Issue Date: June 23, 2002

One writer on which game owns America's heart Win signed stuff!

Superstars Randy Johnson and Vince Carter debate baseball vs. basketball

At our photo shoots, Johnson and Carter signed memorabilia, including pairs of their shoes (sizes 13 and 16, respectively!). They're up for grabs. Simply go to win free stuff.

Randy Johnson, the Arizona Diamondbacks ace also known as "the Big Unit" because of his towering 6-foot-10 frame, almost chose to play pro basketball instead of baseball. Although the New York Yankees (and every other opposing team) probably wish the four-time Cy Young Award winner had picked hoops, Johnson, 38, said he stuck with his childhood favorite in part because it's "America's sport."

USA WEEKEND: Is baseball still America's pastime?

JOHNSON: Baseball is still the greatest sport around. [It's] the sport families go and watch on the weekend, a father and son or mother and daughter. It's where families congregate. There's a lot more history in baseball; it just goes back further [than other sports].

USA WEEKEND: I know you're tall and you toyed with the idea of playing basketball.

JOHNSON: I was 7 years old when I started, like every other kid on the block, playing baseball. I wanted to play in little league. I played every year and developed in it. Then I just progressively got better through high school and college. I didn't [play organized basketball] until my freshman or sophomore year in high school. But I was a lot taller than the others, so it was easy to score and rebound. I worked at it, and I made the all-star teams and was the leading scorer by the time I was a senior. Then it was a matter of, Was I going to be drafted as a baseball or basketball player? More schools were interested in me as a baseball player, and I felt I would excel in that, so that's the avenue I went.

USA WEEKEND: Do you still like to watch or play basketball? Ever wish you'd picked basketball?

JOHNSON: I get tickets to Phoenix Suns games. I enjoy watching it. But without a doubt, I made the right choice. I can't imagine doing the things basketball players do now, getting up and down the court as fast as they do. And I couldn't jump. If I had the same determination in basketball, I might have excelled.

USA WEEKEND: Do you ever wish you were playing baseball in a different era?

JOHNSON: I would've loved to play in the '60s and '70s. Baseball was less business-oriented, less corporate back then. You went out and played the game. Then, in '94 [the year of the players' strike], we lost some fans. I think that's when basketball and football kind of stepped in front of baseball. But baseball is back now.

USA WEEKEND: Some say the fans are losing interest, because the game is more boring than a basketball game, where each team is constantly scoring.

JOHNSON: We're starting to play in a new era, where offensive-oriented guys like Sammy Sosa and Mark McGwire control the game more. It's not about pitching anymore; it's about scoring as many runs as you can.

USA WEEKEND: OK, you meet a man at the end of the world, and he asks you three questions, which you have to answer spontaneously and immediately. The first is, What is baseball?

JOHNSON: Baseball is a game with two opposing sides, 25 players on each side. Nine players are on the field at a time. There's a person standing 60 feet, 6 inches away from you. He's throwing a ball you're trying to hit, and you either get four balls or three strikes. You try to make contact with the ball; if you hit it, you advance to the bases. There are three outs in an inning, and nine innings.

USA WEEKEND: Apart from that, what is baseball?

JOHNSON: It's a very competitive game.

USA WEEKEND: Apart from that, what is baseball?

JOHNSON: Apart from that, baseball is, without a doubt, entertainment. ... How much time does this guy have?

Vince Carter, one of the NBA's premier attractions, is very much like the persona he portrays in TV spots for Nike and Gatorade that air during timeouts of his games for the Toronto Raptors: cool and charismatic. But on the court, Carter, 25, is an improvisational high-wire act. During the 2000 Dunk Contest, he drove to the basket and leapt into the air for an anti-gravity acrobatic windmill slam that left fans breathless. (He won, of course.) Then, against France in the 2000 Olympics, he dunked the ball while jumping over the head of a stupefied 7-foot-2 opponent. The 6-foot-6 Carter believes basketball has replaced baseball as the summer game. "We run things in North America," he says.

USA WEEKEND: Some say basketball is becoming America's most popular sport. Participation has grown by over 8% since 1987, while baseball has declined by more than 24%, according to the Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association. What do you attribute this to?

CARTER: It's a better sport. I can't think of something spectacular you'll see every night in baseball. Every now and then you'll see a great catch, or, if you know the logistics of baseball, you'll watch that one person, like Randy Johnson, for instance -- he had so many strikeouts in a row, or something like that. But you'll see something spectacular every other play in basketball, and that's what people like. They want to sit on the edge of their seat and see something spectacular.

USA WEEKEND: Could basketball one day be to the 21st century what baseball was to the 20th century?

CARTER: I think so. It's flashy and fast-moving. That's the way of the world right now.

USA WEEKEND: Some of the biggest fans are movie stars. What's it like to be the star that stars pay to see?

CARTER: I love it. You see people like Denzel [Washington] and Samuel L. [Jackson] at the game. Any time they're in town, they try to come see us play, and that's what it's all about. It just shows the effect basketball has on the world. Basketball attracts all types. You have your comedians or superstars, your corporate bigwigs, and then you have people in the 'hood. Even people who can't afford [to see it live] still watch it.

USA WEEKEND: Although it's normal for basketball players to bow out in their mid-30s, baseball players often go well into their 40s. Barry Bonds is 37, and he's still blasting moonshots into the stands.

CARTER: I've heard baseball called an old man's sport because at 40 you're definitely not playing [basket]ball, unless you're John Stockton. Basketball is grueling. It's constant cutting, running, stopping, jumping, landing. All that takes a toll on your body, and once your knees go, you might as well consider your afterlife.

USA WEEKEND: What's your main criticism of baseball?

CARTER: It's a slow sport. You don't have to be in shape to play baseball, unless you steal bases. [Chuckles.]

USA WEEKEND: The NBA gives teams a set amount of money with which to pay their players, which means superstars can't drive their salaries up and up as in baseball. In 2000, Alex Rodriguez became the highest-paid athlete when he signed with the Texas Rangers for $252 million over 10 years. Would you gladly switch sports if you could put up those kinds of numbers?

CARTER: If we could bring home $200 million? Man, please. It would get out of hand. But there's only a selected few in baseball, the Jeters and A-Rods, who actually deserve that kind of money. If you look at basketball, a lot of guys could demand that kind of money.

USA WEEKEND: OK, you meet a man at the end of the world and he asks you three questions, which you have to answer spontaneously and immediately. The first is, What is basketball?

CARTER: Expression, feeling, emotion.

USA WEEKEND: Apart from that, what is basketball?

CARTER: Entertainment.

USA WEEKEND: Apart from that, what is basketball?

CARTER: The love of the game.

Basketball: One writer's take on which sport rules
Win signed stuff