Last week, former Phoenix Suns guard Kevin Johnson announced that he would run for mayor in his hometown of Sacramento, Calif. The three time All-Star point guard, who teamed with Charles Barkley to lead the Suns to the 1993 NBA Finals, is hoping to shake his city out of a deep economic funk. Note to KJ: the Suns Gorilla would make an ideal running mate.
In honor of Johnson, here are 10 other sports personalities who should run for office:
10. The pragmatist | Jerry Sloan: Sloan might be the best coach in sports, but he does not get much recognition for it. All he has done is become the fourth-winningest NBA coach of all time while making the playoffs in 17 of the 20 years he has coached the Jazz. Sloan gets the job done as a coach, and you have to think he would as a politician.
9. The everyday man | Cal Ripken, Jr.: As a guy who showed up to work everyday and never suffered from an inflated ego, Ripken was a baseball superstar that everyone could relate to, both on and off the field, making him a popular fan-favorite.
8. The charismatic candidate | Gilbert Arenas: Aptly nicknamed "The Black President," Arenas embodies all the charisma any politician would ever need. He has even adopted several populist measures, including tossing his game jersey into the stands after every single game he plays and blogging about his life on NBA.com.
7. The power monger | Pat Riley: Riley already has the sleezeball politician look down cold with his greased-back hair and Armani suits. He also forced former Miami Heat coach Stan Van Gundy out of his position so he could take over when the Heat became a championship contender. No wonder he is sometimes called "Coach Slick."
6. The unbeatable incumbents | Roger Federer and Tiger Woods: Not unlike Sen. Robert Byrd (D-W.V.) who has won eight consecutive terms dating to 1958, both Federer and Woods are the undeniable favorites in whichever golf or tennis tournament they enter and almost always find themselves hoisting the hardware at the end of the day.
5. The liar | Roger Clemens: As the Houston hurler digs himself deeper and deeper into steroids scandal, Clemens has repeatedly denied the allegations, including during a Congressional hearing, despite the standing evidence to the contrary. Having mastered the ability to lie, Clemens would fit right into the political scene.
4. The spin doctor | Isiah Thomas: The Knicks coach gets a lot of bad press, but somehow he manages to convince owner James Dolan that his team can contend for a championship. Isiah could probably convince you that the sky was purple if you gave him enough time. Or at least he'd try to, just like he said the Eddy Curry-Zach Randolph tandem would work.
3. The flip-floppers | Nick Saban and Billy Donovan: A politician has to be able to make it look like he can take both sides of an issue so he can appease everybody. Both of these coaches famously reneged on their decisions: Saban left the Miami Dolphins after saying he would not coach Alabama, while Donovan had a contract wrapped up with the Orlando Magic before deciding he wanted to remain at Florida. That's flip-flopping at its finest.
2. The intelligence collector | Bill Belichick: The man behind Spygate would have no trouble gathering data on other countries. And if any spies got caught, he would just claim that he didn't know it was against the rules. Not that anyone would find out about the nefarious dealings unless Eric Mangini became a dictator in Sri Lanka.
1. The sex scandal waiting to happen | Darren McFadden: Speaking of slick, the 42nd President of the United States, Bill Clinton, had his own nickname: "Slick Willie." McFadden will need a moniker of that caliber when he gets to the NFL, as the news surfaced recently that he is facing a paternity test and has two kids on the way, one in July and the other in August. Way to make Bill proud, Darren.
