Sports paintings allow fans and athletes to save a moment in time and remember it forever. Sports art collectors, myself included, usually immediately think of a framed photograph to hang on our wall, which usually include an autograph by the player as well. As a matter of fact, a picture was the only kind of sports artwork that Id even known about, aside from memorabilia such as a bat, baseball, hockey stick or jersey. This was before I saw the sports paintings by sports artist Adam Port.

In 2006, Port was featured on The Best Damn Sports Show Period on Fox Sports. He presented former Detroit Piston basketball player, and then co-host of the show, John Salley, with one of his famous basketball paintings. The artwork spoke for itself, as did Salleys reaction, which is typically the same for everyone – staring in amazement as they realize that its a painting, not a picture.

Salley isnt the only athlete to have this reaction. Port has created football paintings for Ray Lewis of the Baltimore Ravens, Justin Tuck of the New York Giants, Carmelo Anthony of the New York Knicks (although he was on the Denver Nuggets at the time of the painting), Rod Gilbert of the New York Rangers, Michael Jordan and John Stocktons Basketball Hall of Fame induction class, and most recently, a recreation of the Charles M. Conlon pictures, which were turned into baseball paintings. The Conlon paintings once again had Port featured on Fox Sports, This Week in Baseball.

After seeing Ports sports art, I now consider paintings of sports just as much as an option as a picture, stick, puck, bat, ball or jersey. As a matter of fact, Ports sports paintings are like nothing Ive ever seen before. They are so realistic that you might never be able to tell that its a painting until youre told, or youre standing face to face with it.

If youre a sports fan, sports art collector or an athlete you must see Adams artwork. Maybe you have no interest in sports at all, but youre an artist, or maybe youre not even an artist, you still should take a look at his sports paintings.