Celebrities take their place in franchise ownership

Published:  Thursday, September 24, 2009 (5 months, 3 weeks ago)
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I wonder why it’s taken this long.
I refer to professional athletes and entertainers becoming more and more involved in the ownership of professional sports franchises.
Stars and celebrities have always been seen on the sidelines of games, especially the Super Bowl, and at NBA games, like for the Los Angeles Lakers.
The Miami Dolphins have a number of these men and women in their ownership group, though on a limited basis: Venus and Serena Williams, Gloria and Emilio Estevez and Marc Anthony, Helio Castroneves, Jimmy Buffett and T-Pain, to go along with new majority owner Stephen Ross.
One, it’s a way to get famous people — with a little bit of money lying around — involved in your organization and to get them instant media.
Heck, Buffett even did a brief concert for tailgaters; that must have been a blast.
It even made someone like former All-Pro receiver Mark “Super” Duper an afterthought for the home opener.
Let’s face it; we are a media-obsessed nation, as well as one that is obsessed with its celebrities. Ross wants to take advantage of that exposure and make football games more of an “event.”
Egads, I am good.
In my column last week, I called for Justine Henin’s return to the women’s professional tennis tour.
What do you know but that is her plan; to return to the WTA at the age of 27.
It only makes sense. With all the “retirees” making comebacks, she was next.
I just think these people can’t quite get it out of their system. They have grown up around the sport, whatever it may be, and have put so much of their life to it, they simply can’t walk away like that. Really, they have no life outside of this game.
They get used to the fame and adulation, the money and even the paparazzi.
Especially for Henin, injuries really played a part in her walking away. Her retirement gave her a chance to heal up and find out what she really wanted to do with her life.
She found out how much she misses the game and had a chance to rejuvenate.
One thing I think all pro athletes want to do is walk away on their own terms, not because of injury or whatever.
What will happen now is she won’t play as many tournaments as she did before and feed any new hobbies or likes she has discovered.
By the way, the season is too darn long. That is why the game is having so many injuries, both men and women. The body gets beat up and it takes its toll, especially since there is so much money and press coverage, travel and other stuff off the court the game didn’t used to have.
On the other hand, sometimes we think our heroes can go on forever.
When the all-time greats we grew up watching retired: be they a Bill Russell, Wilt the Stilt and Jim Brown (who many felt stopped playing long before they should have), a Barry Sanders or anyone; there was something we lost. If these men and women get old and have to hang them up, it reminds us of our own aging and how we are not as young as we used to be.
When you think of great WNBA players like Lisa Leslie and Vickie Johnson, they were there from the beginning when the league started in 1997. Their departures will leave only Tina Thompson and Tamecka Dixon as the only “originals” left.
The good part is that neither of them are leaving because their games have deteriorated to the point that they are simply out there: I remember Kareem, Willie Mays, Ali and a few others that did stay far too long and their skills had clearly dropped off.
That’s  a  sad  part  of  the  reality  of  athletes; they sometimes don’t “know” when it’s time to bid adieu to the games they play.

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