Michael Jordan probably meant well. He's never exactly been the type to speak ill of other athletes, or anyone. So when he chatted about Tiger Woods to the media--and described his friend using the analogy of a "wounded dog"--the basketball star probably didn't mean to remove Woods' 'top dog' status but the animal better lick his wounds because it's time to heal.
In fact they're friends. Hopefully that remains the case, as the "wounded dog" remark by the basketball legend makes its rounds. Good thing Jordan didn't go into any possible "licking his wounds" scenario.
Michael Jordan's a golfing buddy to the former Number #1 golf player. And, as a friend, claims Tiger has finally acknowledged his issues (whatever those may be, but apparently the number isn't limited to one) -- and the golf pro, according to Jordan, is preparing to hit hard after Woods returns from his most recent knee injury and physical problems that have crushed chances for play in either the US or British Open championships.
Apparently Michael Jordan is sure his friend is just "waiting to explode again."
Well, that might be a little bit of an overestimate. Any signs of a spark might reignite some hope in fans, though -- and would be a good start.
Maybe it's the analogy which followed that Michael Jordan's might have considered skipping altogether: "A wounded dog has a tough time trying to keep winning battles. And because the battle was a lot tougher than I thought even Tiger realized awhile ago, he needs to heal before he gets back into these battles again."
Unfortunately the "wounded dog" analogy may be a lot more accurate than the "waiting to explode" idea. Tiger Woods seems to be indicating that 'wait' could be a very long time. It's been two years since the prior golf star has done much of anything. Woods' most recent golf tournament win was at the JBWere Masters at Melbourne's Kingston Heath. The timeframe for that last win, in November 2009, means Woods is now heading toward a two-year run of nada. And it doesn't seem to be so coincidental that the last win occurred right before the big fall. Just days the tournament win in Australia, that nasty, little sex scandal hit.
Michael Jordan, who apparently speaks more on the subject of Tiger Woods than the golf star himself ever has, says the golfer has been giving himself time to heal. And that's a great thought. But most people have what's called a career -- and don't typically take more than a year and a half off work. There has been a lot that's gone on in the couple of years -- like a sex scandal followed by a humiliating divorce (after some humiliation Woods himself provided) and leg or knee problems that seem to have stripped Woods of displaying talent.
For the first time since 1997, the golf pro fell out of the top 20 in world rankings. He apparently wanted to be the 'bad boy'. It's a sad fall to "wounded dog" -- but it seems to be a highly accurate image. And that's kind of a problem. It's hard to be a star when fans, and the world, has visions of a dying animal.
Michael Jordan says: "He [Tiger Woods] was very fragile over the last year, he was dealing with a lot of different things, mentally as well as physically." Well, that part's not exactly a secret. "But I think he's come to the conclusion that he needs to heal himself before he can actually be aggressive again," says Jordan.
Tiger Woods better get cracking on that aforementioned healing before that "wounded dog" image sticks. Unfortunately, the image of an animal licking its wounds tends to be an accurate one. If Jordan was going to pick an animal other than a tiger, perhaps he should've considered the one that roars.