I hate to lose. But one of the first things my basketball coach taught me when I was in junior high school was to be a good loser. After each game, whether we won or lost, we were required to form a line and go shake the hand of each player on the opposing team. Not only were we required to shake their hands, we HAD to say, “Good Game” to each player. Of course, this was easy if our team had won the game. It was sometimes difficult if we thought the team played dirty, or worse, if we thought the refs called the fouls in the other team’s favor. (Sometimes, I think the refs have one of the toughest jobs in sports. Not only do they have to stay in shape, but they must know all the rules and have eyes in the back of their heads to see everything that occurs on the court or field.)

I am a big basketball fan. Go Lakers! Go Sparks! At the end of last year’s season, I spent many hours glued to the ‘boob tube’ cheering the Lakers to their 15th World Championship. I even attended the season opener of the LA Sparks a few months ago (we kicked some Detroit booty). One of the things that surprised me the most about the Lakers and Magic series was the good sportsmanship of the players. Although, I do think Mickael Pietrus gave Pau Gasol some very hard fouls. There was very little bad mouthing reported in the press and when the NBA commissioner David Stern presented the Lakers with their Championship trophy, the first thing he did was congratulate the Orlando Magic for having a great season.

Micheal Jordan should have read a book or two about sportsmanship before he delivered his Hall of Fame acceptance speech.

- The Wanna Be Sports Guy

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Tags | Basketball, lakers, michael jordan, NBA, sportsmanship