“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.”
– Martin Luther King Jr., Strength to Love, 1963

CHARGERS LOSS

In case you missed the big showdown yesterday between the Chargers and Patriots, here’s the recap. The Chargers tossed Tom Brady around like a rag-doll, lifting hopes of a Chargers victory. But Brady just went with the flow and still managed to produce great passes even when mid-air. Ultimately, though, the Patriots victory had an ugly side. Instead of celebrating with their own ‘style’, one of the Patriots players decided it was okay to perform Shawne Merriman’s celebration dance on the Chargers logo mid-field. Even Pat’s fans have to admit this was outta line? I, for one, expected more class form the Pats, as did LT. Tomlinson lost his cool and went after the unidentified Patriots player while being restrained. He yelled and pointed at the Mensa reject as 68,810 fans fell silent. “I would never react in that way. I was very upset,” Tomlinson said. “When you go to the middle of our field and start doing the dance Shawne Merriman is known for, that is disrespectful. They showed no class and maybe that comes from the head coach.” Sorry peeps, gotta go side with the Chargers on this one. Patriots need a little more class and a dash of respect to earn my applause.

MEMPHIS GRIZZLIES GIVE LOVE

Yesterday, while we watched the Chargers play with the Patriots, the Memphis Grizzlies were busy serving chow during a Martin Luther King Holiday Brunch they hosted for clients and families from the Grizzlies’ partner agencies in Memphis, Tennessee. Stromile Swift, Dahntay Jones, Tarence Kinsey, Chucky Atkins, Eddie Jones and Pau Gasol served food, delighted children, and earned a few hot points for dishing out some love. And continuing with the love, during tonight’s halftime at the Suns-Grizzlies game, former NBA babe David Robinson will receive the National Civil Rights Museum’s Sports Legacy Award for his work in founding and running the Carver Academy in San Antonio. The independent, faith-based school’s 117 students are mostly African-American or Hispanic, and nearly all of them come from low-income families and receive scholarships. MLK would not only be proud of him, but also Dikembe Mutombo, who will also will be presented with the award at the game.

NAME THIS

Lips? Eyes? Brown, tussled bed-head hair? A pair of Aces? Indeed. The hottest 76er in circulation, Kyle Korver, is running a contest through February 16 seeking the “most creative logo” for his namesake charitable foundation. “I’m delighted to open this competition up to students and aspiring artists of all ages, so they can share their talents and vision to help create an image for the Kyle Korver Foundation,” Korver said. “…Some of the basic concepts that I hope to achieve through the work of my foundation - helping young people realize their dreams and make contributions to their community whether through the arts, academics, or athletics.” The winning design will become the official logo of the Kyle Korver Foundation. In addition, the winner will receive a Family Plus Membership to the Philadelphia Museum of Art, a Museum gift basket along with an autographed Kyle Korver jersey, four tickets to a 76ers home game, and an autographed mini-ball. And we all know, ain’t nothing better than a mini-ball from Korver. The lucky winner will be announced at the Grizzlies-76ers game on March 2.

TENNIS WOES
ATP chairman Etienne de Villiers has some advice for his elite tennis beasts, start treating fans with more respect. (Like taking your shirts off more often).Villiers is upset because in the past week, seven swingers bowed out of the Sydney International. The biggest reject was Davydenko, who was later fined $10,000 for saying that it was a “small tournament” that “nobody cares about.” (In reality, we don’t care about him)…De Villiers said he was concerned that 383 players withdrew from men’s tournaments last year. “I’m saying, ‘Let’s make it a commitment guys’,” de Villiers said, “It’s not a reservation or an option. Let’s not defraud the fans. If you go see U2 at a concert, and at every single concert, one of the band decided not to play, how long would it take you to get teed off?” said de Villiers. “If The Edge didn’t play, or Bono wasn’t there, it would be unthinkable. I tell the players, ‘that’s what we are doing to our tour’.” And how right he is. While Rafa may not have the vocals of Bono, and James Blake cant play Edge-like guitar, it is vitally important to our libidos that our treats don’t bow out of the show.

Case in point: Marat Safin. Safin was victorious during his five-set victory over Benjamin Becker of Germany, and had me questioning his hottie status. In a manly display of passion, Safin and his facial hair bit the net, and had a racket throwing tantrum that awoke a newfound desire for this Russian treat.

On the otherhand, Marcos Baghdatis scares the hell outta me and needs to be banned from the sport.

SNL UPDATE

I don’t know how many of you watch Saturday Night Live, but I’m a junkie for it. This weekend’s show was not to be missed. *Crossover Athlebrity Jake Gyllenhaal was the hot host, and did not disappoint during his opening skit when he dressed up as a cast member from ‘Dreamgirls’ and belted out a song in drag. Absolutely Priceless. (*Note: In order to be classified as a ‘crossover’ Athlebrity, a hottie must be associated with a real Athlebrity by no-less than one degree of separation. Hence, Jake’s friendship with Lance qualifies him for my pages. Plus he’s too hot to ignore.) More from SNL…The “Weekend Update” segment featured adorable cast member Seth Meyers reporting, “On Monday, the University of Florida upset Ohio State 41-14 to win the BCS national football championship. Many Florida students celebrated the victory by skipping classes for the last four years.” The news continued with my favorite chick on-TV, Amy Poehler reporting, “Mike Nifong, the prosecutor in the Duke lacrosse rape case, asked to be removed from the case on Friday. Said Nifong, ‘I promised myself I would get out when it stopped being fun.’” Poehler later said, “David Beckham, the British soccer star, has signed a $250[M] deal with the Los Angeles Galaxy soccer team, which apparently exists.”

FAN-TASTIC

During the first quarter of Fox’ Eagles-Saints broadcast, a female fan in the crowd was shown wearing a shirt that said, “Fuck Da Eagles” for four seconds before cutting away. Fox Sports VP/Communications Dan Bell said, “The shot was inadvertent and unintentional, we apologize” BUT, the WASHINGTON POST’s Frank Ahrens noted the shot “was not live: The Fox cameras recorded her celebrating when the play happened and aired it during the replay. In other words, Fox directors CHOSE to air the profane word.” Finally, Fox did something right.

As always, thanks for reading. Delinda
delinda@athlebrities.com