Don't Judge Exceptional Players By The Company They Keep
Ty Cobb, miserable human being that he was, is still considered the greatest American athlete of his era. But did you know the Georgia Peach never played on a championship team? Still, when the first Baseball Hall of Fame elections were held, he got the most votes –– even more than Babe Ruth.
Ted Williams was never a champion, either. Nor Barry Sanders, Elgin Baylor, Dan Marino or many of the very best team athletes.
Recently, however — and especially with basketball — the opinion has swiveled up that a great star is somehow deficient if he didn't play on a championship team, didn't lead his team to victory.
Currently, the onus is on Kevin Durant of the Oklahoma City Thunder. Sure, he's the league MVP. But, somehow, even at the callow age of 25, his resume appears suspect because his team hasn't won a title. We went through the same nonsense a few years ago when a noble LeBron James was carrying a whole woebegone Cleveland team on his back, but couldn't win it all.
Of course, then LeBron goes to Miami with a couple of superb teammates and wins one championship, and then another, and somehow this certifies him to be spoken of in the same breath as Michael Jordan, who, of course, won six championships –– only none of them until Scottie Pippen showed up to ride shotgun. Really, though, would Jordan have been any less the player had Pippen never put on a Bulls uniform aside him?
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