David Drops Goliath© Roy Pickering
Page 2
Jul 30, 2004
As we now know, the expected did not take place. Shaq and Kobe were moderately effective in what will most likely be their final performance as a duet, but by no means overwhelming. You could even argue that they were contained by their Eastern adversaries, a concept that had not seemed possible prior to the series. In their defense, Shaq and Kobe had little help. Karl Malone limped along throughout the Finals, a shadow of his former self, while Gary Payton was mostly invisible, drawing attention to himself on occasion not by scoring loads of points and playing stifling defense, but by sulking and scowling. As for the remainder of the Lakers, they were outclassed and outmatched from opening tip to final buzzer. The Pistons consistently played inspired defense, sufficient offense, and not only did they defeat the Lakers in five games, but they made it look rather easy. How did these Motor City blue collar millionaires pull it off? Sports journalists and commentators were in agreement on this point. Well executed teamwork triumphs over talented but selfishishly individual athleticism time and time again.
Not long before the Detroit Pistons were crowned as champions, Roy Jones Jr. stepped into the ring to face Antonio Tarver in a rematch of their previous tussle. Tarver had given Jones much more trouble than expected in the first fight. Jones' hand was raised in victory as expected after their initial encounter, but many thought that the wrong decision had been reached. Jones offered excuses for why his performance against Tarver had been inferior to the remarkable feats we had come to expect from him in the ring. His excuses, such as being depleted of energy after coming down in weight from the heavyweight division, seemed plausible to those who accepted that he was "pound for pound" the best fighter in the world, quite possibly the best of all time. Tarver clearly possessed some talent, but Roy Jones Jr. was known for defusing the abilities of others, often making them look foolish in the process with the extraordinary swiftness of his pugilistic movements. Many predicted that an inspired, angered Jones would dominate and humiliate Tarver in their rematch. At the very least, he would do what was necessary to earn a unanimous and uncontroversial decision the second time around. And perhaps he would have, it if it wasn't for that picture perfect left hand of Tarver's that caught Jones flush and dropped him to the canvas for a count of ten in the second round. Before onlookers could make much sense of what had happened, Tarver had a pile of title belts wrapped around his waist while a dejected Roy Jones Jr. looked as confused as we were. We all must have forgot that in boxing, the underdog is always just one good punch away from being the champion.
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