What's giving you a rash this week?

The out-of-control arrogance in professional sports today? The latest in labor? The price of a lousy stadium hotdog?

An overpaid player? An underhanded agent? An owner who would sell the carpet from underneath his own mother's feet for the right amount of PSLs and luxury boxes?

Where can you get off your chest something boiling inside your belly?

Right here. Right now. Buckshots, a weekly dish-it-out-and-duck feature, is designed to give you, the subscriber, a chance to take your best shot at Ray Buck, national columnist for SportsLine USA.

Agree or disagree, let 'er rip. Sign your name -- if you dare -- and tell us a little about yourself: age, city, state, occupation/student. Just remember, Buck has the last word.

E-mail your comments to: buckshots@sportsline.com

Here's a slam dunk: Hook shot an art form

E-mails over cocktails, no slammers please:

First Shot

"The Anthony Bowie piece you wrote inspired me, although not because of Bowie's (contrived triple-double), which is just another example of the 'I'm the one that matters' attitude that is everywhere today, i.e., Barkley, Rodman, Belle, etc., but rather the (uncontested) slam dunk at the end of the game.

"I saw an NBA player recently forced out from the basket and denied his intended shot, look back and sink a beautiful hook shot. To me, that is an art; the slam dunk isn't.

"Some people are impressed by the guy who shatters the glass. But then, I prefer Anthony Hopkins to Arnold Schwarzenegger."

BUCKSHOT: Actually, I prefer Sandra Bullock.

Second Shot

BUCKSHOT: Gosh, Danny, maybe you can correctly spell "two to 20 for felony possession." Because right now, when it comes to the 'Boys, jealousy is not the emotion I experience.

Third Shot

"Come on! Total chance!"

BUCKSHOT: Now let's see: Tim Worley, Barry Foster, Bam Morris ... purely chance? Like your team getting past Indianapolis in the AFC Championship Game and into the Super Bowl?"

Fourth Shot

"(Recently fired Knicks coach) Don Nelson didn't baby Starks, which was good, but he grated on him and didn't offer any solution except to bench him, which was bad. Pat Riley didn't really baby him. He simply explained to Starks that his tirades didn't help the team and that Starks was an integral part of New York's chances to win.

"There are different type of motivators. While Riley is among the Kings of Whining, he analyzes each player and (treats him) accordingly. Look at what Jeff Van Gundy -- a Riley pupil sans the whining -- has done since he took over (for Nelson). The underachieving Knicks are overachievers again ... including John Starks."

BUCKSHOT: Right you are, Don. Your beloved Knicks, despite losing badly to the Shaq-less Magic Wednesday night, have won eight of their past 12 and currently are No. 4 in the Eastern Conference playoff picture. That's motivation. But it's when things go awry that Starks goes haywire.

Fifth Shot

"If we hold Anthony Bowie up to the standards of sportsmanship that we have come to expect from a good Walt Disney movie, then of course you are right and Bowie is a cad. But should we (criticize) a 'speck of dust' for being a little overexuberant in his quest for a (triple-double)?

"How many no-hitters have been secured by pitching around the big hitters? And we all know that boxers build those dazzling records against top-flight opponents.

"If 'Mr. Sportsman' Doug Collins really wanted anything but our pity, he could have simply fouled the man with the ball (no assist, no record). If Collins wants to cry, let him cry. He's simply deflecting attention from his own coaching failures, i.e., why were the Pistons down by 20 and why was Bowie on the verge of a triple-double in the first place? A true man would take his medicine and get even on the court the next time."

BUCKSHOT: Or else instruct his body guard to hire some goon to hide out and when Bowie steps off the court following a routine shootaround, club him on the knee with a hard rubber baton. Oops ... never mind, that's been done already.

Sixth Shot

BUCKSHOT: Root tells the story of "Bankroll Bill" Lawler, a well-known LA bookmaker who died from a massive heart attack at age 61 over the winter. The minister delivering the eulogy said, "Now friends, Bankroll Bill is not dead; he's just sleeping." With that, someone from the rear of the room stood and said, "Hey, Preach, I'll lay you 20 to 1 on that!" May Bankroll Bill rest in peace, Johnny. But while he is gone forever -- you read it here -- the Yanks are back!

Seventh Shot

"Yes, I know pro sports is a business, but sports are a team game. So many stars are only after the money; they forget about the team."

BUCKSHOT: Aptly put, Ripken is a rare bird indeed.

Eighth Shot

"Does anyone know if he's still alive?"

BUCKSHOT: According to the Dodgers, Wally Moon is still very much alive and residing south of the Mason-Dixon Line. Presumably in a house, although the Dodgers weren't giving out any more information than that.

Copyright © 1996 SportsLine USA, Inc. All rights reserved.