Category: Sports

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Sports

Kobe Bryant Takes Mom to Court

Goldin Auctions is auctioning more than 100 items from the early basketball life of Kobe Bryant consigned by his mother Pamela Bryant. (goldinauctions.com)

Kobe Bryant, the Los Angeles Lakers shooting guard, is embroiled in a legal spat with his mother and an auction house in New Jersey that is selling over 100 items from his early basketball career.

Goldin Auctions LLC, which is holding an auction on an unspecified date in June of items from Bryant’s childhood in Italy, his high school years in Pennsylvania and his early years in the NBA, filed a lawsuit against him on Thursday.

“The Bryant Collection,” which was consigned by the sports star’s mother, Pamela Bryant, includes trophies, championship rings, medals, plaques, game worn uniforms and other items.

Pamela Bryant, 59, made a deal in January with the auction house, receiving $450,000, which she used for a new home in Nevada. Five years ago, she had asked her son what he wanted to do with the items, but he had no interest in them, the Associated Press reported.

“Pamela Bryant also indicated that her son gave these items to her stating ‘here mom, these are for you’,” the complaint states.

So she had placed the items in a storage unit in New Jersey for $1,500 a month, the AP reported.

The centerpiece of the collection is Bryant’s Lower Merion High School basketball uniform with the number 24, which he wore as a freshman before he switched to number 33 for the remainder of his high school career, according to a press release.

“It is believed to be the only authentic game worn #24 Kobe Bryant LMHS jersey in existence. The next time he wore a #24 jersey was when he switched his NBA number to it after the 2005-06 NBA season,” the Goldin Auctions press release states. “When he finally removes #24 from his back, it will hang in the rafters alongside, Wilt, Kareem, Magic and Shaq.”

Ken Goldin, founder of Goldin Auctions, which sold a rare Honus Wagner baseball card last month for a record $2.1 million, declined to comment.

h/t – ABCNEWS

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basketball Sports twitter

Nike “You Showed Us”

The day after Kobe Bryant went down with his torn Achilles Tendon, Nike launched an ad titled “You Showed Us” in a local LA newspaper

“You Showed Us That An 18-Year-Old Could Play With The Best.

You Showed Us That A ChampionShip, An Exhibition Game And A Charity Event Are All Must-Wins.

You Showed Us How To Play Chess While Others Played Checkers.

You Showed Us How To Hit Game-Winner After Game-Winner.

You Showed Us That An 81-Point Game Is A Real Thing.

You Showed Us That Gold Still Matters.

You Showed Us How To Take An Ice Bath.

You Showed Us How To Score 30 Points In a Quarter, Twice.

You Showed Us The Mamba Face.

You Showed Us How To Demand Perfection And Demand It From Everyone.

You Showed Us How To Put Big-Boy Pants On.
You Showed Us That You Were Never Out Of It. Ever.

You Showed Us How Inspirational A Pair Of Free Throws Could Be.

 

Now, Show Us Again.”

The ad surprised Bryant, he responded to Nike on his Twitter by saying:

“Thank you @nike for this surprise spread in the paper this am. It touched me beyond words. #showuIwill instagram.com/p/YX3oQxxNr8/

— Kobe Bryant (@kobebryant) April 21, 2013“

The ad can also be seen here as a video. Overall, it’s a timely and well thought our tribute to a great superstar in basketball. Get well Kobe.

 

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child News NFL

Former NFL Star Michael Boley ‘Secretly’ Arrested for Abuse of his 5-year-old Son

Former New York Giants linebacker Michael Boley was arrested for child abuse in February just three days after he was cut from the team, it was revealed today.

Boley, 30, had been under investigation in Alabama stemming from a 2011 incident involving his then-5-year-old son.

The details of the case involving the ex-NFL star have been under wraps, but sources told the gossip site TMZ that the alleged abuse was physical and not sexual in nature.

The starting linebacker in Super Bowl XLVI was set to go before a grand jury in February, but he reached a plea agreement with the prosecution.

The 30-year-old father of six admitted to child abuse, and in exchange was ordered to enter a pre-trial diversion program. Upon completing the course, the charge would be dropped against Boley, who indicated that he intends to comply with these conditions.

As part of the plea deal, the football player was also required to turn himself in February 8 in Etowah County, Alabama. He was released without posting a bond later that day.

Boley, who was first drafted in 2005 by the Atlanta Falcons, ended his career with the Giants on February 5, just three days before his arrest. He is currently a free agent.

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Boston NBA new york knicks Sports

Boston Too Strong For New York – A Game 6 Is On The Schedule

There was hope for New York fans as the Knicks went up by 11 points early in the first quarter of game 5, but it turned out to be a false sense of security as the Boston Celtics just refused to let their season come to an end on the Garden floor. And at the end of the first quarter, that 11 point cushion quickly evaporated resulting in a 22 – 20 lead for New York.

And the evaporation continued with Boston playing their best basketball since this series started. Led by Paul Pierce and Jason Terry in the second quarter, Boston scored 25 points, while keeping the Knicks to only 17.

At halftime, Boston led 45 – 37.

It was a three-point expedition and Pierce was throwing them up all over the place. At one point, it seemed as if the Knicks players were all spectators, sitting on the bench as Pierce put up yet another uncontested three pointer. But Paul Pierce was not the only dagger in the Knicks sides, oh no. The Refs made some calls that had everyone scratching their heads. Reminded me of the NFL lockout when the temporary referees were the laughing-stock of all of sports.

But back to basketball.

Carmelo Anthony did not produce the MVP type game everyone expected. He played 45 minutes, shooting a dismal 8 of 24 field goals for a very quiet 22 points. J. Smith, the missing element in the Knicks loss in Boston was on the court for game 5, but did not produce the Sixth Man of the year caliber game either. Plagued by the constant whistle by the referees, Smith played a total of 36 minutes, shooting a horrendous 3 for 14 field goals, getting only 14 points for his troubles. At one point, he went took 11 straight shots, making zero.

Boston on the other hand couldn’t miss. They were led by J. Green with 18 points, followed by B. Bass who shot 6 of 7 field goals, in his 40 minutes of play. Bass got 17 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists. Jason Terry also had 17 followed by Pierce and Garnett with 16 each.

Final score in the game was Boston 92, Knicks 86. The series now heads back to Boston for game 6 on Friday. No other NBA team has come back from a 3-0 deficit to win a series, but Boston is definitely giving it their best shot.

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Sports

Seven Year Old Jack Hoffman Scores Touchdown, Meets President Obama

In case you haven’t seen it yet, we’ve posted the video below. Jack Hoffman is seven years old and battling pediatric brain cancer. Jack met with President Obama today after scoring a 69 yard touchdown on April 6th during a  Nebraska Cornhuskers spring football game.

Did you miss it? Well here is Jack, doing his thing!

And his meeting with the President.

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NBA Sports

NBA Jason Collins: “I’m an NBA Center. I’m Black and I’m Gay”

Jason Collins, a 12-year N.B.A. veteran, has come out as the first openly gay male athlete playing in a major American team sport.

“I’m a 34-year-old N.B.A. center. I’m black and I’m gay,” Collins writes in the May 6 edition of Sports Illustrated. The magazine published the article online Monday morning.

The announcement makes Collins a pioneer of sorts: the first player in the N.B.A., N.F.L., N.H.L. or Major League Baseball to come out while still pursuing his career. Other gay athletes, including the former N.B.A. center John Amaechi, have waited until retirement to divulge their sexuality publicly.

Collins, who split this season between the Boston Celtics and the Washington Wizards, will become a free agent on July 1. He intends to pursue another contract in the summer, which may serve as a test for how N.B.A. teams respond to the announcement.

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New York Sports

What Drafting Geno Smith Means

Mark Sanchez is owed $8.25 million next season after having a miserable 2012-13 season

Let me just say, I’m not sure if drafting Geno Smith was a wise move or just a move to create publicity. The Jets current roster has Mark Sanchez, Tim Tebow, Geno Smith, David Garrard, Greg McElroy, and Matt Simms all for the position of quarterback; That list is just down right ridiculous. While guys like McElroy and Simms are not big names nor important right now, the questions still circulate around Sanchez and Smith. Will the Jet’s release Sanchez, taking a $12.35 million cap hit this year and $4.8 million hit in 2014, or will they keep him and let him compete for a job that was once easily his? Will Garrad be the back up to Smith or will Garrad have the starting job?

Welcome Geno Smith, to the Jets media circus

Once again I’m going to do a favor to a professional sports teams front office, free of charge; it would be wise to release Mark Sanchez. Granted his 2012-2013 season was horrific,  though it will be an immediate cap hit this season, it will push the Jets under cap for the 2014 season. Garrad is more than skilled enough to help Geno Smith grow, assuming he is the next franchise quarterback for the Jets. If they shall go on this releasing frenzy, also release Tebow and allow him to carve his own path in the NFL. Let Geno get comfortable playing for the Jets and let Rex Ryan reel in his defense again; perhaps one day soon we shall see the Jets again in an AFC championship game. Until that day comes, the Jets have quite a lot of work to do.

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basketball Boston Sports

New York Knicks: “Let Defence Be Your Best Offence”

“Let defence be your best offence.” That was said by Walt Clyde Frazier during the fourth quarter of the Knicks/Boston playoff game tonight, as New York scored a three off a steals from Boston. The three pointer in the final 10 minutes of the game extended the Knicks lead by 21 points, paving the way for what would eventually be a commanding win by New York.

Game 3 of the first round against Boston was played in Boston. But having the home court advantage turned out to be no advantage for Boston, as New York played one of the best defensive games they’ve played in a long time. The game ended with the Knicks stealing the ball from Boston a total of 14 times, and their suffocating defense caused Boston to turn the ball over 17 times.

The final score was Knicks 90, Boston 76. The game really wasn’t as close as the score suggests.

Carmelo Anthony led the scoring for the Knicks with another great effort, putting up 26 points in 37 minutes. Point guard Felton had an all round productive game, scoring 15 points in 35 minutes of play. He also had 2 rebounds, 10 assists and just 3 turnovers. J. Smith also had 15 points, but received a flagrant Type 2 foul and received an automatic ejection after throwing an elbow at Boston’s Jason Terry. Smith’s absence resulted in a four point play for Boston, but shots by Carmelo Anthony and Tyson Chandler kept Boston at bay.

For Boston, J. Green led the team with 21 points in 44 minutes. Paul Pierce had 17 followed by J. Terry with 14.

New York now leads the series 3-0, with game 4 scheduled for Sunday. In the history of the NBA, no team has ever come back from being down 3 games to win a series, so chances that the Knicks will win this series are very high. Game 4 will be played in Boston at 1PM Eastern.

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fan Mike Brown NBA Sports

Keep Dreaming Cleveland..

There is no secret behind the end of the 2014 NBA season and that years top free agent, Lebron James. There is also no secret behind top marquee teams, I’m looking at you L.A Lakers, freeing up cap space that year to land the current best player in the NBA. There is also no surprise behind the rumors of  “The King” returning to his hometown Cleveland Cavaliers for one last stint. To that I say: Keep dreaming Cleveland.

Lebron James left Cleveland in 2010

It’s sad to see how quickly the Cleveland Cavaliers fell after the departure of Lebron James back in 2010. They fired coach Mike Brown, who they just recently rehired, months before James left. Since then there’s very very little they’ve gotten right outside of their lottery pick up of up and coming All Star Kyrie Irving. Since 2010 they’ve gone 19-63, 21-45, and 24-58 under coach Byron Scott, who is now unemployed.

Cleveland fans would love a Mike Brown and Lebron James reunion

Entering the 2014 season the Cleveland Cavaliers will have an estimated $29 million in free cap space to sign a number of players or just give Lebron a max contract and a blank check. I can’t say I have much faith in the Cavaliers front office to work out a smart business decision, but players such as Luol Deng, Rudy Gay, Andre Iguodala, and Paul George are all free agents that year as well. Match any of them with Kyrie Irving and you will easily have an amazing duo to play and dominate in the immediate future.

Current Cavaliers Point Guard Kyrie Irving

Speaking of Kyrie, he is the only person the Cav’s front office should be concerned of keeping very happy. He is the only player on the roster who a team should be built around. Hey Cleveland! Kyrie Irving is going to be an All Star very soon, he’s going to be a top Point Guard in this league even sooner; Cleveland, this is your next star!

Here I can do it for you Cavaliers front office and best of all is that I won’t charge you a penny. Throw out your pipe dreams of landing Lebron in 2014 and start shopping the free agent market, use your incredibly valuable top draft picks wisely, and also keep Mike Brown around for his contract length, he is a good coach.

Lastly…if I was a Cavaliers fan I’d never want a star player who went out like this, back in my hometown’s uniform.

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Boston new york knicks Sports

Knicks Take Game 2 Against Boston – Remember Kenyon Martin?

Kenyon Martin

The energy for game 2 at the Garden tonight was high. Carmelo Anthony scored the first points for the Knicks and the immediate impression was that tonight, the Knicks would ride the high intensity of the crowd all the way to the last second of the fourth quarter. But these are The Knicks, and nothing they do come easily.

J.R Smith who received the trophy for Sixth Man of the Year before the game, came out with some extra pep in his step. He quickly proved why he won that award scoring every time he touched the ball. But that would be what slowed the momentum and eventually took the rest of the team out of the game, as they all stood around watching in amazement to see Smith’s next move. Smith didn’t disappoint, ending the first quarter with an unbelievable shot from 6th Ave to beat the game clock.

The Knicks ended the first quarter with 26 points to Boston’s 20.

The second quarter was a different story where Boston took control of the game with 28 points in the quarter to the Knicks 16. At the end the half, Boston proudly displayed an 8 point lead. At the end of the half, JR Smith was the game leading scorer with 13 points in 20 minutes.

And then the third quarter started and Boston apparently stayed in the locker room.

Knicks, led by Carmelo Anthony’s 34 game high points ran the court as if they were playing a pick up game. J. Smith ended the night with 19 points followed by Felton with 16. But it was Kenyon Martin who picked up the emotions the Knicks lost in the second quarter, and he took that energy and emotion all the way to the end. Martin, who was picked up by the Knicks on a 10 day contract played 23 minutes. He only had 3 points, but it was his intensity on defence that got the Garden faithful going. Martin ended the game with 11 rebounds, 2 assists and 4 block shots.

Knicks ended winning the game with a final score of 87 – 71.

For Boston, the third and fourth quarters were dismal. They scored a total of 11 points in the third and 12 points in the fourth. Paul Pierce ended with 18 points, followed by Kevin Garnett with 12 points and 5 fouls. Green and Crawford both had 10 points and it was single digits from there on. The series now goes to Boston for a Friday night game, with the Knicks leading the series two games to none.

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Boston Sports

Big Papi Drops Big F

Today, emotions were high at Fenway Park as the Red Sox were set to take on the Royals. The first game at Fenway since the day of the marathon bombing was sure to have an inspiring pre-game ceremony. Add in the fact that authorities were able to kill one of the bombers and arrest the second bomber last night and you get a very strong feeling of pride in Boston. Early this morning, the Red Sox tweeted that their home jerseys would be a little different today. Attached was this picture.


The Red Sox home jersey says just that, “Red Sox.” But today, they would read BOSTON for the city they so pridefully represent. On a day where fans came to use this mass gathering to show their pride as well, the team’s undisputed leader addressed the packed house after a touching tribute to the victims and first responders.

David Ortiz stood in the infield in his special BOSTON jersey with a large American flag draped over the Green Monster behind him, and he spoke to the fans and to a national TV audience. Ortiz explained that their jerseys did not say Red Sox today but instead Boston. He went on to thank the Mayor of Boston, the Governor of Massachusetts, and the Boston Police Department. He then said “This is our fucking city and no one is going to dictate our freedom.” He thanked the crowed and yelled “Stay Strong” as he walked off the field. League Commissioner Bud Selig was probably not too fond of Ortiz’s speech but the crowed went absolutely wild. Maybe using the F word was a little unorthodox but I think it showed passion and it made it clear that Ortiz is not just an athlete getting paid to be there. He is a Bostonian even if he’s not originally from Boston.

What happened in on April 15th was terrible. But it was Patriots Day in Boston and it is only fitting that we feel Patriotic about this amazing country and its amazing resolve. Maybe things like the Bruins game the other night and today’s Red Sox game seem silly to some people. And after something so terrible happens, you realize that these are just games and they are not that important in the grand scheme of things. But I’m a New Yorker. I screamed my lungs out when Mike Piazza hit the game winning home run against the Braves in the first game in New York after September 11th. I also stayed up late into the night to watch three amazing World Series games in the Bronx that October/November. Sports, at a time like this, may not be that important but they serve as a distraction. More importantly, they give us a reason to cheer again.

Below is a link to a video of David Ortiz’s stirring pre-game speech.
This Is Our F**king City

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NBA Sports

NBA Playoffs – New York Knicks Takes Game 1 Against Boston Celtics

This is the beginning of the 2013 NBA Playoffs and for all the Knicks fans out there, today’s Knick win (85 – 78) against the Boston Celtics is a little bitter, but a lot sweet.

Bitter because as New Yorkers, we stand by Boston with all they’ve gone through over the last week. A week that brought them two bombings, killing three innocent people and wounding many more on Monday, then climaxing on Friday with the suspense filled, all day coverage where one suspect was killed and the other captured.

And in the beginning of game one at The Garden, the Knicks showed ample respect to Boston, but then it was time to play.

In a game that was close throughout, Carmelo Anthony stayed true to form. He played 41 minutes, scored 36 points and pulled down 6 rebounds. His play today helped New York overcome a fourth quarter deficit and helped the Knicks hold Boston to a total of 8 points in that quarter. Boston went a full 5 minutes without scoring to start the quarter.

“It’s going to be a battle,” Anthony said. “Although we won today, we really didn’t do anything. We’re just protecting our home court. Game 2 will be even tougher, even harder.”

J. Smith continued his great play, picking up 15 points, 5 rebounds in 31 minutes of play. Kenyon Martin proved valuable with his 10 points, 9 rebounds in 28 minutes. With his history of defence, this 2013 playoff is sure to be something special.

Boston was led by J. Green, who played 46 minutes and scored 26 points. Paul Pierce contributed 21 followed by Bradley with 15. Kevin Garnett’s play was below average. He played 37 minutes, but had only 8 points in the whole game.

The two teams will play game two of the series on April 23, at 8PM Eastern.

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