(t5!) My Year in Lists 2008: Sports!

#30: Michael Crabtree

The future of the National Football League is in great hands with Michael Crabtree waiting to pervade its state-of-the-art arenas. He began his legendary path in his freshman year, receiving 1,932 yards for Texas Tech. He capped the year off by collecting a Biletnikoff Award for best receiver. In 2008, so far, he tallied over 1,000 yards and 18 touchdowns. If you’ve seen the game against Texas where he grabbed the game-winning touchdown between two defenders, you know you’re witnessing someone special. Even though he’s a guaranteed high lottery pick, it’s not certain yet what helmet he’s going to don, and past Biletnikoff Award winners, like Charles Rogers and Mike Hass, didn’t exactly step into Jerry Rice’s shoes. But if you’re a glass-half-full type of guy, you’re excited for the mind-blowing catches and extraordinary yards-after-catches you’re about to see in years to come.

#29: Dwight Howard

The NBA Slam Dunk competition can be quite a circus at times, but some high-flyers have used it as an effective launching pad to superstardom. Dr. J and MJ took off from the foul line and never looked back. ‘Nique and Vince Carter reached human highlight reel status. Even Kobe put his name on the map by putting the ball between his legs before slamming it home. In 2008, Dwight Howard told the world that he’s the new Man of Steel, literally. He donned a Superman costume before taking an alley-oop feed from Jameer Nelson from behind the backboard, putting on display his unearthly combination of power and athleticism. Now we’re in the first half of the season and Orlando is a force to be reckoned with in the East, and it’s mostly because Howard is carrying his teammates on his superhuman shoulders.

#28: Matt Ryan

The sudden departure of Mike Vick led to an immediate deflation of the Falcons, but, as a silver lining, it did give them a lottery pick. And, thankfully, Atlanta didn’t waste the chance to resuscitate their team. The Dirty Birds had high hopes that Matt Ryan, their third overall selection, can aerate them, making him the 4th highest paid player despite never having played a game in the NFL. But, they didn’t know that the savior from Boston College can pull through so instantly. In his very first pass, he connected with receiver Michael Jenkins for a 62-yard score. And the stats didn’t stop there. He started all 16 games and led the Falcons to the playoffs, the first rookie quarterback to do so, although rookie Joe Flacco of the Baltimore Ravens did the same thing in 2008. He garnered 3440 yards and 17 touchdowns in his first year, as well as a horde of optimism from Atlanta fans.

#27: Candace Parker

I’ve been crushing on Candace Parker, not because of her looks (even though she’s in all likelihood the most attractive WNBA player I’ve seen), or her pleasing personality (even though she seems really nice). I have a crush on Candace Parker because of her impressive game. Immediately off his newsworthy college career at the University of Tennessee, she was named Rookie of the Year and MVP of the WNBA, making her the third basketball player to win both awards in the same season (Wilt Chamberlain and Wes Unseld being the other two). Apart from the trophies, Candace became the second player to dunk in a WNBA game, eloped with Sacramento Kings’ Shelden Williams, and was involved in a fight that prompted Rick Mahorn to shove her teammate, Lisa Leslie, to the ground. So, 2008’s a memorable year all-around.

#26: Sidney Crosby

Forget “The Next One”, Sidney Crosby is right now. At only 21 and in only his fourth season, he already owns the National Hockey League. In a 2007-2008 season truncated by a high ankle sprain, he scored 72 points in just 53 games (if you go out and calculate it, that’s 112 points if he would’ve played the whole season). But it’s in the Stanley Cup playoffs where Sid the Kid showed the world that he’s Sid the Man. Wearing the “C” on his jersey, he led the Pittsburgh Penguins all the way to the finals. They would anti-climactically go on to lose the series in six games against a more stacked and a more experienced Detroit Red Wings, but not after he tallies a league-leading 27 playoff points. Here’s to not waiting your turn, he’s to making a legendary name of yourself.

#25: Tim Lincecum

You know how the saying goes, “you do not judge a book by its cover,” and that’s especially true when it comes to athletes. Take Tim Lincecum, “The Freak”: a lanky, 170-pound, 24-year old with eccentric, twitchy pitching mechanics. But despite his angular, hipster kid physique, his stuff can make even the best’s knees weak. In only his second year, he already has established himself to be one of the best starting pitcher’s in the Major Leagues. Lincecum’s bizarre, long-striding wind-up allows him to throw at high velocity with movement. This, in turn, enables him to strike out an innumerable amount of batters—265 of them in 2008, to be exact, to lead the league in the category. The phenomenal feat resulted in him winning the NL Cy Young Award, becoming the first second-year player to win the award since Dwight Gooden and Bret Saberhagen both won in 1985.

#24: Adrian Peterson

Saying that Adrian Peterson, in only his sophomore year, is the leading rusher in the NFL may be up for debate, but he’s assuredly the most reliable out of the Tomlinsons, the Portises, the Jacksons, and the Westbrooks of the league. He’s named the 2007-2008 NFL rookie of the year with the record-setting game where he ran for 296 yard in 30 carries as a noteworthy highlight. In the next season, he continued to rip through the league, leading it with 1760 rushing yards and 110 yards per game. He has piggybacked the Minnesota Viking offense to a division championship and a playoff spot in the 2009 NFL playoffs. Even though he hasn’t reached the end-zone in the same frequency as he did in the rookie year, he’s also on the verge to becoming an almost consensus #1 pick in next year’s fantasy drafts, which is as important as any branding AP gets to football fans everywhere.

#23: Dustin Pedroia

Dustin Pedroia, the little second baseman that could, showed in 2008 that he’s a behemoth in the baseball field. The 5’9”, 180 lbs, 25-year old, small fry proved that not only is he the emotional leader of the Boston Red Sox, he may also be the statistical leader. In his second year, he batted .326, hit 213 balls, drove 83 runs in, and launched 17 crucial homeruns. He gets on base, he steals, he fields, he does everything necessary to win a ballgame. He kept the Red Sox from deflating when Manny went on to become Manny somewhere else. He may be, pound-for-pound, the greatest baseball player in the world as of this moment. In addition, Boston just gave him a six-year contract for $40.5 million, with an $11 million option in the seventh year. The small guy has big pockets.

#22: Dara Torres

Although she may not have gotten the same amount of press as Michael Phelps and his seven gold medals, Dara Torres got the same amount of respect for her endeavors in the 2008 Olympics. She first competed in swimming when she was 24 years old…back in 19-fucking-84! Half of her opponents weren’t born yet in 1984. Now she’s 41 years old, she was training full-time to get into the astonishing shape not so she can look good in her swimsuit, but to master those little elements that can pick up the few tenths of a second that can make a significant difference between winning and losing. And she’s doing all this while she’s raising her two-year old daughter. After five Olympics, she has collected a total of 12 medals, including three silver medals in last year’s games. Considering her performance, it seems like she has enough left in the tank to be a competitor in the next summer games.

#21: Evan Longoria

A couple of years ago, you would’ve thought that I’ve typed that heading incorrectly. However, this spot on the top 30 doesn’t belong to Mrs. Tony Parker, the fiery, Latina desperate housewife. Instead, it belongs to the unanimous 2008 American League Rookie of the Year. In 2008, the third baseman’s 27 homeruns and 85 RBI were one of the monumental reasons for the Tampa Bay’s earth-shattering breakout from mediocrity, clinching a playoff spot for the first time in its existence. While in the postseason, the Rays and Longoria displayed that they weren’t just happy to be there. Thanks to his four home runs, a postseason record for a rookie, Evan Longoria drove Tampa Bay a berth in the World Series where they worked the Philadelphia Phillies until losing to them in five games. With Evan Longoria in the batter’s box, the future of baseball looks prominent.

#20: Henrik Zetterberg

It’s stupendous how the Detroit Red Wings have remained this good for this long. In the last 15 seasons, the team from Hockeytown has reached 100 points twelve times (keep in mind that the '94-'95 season is shortened), has been division champs eleven times, has been conference champs five times, and has been Stanley Cup champs four times. One reason they’ve been good for this long, one reason they haven’t missed a beat since Steve Yzerman, Sergei Fedorov, Igor Larionov, Brendan Shanahan, Larry Murphy, and Scotty Bowman departed is because of their remarkable scout team. That scout team found a treasure named Henrik Zetterberg from Sweden in 1999 for their 210th pick. And that treasure scored 22 points to lead the whole playoffs in the Red Wings’ 2008 Stanley Cup win against the Pittsburgh Penguins.

#19: Derrick Rose

I’m 25, and numerous signs that I’m getting old are starting to unveil. One sign is Derrick Rose, the 2008 first overall pick in the NBA. When I was a kid, I precisely remember idolizing men on a basketball court. Now I’m idolizing a 20-year old. I precisely remember eagerly going to the basketball court to mimic moves I’ve seen men do on the television. Now I’m mimicking a 20-year old do this, and this, and this. Coming out of Memphis, where he was one Mario Chalmers shot away from winning the NCAA tournament, everyone thought it would take at least a year until he develops into an NBA franchise point guard. But he’s already established himself as a top guard in the league as a rookie, averaging 18 points, 4 rebounds, and 6 assists per game. My 20-year old idol may be the runaway favorite to win the Rookie of the Year award when this season concludes.

#18: Brad Lidge

If I had a choice to become an athlete of any kind, I would want to be a closer. They’re like one of those specialist surgeons: get in, do the job, get out, get paid. No thinking, no strategy, no pacing yourself for a long outing. Just do it. It seems easy, right? Well, Brad Lidge is a living testament to the fact that being a closer is only easy in theory. In reality, especially when watching Lidge on the mound, being a closer is night after night of high-tension drama, being a closer is facing volatile innings every time they’re called up, being a closer means you have to be a guarantee. And Lidge persevered in 41 of his 41 high-pressure regular season save situations and, more importantly, in seven of his seven post-season events, giving Philadelphia Phillies its first championship in 18 years.

#17: Kurt Warner

Even if he had faded into oblivion after his less than superb stint as a tutor for Eli Manning and Matt Leinart, Kurt Warner will always be remembered as an elite quarterback and an exemplification of what happens when you never give up on your dreams. Apparently, the 37-year old’s movie script ending hasn’t been written yet. To start the 2008 season, Arizona head coach Ken Whisenhunt named Leinart as the starting QB at the start of training camp. But, Warner kept fighting to change the coach’s mind as he hands the keys to the Cardinals’ potent offense after training camp ended. To justify the decision, he then proceeded to tally a completion rate of 68.7 (1st in the NFL), a passer rating of 99.1 (2nd in NFL), 4020 yard of passing (2nd), 25 touchdown passes (3rd), and the Cardinals first division clinch since 1975.

#16: Alexander Ovechkin

Although Sidney Crosby is, unequivocally, the face of the NHL, Alexander Ovechkin is the league’s biggest hope to conquer more hockey fans around the world. He’s an altruistic workhorse with empyrean skills, and every game he’s in, you are guaranteed to see a highlight, whether it’s a dazzling coast-to-coast goal or a sonorous body check. He’s a video game character embodied in real life. In 2007-2008 season, he led the league in goals with 65 and points with 112, and he carried the Washington Capitals back to distinction. His reward for it? An Art Ross trophy (most points), a Rocket Richard trophy (most goals), a Lester B. Pearson Award (most outstanding player voted on by players) and the Hart Memorial Trophy (most valuable player); the first player ever to capture all of those in the same season.

#15: Mario Chalmers

As an aspiring basketball player growing up, you dream of triumphant happenings in the NBA. You fantasize about big things in the big leagues. But Mario Chalmers can endorse that shining moments in the college level, especially amidst the high drama of March Madness, is just as sweet. To complete of the most unbelievable comebacks in the history of the NCAA championship, Chalmers nailed a three pointer with 2.1 seconds left, with a defender all over his eye, to send the game into overtime. The Kansas Jayhawks went on to defeat the Memphis Tigers to dodge bathos. Chalmers was drafted by the Miami Heat and is now the starting point guard for them. I’m sure he’ll have chances for shining moments in the professional level, but it’ll be challenging to top the one he had as an amateur.

#14: Kobe Bryant

Every year, there’s an argument regarding who deserves to get the Most Valuable Player in the NBA. Some experts say it should go to the best player on that season’s best team (Kevin Garnett). Some say it should go to the best player with the best statistics (Lebron James). Some say it should go to who would be most remembered when you look back at the season (Chris Paul). In 2008, the award went to the most talented, the most offensively dominant, and the player who fans love to hate the most. That player is incontrovertibly Kobe Bryant. Some say that honor is long overdue, which is true. In past seasons, Black Mamba have been mentioned to answer every criteria used to determine the NBA MVP, but never actually won. So even when the accreditation is questionable, it’s undoubtedly well deserved.

#13: Josh Hamilton

Right now, Josh Hamilton is sports’ poster child for resurrection, but nine years ago, the only poster he was pictured in is for how teams can misuse their first overall draft pick. Hamilton has poured his early professional baseball season down the drain due to excessive drug use. Then, in 2007 he resurfaced in Cincinnati to show he still got game. But last year is where he truly blew up. After being traded to the Texas Rangers, he went into a hitting spree, averaging .304 AVG/.371 OBP/.530 SLG and hitting 32 homeruns and 130 RBI. Having said that, it’s in the All-Star break’s Home Run Derby where he threw his comeback party. Justin Morneau came out victorious in the end, but it’s the sight of Hamilton launching homeruns after homeruns in the historic Yankee Stadium that will be permanently etched in sports fans’ memories.

#12: Lebron James

In 2008 (2007-2008 season to be exact), it took a historic performance from Paul Pierce to hold him up from facing Detroit, a team he has beaten before with less talented teammates. He was the vocal leader of the Redeem Team. He bravely called the league's favorite alumni, Charles Barkley, “stupid”. He’s causing other teams to throw their seasons away now so they have a miniscule chance to get him two years from now. And this season, he’s herculean. Not only is he scoring, rebounding, and passing like his usual self, he’s also playing All-NBA defense. Right now, King James is the undisputed best player among a pool of extraordinary talent. Surrounded by the best team he’s ever had in his career, the Cleveland Cavaliers are undefeated at home, they’re first in defense, and, most importantly, Lebron’s boys own the best record in the NBA with 30-9.

#11: C.C. Sabathia

At 6’7” and 290 lbs., C.C. Sabathia possesses the biggest heart in Major League Baseball, figuratively and literally. Because the Indians fell out of the running in June, they traded CC off to Miwaukee where he pitched deep for them every time he was called up as a starter, carrying the Brewers into the 8th or 9th inning almost every start. On the last day of the 2008 baseball season, with Milwaukee’s season on the line, he reliably stayed on the mound for 27 outs once again to clinch the Brewers’ first playoff appearance in two decades. After all is said and done, he pitched 253 innings in 2008 where he posted an ERA of 1.65. After this colossal pitching exhibition, not only does he have the biggest heart in baseball, he also has the biggest paycheck by any pitcher after signing a seven-year, $160 million with the Yankees. I heard pin-stripes are slimming.

#10: Stephen Curry

Every basketball fan has imagined a player who has the uncanny ability to sink any shot from anywhere in the court, no matter who or how many is guarding him. Stephen Curry, the adolescent-looking guard, is far from resembling that type of divine player, but he certainly had games in 2008 where it looked as though he’s could be. Last March, he led his tenth-seed Davidson to an underdog run in he NCAA tournament: first game against Gonzaga where he scored 30 points in a second half; then, against second-seed Georgetown, where he was held to five points in the first half but burned them for 25; and then, against Wisconsin where he notched 33 en route to another win. Only the eventual champions and no. 1 seed, Kansas, had barely enough firepower to trump the superlative marksman.

#09: Brett Favre

Packers GM Ted Thompson picked Aaron Rodgers over Brett Favre in the summer of 2008, and it seemed like the reasonable decision. Rodgers is the future of the franchise and he’s due to get the starts as the Green Bay quarterback. However, even if Favre only has a year left in the tank, he’s still Brett Favre. He leads his new team, the Jets, to win an AFC East championship. Where’s Green Bay and Aaron Rodgers? They have a 6-10 record and they're watching the NFL playoffs at home. Hell, even Cameron Diaz picked Ben Stiller over him too in There’s Something About Mary, and it also seemed like the correct, logical choice in that exact movie instance. Stiller’s funny, and kind, and more marriage material. But he’s Brett Favre! Even when rationality is on the other guy’s side, you don’t pick the other guy over Brett Favre.

#08: Manny Pacquiao

I’m starting to think that Manny Pacquaio’s merits are worth more in the Philippines than in the rest of the world. Filipinos are a race that gets inordinately proud when one of their own is validated internationally. Thankfully, Pac-Man supplies them with a lot of reason to be proud of: He took Juan Manuel Márquez to 12 rounds of hell to win the WBC super featherweight title; he KO’d David Diaz in 9th round to capture the WBC world lightweight title; and made the golden boy, Oscar De La Hoya ugly in eight rounds of boxing to solidify his top dog status in the ring. Now that Floyd Mayweather, Jr. is dancing, or wrestling, or what have you, he is irrefutably the greatest boxer pound-for-pound. If he loses a fight, a country of hearts will be broken. But that’s an astronomical-sized “if”.

#07: Chris Paul

Casual, fair-weather fans of basketball love the spectacular, poster-worthy stuff. In fact, David Stern targets this demographic, stating that NBA is “Where Amazing Happens”. Intelligent basketball fans, however, know better, and intelligent basketball fans love Chris Paul. Flashbulbs don’t emerge from the stands when CP3 expertly dismantles opposing defenses with the pick-and-roll. Kids don’t mimic the way CP3 hounds a ballhandler. There are no Youtube clips of CP3 patiently running an offense. But intelligent basketball fans know this is why the New Orleans point guard is an out-of-this-world talent. With his feistiness, selflessness and efficiency, Chris Paul carried a pedestrian cast of characters on his back to a 56-26 season, a record good enough for second best in the West in 2007-2008.

#06: Manny Ramirez

He ended his seven-year relationship with Boston in 2008, but any Bostonian who says that they’re happy to see him leave is a liar. While some criticize that “Manny being Manny” attitude he wears so prominently on his sleeves, no one can speak ill of his unrivaled work ethic and his dazzling performance on the diamond. “The first one in the gym, last one out of the gym” quality to describe a hard-working athlete is cliché, but that’s Manny. He put up .332 AVG/.430 OBP/.601 SLG numbers with 37 home runs and ??? RBI’s in 153 games. He’s a two-time MLB champ and a holder of many postseason records. Sure, he could be a goofball but if a goofball gives you those types of results, you embrace him no matter what. That’s what Los Angeles did, and he gave him Babe Ruth-type production for half a season.

#05: Eli Manning

He went from a gangling 18-year old of his rookie season to a championship caliber quarterback, from being questioned as a first overall pick to a sure thing, from Peyton’s little brother to just plain Eli. And all it took is one implausible scramble, one pass rush evasion, one magical throw, and one miraculous catch by David Tyree, which will be forever known as the “Helmet Catch”. Going into Superbowl XLII, most said that they had no business defeating the undefeated New England Patriots. But if you take that game as the starting point and consider the rest of 2008, you can see the victory made sense. They may have been the better team that day in Glendale, Arizona even. The New York Giants are 12-4 in 2008, thanks to Manning’s leadership and brilliance.

#04: Rafael Nadal

The greatest sports moment of 2008 lasted seven hours and it belonged to Rafael Nadal. The championship match consisted of five sets on Wimbledon grass, each point could be a Sportscenter highlight. When the match was temporarily delayed due to rain, no one—not even those who weren’t fans of the sport—wanted to change the channel for fear of missing a serve. 6-4, 6-4, 6-7 (5), 6-7 (8), 9-7. It was drama of the highest quality, athletics at its finest, competition at its very best, But then again, Roger Federer was as much a part of the moment as Rafa was. But observe the rest of Nadal’s 2008: fourth straight French Open, Davis Cup, Olympic gold medal, 32-game win streak, #1 in the world. Plus, he came out the victor of the greatest tennis match of anyone’s lifetime.

#03: Michael Phelps

Win one gold medal in the Olympics and your name could already be consecrated. So what Michael Phelps accomplished this summer is actually unfathomable. But, the thing is, Phelps is actually not a mammal like us; he’s an amphibian, genetically engineered to prosper in the pool. His 6’4” height allows him to cover more water. His arms, a 6’7” wingspan, are like oars attached to his shoulder. His short legs are actually stronger and can actually be more propulsive than the legs of most proportionate swimmers. His size 14’s are like massive fins in the water. He’s also double-jointed, which lets him dolphin kick from his chest while others do it from the ribs. This distinct physical edge over the combination is what got him eight medals, seven world records and a measly Olympic record, in eight events.

#02: Usain Bolt

As of right now, we live in a world where superheroes exist only in graphic novels and NBC sitcoms. Usain Bolt, on the other hand, makes us suspect the possibility that such flight of imagination may actually be a reality. He broke the 100 m world record while easing up 20 meters early and celebrating across the finish line. An Institute of Theoretical Astrophysics in Oslo investigated that he would’ve finished in 9.55 if he finished strong. But how do they know that the number they used for maximum speed is accurate? What if he’s only sprinting in half the speed he’s capable of? Or less, even?! Oh yeah, he also broke the 200 m world record and carried three of his fellow Jamaican citizens to break the 4x100 world record at the same track meet. Usain Bolt. His name even sounds like a superhero.

#01: The Big Three

The Big Three’s remarkable story actually started at the summer of ’07. Boston couldn’t get Greg Oden or Kevin Durant after tank-a-palooza, so GM Danny Ainge pressed the “panic” button, rupturing his roster to get two accomplished yet very exhausted veterans. No one knew why, but anyone who ever cared about basketball was very excited. A new universal favorite team emerged, the first one since Jordan’s Bulls. Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, and Ray Allen are proven alpha-dogs, but they were losers at the biggest stages. As a team, however, they were legendary. I know it’s unfair that in a list of sports individuals, three guys came out on top. But that’s what makes the Celtics’ Big Three a breath of fresh air: future hall of famers setting aside their individual agenda and functioning as one to satiate a hunger for victory.