All one has to do is look at the Pistons’ win over the Lakers to fully understand why they play the games. The beauty of sports is the unknown and the unpredictable. Throw in that the fact that games are played by humans and not machines and the cliché “the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat” and it’s brought into full focus.

Whether it’s a regular season game or a championship game or series, the single determining factor in the outcome of any sports contest is consistency. The Pistons’ consistent suffocating defense forced the Lakers into inconsistent performances. What made Detroit’s winning effort even more satisfying and unique is they did it without any so-called “stars”. The Lakers, on the other hand, had a team of “stars”. Shaq, Kobe, future hall of famers Gary Payton and Karl Malone made Los Angeles, in most people’s minds, the anointed NBA champs before the played the first game of the series. The Pistons had good players who simply played well together and proved once again that teams win championships, not individuals. Now, an individual player can help determine the outcome of a game or series, but in the final analysis the team that plays the most consistent always wins.

Occasionally, one player can overcome a teams’ inconsistent play and that team can win. But, when that happens, it shows how unique and special that great player truly is. Michael Jordan, Bret Farve, Joe Montana, Barry Bonds and Wayne Gretzky are a few examples. With each of the players mentioned, their play not only shows how special and unique they are as athletes, but it also shows the special traits they have, that all athletes don’t. The truly great athlete knows how to inspire their teammates, how to overcome competitive adversity and challenges, how to make their teammates better than they actually are, and what it takes for their team to be successful at any given time in a game. But, the one discerning factor all great athletes have is that when the game is on the line, they want to be one to determine the outcome. If they fail, they’ll take the blame. If they succeed, they want the glory. They simply are not afraid to fail.

One of the things I’ve enjoyed in my sports broadcasting and journalism career is the unknown. The unknown of how a game or series is really going to turn out. The unknown of what will be the turning point or key play. The unknown of what player will make the “big play” that helps win that game or series. The unknown of when a dramatic moment might come, and not just the one that decides the game. And finally, the unknown that makes a moment of joy turn dramatically moments later into a moment of sadness. A graphic example was in the Lakers-San Antonio series, Tim Duncan hit a shot with less then a second to go that put the Spurs ahead, only to have Derek Fisher hit the game winning shot with four tenths of a second to win it for L.A. The joy of victory turned into the agony of defeat for the Spurs in less than a second. Kirk Gibson’s dramatic home run against the A’s in the World Series is another example. Let’s not forget the Marlins beating the heavily favored Yankees in last season’s World Series. And, now the Piston’s dominate and stun the Lakers in a manner no one expected.

It doesn’t matter how many stars a team has, how good they look on paper, what their record is, what the so-called “experts” say or what they’ve done in the past. The bottom line will always be the game still has to be played. And playing that game will always be the essence of the joy of sports.

I feel better now.

I’m Ron Barr.

Ron Barr is an Emmy award winning writer and the host of the nationally and internationally syndicated sports talk show, Sports Byline USA

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