Posted on May 12th, 2012
By DERON SNYDER
Popeye Jones played for seven teams during 11 seasons in the NBA, being a good teammate, doing the dirty work and soaking up knowledge –- which helped him land an assistant coach gig with the Brooklyn Nets. But his three sons didn’t carry on his lifelong love affair. They’re all accomplished hockey players, especially 17-year-old Seth Jones, who very well might be the top overall pick in the 2013 NHL draft.
Jones has been the youngest player on the U.S. Men’s National Under-18 Team the last two years, helping them to consecutive gold medals in the world championships, most recently last month. His size, skills and instincts placed him among the nation’s most sought-after college recruits, a 205-pound silky-smooth skater standing 6-foot-3.
But Jones decided to take a different route to an eventual pro career, opting to join the Western Hockey League instead of an NCAA program. According to the College Hockey Blog, Jones is “one of the rare prospects that the college game will be worse off for not getting a chance to experience, but also one of the rare prospects whom you can’t blame for making the decision he did, even as biased as we college fans can be.”
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Posted on May 10th, 2012
By DERON SNYDER
No one would suggest that Carmelo Anthony is equal to or better than LeBron James (except maybe Melo himself), and no would suggest that the New York Knicks had a shot at beating the Miami Heat. But looking at the superstars and their respective teams can be instructive for would-be players and wanna-be general managers.
First, remember that the Knicks didn’t want Anthony as much as he wanted them. He was the consolation prize after New York went all-in during the “Summer of LeBron” tour in 2010. The Knicks reportedly had James Gandolfini reprise his role as Tony Soprano for a recruiting video, knowing that James is a huge fan of the HBO series. The pitch also included testimonials from Willis Reed, Mark Messier, Reggie Jackson and Earl Monroe. Famous New Yorkers Spike Lee, Rudy Giuliani and Chris Rock took part as well.
When James made his “Decision” to join Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh on South Beach, the Knicks‘ fate was sealed, seemingly along with the rest of the Eastern Conference. The Knicks responded by granting Anthony’s wish and bringing him to New York at the following trade deadline, sending four players, three draft picks and $3 million to Denver in exchange.
After watching the Knicks go 1-8 in two first-round playoff series with Anthony, including the series against Miami that concluded Wednesday, it appears that New York got snookered.
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Posted on May 10th, 2012
By DERON SNYDER
You might ask what Terrell Owens was thinking when he agreed to appear on the Dr. Phil show. Let’s hope that the cash-strapped former NFL star was well-compensated for showing up. But even then, you’d like to think Owens could earn money in a more dignified manner than going on national TV for a contentious meeting with three of the four women who bore his children.
I wasn’t a big fan of his foray into indoor football earlier this year, but that’s a lot better than putting his dysfunctional relationships on full blast. He’s not denying paternity, but he might as well go on Maury Povich’s show next. It can’t be more dramatic or embarrassing than what Owens endured Tuesday.
Owens has always loved the spotlight and sought it earnestly. But listening to three women detail how lousy you are at being a dad isn’t the sort of attention you should find rewarding. It’s certainly a huge comedown from the eponymous venture he enjoyed on VH1.
The women, identified only by their first names, offered a laundry list of grievances. Kimber said that Owens owed thousands of dollars in child-support payments and had only seen their daughter 12 times in the 7-year-old girl’s entire life. But T.O. had an explanation.
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Posted on May 10th, 2012
Cris Carter
By DERON SNYDER
They have been part of football for as long as the game has been played. They have ridden the evolutionary wave from leather helmets and single wings to polyurethane shells and four wide. They have been so ingrained in the culture that no one gave them a second look.
Until recently. Now the NFL is in a new-age bind thanks to those age-old truths — bounties and concussions.
After accepting them with winks and nods all these years, the league has launched an all-out assault to eliminate them.
It’s the right thing to do, even though it appears self-serving and hypocritical to some critics. New Orleans Saints fans, in particular, contend that their team was unfairly punished for a “bounty” program that has existed on some level throughout football. On Tuesday, we learned that offensive players could be as guilty as defensive players.
Former All-Pro receiver Cris Carter said he used the measure to protect himself during his 16-year NFL career. “First time I’ve ever admitted it, but I put a bounty on guys before,” Carter said on ESPN’s Hill & Schlereth Show. “… If a guy tries to take me out, a guy takes a cheap shot on me? I put a bounty on him right now!”
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Posted on May 8th, 2012
By DERON SNYDER
The Washington Nationals didn’t shine in their first coast-to-coast broadcast since Nationals Park opened in 2008. ESPN’s audience for Sunday Night Baseball saw Philadelphia deliver a 9-3 beating and watched Washington outfielder Jayson Werth suffer a broken wrist.
To the uninitiated, the five-time NL East champs simply routed the perennial also-rans, inexplicably featured in prime time. But well before Jordan Zimmermann’s first pitch that evening, observers across the country knew that Washington is an up-and-coming force.
Residents of our metropolitan area might be slower to realize the Nats’ new status, which is perfectly understandable. Considering the team’s losing ways since it relocated from Montreal, and the 33-season drought in D.C. prior to 2005, would-be fans’ recent options merely went from no baseball to bad baseball.
That’s OK. The Nats have an entire summer to get locals up to speed and show that things have changed.
As my colleague Patrick Hruby reported in Tuesday’s article on the Nats’ standing in D.C., there’s a long way to go. But unlike critics who bemoan the attendance, like when phenom Bryce Harper made his home debut last week, I think the market is coming around reasonably well.
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Posted on May 7th, 2012
By DERON SNYDER
Like every other boxing fan on Earth, I would love to see Floyd “Money” Mayweather fight Manny “Pac-Man” Pacquiao. Whether the bout could live up to its hype or be as entertaining as Mayweather’s unanimous decision Saturday against Miguel Cotto is questionable. But there’s no doubt that the highly anticipated match would be the richest fight in boxing history.
Unfortunately, the money might not be enough to entice Mayweather. His $32 million guarantee Saturday was a Nevada record, topping the $30 million that Mike Tyson was guaranteed for his 1997 rematch against Evander Holyfield. In his last three fights, Mayweather has been guaranteed a total of $79.5 million, which doesn’t include his considerable take from pay-per-view sales, concessions and other revenue.
“This is just a testament to Floyd’s [market] power,” said Leonard Ellerbe, Mayweather’s closest adviser and CEO of Mayweather Promotions. “Floyd Mayweather is a one-man walking conglomerate. Over the last 12 months, he is the highest-paid athlete in sports.”
Mayweather will be Nevada’s highest-paid inmate as of June 1, when he begins serving an 87-day sentence for misdemeanor domestic violence. He faced more than 30 years before accepting a plea bargain and later winning a petition to delay his incarceration until after Saturday’s fight. He convinced Judge Melissa Saragosa that his bout on Cinco de Mayo would have a $100 million impact on the Las Vegas economy.
That was quick thinking, but he’ll still have plenty of time to ponder the question of meeting Pacquiao. Mayweather has gone back and forth in that regard, calling out Pacquiao in a series of tweets in January after arguably ducking him for two years. But Mayweather doused hopes a few days before the Cotto fight, again accusing Pacquiao of using performance-enhancing drugs to increase in size and strength.
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Posted on May 4th, 2012
By DERON SNYDER
This week has been a rough one for the NFL.
Former San Diego Chargers linebacker Junior Seau committed suicide, raising more questions about the effects of playing football. Commissioner Roger Goodell suspended four players, including a season-long ban for New Orleans Saints linebacker Jonathan Vilma, for their alleged roles in a “bounty program.” As the NFL Players Association filed a grievance after announcing plans for a vigorous defense, former quarterback and current NFL Network broadcaster said he’d prefer that his sons not play football.
But a heartwarming event occurred in the midst of all that negativity (even if the reason is a bit depressing). New Tampa Bay coach Greg Schiano signed one of his former players, Eric LeGrand, to a contract with the Buccaneers. Though the move was symbolic — LeGrand has been paralyzed since suffering an injury during a Rutgers game on Oct. 16, 2010 — it helped highlight the player’s remarkable, inspirational story.
“Leading up to the draft, I couldn’t help but think that this should’ve been Eric’s draft class,” Schiano said in a release by the Bucs. “This small gesture is the least we could do to recognize his character, spirit and perseverance. The way Eric lives his life epitomizes what we are looking for in Buccaneer men.”
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Posted on May 3rd, 2012
By DERON SNYDER
The events of May 2, 2012, won’t be forgotten in the NFL. A one-two punch of shocking developments — unrelated on the surface but perhaps with connective tissue beneath — highlighted the ongoing wrestling match in our love-hate relationship with NFL violence.
Commissioner Roger Goodell clearly is concerned with the perception of the league at the very least. He has been on a safety crusade for three years, since the NFL conceded publicly for the first time that concussions can have lasting consequences. That’s why he slapped Jonathan Vilma with a one-year suspension Wednesday for his role in “Bounty-gate,” even though there’s no evidence that the New Orleans Saints‘ program resulted in injuries.
As we’ve all seen in the cases of many former players, Goodell is aware that damage can take years to surface. Wednesday’s apparent suicide of former San Diego linebacker Junior Seau reminded us of Dave Duerson, a retired Chicago Bears star who took his life in similar fashion with a gunshot to the chest in February last year.
We don’t know why Seau shot himself there, but Duerson did so to leave his brain to science. Researchers discovered the same trauma-induced disease — chronic traumatic encephalopathy — found in more than 20 deceased players. Duerson’s family has filed one of the numerous concussion-related lawsuits against the NFL. Former Atlanta Falcons safety Ray Easterling was part of another case before he committed suicide in April.
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Posted on May 2nd, 2012
By DERON SNYDER
The NFL was unequivocal about its stance on the New Orleans Saints’ so-called bounty program in March, when the league suspended head coach Sean Payton for one year and suspended former defensive coordinator Gregg Williams indefinitely. It also slapped Saints General Manager Mickey Loomis and assistant head coach Joe Vitt with eight- and six-game suspensions, respectively.
“Let me be clear,” Commissioner Roger Goodell said in a statement after issuing the league’s severest sanction ever for a head coach. “There is no place in the NFL for deliberately seeking to injure another player, let alone offering a reward for doing so. Any form of bounty is incompatible with our commitment to create a culture of sportsmanship, fairness and safety. Programs of this kind have no place in our game, and we are determined that bounties will no longer be a part of the NFL.”
Goodell could have cut and paste those sentiments into a statement Wednesday, when the other shoe fell on players implicated in the scandal. Saints linebacker Jonathan Vilma was hit the hardest, drawing a one-year suspension that begins immediately and ends after the Super Bowl.
In addition to Vilma, defensive tackle Anthony Hargrove (now with the Green Bay Packers) was suspended for eight games, Saints defensive Will Smith for four games and linebacker Scott Fujita (now with the Cleveland Browns) for three games.
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Posted on May 1st, 2012
By DERON SNYDER
Apparently, the Washington Redskins’ brain trust still is suffering side effects from last year’s painful experiment, when it tried to swallow a dose of Rex Grossman and John Beck at quarterback for a full season.
We thought it was over once the team traded three No. 1s and a second-rounder to move up in the draft. We figured the symptoms would fade away when Robert Griffin III’s name was called. We believed his selection started the healing process.
But we underestimated the effects of last season’s quarterback play. The toxic trial left emotional scars at the conscious level and below. Exposure to their self-inflicted irritant left coach Mike Shanahan & Co. weak. They feared further repercussions when the fourth round rolled around.
That’s the only explanation for using the 102nd pick on a player they hope never sees the field.
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