NBA Compares.

The people who made the commercials with the Lebron and Kobe puppets will feel dumb if neither one of them are in the finals. The Cavs need a huge miracle to beat the Magic after falling 3-1. The Nuggets and Lakers could very easily go into seven games.

Speaking of Lebron and Kobe, can we please stop comparing them to Michael Jordan? They're all good in their own unique way. We're constantly looking for the next guy to fill the role as someone that's played the position before him.

Remember when Jake Plummer was supposed to be the next Joe Montana? What happened with that? How about the very short period (extremely short) when Chad Hutchinson was supposed to be the next John Elway. Of course, that was just because he was a former pitcher and a quarterback wearing No. 7, coming out of Stanford. Those were the only three similarities you could ever draw between the two.

If you really want to go down the road of comparisons, why not go a different route. Instead of looking for the next great thing, let's just look at what's most likely. For example, Ron Artest might just be the next Dennis Rodman. We're all hoping Wade Phillips doesn't become the next....well choose for yourself between Barry Switzer, Chan Gailey, or Dave Campo. No, Tony Romo will never be the next Troy Aikman.

Thankfully, as far as I know, these comparisons don't go far beyond sports. If we were to compare movies the way the we compare athletes, what would we be looking for? If someone was to call a particular movie the Titanic of 2009, that could mean it's full of teenage girls in line waiting to see it for the 14th time. It could mean it sank or flopped, or it could mean, well, we need to set our standards a little higher than that.

Although, when it comes to comparisons, George Lucas might just be the movie equivalent to Al Davis. Lucas bragged about the fact many of the scenes in the most recent Star Wars movies took only one take. Yeah that answers a lot. At least Raider fans can take comfort in the fact Tom Cable will probably make them run each play at least a couple times. Hey, If you want to compare the actors of those movies to athletes, well, the closest place I can suggest to look is the WNBA. Which is more painful to watch? That's up to you to decide.

Putting in all on the line

As much as I love sports, it's a rare thing to find an athlete who's worth looking up to as a role model. One indication that an athlete is a positive role model is that he puts others before him. A true indication of that is making the ultimate sacrifice of defending the country.

When we hear about our men and women in uniform, we're not talking about jerseys. Despite all the analogies of sports being like a battlefield, we must come to grips with reality and know

they're not.

Football in particular is full of war analogies.It all takes place on the gridiron while the offense uses the ground attack or the long bombs. Athletes generally know there's a bug difference, and the analogies are just that.

Former Cowboy defensively tackle Chad Hennings made sure people realized it, saying there there's an obvious line. Former Cardinal safety Pat Tillman gave up a career as a professional football and his life while fighting for his country in Afghanistan.

Tedd Williams (top) served as a pilot in WWI and the Korean War. He could have turned down the Korean war but like a few others, he put his bat down and fought for freedom.

These are just a few examples of athletes who have proven their worthy of being role models. They've put themselves in the public eye and have defended the millions of fans watching as their professional athletic careers unfold.

We've all heard the it said that freedom is not free. This couldn't be more true and an expensive price has been paid and is continuing to be paid. To that, we should all be thankful, and on this Memorial Day, while remembering those role models who have selflessly decided to put itall on the line.