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I'm not basing it solely on his NBA career which sports one all-star berth and a below 15 point scoring average. The Basketball Hall of Fame has broad requirements and Manu has a broad resume. Manu has won something in every year from 2001 up until Argentina's defeat at the hands of Team USA Saturday morning.

2001 - Italian League Championship

2001 - Italian Cup champion

2001 - Euroleague champion (won MVP)

2001 - 2001 FIBA Americas Championship

2002 - FIBA World Championships (silver medal)

2002 - Italian Cup champion

2003 - NBA title

2004 - Olympic gold medal

2005 - NBA title

Ginobili is the only player in basketball history to win the Euroleague, an Olympic gold medal, and an NBA Championship ring. Now, if Lebron James and Kenny Anderson are in the Basketball Hall of Fame because of their high school achievements, I think Manu should make it in based on his global achievements.

Yesterday, everyone was quick and anxious to bash the USA after they lost to a very good Greece team. Where is the praise for them today? Since many USA fans abandoned them b/c they couldn't win the gold, in a sense, they had no reason to put forth any effort. Instead, they came out and out-hustled and out-played an Argentina team that is stocked with some of the world's best players. So, do any of you Americans out there have small enough egos to congratulate Team USA on their win today?

USA squad:

Oneal, Shaq (C)*

Garnett, Kevin (F)*

James, Lebron (FG)*

Bryant, Kobe (GF)*

Wade, Dwayne (G)*

O'neal, Jermaine (FC)

Brand, Elton (PF)

Artest, Ron (SF)

McGrady, Tracy (GF)

Billups, Chauncey (G)

Pierce, Paul (FG)

Allen, Ray (SG)

International squad:

Duncan, Tim (CF)*

Nowitzki, Dirk (PF)*

Kirilenko, Andrei (SF)*

Ginobili, Manu (SG)*

Nash, Steve (PG)*

Yao, Ming (C)

Gasol, Pau (FC)

Nocioni, Andres (F)

Stojakovic, Peja (FG)

Parker, Tony (PG)

Diaw, Boris (F)

Krstic, Nenad (CF)

(*) Denotes starters

The Hawks have added Speedy Claxton (PG) and Lorenzen Wright (C) this off-season. Now, they potentially have a starting line-up of:

PG - Speedy Claxton - [5-11] - (Small, but effective)

SG - Joe Johnson - [6-7] - (Rising star)

SF - Josh Smith - [6-9] - (Offense catching up with his defense)

PF - Marvin Williams - [6-9] - (Had a good summer league)

C - Lorenzen Wright - [6-11] - (Solid center)

Is this enough to challenge for a playoff spot in the eastern conference?

Dwayne Wade had an impressive Finals showing, and I have read many articles annointing him as the next Jordan. Now, I firmly believe that someone will eventually surpass Jordan's on-court impact, but Jordan had both on-court and marketing dominance. Jordan, as well as Tiger Woods, have been accepted by white America, Europe, and Asia. Will another black player be able to attain such worldwide acceptance or will it take a white player to attain or surpass Jordan as a marketing tool? (No, I am not racist. I am asking a legitimate question, so please spare me the comments about me being racist or any of that nonsense. If you can help it, keep your own racist comments and beliefs to yourself, too.)

They drafted Hilton Armstrong out of UCONN and Cedric Simmons out of NC State in the 1st round. Do you know anything about them as players?

Grant Hill. Kobe Bryant. Vince Carter. Tracy McGrady. Lebron James. Dwayne Wade. All got pegged as the next Michael Jordan as soon as they showed a hint of greatness. Allen Iverson was the next Isaiah Thomas. Dirk Nowitzki got labeled as the next Larry Bird. Penny Hardaway got tagged as the next Magic Johnson. Before Shaun Livingston graduated from high school, he got slapped with a Next Magic tag just b/c he was tall and could dribble. Even Jordan himself was a next. He was to be the next Dr. J.

Why are fans and the media so obsessed with digging up corpses? All of the aforementioned players are great in their own rights. Jordan grew up watching Dr. J, so naturally, he influenced his game. All those other guys grew up watching Jordan. Gatorade played the Like Mike commercials so much that is was like a subliminal message. Sure Kobe pumps his fist like MJ. Yes Lebron wears 23. Of course Wade has mastered the trick shot. Jordan was who they modeled their games after. Nothing wrong with that, but it doesn't mean they have to be the Next Jordan. Each of them bring something to the table that Jordan didn't have. So, why can't they be the first them instead of the next someone else?

Grant Hill. Kobe Bryant. Vince Carter. Tracy McGrady. Lebron James. Dwayne Wade. All got pegged as the next Michael Jordan as soon as they showed a hint of greatness. Allen Iverson was the next Isaiah Thomas. Dirk Nowitzki got labeled as the next Larry Bird. Even Jordan himself was a next. He was to be the next Dr. J.

Why are fans and the media so obsessed with digging up corpses? All of the aforementioned players are great in their own rights. Jordan grew up watching Dr. J, so naturally, he influenced his game. All those other guys grew up watching Jordan. Gatorade played the Like Mike commercials so much that is was like a subliminal message. Sure Kobe pumps his fist like MJ. Yes Lebron wears 23. Of course Wade has mastered the trick shot. Jordan was who they modeled their games after. Nothing wrong with that, but it doesn't mean they have to be the Next Jordan. Each of them bring something to the table that Jordan didn't have. So, why can't they be the first _____?

Here are the guidelines. Construct an NBA starting five from current NBA players. You can choose no more than two recent all-stars for your squad. Guys that were all-stars this season and/or last season qualify as recent. Put an asterik (*) next to your all-stars for clarity. Positions are irrelevant. If you want five point guards, that's your perogative. A short explanation of why you chose the player is optional.

MY TEAM:

PG - Jason Kidd (Nets)

SG - Kobe Bryant (Lakers)*

SF - Andrei Kirilenko (Jazz)

PF - Dwight Howard (Magic)

C - Tim Duncan (Spurs)*

My team lacks a pure shooter, but scoring won't be a problem. Defensively, they'd be hell to score against. They would dominate the paint, also, offensively and defensively.

It's funny when people reminisce over Jordan inside of a paradox, because no one mentions how the season that Jordan averaged 37 points per game that the Bulls played under-.500 basketball (40-42, fifth in their division, 17 games out of first place) and how they got swept in the first round by Boston, yet Kobe got the Lakers to play over-.500 ball (45-37, third in their division, nine games from first) and pushed the Suns to a "win or go home" game in the first round … and he gets dogged. Or how Jordan placed second in MVP voting that year to Magic, yet Kobe came in fourth this year, fifth in the general managers voting poll.

Yet, they basically had the exact same statistical season.

MJ, '86-87: 37.1 ppg/5.2 rpg/4.6 apg

KB, '05-06: 35.4 ppg/5.3 rpg/4.5 apg

Yet, Kobe's season is being held against him.

Which leaves the question open: Is Kobe unfairly judged b/c of the infatuation with Jordan?

A friend and I have a disagreement over whether or not getting or giving oral sex is considered cheating if you are married or dating. My friend feels that since it does not involve intercourse, it isn't cheating. I think it's still cheating. What do you think?