a point. I play pool competitively, and golf and pool are very similar. They’re not really sports because of their physical style, but mentally they are both so difficult. It’s a game of math, a game of split decisions, and a game of precision shooting. The funny thing about golf is how intense the fans are. In any other sporting event, the fans get their beers and go take a seat. Half the time they miss most of the game ‘cause their busy shooting the shit with their buddy, but not golf. This is gotta be one of the only sports where the fans actually have to walk along side of the players. They don’t sit back and relax, but they chase the players and dive out of the way of bad shots. Their nuts…

I love all sports, and could shout out stats on most of them. And out of all the Masters Tournaments I’ve seen in the past, this was definitely in the top 3 for emotional roller coaster atmosphere.

Congratulations to Bubba Watson. Now keep it up!