Bill Russell

...not goint to mess around with discussing how I sort of quit this blog for a while. Already had a post about that last year. Moving on:

As did many people on planet earth last night, I got all of Shaq's congratulatory tweets to Kobe and the rest of the Lakers. It reminded me that the Kobe v Shaq feaud's path to peace evidentally started with a conversation between Shaq and Bill Russell. I wish I could find more on the specifics of that conversation. To me it seems emblematic of the influence Russell still has on the game of basketball.

Another example, I didn't see much made of this on the National level, but this is an absolutely fascinating (if way too short) conversation between Tim Duncan and Bill Russell from earlier this year:

So short. Maybe they started making out, and this is all they can show.

But seriously, there's a pretty broad understanding about the ills of modern day professional sports. But sports are also frequently a venue for dignity, respect, and love in a world (specifically the telivised world) in which those qualities can seem terribly rare.

And now for a paid advertisement from the Griddleman:

Perfect Timing, as Usual: or Tim Duncan's Tattoos

So...

Yeah.

It seems that a couple weeks after starting my big new fancypants Spurs Blog, the NBA season is now over.

Ha! Great.

I see this as a crucial time for Odd Years. I mean, right at the point where things were starting to pick up, starting to build steam--I had 3 comments last week!--there is a very real danger that I will not be able to think of anything to talk about.

I think Joni Mitchell had a song that explored similar themes. It was called "Where Have All the Cowboys Gone?" and if you think for a second that that song doesn't get you pumped up, you're kidding yourself. Just go to your nearest bar and find that song on the juke box. Press in the numbers for it and go stand on top of a table. Then see what happens. I'll spoil the surprise: interpretive dancing is what happens.

See? There I go, wandering into some sarcastic tangential side note that has nothing to do with the Spurs, or anything else really. Because there is nothing else to talk about!

Tim Duncan has a tattoo of a wizard on his chest. And of a jester on his back. He got them because he likes playing Dungeons and Dragons so much.

Your thoughts?