My Top Five Sportswriter Assignments

Anyone who's ever done a fair amount of writing has encountered the dreaded "writer's block": a logjam of mental rabbit trails impeding the natural flow of creative ideas. It's an unsuccessful fishing trip on a stream teeming with prize catches.

Or how about an assignment so foreign to the writer's interest and passion that the endeavor is more like a journey through quicksand than a stroll through the park?

This is the downside of writing.

Let's think about the upside.

Let's think about a sports figure so controversial, so larger-than-life, so engaging that they practically write the story themselves. The sportswriter needs only to sit back and wait as the grist for the public-driven information mill falls like dew drops from heaven.

This person is a headline-magnet. Front page, center. The very lint from his pockets seemingly turns to gold in the writer's hands.

A permanent assignment to one of these sports icons carries with it, for the right writer, Pulitzer potential.

Here then, are some of my fantasy assignments.

Honorable Mention: Oh to have been one of the fortunate few whose eyes beheld not one, but both of these champions in their prime: Man-O-War and Secretariat! Having that unique perspective would have fueled volumes of passionate print.

"Who was the greatest?" is still one of the most famous unanswered questions in sport.

That their careers were separated by decades is both cruel and fitting. The controversy rages on.

No. 5 - George Steinbrenner   The out-spoken owner of the New York Yankees always seems to be in the news. It's this "faithful as the rising sun" quality alone that gets him on the list.

If such a thing existed, here's what a rival owner—or cub reporter—might have scribbled in his scouting report: Deep pockets. Loves publicity. A meddler. Does not let small details (like the law) get in his way. Unlimited hire/fire threat. Patriotic. Innovative. Will win at any cost. Control freak. Power monger.

In essence, a sportswriter's ace in the hole. On a slow news day, there's always George.

No. 4 - OJ Simpson    A proverb states, "The end of a matter is better than its beginning". OJ's story seems to refute that truth. The Simpson saga spans 40-plus years - from the former glory days to the latter gory days.

In the 1969 Rose Bowl, number-two ranked USC faced No. 1 ranked Ohio State. It was "Juice's" final college game. The Heisman-winning Simpson, with the world at his feet, threw a critical interception and later fumbled away a valuable possession in a prophetic pre-enactment of his life. His Trojans lost, 27-16.

A successful pro football career, followed by numerous acting gigs, the sensational murder trials and recent imprisonment were all there. All awaiting the pen of a ready writer.

No. 3 - Michael Jordan    His basketball feats would have been enough. Seemingly every time on the court, Michael gave us something of real substance. Something we could only stare at in wonderment...and try to put into words.

As a gangly young kid at UNC, he was merely a star among stars. In the pro game, he came, he saw, he conquered - and reigned supreme over the last true dynasty in basketball.

After three NBA championships, he quit basketball to pursue a short and mediocre baseball career.

In 1996, he returned to his basketball throne and presided over three more championships.

Jordan's story has always been bigger than basketball. He gave us more. There's the suspicious death of his father, the gambling, the golf, divorce, part-ownership of the Wizards.

Somehow, the Michael Jordan story doesn't seem quite finished...

No. 2 - Babe Didrikson Zaharias    This 5'5" stick of dynamite was one of the most talented and versatile athletes of all time. That Babe was a girl is almost incidental. The qualifier is necessary because her femininity was often called into question.

Yes, she was a tomboy. Yes, her natural physical strength belied her diminutive frame. And yes, she could compete with and often beat the boys at their own game.

So, is it any wonder she fairly dominated the world of women's sports in the 1930s and '40s?

She won two gold medals and a silver (she was only allowed three events) in track and field at the 1932 Olympics. She was a champion tennis player, roller skater, and basketball player. She made her own clothes. She was a musician and a singer, with two recordings to her credit.

And then...She played some golf. It was her forte. Babe was one of the top pro golfers on the women's tour and competed into the 1950s—while battling colon cancer. It was one of the few battles she eventually lost, at the age of 45.

Throughout her competitive years she often faced a bigoted, hostile press. Shrewdly, she manipulated that press and used the free publicity to her advantage. It was just another tribute to her competitive nature.

For the sportswriter, it was easy diggings, as Babe's career was rich with the nuggets and gems writers sometimes search for years to uncover.

No. 1 - Muhammad Ali    "...float like a butterfly, sting like a bee..." was Ali's self-described boxing style. Indeed, his dancing, mobile footwork and accurate, jolting punches were the trademark of his long and colorful career.

In that span, he gained and lost the heavyweight title three times. He was the single-most important figure in what experts have dubbed the "Golden Age of the Heavyweight Division." His bouts with Sonny Liston, Joe Frazier and George Foreman are all-time classics.

His arrogant self-confidence and in-fight taunting made "trash talk" fashionable.

His conversion to Islam and subsequent moral stand against the Vietnam war, at the cost of his title and livelihood are legendary.

Ali alone spawned the notoriety of household names like Howard Cosell, Don King, Malcolm X, and Angelo Dundee.

And is there anyone with a beating heart who did not shed a tear as "The Champ" lit the flame at the 1996 Summer Olympics?

Yes, all the exploits of this great champion have been recorded. Those who were there, to pen the deeds, must have felt the rush of a mountain stream as the words came flowing faster than...well, faster than this: "...his hands can't hit what his eyes can't see..."

Well, there you have it, my fantasy assignments. Even though I started writing later in life, I think the world of sport can still produce another great figure who can turn my fantasy into reality.

Whom do you see out there?