Cashed Out Charles - Sports Headlines?

If you haven't heard, Charles Barkley is calling it quits when it comes to gambling. According to reports, Barkley failed to pay the Wynn casino on four $100,000 markers, that he took out on a loan in October of last year.

Barkley is no stranger to gambling as most of us know, but the guy who "hates the whole city of golden state", says he's going to put the dice aside for at least a year or two.

Is it just me, or are more things happening to athletes that aren't sports related these days? I can think of tons of examples. You've got OJ Mayo accepting thousands of dollars in high school and in college to keep him happy while busting 3-pointers. Jason Taylor, the one-time defensive player of the year for the Miami Dolphins, is more concerned with his acting career and a win on 'Dancing with the Stars' than his future in the NFL and the Dolphins organization.Bonds get his 4 counts broken down into 14 separate counts of perjury and obstruction of justice in the BALCO case. I'll reference the book that I'm reading once again, "Game of Shadows" and once you read it you will both hate Barry Bonds and appreciate the research these reporters did. Once the fastest woman in the world, Marion Jones, is in jail for six-months and boyfriend/runner Tim Montgomery will be joining her for fraud.

Don't even get me started on Clemens. The guy is going to jail.

Tons of NFL players not reporting to camps, and holding out on contract deals. The list goes on and on. The idea of having professional athletes as heroes for kids is quickly diminishing. As sports fans we all want raw, solid playing on the field, coupled with a life off the field that is respectable for all those millions they are making.

Give me a guy like Jon Lester. The man recovers from cancer, and pitches a no-hitter a year and a half later. These are the types of stories that guys like me want to write about. There is no end to these tales, and I'm sure the future holds just as much terrible stories about these athletes as we have been seeing recently. Just plain ridiculous.