Your Favorie Teams... Why?

[tvko]

Baltimore Ravens, Baltimore Orioles, Washington Wizards, Washington Capitals

Proximity and family

Michigan State Spartans

I lived in East Lansing for 3 years, from age 4 to 6, and so as I picked up sports (especially basketball) I picked up the Spartans.

Texas Longhorns

I was born here, lived there until age 4.

Manchester City

Their colors? I don't really know. I just picked a team.

US Sports

[Western Michigan]

Simple. I'm a true homer. I support the teams closest to me.

Jays and Raptors (about 60 miles away in Toronto)

Bills and Sabres (35 miles from Buffalo)

I also support the German National soccer team, as 2 of my grandparents were born there and 4 have roots there.

It's good to see people support the teams in their area, and it's pretty cool that you support your heritage's soccer team!

[Western Michigan]

My favorite team of all-time is the Dallas Cowboys. I'll make sure I'm able to watch them play at all costs. I've rescheduled dates with my girlfriend (both previous and present) to watch them. Cancelled band practice, I even once tried to miss a wedding when I was little, but my mom wouldn't have it.

They're my favorite team because they're my dad's favorite team. He's always been a huge football fan, but it's nothing to how much I avidly follow the Cowboys, and the NFL. I wasn't like most kids in that, when I was really little, I preferred to watch sports over cartoons. So that's how I ended up a Cowboys fan growing up in a Los Angeles suburb. But, I love this team with a undying passion and I'll always be there watching every single game, supporting them like a nutter for the rest of my life. My love of them has never wavered. My years growing up, the Cowboys I remember are Campo's Cowboys, or the '98 Cowboys who lost to Arizona at home in a playoff game. I've been made fun of for being a Cowboys fan when the sucked and when everyone else was an Eagles, Pats, Colts, Falcons or Steelers fan, but I'll always love them. No matter what.

2. Los Angeles Lakers. My mom grew up in Harbor City/Wilmington/Lomita in the projects, and has always been a Lakers fan. She used own season tickets during the height of the Showtime era. My dad never cared before basketball before my mom, and so he rooted for the Lakers as well. And since I was such a sports-loving kid, I naturally rooted for them. I bleed purple & gold.

3. Oakland Raiders. They're my mom's favorite team. And my 2nd favorite in the NFL. I want them to win every game except when they play the Cowboys...

4. USMNT. Growing up, my two best friends were big soccer fans and loved to play it. Because I hung out with them, I naturally became a fan of soccer because I was surrounded by it so much. Now, I love watching the US Men's team, and was throughly disappointed when we lost to Ghana. (And yes, I was screaming and yelling like crazy when we beat Algeria with Donovans' 90th minute goal.)

5. Newcastle United. Again, because of my friends, we'd play soccer video games. Now, I have my own copy of FIFA, I just took to liking Newcastle. I don't know why. But I'll always play as them, and watch them whenever I get a chance.

6. UCLA Bruins. Always preferred them to USC, and always rooted for them in any sport. I plan to transfer there when I complete my courses at my community college.

Tie for 7: Anaheim Ducks and Los Angeles Angels. I live in the heart of Kings/Dodgers country, but because of the Disney movies when I was little, I'll watch them occasionally, but I'm not that big of a fan of hockey or baseball. I prefer football, basketball and soccer over hockey/baseball.

Oh man you remind me of myself, rescheduling dates and missing events to watch the Cowboys. I remember one time I strung the wires of my headphones through the sleeve of my shirt and listened to a WMU Basketball game on the radio via my really crappy (that I thought was cool at the time) mp3 player during my cousin's wedding.

It's good to see a true Lakers fan, instead of the "they've won lots of championships recently and Kobe is good" kind of fan!

[Kevin W.]

White Sox, Bears, Bulls, Blackhawks, Fire - I was born in the Chicago area.

Padres, Chargers - I've lived in San Diego for most of my life.

Arizona Wildcats - I'm less than two weeks from being an Arizona alum.

[missouri tigers]

As most expect, I have a heavy supply of Missouri teams listed:

- St. Louis Cardinals

- Mizzou Tigers

- St. Louis Rams

- Southeast Missouri State Redhawks

Missouri State Bears (have family connections to both schools, so I'm kind of equal on them)

- Atlanta Braves (grew up watching them on TBS)

-

St. Louis Blues

Wow, Thats exactly what my list of favorite teams would look like, other than the Braves, I even have family members who are currently attending Both SEMO and Missouri state, My 2 cousins are currently at SEMO and my sister is going to Missouri State next year. But I prefer SEMO, and I am heavily considering going there in 2 years.

The only teams I would add to your list, for me anyway is the SLU Billikens and Washington Capitals. Most of my favorite teams are my favorite due to location, other than the capitals, and I've only recently started liking and following them due to there recent success and Players.

[FamousAtticus]

1) New York Yankees: My grandfather grew up in the Bronx, when he was a teen he would attend numerous Yankee games with his friends. His trips to Yankee Stadium included watching Joe DiMmagio, Bill Dickey, Phil Rizzuto and Tommy Henrich to name a few in the early '40's. Naturally when my father was born, my grandfather exposed him to Yankee baseball right out the gate. My dad and grandfather attended nearly 30-40 games a season at Yankee Stadium and Shea (while they renovated the stadium in the 70's) from the time my father was 5 years old in 1956 all the way until my family moved down to Florida in 1983. My dad would tell me stories of watching Yogi, Mantle, Maris, Ford, Jackson and his all-time favorite player Thurmon Munson playing for the Yanks. The best was when my father and grandfather would get together and debate on the best Yankee of all-time. So, of course I grew up a Yankee fan. As a kid I was a huge fan of Mattingly and as I grew older (through a lot of losing seasons) the Yanks finally came around in the mid '90's and I got to experience what "Yankee Baseball" was about. Since about 1997, my father/grandfather and I would make a yealry trip to the Bronx to catch a Yankee game or two, unfortunately it hasn't been the same since my grandfather passed away in 2005. My son was born last year and I will definetely be sharing my love for the Yankees with him when he gets older.

2) Orlando Magic: My family moved to Orlando in 1983, when I was a year old. In 1989 the Orlando Magic started up, I instantly became a fan. My first Magic game was the teams first ever regular season win, against the New York Knicks, a game in which I fell asleep at (I was 7years old). I have been a Magic season ticket holder since 2008 and will continue to be one for as long as I can.

[wildwing64]

Interesting thread. I was considering starting one a bit like this but you beat me to it Though I'm going to mention some of my former favourites too. All of these are in chronological order.

Former: Tottenham Hotspur. No family tradition behind this or anything, in fact my family has never really cared about football/soccer unless England are playing. Basically when I was 5 or 6, I was at school and my class was having a sit in a circle activity thing where we talked a bit about ourselves, or in this case what football teams we supported. I claimed to like Tottenham, mainly to kind of fit in with the discussion but also because the person before me said it and it was the easiest team name for me to remember (even though the majority of them were West Ham and Arsenal fans). After that, I went into a brief phase where I was quite passionate about my Tottenham fandom even though I never caught a game on TV. That led to me losing interest altogether, but at some point during this brief period of fandom my family started pretending to like West Ham in an attempt to make me like that team instead, probably out of fear of me being bullied for liking Tottenham - they even went so far as to claim that my newborn baby brother was a West Ham supporter. But yeah, I basically got bored, lost interest and never got into it again.

1: Anaheim Ducks. After losing interest in English football, I saw this cartoon on TV about superhero hockey playing ducks from outer space. It was the coolest thing ever, and subconsciously made me want to like ice hockey. Years later in early 2003, I picked up NHL Hitz 20-02 for the GameCube and found that the then-Mighty Ducks from that cartoon I saw were a real team. Since they basically introduced me to hockey, I picked them as my NHL team, and now they're my main sports team above all else. Though with them being a whole eight time zones behind me and there being very very minimal NHL coverage here in the UK, I didn't start following them full time until 2005-06 when I started watching highlights via the team's website and occasionally listening to live games that happened to be on at a convenient time, though I did get some UK TV coverage during their 2006-07 Stanley Cup run. After eight years of being an avid fan of this team, I'll finally be seeing my very first live and in-person Ducks game in Stockholm later this year

Former: Romford Raiders. Some time after I started following the Ducks, I learnt of the existence of a local hockey team. Me and a friend started going to Raiders games and it got us more interested in the sport, though it didn't really change the fact that we were NHL fans first and foremost. Eventually, the obnoxious fanbase put us off, and we became fans of another team instead, ironically Romford's main rival.

2: Chelmsford Chieftains. Basically, we went to one of this team's home games, found the general atmosphere to be a lot better than Romford, then went back to Romford's crappy rink for one more game and chose to switch teams. I've been a Chieftains fan far longer than I was a Raiders fan, and the fans at Chelmsford, for the most part, seem to be more knowledgeable about the game. That and the rink's nicer despite being the same age as Romford's. I live roughly in between both team's rinks, though Chelmsford is slightly nearer, and also where my University is based. Essentially, they're my true hometown hockey team, though I'm still a far, far bigger fan of the Ducks.

3: Houston Texans. At the start of my first year at University, I went to the Fresher's Fair with my friend and from here we both joined the University's American Football team, the Phantoms, despite not having any previous experience with this sport. Thought it would only make sense to pick an NFL team to root for, so I went with the Texans because I like their logo. I'm more of a casual fan of this team though, and don't follow them much these days.

4: Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. I had a random urge to get into baseball last summer, also wanted to try out the Sportacular app on my iPhone. Didn't think it would feel right rooting against a team with Anaheim in its name, so I picked the Angels (even though my first major sporting event was an Oakland A's game, and I saw the San Francisco Giants stadium in person). Like with the Texans, I'm a casual fan of the Angels and again don't really follow them much.

[IceCap]

A few more soccer explanations....

English National Football Team- My mom's side of the family has roots across the United Kingdom, so I'm a fan of all the British national teams, the English team is just the most prominent.

Rangers FC- From the Scottish Premier League, the flagship team of Scottish Protestant loyalism. That describes a good chunk of the above mentioned roots.

Tottenham Hotspur F.C.- I figured I had my mom's family down with my SPL selection, so I went with the team with the traditionally notable Jewish following to represent my dad's family on the EPL side of things.

[knnhrvy16]

Utah Jazz - Pretty simple, local team. I've lived in Utah all my life, and if you're a Utahn, the Jazz are a part of your life. The support for the team is so strong, that that's literally how it is. Whatever colors the Jazz are wearing at the time is the color of a Utahn's blood

Real Salt Lake - Another local team, I've been a huge fan ever since they began, and have stayed with them through thick and thin. The first few years were rough as Real struggled a great deal, but the Cup win in '09 was the ultimate reward. Aside from the World Cup, they're pretty much the only soccer I'll watch. On a side note, my father works for Rio Tinto, the company whom RSL's stadium is named after. Every year my dad's work party is held at the stadium, and every other year or so, players come to sign autographs. I've got a ball and a card signed by part of the team that won in all in '09.

Los Angeles Dodgers - My grandfather grew up in Brooklyn, and was a Dodgers super-fan. He attended a few games and told me stories of all of these great Dodgers legends, like Robinson, Reese, Snider, Campanella, Hodges, Erskine, Newcombe, you name 'em. Utah doesn't have an MLB team obviously, so I couldn't help but latch onto the Dodgers like my grandfather once had, thanks to his wonderful stories.

Indianapolis Colts - It started off as Peyton Manning being my favorite player, and the more I watched him, the more I came to love the Colts as a team. I also love thier great history even in the Baltimore days, players like Unitas, Moore, Mackey, Marchetti, Berry...those are legends.

Utah Utes - Thanks to a crazy, pompous, arrogant ex-stepmom (I won't go into detail), I grew a bit of a hatred for BYU (she was an...overly proud alum...), and latched onto Utah years ago. My fanship really took off during the 2004 football season, which culminated in a Fiesta Bowl win. I've been a die-hard fan of Ute athletics ever since.

NHL Western Conference (EXCEPT DETROIT! ) - I know, not a team, but since Utah doesn't currently have an NHL team, I haven't latched on to anyone yet. I've had small times where I considered myself an Avalanche, Coyotes, or Ducks fan, but in the end I decided to just root for the entire conference, except Detroit. I just hate them. So come Stanley Cup time, I always pull for the West, unless Detroit is in the final. Then in that case, I cheer for the East. But if New Jersey (the other team I hate) and Detroit were to ever meet, I just wouldn't watch it at all

[Rockstar Matt]

Oh man you remind me of myself, rescheduling dates and missing events to watch the Cowboys. I remember one time I strung the wires of my headphones through the sleeve of my shirt and listened to a WMU Basketball game on the radio via my really crappy (that I thought was cool at the time) mp3 player during my cousin's wedding.

It's good to see a true Lakers fan, instead of the "they've won lots of championships recently and Kobe is good" kind of fan!

I remember during the '02 Western Conference Finals during Game 4. I was 11, and my mom made me go to my best friend sister's birthday party because I said I'd go about two months prior without realizing this could be during a Lakers game (one of those things they ask wanna go? and you'll answer "okay, why not") Her party was at a movie theater and we watched Sprit. A cartoon movie about horses where the horses don't talk. They just say things like, "NEEIIGHH!" and other horse-y noises. All during Game 4 of the Lakers-Kings series, the game with Horry's greatest 3 point basket ever. About halfway through the movie, my mom, myself, and my best friend couldn't sit and watch anymore so we went outside so my mom could listen on her portable radio. Before Horry's shot, she told us. Laker ball, Kings up 99-97 with however many seconds there were. After my friend and I anxiously looking at her and trying to here and starts screaming and jumping like crazy and like the idiots we were at 11, we stupidly asked, "what happened?!" My mom told us we won, and naturally my friend and I join my mom in celebrating while other people at the mall look at us like we were bonkers. One of my favorite memories.

[FiddySicks]

I always get flak for liking a lot of teams, but I'd like to think I have some pretty valid reasons.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers: when I was WAY little I always liked them because I confused them for the U of Tennessee, and I figured they were so bad because they were a college team playing pro teams I really got into them the first game in their current uni set. They absolutely clobbered the Niners and I was hooked from there on out.

San Francisco Giants: my mom's side of the family are native San Franciscans and are all die hard Giants fans. My grandfather was even a bat boy for the old San Francisco Seals and celebrated the teams move from New York at the parade. After they won the World Series my mother cried for two days she was so happy.

St Louis Cardinals: My dad's side of the family are native St. Lousians Are all die hard Cardinals fans. My dad grew up going to St. Louis Browns games, of all things.

Oakland A's: I worked for the A's through high school and was born in Castro Valley, CA, which is very close to the coliseum. We could see the blimps fly over the park from our yard on game day.

Really though, I'm such a fan of baseball I'll watch anyone not named the Dodgers play any time.

U of Tennessee: a big portion of my dad's family migrated to Tennessee from St. Louis and did all they could to make me a Vols fan from the day I was born.

U of Nevada: I grew up in and currently live in Lake Tahoe, which is only about 40 or 50 miles from Reno. I also went to UNR for a brief period a few years ago.

San Jose Sharks: you can thank ICS and Puckguy for that.

Philadelphia Flyers: my first favorite hockey team and they sport my favorite colors, black and orange.

Basketball: I HATE basketball, specifically the NBA. I've always thought that basketball was just a flat out lame sport and the NBA just makes it worse. If someone pointed a gun at my head and forced me to choose I guess I'd say the Warriors. Or whoever Lebron plays for.

San Jose Earthquakes: local team, it was fun watching them win championships with Landon Donovan before they moved to Houston. I guess I'm still a fan of the Quakes, but haven't seen one of their games in years.

[cameroncrazie07]

New York Yankees/Knicks/Rangers- Because I live in New York and I really grew up seeing the Yankees win. The Knicks and Rangers I just like because of the Garden and how exciting it is to be in there.

Dallas Cowboys- My dad has been a Cowboy fan since the 70's so I was born into it. Plus I hate the Jets and Giants so I'd never even thought about switching even when I was young.

Duke Basketball- Once again my dad has been a Duke fan since the mid 80's so I was born into it. I really became a Duke fan after visiting the campus in 2006. I had been a fan for about 5 years, but this made me crazy about them.

Somewhat Notre Dame football- This one is just a frontrunner pick. My dad like them as well, but I began to love them during the Brady Quinn era. After visiting the Campus a year ago and going to a Notre Dame game vs. USC I really was impressed with them. Plus I know the fight song by heart.

[ninersdd]

Giants, 49ers, Sharks, Kings- All local teams. Gotta admit that when I was 8 or 9, hockey had won me over though, and its easily the coolest sport on earth.

Arizona Wildcats- Well, my grandpa went to the Navy and Michigan State before getting his masters at U of A, and my dad was born in Tucson. Even though I probably won't go there I support them as Tucson's team, because I visit the area once in a while, and its awesome.

[ltjets21]

Jets Mets and Knicks I like because I was raised that way, but for Hockey I like the Islanders because thats the first hockey game I ever went to, my favorite CFB team is Hawaii because when I was little I thought it was cool a team from Hawaii and, it stuck. My favorite college basketball team is St.Johns because they play games in NYC I live nearby and appealed to me watching the Big East Tourney.

[nash61]

Toronto Maple Leafs: Grew up/still live in Hamilton, so when I got into hockey when I was 10, they were the "hometown" team, so I cheered for them and haven't looked back.

Columbus Blue Jackets: My other NHL team. Western Conference, so they don't take away from my Leafs. Became a fan of Rick Nash (hence the screen name), and I love the uniforms, too.

Florida Gators: I had heard about them before, but never really got into college football. One of my friends is a HUGE Gators fan, and she talked about them all the time. Between her, and looking up the background of Tim Tebow and the Burton brothers, I started cheering for them.

Philadelphia Eagles: Not a die-hard, but their cool logo got me interested.

London Knights: Rick Nash, Corey Perry, and I know Dale Hunter's mother-in-law.

Hamilton Red Wings: Started covering them for the college radio station, and got to know the guys.

[GriffinM6]

I'll do it by sport

MLB

Florida Marlins- I was born in Ft.Lauderdale,and my parents grew up in South Florida.So I love the Marlins.

Texas Rangers- I started to like them back in 2009, when I saw their way of play and the talent they had with Kinsler,Young and Hamilton.We were in the car lsitening to radio in the 9th inning of the ALCS last year, and me and my friend were so excitied that the Rangers made it to the World Series.

NFL

Pittsburgh Steelers- My dad's side of the family is from Pennsylvania, so I love all Pittsburgh teams.I was really pissed that they lost the Super Bowl this year, but I'll be a fan for life.

Atlanta Falcons- I live in the Suburbs of Atlanta, so I love the Falcons as my 2nd favorite team.The funny thing is, is that I have more Falcons gear than Steelers stuff, because the Falcons are local.

NBA

Atlanta Hawks-I like the Hawks for the same reason as the Falcons.They are really one of the only teams I like.

NHL

Pittsburgh Penguins-I love all Pittsburgh teams.You can why if you'll look at my reference about the Steelers.

College Football

Miami(FL)-I was born in South Florida, so I love the Canes.I honestly think they'll do good this year,because of their new coach.Coach Golden is fired up and intense unlike Randy Shannon.

Boise State-What can I say?Hate on me if you want, but I fell in love with them after that 07' Fiesta Bowl.

Pitt-Like I said before, look at my reference about the Steelers.

So those are my favorite sports teams.What do you guys think?

[crashcarson15]

I'll go first with my "primary teams" and then go with my famed "secondary teams".

Browns, Cavs, and Indians

They're my hometown teams, even though I live in Indy. I was born in Youngstown, Ohio, which is between CLE and Pittsburgh, which led to my dad being a Cleveland fan and his brother a Pittsburgh fan (they were good in the '70's). I got the Cleveland fandom from my dad, but oddly enough, my family's split down the middle. It's always fun when I can be back in Y-Town for a Browns/Steelers showdown. Well, that is until the second quarter.

Blue Jackets

Probably my favorite team in professional sports (either them or the Tribe), strictly from the sense of following the team from the start that I've had. Begged my dad to take me to a Coyotes/Jackets game in December 2002 on the way back from Youngstown and he gave in. I've been hooked ever since. As a kid, I grew up a huge Jackets fan, posters, pennants, and even a light-pole banner they hung outside the arena in the 2003/4 season all in my room. Marc Denis was my favorite CBJ player growing up, being the starting goalie. I've been a fan of the team essentially from the start, and living only 2 and a half hours away from C-Bus (versus the 5 to CLE), I've been able to attend a couple Jackets games a year. When I say I love this team, I mean it.

Youngstown State

Obviously, being from Y-Town originally (I moved out to Indy when I was 18 months old though), I'll support the local team regardless. But this one's easy, as both of my parents are YSU alums.

Notre Dame

My dad grew up as a Notre Dame fan, being Catholic, and I've picked up the tradition of Notre Dame from him. Go up there a couple of times a year (think my first trip was also in 2002, for a game against Washington State, maybe?), and really love the tradition of the Irish and the vibe the stadium gives off.

Aston Villa

My slight fandom of Villa started when I got FIFA 09 for the Wii and played with them because of a cool crest and colors. But as I learned more about the club (Randy Lerner owning them and the Browns, history of the 1982 European Cup, and the fact they weren't Man Utd, Arsenal, Chelsea, or Liverpool), I became hooked and I'm proud to say I support the Villans, even through this tough time they're going though. UTV!

FC Bayern München, Paris Saint-Germain, Glasgow Rangers

Just casually follow these three clubs. In reality, Bayern and Rangers are there for teams to follow when the UCL comes around, and PSG's fun to play with on FIFA 11.

Blue Bombers

Became a Bombers fan because of a few reasons. The colors and logo IMO are top-notch, but also considering that the Bombers are like my beloved Cleveland teams (long title drought), and for whatever reason I likethe 'Peg, I've become a Bombers fan. Can't wait for July 1.

Nationals

I guess I'll add this. Always liked the Expos a bit, but when they moved to DC, I decided to adopt them as my second team.

[McCall]

As most expect, I have a heavy supply of Missouri teams listed:

- St. Louis Cardinals

- Mizzou Tigers

- St. Louis Rams

- Southeast Missouri State Redhawks

Missouri State Bears (have family connections to both schools, so I'm kind of equal on them)

- Atlanta Braves (grew up watching them on TBS)

-

St. Louis Blues

Wow, Thats exactly what my list of favorite teams would look like, other than the Braves, I even have family members who are currently attending Both SEMO and Missouri state, My 2 cousins are currently at SEMO and my sister is going to Missouri State next year. But I prefer SEMO, and I am heavily considering going there in 2 years.

The only teams I would add to your list, for me anyway is the SLU Billikens and Washington Capitals. Most of my favorite teams are my favorite due to location, other than the capitals, and I've only recently started liking and following them due to there recent success and Players.

My parents grew up here in Cape and both went to SEMO. My dad played basketball there. I was born here but grew up out in southwest MO and my sister and all 3 brothers graduated from there. I moved back over here about a year and a half ago. Other than living in Illinois until I was 3 I've lived in Missouri my whole life and having been going to Cardinals games since I was a baby (according to my Dad).

[loogodude90]

My sig says it all. I'm a local guy. First of all, it's really hard for me to get into a team unless I'm able to watch all or most of their games. And I don't feel like spending money on being able to watch teams all around the country. Even aside from that though, it's hard for me to really feel like supporting a team unless I live in their territory.

[Shumway]

Tampa Bay Buccaneers...I'm a Florida boy, born & raised...I'm also a football fanatic, hence the screen name. That my cuz used to play for them was just an added bonus.

Florida State Seminoles...again, Florida boy thang. (Actually, as a young'n I preferred FSU's colors to the Gators, plus Tallahassee's closer to Pensacola than Gainesville is.) And again, that my cuz used to play for them (along with several other people I've known) was just an added bonus.

Argentinian National Team...was the first team I can remember watching on TV back when I used to play soccer as a kid in middle school. Still watch them to this day, when/if I get the chance.

Philadelphia Union...adopted them last season. Love the team's brand/identity, decided to roll with it.

That's cool that your cousin played for the Bucs! I just recently got to go see a Florida State baseball game against North Carolina. The atmosphere there is amazing. Completely different than anything up in the north. Great place to watch a ball game.

Not only did his cousin play for the Bucs, but he was good!

I'm sure I've done this a few times on here, but I'll bite again. These are my best guesses as to how my favorite teams came to be. They're all pretty random, but I've been loyal from the time I started following sports.

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim : Kind of a strange story here, really. I started out as an Expos fan, based solely upon the fact that I liked Mark Langston's Topps trading card (I don't know why this particular card struck me).

A few years later, "Angels in the Outfield" came out, and I loved it, then I found out that Mark Langston was an Angel. That was enough to sway me at 8 years old.

Detroit Lions: Barry Sanders.

Detroit Red Wings: More or less a Detroit connection with the Lions. It didn't hurt that they were good (I actually started liking them before the '97 cup, for the record)

Phoenix Suns: My brother LOVED Charles Barkley when he was in Philly. I was in first grade when he came to Phoenix. Again, it didn't take much to sway me when I was 6 or 7.

University of Pittsburgh: My brother is a Pitt alum.

University of Florida: My uncle bought me a "Groovin' Gators" sweatshirt when I was little, and i've always liked the team. I don't follow them closely, really, but I still consider them one of my favorite teams.

Baltimore Orioles:[/] Although where I live is considered "Philly" territory, I grew up going to O's games. It wasn't a difficult decision to choose the mid-90s Orioles and Camden Yards over the mid-90s (i.e. post-'93 World Series) Phillies and The Vet. Plus, being an Angels' fan, I make the trip to Baltimore generally every year to see the Halos. I'm actually headed to the O's game on Saturday.

There were also brief times at which I followed the Miami Heat and St. Louis Cardinals. This was simply because Dan Majerle and Jim Edmonds, respectively, played here. They were always the backup team to the Suns and Angels, but I have quite a bit of Cards and Heat gear.