Welcome To The Reality of Sports

 As a sports fan have you grown weary of being fed bogus or over opinionated information by sources that dance around issues, without sharing the real truth behind a story? This mindset was the reason behind the birth of The Reality of Sports.

This site is not based on trying to convince sports fans to agree with what is written but encourages people to think. That may require people to do some additional research or make one more click before accepting what they read, watch or hear as truth. 
 The Reality of Sports


 MLB Gets It Wrong....Again
By D Maurice Waddell 


It is well documented how the Major League Baseball (MLB) has ignored, shunned and discredited Negro League Baseball (NLB). For many years treating the Negro Leagues as a side show that shouldn’t be taken seriou sly. According to the history books, baseball didn’t become popular in America until after the civil war. Because of the racism in the major and minor leagues, men like Octavius Catto began to form teams and start leagues. Baseball even served as a microcosm of life between Blacks and Whites in the “Divided” States of America.  

There is a mantra in the Black community: “You have to be twice as good to even be considered equal in this society.” I imagine that this has always been the case since our “existence” in this country dating back to 1555. Great Negro League players such as Rube Foster, Satchel Paige, Josh Gibson, Cool Papa Bell, Monte Irvin and cou ntless others were reminded of this mantra in society and on the baseball field. Although these players in the Negro Leagues rivaled the MLB, they were never given a legitimate chance to prove they were equal or superior to them. Major League Baseball did everything they could to secure the myth that “The League” was the end all be all of America’s favorite pastime.  

After years of avoiding playing against the Negro Leagues, Major League Baseball began to pluck Negro League Baseball of its most prized players, eventually putting an end to their rivals and their leagues. Players like Robinson, Paige, Larry Doby, Roy Campanella and Hank Aaron among others started to become household names in Major League Baseball. These select players represented a small percentage of the vast number of talented Negro League players who truly made their mark on the game. Image how great Major League Baseball would be if racism was not involved?

 In 2020, Major League Baseball announced that they would include the stats of the Negro League players in their record books. To be quite honest, my initial reaction was not positive. It was like a slap in the face to the men and the Negro League, which is a faint memory to most sports fans now.   

 Why did Major League Baseball wait until most of these men passed on to “honor” them? Was Major League Baseball doing this to jump on the bandwagon of the conscience and movement that is going on?  

  In December 2020, Major League Baseball’s Hall of Fame decided that no one would be inducted this year. Currently there are 35 men from the Negro League that were inducted into the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame. If the Major League Baseball/Hall of Fame was serious about making amends for the years of discrimination, they should have inducted more former Negro League players. Once again Major League Baseball upheld the myth of its superiority and got it wrong again.    

How the “One and Done” Experiment

is Slowly Killing the NBA

By D Maurice Waddell



If you follow and watch sports long enough, you will be labeled as “Old School.” I use to put this label on and mock guys like my dad and uncles about their old fashioned thoughts about the current state of sports. I have become what I mocked…..


In the last few years I have witnessed the decline of major college basketball programs. The “Blue Bloods” such as Kentucky, Duke, North Carolina, Kansas, etc., who dominated college rankings for years and are now struggling and clawing their way through the regular season and conference tournaments to get a chance to play in the NCAA Tournament.  In fact, you have to go back to 1961, when these teams fell out of the Associated Press Top 25.


The common thread that connects the decline of these programs: The One and Done Season. The fact of the matter is that most of the “One and Done” players are not ready for prime time, thus jeopardizing the level of play in the NBA. 


(Please pardon me for sounding like your favorite Uncle, but) I remember when players were recruited and stayed with programs where they developed their game. They became household names (Jordan, Ewing, Hakeem, Kidd, Bird, Magic, etc).  By the time they were drafted into the NBA they were “NBA Ready.” Their mental and physical development in college was vital for the rigors of the grind of the Association. You followed them from their college career right up to the NBA Draft and continued monitoring them on the NBA journey. Don’t get me wrong.


There has always been players that have been able to bypass college or successfully use the “One and Done“ option to their advantage, but not enough to claim that this experiment a success. For example, when you have a “One and Done” player that has been in the Association for 4-5 years and still can’t knock down a jump shot. Or another NBA “One and Done” player who after 17 years can’t spell defense let alone play it.  I digress…..


 However, in the Association’s thirst to land the next Kobe or LeBron, the trend turned to plucking unripe fruit and paying for ‘potential’ rather investing in established and developed college players. 


Young prospects have became more savvy and taken advantage of the “One and Done” system. Some have headed overseas to play internationally to develop. Who wouldn’t want to get paid to develop in the professional ranks?


 Why be exploited by College Programs/NCAA, who by the way, make millions/billions of dollars for their programs and the NCAA as the student athlete serve as indentured servants? Few former “student athletes” make this work for them but the majority of the players fall in the abyss of the NBA, G-League, Overseas or out of the league totally. 


As fans of the NBA, we’re watching teams attempting to develop potential thus watching the decline of the game right before our eyes. If you noticed, the NBA markets and showcases their more established players like and radio station playing the latest hot song four times an hour. Highlighting the most spectacular plays to keep you off the focus of lack rules, soft play, lack of defense, preferential treatment of stars, and flat out poor play.


 At times it feels like I’m watching guys playing in a park district league. Personally at times I find myself not interested in investing the time and effort of watching the NBA. Back in the day, that thought would have never crossed my mind. The simple fact of the matter is that we’re paying a lot of money on ‘merch’, the NBA Pass, and tickets (per Pandemic) for ‘potential’ instead of excellent professional play. As I stated at the beginning, I’m Old School, I know the difference. 



D Maurice Waddell aka “Uncle D”

What Happened to Our Superman? 

(An Open Letter to Jim Brown) 

By D Maurice Waddell 

In 1957, Superman put on a Cleveland Browns jersey with the number 32. With this he brought the strength of Blackness youth on and off the field. He thrust himself in the civil rights movement and was our champion alongside Muhammad Ali, Bill Russell, Kareem Abdul Jabbar and countless men and women who committed their lives and their platforms to the struggle.  
 
After nine years in the NFL, the 8 time rushing leader, 9 time All Pro, 5 time touchdown leader, 1960 all decade team member, 50th/75th/100th NFL All-Team member walked away from the game to pursue acting. This stunned the sports world. In Hollywood he took on roles uplifting Blackness and Manhood like no one before. Jim Brown broke taboos and society norms. He was bold, unapologetic and consistently outreaching, working and collaborating with those who had been cast aside by society. A society that created the very situations that he was trying to untangle and fix.  

But along the way something changed. Society has a way to beat down and flip some of the strongest of us. But no society can beat Superman right?   

Somehow, some way society found the kryptonite that destroyed our Superman. What was once a Man’s Man too many Black men of our generation turned into (and it pains me to write this) turned into a house slave right before our very eyes.  
From his criticism of Colin Kaepernick’s stand, to the buffoonery visit with Kanye West to the White House to co-sign the incompetence of ‘45”, left many in the Black community dumbfounded. For me personally, it left me wondering if it was an act all along. Was this your way of telling us that the role of Superman was too much for one man to handle? Or that you had been defeated by our enemies? Or that you took the stance “if you can’t beat them join them?” Was the cost too high, the burden too much? Was the task of being Superman unrealistic? 

Even today, it’s hard to believe that the Superman that wore number 32 and never ran out of bounds, always got up after the hardest hits and defied the establishment, is not mentoring and leading the charge with the movement we see today.  

Maybe you sent a clear message that as Black men we must invoke the Superman within ourselves. Message received.....

But still.... despite all....we miss you Superman....
 
Food for thought

When Boxing Became the New WWE:

Are You Not Entertained?

By D Maurice Waddell 

 I grew up in an era where boxing was King. The 1970’s, 80’s and 90’s featured some of the greatest fights in the boxing history. Now I don’t want to disrespect the great bouts and fighters that came before the 70’s. As a boxing fan I tend to watch boxing in different eras, studying how the sport evolved over time. I have a healthy respect for the history and the icons that despite the circumstances, craved their signature in the immortal realm of “The Sweet Science.” 


 I’m spoiled in a sense. I grew up in an era where in order to be the best; you had to beat the best. Champions fought worthy challengers in order to stake the claim as the undisputed champion regardless of division. The title “Pound for Pound” meant something, where you couldn’t just talk about it; you had to be about it. If you earned a title shot, you got it. The public and fans demanded it. Honor among men. 


Don’t get me wrong. The history of boxing has its shady side. I’m not claiming that boxing has always been on the ‘up and up’ with some of the results in major/minor bouts. As fans, we have reluctantly accepted this as a part of the game. Regardless of whether “the fix was in” this is a way for boxing to keep debates going among fans that last for decades. Talk about a great marketing strategy…. I will not get into the specific bouts.


We all can get into debates of the business/marketing decisions that determined boxing results over the decades. Despite the good, the bad and the ugly of the sport, we remain loyal. But now our loyalty is being pushed to the limit and this is dangerous territory for true boxing fans and purists.   


 Remember the start of MMA/UFC? It was treated as a fad, a side show that would burn out and fall at the knees of the boxing game. While Boxing was getting fat and seemed like the only game in town, boxers started to focus more on the business of boxing instead of competitive side of the sport. Nothing is wrong with that perspective. However, we started to see fighters avoid fighting the best of the best and start to cherry pick fighters to build their brand. Major bouts are now few and far between. 


We are lucky to see the top ranked fighters once a year if that and even luckier if we see them fight a worthy opponent.  With boxing ‘smelling itself’ to sort of speak; the MMA/UFC gave fight fans what was lacking in boxing. Two opponents enter, one leaves victorious. No tricks or frills, best fighter wins, period. As most boxing fans and purists scoffed at the idea of MMA/UFC getting to the level of “The Sweet Science” the MMA/UFC gave fans the fights that they wanted to see early and often while boxers and their promoters sat and pondered when was the best time to fight a worthy foe. 


Boxing became more entertainment than sport. At this point, anyone can jump in the ring if they can bring the pay-per-view dollars including YouTubers, Ex Athletes, Celebrities, Fifty Year Old Ex Boxing Champions, etc.  The villain against the hero is a format that always attracts the public and generates the most drama to force the fans to put down their money. Boxing now is driven by money, not by who’s the best. Pure Entertainment…..


This format came full circle and dare I say, forced boxing to take a back seat to MMA/UFC when on November 2, 2019, the Canelo Alvarez-Sergey Kovalev fight was delayed until after the UFC 244 main event of Jorge Masvidal vs Nate Diaz. This should have been a wakeup call to Boxing….


Fast forward to the current state of boxing, when the public would rather be entertained by YouTubers and entertainers fighting with commentating from Snoop Dogg, “The Sweet Science” needs to make a serious effort to save the sport or fall into the abyss of sports entertainment.


NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE USES MONEY TO DIVIDE AND CONQUER PLAYERS PROTEST
By CEFarmer

 San Francisco 49er quarterback Colin Kaepernick decided to protest racial inequality and police brutality in America by kneeling before games during the national anthem.

 The gesture was considered disrespectful to the American flag and military veterans by many. 

At some point, Kaepernick decided that he actually wanted to play football on the field again. He agreed to revoke some of the guarantees in his contract and in exchange, the San Francisco 49ers put the quarterback back on the field and allowed him to start 11 games.

 Fast forward to this season and Kaepernick was hoping to find a new opportunity to remain in the NFL, but has not been provided one by any teams. 

 Other players decided to continue the protest in the quarterback’s absence, which escalated public resentment from fans, NFL owners and even the President of the United States, Donald Trump.  

The National Football League's master plan was to teach their employees a lesson that if they stepped out of line, then the same could happen to them.

 President Donald Trump did major damage to the owners original plan when he stated, “He would fire the SOBs that were supporting Kaepernick’s protest before games.”

 With the majority of the group the President referred to being African-American, who represent 70 percent of the players in the league, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell responded quickly by making a statement denouncing Trump’s words, while pledging the NFL’s continued support of its players.

 The following week various owners came out on to the field and locked arms with the players in a showing of solidarity between management and the players.

 Was this a ploy by the NFL to pacify the players, because the one thing they don’t want is to have marquee players sit out games? 

 Just imagine the overall impact it could have on the NFL’s finances with fans not attending games or not watching on television, which could lead to corporate sponsors losing money.

Here is a question to ponder; do the owners believe that the players will not strike no matter what is done to them?  

 On October 15, Colin Kaepernick filed a grievance against the National Football League, alleging team owners had colluded to keep him out of uniform, not because of his athletic performance, but because of his decision to protest acts of police brutality and racial injustice before the games.

In today’s society, more players are concerned with their individual finances, instead of risking losing any income to support a fellow player’s cause.

 The NFL had discussions with a group, the Players Coalition led by Malcolm Jenkins, Anquan Boldin and came up with a proposal to donate $89 million over seven years to be used as the group sees fit towards social issues.   

The agreement has caused a split amongst the Players Coalition group, as Jenkins has decided to no longer kneel because of the NFL recent efforts and Boldin was stated as saying he believes it is a step in the right direction.

San Francisco 49ers safety Eric Reid, one of the first players to publicly support Kaepernick’s protest, said the agreement with the Players Coalition is a sham.

 Reid said that from conversations he had with Jenkins and Boldin, it appears the NFL may be doing little more than transferring dollars from other charitable organizations into social justice causes.

Is the $89 million the answer because the NFL recognizes the issue of social injustice and has decided to throw money at the problem? Or was this simply a Divide and Conquer move by the NFL to put the players back in their place?

 Are any of the players still concerned with the fact Kaepernick is still not playing football in the NFL?

In the end the NFL just wants a solution to help things get back to normal, so fans can focus just on watching football. If it takes writing a check to return things to normalcy, then the NFL has shown it is prepared to do so.

 With the recent developments, Colin Kaepernick’s situation seems to be quite similar to Baseball’s version of an ostracized player, Curt Flood who stood up for what he believed in which was free agency, two men on their own separate islands.

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Looking For Success At The Breeders Cup?  Stick To the Plan
By CEFarm


First of all let's just say that it is not easy to pick winners in professional Horse Racing, particularly  for  novices who  participate a few times a year, when the Triple Crown races and the Breeders Cup come around.


Those who are successful, usually study regularly and stay informed on most everything from practice run times, to trainer notes and owner suggestions, etc. 


In predicting Horse Racing,  sometimes you take more chances by wagering on long shots, anticipating that the risks will pay major dividends, but such is not often the case in this sport.  


While attending the 2018 Breeders Cup,  I decided to go outside the box from my normal analysis, heeding advice from horse racing experts about 2018 being the year of the European horse at Breeders Cup.  


So I  decided to take a few more chances during the two day event, testing out a new formula which focused on the jockey/ horse relationship, with the number of mounts a jockey had on a horse and what were the results played a major part  in my decision making. 


For the record,  European horses (Newspaper of Record, Sister Charlie, Expert Eye, Enable and Line of Duty) won 5 of the 14 Breeders' Cup Races. 


My favorite horse racing hypothesis has been that it is the jockeys and the trainers who are the key components behind the horses who have successful days at these type of events, unless the horse is truly a special talent, which will eventually show on the track. 


Certain jockeys are so talented and have big event experience to motivate or lead certain horses  to win races,  that  perhaps  they would not be able to do with an average rider aboard. 


The 2018 Breeders' Cup validated this hypothesis over the weekend,  as eight out of the 14 races were won by five top-notch Jockeys (Javier Castellano, Irad Ortiz Jr., Jose Ortiz, Joel Rosario and John Velasquez) whom I have grown to admire and respect over the years. 


In fact, those five jockeys combined to produce 8 wins and 6 second place finishes out of the 14 total races. 


So here is my rule of thumb from now on regarding horse racing, stick to the formula of selecting my favorite proven jockeys to use as a gauge for picking winners.


 Add in a quality trainer and a horse with a strong bloodline who has provided results on the track and lets cash some tickets. 


A Big Thank you goes out to the Breeders' Cup Jim Gluckson for his hospitality and always great conversation. Continued success.  

Don’t Hate the players Hate the game 

Some basketball purists seem quite disturbed by a trend in the National Basketball Association, termed "super teams", where players decide to join forces on the same franchise.  

This could not be possible without the cooperation of a team's General Manager, who is responsible for finding a way to make the financials work under the salary cap.  

Perhaps what is most disturbing to critics is the idea that some of the NBA's best players have acquired the freedom to form these "stacked teams".  

Another concern might be that this type of movement will create an uneven balance in the NBA, where only a few teams actually have a chance to compete for the championship.

A strong example was the Kevin Durant free agent defection from Oklahoma City to Golden State to play with the Warriors who already featured three all-stars. 

Many considered Kevin Durant to be a 'sell-out' by joining the team he couldn’t beat in the playoffs as a member of the Thunder. Oklahoma City held a 3-1 lead on Golden State but could not close out the series.   

After Durant's transfer to Golden State, the Warriors proceeded to win two championships in three years and the Washington, DC native was bombarded with criticism.  
Some might point to the Big Three in Boston, with Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett signing with the Celtics to join Paul Pierce as the start of this phenomenon.

The beginning of the super team discussion should start with Lebron James' decision to leave Cleveland after seven years and join friends Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh in Miami.

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