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In ESPN The Magazine, Howard Bryant writes that while Jason Collins may have ushered in the Open Era of sports, the language used by athletes is still offensively behind the times.

What happens over the next months and years will say more about American society and its boundaries of acceptance than it ever could about Jason Collins or Kirk Walker or Kevin McClatchy or Martina Navratilova.

In ESPN The Magazine, Howard Bryant writes that the 60-day slog of the NBA playoffs needs a remodel, and the perfect example comes from English soccer.

The NCAA and its tournament fight the ebb of talent by marketing parity, broadcasting that the beauty of the tournament is that upsets are just 40 minutes away.

In a time of high unemployment and low job creation, oddly, there still seemed to be money for sports. A closer look reveals a largely stagnant industry -- except for skyrocketing media rights to broadcast sports.

The games today are different. The feel is different. Because of scandals, concussions, PEDs and other strains, if sport has not reached its tipping point, it is in the throes of serious transition.

In ESPN The Magazine's Analytics Issue, Howard Bryant writes that LeBron James and the Heat are clearly the tops of the NBA and, although they aren't destroying opponents, parity in the league is a myth.

For five years we had a renewed Celtics-Lakers rivalry. Now both have put their future hopes in players who don't score first. It won't be an easy transition for either, but with Rajon Rondo's injury, it will be tougher for the Celtics.

Professional sports has reached its tipping point. The players, already too big, already too fast, already too strong, are now engaged in a game of attrition not against the other team, but against the regular season.

To be an NBA coach is to be stepped on, cursed at, stared down -- that is, when you're not being flat-out ignored. In ESPN The Magazine, Howard Bryant writes about the difficulty NBA coaches have in demanding accountability from their players.

As the oases of tradition become rarer, an appreciation increases for what it is familiar and compelling about the game. Tom Izzo and Michigan State bring stability to a shifting college landscape.

In an era when many rival players would rather be friends than foes, Kevin Garnett's competitive fire still runs hot - and Ray Allen is now feeling the burn, writes Howard Bryant in ESPN The Magazine.

In ESPN The Magazine, Howard Bryant writes about how lockouts have become as routine as the changing of the season. If only fans realized they have the power to put a stop to it.

The question of how Kobe Bryant will adjust to playing with the new, elite talent around him has led a healthy percentage of Lakers-related conversations since the team traded first for Steve Nash, then Dwight Howard. Bryant is, to say the least, a d...

In ESPN The Magazine, Howard Bryant makes a case against NBA and NFL owners who say a salary cap is necessary for parity, using the example of MLB's exciting pennant races.

Watching USA basketball is less about the Americans against the world, or even the players competing against themselves or their Dream Team predecessors, but instead the USA against the dollar.