Blatter reverses course, resigns

ZURICH — The end for Sepp Blatter came suddenly, just days after he had seemingly solidified his hold on FIFA.

The 79-year-old leader of the world’s most popular sport defied global animosity last week to win four more years in office. But his re-election only increased the pressure from colleagues, sponsors, athletes and fans for Blatter to step down as FIFA’s president.

At a hastily arranged news conference on Tuesday, Blatter announced he would leave office within months and called for a fresh election to appoint a successor.

“I cherish FIFA more than anything, and I want to do only what is best for FIFA and for

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“Duh.”

The system is simple without being simplistic. It tests your knowledge of the players and their merits. When done with cold-hearted objectivity — which is difficult to do — it is surprisingly predictive, if not fail-safe. When done with fansided subjectivity, it sparks debates, which is why we have sports.

It is terrific fun to conduct the exercise within the friendly confines of your favorite sarsaparilla establishment, as I did recently. You will see knowledgeable basketball people furrowing their brows, rubbing their temples and laboring over whether to check Timofey Mozgov or Andrew Bogut. Is that matchup a wash? You will see Cavaliers fans convince themselves that Kyrie Irving is better than Steph Curry.

Which brings us to the buried lead: The Cleveland Cavaliers and the Golden State Warriors are set to square off in the NBA Finals. The winner gets to hug and cry over the Lawrence F. O’Brien Trophy. Game 1 of the best-of-seven series is Thursday in Oakland, Calif. A week of wondering about Irving’s knee and Klay Thompson’s cranium is about to end.

Get out your notebooks. Forget about who is starting. Line up the players who are going to get the minutes. The top of the Cavs’ roster matches up well.

At shooting guard, I like J.R. Smith’s all-around game, his ability to generate his own offense, shoot the three, defend and rebound. I like him on Thompson, who is more reliant on his teammates to create space for him. Admittedly, this is a tough call.

I give Mozgov a similar edge over Bogut at center. Bogut is a smart player and a gifted passer for a big man, but Mozgov has youth, energy, rim protection and mid-range shooting on his side.

LeBron James gets two checks at small forward. Period.

Curry gets one check over Irving, even if Irving is 100 percent.

The power-forward position might be the most interesting matchup. Tristan Thompson is turning into a force. He does more dirty work than Sepp Blatter. But I love Draymond Green. Love him. Check.

Then, there are the respective benches. The Warriors have a big edge, worth maybe three checks. With Andre Iguodala, Shawn Livingston and Leandro Barbosa on the outside and Festus Ezeli and maybe Marreese Speights on the inside, the Warriors have depth that cannot be matched by Iman Shumpert, Matthew Dellavedova, James Jones, Kendrick Perkins, et al.

The coaches — David Blatt and Steve Kerr — wash out. That leaves five checks on the Warriors’ side and four checks on the Cavs’ side.

Remember, this is just a tool.

The Warriors’ bench is a huge problem for the Cavs, especially if Irving can’t play at 80 percent. The Cavs still have a lot going for them, namely, their superior defense and an offense that — unlike the Warriors’ — does not rely on jump shooters.

If Irving stays upright and the Warriors have to guard him, too, the Cavs have a solid shot at an upset. Their chances might get a fillip in another category, one beyond the matchups, which is labeled “intangibles.” It is the gray area where the potential MVPs operate.

Michael Arace is a sports reporter for The Dispatch.