I should have known, Dirk

Dirk. Its OK. I understand. You're the reigning MVP and things aren't going quite how ya planned huh? Once thought to be amongst the league's elite, your team is looking pretty ordinary. Josh isn't responding great to the trade yet huh? You're having to shoulder alot more of the scoring load, doesn't it seem. You thought you'd like to have that responsibility at this point in your career, but deep down you're afraid aren't you. Its Ok you can tell me.

In one of your latest battles to prove something to yourself, you were going up against western contender, the Utah Jazz. They're hot and you're not huh? You saw the game getting out of hand, didn't you. So you went for it. You attempted to injure that Russian you've seen on the international stage. It resulted in a sprained right hip, but the way you took him down, he's lucky with just that. Sure, you can try to pass it off as an accident, but it wasn't. It was oh so much more than "flagrant". That foul represents the last 3 years of your life. You were fed up and it boiled over into this pickle you're in right now.

As you sit there, watching your team lose to the Yao-less Rockets, you get to thinking about this situation you've put yourself in. Jason can create shots for your teammates, but he doesn't have the ability to shoulder some of the scoring load like Devin did. Superfan/Owner Mark Cuban is aware of the situation too, "We know Dirk wasn't trying to hurt anyone or do anything more than stop a layup," Cuban said, "but if it had happened to one of our guys, we would want the same result." (the Salt Lake Tribune) Behind closed doors, Cuban knows it too. Mark's scratching his head, thinking of the millions he invested into your lanky ass. This one game suspension is so much more than that. It represents a mental lapse resulting from a harsh reality. You're not gonna win a championship this year. You're never going to win one. Ever. You had your chance and Dwayne wasn't trying to help you with your little dilemma.

So play it off cool Dirk. Who really cares at the end of the day? You're the only one who can control your destiny. In actuality though, your fate is predetermined. You're gonna scrape into the Hall of Fame without a ring and maybe even cry at the press conference. The issue lies in your tears. They aren't tears of joy or happiness evoked from retirement, your family or even love of the game, they are tears of shame - knowing the lengths you went, to only come up short. So as you go through the charade that is your "playoff run", remember this. If you're willing to injure someone to gain that competitive edge, you don't even deserve a championship.

-C