On your mark: Time for football to pass the torch to basketball

We wait 364 days for a special one, blessing us with a few hours of brilliance only to be left with memories to cherish.

Very similar to one’s eager anticipation for Christmas Day, such is the Super Bowl. For the better part of seven months, 32 teams sacrifice their bodies, time and relationships in an effort to accomplish a goal one can win.

With the excitement that we experience for the big game, it also presents the dreaded sense of looming emptiness as another football season soon will come to an end.

But, so is life … where change is necessary. So we transition to the hardwood, where in mere weeks we’ll experience the frantic sights and sounds of “March Madness and the NCAA Final Four, followed shortly after by the NBA Playoffs.

The official passing of the torch in sports seasons becomes complete this weekend, when basketball’s current masters of the game flock to Toronto to showcase their skills in the 2016 NBA All-Star Game.

Name your favorite basketball star and he’ll be there, whether the likes of LeBron James, Stephen Curry or Kevin Durant whet your taste buds, or those who thrive without similar fanfare such as Kawhi Leonard, Kyle Lowry and Demar DeRozan.

According to TiqIQ, the average price for a ticket to this year’s NBA All-Star Game is nearly $3,000 on the secondary market, with the cheapest available ticket to view the night’s festivities listed at $1,045.

It’s not just the weekend’s main course that will stretch one’s wallet, though.

▪ Tickets to merely get a seat at the NBA All-Star Celebrity Game cost $168, more than doubling the price of last year’s event which cost $84.

▪ The cheapest seats for All-Star Saturday Night – which features the 3-point contest, skills challenge and slam dunk contest – is $715.

▪ If the others are a tad too pricey, maybe the Rising Stars Challenge on Friday night will do, the cheapest ticket listed at $109.

Maybe it is the impact of a weakened Canadian dollar – also called the loonie – having declined significantly against the U.S. dollar over the course of the past year, now valued at 72 cents. Then again, the opportunity to watch one of the all-time greats take his final bow on the game’s main stage is worth the money.

Unless one has been under a rock the past several month, Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant has announced this NBA season will be his last.

There isn’t much Bryant hasn’t done in his career, ranging from scoring 81 points in a single game, five NBA titles, an MVP award and possible becoming one of the most hated players on the planet – whether it be for his silky smooth shot with the ability to quiet crowds, or his snarky character that has often been described as pompous and insulting.

Nevertheless, with the end nearing with every passing day, the crowds that once booed and bristled at his mere presence in the Lakers’ starting lineup are giving him a farewell fit for a king.

Being an ’80s baby, my bias toward Michael Jordan being the greatest player to lace ‘em up is quite strong, and further amplified by his leading my favorite team – the Chicago Bulls – to six NBA titles.

With that said, no one filled the void after Jordan’s (second) retirement like “The Black Mamba,” giving the game its next big star and bridging the gap to the current crop including James, Curry and a host of others.

Love him or hate him, what Bryant has offered to the game of basketball is undeniable. Sunday night we’ll receive a final opportunity to witness an all-time great in his element, doing what he does best.

Of note

In case you haven’t heard, the Coastal Carolina men’s basketball team is in the midst of quite a winning streak. After losing to a pair of the Big South’s cellar dwellers last month, the Chanticleers have won six straight and now find themselves in the league’s second spot with only a handful of games remaining.

This week, Coastal Carolina hosts High Point and Gardner-Webb, before resting up for a pivotal conference clash with rival Winthrop. Obviously, every game is important these days as teams jockey for position ahead of the Big South Tournament at the end of this month.

On another note, the annual pilgrimage by NASCAR drivers and their devoted fans commences this week, with Speedweeks at Daytona running from Feb. 13-21. Over the course of the eight-day stretch, teams will test their cars, qualify and ultimately compete in stock car racing’s biggest event – the Daytona 500. Obviously, all eyes will be on reigning NASCAR champion Kyle Busch as well as last year’s Daytona 500 winner Joey Logano. But is this (finally) the year that a Daytona 500 win propels Dale Earnhardt Jr. to the top of his profession? Can Jimmie Johnson finally break into the hallowed company of “The King” Richard Petty and “The Intimidator” Dale Earnhardt with seven NASCAR championships? Or will we see a brand new champion earn elite status?

Only time will tell.

This story was originally published February 8, 2016 at 1:00 AM with the headline "On your mark: Time for football to pass the torch to basketball."