Gästebuch » been increasing acceptance in the majors as athletes

Last week, former NBA superstar Shaquille ONeal was?inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.While speaking with the media, ONeal was asked by CSN Philly about the 2016 rookie class and if any players stood out as future stars.I dont know all of them, but I know my guys going to be pretty good, Ben Simmons, ONeal told CSN Philly, referring to the?Philadelphia 76ers rookie who was picked No. 1 overall.ONeal said hes familiar with Simmons game because he attended LSU, ONeals alma mater. ONeal compared Simmons unique skill set and potential on-court impact to that of arguably the best player in the world: Cleveland Cavaliers superstar LeBron James.Hes a LeBron-type player, ONeal said Simmons, a 20-year-old forward. What I mean by that, LeBron does a nice job of making everybody else around him better -- passing the ball, doing the small things -- and Ben is that type of player.Despite impressive averages of 19.2 points, 11.8 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game -- numbers not too far off of ONeals collegiate production of 21.6 points, 13.5 rebounds and 1.7 assists over three seasons at LSU -- Simmons was criticized because LSU failed to meet preseason expectations and missed the NCAA tournament.ONeal said he views Simmons freshman season differently, though.He took a lot of flack (sic), especially at LSU with not really taking over games, ONeal said. But hes young. Hell get to that.When it comes to other aspects of the game, hes very, very intelligent. He plays the game very well. Dean Wade Jersey . Emery skated the length of the ice and fought an unwilling Holtby during the third period of the Flyers 7-0 loss Friday night in Philadelphia. 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Irving scored 23 points, Tristan Thompson had 20 points and 10 rebounds and the Cavaliers beat the Denver Nuggets 117-109 on Friday night. It isnt every 5-year-old who asks for Henry Grays famous anatomy textbook as a Christmas gift. But for one who did, that gift was the first step in launching an impressive career in sports medicine that now involves caring for two professional teams.Dr. Robin West, orthopedic surgeon and chairman of Inova Sports Medicine in Fairfax, Virginia, followed her childhood interest in sketches of the knee all the way to her current position as lead team physician for the Washington Nationals and director of sports medicine and head team physician for the Washington Redskins. She is the first woman to hold these positions in the National Football League and Major League Baseball. And while there are a handful of women who serve as team physicians in each league (eight, including West, in the two leagues combined), Wests leadership role is unique.A few minutes in conversation with Wests mentors, colleagues, employers or, perhaps most importantly, patients quickly reveals just how well respected and universally trusted she is.Dr. James Bradley, head team physician for the Pittsburgh Steelers, mentored West during her sports medicine fellowship and knew right away she had the intangibles to be successful in caring for elite athletes. He refers to the collection of those intangibles as the sports medicine gene.Some people have it and some people dont, says Bradley. And you can tell right away with doctors.He describes an example of this as the ability to react calmly in a crisis situation -- something team physicians face when they rush onto the field to tend to an injured athlete. When a crisis hits, they slow down. They calm down and they start thinking.Bradley believes Wests combination of technical skills as a surgeon, combined with her consistently calm, reassuring manner -- no matter what the circumstances -- is what makes her unique.These qualities led to Bradleys hiring West to work alongside him with the Steelers, a position she held for 11 years. During that time, the athletes came to trust her implicitly. According to Hall of Famer Jerome Bettis, who overlapped with West during the running backs tenure with the Steelers, She can kind of smile in a way that is calming -- something he says is critical when an anxious injured athlete looks to the team doctor to determine just how serious the situation could be.The smile Bettis refers to is one of Wests hallmarks, which belies a steely confidence and a competitive edge honed while West was a swimmer in high school, then at Johns Hopkins. Scheduling conflicts forced her to practice with the boys swim and water polo teams, ensuring she would always feel comfortable even in the predominantly male world of orthopedic surgery. She not only survived the path to a career in sports medicine -- she thrived.In the world of professional sports, where injuries can threaten an athletes career longevity, word of a top orthopedic surgeon travels fast. Broncos tackle Russell Okung entered free agency earlier this year, fresh off a shoulder injury that required surgery. Okung knew any chance for him to land a starting spot with another team was ddependent on the health of his shoulder.dddddddddddd He chose West to operate. Why? I started looking around, Okung said, and her name just kept coming up. People spoke very highly of her and what she did.He noted that West was spot on when setting expectations about his recovery. As Okung began to visit with interested teams, he found out just how well West was known in NFL circles. Some teams I would visit, they didnt even think they needed to do my medical evaluation knowing that she did my surgery.Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo and Redskins president Bruce Allen might be involved in different sports, but they are in agreement about the strength of Wests qualifications, citing her expertise as the reason she was deemed the best person for the job. They each say West has fit in well in their organizations and that the athletes have responded extremely favorably to her presence. For those who would suggest athletes might not feel comfortable sharing their medical concerns with a woman, West thinks the opposite could be true.I actually find that a lot of the players seek me out, West said. I think a lot of them, at least in football, have been raised by their mothers and grandmothers ... so they see them in these authoritative roles or these roles of nurturing.Still, the number of female team physicians in professional sports remains small (again, just eight in a group of nearly 300 team physicians in the NFL and MLB alone) and several challenges remain, including things as simple as access to the necessary facilities.Dr. Kathy Weber, president of the MLB Team Physicians Association and a team physician for the Chicago White Sox, recalls encountering some barriers -- literal ones -- when the White Sox were making their World Series run in 2005. As she tried to enter the training room, shouts of, You cant go in there were repeatedly directed her way. Weber noted there has been increasing acceptance in the majors as athletes become more familiar with the presence of female physicians, but at the end of the day, its the skill set that is most important, and not just those of the technical variety. Weber said she believes intangibles such as flexibility, work ethic and good communication skills are paramount to success.West must be doing something right because she seems to be enjoying her roles, especially now that both seasons are in full swing. When asked whether she sees herself as a role model for little girls, West is quick to say she hopes her example shows what is possible for all young minds.I hope boys can realize that girls can do this, and girls can realize that they can do anything they want to do.Bettis reinforces the notion that the team physician role should be open to whomever is the best fit, regardless of gender.The role is exactly that. Its a role, Bettis said. It doesnt have a male or female face attached to it. It has qualifications... and [Dr. West] checks all the boxes. If I was running an organization, shed be my pick. ' ' '