10 Athletes who deserved the ESPY more than LeBron James

            On Wednesday July 18, ESPN hosted its annual ESPY awards. As part of the awards, ESPN chooses candidates and fans vote for their favorite sports heroes in a variety of categories. While these awards are ultimately frivolous, there was one particular winner that upset me. In the category of “Best Championship Performance” the winner was LeBron James. While I believe LeBron James is the best player in the NBA and was the best player on the court during the finals, there is one important fact that giving him the award forgets. He lost. Let me repeat that. The best championship performance award went to someone who is, by definition, not a champion. While LeBron is a phenomenal basketball player, I believe that there are ten other candidates whose championship performances are more worthy of recognition.

The above image shows LeBron James accepting his ESPY for “Best Championship Performance”

1. Madison Bumgarner

            My choice for this award would be Madison Bumgarner, who single-handedly brought another World Series championship to San Francisco. The NLCS and World Series MVP went 4-1 with a save in the postseason, pitching 52.2 innings with a 0.646 WHIP and 1.03 ERA. His complete game shutout in the play-in game against Pittsburg was a preview of what would come. In the World Series, he went 2-0 with a save, pitching 21 innings with a 0.476 WHIP and only one earned run (0.43 ERA). Additionally, his dramatic 5-inning save on two days rest in game seven of the World Series is one of the most legendary performances of all time, and seals him as deserving for this award.

Madison Bumgarner appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated as sportsman of the year following his dominance in the World Series.

2. Serena Williams

            Serena Williams has dominated the world of women’s tennis this past year. She currently is the defending champion in the US Open, French Open, Wimbledon, and Australian Open. Her winning has moved her to 3^rd all time in Grand Slam singles titles, and she has the chance to be crowned with a calendar Grand Slam on September 12 if she can win the US Open. Her dominance at the grandest events in her sport makes her a great candidate for the award, but ESPN did not even make her a finalist.

3. Jordan Spieth

            Jordan Spieth won the first two majors of 2015. He won the Masters in a dominant fashion, shooting -18 to win by four strokes. Then, he won the US Open in a more dramatic manner, sinking a birdie put on 18 to snatch a victory from Dustin Johnson. This 21 year-old champion might be the best young golfer since Tiger Woods, and has performed best when the pressure mounts.

4. American Pharaoh

            American Pharaoh may not be human, but the renowned horse set its mark on history by winning the Triple Crown. No horse had accomplished winning those three hallowed races since Affirmed did in 1978. The dominance on the biggest stage is deserving of recognition.

5. Duncan Keith

            Duncan Keith was a crucial piece for the Chicago Blackhawks during their Stanley Cup run. The Conn Smyth trophy winner led Chicago to get his third Stanley Cup title. In the process, he played 715 minutes, fourth most in playoff history. He scored the game-winning goal in the deciding Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final. He was also tied for first in the playoffs in assists with 18 and became the 11^th defenseman in NHL history to score 21 points or more in the playoffs. His 16 plus/minus led the NHL in the playoffs.

6. Tom Brady

            Tom Brady picked up his third Super Bowl MVP this year for his victory over the Seattle Seahawks. He completed 37 of 50 pass attempts, throwing for 328 yards with 4 touchdowns and two interceptions against Seattle’s “Legion of Boom”. In addition, his clutch performance included two fourth quarter touchdowns, including a game-deciding touchdown with 2:02 remaining.

7. Andre Iguodala

            Andre Iguodala was awarded the NBA Finals MVP for his heroic performance against LeBron’s Cleveland Cavaliers. Iguadala posted good numbers throughout the series, posting 16.3 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 4.0 assists per game. However, his defense against LeBron James is what is particularly notable. Iguadala was the main player with the responsibility of guarding LeBron whenever they were both in the game. When Iguodala was playing, LeBron shot 38 percent, and the Warriors outscored the Cavaliers by 55. When Iguodala was on the bench, LeBron shot 44 percent, and the Cavaliers outscored the Warriors by 30. Iguodala was crucial to the Warriors winning the NBA Finals due to the way he played defense on LeBron James.

8. Stephen Curry

            Another Warrior, Stephen Curry, deserves recognition for his contributions to the team’s championship. The NBA MVP was the spark plug for the Warriors’ offense for the entire season. He led the Warriors in points per game and assists per game during the finals, posting 26.0 points per game, 6.3 assists per game, and 5.2 rebounds per game.

9. Malcolm Butler

            Malcolm Butler became a Super Bowl hero in 2015. His infamous interception on the goal line saved the game. Without him, the Patriots would not be Super Bowl Champions.

Malcolm Butler intercepts Russell Wilson to seal the Super Bowl victory.

10. Floyd Mayweather

            Floyd Mayweather won in the biggest fight in years by defeating Manny Pacquiao on May 2. While the fight may not have been the most entertaining one ever, Floyd demonstrated his mastery of defensive tactics and controlled the fight., as Pacquiao only landed 19% of his punches. The victory brought him to 48-0 as a professional, and defended his title as world champion.

            In all, while LeBron James played unbelievably well in the NBA Finals, he was not able to lead his team to victory. The athletes above all performed heroically on the greatest stages of their sports and, unlike LeBron, were able to win their respective championships. These champions are all more deserving of the ESPY for “Best Championship Performance” than LeBron James.

Tanking For The Win

Philadelphia 76er fans supporting their team 

Tanking is a model for delayed gratification, and current issue in the NBA. One team embracing it is the Philadelphia 76ers, who have won 32 games within the past two seasons, which is good for a 22% winning percentage. At one point, this team set a record, losing 26 consecutive games. One might ask, why is it in a team’s best interest to lose so much? This post will address one cause of tanking: the NBA Draft.

In the NBA draft, the teams that do not make the playoffs are entered into a lottery for the first pick of an up and coming prospect. The winner of the lottery receives the first pick; guaranteeing them a potential franchise-changing player. In a study conducted by advanced statisticians in the sport of basketball, the number of expected “win shares” was calculated by pick in the draft. Win shares are approximately the number of wins a player is expected to be responsible for contributing. The study concluded that number one overall picks generate 76.9 expected win shares throughout their careers and 26.5 within the first four years of that player’s career (Kubatko). Teams essentially control rookies for the first four years of their careers, given the structure of entry-level contracts, so this 26.5 number is significant. Teams finishing in last place are given the highest odds of obtaining this pick, at 25%. This is significant, as teams want the best chance possible to acquire the next LeBron James or Tim Duncan at this spot of the draft. Looking at teams losing early on in the playoffs- those with the least chance of winning it all anyways- they have 0% odds at the first pick. Also, they can expect about 6.0 to 9.4 win shares from their projected rookie (Kubatko). This is a large discrepancy between the values of a pick from a borderline playoff team and the worst team in the league. Now, putting this into the scope of a five-year period, teams would be best off to tank and accumulate a stockpile of elite talent.

Adding a high level prospect would theoretically increase a team’s chances at winning in the upcoming year; however, picking in the top-five does not necessarily guarantee a franchise-altering player. The ultimate risk teams partake in is choosing to select the next great center or next great guard. In recent years, the biggest example of this debate is the 2007 NBA Draft, featuring Kevin Durant and Greg Oden. After large amounts of debate, the Portland Trailblazers selected eventual bust Greg Oden from Ohio State, passing on eventual NBA MVP Kevin Durant. This is a prime example of a current trend spanning over the past ten years: guards outperforming centers picked in the top-four. Looking at guards selected in the top-four since 2005, they have averaged 6.64 win shares per season, significantly more than centers, who have averaged 4.52. However, expanding this analysis back to 1985, centers averaged 5.84 and guards averaged 5.61 win shares per season (Kartje). This demonstrates the evolving nature of the NBA, as the point guard position has seen a boom of success within recent years. Superstar guards such as Chris Paul, Derrick Rose, and Stephen Curry have replaced big men superstars such as Shaquille O’Neal, David Robinson, and Hakeem Olajuwon.

Given the current trend of guard success, maybe teams should have given D’Angelo Russell or Emmanuel Mudiay a better look in this year’s draft, and paused when considering Jahlil Okafor or Karl-Anthony Towns. However, only time will tell whom the true winners of the draft are.

The 2015 NBA draft results

By Luc Maynor 

Class of 2018

A-Rod ‘Snubbed’?

Number one draft pick in 1993.  2,646 total games played in his Major League career.  670 career homeruns.  Career batting average just under .300.  14 time All Star, three time American League MVP, two time Gold Glove Award winner, World Series Champion.  These and numerous other awards and accolades are all items that Alex Rodriguez’s résumé currently boasts.  15 time All Star though?  Not this year.  With 77 hits, 16 homeruns, 47 RBIs and an on base percentage nearing .400, A-Rod’s numbers did not reserve him a spot of the coveted All Star roster for the 2015 season.  Did he deserve a spot on the roster?  The question has the sports world buzzing.

As talked about and debated by various sports broadcasters such as Mike Golic and Mike Greenberg on their daily radio show “Mike & Mike”, Collin Cowherd on his show “The Herd,” and other ESPN analysts, many seem to blame the MLB for putting too much emphasis on the All Star Game itself.  The game, known as the “Midsummer Classic”, which was first played in 1933, is surrounded by an entire weekend of sports festivities, such as the Home Run Derby and other off-field fan favorites.  It provides some much needed relaxation and rest for not only the players but the fans as well.  Let’s take a closer look though.  The MLB All Star Game, although supposedly a showcase for the greatest talent that the League has to offer, should be a fun filled nine innings with players coming together from teams across the country to enjoy playing the game they all love, right?  Wrong.  The winning league of the All Star Game is granted home field advantage in the World Series, putting a rather large amount of importance on this event.  Should the selected managers for each side be more concerned with selecting the players they think deserve to play in the game or should they think deeper on the strategy side and pick the players that would give them the best chance of winning the game and securing the ever-so-important home field advantage come October? 

In many cases, there doesn’t have to be much of a contradiction between these two category choices.  The best players, those that not only the managers but the fans want to see as well, should be the ones that give their side the best chance of pulling out a victory.  That may be true for the majority of the starting players for the American and National League teams, but in typical All Star Game fashion, the “starters” are soon rotated out and/or switch positions so that the greatest number of these star players get their time on the diamond.  If the managers of each team are expected to not only balance the egos and playing times of the greatest talents in the League, but are also expected to win in order to secure the home field advantage, how is this game supposed to fulfill the criteria of being a relaxing and laid back event? 

This is one of the many debates that went through the mind of manager Ned Yost (from the Kansas City Royals) when selecting the American League All Star roster.  Was having Alex Rodriguez, now a designated hitter rather than a third baseman, as a backup on the roster to Nelson Cruz and Prince Fielder going to give them any greater of an opportunity to win the game than they would have without A-Rod on the roster?  Based on the lineup selected, that answer was no, but lets look at the numbers more closely. 

Player	HR’s	RBI’s	Batting Avg
Nelson Cruz	20	50	.301
Prince Fielder	14	54	.339
Alex Rodruquez	16	47	.280

Both Fielder and Cruz put up better overall numbers compared to Rodriguez, making it completely justifiable to leave him off the All Star roster. On top of losing the numbers game Alex brings a lot of the drama to most situations due to his detailed past. Due to all of these factors and more Yost decided not to grant Rodriguez his 15^th selection to the All Star lineup.      

Is this a big predicament in the sports world?  Yes, only because of the buzz that is constantly associated with A-Rod.  Was it the wrong choice?  I don’t believe so.  When looking at all the statistical data, as well as the way Rodriguez stacks up with the rest of the All-Star lineup, I do not have a problem with Yost’s decision to not select Rodriguez.  Will it hurt his legacy?  No – 14 All Star appearances instead of 15 – get ‘em next year, A-Rod.  What I think would be more helpful to his legacy would be winning a title now that his P.E.D. (performance enhancing drug) scandal is over and the fact that Derek Jeter has retired.  Significantly contributing to a Yankee pennant run would surely put him in better standing than sitting on the bench during this year’s All Star Game. 

By Michael Cannon

Class of 2017

Sociology Major