5 Reasons To Love Sasha Vujacic

For those of you who didn't tune into last nights Game 3 of the NBA Finals, let me provide you with a quick recap: Kobe dominated (36 points), Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce didn't come close to dominating (a combined 8-35 from the field), and the Lakers won 87-81. But really, Sasha Vujacic was the savior for the Lakers. Whenever it seemed as if the Celtics were ready to take control of the game, which was a see-saw battle throughout, Vujacic would hit a jumper to bring the Lakers right back into it. At the end of the night, Vujacic had scored 20 points in limited minutes, including a huge 3-pointer late in the 4th quarter to give the Lakers a decisive, 5-point lead. 

In reality, there aren't too many people outside of Los Angeles who like Sasha Vujacic. He is known to be a little feisty and rough out on the court, and some of his celebration antics have made him Public Enemy #1 in opposing teams' gyms. I happen to disagree with those who hate on Vujacic, and I am going to give you 5 reasons to love the Lakers' passionate shooting-guard.

1. His Name: There are some people who have names that really have a ring to them, names that are really appealing to the ear, names like Sylvester Stallone, Maria Sharapova, Marco Belinelli, and Soulja Boy. OK, maybe not Soulja Boy. But still, there are some names that just sound right, and Sasha Vujacic is one of them (his last name is pronounced vu-ya-chich). Just say it out loud a couple of times. It sounds so right; so simple, yet complex at the same time. That's why the commentators who cover basketball games can't get enough of Vujacic. Whenever he enters the game or makes a shot, the announcers get seemingly more and more exicted: "Here comes Vujacic off the bench, he's checking in at the scorers table. Pass to Vujacic, Vujacic for three! And he drills it! Sasha Vujacic with a 3-pointer to give the Lakers a six point lead!" I guarantee you that announcers at Lakers basketball games average at least 2.06 Vujacic references per Lakers possession, regardless of whether he is on the court or not.

2. His Nickname: Every good athlete has a good nickname to follow. But the thing that makes the nickname most effective is that it somehow pertains to the athlete itself. I mean, no one calls Kobe Bryant by his favorite nickname "Black Mamba", because it has absolutely nothing to do with Kobe Bryant himself (just don't tell him I said that). Really good players have quality nicknames, and this can certainly be said of Sasha Vujacic's nickname "The Machine". Why do people call Vujacic "The Machine"? Because he is a machine, a three-point shooting machine. This dude can't even hold on the ball for more than two seconds before launching a deep ball and he camps out at the three point line, surviving off of Kobe's dishes like he's Bear Grylls. Don't believe me, listen to Sasha tell it himself:

Tell 'em Sasha!

3. His Hairdo: Hair can be a source of an intimidation. Citations? Ben Wallace, Spike Lee, and Kimbo Slice. The same is true for Sasha Vujacic, who you now know as "The Machine". Why is his hair so intimidating? He's got that Italian soccer player/mob gangster/almost a mullet/needs a hair-net thing going. He's got a 'do that is similar to what Steve Nash had during his two-year MVP reign. But what was Steve Nash's mistake? He cut his hair. This year, Steve Nash with short hair = no MVP award. Sasha Vujacic with Steve Nash's old hair = Finals MVP award? I think so. And if Sasha were to sport some corn-rows a la Ben Wallace? It would be the ultimate intimidation factor.

4. He Has the Ability to Be a Champion: The mark of a great professional is the ability to keep emotions out of the game completely, or feed off of emotions to the point where they are unstoppable. However, the mark of a true champion is the ability to block out emotions in pressure-packed situations and feed off of emotions when necessary. Sasha Vujacic has the ability to do just that. The majority of the time that Sasha spends on the court is strictly business, as he steps into his role as "The Machine" and shoots the lights out of the gym. However, when the time comes to celebrate, Sasha lets his emotions get the best of him and puts on a show for his fans. Case Study: the Lakers take a 3-1 series lead against the Spurs in the Western Conference Finals, heading into a Game 5 in Los Angeles. In the 4th Quarter of Game 5, with the Lakers winning by 5 points and 10 seconds left on the clock, the Spurs decide not to foul and let the Lakers run the clock out. Kobe Bryant passes the ball up to Vujacic, who is wide open at the 3-point line as the clock ticks down. Vujacic launches a three at the buzzer and it drops, giving the Lakers a 100-92 win and pissing off a whole bunch of people. He made the Spurs angry (for obvious reasons), he made gentlemen across the world angry (making the buzzer-beating three, they claim, is equivalent to punching a beaten man in the groin at the end of a boxing match), and he made betters across the world very, very angry (by swinging the game across the point spread, which was 7.5 points, and losing potential winners over $100 million in bets). However, he made a whole bunch of people in the Staples Center very happy, with free tacos. You see, for every game that the Lakers score 100 or more points and hold the opponent to less than 100 points, all of the fans who attended the game receive free tacos. Thus, this was not simply "The Machine" being "The Machine", this was Sasha's attempt to reach out to his loving fans and provide them with some free tacos. What a classy gesture.

5. Seriously, the Man Loves the Game: In the end, the one thing that you absolutely cannot take away from Sasha Vujacic is that he loves the game. He goes out and plays every minute that he is out on the court as passionately and respectfully as he can, providing his fans and even his foes with a performance to remember each time. He has the appeal of a man who has gone from rags-to-riches in pro basketball, but no one really focuses on that. The only things Sasha cares about are playing with enthusiasm and winning championships, two goals that will propel him to a starting spot in the Lakers lineup and a happy, successful career.

That's all for the Sasha Vujacic lovefest, stay tuned for Game 4 of the NBA Finals tomorrow at 5:00 pm PT and more coverage from me on Friday. Also, stay tuned for some coverage on golf's U.S. Open, which also starts tomorrow. Other than that, I hope everyone is enjoying his/her summer!