TGIF everyone here's my Top 5 for June 22, 2012 from Len Berman at www.ThatsSports.com.
1. Quick Hits
- The Miami Heat are the NBA champs after being Oklahoma City 121-106 to win four games to one.
- As the Jerry Sandusky trial went to the jury, the 33-year-old adopted son of Sandusky would have testified that Sandusky abused him.
- Tampa Bay reliever Joel Peralta is appealing an eight-game suspension for having pine tar in his glove.
2. All Hail the King
I'm glad LeBron James got his ring. Now can we just go on with our lives and invest in something meaningful like job creation? But I guess they're not so happy in Cleveland. I'm not sure Cavalier fans will ever get over LeBron heading to South Beach much like Brooklyn Dodgers fans still holding a grudge. But the truth is, sports is replete with stars calling the shots. Kareem left Milwaukee, Shaq bolted Orlando, Wilt wanted out of Philly. Should I go on? Kobe didn't want to play in Charlotte, Elway nixed Baltimore and Eli Manning wanted no part of San Diego. The stars call the shots. And that's the way it is, was and always will be. Now about the Colts leaving Baltimore...
3. Wedge Shot
They always say the guys on the PGA tour would rather be in the bunker than in the rough around the green. Not us amateurs. We hate winding up in the sand. But a Massachusetts woman took it to a new level. She wound up in the trap. Why? An errant drive...in her Buick. She said something about not liking golf and that it was her GPS at fault. The police said it was really the alcohol.
4. Friday eMailbag
To combat flopping in the NBA, I asked "Who's in favor of power plays in basketball?" R.K. answered: "Me. Foul shots are boring. Either power plays or award extra points for baskets scored immediately after a foul, but no stopping the game please."
With the latest charges against Lance Armstrong and performance enhancing drugs, R.B. writes, "Sports has become a vicious 'cycle.'"
On Jim Furyk fading down the stretch at the U.S. Open, L.F. writes, "I guess he was on the sixth hour of his '5 Hour Energy' drink!"
And when I mentioned that Secretariat just broke the record for the 1973 Preakness when they shaved 1 2/5 seconds from his time, H.K. wrote: "I guess what they say is true. No sense trying to beat a dead horse."
5. Spanning the World
This week's Spanning the World highlight comes from Euro 2012, and its journalism 101. Blond hair, wearing a dress and Dutch soccer fans drinking beer don't add up to "one take" standups.
Spanning the World airs monthly on NBC's Today Show. Next up: Thursday June 28 in the 9:00 a.m. hour.
Happy Birthday: NBA Hall of Famer Clyde "The Glide" Drexler. 50.
Bonus Birthday: The great Meryl Streep. 63.
Today in Sports: 25 years ago today, pitcher Tom Seaver hangs 'em up. 1987.
Bonus Event: Calling all cars. The donut is invented by a Dutch sea captain. 1847.
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