The first is the most obvious: Jordan’s accomplishments built the NBA to what it is now and without it, the opportunity for many of the next generation’s players wouldn’t exist, or exist in a state nowhere near what it is currently.

The second: anyone wearing the No. 23 is simply living in the shadow of Michael Jordan.  No matter how great the player is, after what Michael Jordan did during his career and the number of championships he acquired, no player will have remotely the same impact on the sport.  Regardless of talent, Jordan was the right man, at the right time.

The third ties into the second.  Playing under a different number, The King can build his own legacy.  Kobe Bryant and LeBron James have been heralded as the “next” Jordan, but that is an unfair comparison because they are two players in a much different era.  A new number lets LeBron build his own legacy, away from the one Mike made.

LeBron realizes that not even he could overshadow Jordan’s legacy.

Not for much longer.

The Yankees pulled away from the Phillies in game four of the World Series, led by Johnny Damon’s crucial at-bat that turned into a double steal to A-Rod capping off a furious rally to drop three runs on the Phillies in short order, putting the Yankees up for good 7-4.  Mariano Rivera then did what he does best: close the game.

In a post season consisting of A-Rod beating his demons as well as A-Rod leading the Yankees through the first two rounds against the Twins and Angels, the Phillies did an excellent job of keeping him quiet, even if it required the pitchers to hit him three times with pitches, one in the first inning of game four.  That last hit may have been what awoke the sleeping giant and sparked the end of the Phillies’ reign as World Series Champions

But they were willing to give the man a chance to perform after Joe Torre departed for Los Angeles.

That chance was not wasted.

The Yankees are now one game away from reaching the World Series again, and this time they are rushing in with a full head of steam.  Their team is firing on all cylinders and doesn’t seem to be on the verge of collapse.  They have won all but one game so far in the post season, sweeping the Minnesota Twins and now are one win away from eliminating the Los Angeles Angels.  The Yankees dominated game 4 of the ALCS.

Riding on the back of the dominating Alex Rodriguez and the solid pitching of CC Sabathia,  the Yankees blew out a game in a series where extra-innings were so common, they were going out of style.  The 10-1 victory may have been the straw to break the camels back and put to rest any thoughts that the Yankees were going to collapse and fail to reach the World Series once again; that dream seems all but extinguished.  CC Sabathia’s, who is undefeated in the post season this year, is next expected to pitch Game 1 of the World Series in the new Yankee Stadium.

The biggest story, however, is the performance of A-Rod.  Suddenly, the most talented and rich player in baseball who was best known for his post-season collapses is coming through in a big way.

Now with the first round done for the Yankees, the days off and in between have been very hard for reporters to find A-Rod to get him to create more gossip fodder as he has done every year in the past with questionable comments.  A-Rod seems to be in control of not only his game, but his mouth, but has his game ever been a problem?

Other players have had their bad games, but no one has been more crucified than Alex Rodriguez, and especially this year.  It started with a steroid scandal, then hip surgery, and the building anticipation of his return.  It seems that he came back with the right message in his first at bat, knocking a home run out of the park that set the tone for the rest of the season.

A-Rod is beating his demons, with a baseball bat, and leading the Yankees to their most promising post-season in recent years.

That said, the Gators did protect Tebow during the grind-out 13-3 win they had over LSU Saturday night.  The Gators started slow, obviously giving Tebow some time to adjust to the game again after having sat out for a seven to nine day stretch.  But once he got back into the rhythm, the smash-mouth Tebow running style came out of the bag of tricks.  After a few plays of hesitancy, one could see him settle in and get comfortable, and LSU didn’t have a chance against the Florida defense.

The SEC championship game is shaping up to be a rematch of last year, with both the East and West’s undefeated juggernauts on a collision course for their spot in the BCS National Championship.  The Florida Gators vs. the Alabama Crimson Tide is in many ways becoming the national championship, with little doubt that the winner of the contest will go on to claim it all.

Tennessee coach Lane Kiffin and many Gator-Nation haters have jumped on the bandwagon saying Florida was exposed as being vulnerable, and the “excuse” Urban gave to the press was nothing more than a cheap way to say his team was playing poorly.

Then came Saturday in Lexington Kentucky, with the Gators playing with several more players suffering from various bugs affecting either respiratory and/or gastrointestinal systems.  Many wondered if Tebow would be on the field after having to take a separate flight to Kentucky from contracting a bug himself.

Tebow indeed was on field and played like the bug decided to take a break and let the “Football Jesus” make the University of Kentucky look like the Red Sea as he split between their defenders and lead the Gators to a huge 31-0 lead at the end of the first quarter.

Then the unthinkable happened with the Gators deep in the Kentucky territory and threatening to score.

Tebow wassackedhard, and as he fell, his head smashed against the knee of his offensive lineman, whipping his head forward and leaving him laying on the field unconscious.  After a few minutes, he was able to rise and be assisted off the field and was taken to the hospital, diagnosed with a concussion.

What this will mean to the Gators is unknown.  The Gators lucked out and have a bye week next week before they play LSU.

Tebow is the kind of player that does everything in his power, with a little divine intervention, to make sure he’s ready to rock and roll in two weeks.  The injury has simply added another dimension to upcoming showdown in Louisiana.

Years ago, he was a sports hero, the slayer of a dynasty.  His game winning touchdown reception allowed for perhaps the greatest upset in recent sports history.  The catch prevented the Patriots from completing their quest for perfection, joining the Dolphins as the only teams to ever go undefeated, and even surpassing them by having a longer schedule and a much stronger group of teams to compete against.

After his heroics, Plaxico rode the wave of fame and went into Giants lore as a god.

It seems even gods don’t know all the details about concealed weapons permits in every state, especially New York, the state with the strictest gun control laws in the country.

Plaxico was arrested on gun charges after a concealed pistol he was carrying slipped from his waist and fired, hitting him in the leg and narrowly missing another person.  After a brief attempt at playing off the “victimless crime” angle, saying only he was hurt by his own stupidity, the New York prosecutor decided it was time to make an example of someone violating the gun control laws and set the bar at a minimum two-year prison sentence for Plaxico Burress.

After exhausting his options, Plaxico agreed to the plea bargain and was sentenced to two years in prison, with a minimum of 20 months with credit and good behavior.  

Some may say he was treated unfairly for his crime and punished too severely.

If you are dumb enough to shoot yourself in a night club with your own gun, you deserve to be locked up until you understand that the difference between this victimless crime and manslaughter is simple the angle at which the gun fell from the waist.

Yes, it’s football season again, and the teams came out swinging the opening day of action, literally.

Boise State, ranked No. 14 in the preseason poll, hosted the Pac-10’s No. 16 ranked, Oregon, in what was supposed to be a shootout to determine what team is going to be in the BCS talks for the remainder of the season.  

Boise State vs. Oregon was billed as one of the big battles of the early season, and was supposed to have all sorts of bowl game implications, sending a message to those who doubted Boise State’s ability to compete.

So Boise State beats Oregon in the exact opposite way the game was thought to have gone; a terribly executed slop fest, with both teams making terrible errors on every drive and the high powered Oregon offense looking as delicious as a brick of old bread: stale.  

Even with the game going to Boise State and the reason to celebrate seemingly present, the game itself was overshadowed by the drama of the night.  LeGarrette Blount, Oregon’s best playmaker, was quoted before the game saying that Oregon “owed these guys an ass whooping.”  Obviously the quote was nowhere near the outcome, but the true drama happened after the game, when a Boise State lineman walked up to Blount, tapped him on the shoulder, jawed at him, and was instead met by a closed fist right handed haymaker of a punch from the Oregon player, which dropped the 241-pound lineman on his back.

It took 60 plus minutes of ugly football to finally get some fireworks.

God, I love football season.

That’s the latest news on Vick, rumors of his return to the NFL and possibilities with the Bills.

Where did this idea surface, you may wonder? Allow me to include the stirring tweet sent by ESPN’s Adam Schefter: “Here are the two sleeper teams on Vick not getting mentioned, but that I now sense could be in play here: Buffalo and Dallas.”

Although Vick’s officially out of the dog house, ahem, big house, he still has a few things left to do before the American justice system is through with him.

According to the Chicago Times, and as a probationary obligation, Vick has to speak to “at-risk inner-city kids” about animal cruelty. Specifically, that a person can go to jail if he or she partakes, lose a career in professional football (along with millions of dollars in contracts) and see a major reputation stain that won’t likely fade completely…ever.

“We spoke with dozens of young people, and Michael shared his story, expressed remorse for his actions, urged the community to stand up to dog fighting, and asked them to help with the campaign,” Wayne Pacelle, president and CEO of The Humane Society, said.

Other terms of Vick’s probation include that he secure a job — apparently he’s got something arranged for construction, as reported by A Pakistan News — and remain under house arrest unless he’s packing a metal lunchbox and yellow hard hat.

So the question now is whether or not Vick will be welcomed — or at least allowed — back into the NFL and how the fans will take to it. From what I’ve been reading, it appears Vick has been forgiven for most of his doggy faux paws.

Guess we’re just going to have to wait and see…Michael Vick Buffalo Bills..? I don’t think it really matters what team, as long as he gets in.

Twenty-year-old Kane, with cousin James Kane in tow, took a taxi while in his hometown of Buffalo, New York. Their total came to $13.80 and Kane gave the driver $15. When Mr. Taxi Driver was unable to give Kane the exact change ($1.20), the smack-down began.

Anyone who’s ever seen even five minutes of a hockey game will find that, in fact, it’s not exactly the most peaceful game in the world. Perhaps Kane was just practicing channeling his aggression for this year’s hockey season.

When Kane was told that his exact change couldn’t be given, he took his money back and began to attack the driver. This is all according to the driver himself who also claims that Kane then punched him in the face and grabbed his throat.

A Buffalo police spokesperson confirmed the injuries and added that the driver’s face was cut and his glasses were broken.

Later on Sunday, Kane and his cousin were charged with second degree robbery, criminal mischief and theft of services. He plead not guilty in a city court hearing. His later court date is yet to be determined.

As for punishment from the NHL, none have been quick to judge or condemn.

“He is a big part of our organization and a team leader and we stand behind him,” Blackhawk’s spokesman Brandon Faber said. “As we are still collecting all the facts, it would be premature to comment further at this time.”