Michael Vick on House Arrest and Carmelo Anthony

I just saw today that Michael Vick returned to his home in Hempstead, Virginia to serve his remaining two months of jail time at home in confinement, working a $10 dollar an hour job. Wow. Imagine that transition. You go from being one of the richest (if not THE richest) player in the NFL, a player with so much potential, to (quoting Shawshank Redemption) "baggin' groceries at the the Foodway." Now, I know the Falcons certainly are not complaining, seeing as they have a new franchise quarterback in Matt Ryan. But for the NFL, I think it's sad to see one of its former icons and Madden cover-boys reduced to something so lowly as Vick. Now, I do not know what possessed him to be infatuated with seeing dogs kill each other or how much he got paid to do it, but I'm torn as to what I think the future holds for Mr. Vick. I think a year in prison is NOT enough the rectify this situation solely because it was an animal-related case. Rather, I think he should be banned from the NFL for at least three seasons, THEN I think he will learn. Once he has to survive on a limited income, see the real-world and what an honest dollar means, I hope Mike will learn, or attain rather, some moral fiber.

Nonetheless, I would love to see Mike back in the NFL at some point. To quote Dewayne The Rock Johnson from WWE, "he's the most electrifying entertainer in sport's history." I loved seeing Vick on the run, running and dodging through defenses, then slinging a 40 yard bullet across the middle. There really is not quarterback like him (if you're thinking Pat White, think again), and I think it would be a great story if he came back and won a championship...or it would be a good controversy.

Now, to another rather "controversial" player, Carmelo Anthony. No, for all you dreamers, am I writing this just because he is a one-year graduate of Syracuse. I'm trying to get a gauge on what people think about this guy's ability because everyone is talking about. Simply, does he belong among the likes of James, Bryant, Wade and Garnett? I definitely think Melo is among the top ten, but what he needs to do to solidify himself among NBA's elite is to win the series against Kobe, then claim a title. Some people question his scoring ability. 22 ppg. on the year, but averaging over 30 in the playoffs, when it counts. Not to mention, he's doing it on a team with Chauncey Billups and J.R. Smith, so that adds more fuel to the fire. What I think makes Carmelo so great is that he's the complete player. He can rebound, hit the mid-range jumper, penetrate and dish and even hit the three. I just feel that to be mentioned as a Kobe, he needs to do what made Kobe and Shaq so great: win an NBA title or two, because the stats are there, but the hardware is not.