We take pleasure in answering thus prominently the communication below, expressing at the same time our great gratification that its faithful author is numbered among the friends of Pounding The Rock:
Dear Editor-
I am 80 years old. Some of my non-Spurs friends say there is no Manu Claus. JRW says, "If you see it on PtR, it's so." Please tell me the truth, is there a Manu Claus?
Sgt in Manu's Army
SiMA, your non-Spurs friends are wrong. They have been affected by the skepticism of an unexceptional sports age. The experts do not believe except what they see. They think that nothing can be which is not comprehensible by the little minds on ESPN. All minds, SiMA, whether they be Nuggets or Mavericks, are little. In this great universe of ours, the average NBA fan is a mere insect, an ant, in his intellect as compared with the boundless sports world about him, as measured by the intelligence capable of grasping the whole of truth and knowledge that is the Spurs.
Yes, SiMA, there is a Manu Claus. He exists as certainly as steals and blocks and behind-the-back passes exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas! how dreary would be the world if there were no Manu Claus! It would be as dreary as if there were no Spurs fans. There would be no European 2-step, no step back 3-pointers or amazine ball saves to make tolerable this NBA. We would have no enjoyment, even in banners and trophies. The eternal hope with which Spurs fans fill the basketball world would be extinguished.
Not believe in Manu Claus! You might as well not believe in championships. You might get Mark Cuban to hire large men to plug the lane on Christmas eve to catch Manu Claus, but even if these men did not catch Manu Claus coming down the paint, what would that prove? No defense sees Manu Claus, but that is no sign that there is no Manu Claus. The most real things in the world are those that neither David Stern nor Joey Crawford can see. Did you ever see Manu dancing on the lawn with Pop? Of course not, but that's no proof that he is not there. Nobody can conceive or imagine all the basketball wonders there are unseen and unseeable in the world.
You try to analyze the Manu Claus' game and see what makes the man tick inside, but there is a veil covering the Argentine's game, which not even the united strength of all the Lakers and Celtics fans could tear apart. Only faith, hope, love, and left-handed dunks can push aside that curtain and view and picture the heavenly beauty and glory beyond. Is it all real? Ah, SiMA, in all the sports world, there is nothing else more real and abiding.
No Manu Claus! Thank God, he lives and lives forever. Ten years from now, SiMA, nay 10 times 10 years from now, Manu Ginobili will continue to make glad the heart of all Spurs fans.
For the original text and background story to the famous "Yes, Virginia, There is a Santa Claus" editorial, click here.