Also, read the NY Times article I linked to. It talks about her family, the emotions, etc… Also on the radio yesterday (on Rome show) she talked about the balance of being an emotional player and managing those emotions. She didn’t apologize, and maybe she learned something from the experience but she seems like a very thoughtful and real person, something I wish more athletes would be in interviews…

As to your last point, that is exactly right. The story isn’t over yet. In order to ensure a “Hero’s Journey”, Solo and the team must win… Han did it, why can’t Hope?

“As Solo said today in a radio interview, nobody else knows what she went through. In her mind, that precludes the right of anyone else to pass judgment on her actions.”

Why is what someone said they personally had to go through after the fact even a relevant discussion? Does a judgment of what someone said they had to go through after the mistake precede the unwritten rules of the team concept? Of course not. Sounds like Jerry Springer to me. The character of a performer is based on their ability to separate the outside distress from the actual arena. See also, Jordan winning the Finals while he had a body temperature that should have had him bed-ridden. If he would have lost that Finals, do you think he would have blamed it on his biological fever? Dramatic. Cop. Out.

American sports fans don’t “love” the fact that guys speak brashly or change their given names, in terms of the admiration part of the word love. They “love” it because it is polarizing. You can love something in a negative sense. American sports fans love certain things because it sparks a discussion, not because they admire it necessarily.

I differ on your distinction between confidence and cocky-ness. Confidence is a completely different word. Confidence shows humility and strength implied. Cocky-ness shows an outlandish over-compensation for weakness or a feeling of stubborn defeat.

How does one feel to be benched? Wait your turn. Coaches coach, players play. If you let the emotion of someone who wasn’t chosen where they personally wanted to be for kickball game rule the order, and all of a sudden the inmates have a foot in the door running the asylum. If the personal opinion of players ruled the games we covet, the entire system would crumble. Promoting this supposed “American Way” is borderline reckless.

“Made the comments with the tournament already over.” Let me ask you this, did she make her comments before or after it was actually over. If she did before, she is a cancer. If she did after, she is a hindsight crybaby. Either way its bad practice.

Bottom line – hyping Solo now only prematurely downplays Scurry’s accomplishments. So Solo made a big PK save in the quarters. Scurry made a PK save in the FINALS to win it all, unless I am mistaken. Solo’s got a ways to go yet to live up to who she openly detracted.

Anyways O, good article. Very well thought out and Luke is right – one of your best efforts. I enjoyed it as I do the healthy discussion. Well done sir.