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With the Olympics set to begin in just a few short days, hundreds of athletes will journey to China in search of reaching a dream and claiming the gold.
I for one will be glued to the Olympic Games, as well as the XGames which begin tonight.
While there are so many enjoyable factors in sports, there is one important part of each sport that sometimes does not make much since — the rules.
Having rules are essential to every sport, but some get a bit ridiculous and should be carefully examined.
In the NBA, there is such a rule called illegal defense. Are you kidding me? The object of the game is to take the ball away from the opposition any way you can and rush down the floor for a bucket. What does it say about the sport when we start putting restrictions on how a team can guard someone.
To me, if a huge center wants to stand in the middle of the paint on defense, then why can’t he? The rule is put into place to prevent zone defenses and to make it easier for a man driving to the basket. But aren’t these guys supposed to be the best in the world? Sure seems like guys playing college basketball have no trouble scoring with a man in their way.
Michelle Wie learned firsthand about a dumb rule in golf when she was disqualified from a LPGA event on the third day, just one shot off the lead. After her second round, the 18-year-old left the tent area without signing her scorecard. The rule is once she leaves the designated area, she is automatically disqualified from the tournament.
What if that would have been Tiger Woods several years ago at the U.S. Open when he blew the field away? Can the PGA honestly say they would have taken the major away from arguably the greatest golfer to play the game?
One of my favorite rules of all time is NFL players being penalized for celebrating a touchdown. Sports are meant to be entertaining, so why not let these incredible athletes have a little fun with the fans. As long as their actions are not crude, who cares if they pull out a Sharpie to autograph a ball or do some sort of dance celebration. If they are directly taunting the other team with their celebration, then by all means throw the yellow hanky. But let these guys do what they are paid to do — play the game to the best of their ability and make it fun for all.
Sticking with the football theme, it is a shame to see overtime football games end with sudden death. Here are these burly men slugging it out for 60 minutes in the trenches, leaving it all on the line, only to see their team lose a coin toss and watch the opposing kicker bury one through the uprights. To me, college football has it right. Each team gets a possession starting at the opposing 25-yard line, and if the game continues to be tied after the second overtime, teams must go for two-point conversions after touchdowns.
Last, but certainly not least, is the NBA allowing three timeouts in the final two minutes of a game. In a close game, there is enough time with all the timeouts to use the bathroom, grab a soda from the refrigerator and take the dog out. It takes away from the flow of the game and sometimes makes it boring to watch.
Also, why is it after a made basket late in a game, the team inbounding the ball gets to move all the way to half court after a timeout? If Grant Hill and Christian Laettner can make a long pass from the baseline work, then why can’t NBA stars?
There are plenty of other absurd rules out in the sports world, but these are just a few that stick out. The rules of a sport will not keep me from watching a game, but some of these rules committees might want to take a step back and re-evaluate their thinking process.