It was a somber week at the On Deck office (of one). Roger Federer was my bet to win the Australian Open and he got bounced out early. I hadn’t even had the time to process that when Kobe Bryant reportedly suffered yet another season-ending injury. Then just when it couldn’t get any worse, Josh Gordon, my fantasy hero from 2013, will reportedly get a one-year suspension after testing positive for, wait for it, alcohol. Alcohol! I didn’t even know you could get busted for testing positive for alcohol!
I know what you’re thinking. No opinions on Deflategate? Don’t worry, I do have an opinion but I’m saving it for a separate piece. That one deserves its own 800 words.
Anyway, let’s start with Federer, who I (foolishly) backed ahead of the Australian Open. I probably drank too much of that 1,000th match win Kool Aid, so shame on me, right? Who knew that little known Andreas Seppi would boot out the current world number 2 player in the third round of the Aussie Open. I certainly didn’t see it coming, but it did seem like Roger was out of his game throughout that third round match. Chalk it up to age or just having a bad day at the court, but c’mon Roger! You shouldn’t be losing to Seppi in any match, let alone a third round match in the year’s first Grand Slam!
As usual, Federer was gracious in defeat, even referring to the Seppi draw as one he “quietly feared.” You don’t normally read into these sorts of things, especially considering that Federer has a spotless record against Seppi (10-0 before their Aussie clash) and that his past performances at the tournament usually meant that you already had him booked at a seat in the semi-finals, a spot he found himself in every year since 2003.
But it wasn’t meant to be, which is probably the most apt way to describe Federer’s early exit in the tournament. Now, is it possible to get my stakes back?
Federer may have had a rough weekend, but at least he’s still healthy enough to play. The same, unfortunately, cannot be said for one Kobe Bryant, who, according to reports, will likely miss the rest of the NBA season after tearing his rotator cuff. Kobe actually had the injury earlier in the pre-season, but gamely played through it even if his Lakers have languished in mediocrity for the entire year. It’s possible that his early action slowly aggravated the injury, but one thing we do know is that it’s going to be another tough road back for the Black Mamba. Hopefully, he recovers from this latest setback and returns stronger than ever.
It’s tough to ask, especially after suffering through two season-ending injuries in the past two seasons. But if anybody’s up to it, it’s Kobe Bryant. I’ve never been a fan of Kobe until the past few years, but you have to appreciate what he’s done to the game of basketball and ending his career like this isn’t the proper send-off we should have for the future first-ballot