One place where Obama and Elbows still meet

[illinoisprogressive]

Great story in ny times about Basketball and obama. lots of fun to read.



Last Christmas, Senator Barack Obama flew to Hawaii to contemplate a presidential bid in the peace of his childhood home. But there, on a humid playground near Waikiki Beach, he found himself being roughed up by some of his best friends. It was the third and final game of the group’s annual three-on-three basketball showdown, and with the score nearly tied, things were getting dirty.

“Every time he tried to score, I fouled him,” Martin Nesbitt recalled. “I grabbed him, I’d hit his arm, I’d hold him.” Michael Ramos, another participant, explained, “No blood, no foul.”

Mr. Obama, like everyone else on the court, was laughing. And with a head fake, a bit of contact and a jumper that seemed out of his range, Mr. Obama sank the shot that won the game.

From John F. Kennedy’s sailing to Bill Clinton’s golf mulligans to John Kerry’s windsurfing, sports has been used, correctly or incorrectly, as a personality decoder for presidents and presidential aspirants. So, armchair psychologists and fans of athletic metaphors, take note: Barack Obama is a wily player of pickup basketball, the version of the game with unspoken rules, no referee and lots of elbows. He has been playing since adolescence, on cracked-asphalt playgrounds and at exclusive health clubs, developing a quick offensive style, a left-handed jump shot and relationships that have extended into the political arena.

rest of the story;

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/01/us/politics/01hoops.html?ref=politics

[Colobo]

1. Very cool article! Thanks!

[venable]

2. Edwards beat Raymond Felton (NBA starting PG)

of the Charlotte Bobcats in a game of HORSE.


shot by ESPN. Felton tried, especially as he was falling behind, and even more as his teammates gathered around, cheering Edwards on. It was a serious, serious game.

No dunks, as that would have given the game to Felton.

Edwards and Obama should go a little one-on-one. Couple of hoopsters.

[illinoisprogressive]

3. what a really fun thought. I wonder if they know each other plays some pickup.

wouldn't it be great to have them do a one on one before a debate or something.

[venable]

4. I'm sure they know

and, as a pick up player myself, I'm sure they have both wondered about the other's game.

They should just do it. Game to 11. Win by 2.

Only other world leader that took pick up hoops as seriously as, apparently, BO and JE do: Fidel. He had game.