The Top Ten Sports Stories of the Decade
Written by B-Dub, Tuesday December 29 2009
I have decided that since it is the end of the 2000s, we should have a definitive list of the top stories that have happened in the last ten years. Some of these things are good, some are bad, but all of them were important in the world of sports. So without further ado, here are the Top Ten Sports Stories of the Decade.
10. Dale Earnhardt's Death
Look, I don't consider a bunch of good-old-boys making left turns a sport, but even I can't ignore the impact that Dale Earnhardt's death had on the world of NASCAR. I only know what I read in the newspapers and saw on TV, but it seems to me that Earnhardt was the most popular driver ever. His death rocked NASCAR to its very core. It would have been like if Joe Montana died in the middle of the Bill Walsh Super Bowl winning era in San Francisco. I can't think of a bigger name in sports that died in the last decade.
9. L. A. Lakers
It hurts me to include this franchise on this list, but how can I leave off a team that won more titles in the decade than any other? The Lakers not only had a "Three-Peat" in 2000, 2001 and 2002, but they also won the NBA Championship again in 2009. To make it even bigger, you had two of the biggest names in the history of the sport in Kobe and Shaq during that three-peat. Kobe Bryant is an arrogant jerk, who I believe raped that girl in Colorado and paid her off, but he and Shaq dominated the NBA in the 2000s like Michael and Scottie did before them.
8. Brett Favre
Love him or hate him, you simply can not deny that he was one of the biggest stories of the decade. Favre owns the record books, with the most touchdowns, passing yards, completions, consecutive starts and wins as a quarterback. He was the face of the Packers franchise up until 2008. But that's not really why he's on this list. He's here because of the Soap Opera-like drama of whether or not he would stay retired. I lost count of the number of times he's retired and un-retired by now, but he's still playing at a Hall of Fame level. He's one of the greatest players in the most popular sport in America. You could even argue he should be higher on this list.
7. The Pistons - Pacers Brawl in Detroit
The "Malice in the Palace". The "Basketbrawl". Whatever you call it, you don't even have to be a fan of the NBA to remember this one. On November 19, 2004 during a game between the Indiana Pacers and Detroit Pistons a brawl broke out between the teams. The fight was minor at first, but as it was being broken up a cup was thrown from the stands (Hey I thought that only happened in Philly?). With that, menace to society Ron Artest went into the stands sparking a huge brawl between the players and fans. Nine players were suspended a total of 146 games. Also, five players were charged with assault and sentenced to a year's probation and community service. And cup-throwing fan, John Green received a lifetime ban from the Palace of Auburn Hills where the Pistons play their games.
6. Michael Phelps
Michael Phelps has won a total of 14 Olympic Gold Medals, but what really gets him on this list was his record-breaking performance in the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. Phelps won eight Gold Medals in all eight of his events and broke the seven Gold Medal record set by Mark Spitz at the 1972 Munich Olympics. He instantly became "The Golden Boy" to advertisers. That is until a picture surfaced of Phelps taking a toke on a marijuana bong at a college party. That story was probably even bigger than the Gold Medals. Sad but true. And it even spawned a great rap song by injured Philadelphia Eagles offensive lineman Shawn Andrews titled "Getting my Michael Phelps on". Check it out sometime if you haven't already. It's priceless.
5. Patriots ALMOST Perfect Season
During the 2007 NFL season, the New England Patriots did something that no other team in history except the 1972 Miami Dolphins had ever done. They finished the regular season undefeated. And they didn't just win games, they annihilated the competition. QB Tom Brady and WR Randy Moss broke records and nothing could stand in their way of a perfect season and immortality. That is until they lost to the New York Giants in the Super Bowl, thanks to the luckiest catch in the history of the NFL. David Tyree's catch, pinning the ball against his helmet while falling to the ground, might just be the most famous catch ever. (Apologies to Dwight Clark) In the end, the perfect regular season meant nothing because the Pats and their cheating, dirtbag coach lost the biggest game of the season. 18-1 never felt so bad.
4. B*rry B*nds
Barry Bonds is the best pure hitter of my lifetime. He is, without question, among the greatest hitters in the history of baseball. But he is also a cheater. Although he never failed a drug test, Bonds' name will be as synonymous with "The Cream and the Clear" as it is with the "Homerun record". Anyone with a brain and functioning eyes, knows that Bonds cheated. The growth of his pumpkin head alone proves he was on the Juice. But before the Balco story broke, Bonds shattered the most hallowed record in all of sports; the homerun record. During the 2001 season Bonds hit an amazing 73 homeruns. Even more amazing is the fact that he did it less than 500 at bats, because he walked almost 200 times. Even though all of his achievements on the field are now tainted, there is no question that he was the single biggest name in baseball during the last decade.
3. Lance Armstrong
I don't consider cycling to be a real sport, but Lance Armstrong dominated his "sport" over the last decade. And he did it under extraordinary circumstances. In 1996 Armstrong was diagnosed with cancer and given only a 50% chance to live. He not only beat cancer, he proceeded to beat everybody on a bike. Armstrong won six consecutive Tour De France races from 2000 to 2005 (It's was actually seven in a row, but this the 2000s decade list, so the 1999 win doesn't count). It got so bad that there was a rumor that an opposing team claimed that he had an unfair advantage by only having one testicle. If that's true, that's just nuts.
2. Tiger Woods
Again Golf is not a sport. It just isn't, but Tiger Woods dominates golf like no other athlete has ever dominated before. He's already got 14 major titles and makes more money than any other athlete by far. The man is worth a Billion. Well, maybe not for long. Tiger would have been #2 on my list even before his wife tried to play a round upside his cheating head. The revelation that Tiger Woods was banging Hos like a screen door in a hurricane all around the globe shook the sports world to its core. The athlete everyone (mistakenly) thought was perfect was really a degenerate scumbag. Woods has announced that he will take a leave from golf and that alone makes the PGA completely and totally irrelevant. The ratings will disappear faster than Tiger's Hos came crawling out of the woodwork for their 15 minutes of fame. Tiger will come back to golf eventually with a teary apology, light one wife and a few hundred million dollars.
Tiger Woods is without question the top athlete of the last decade, but he isn't the top story. That distinction belongs to.............
1. Steroids in Baseball
Whatever your feelings about steroids in baseball, you simply can not deny that this was the single biggest story of the last decade. There may have been bigger names, but no other story encompassed an entire sport like steroids did in baseball. We used to think baseball was so pure. Not anymore. The heroes of this entire generation of baseball players are now tainted with the stain of steroids. Names like B*nds, Rafael Palmeiro, Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa and Roger Clemens were beloved superstars and then we found out the ugly truth. They were cheaters. Some people questioned why Congress would call baseball players in to testify after the Balco scandal, but not me. I think we had the right to know if our sports heroes were cheating.
Apparently it had been going on for decades and was baseball's not so secret little secret. Major League Baseball officials, the owners, the players, the Players Union and the media all stood by, knowing what was going on and did nothing because of the money that was rolling in with the increased popularity of the sport. It all seems so obvious now. It wasn't the baseballs or the smaller ballparks; it was the chemically enhanced bigger players. How could we all have been so naive?
Well there you have it. The unquestioned top ten stories of the decade. Feel free to let me know if you think I left something off the list and I'll be sure to tell you why you're wrong.
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3 comments
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In light of recent events, I believe that my Playerpress Fantasy Football League Championship should be considered 1-A on this list of the Top Ten Sports Stories of the Decade.
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I wouldn't copy some other hack's crappy list MC. I leave that to the lesser writers. And by the way, please show me any list where Tiger Woods ISN'T #1. Finally, you need to read my articles more often. I write several national articles a month. I concentrate on the Philly teams because they just keep doing stupid stuff all the time.
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I want to know who's list you copy+pasted? Everyone (minus one) is writing this list, and at least eight out of 10 will all be the same. Who cares though? I'm just happy to see you write about something outside of Philly.