For my 4,000th post, I've decided to list the results of a Facebook poll I participated in: Name 10 athletes who've made an impact on your viewing experience. No explanation, just name them.
Here, I will give the explanations. I have chosen to list them in chronological order. These are My Ten:
1. Pelé. Born 1940 as Edson Arantes do Nascimento, and still alive as of this writing. Soccer. Forward. Santos Futebol Club of Santos, São Paulo State, Brazil, 1956-74. New York Cosmos, 1975-77.
In his homeland, to which he led to 3 World Cup wins, he is O Rei: The King. He showed the world it could love the Brazilian style of the sport. And he showed America that it could love the sport at all. And he did it not just in my home metropolitan area, but, in his last season, 1977 at Giants Stadium, he did it in my State.
2. Muhammad Ali. Born 1942 as Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr., died 2016. Boxing. Olympic Gold Medalist in 1960. Heavyweight Champion of the World 1964-71, again 1974-78, once more in 1978.
It wasn't just his skill, immense though it was. It was the force of his personality, and the way he literally changed America and the world, that made him what he'd said he was before he did that: "The Greatest Of All Time."
3. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Born 1947 as Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor Jr., and still alive as of this writing. Basketball. Center. Milwaukee Bucks, 1969-75. Los Angeles Lakers, 1975-89.
Michael Jordan didn't arrive in the NBA until I was almost 15 years old, and didn't win a title until I was 21. Larry Bird and Kareem's Laker teammate Earvin "Magic" Johnson got there when I was 9. But when I was first old enough to understand what was going on in basketball, there were 2 defining players: Kareem for power, and Julius Erving, a.k.a. Doctor J, for style. And as great as Doc was, Kareem was the better player. In 1985, at 38, he tore Bird's Boston Celtics apart in the Finals. He was still 1 of the top 3 players in the game. In 1987, again beating Bird and the Celtics, he was still 1 of the top 5.
He was there for so long that to call him "a mere compiler of stats," the way some not-that-great pitchers did when they joined the 300 Win or 3,000 Strikeout Club, is ridiculous. He didn't just break Wilt Chamberlain's career record for most points, he raised it by 22 percent. Even if he gets surpassed by LeBron James or somebody else, the new recordholder won't raise it by anywhere near that much.
Oh yeah: He also fought Bruce Lee in a movie (and held his own for a while before losing), and was in Airplane!
4. Reggie Jackson. Born 1946, and still alive as of this writing. Baseball. Right field. Kansas City Athletics, 1967. Oakland Athletics, 1968-75. Baltimore Orioles, 1976. New York Yankees, 1977-81. California Angels, 1982-86. Athletics again, 1987.
I grew up outside New York. I've been watching the Yankees since 1977, the year Reggie came to them, and led them to their 1st World Series win in 15 years. He's not just the leading home-run hitter of his generation, he's Mr. October. For me, he was the right man, doing the right thing, for the right team, in the right place, at the right time.
5. Guy Lafleur. Born 1951, and still alive as of this writing. Hockey. Right wing. Montreal Canadiens, 1971-85. New York Rangers, 1988-89. Quebec Nordiques, 1989-91.
The Montreal Canadiens who won 4 straight Stanley Cups from 1976 to 1979 may have been the most talent-laden team in the history of the sport. This was the team that taught me what hockey is supposed to look like. And Lafleur was their scoring ace, the ultimate "Flying Frenchman."
(UPDATE: Lafleur died on April 22, 2022.)
6. Ron Jaworski. Born 1951, and still alive as of this writing. Football. Quarterback. Los Angeles Rams, 1973-76. Philadelphia Eagles, 1977-86. Miami Dolphins, 1987-88. Kansas City Chiefs, 1989.
I also refused to root for the New York Jets. Why? Because I was sick of hearing about how great Joe Namath was. Of course, by this time, Broadway Joe was badly injured and washed up. It was a long time before I began to understand that he wasn't just a football legend, he was a cultural icon. Still, I never became a Jet fan. And when they moved to the Meadowlands in 1984, and also refused to change their name to "New Jersey," that settled it.
But not that far away, in the other direction, was another NFL team, the Philadelphia Eagles. Under coach Dick Vermeil, they were building a winner. And their quarterback was Ron Jaworski. Like me, he was Polish. His nickname, long before he began appearing on ESPN's NFL-themed shows and getting nicknamed "Jaws," was "the Polish Rifle." And he was a better quarterback than Namath. (Don't @ me. The Giants, to that point, had never had a better quarterback, either, not even Y.A. Tittle. And I'm still not convinced that Eli Manning was better than Jaworski.)
Jaworski got the Eagles into Super Bowl XV in 1981, although they lost. They never did go all the way until 2018. Eventually, he gave way to Randall Cunningham, who might well be on this list if he had led the Eagles to win a Super Bowl. And, with their defense, that might have happened, if his coaches hadn't been Buddy Ryan, a defensive genius who was as dumb as Rich Kotite when it came to offense; and then, Rich Kotite, the dumbest football coach who has ever lived.
Jaworski is the only one on this list who isn't in his sport's Hall of Fame (aside from Number 9 on this list, who will almost certainly be elected next year) (UPDATE: He was), although he might one day win the Pete Rozelle Award, which is the Pro Football Hall of Fame's award for media figures.
7. Walter Payton. Born 1954, died 1999. Football. Running back. Chicago Bears, 1975-87.
Even though he never played for a team anywhere near me, Payton remains my favorite football player of all time. His nickname was "Sweetness," but nobody questioned his masculinity. He was tough, even by Chicago Bear standards. He missed a game due to injury in his rookie season, then never missed another for the next 12 years. But his performance on the field could also be, to use a word Ali sometimes used about himself, "pretty."
He set NFL records for rushing yards in a game and in a career. He could also block very well. He was also a pioneer in running backs being able to catch passes, holding the record for most catches by a player who wasn't a receiver -- and that included tight ends. He could even throw, with 8 touchdown passes to his credit. For most of his career, the Bears weren't very good, but in the 1985-86 season, they put together one of the best seasons any NFL team has ever had, winning Super Bowl XX.
He died of a liver ailment when he was only 45 years old. Mike Ditka, his last coach with the Bears, called him "the greatest football player I've ever seen, but even greater as a human being." Dan Hampton, a defensive end who joined Payton and Ditka in the Hall of Fame, said at Payton's memorial service at Soldier Field, "I've got a little girl. She's four years old. Ten years from now, when she asks me about the Chicago Bears, I'll tell her about a championship. I’ll tell her about great teams and great teammates and great coaches, and how great it was to be a part of it. But, the first thing I tell her about is Walter Payton."
In 1977, Payton received the NFL's Man of the Year Award, which honors not just a player's on-field performance, but also his commitment to philanthropy and community impact. In 2000, the year after his death, the award was renamed the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award.
8. Martin Brodeur. Born 1972, and still alive as of this writing. Hockey. Goaltender. New Jersey Devils, 1992-2014. St. Louis Blues, 7 games in 2014-15.
No goalie in hockey history played more games, or won more, or recorded shutouts in more. With his passing skill, it was like having a 3rd defenseman on the ice. He helped them win 3 Stanley Cups, in 1995, 2000 and 2003. And he probably should have received the Conn Smythe Trophy as Playoff MVP the last 2 times.
New York Ranger fans called their goalie Henrik Lundqvist "King Henrik." Devils fans, with the stats and the Cups on their side, chanted, "Mar-ty's bet-ter!"
9. Derek Jeter. Born 1974, and still alive as of this writing. Baseball. Shortstop. New York Yankees, 1995-2014.
"Va va voom." Along with Ronaldo da de Lima, he might be the most exciting soccer player of his generation. He led Arsenal to 2 Premier League titles, including the 2003-04 season when they became the only team since 1889 to go through an entire English top-flight season without losing. And he helped France win the World Cup in 1998, and almost did it again in 2006. He helped Barcelona win the UEFA Champions League in 2009.
Captain Clutch has 3,465 hits and 5 World Series rings. He has the right to be arrogant. He isn't.
10. Thierry Henry. Born 1977, and still alive as of this writing. Soccer. Forward. AS Monaco of Monte Carlo, Monaco, 1994-99. Juventus FC of Turin, Italy, 1999. Arsenal FC of London, England, 1999-2007. FC Barcelona of Spain, 2007-10. New York Red Bulls, 2010-14. A brief return to Arsenal on loan in 2012.
When he came to the Red Bulls, he enjoyed being able to walk down the street in New York without being mobbed by fans. That didn't last long. He helped the Red Bulls win their 1st major trophy, the 2013 MLS Supporters' Shield for best regular-season record.
And I got to see him play at Red Bull Arena. Due to various circumstances, I didn't get to see Joe Montana throw a touchdown pass in front of me, I didn't get to see Michael Jordan dunk a basketball in front of me, and I didn't get to see Wayne Gretzky score a goal in front of me. But I did get to see Thierry Henry score a goal 30 feet in front of me.
And, at a Q&A session for the NYC Arsenal Supporters Club following a 2011 Red Bulls game, alone among these men, I got to talk to him, asking him what he thought about the level of play in Major League Soccer, compared to the leagues he played in, in England, Spain, France and Italy. He charitably said it was improving.
Those are My Ten. I don't know when the next one will come along, or who I will drop. Maybe Jaworski, since he isn't in the Hall of Fame. But, as with the other nine, I'll still be grateful to him for the memories he provided.
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