Not So Fast

It has been a few minutes since I’ve posted the ramblings reflecting the inner workings of my mind, and for various reasons it felt like the right time to put fingers to keys and reignite the muse. There are a lot of things happening in the world right now, but for the sake of sanity and healthy debate let us stick to sports for this one. Durant has now become a United 1K member with how much he’s traveled cross country, the Warriors went from infamy to incompetence, and the Niners are 8-0. Lots to unpack there, but underlying these points and many other headlines circling professional sports right now is the obsession with the future. It has been the media gadfly buzzing around the eyes and ears of sports fans. Now it seems inadequate for us to focus on talent, we must weave a storyline into each situation. The media hypothesizes the future of NBA stars 2 games into the season. The hollow NFL trade deadline made more headlines than an undefeated Niner team. Durant is already getting asked where his next team is before stepping foot onto the court as a Net. Is unparalleled, record-setting athletic performance not enough for us anymore? 

I have been a sports fan for at least my whole life, and with that comes ample time to reflect. Fortunately for you and me, studying philosophy amplified my inclination to reflect, so here we are with some…you guessed it…reflection. I am drawn to sports because of physical excellence. It excites me to see athletes at the pinnacle of physical fitness compete at the highest level. As these players continue to evolve, astonishment is not far behind. We have wide receivers running 20+ mph, NBA games casually reaching 130+ points, and a freshman in college with a 48” vertical. If you had told that to someone in the 90s, they would scoff and tell you nothing will exist past Y2K. But really, they would give it 10% attention. Why? Because they were more focused on the “now” than the “later”. Sports had a pure focus, constantly reflecting on the state of athletes and teams with relevance to their place in history. Conversely, present day sports fans have shifted focus forward. Anthony Davis’ 40 point/20 rebound game in 3 quarters was a blip on the radar amongst the clickbait free-agency bogeys. So where do we draw the line?

There seems to be a certain side of all us that wants to know the future. If not for winning the lottery, we would be the first ones to knowledge. It’s a superpower in many forms, and the majority of sports media has begun to self-proclaim its possession. To a certain extent, I like it. It can be bold, outlandish, sometimes *gasp* even accurate. But there’s a difference between predicting the efficiency of Lebron this week vs. the free agency of Lebron’s son 3 years from now when he’s graduated high school. The former allows us as sports fans to focus on the excellence at hand. We get a chance to admire the fact that Lebron, in his 16th season, may record back-to-back-to-back triple doubles. The latter diverts our attention away from the present, as “clairvoyant” columnists sidestep current accomplishment on the path towards media superpowers. In doing so, they leave behind the mastery of today. They overlook the opportunity to reflect on the prowess of undefeated teams, the astonishing mental toughness behind injuries, or even the GOAT conversations of yesterday. (Is that ironic foreshadowing of future blog posts, perhaps?). At the risk of getting my fandom footwear stuck in the mud of yesterday, I would love to see a media world balance out their coverage with attention to present greatness before running 21 mph towards the 2020 free agency. 

P.S. Here we have the glorious, one and only Odell Beckham Jr. clocking in at 21.70 mph en route to his 89 yard touchdown earlier this year. What makes this possible? His always-custom cleats. Modeled after the lettering on the Nike Air Uptempo, this specific signature model mirrors both Brown's colors and the “Shattered Backboard” Air Jordan 1. Constantly in a league of his own when it comes to on-field footwear, Odell hasn’t been slowing down this season as he’s brought out at least two custom cleats each game. We await what he dons next…