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The Way I See It
EVERY kid playing a game of street ball wants to be Ray Lewis these days. Defense is all the rave,
thanks to LewisHe's made defense look glamorous.
He's helped it overshadow offense in Baltimore.
It's hard to imagine any team scoring a handful of touchdowns against the Ravens, thanks to Lewis' leadership.
Good thing Ray Lewis was willing to plea bargain for his freedom last June, isn't it?
How far do you think Baltimore would've gotten without him?
Lewis admitted to obstruction of justice, accepted 12 months' probation and agreed to testify against the two remaining co-defendants and others who were charged in connection with a double murder during the week of Super Bowl XXXIV in Atlanta.
It's really hard to remember that now, but I can guarantee the XXXV Super Bowl media will make Lewis remember it this week.
How well he handles the pressure might determine the Ravens' chances of pecking the Giants to death.
Maybe we'd better do a reality check on Lewis, too.
It was only half a year ago that we were watching him on TV not in a Ravens' uniform, but in handcuffs and red prison clothing, sitting in a courtroom.
His lifestyle and his choice of company had brought him to the point of no return.
Granted that the murder charges brought against Lewis were ill-conceived, there's no denying he lied to police and was convicted of a misdemeanor.
You have to really scratch your head at how quickly Lewis went from glory to infamy and back to glory.
The NFL didn't suspend him even though players convicted usually do get suspended.
And what a nice probation.
It involves 36 long-distance calls over one year to counselors at a private company under contract with the court in Atlanta.
He can't use drugs or alcohol but this company typically doesn't check.
If he'd been convicted in Maryland, he'd have had to undergo twice-weekly urinalysis screenings.
IT'S fortunate for the Hawaii men's basketball team that Haim Shimonovic will be allowed to play the center position Feb. 15 at home against SMU.
But by that time the team will probably still be below .500.
It's too bad the question of Shimonovic's eligibility wasn't cleared up by the Hawaii coaching staff before the player's letter of intent was faxed in on April 12.
They knew he was playing in the top pro league in Israel (even though he wasn't being paid by the league since he was in the military).
Bylaw 12.2.3.2 of the NCAA Division I manual states:
"An individual shall not be eligible for intercollegiate athletics in a sport if the individual ever participated on a team and knew (or had reason to know) that the team was a professional team (per Bylaw 12.02.4) in that sport."
Shimonovic lucked out.
Even UH coach Riley Wallace said there was a chance the NCAA could have taken away his entire four-year eligibility. Instead, he sits out 22 games, the two exhibitions for UH and the 20 for participating in the Israeli league.
The ban against athletes playing in professional leagues before college enrollment was lifted last week for NCAA Division II schools.
The same change is proposed for Division I schools when the NCAA holds meetings in April.
Pat Bigold has covered sports for daily newspapers
in Hawaii and Massachusetts since 1978.
Email Pat: pbigold@starbulletin.com
