Tiger Woods and More Triumphant Sports Returns

As Tiger Woods steps onto the grass at The Masters this week, the eyes of the sports world are upon him. Woods, returning from what many had thought was a career-ending accident, has defied the odds before. In 2019, Woods won The Masters after an 11-year drought at major tournaments. Could Woods make another thrilling return? In that spirit, here are five other returns by athletes that should never have been counted out.

Before we look at the Big Five, here’s a Bonus Two-for-One Special:

Bonus: Magic Johnson and Larry Bird

 

The Best of the Dream Team (Uploaded to YouTube by Olympics)

In 1992, Larry Bird of the Boston Celtics was on the verge of retirement. Plagued by back problems, he’d had a disc removed, missed 37 games during that season, and was headed out the door. His great friend and nemesis, Magic Johnson of the L.A. Lakers, had retired in 1991 after being diagnosed as HIV-positive. However, the two had a chance for one last run together: the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona. Joining one of the greatest athletic teams ever assembled, Bird, Magic, and the rest of Team USA stormed their way to a gold medal. For basketball fans that had watched the pair battle from the 1979 NCAA Finals and through the entire 1980s in the NBA, well, that’s why they called it “The Dream Team.” While Bird did retire after the Olympics, Magic returned to the NBA as a player in 1996, helping the team get fourth seed in the playoffs. After the Lakers lost to the Rockets, Magic retired for good.

5. George Foreman

George Foreman in 1973 (Photo by Bert Verhoeff via Wikimedia Commons;  Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication)

One of the best to ever lace up a pair of boxing gloves, George Foreman took gold in the 1968 Olympics as a heavyweight. Foreman went on to knock out an undefeated Joe Frazier to become heavyweight champ in 1973. His title reign came to an end at the hands of Muhammad Ali at 1974’s legendary “Rumble in the Jungle.” Foreman retired in 1977. After spending several years as a minister, Foreman came back to boxing in 1987. In 1994, the 45-year-old Foreman knocked out Michael Moorer to become the unified heavyweight champion.  He remains the oldest man to be heavyweight champion.

4. Bethany Hamilton

 

This Iz My Story (Uploaded to YouTube by Bethany Hamilton)

Bethany Hamilton excelled at surfing from an early age. An avid competitor by age eight with sponsorships by age ten, Hamilton had her eyes on big titles. However, in 2003 when she was 13, the unthinkable happened. During a surfing excursion, a 14-foot long tiger shark bit off Hamilton’s left arm below her shoulder. It was a trauma that would have crushed most people, but not Hamilton. She returned to the waves a mere month after the incident. In 2005, she took first in the NSSA Nationals and won her first pro tournament in 2007.

3. Mario Lemieux

Lemieux Scored 100 Points 10 Different Times (Uploaded to YouTube by NHL)

There’s no debate about the greatness of Mario Lemieux. He’s widely regarded as one of the greatest hockey players ever. Lemieux debuted for the Pittsburgh Penguins in 1984 and quickly became a star. He was Rookie of the Year and was only outscored in his sophomore season by Wayne Gretzky. Though Lemieux would struggle with back injuries, he was a major force in the NHL as one of the sport’s biggest scorers. In 1993, “Super Mario” was diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma. Undeterred, he continued to play, even on the same day as radiation treatments. Incredibly, he won the scoring title that year. Though he continued to play at a high level, the years of back problems and his earlier battle with cancer factored in to Lemieux’s decision to retire in 1997. With the Penguins facing money trouble, Lemieux came in with a plan to become the team’s majority owner. He helped turn things around the ledger, and then did something more incredible: he returned to the ice. Lemieux played from 2000 to 2006, ending his career with dozens of records and an Olympic gold medal from 2002.

2. Michael Jordan

 

The Best of Jordan’s Playoff Games (Uploaded to YouTube by NBA)

For Michael Jordan, an NBA championship wasn’t a question of “if,” but a question of “when.” Joining the league in decade dominated by the Celtics and the Lakers, Jordan turned around the fortunes of the Chicago Bulls. He led the team to a finals win in 1991, and then again in 1992 and 1993. Tragically, Jordan’s father, James Jordan, Sr., was murdered by carjackers in July of 1993. That October, Jordan retired, citing his father’s death, a loss of desire to play, and general exhaustion.  After detour to play minor league baseball, Jordan issued a two-word press release (“I’m back”) and returned to the NBA in March 1995. He lifted the struggling Bulls into the playoffs, where they lost to the Orlando Magic. As the meme goes, Jordan took that personally. Over the next three seasons, Jordan led the Bulls to championships in 1996, 1997, and 1998, cementing his status as one of, if not the, greatest to ever play the game.

1. Muhammad Ali

 

Muhammad Ali – The Greatest of All Time (Uploaded to YouTube by Nonstop Sports)

How could The Greatest now be #1? Muhammad Ali’s life was defined by battle. Whether it was taking the Olympic gold medal in Rome in 1960 or taking his draft evasion conviction all the way to the Supreme Court, Ali never backed down from a challenge. After becoming champion in 1964, Ali voiced his opposition to the war in Vietnam and proclaimed his status as a conscientious objector. His titles were stripped, and Ali fought the decisions in court.  The conviction was overturned in 1971 and Ali found himself in the position to challenge Joe Frazier for the heavyweight title. Both men were undefeated going in, but it was Ali that left with his first professional loss. Of course, that didn’t mean that Ali was done. He faced Frazier again in 1974, defeating his old rival to get a shot at the then-current champ, George Foreman. At the “Rumble in the Jungle,” Ali knocked out Foreman to retake the title. He would eventually retire in 1981, a three-time heavyweight champion

Bird and Magic: Rivals, Friends, and Legends

A carefully crafted screenplay couldn’t have done it better, or made the protagonists more different. One was a black kid from Michigan, one of six children belonging to an auto worker and a custodian; the other was a poor white kid from Indiana who would lose his father to suicide. One was outgoing with a megawatt smile; the other was quiet, yet capable of unleashing withering trash-talk. They both fell in love with basketball and reached their collegiate peaks at precisely the same moment: the 1979 NCAA Finals. Their rivalry carried into the pros and set the NBA on fire 35 years ago. A game with an uncertain future became a national obsession as two titans clashed. Then, they did the most unexpected thing: they became friends on their way to winning Olympic gold medals. This week, the NBA presented Lifetime Achievement Awards to both Earvin “Magic” Johnson and Larry Bird. They were enemies, they became friends, and it’s not a stretch to say that they saved the NBA. Here’s the play-by-play.

This much is certain: Bird and Magic weren’t the first stars of the NBA. You had Russell, Oscar, Wilt, Kareem, and a laundry list of others. Each one touched the game in a unique way, elevating interest and drawing in fans. The NBA merged with the ABA in 1976, bringing four new teams into the fold, but that wasn’t a cure-all for a league that was struggling with attendance and having a hard time scoring prime-time television slots for their games.

When Bird and Magic met in the 1979 NCAA Championship Game, one year after briefly serving as U.S. teammates for the World Invitational Tournament, interest in basketball hit a fever pitch. Both were high scorers and excellent passers with a tendency for game-breaking plays. Bird had led his Indiana State University Sycamores to an undefeated season; Magic’s Michigan State Spartans reached the finals via a series of upsets throughout the tournament. In front of a record setting audience of 40 million people, Magic’s Spartans beat Bird’s Sycamores 75-64. It was the first time they’d faced each other; it would be far from the last.

As rookies, Bird and Magic wound up on teams that seemed almost predestined. Bird went to the Boston Celtics, while Magic went the to the L.A. Lakers. The Celtics-Lakers rivalry was one of the richest in sports history; between 1959 and 1969, the teams faced each other in the NBA Finals seven times, with the Celtics winning every time. The interest from the NCAA Finals carried over to the pros, as the freshly tapped audience wanted to see what the two new stars would do at these historic franchises. It didn’t take long.

In his rookie year — 1980 — Magic led the Lakers to the championship, defeating superstar Julius “Dr. J” Erving and the Philadelphia 76ers. The following year, Bird, along with new teammates Kevin McHale and Robert Parrish, beat the Houston Rockets. The 1982 Finals saw the Lakers return and once again defeat the Sixers. In 1983, the Sixers, with Dr. J and Moses Malone (acquired via trade from Houston) beat the Lakers.

The NBA’s “ULTIMATE Mixtape!” of Larry Bird highlights (Uploaded to YouTube by NBA)

1984 finally saw Magic and Bird meet again in a championship. Each man was supported by a legendary starting line-up (in addition to stellar benches). Bird had McHale, Parrish, and guards Dennis Johnson and Danny Ainge on the start, while Magic had Kareem, James Worthy, Kurt Rambis, and Michael Cooper. The Finals went to seven games, with the seventh garnering ratings that rivaled those of Bird and Magic’s NCAA duel. The Celtics emerged victorious, and Bird was named series MVP (in addition to also winning League MVP that season). The NBA’s popularity surged in 1984 on the strength of the rivalry and highly-rated Finals. The league also welcomed 1982 NCAA Champion and 1984 Olympic gold medalist Michael Jordan into its ranks that fall as a member of the Chicago Bulls. The eyes of the sporting world followed all three stars that year, but it was still Bird and Magic’s show. They met again in the 1985 Finals, but it was Magic’s turn; the Lakers finally defeated their old nemeses in six games.

Boston’s 1985-1986 roster is still considered one of the greatest teams of all time. With Bird’s starters bolstered by the addition of Bill Walton at sixth man, the Celtics bulldozed the competition all season. Despite a heroic effort by Jordan in the playoffs, the Celtics beat the Bulls to face . . . the Rockets. The Celtics won, and returned the next year to find the Lakers waiting. Magic led the Lakers to the 1987 championship. It would be Magic and Bird’s last meeting in an NBA Finals.

The NBA’s ‘ULTIMATE Mixtape!” of Magic Johnson highlights (Uploaded to YouTube by NBA)

Throughout the years of rivalry and bitter struggle, a funny thing happened in 1985. Called upon to shoot a shoe commercial together near Bird’s home in French Lick, Indiana, Magic and Bird actually talked at length for the first time. Off the court, they became friends. Magic attributed their bond to Midwestern roots, poor backgrounds, a mutual love of the game, and the fact that they were both steely competitors. Magic would lean on that friendship when he learned that he had contracted HIV in 1991; one of the first calls he placed after the diagnosis was to Bird.

Magic briefly retired after making his condition known. At the time, the diagnosis was considered a death sentence. Magic set out to prove doubters wrong, and played in the All-Star Game and scored 25 points after being voted in as a starter by the fans. Afterward, both Magic and Bird were selected for the 1992 Men’s U.S. Olympic basketball team, which was using pros for the first time. After 13 years as opponents, they were teammates again. Along with Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Karl Malone, John Stockton, Charles Barkley, David Robinson, Patrick Ewing, Chris Mullin, Clyde Drexler, and collegiate player Christian Laettner, they simply dominated. The “Dream Team” is considered one of the most dominant line-ups in sports history, winning all of their games by an average of 43.8 points on the way to the gold.

Bird, beset by back problems, announced his retirement after the Olympic run. The Celtics immediately retired his number 33, and Magic appeared at the ceremony, wearing a Celtic T-shirt underneath his Lakers warm-up gear. Magic went back to the Lakers as both a player and coach; he retired from the NBA as player in 1996, later serving as an executive with the Lakers from 2017 until April, 2019. Bird also extended his basketball career off the court; he coached the Indiana Pacers for three seasons, taking them to the Finals in 2000 (though they lost to — who else — the Lakers). He’s been with the team as an executive or advisor ever since; he’s the only player to go on to win an MVP, Coach of the Year, and Executive of the Year. Both men are the in the Basketball Hall of Fame twice (each as individuals, and as members of the enshrined Dream Team). This week, at the 2019 NBA Awards, the pair was each given the Lifetime Achievement Award as co-recipients.

You can read any number of things into what Bird and Magic mean to their game and to the world in general. They demonstrate how people from different backgrounds can become friends while simultaneously showing that people aren’t necessarily that different below the surface. Their parallel careers are a celebration of hard work and excellence. They remain beloved by fans for their attitudes and skills. Certainly, they raised the profile of the NBA with their rivalry, and the Dream Team permanently changed basketball by sparking an international movement that’s seen the growth of leagues in other countries and a continuing influx of players from around the world into the NBA (including this year’s NBA Rookie of the Year, Luka Dončić). Arguments will continue for eternity about who the greatest player is; however, there will never be any doubt that the greatest, and most impactful, rivalry came from two Midwestern guys that walked into the game as rivals, and walked away as lifelong friends.

 

The 7 Most Controversial Sports Moves

More than sixty years ago, the Dodgers made a move that’s still hotly debated. It wasn’t about management or personnel; it was about the location of the team itself. Forsaking Brooklyn for Los Angeles, the Dodgers earned New York’s eternal enmity in 1957 (and were followed by another New York team, the Giants, the following year). Team moves happen for a number of reasons (mostly money), but some have a harsher effect on the locals than others. Here are seven of the most controversial team moves in sports.

1.   1945: What Do You Mean the Rams Are from Cleveland?

The Rams franchise was established in Cleveland in 1936; initially, they were part of the American Football League. The following year, they switched to the competing National Football League, and remained until 1945, when they won the League championship. In 1946, the team moved to Los Angeles, based in part on poor attendance. Even the championship game couldn’t fill more than half the seats. Their departure didn’t leave Cleveland teamless; that same year, they got the Browns (named after Ohio State coach Paul Brown).

Upon moving to L.A., the Rams integrated African-American players as a condition of being able to use the Coliseum. With the Browns also choosing the take African-American players, the Rams helped open the League to a whole new segment of athletes and fans. The move also helped establish pro sports in L.A. and set the tone for many future teams to go west.

2.   1957: The Dodgers Move to L.A.

The Dodgers had been in Brooklyn since 1884, breaking the color barrier along the way when Jackie Robinson joined the club in 1947. After a number of rough years, they made it to the World Series in 1956, only to lose to the Yankees. The Dodgers’ majority owner, Walter O’Malley had encountered a number of obstacles acquiring land around New York for a new stadium, and the city of Los Angeles was simultaneously trying to entice teams to come west. After striking a deal with the city that allowed the franchise to build where they wanted, and to also own the stadium (rather than split it with the city), the Dodgers decided to move. One last roadblock came from the National League itself, which told the team they’d block the move unless another team went west. The Giants had been having their own stadium troubles, and it wasn’t long before both teams split for California. The double departure paved the way for the foundation of the Mets in 1962.

In a 2010 interview with WNYC, Michael Shapiro, author of The Last Good Season: Brooklyn, the Dodgers, and Their Final Pennant Race Together, summed up the impact of the move on the city: “What I came to understand is that what the Dodgers were about was a topic of conversation. That, in many ways, is what really makes cities work and what holds cities together . . .I think you can make a really powerful argument that what Brooklyn lost after the Dodgers left was a topic of conversation.”

3.   1960: Alliteration is More Important Than the Number of Lakes

The Lakers actually started with a move when Ben Berger and Morris Chalfen bought the Detroit Gems in 1947 and brought the team to Minneapolis.  After a losing season that included the team surviving their plane crash-landing during a snowstorm, then-owner Bob Short decided to move the team to Los Angeles. They became the NBA’s first west coast team; in that inaugural year, star Elgin Baylor and rookie Jerry West led the team back to the playoffs, though they missed the finals by a basket. One interesting wrinkle about the move is that while the name “Lakers” was completely attributed to Minnesota’s 12,000 lakes, the name was preserved in the move, partially because of the nice alliteration.

4.   1982: The Raiders Begin Their Travels

The Oakland Raiders debuted in 1960 as one of the founding teams of the American Football League (which later merged with the NFL in 1970).  In 1982, the Raiders moved to L.A., a change that lasted 12 years. At the outset of the 1995 season, they shifted back to Oakland, partially enticed by the city spending $220 million on stadium renovations. In 2016, billionaire casino magnate Sheldon Adelson put together a proposal for a new domed stadium in Las Vegas that would house both the UNLV team and a potential NFL franchise. Adelson held discussions with Raiders owner Mark Davis, who offered to contribute $500 million to the construction of the stadium if Las Vegas would also contribute. When Nevada legislators came through with $750 million in funding, Davis announced his declaration to move, a motion that was approved by the NFL. The Las Vegas Raiders are scheduled to kick off in 2020.

5.   1984: The Colts Sneak Out

After a lengthy and complicated run of cities, team names, and organization changes that stretched from Dayton, Ohio in 1920 through Brooklyn, Miami, Boston, and Dallas, the franchise officially became the Baltimore Colts in 1953. Over the years, conditions at Memorial Stadium continued to deteriorate, with seating, office space, and other amenities being inadequate for the needs of both the Colts and the Orioles baseball team, which shared the stadium. After years of struggle and attempts to get stadium improvements and funds, the city essentially said that they wouldn’t put in the improvements unless the Colts and Orioles signed long-term leases. The Orioles signed for one year; the Colts didn’t sign at all.  The city of Indianapolis had begun construction of the Hoosier Dome, hoping to lure a team to the city; when they pitched Colts owner Robert Irsay, it had the desired effect. As the Maryland legislature attempted to pass a bill to seize the organization, Mayflower moving trucks rolled up to the Colts complex and moved the team equipment and belongings out. By the time that the legislature passed the eminent domain bill to seize the team, the Colts had made their way to Indianapolis. They became the Indianapolis Colts with the onset of the 1984 season, earning the enmity of Baltimore forever; however, they did endorse Baltimore receiving a franchise in the ‘90s, which eventually became the Ravens.

For some former Baltimore Colts, the move came as a savage betrayal. Legendary Colts quarterback and Hall of Famer Johnny Unitas severed all of his ties with the Colts organization after the move. He later threw his support behind the Ravens, recognizing them as the true legacy team. Today, a statue of Unitas stands outside M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore, a defiant reminder that some team moves are felt deeply by former players.

6.   2012: The Nets Get Out of New Jersey While They’re Young

The Nets began life as a charter team of the ABA, a presumptive rival to the NBA that debuted in 1967. In their first season, they were the New Jersey Americans. The next year, they moved to Long Island and became the New York Nets; they would win two ABA championships under that name. In 1976, the ABA collapsed and four teams merged with the NBA, including the Nets. They went back to the New Jersey in 1977 and became, of course, the New Jersey Nets. That lasted until 2012. As early as 2005, the Nets had announced their intention to move to Brooklyn, but financing, partnership agreements, and lawsuits among various parties spaced out both the move and the building of their eventual home, the Barclays Center. However, all the obstacles were cleared by 2012, and the Nets, like everyone else, moved to Brooklyn.

7.   2014: Ending 12 Years of Hornet/Bobcat/Pelican Drama

Sometimes, you have a fairly straight team move. Other times, you have a very confusing series of circumstances. The Charlotte Hornets debuted in the NBA in 1988 as an expansion team; that lasted until 2002, when the team moved to New Orleans and became the New Orleans Hornets. In 2004, the NBA placed a new expansion team in Charlotte, which became the Charlotte Bobcats.

An unintended side effect of the Hornets’ residency in their new city came in the wake of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, when the storm seriously damaged New Orleans Arena. The team was forced to play in Oklahoma City’s Ford Center for the rest of that season and the next season before they could return home. However, their success in OCK allowed the Seattle SuperSonics to successfully move and become the Oklahoma City Thunder.

By 2013, the Hornets decided that they wanted to rebrand and give themselves a name more closely associated with NOLA. Ultimately, they decided that they would become the New Orleans Pelicans. The following year, the Bobcats took back the now-vacant Hornets to become the Charlotte Hornets once again. Today, the Pelicans, Hornets, and Thunder continue to be active, with the Thunder serving as a perennial playoff contender.

Questions remains if the NBA will return to Seattle. Though the Jet City did recently get the franchise for a new NHL team, NBA commissioner Adam Silver says that while he loves Seattle, getting the city another team isn’t a high priority for the league at the moment. Then again, from what we’ve seen, team moves will always be a possibility.

Featured image: The RCA Dome (originally the Hoosier Dome) was built to lure teams to Indianapolis; it was demolished in 2008 and replaced by Lucas Oil Stadium. (Josh Hallett, Wikimedia Commons via Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license.).