Skywalker's Top 40 (26-30)

10 down, 30 to go. We’re moving right along on my list of top sports figures of all-time. Before I jump into the next batch of five, I have a couple of items that needs to be addressed. First, thanks to Keith Cawley for the greatest comment thus far. Cawley has single-handedly jumped Turner up about 4 or 5 spots on my list. Everyone should check it out.

Speaking of comments, I found it necessary to moderate them. Meaning every comment will go through a “screening” process conducted by yours truly. The ones that everyone can read will pass, while those that cannot will be purely for my entertainment alone. Either way, keep ‘em coming. Appreciate it.

I think it needs to be said that this list of mine is my list. I could care less if you agree or disagree with who is on it, and where people fall on it. Rather, I am simply sharing with you a list of my favorite sports figures. It is provided so that you get a better idea of my sports background. I am not trying to convince you that YOU should like these guys. My arguing will be back in full effect when the list is done. I am aiming for June, wish me luck. 30-25 on the way. Giddy up.

#30 – Gustavo Kuerten
GU-GA!! It took me until my 3rd segment to finally get a tennis player on here. Don’t expect too many more until much later, but for now its GU-GA time. Casual tennis fans might not even know who this tennis star is, so I will do my best to fill you all in.

Where to start? Well, winning three French Opens isn’t a bad place to start at all. Gustavo Kuerten, nicknamed Guga (I guess its like John for Johnny, or Matt for Matthew), he won the 1997, 2000, and 2001 French Opens. Kuerten is in an exclusive list, joining the likes of Bjorn Borg (6), Ivan Lendl (3) and Mats Wilander (3) as members of the three or more French Open titles club. Not bad company.

First of all, at 6’3” and 175 lbs, his stature resembled mine; tall and slim. On top of that he has an unmistakable grunt that can be heard several hours away. That grunt serves as the basis for my grunting when I am in a big ping pong match with Kwame. If you don’t know if you have heard the Guga grunt yet, then you haven’t. You would know.

The 1997 title made me an instant fan. He was a complete underdog. He was ranked 66th in the world, and was the lowest ranked player to win a Grand Slam in over 20 years. On his way to the title he defeated 5th seed Thomas Muster, 3rd seed Yevgeny Kafelnikov, and 2-time champion Sergi Bruguera. Any of those names ring a bell? If they do, you and I need to be talking some tennis. What was special about that threesome is that they represented the last four French Open champions. Bruguera won it in ’93 and ’94; Muster in “95, and Kafelnikov in ’96. Not too bad.

Guga is a clay court specialist. He plays his best tennis on the dirt. He did have a successful year in ’99 when he made it to the quarterfinals in 3 of the 4 grand slams. In 2000 he became the number one ranked player in the world. He has fallen off since his 2001 title, but there is talk about a possible wild card in the 2006 French. Watch out Nadal, Guga might be there looking for title number four.

#29 – Sting
Okay, here is the surprise. I have a professional wrestler on the list. I doubt too many of you saw this one coming. I went through a phase, and well, you are about to read the results of that phase. The sad part was I had a girlfriend through it all. Maybe I should go back. Could it get any worse?

During my junior high days, professional wrestling was peaking. WWF and WCW were the two competing companies looking for viewers. Most of my friends were WWF fans, while myself, I was a Monday Night Nitro and Thursday Thunder fan. I even kept a book of all the matches, and my predictions of who was going to win. Hollywood Hulk Hogan, Kevin Nash, Diamond Dallas Page, and Scott Hall were all wrestling with WCW at this time. I don’t know why, I honestly don’t, but my favorite was Sting. Maybe it was the face paint, maybe it was the theme music, and maybe it was the “woooo” he would do. I really don’t know. But I liked him, he was my favorite, and I had some great memories rooting him on.

His signature moves were the Scorpion Death Lock, and the Scorpion Death Drop. Sting was also not afraid to bust out the Stinger Splash or the black baseball bat when need be. He was a 6 time WCW World Heavyweight Champion, and a three time WCW Tag Team Champion. FYI he teamed up with Nash, Lex Luger, and The Giant for each respective title.

My recollection of Sting dates back to 1996. In the summer of ’96, he stood up against The Outsiders (Nash and Hall). At the ‘96 Bash at the Beach; Sting, Luger and Randy “Macho Man” Savage fought to a draw against Nash, Hall and Hogan. The latter three formed the NWO, and I was officially hooked. A fake imposter of Sting joined the NWO, and the real Sting got pissed and took an absence of leave from wrestling. I still watched though, waiting, hoping.

On August 23, 1997, Sting made his comeback to the WCW. I was at Hunt’s house, and we stayed up to watch Sting swing down from the rafters. “He’s back! He’s back!” Hunt and I were going nuts. It was awesome. Sting would join the NWO Wolfpac in 1998, and painted his face red. I still liked him. My favorite match was a title fight he won back in 1997’s StarrCade. Once again, I watched out at the bowling alley, when special guest referee Bret Hart helped Sting out against Hogan.

I stopped watching wrestling religiously back in 2000. Sting is still wrestling however, not for WWE, but for that other company. Don’t ask me for the name, I don’t know, and I am not going to look it up. It was a phase, and I am over it. But beware the Scorpion Death Lock.

#28 – William Green
The Cleveland Browns were gone for a long time during my childhood. From 1995 to 1999, there were no Browns. For me, that was between the ages of 10-14. Those are crucial years for developing favorite sports figures. I mean before ’95, I had Turner, but that was it. The Browns are by far my number one team; I needed someone to root for. William Green was that guy.

The Browns needed offense. Well, let me re-phrase that. The Browns needed players who could play. In the first round of the 2002 NFL Draft, the Cleveland Browns selected William Green, running back, out of Boston College. My immediate reaction was, good luck running behind that line. But, as always, I was optimistic.

He struggled early, but picked up the pace midway through the season. What made me a Willie Green fan was the last game of the 2002 season. The Browns were 8-7, playing the 9-5-1 Atlanta Falcons in Cleveland. The Brownies needed a win to have a shot at making the playoffs. Willie Green had a huge game. He ran for over 180 yards, including a memorable 64 yard touchdown run that involved a huge stiff arm. “Run Willie Run” was Jim Donovan’s call of that great TD. The Browns went on to win the game 24-16. Then, Chad Pennington played an outstanding game to beat the Packers, and somehow, by virtue of tie-breakers, gave the Browns a playoff birth.

They lost in the playoffs to the Steelers. I don’t want to talk about it.

The very next year I bought my first ever Cleveland Brown jersey. #31 – William Green. He had a pretty decent start in 2003, rushing for 550+ yards in the first 7 games. He got injured for the rest of the season, and was never the same. Lee Suggs had A good game, and Green was no longer the starter. It happens. I still wear that jersey to every Browns game. I will continue to wear it as long as he is on the team. Might not be too much longer, but, it is what it is. “Run Willie Run.”

#27 – Adam Morrison
I enjoy rooting for underdogs. As you can tell with Guga previously, I tend to root for underdogs. Gonzaga is the ultimate underdog turned favorite. They will always be an underdog in my mind however. I will also continue to root for them as well.

I know what everyone is thinking. Why are these posts so long, and why does he have a cry baby on the list? First of all, I liked Morrison since he was a freshman. That is the truth. I told my dad during Morrison’s freshman year at Gonzaga that he was a really good player and I said “He reminds me of Larry Bird.” That was back in 2003. That is the truth. Believe it or not.

I liked Morrison first of all because he was a good player for the Zags, but more so due to an article I read in a 2003 Sports Illustrated. I read that Morrison had diabetes. I was amazed and instantly a fan. His style of play was unlike any other at the time. He didn’t run fast, but he hustled and he could shoot. He ran funny, but he scored a lot of points. Yea, he could shoot pretty well.

This past year Morrison really exploded. I was half glad and half upset. Glad to see a good kid finally get his, but upset because now everyone knew Morrison. Now everyone knew he has diabetes. Now everyone knew he plays like Larry Bird. It wasn’t just me now. It was like when you know a really good underground band, and then they explode and get all popular, and that special thing you had with them back in the day is long gone. I’ll soon get over it, especially if Morrison comes and plays with the Bulls. He might get in the top 10 if that happens. Hey, a kid can hope can’t he?

#26 – Barry Sanders
If this list was simply who I thought was the best. Mr. Sanders would be in the top 5, easily. Without a doubt the best running back I have ever seen, easily. Maybe the best of all-time, but Jim Brown might have something to say about that. Barry Sanders is the best thing the Detroit Lions have done in the last 20 years, easily.

This ten-time Pro Bowler, who won the 1988 Heisman Trophy at Oklahoma St. University, retired in 1999 as the 2nd leading rusher of all-time. He and Jim Brown are the only two running backs to average over 5 yards a carry. Did Barry retire too soon? For me, he sure did. He was still in his prime, and at the age of 31 he would have broken Payton’s record effortlessly. But, Barry had to do what Barry had to do.

My memories from Barry include simply just watching him run. How could you not be a fan? I am especially grateful that the NFL had the Detroit Lions play on Thanksgiving Day each year. This made it possible to get away from my relatives for a couple hours and watch Barry make defenses look silly.

Barry Sanders made the Detroit Lions a decent team by himself. Without him, the Lions would have been the equivalent of the Cincinnati Bengals. Sanders is one of the unique running backs who doesn’t need a line to block for him. Sanders also doesn’t need a quarterback to protect him either. The entire NFL knew that the Lions were going to give him the ball, and they still couldn’t stop him. Opposing defenses knew southpaw Scott Mitchell wasn’t going to throw on them for beans. Despite all that, Barry was Barry. I wish he played for the Browns. I wish he played for the Browns right now.

Until next time. “Read it, Roll it, Hole it.”