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NFL General

Nov 8 in Sports History: NFL-AFL merger allowed



Alvin “Pete” Rozelle

In 1966, Lyndon B. Johnson (you know, the president that according to conspiracy theorists staged a coup during the JFK presidency) signed into law an exemption to the antitrust statutes that allowed the merger of the American Football League and the National Football League. The two leagues would keep the NFL name and logo and be split into two conferences.

The Baltimore Colts, Cleveland Browns and Pittsburgh Steelers (three of the original 16 NFL teams) agreed to join the 10 AFL teams in the new American Football Conference. The other 13 teams remained in the NFC. However, the owners could not agree how to allocate teams by division and so finally, the divisions were aligned by putting the team names into a hat and drawn by Pete Rozelle’s secretary. (Of course, this doesn’t explain how even after expansion and realignment, the St. Louis Rams play in the NFC West.)

In 1959: Elgin Baylor of the Minneapolis Lakers set a then-NBA record by scoring 64 points in a game against the Boston Celtics. Baylor’s record stood for another year until he broke it himself with 71 points against the New York Knicks. Throughout his career, spent entirely on the Lakers (they moved to Los Angeles in 1960), Baylor averaged 27.4 points, was an eleven-time all star and was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1977. Baylor is also a member of the NBA’s 75th Anniversary Team, and many have considered him to be Michael Jordan before there was Jordan. Baylor has even turned around the Clippers as a GM (although for years he was considered the worst GM in all of sports) by winning NBA Executive of the Year in 2006. (nba.com)

In 1981: Leave it to ESPN to help ruin things a little more. The fledgling all-sports network turned World Ruler/Destroyer gambled that redneck, uh, we mean sports fans would be interested in watching NASCAR races from beginning to end when it aired the entire All-American 400. Of course it worked and both are multi-billion dollar empires. People for some reason can’t stand hockey, but they can sit and watch traffic for four hours? (espn.com, Bill Maher for the classic “traffic” joke)

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NFL General

Odds and Ends: Sports and Politics do not mix


Well folks, election day is upon us and that’s about the only time we’ll talk politics here at SC. Actually, we don’t have much to talk about except Lynn Swann is likely to get his ass handed to him in the polls once the returns are in and that Heath Shuler is probably going to win his bid to be the Senator from NC. (Even StopShuler.com has conceded the victory and just wants people to stop referring to Heath Shuler as a “Former NFL Quarterback or “former Redskins Quarterback” because “these descriptions are inaccurate, biased and deeply offensive.” So it seems to us that the worse you are at football, the better you will do in the election.

By the way, why can women vote and horse cannot?

In other news…

[Miami Herald]: Maybe she just wanted the WR position?

[Sporting News]: Shawn Kemp attempting comeback (does the AP just recycle this story every year)

[Yahoo]: NFL’s Braylon Edwards Pledges $1 Million in Academic Scholarships

[AZCentral]: So are you retiring or what? And why are we talking about figure skating

[Sun Sentinel]: Ricky Williams might stay in Canada

Categories
NFL General

MNF or Muay Thai?

Last night, the MNF crew predicted that this video clip of Tyler Brayton kneeing Jerramy Stevens in the groin would be all over the blogs and news reports today. Surprisingly, it hasn’t been that big of a topic — perhaps because by the time the man foul happened, only 4 people were still watching.

Here’s the clip… and some reaction from There’s Your Karma, Ripe As Peaches.

P.S. What the hell was Christian Slater doing in the booth? Stop with the celebrity tie-ins, MNF/ESPN/DISNEY. You bitches.

Categories
NBA General

Around the Rim: Drama in Dallas



I got your money Nellie!

[Editor’s Note: Around the Rim is a new daily NBA blog written by Clay Whittington.]

1. Cuban Millions Crisis
On Monday, Don Nelson returned to Dallas as coach of a different team, but he still had the same old relationship with his former boss Mark Cuban. And that is, none at all. The two no longer speak to one another and according to Nelson, Cuban still owes him $6.6 million. Apparently, the relationship turned sour after a bitter negotiation over Nelson’s last contract, prompting the two to cease any personal association with one another. Nelson was named as a consultant but once personnel moves were being made without Nelson’s involvement, he decided it was time to leave. Cuban has been quiet about the situation, “I have nothing to say at all. He coaches the bad guys now.” Has Cuban turned over a new leaf? Are we seeing a more reserved, more mature Mark Cuban? Unlikely.

2. Cuban Conspiracy Theory
Cuban raised eyebrows on opening night when he decided not to unveil the team’s western conference championship banner against rivals San Antonio. Cuban played the move off as a gesture to the fans, allowing them to enjoy both an opening night and a championship celebration. Now, with the emergence of Nelson in Golden State, the picture is becoming clearer. Cuban, who is known for his brash behavior, simply passed up an opportunity to rub his success in the faces of the Spurs for an opportunity to rub his success in the face of his former coach. The ceremony was to serve as a reminder to Nelson of the achievement gained upon his departure. With David Stern cracking down on “whining” in the league, these types of nonverbal gestures could prove to be more advantageous for the calculating business guru. Cuban will always get the last word in whether it’s spoken or not. Don’t mistake a quiet Cuban for a changed Cuban.

3. It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia
It’s only the first week of the season but Allen Iverson is already having a great season. With 34.0 points a game, he is leading the NBA in scoring, but the points aren’t surprising. What is, however, is the accuracy with which he gets them. A career 42 percent shooter, he’s currently shooting 49 percent from the field and an eye-popping 55 percent from behind the three point line. And don’t try to call him selfish anymore. His assists are up to 9.7 per game, another career high. The injury prone Iverson continues to put his body on the line for his team, leading the NBA in minutes per game and free throws attempted. On the flip side, one of Iverson’s signatures has always been his turnovers and this year is no different as he dubiously leads the league in that category as well with 5.33 per game. Will any of these numbers hold over a full season? Time will tell, but with A.I. in MVP form and his team jumping out to a 3-0 start for the first time in six seasons things are definitely looking brighter for Philly fans.

4. Second Home Coming
The New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets will have their second home opener of the season tonight. The team brings a 3-0 record to their home away from home as they play Golden State in Oklahoma City. Chris Paul led the team to a victory over Houston in New Orleans on Sunday. David Stern emphasized over the weekend that the Hornets will return to The Big Easy full-time next season. Over the past two seasons, Oklahoma City has proven to be hungry for professional sports and their commitment to the Hornets franchise has created an opportunity for the NBA to set up shop in the Heartland. Coincidentally, the Seattle Sonics were recently purchased by an Oklahoma City-based ownership group; an acquisition that has Sonic fans sleepless in Seattle.

Monday’s Player of the Day: Zach Randolph @ LA Clippers 38 min, 35 pts (FG: 11-17, FT: 13-15), 13 reb, 1 ast, 2 stl, 3 blk

Tuesday’s Game to Watch: Minnesota (2-2) @ LA Lakers (3-1) The Lakers are perfect at home on the year as former MVP, Kevin Garnett, comes to town. Kobe Bryant has been quiet in the two games he has played this season, taking only 25 shots total, but he will look to explode against the T-Wolves after losing in Seattle. Lamar Odom has been sporadic since Bryant’s return and appeared more comfortable as the lead role in the opening game that Bryant missed.

Categories
NHL General

Crashing the Zamboni: So what do they do with all those hats?



GWH

1. Collecting Hats
Ilya Kovalchuck was the star for the Thrashers on Monday night, leading his team to a 5-3 win in Atlanta. The #1 overall draft pick in 2001 sent the hats flying with a Hat Trick, netting three Power Play goals and an assist in the game. Kovalchuk continues to impress, and is slowly forming into one of the best players in the league. Atlanta’s Johan Hedberg had a nice night between the pipes, stopping 24 of 27 shots faced on the way to his third straight win. Another big reason for the Thrashers’ success was the amount of time they spent on the man advantage. Boston committed 13 penalties in the game, allowing four Power Play goals.

2. Capping Off the Win
Alexander Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals walked out of the Verizon Center with a 4-3 Overtime victory on Monday night, trying to keep pace with the Atlanta Thrashers in a crowded Southeast Division. Ovechkin did his thing yet again – scoring two goals, including the game-tying Power Play goal with 24 seconds left in regulation. That would later set up Chris Clark for the game-winner in the extra period. The Senators held a comfortable 3-0 lead in the first period, but were unable to stall the Caps’ offense. Washington scored four unanswered goals over the next two and a half periods to earn the victory. With the loss, the Ottawa Senators have now lost four straight games and are in danger of slipping to last in the Northeast Division.

3. Lightning Strikes the Island
On Monday night in the Nassau Coliseum, the Tampa Bay Lightning downed the New York Islanders by a score of 5-1. Tampa Bay sniper Martin St. Louis scored a Power Play goal in the second period, breaking a 1-1 tie and launching a stretch of four unanswered goals for the Lightning. They also got some offensive help from an unlikely source in Defenseman Filip Kuba, who scored his forst and second goals of the season. Johan Hedberg got a rare start for Tampa, and made the most of it. He stopped 25 shots en route to his first win of the year.

Check It Out
Off Wing Opinion’s Eric McErlain talks about the NHL’s scheduling issues. He, along with the rest of the hockey world, would like to see less divisional games and more interconference contests.

Game of the Night: Minnesota at San Jose
Minnesota has won last four games at San Jose

The Last Shot
Former Red Wing Steve Yzerman received the Lester Patrick Award Monday, given to individuals who have made an impact on hockey in the United States.

Categories
LA Lakers

Nov 7 in Sports HIstory: Magic Johnson announces he has HIV


In 1991 Magic Johnson shocked not just the basketball world but the entire nation by announcing that he was HIV-positive and would retire immediately from basketball. (video here) At the time, relatively little was known about HIV and AIDS and it was assumed that Magic would soon be gone. (At his press conference, Larry Bird/Basketball Jesus wept.) However, 15 years later, Magic is alive and well.

Even though he was retired, Magic was voted into the All-Star Game in 1992 and won the All-Star MVP award. Magic’s basketball career continued briefly when he won gold with the 1992 Dream Team.

In 1943 the New York Giants and the Detroit Lions played to a 0-0 tie, the last scoreless tie in NFL history. The Giants were terrible that day, only getting into Lions territory once and finishing with three passing yards. The Lions on the other ahnd managed to get into field goal range three times but Augie Lio missed from 32,50 and 25. Now if only the Raiders could play the Raiders on Monday night, we’d have our first scoreless tie in 63 years.

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Orlando Magic

Odds and Ends: I should’ve called him a chimpanzee instead!



what ball?

Just a quick follow up to the story we had last week about the fan banned from NBA arenas for calling Dikembe Mutombo a monkey. Hamzehloui says that the entire incident was blown out of proportion because he chose the wrong word.


I just used a poor choice of words. If I said he looked like a chimpanzee or like a gorilla, none of this happens.

Cause uh… you know.. there’s no racial undertones to calling someone a gorilla or a chimpanzee.

In other news…

[ABC 7]: Dementieva: Model ball boys shouldn’t focus on players

[BBC]: David Beckham to the LA Galaxy?

[Philly.com]: Paterno has surgery to repair broken leg, will coach against Temple

[Newsday]: Paul Azinger named captain of next U.S. team to be humiliated by Euros in Ryder Cup

[Yay Sports NBA]: Shaq does whatever he wants

[Costco]: Ummm… can someone lend us $11k?

Categories
All Other Sports

Vote for the 2006 worst father in sports



Dan Hinkle

We’re sorry folks, we have made a mistake by prematurely giving the “Sports Father of the Year” to a guy who pulled out a gun during a pee-wee football game. It’s pretty hard to top a moron who pulls out a .357 magnum and threatens a coach but a man in Virginia has managed to at least tie him.

Dan Hinkle is the father of a player on the South County Raptors. He is also the commissioner of the league. The Raptors were supposed to play in the first round of the playoffs but they don’t have any coaches because Hinkle fired them. Did they yell at the kids? Were they grossly incompetent? Nope, they simply played his son on offense instead of defense.

In an email sent before the start of the season, Hinkle laid out the rules of “his” league:


[On defense, my son] goes in and stays in. That includes all practices, scrimmages and games. This entire league exists so he can play defense on the best team in his weight class. . . . He is my son, I own the league, and he plays every snap on defense.

Uhhh.. whatever you say jackass. The coaches played his son on offense because they thought it’d give them the best chance of winning the game — which they did. And for that they both got fired. Meanwhile, Hinkle generously offered to hire another coach but the kids (showing some loyalty) refused to play for any other coach.

So there you have it folks. Who is the worst parent? The guy who pulls out a gun in a rage or the guy who is just a complete asshole. It’s a tough call. Vote to your right.

Links:
[Washington Post]: N.Va. Boys’ Championship Dream Doomed by a Moment of Vengeance

Categories
College Football

Are the Volunteers the Bengals’ farm team?



Holbert’s mug shot team photo

Three players from the University of Tennessee were arrested early Sunday morning for disoderly conduct, underaged alcohol consumption and public intoxication. According to police, Arian Foster, David Holbert, and Antonio Wardlow were at a club called Goodfellas when fights broke out. Police arrived and managed to stop a few of the fights but the three Vols kept on fighting in separate altercations and they were arrested.

Because head coach Phillip Fulmer instituted a zero-tolerance policy this offseason, expect all three to be kicked off the team. That’s a total of 8 players arrested or kicked off the team for disciplinary measures. This puts them in elite, pro league territory with the Cincinnati Bengals. Holbert and Wardlow are reserves but Foster has a starting FB position. Somewhere in Cinci, Jeremi Johnson is worried about next year’s draft.

Links:
[Tennessean.com]: Status for arrested Vols under review

Categories
NBA General

Around the Rim: Welcome to Sportscolumn’s new daily NBA blog

[Editor’s Note: Around the Rim is a new daily NBA blog written by Clay Whittington.]



Average dunk

1. Mediocre Man
Jason Richardson was recently named Mr. Average by NBA.com. It’s probably not the recognition that J-Rich was looking for in order to get that next big endorsement deal, but things could be worse. The last two players to be considered run-of-the-mill by league averages have proven to be anything but. Last year’s winner was Richard Jefferson and the year before that the title was given to Shawn Marion. Average by NBA terms for this season is standing 6’6″ and weighing 225 pounds at 26 years old with five years of experience. But in Richardson’s case, average also includes being the only person besides Michael Jordan to win consecutive slam dunk titles.

2. Transplanted Rose
Jalen Rose has decided to join the Phoenix Suns for one year at $1.5 million, just slightly above the veteran’s minimum. This move adds even more offense to the Suns lineup and gives Rose a legit shot at winning a championship, but its biggest impact will be felt in Rose’s checking account. While $1.5 million might not sound like an impressive payday for an NBA player, consider that in addition to being rescued from a sinking New York franchise, Rose received a $14.5 million buyout from the Knicks. Apparently, playing on a poorly managed team known for overpaying and underachieving does have some advantages. Mainly, you get paid to play for someone else.

3. Royal-ties
LeBron “King” James gained an advantage over Dwyane Wade in their battle to become the new, young face of the Association when James was considered to be the most marketable NBA player in a survey conducted by SportsBusiness Daily. And who could argue with the decision? Endorsement should be this kid’s middle name. At 21 years old, James has already made some memorable commercials in his young career. Some of these include a series of Sprite spots with Lil’ Penny’s long lost rip-off, Thirst, and his current Nike campaign where he portrays a quartet of characters collectively known as “The LeBrons.” Since high school, James has been more popular than almost any NBA player and he beat out fellow classmate Wade, as well as, Shaquille O’Neal, Kobe Bryant and Yao Ming in the poll. While championship rings might get you a spot on the list, the marketing throne is reserved for the young king.

4. Celtic Girls
On Friday, the Boston Celtics became the last team in the NBA to introduce a dance team to their courtside entertainment. While the choice was applauded by the male contingent of the team’s fan base, the timing of their debut could have been a bit more appropriate. The late Red Auerbach was openly opposed to the dancers because he felt that the game itself should always remain as the center of attention. So, less than a week after Auerbach’s death, the front office brought the dance team out to shake and gyrate on the parquet floor that the legendary coach cherished so deeply. Hardly the proper tribute to a man that meant so much.

Sunday’s Player of the Day: Ray Allen vs. LA Lakers 36 min, 32 pts (FG: 10-16, 3FG: 3-4, FT: 9-9), 3 reb, 6 ast, 1 stl, 1 blk

Monday’s Game to Watch: Detroit (2-1) @ Utah (3-0) Detroit hasn’t lost on the road and Utah has yet to lose at home. Obviously, something has to give. Utah is looking to move back into the playoffs for the first time since 2002-03 and an early win over Detroit could give the team a boost in confidence. Detroit needs to win in order to keep pace with a tough central division that includes the Bucks, Bulls, Cavs and Pacers.