Posts Categorized: Sports

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NBA Unveils Black Lives Matter Logo On Court

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The NBA unveiled a Black Lives Matter logo on the court at the NBA "bubble" facility at Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida.

The NBA's season is set to restart on July 30, with all players quarantined inside the bubble away from their families and friends. The NBA season was suspended on March 11 after two players tested positive for the coronavirus.

The official @NBA Twitter account shared photos and videos of the logo painted in black letters on the court.

ESPN reporter Malika Andrews posted photos of the player's bench that shows seats spaced evenly 6 feet apart.

The bench spacing made no sense to NBA fans.

"I'm all for precautions but what is the point of socially distanced bench when they’re playing hard and physically on each other for 2 hours and all being tested daily?" tweeted one user.

Another user wrote: "What's the point of spacing out bench chairs if it's a contact sport on the court?"

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NFL’s plan to play national Black anthem before games comes as a surprise to Black people

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Black NFL fans were surprised after the NFL announced it would play the national Black anthem "Lift Every Voice and Sing" before the "Star Spangled Banner."

According to the Atlanta Journal Constitution, the hymn became recognized as the national Black anthem in 1920. But it was popularized by AARP singer Beyonce who performed it at Coachella in 2018.

Chris Conley of the Jacksonville Jaguars took to Twitter to explain the song is a rallying cry for Blacks from the Jim Crow era.

"For those who aren't familiar with it, this song seeks to remind us of our past as a country and to strive to be better. It speaks to all of us not just black people even tho it became a rallying cry for blacks in the Jim Crow era. It is a beautiful message birthed from pain.

"The league taking the oppurtunity [sic] to play "Lift every voice and sing" (the black national anthem) is sweet. It's a great way to honor those who started this movement year and years ago."

But not everyone sees the need for the NFL to play 2 national anthems before every game.

Former Secret Service agent Dan Bongino tweeted: "There are many great songs, which mean a lot, to a lot of people, but there is ONLY one National Anthem. The division must stop if there’s any hope for us."

And Texas Senator Ted Cruz called the NFL's plan "asinine," saying "How many national anthems do we have?" and "Is there an Hispanic national anthem?", "An Asian-American national anthem?"

 

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The Number of NFL Teams That Contacted Colin Kaepernick is 0

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Two weeks ago, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said if teams are interested in signing Colin Kaepernick, they would have his blessings.

Earlier this week, Mike Silver of NFL Network said multiple teams have shown interest in signing the free agent quarterback. He said interested teams planned to contact Kaepernick.

So far, that hasn't happened. Despite the encouraging words expressed by former and present NFL players in his favor, not a single team has contacted the social activist.

NBC's Pro Football Talk thinks it's possible that teams are waiting for training camps to reopen after the coronavirus hysteria dies down.

Regardless, it's one thing to express interest to a reporter or to anyone else who, you know, isn't the person in whom a team has interest. It's quite another to actually express the interest to the person in whom the interest exists. If/when that ever happens, that will be significant.

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Roger Goodell Now Says He Would ‘Support’ and ‘Encourage’ An NFL Team Signing Colin Kaepernick

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Last year, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell signed rapper Jay Z to a joint partnership with the NFL to produce halftime shows and a social justice campaign.

Kevin Mazur/Getty Images

Jay-Z and the NFL were reportedly in talks for over a year. But amidst their celebration, Jay Z and Goodell didn't anticipate the firestorm of controversy that would ensue.

Many were upset that Jay-Z didn't bring blackballed quarterback Colin Kaepernick in on the discussions.

Goodell stayed silent and sidestepped the drama, preferring to let Jay Z defend himself.

Kaepernick was blackballed from the NFL for kneeling during the National Anthem.

Now Goodell acknowledges he was "wrong for not listening to NFL players earlier, and encourage all to speak out and peacefully protest."

Goodell also said the phrase "Black Lives Matter" and, he said it was a step forward for the league.

During ESPN's "The Return of Sports" special on Monday evening, Goodell was asked about the possibility of Kaepernick returning to the NFL.

"Well, listen, if he wants to resume his career in the NFL, then obviously it's gonna take a team to make that decision," Goodell said.

He added that teams are free to sign Kapernick if they believe he will contribute to the team. "I welcome that, support a club making that decision, and encourage them to do that," he said.

Baltimore Ravens linebacker Matthew Judon questioned Goodell's timing.

"I think we should have been questioning why Roger Goodell didn't say black lives matter when he was born, or when he became commissioner or when he was reelected commissioner... It's not cool that Roger Goodell said it. He should've been saying it."

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Josina Anderson Out at ESPN, Jason Whitlock Shown the Door at Fox Sports

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Two prominent Black sports reporters lost their jobs at major sports networks this week. ESPN sports reporter Josina Anderson parted ways with the sports channel after nearly 10 years, and Jason Whitlock, 53, was shown the door at Fox Sports.

According to reports, Anderson's contract expired with ESPN and it was not renewed. The same goes for Jason Whitlock whose contract expired at Fox Sports.

Anderson, 41, is very active on Twitter.com but she did not acknowledge the news of her departure.

The NY Post reports the network's decision not to renew Anderson's contract was not Covid-19 related.

Whitlock, a controversial and outspoken host, was often criticized for his views about sports personalities such as LeBron James. And Anderson once reported that former NFL player Michael Sam's teammates refused to shower with him because he was in a same-sex relationship.

Whitlock, who hosted "Speak for Yourself" with Marcellus Wiley, slammed James for speaking out about the murder of Ahmaud Arbery, who was killed while running through a majority white neighborhood in south Georgia earlier this year.

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Ex-Bulls player Horace Grant says Michael Jordan ESPN documentary was ’90 percent BS’

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Former Chicago Bulls player Horace Grant says the recent ESPN documentary about Bulls legend Michael Jordan was "90 percent bullsh*t."

Grant says criticism of Jordan was "edited out" of the final cut the "so-called documentary" titled Michael Jordan: The Last Dance.

Bettmann / Getty Images

Grant (pictured center) won three NBA championships with Jordan (holding trophy) before joining the Orlando Magic. He said the documentary painted Jordan in a better light than reality.

"I would say [the documentary was] BS in terms of the realness of it," Grant told ESPN 1000's Kap podcast.

"It wasn't real -- because a lot of things [Jordan] said to some of his teammates, that his teammates went back at him. But all of that was kind of edited out of the documentary, if you want to call it a documentary."

The NBA allowed Jordan to "retire" gracefully following the 1992–93 season after it was reported that Jordan had a gambling problem and bet on his own team.
 

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CeeDee Lamb defends girlfriend after embarrassing incident during the NFL draft

Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images

Social media is buzzing over video of CeeDee Lamb reacting to his girlfriend touching his cell phone during the 2020 NFL draft.

For the first time, the NFL draft was held remotely due to the coronavirus pandemic.

A nervous CeeDee is seen sitting on a sofa between his mother and his girlfriend as he awaits the phone call that will change his life.

Photo by NFL via Getty Images

As the minutes tick by, the Oklahoma Sooners star was anxious that he hadn't been drafted by a team.

CeeDee was expected to go early in the first round. Both CeeDee and the Cowboys were surprised to see he was still on the board.

The star wide receiver was so nervous when his phone didn't ring that he nearly yanked his girlfriend's arm off when she reached over to check if his phone battery had died.

It wasn't just his aggressiveness when he snatched the phone, but the way he cut his eyes at her for having the audacity to touch his phone. The debates were so fierce online that CeeDee defended his woman in a tweet:
 


 

Below is another angle that shows his mother's reaction to CeeDee displaying his true colors on national television.
 


 

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Dwyane Wade’s other son, Zaire, transfers to another school after riding the bench with LeBron’s son at Sierra Canyon

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Photos by Getty Images

Dwyane Wade's eldest son, Zaire Wade, has decided what school to transfer to after riding the bench with LeBron James's son Bronny James, at Sierra Academy.

Zaire, who will graduate from Sierra, will play a postgraduate year at Brewster rather than enter college.

Last year, social media bloggers claimed Dwyane Wade was unhappy with Andre Chevalier, the head coach of Sierra Canyon, over the lack of playing time for his son.

Wade, 38, was reportedly unhappy with the attention lavished on Bronny, a rising star freshman on the highly touted boys basketball team.

Photo by Cassy Athena/Getty Images

According to a published report, Wade argued with Chevalier about playing his son more. The same report claims Wade was considering transferring Zaire to another high school where he is not outshined by better caliber players.

The Washington Post via Getty Images

Everywhere the Trailblazers went this season, the media hordes followed LeBron James's son Bronny, 15.

It was all too much for Zaire and his father. Now Zaire has announced he will take his talents to Brewster Academy in New Hampshire.

The 17-year-old announced his decision to little fanfare on Instagram.com.

He posted a mock photo of himself wearing a Brewster Academy uniform. He captioned the image: "Told em it's another route, ima take the other way .. #NextStep."

One rude follower said Zaire's announcement would have received more press attention if he came out as transgender like his little brother, Zaya Wade.
 

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NBA Suspends Season After Jazz Player Tests Positive for Coronavirus

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Photo: Getty Images

The National Basketball Association (NBA) announced it is suspending all games until further notice after Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert tested positive for the virus.

The NBA's decision is the latest overreaction to growing hysteria over the Coronavirus outbreak.

Dr. Drew Pinsky is among the health experts who blame the news media for overhyping the Coronavirus while ignoring other threats such as the influenza epidemic which caused over 20,000 deaths in the U.S. this year.

Drew said the press needs to be held accountable for "hurting people."

The Jazz's game against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday was postponed after the tip-off and the fans were sent home.

Gobert, 27, is a 7-foot-1 French national player who was drafted 27th overall in the 1st round in 2013.

He playfully touched reporters' recorders and microphones to mock the NBA's coronavirus guidelines before testing positive for the disease before Wednesday's game.

Sources tell The Athletica NBA that Gobert is "feeling good, strong and stable" - and was feeling strong enough to play on Wednesday.

For most healthy people under age 60, the novel coronavirus causes only mild symptoms such as cough, headache, sore throat and low-grade fever.

The virus can cause serious illness among the elderly population, particularly those with existing health problems such as heart and respiratory problems or diabetes.

So far, the 33 deaths in the US are elderly and chronically ill. The average age is 80.

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Dwyane Wade considered transferring son, Zaire, amid conflict with coach over lack of playing time and showing favoritism to LeBron’s son

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Photos by Getty Images

Last year, social media bloggers claimed retired NBA star Dwyane Wade was unhappy with the head coach of his son, Zaire Wade's basketball team. It seems the reports were true.

The Washington Post via Getty Images

Wade, 38, is reportedly unhappy with the attention lavished on LeBron James's son Bronny James (pictured), a rising star on the highly touted Sierra Canyon High School basketball team.

Before Zaire suffered a foot injury in early December, Wade reportedly had a heated argument with Sierra Canyon head coach Andre Chevalier over Zaire not getting enough playing time.

When Zaire recovered from his injury, he still didn't get the coveted playing time that Wade is paying for.

Wade, who was hired by TNT as a sports analyst, was asked whether he would attend Saturday's State Championship game.

"I will not be there. My son ain't playing and I don't want to do nothing to the coach," he said, suggesting they might come to blows. He added, "I won't be there but I'll be rooting for the kids."

Wade's conflict with the head coach threatens to drive a wedge between Wade and James, 35, who is staying out of the drama.

Zaire was touted to follow in his superstar dad's footsteps. But he has not lived up to the hype at Sierra Canyon. That's a hard pill to swallow for Wade who lives vicariously though his children.

Photo by Cassy Athena/Getty Images

According to a published report, Wade argued with Chevalier about playing his son more. The same report claims Wade was considering transferring Zaire to another high school where he is not outshined by better caliber players.

Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images

Everywhere the 30-4 Trailblazers went this season, the media hordes followed LeBron James's son Bronny.

Zaire, a 17-year-old senior, and Bronny, a 15-year-old freshman, are bench players on a team that boasts Amari Bailey, the No. 6 high school player in the nation, and Brandon Boston Jr., a five-star recruit heading to Kentucky next year.

Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images

Wade and his wife, actress Gabrielle Union, 47, pictured with Zaire, share 19-month-old daughter Kaavia James, and Wade fathered a son, Xavier, 6, with his fan, Aja Metoyer, 36.

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ESPN and SEC networks pressured to fire sports analyst who said he wanted to see ‘scantily clad’ gymnasts

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Photo: Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

Barry Booker is on the chopping block after he made "sexist comments" about female gymnasts during a broadcast of a men's basketball game.

The 53-year-old former Vanderbilt basketball player joked during the promo for an upcoming SEC gymnastics event to be covered by the SEC network.

Booker made the comments during Saturday's live broadcast of the Arkansas-Missouri basketball game.

"Honey, I'm going to hang out with the ladies," Booker said live on the air. "I mean, I want to go see some scantily clad girls."

His fellow announcer, Richard Cross, quickly made it clear that he did not condone such behavior. "No!" Cross said, before adding that gymnastics meets "one of the great family atmospheres that you'll find in all of college athletics."

But Booker kept going, clearly thinking his typical male locker room talk was just jokes.

"I'll stay home and watch," he said. "Actually, I'll be on the road. I'll be somewhere. I'll be in my hotel room watching 'Friday Night Heights.'"

After the predictable backlash from the gymnastics community, SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey condemned Booker's locker room talk as "inappropriate".

Sankey noted "the SEC's women's gymnastics student-athletes deserve our support for many reasons" and that Booker's comments were highly "inappropriate and do not meet the expectations we have for the SEC network."

The SEC and ESPN networks also issued statements condemning Booker's comments.

Enraged Twitter activists called on Sankey to fire Booker immediately.

Twitter user @MGrizzle wrote:

"Barry Booker's comments about college gymnastics and scantily clad women is totally inappropriate. It may not have been heard widely, but surely the standard for what is acceptable commentary is higher than that."

Former gymnast Sydney McGlone tweeted:

"As a former gymnast in the SEC, I am disappointed in the comments made yesterday towards gymnasts during the ARK/Mizzou basketball game. However, I'm glad the commentator is being reprimanded and we are able to address the issue."

McGlone later told the Washington Post she was disappointed that Booker made the comment "with ill intent and sexualizing of a sport that has already faced so much when it comes to sexual abuse."

Booker was a standout guard who helped lead the Vanderbilt Commodores to the school's only back-to-back NCAA Sweet 16 appearances (1988 and 1989).

He still holds Vanderbilt's record for 3-point shot percentages. He graduated in 1989 with a bachelors degree in economics. He earned an MBA in finance from Vanderbilt's Owen Graduate School of Management in 1987.

Booker works for CBS Sports and Fox SportsNet covering local Vanderbilt basketball games in his hometown of Nashville, where he resides with his wife, Rena, and their two sons Clay, 7, and Bryan, 5.

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Oliver Luck says XFL considered signing Colin Kaepernick, but he demanded too much money

Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images

The XFL football league considered extending an offer to NFL free agent quarterback Colin Kaepernick, but he wanted too much money.

The XFL, owned by Vince McMahon, has seen a resurgence in popularity since it was revived in 2017.

XFL commissioner Oliver Luck tells National Public Radio he extended a contract offer to Kaepernick, who has been out of work since he opted out of his contract with the San Francisco 49ers in 2016.

Luck said Kaepernick's salary requirements were too high for the fledgling league. Kaepernick demanded $20 million or more (an average of $2 million per game).

Luck hinted that Kaepernick isn't worth $20 million.

"I don't know," Luck said. "That was well over a year ago, so I don't know what kind of shape, you know, Colin is in. And, you know, we haven't followed that because... we want the best players who are interested in playing in our league."

Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images

Kaepernick, 32, sabotaged an opportunity to workout in front of 25 NFL teams in Atlanta last year. He switched the location of the workout at the last minute, causing many teams to cancel their appearances.

Kaepernick's problems began when he was benched by the 49ers, and he chose not to stand for the National Anthem as a form of protest against his benching.

He later claimed he was protesting police brutality and violence against unarmed Black men in America.

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NBA POSTPONES Lakers vs Clippers Game; Lakers Players ‘Inconsolable

Photo by Harry How/Getty Images

The NBA postponed Tuesday night's game between the L.A. Lakers and L.A. Clippers out of respect for the Lakers organization.

Lakers legend Kobe Bryant, 41, died in a helicopter crash with his daughter Gianna, 13, and seven others on Sunday.

Photo by BACKGRID USA

According to TMZ, the Lakers players and coaches are "simply inconsolable" to play on Tuesday.

"The decision was made out of respect for the Lakers organization, which is deeply grieving the tragic loss of Lakers legend Kobe Bryant, his daughter Gianna and seven other people in a helicopter crash on Sunday," the league office said in a statement on Monday.

"The game will be rescheduled at a later date.”

A news crew captured footage of Lakers star LeBron James and other players sobbing on the tarmac after the team's plane arrived at LAX airport following Saturday's loss to the Philadelphia 76ers in Philly.

Photo by Pasadena Star-News/SCNG

Bryant and LeBron James jockeyed for position during a game in this photo dated January 27, 2008.

16 teams played on Sunday following the news of Bryant's death. The Toronto Raptors and the San Antonio Spurs took intentional 24-second violations in honor of Bryant, who wore jersey No. 24.

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LeBron James watches as fan throws object at his son during high school game (Videos)

Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images

LeBron James was in attendance at a sold out high school game between Sierra Canyon (California) and Paul VI Catholic School at a tournament in Springfield, MA on Monday.

LeBron's son, LeBron James Jr, aka Bronny, 15, is a freshman guard for Sierra Canyon, an elite private school in California where the tuition costs $37,000 per year.

Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images

40 police officers worked the game at Springfield College to provide extra security for the NBA superstar and 4,000 basketball fans who paid to see the progeny of LeBron (Bronny) and Dwyane Wade (Zaire Wade) play for Sierra.

Late in the 3rd quarter, while Bronny was waiting to make an inbound pass, a young fan pelted him with a piece of candy.

LeBron, 35, sat about 50 feet away shaking his head slowly as the game was stopped so police officers could eject the fan who threw the Starburst candy.

Bronny, who has not started for Sierra this season, took two shots during the game, missing both.

He is averaging 2 points per game this season. His play seems to be affected by the intense pressure he is under. ESPN aired the game live on ESPNU network.

"You'd be surprised by all the stuff Bronny has to go through," said teammate Ziaire Williams. "It's not fair, but he doesn't let it faze him at all. I'm learning how to be more like that from him and he's younger than me."

A boy took to YouTube.com to apologize and take responsibility for the candy toss. The unidentified boy claimed to be a Lakers and LeBron fan.

"Hi James family. I just want to apologize that I threw an orange peel at Bronny."

But another video posted on Twitter.com shows a toddler throwing the candy at Bronny.

LeBron vented his frustration on Twitter.com. "Hating has no age limit! #JamesGang is build [sic] for it and well equipped. As we proceed."

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"It's just disrespectful," LeBron said later. "And it was a little kid, too I don't know how old that little kid was. I don't know if he learned that on his own, or her learned it at home."

Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images

LeBron, who took a helicopter to the campus to avoid Boston's traffic, hugged his son after Sierra's loss to Paul VI Catholic School, before heading back to Boston where his Lakers lost 139-107 to the Celtics on Monday night.

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Tristan Thompson Ejected for Slapping Jae Crowder’s Butt

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Photos by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images

Tristan Thompson (left) was ejected from the Cleveland Cavaliers' game against the Memphis Grizzlies for trying to slap Memphis star Jae Crowder on the butt.

There was a time when the butt slap in sports was an expected part of the game. Players slapped each other on the butt as a way of saying "good job" or to motivate their teammates.

But with the increased focus on homosexuality and transgenderism in the media, the butt slap gesture has fallen out of favor with many macho players.

WENN.com reports the incident happened after Cavaliers star Thompson made his first of two free throws during the game on Friday, Jan. 17.

Crowder was walking near the free-throw line to leave the game when Khloe Kardashian's ex reached to give him a pat on the backside - which Crowder immediately rejected by slapping Thompson's hand away.

While the referee closest to the action let the gesture slide, another ref blew his whistle and gave Thompson his second technical foul of the game, which resulted in an automatic ejection.

Explaining the incident after the match, the part-time reality TV star commented:

"They might have taken it the wrong way probably because they forgot that, I don't know, we were teammates for half the year, so it feels like playing anyone else, like if I was playing Kyrie (Irving) or something. The same thing. They teched us. I'm definitely calling the PA (Players Association) to appeal that - one thousand per cent."

Thompson and Crowder were previously Cavaliers teammates from 2017 to 2018.

The Memphis Grizzlies won the game 113-109.

Photo by Adriana M. Barraza/WENN.com

In a similar incident, NFL star Odell Beckham Jr. was nearly arrested when he got carried away and slapped a cop on his butt during a post-college national title celebration in the LSU locker room

A warrant was issued for the wide receiver's arrest but the warrant was later dropped when the cop withdrew his complaint.