Thinking Out Loud: California Chrome Fails, So Do Hockey Fans

Listen, I'll be the first to admit. I'm not a horse racing guy. I bet on the Kentucky Derby in Vegas four years ago (won), but it was nothing more than a lucky guess.

I'm a passive fan when it comes to the Triple Crown, but I'm fully aware of how it works. When a horse wins the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness Stakes, he will inevitably face a horse in the Belmont that did not run each of the first two legs.

The co-owner of California Chrome, Steve Coburn, clearly isn't happy about this fact. Here is his rant from after Saturday's Belmont Stakes.



Coburn didn't back off Sunday.

"It says Triple Crown. You nominate your horse for the Triple Crown. That means three," Coburn said in the track-side interview with ESPN on Sunday. "Even the Triple Crown trophy has three points on it. So when you earn enough points to run in the Kentucky Derby, those 20 horses that start in the Kentucky Derby should be the only 20 allowed to run in the Preakness and the Belmont for the Triple Crown."

He also made a questionable analogy of why Tonalist's participation Saturday was unfair.

"These people nominate their horses for the Triple Crown and then they hold out two [races] and then come back and run one," Coburn told ESPN. "That would be like me at 6-2 playing basketball with a kid in a wheelchair. They haven't done anything with their horses in the Triple Crown. There were three horses in this race that ran in the first two -- California Chrome, Ride on Curlin and General a Rod -- none of the other horses did.  You figure out. You ask yourself, 'Would it be fair if I played basketball with a child in a wheel chair?"

Coburn made the analogy in both interviews Sunday morning. He was asked in the "Good Morning America interview" if he considered the comparison offensive.

"No, I'm just trying to compare the two," he said. "Is it fair for me to play with this child in a wheelchair? Is it fair for them to hold their horses back?"

Coburn said he has no problems if people label him a "sore loser" and even proceeded to give out his phone number so people can call him with their complaints.

Listen, I'm not an expert on this. But the Triple Crown has been run the same way for 146 years. When Affirmed won in 1973, he beat horses that didn't run all three races. When Secretariat won two years earlier, same story.

Whether Coburn likes it or not, this is how the sport works. If he doesn't like it, maybe he should bring it up with racing commissions who run the Triple Crown. I highly doubt anything will change, but perhaps Coburn will feel better.

I get that it's a quick turnaround for the horses who run, but I'm not in favor of anything that will make the Triple Crown easier to win. It's been done 11 times, and it should be difficult. Otherwise, it wouldn't carry nearly the prestige it does. Then the sport suffers, and horse racing has suffered enough over the years.

******

Coburn wasn't the only person putting his foot squarely in his mouth over the weekend.

Hello, hockey fans.

As soon as LeBron James left Game 1 of the NBA Finals Thursday because of leg cramps, the internet started in.

I'm as pro-NHL as the next guy, but this is a great example of hockey fans' inferiority complex. The sport doesn't do as well on television as the NBA does, and that drives people crazy, because they don't think there's any competition when it comes to the quality of the games.

I don't argue that. What I argue is how NHL fans choose to articulate themselves.

LeBron James might be an egomaniac, but he's a two-time NBA champion, NBA MVP, and an Olympic gold medalist. He isn't a quitter. If he's not finishing an NBA Finals game, something is wrong.

And I've seen what leg cramps can do to elite athletes. I've seen some of the best marathon runners in the world crippled by cramps less than halfway into a 26-mile race. These folks train their entire lives to run distance, but end up unable to stand without help when the heat and humidity prove to be too much for them.

Comparing LeBron James to a hockey player just doesn't work. All it does it make hockey fans look petty and silly.

LeBron James Still Doesn't Get It

And you wanted it all
Now you’re taking the fall
You don’t know why
--Red Line Chemistry, "You Don't Get It"

I'm not a huge NBA fan. Probably never will be, though it would be greatly helpful if the league put in a system that made it possible for more than about five teams to win a championship.

But if someone tells me that Miami is trailing throughout in their bid to stay alive in a series, and the Dallas Mavericks -- owned by Mark Cuban and led by the exceptionally likable Dirk Nowitzki -- are the opponent, I'll flip it on and watch.

No one outside of Heat fans wanted to see Miami win this championship. Their fans are insufferable bandwagon-jumpers, many of whom probably couldn't name three guys from the 2006 championship team. The team is led by Dwyane Wade, one of my favorite players, but no one gives him the credit he deserves for being the alpha dog. Instead, everyone wants to know why LeBron James isn't the alpha dog.

Well, folks, for starters, he's not the best player on the team. Wade is. Shouldn't the best player be the guy you run the offense through, instead of the second-best player?

James is a fantastic talent, but he typecast himself as a secondary piece the second he decided to "take (his) talents to South Beach."

That moment ended any opportunity for James to ever be considered one of the sport's all-time great players. He decided to ride Wade's coattails, instead of being a leader of his own team.

Mind you, that's okay. It's not the end of the world that someone doesn't want to be the greatest of all-time. Most of us are okay with our roles. We don't need to be the president of the company we work for, and we don't need a fancy title in front of our name to feel important. It doesn't make it a good or bad thing to want or not want those things. It's just the way we're wired.

In the case of LeBron James, he's not wired to be the best of all time. Wade? Well, he kind of is, and that's why he is the leader of the Miami Heat.

After Game 6 Sunday night, James showed the world that he isn't just a guy not wired the way Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant are. He's also a very bitter and immature fellow who just doesn't get it.

“All the people that were rooting for me to fail… at the end of the day, tomorrow they have to wake up and have the same life that (they had) before they woke up today,” James said. “They got the same personal problems they had today. And I’m going to continue to live the way I want to live and continue to do the things I want to do.”

Just remember, LeBron haters, that your life sucks compared to LeBron. Just ask LeBron, and he'll tell you.

It's the typical arrogance of a man who thought it was a good idea to knife an entire fanbase in the back on national television, and didn't bother to tell the franchise he was leaving of his intentions before said knifing.

In the world of public relations disasters, "The Decision" will live on forever. Sunday's interview will be high on the list for LeBron, because he showed again how insanely immature he is, and how far he has to go before he can ever be considered in the class of a guy like Nowitzki.

Meanwhile, as Dan Wetzel writes, Cleveland isn't hating anymore.

They're just laughing.

So are the rest of us, especially Mark Cuban.

Michael Jordan Speaks, Knows LeBron Will Never Be Him

When LeBron James signed with the Miami Heat, he did more than just piss off his old owner in Cleveland.

He also harmed his ability to ever be what so many young basketball players strive to be someday. Besides winning titles, youngsters want to be what Michael Jordan was: the best ever.

James is a great player, but his move to Miami means he will never be considered better than MJ.

As Bill Simmons wrote in The Book of Basketball, Jordan was pathologically competitive.

In my lifetime, only one superstar was routinely described like Hannibal Lecter. "Michael is a killer. Michael will rip your heart out. If you give Michael an opening, he will kill you. Michael smells blood. Michael is going for the jugular. Nobody goes for the kill like Michael Jordan. They're on life support and Michael is pulling the plug."

Simmons went on to write about how Jordan will never happen in the NBA again.

The NBA is too buddy-buddy now. These stars grow up together, befriend one another, hang out during summers, play Team USA together, text and email each other ... it's a big circle jerk ... The greats from Jordan's era always maintained a respectful distance; even when Magic and Isiah smooched each other, there was a coldness to it.

Of course, Simmons writes this whenever (the book came out last fall), and then we see three old Team USA teammates (LeBron, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh) fulfill a discussed goal of playing together in the NBA in 2010.

Can you see Jordan doing this with Larry Bird and Magic?

Jordan can't.

"There's no way, in hindsight, I would've ever called up Larry (Bird), called up Magic (Johnson) and said, 'Hey, look, let's get together and play on one team,'" Jordan said during an interview on NBC after playing in a celebrity golf tournament in Nevada (photo right). But, Jordan added, that was a different time and the NBA played a different type of game during his heyday. "Things are different," Jordan said. "I can't say that's a bad thing. It's an opportunity these kids have today. In all honesty, I was trying to beat those guys."

See? He was trying to beat them.

It consumed Jordan, and it's part of what made him so great. Simply put, Michael didn't have time to be friends with Bird, Magic, Kareem, Isiah, Dominique, and whoever else. He was too busy trying to destroy them. That famous competitive drive was what everyone respected about MJ, and it's the same drive he couldn't shut off when he made an ass of himself during his Hall of Fame induction.

Like Jordan said, James had an opportunity to make this move. He was free to do so. But you don't have to read between the lines to see the reality.

Michael Jordan is fully aware that LeBron James will never be Michael Jordan, at least not as long as he's riding Dwyane Wade's coattails.

LeBron James Pissed Off Dan Gilbert

You might have heard about LeBron James moving to the Miami Heat. There was a bit of media attention given to it, after all.

What you may have missed was the reaction of Cleveland, specifically Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert, who decided to use the written word to take out his -- and the city's -- frustrations on "King James" after he announced his decision during an amazingly contrived and intelligence-insulting hour-long special on ESPN.

Gilbert's letter was sent out to the media and published on the team's website. Here is an excerpt.

You simply don't deserve this kind of cowardly betrayal.

You have given so much and deserve so much more.

In the meantime, I want to make one statement to you tonight:

"I PERSONALLY GUARANTEE THAT THE CLEVELAND CAVALIERS WILL WIN AN NBA CHAMPIONSHIP BEFORE THE SELF-TITLED FORMER ‘KING’ WINS ONE"

You can take it to the bank.

If you thought we were motivated before tonight to bring the hardware to Cleveland, I can tell you that this shameful display of selfishness and betrayal by one of our very own has shifted our "motivation" to previously unknown and previously never experienced levels.

Gilbert wasn't done. During an interview with the Associated Press, he accused James of quitting on the Cavaliers during the playoffs. Twice.

Gilbert said James quit on the Cavs during their second-round series against the Boston Celtics, who rallied from a 2-1 deficit to eliminate Cleveland. "He quit," Gilbert said. "Not just in Game 5, but in Games 2, 4 and 6. Watch the tape. The Boston series was unlike anything in the history of sports for a superstar." The Cavaliers were beaten by 32 points in Game 5. During the game, James appeared distracted and uninterested, often glaring at Cleveland's coaches as the Cavs tried to foul to get back into the game in the second half. James also made some puzzling postgame comments, saying he had "spoiled" people with his play over seven seasons. Gilbert also said he believes James quit on the Cavs in Game 6 of their series in 2009 against Orlando. "Go back and look at the tape," he said. "How many shots did he take?"

(The answer, by the way, is 20.)

I'm all in favor of holding athletes accountable for their actions. There's no question James was coddled big-time in Cleveland, and Gilbert has to hold himself accountable for a large chunk of that. No one is taken advantage of without letting it happen, and if Gilbert is right in his reaction, he should feel at least partially responsible.

After all, he's the owner, and the organization wouldn't have created an atmosphere were LeBron's every flaw was protected if Gilbert wasn't in support of it.

That said, Gilbert felt he was justified in showing his anger. After all, the fanbase is angry, and they're probably tired of empty promises at this point. That city is starving for a championship team, and the Cavaliers just took a huge step back now that LeBron is on the beach.

James is likely to sign a five-year deal in Miami. That will leave him 30 years old when he can go free agent again. Will he think of returning to Cleveland?

That might not be a good idea.

Yes, James will take his talent to South Beach and leave his soul in Cleveland. His hometown won’t hate him as much for leaving the Cleveland Cavaliers as for the way he left them. Leaving never would’ve been easy, but he went out of his way to humiliate them. LeBron James can never go home now. He’s the Browns leaving town, The Fumble, The Shot, all rolled into one colossal disappointment.

Poor Cleveland.

Here's hoping the Browns can get something good out of Jake Delhomme.

LeBron Overdose

There has never been any lying or anything around here. I'm not a huge NBA fan. No matter how hard I try, there is always something -- bad basketball, egomaniac players, loud music/sound effects/PA people, deplorable officiating -- to drive me to watch something else.

That said, I took a mild interest in this free agent signing period. Bottom line is that there are a lot of big-time players who were on the open market, and it made sense to think at least a couple of them were going to change teams.

It appears former Toronto Raptor Chris Bosh is the first big domino. Reports have him signing with the Miami Heat to join Dwyane Wade, though Wade himself has yet to sign with the Heat (Baron Davis/Elton Brand all over again?).

(Joe Johnson and Amar'e Stoudemire might argue the "first big domino" point, but they don't have much to stand on.)

Anyway, that leaves Cleveland's LeBron James. Will he sign in Cleveland again, or take his act to New York? Those are about his only options.

Reports have his decision being announced Thursday during a one-hour special on ESPN. This is comical from all sides.

LeBron has basically set himself up as the biggest name in sports. No one is denying his talents, but the guy has won precisely zero games in the NBA Finals, and his team has gagged their way out of the playoffs the last two years, losing series to significant underdogs. Meanwhile, here's James, playing up the free agent drama, passing himself off as an obviously-not-retiring NBA version of Brett Favre.

With all due respect to his ability on the court, has this charade hurt him on the open market? After all, no one likes an ego. Instead of playing himself up as the ultimate team player, LeBron is promoting himself at every available opportunity. While this might be smart marketing, he's a basketball player, not a brand. How will his new -- or old -- teammates handle this me-first behavior?

And shame on ESPN. The network that changed sports could probably claim some semblance of responsibility for LeBron's out-of-control ego. But instead of letting someone else feed it by giving him a one-hour special to announce his free agent choice, ESPN jumps in with both feet.

With this special on Thursday night, you know what the entire day of programming will be.

8 AM: LeBron
9 AM: LeBron
10 AM: LeBron
11 AM: LeBron
12 PM: LeBron
1 PM: LeBron
2 PM: LeBron
3 PM: Outside The Lines -- LeBron
3:30 PM: College Football Live -- How good would LeBron have been at Ohio State?
4 PM: NFL Live -- Could LeBron play in the NFL (Part 287)?
4:30 PM: LeBron is Burning
5 PM: Around The LeBron
5:30 PM: Pardon The LeBron
6 PM: LeBron
7 PM: LeBron
8 PM: LeBron
9 PM: LeBron's Unnamed One-Hour Ego Trip

This probably wouldn't be an issue, but ESPN is likely to ignore numerous legitimate sports stories to spend an entire day speculating about what LeBron James is going to announce in an hour-long show that doesn't really need to be more than about 30 seconds long.

That ESPN would agree to do this shows how little journalistic integrity still exists at the "Worldwide Leader." On the bright side, I'm sure ombudsman Don Ohlmeyer won't get any e-mails about this or anything.

LEBRON HAS A GOOD NIGHT

Sometimes, you just post the video and shut up.

This is one of those instances. LeBron James enjoyed himself at Madison Square Garden Wednesday night.