Mike Davis “Resignation” No Racial Divide

By: John M. Crist

I don’t know what’s worse, the fact that Wayne Gretzky’s wife, Janet Jones, gambled half-a-million dollars on pro football, or the fact that The Great One never noticed that his wife gambled half-a-million dollars on pro football….Even if Darko Milicic finally gets to play significant minutes after being traded from the Detroit Pistons to the Orlando Magic this week, I think it’s safe to go ahead and enshrine the seven-footer into the Sam Bowie wing of the NBA Draft Hall of Fame already….

White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen may have gone too far when he called Alex Rodriguez a phony for wanting to suit up with the Dominican Republic in the World Baseball Classic this month, but in the outspoken one’s defense, Mark O’Meara didn’t represent Ireland when he competed in the Ryder Cup….

If Sammy Sosa actually gets into the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown one day, I bet he won’t suddenly forget how to speak English during his acceptance speech like he conveniently did at the steroids hearings last March on Capitol Hill….

No matter what develops into the biggest story this coming April at The Masters, the fact that Jack Nicklaus, a man who has been synonymous with Augusta National since 1959, declined his invitation will undoubtedly be the biggest headliner in my book…

The fact that the Minnesota Vikings are willing to accept a measly second-round pick in return for franchise quarterback Daunte Culpepper has very little to do with his poor 2005 season and that catastrophic knee injury but an awful lot to do with his debilitating 10-year, $102 million contract that the team gave him less than three years ago…

Vijay Singh demanded that Phil Mickelson’s driver be tested by tournament officials after Lefty continually out-drove the big-hitting Fijian at the FBR Open last week, which is the equivalent of Roger Clemens demanding an on-the-spot steroids test every time Albert Pujols launches one of Rocket’s fastballs into the cheap seats…

If I were a member of the Houston Texans front office and heard the news this week that Texas Longhorns quarterback Vince Young will only interview at the NFL combine and refuses to actually showcase his throwing prowess, I’d feel even more comfortable drafting Reggie Bush with the #1 overall selection…

With NBA All-Star Weekend upon us once again, and considering the Slam Dunk Contest is completely passe at this point, would you rather see the best dunkers in the league rehash the same stuff we’ve been seeing for years or the best dunking mascots leaping off trampolines and jumping through rings of fire? …

Sorry to burst the bubble of dozens of Winter Olympics fanatics in this country, but I am absolutely convinced that I could make the United States curling team with about one week of practice …

Black and White? Nope.

And since many of my kin on both sides of the family tree went to Indiana University, let me go ahead and diffuse all this racism talk surrounding Mike Davis and his pressure-packed decision to step down as head basketball coach.

Think back about a decade ago when Dean Smith, the all-time wins leader and a living legend, stepped down at North Carolina. The school replaced him with Bill Guthridge, an assistant on that staff, and as you may remember, a white guy. Guthridge had some serious success at UNC, leading them to two Final Fours in just three seasons on the job. What happened after that? He curiously ‘retired’ so the program could bring in everybody’s hot new coach on the horizon and a former Tar Heel, Matt Doherty.

Again, another white guy. Three tumultuous seasons later, Doherty was shown the door almost as quickly as it had been flung wide open for him, even after he was the NCAA Coach of the Year. Now they have Roy Williams, a UNC guy from head to toe and also a former Smith assistant. He rewarded North Carolina with another national championship last season, and Chapel Hill is once again one of the most desirable hoops destinations in the country.

Take a closer look at Mike Davis. Yes, he won 20 games each of his first three seasons and made that majestic run to the title game back in 2002, but he did all that almost exclusively with Bobby Knight’s players. Ever since he’s been playing his own guys the last three seasons, he hasn’t even earned an NCAA tournament berth. That is absolutely unacceptable for a basketball program with the rich history and storied tradition of Indiana.

Just like if the Yankees don’t make the postseason three years in a row. Just like if Florida State plays in the Peach Bowl three years in a row. Just like if Team Penske doesn’t win the Indianapolis 500 three years in a row. Unacceptable for a black guy, unacceptable for a white guy, in programs of that stature, unacceptable for anyone.

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John Crist is a longtime contributor to the CSR, and the Editor-in-Chief of Bear Report Magazine. Check it out and become a Bears Insider. You can contact him at johncrist@yahoo.com.

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