Washington Wanders In Sports Wasteland
Written by Chriso, Thursday January 28 2010
The NBA suspended Gilbert Arenas for the rest of the season.
In addition, Javaris Crittendon was also suspended by NBA Commissioner David Stern. So now the Bullets, I mean Wizards, have even less going for them. At 14-30, they are buried in the bottom of the Eastern Conference, saved only from the basement by the New Jersey Nets and their 4 wins.
It seems to be par for the course in Washington for the sports teams. The Redskins, a once proud franchise, held a memorial chanting "Hail to the Deadskins". The Nationals brought baseball back to D.C. by taking a team from Montreal. They renamed the Expos. They did not use the name Senators, seeing as the first Washington Senators went to Minnesota and the second Senators went to Texas, I guess it was time to try a new name. Still, while they hang out at the bottom of the National League they look more like the Expos, or perhaps the old Senators from when Washington was first in war, first in peace, and last in the American League. I miss the Expos, it was fun having a team in a province that speaks French that played some of their home games on an island that spoke Spanish.
But I can relate to where Washington is right now, I have seen a city there before. I "came of age" as a sports fan in Boston in the 80's. The Celtics were in the Larry Bird Era. Celt's fans thought they were entitled to more championships, a feeling that would subside in the 90's. 1986 was one of the greatest years in Boston Sports History. The Patriots made their first Super Bowl. It is interesting to see the Saints and their fans experience their first trip to the Super Bowl, and to think back of the euphoria Boston fans felt back in '86. We actually thought New England had a chance. We even had a 3-0 lead on the Chicago Bears. I wonder how much we are seeing history repeat itself with the Colts and Saints. Later in '86, Bird won his third and final NBA Championship. The Red Sox also had a great season. I like to think of it as the season where Dave Henderson helped beat the Angels with an incredible home run with the team on the brink of elimination. It is so much better than seeing it as the team that gave it away with a passed ball/wild pitch and ball through the legs. But I don't blame Bill Buckner. John McNamara should have had Dave Stapleton at first and Calvin Schiraldi should have remembered how to pitch. Still, '86 was magical.
Then came the 1990s. It was a lost decade for sports in Boston. It was the only decade where the Celtics did not win a championship. The Red Sox did not make it back to the World Series. Bill Parcells brought credibility to the Patriots, and a Super Bowl appearance, but another loss, this time to the Packers. But things turned around in the new decade, with three Super Bowl wins for the Patriots, two World Series Championships for the Red Sox and even the Celtics returned to glory winning the NBA Championship. 2004 easily replaced 1986 as the greatest year in Boston Sports History. For me, my personal life was sky high during the first half of the decade, and down the tubes the second half of the decade. As a result, I think I enjoyed the wins in the earlier half of the decade more. I've been thinking about this as there has been discussion about rooting for the Saints because of Hurricane Katrina. I just can not make the connection. It is just a game.
Meanwhile, in Washington, things seem to be improving. Some talk shows suggest they could have addition by subtraction on the Wizards. (Really? Let me know how that works out). The Redskins have brought in Bruce Allen and Mike Shanahan, and it kind of reminds me of when Parcells came to New England. The Capitals are doing quite well.
And it seems we will always have the Nationals.
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