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Terry Lyons

TL’s Sunday Sports Notes | Dec 12th

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By TERRY LYONS

BOSTON – Welcome to the Land of Confusion.

This week, we’re serving up the controversial happenings in sports, clearing the mayhem out before the Holiday Season, Peace on Earth, Goodwill Towards Men and Tidings of Comfort and Joy.

Instead, there’s a Land of Confusion, including:

  • Diplomatic Boycotting of the Beijing Winter Olympic Games by USA (with similar support from the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada and Lithuania).
  • The Women’s Tennis Association suspending play in China in response to alleged sexual assault and disappearance of star tennis player Peng Shua
  • Celtics’ reserve center Enes Kanter Freedom campaigning on human rights issues in Turkey and China

Most likely, the Diplomatic boycott will have little to zero effect on the athletes at the games. It’s not like an Austrian skier is going to be thinking about the USA Chef de Mission while awaiting the downhill slalom ride of a lifetime. But let’s pose a few questions to see where this might go in a few weeks (February 4, 2022)?

(Getty Images)

Might the youth of the world collectively question the USA’s recent past in terms of suppressing voter rights, limiting women’s healthcare and upending a 50-year Constitutional decision, never mind issues regarding “rising climate and environmental concerns, growing financial and economic coercion,” noted a recent missive from the Council of Foreign Relations examining the previous US administration’s tendency to “increasingly invoke national security as a justification for restricting trade, while its prolific use of quotas, sanctions, tariffs, and the like threatens to destroy the rules-based economic order.”

In other words, will the USA Olympians have to pay a price for a 2017-to-2021 undermining of U.S. allies across the globe, or the decision to withdraw from the Paris Accord? (President Joe Biden re-joined the Paris Accord at recent COP26 summit).

On the flip side, can the USA and other countries utilize the global spotlight of the Olympic Games to pressure China on the allegations of torture, forced detention, sterilization, religious persecution and atrocities committed against the Uyghur people – a Muslim ethnic group in northwest China?

Some (including 180 human rights groups) have called for a full boycott of the games, but White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki defended the decision to allow American athletes to compete by saying that it would be unfair to “penalize athletes who have been training, preparing for this moment,” and adding that the diplomatic boycott “sends a clear message.”

Meanwhile the relatively small WTA stood-up to fight a mighty battle against China, one the International Olympic Committee would never broach as the Celtics’ scrub Kanter stands on his own vs. human rights issues, calling-out his native Turkey and now China. Kanter has even singled-out NBA superstar LeBron James and Lin-sanity himself in Jeremy Lin, 33, a former NBA player of Taiwanese-American descent. Lin now cashes a check, playing for the Beijing Ducks of the Chinese Basketball Association.

All the while, the IOC claims to be non-political, and many sports fans claim they don’t want to mix politics and sports, but that ship sailed long, long ago.

The Sports vs. Political landscape is muddy. The answers will never come, unless you measure USA Nielsen TV ratings which is never a method that can be considered an exact science.

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: Hunt Auctions this week presented an amazing offering of game memorabilia and other artifacts from the personal collection of Boston Celtics legend Bill Russell. The auction items were owned and carefully collected by Russell throughout his life, chronicling his historic basketball career and seminal role as a leader in the Civil Rights movement in the United States, beginning in the 1950s.

Notable sales from the auction, held at TD Garden in Boston, included:

  • $1,116,250 – 1969 Bill Russell Boston Celtics professional model jersey worn in Game #7 of the 1969 NBA Finals, the final game of his NBA career
  • $1,313,500 – Cumulative total for Russell’s five MVP awards
  • $705,000 – 1957 championship ring, Russell’s first ring
  • $587,500 – 1956 Olympic gold medal
  • $558,125 – 1969 championship ring, the last of Russell’s 11 championships

TL’s Sunday Sports Notebook – Dec. 5

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While We’re Young (Ideas) Looks at the Month of December

BOSTON – December is the deepest and darkest month of the year. The winter solstice fast approaching this December 21st and the Christmas season coming immediately after for those who celebrate the holiday. While I’ve written about the NFL Red Zone’s “Witching Hour,” I have not, until now, written about December in the NFL. In Red Zone terms, it is the “month when winners win and losers lose.”

NFL Decembers make me shiver. December in the NFL is when 12, 13 and maybe 14-win teams are made. Last December 6-8, three of the four AFC/NFL championship participants won their games with Tampa Bay on a bye week. The eventual Super Bowl champion Bucs won all three of their December games and posted a “W” in their final regular season hame, a 44-27 ear-slap of Atlanta. Overall, Tampa won their final eight games of 2020-21.

In 2019, the Kansas City Chiefs caught fire in December, scorching the Raiders 40-9. The Super Bowl champion Chiefs won their final nine games. You have to look back to 2018 when the New England Patriots lost a costly 34-33 game at Miami to see a difference in the trend, although the Patriots spanked Minnesota in NFL Week 13, 24-10 and that game was one of ten late season wins as the Patriots closed out their 2018 schedule, 10-3, to advance for a 13-3 Super Bowl win over the Los Angeles Rams.

Back in 2017, the Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles won their 11-12-13th games in December, but bookended the month with losses, including a 24-10 loss at Seattle on December 3 and a strange and meaningless 6-0 loss vs. Dallas on New Year’s eve. Philly won 12 of their last 14.

What will Week 13, December 2-6 bring to the NFL?

The Dallas Cowboys have already made their December to remember statement with an easy 27-17 win over an injury-plagued New Orleans team this past Thursday. Green Bay (9-3) has a bye week scheduled while the Buffalo Bills and New England Patriots play Monday night.

Suffice to say, this weekend might separate the contenders in a league full of good but not great football teams. The (9-2) Arizona Cardinals have suffered injuries to their All Pro quarterback in Kyler Murray. Running back Chase Edmonds remains sidelined and All Pro wide-out DeAndre Hopkinshas been out since October 28, nursing a hamstring injury.

Tampa Bay (8-3) has been less than impressive, winning two of their last four. A divisional match-up at Atlanta awaits and we’ll see if Tom Brady and his Tampa teammates can shift into “Oh, What a Night” mode this December.

NFL POWER RANKINGS: With a long way to go and such mediocrity, eh – we’ll call it parity – in the NFL this season, I’m hesitant to do any meaningful Power Rankings. Injuries, including the inevitable COVID-19 outbreak or two, can upset the December applecart. But here’s a Top 10 in the NFL, all with a December to determine the contenders or pretenders.

  1. Buffalo Bills – The Bills will need to prove it Monday Night, but with a win over New England, they can place themselves atop the AFC, although a game at Tampa Bay and another match-up at divisional rival New England awaits.
  2. Kansas City Chiefs – Guess which NFL team has reeled-off four wins in a row, including a 13-7 win vs. Green Bay and a 19-9 win vs Dallas? Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs’ offense is tough to match-up against and the KC “D” is improving each and every game.
  3. Dallas Cowboys – After a disappointing 31-29 opening week loss to Tampa, Dallas won seven-of-eight, including a hard-fought, overtime win at Foxborough. Four of their last five regular season games are against NFC Least opponents.
  4. Arizona Cardinals – A league-leading (9-2) record with (6-0) on the road deserves praise but, as noted, the Cards need to get healthy in a hurry.
  5. Green Bay Packers – The Pack’s lost two of its last four, but had a much-needed and impressive 36-28 victory over the LA Rams on November 28. The Packers have a bye week to prepare for their final five regular season games.
  6. Baltimore Ravens – The (8-3) Ravens are the team no other AFC club wants to see in the playoffs. QB Lamar Jackson leads the offense, of course, but the key to the Ravens’ success (or not) will be on the defensive and special teams side of the field. The defense is stepping up over the past two victories over Cleveland and Chicago.
  7. New England Patriots – If December NFL football does one thing, it sets off the “Rookie Quarterback” alarm and QB Mac Jones, the favorite for Rookie of the Year, still qualifies for the alarm bell. For New England to be successful, the defense and special teams units will have to make big plays, force turnovers and win games. Jones can hold his own with the offense, especially if WR Kendrick Bourne continues his emergence.
  8. Tennessee Titans – You lose the best running back in the league (Derrick Henry) and you’re in trouble. The Titans lost their last two games (to Houston and New England). Previously, it was a six-game winning streak and eight wins over nine games. Can they run the ball against the NFL’s more elite teams?
  9. Cincinnati Bengals – Winning games follows QB Joe Burrow around even though costly losses to the Jets and Browns overshadowed pairs of wins coming three times in season, including victories over the Ravens, Raiders and melting Steelers (twice).
  10. In the NFC, only Washington FT and SF 49ers own three-game win streaks while AFC streakers include New England (six straight) along with KC and the Miami Dolphins as winners of their last four games. From some mix of Washington, SF, Miami and the LA Rams & Chargers comes the 10th best team. That said in this crazy and unpredictable 2021 NFL season, there’s a chance none of them qualify for the playoffs.

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: Talk about December football and the toughest of the tough and you have the annual Army vs Navy game, scheduled for December 11 at Met Life Stadium in the swamps of Jersey, rather than its usual home in sunny Philadelphia.

On the Sports Biz side, the folks at the Army-Navy game’s presenting sponsor, USAA, organized an impressive “Radio Row” facility at the Philadelphia Convention Hall pre-COVID-19 (Dec. 2019) but have moved the location to The Intrepid Air & Space Museum to preview this year’s game. … Nice back-drop for a number of national radio broadcasts and also the likes of: KNBR (SF), KILT (Houston), 106.7 the Fan (DC), KFAN (Minneapolis), WDAE (Tampa), KKFN (Denver), WFNZ (Charlotte), 97.3 the Fan (San Diego), 104.5 the Zone (Nashville) or ESPNSA (San Antonio).

BY PROVIDENCE: In keeping up with our coverage of, and intense interest in, the Big East Conference, we’ll note that Providence up-ended Rhode Island, 66-52, in the 131st battle between the two RI schools. Providence has now won 12 of the last 18 meetings. The Friars are also atop the Big East non-conference standings at (8-1) with their only loss coming at the hands of Virginia. Providence scrubbed Texas Tech (72-68) in their Big East vs Big 12 Battle earlier this week. UConn is also (8-1) with their Saturday win over Grambling (88-59). On Friday night at the new UBS Arena, home of the New York Islanders of the NHL-and-AHL, wink, wink, The No. 8 rated Kansas Jayhawks drilled St. John’s by 25 (95-75) in the first basketball game ever played in the arena.

  1. NOTES, NOTES, AND MORE NOTES: A year-long subscription to TL’s Sunday Sports Notes – While We’re Young (Ideas) is a perfect way to have the sports fan in your life look forward to an old-fashioned, weekly, notebook full of sports insights. Sign-up for this special offer: HERE
  2. PGA TOUR BRUNCH AS CHAMPIONS RETURN OF THE TOUR:Plans are on-going to re-launch the popular PGA Tour Brunch newsletter when the pros tee-it-up at Sentry Tournament of Champions Jan. 5-9, 2022 at The Plantation Course in Maui.

SIGN-UP HERE FOR PGA TOUR BRUNCH.

TL’s Sunday Sports Notes – Nov. 28

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While We’re Young (Ideas) Gives Thanks

By TERRY LYONS

BOSTON – It’s Thanksgiving Weekend and time to STOP, THINK and THANK just a few people and REMEMBER a few things. The column comes complete with minimal BS, complaining, snark or sentimental goop while trying to avoid the negatives and all-to-often critical sniping. It does begin with a memorial dedication for 2020-21.

First things first:

It’s 2021, and there’s a global pandemic screaming bloody murder, so we must first pay thanks to our health, if we are so fortunate to do so. Before we can give thanks, it’s time to pay respects to those who lost their lives to COVID or other crisis this year. Special note to the late Madison Dubiski of Houston who lost her life in the crush of the Travis Scott concert at Astroworld along with at least nine others. Madison’s father, Brian, is a good friend of the column and was just hanging at Fenway Park when the Astros dispatched the Red Sox in late October. Madison was 23 years old at the time of her passing away in the crowd at NRG Park/Stadium in Houston on November 5. Dozens and dozens of others were injured. May God Bless.

Let’s Go.

From the Cranberry-Apple-Orange sauce to left-over Turkey Breast sandwiches, Thanksgiving is a favorite of holidays for many of us. Thanks to the Seventy-seven days until pitchers & Catchers report, then Opening Day, then Patriots’ Day and the Boston Marathon, and the 11am start at Fenway. … Thanks for the E-Z Pass and Smart TVs. … Frank Zamboni and to the guy who cut out the bottom of the peach basket, the greatest rule change in basketball history. … Thanks to Bill Russell and Satch and thanks to the memory of Wilt Chamberlain, Elgin Baylor, who we lost this past March 21, as we remember Press and Pistol Pete Maravich.

Thanks for The NFL Red Zone and avoiding 100 car insurance commercials as we watch the NFL. To the Witching Hour, when wins become losses and losses become wins on the Octo-Box. … Thanks for Justin and Jalen and Josh, for Lamar, Cam (before him), Aaron, Kirk and Dak. … Thanks for Jonathan Taylor and Austin Ekeler … and to Cooper, Davanti, Tyreek, Deebo, and Ja’Marr.

Thanks for the Iron Bowl and El Clásico with a sentimental kiss to The Mayor’s Trophy Game.

Thanks to Joe DiLorenzo, Duane Johnson, Stephen Riley, Tod Rosensweig, Jan Volk, Steve “Globie” Lipofsky, and Jeff Twiss, and to Brian and especially Heather – all Boston Celtics colleagues.

Thanks for the New England snow-mobiles, aka Suburu OutBack and Forester, that keep us safe in rain, sleet or snow. In Boston, the Mail Person drives a Suburu. … Thanks to Wood-Boy who brings us a Cord+ of hard wood each Fall and thanks for the fireplace that burns that wood and makes us feel cozy, warm and fortunate each cold, winter night.

Thanks to St. John’s men’s basketball for driving me crazy every season, dating back to 1968 or so, and certainly since 1978 when a full season ticket was about $43. … Thanks to Lou Carnesecca just for being Louie. Thanks to his one-time assistant coach John Kresse. Thanks to coach Mike Andersonfor giving it his all in a rock solid conference where winning a road game is like winning Game 7 every year. … Thanks to the BIG EAST and Val and Stu and John P. … Let’s hope all goes well and The Garden is packed for the tournament this coming March. … Thanks to FS-1 for televising every game, but, I’ll ask again, can you lose the John Tesh Roundball Rock music?

Thanks to Derek & Susan and to Mike Mattison and the whole TT Band. … Oh, how we miss Kofi. … Thanks to Bruce (H). and Bruce (S). for the Spirit Trail and my Spirit in the Night. … What a Ride.

Thanks to Jeff Kazee for playing his Living Room Lounge series of solo piano concerts, played every week until March 24th, a year after all hell broke loose. … Just for Jeff, root for the Cincinnati Reds. … Thank to Rich (P) and Will Lee and the Fab Faux. Missed seeing a 2021 show, first time in a along time.

Speaking of the Fab, thanks to and for Penny (Lane). She’s keeping me company, snoozin’ as this is typed. She’s just a little more than a year old and joined our family last Thanksgiving.

Thanks to Abe and Terry, not The Real TL, and all the crew at The Sports Business Daily and Journal and to Scott, Dick and Corey and the new crew at Sportico. They keep us informed, as does CBS News, Norah and Dana, Jeff, Glor and Anthony Mason, who just ROCKS when he does a piece on music – any genre.

Here’s to Nate Burleson, a regular on the sports scene as and NFL wide-out for the Minnesota Vikings but a budding superstar on the Morning News. Burleson is a natural. His sense of team with the CBS Morning anchors (Gayle King and Tony Dokoupil) is only surpassed by his sense of camaraderie with the productions staff.

HERE’s TO: John Caron, Dave Glucksman, Dana Roy, and Higor Trindade – the anchors of West End Johnnies (and Fenway, too). To Arty,Evan, Frank & Henry and everyone – Thank you. It was a tough, tough year to be in the restaurant business, but both joints made it through.

Thanks to Ken Adelson, Len Deluca, Stacia Fritchie – my cohorts and colleagues. To Dinn Mann – cohort to be. Bob Delaney, Dave Scheiber and Philip Turner, cohorts past, present and future. To NBA friends and colleagues far and wide, Brian, Matt, Spy, Chris, Rick, Russ, AG and RL + far too many more to list. To Ed Desser and John Kosner, thanks for guidance as we gear-up for 2022.

Here’s to, too: Kevin Doyle, Abby and everyone at Fenway. Gonna miss official scorer Mike Shalin so, so much – gone far too soon. Also gonna miss seeing Dan Lyons who retired from the Sox and Tom Keegan, former columnist for the Boston Herald, caught in the grind of the pandemic and back to the Midwest. See you in springtime, Fenway Fam.

Thanks to Berj and the Patriots. To Harold and the Mets. Jimmy J and Pat LaFontaine and Companions in Courage. Special thanks to Craig Miller,currently working his final international basketball tournament as the head of communications for USA Basketball. From 1992 to 2022 is a nice, little run – working every level of basketball, men’s and women’s, gold and glory, defeat and misery.

Best in the Biz Greetings to Scott Rosner and LJ Holmgren at Columbia University’s Sports Management program with special thanks to CUSP-man and PR Joe Fav who teams up with Tom Richardson on said CUSP Show(podcast). It’s always a pleasure to speak at Columbia for Joe Fav, but this year, we were forced to Zoom video, as we did a year ago. … Joe Fav took a different dive come Thanksgiving and provided us with thoughtful reminder of life in 2021.

Finally, to family – immediate and extended – and to friends all over the world – many made through sports and music – (add food, water, air and SHAKE, NOT STIR for life – Thanks for being you.

Do I hear there’s an AFC/NFC Championship gathering ahead?

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: Riddle me this? Which sport’s overtime is more ridiculous and unworthy of deciding the outcome of a regular season game?

  • The NHL: After three periods and a deadlocked regular season game, the normal five-on-five (plus a goalkeeper) becomes three-on-three for a single five-minute stanza. After that, it goes to a shoot-out for three rounds, most goals wins. If tied, sudden death shoot-out determines the outcome. In the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs, it’s five-on-five for 20-minute intervals (periods) until a team scores. It’s the best, most exciting playoff in sports, especially in a Game 7.
  • MLB: Extra innings now call for a runner (last man at bat in the previous inning) to be placed on second base. Commissioner Rob Manfred stated that the “man on second” rule and 7-inning double-headers are probably a thing of the past.
  • College Football: Where do we start?
    • At the end of regulation, the referee will toss a coin to determine which team will possess the ball first in overtime. The visiting team captain will call the toss. The winner gets to choose to either play offense or defense first or chooses which side of the field to play on. The decision cannot be deferred.
    • The teams that loses the coin toss must exercise the remaining option. They will then have the chance to choose first from the four categories in the second overtime and subsequent even-numbered OT periods. The team that wins the toss will have the same options in odd-numbered OT periods.
    • In each of the first two overtime periods, teams are granted one possession beginning at the opponent’s 25-yard line, unless a penalty occurs to move them back. The offense can place the ball anywhere on or between the hash marks.
    • Each team is granted one timeout per overtime period. Timeouts do not carry over from regulation nor do they carry over between overtime periods.
    • Each team retains the ball until it fails to score, fails to make a first down or turns the ball over.
    • Beginning with the second overtime period, teams must attempt a two-point conversion after scoring a touchdown.

You might as well have the teams all gather in a circle and play “Spin the Bottle” to decide a winner.

Big East Hoops Holiday

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NEW YORK – (Staff Report from Official News Release) – Connecticut won its second overtime game in three days. Xavier grabbed a one-point win and DePaul remained the BIG EAST’s only unbeaten team. Georgetown almost made it a 4-0 sweep, but the Hoyas lost a tight one on the West Coast.

UConn beat VCU 70-63 in overtime in the third-place game of the Battle 4 Atlantis. R.J. Cole scored a game-high 26 points. Isaiah Whaley, who was held out of Thursday’s game after fainting after Wednesday’s opening-round contest, sent the game into overtime with a late 3-pointer. His 3-point basket opened the scoring in the extra period and the gave the Huskies (6-1) the lead for good. Whaley finished with 16 points.

Xavier (5-0), playing without starters Colby Jones, Jerome Hunter and Dieonte Miles due to illness, used a career scoring night by Nate Johnson to edge Virginia Tech 59-58 in the third-place game of the NIT Tip-Off. Johnson poured in 30 points, including the game-winning 3-pointer with 25 seconds left. He played all 40 minutes, made 7-of-11 from beyond the arc, and did not commit a turnover.

DePaul improved to 5-0 under new coach Tony Stubblefield with a 77-68 win against Northern Kentucky at Wintrust Arena in the Blue Demons’ second game of the Blue Demon Classic. Javon Freeman-Liberty, who had a double-double by halftime, finished with 20 points and 12 rebounds. Nick Ongenda added 17 points on 8-of-11 shooting. The 5-0 start under a new coach is the first at DePaul since Joey Meyer began 6-0 in 1984-85.

Georgetown (2-3) scored 48 points in the second half, but could not complete the recovery from a 13-point deficit in a 77-74 loss to Saint Joseph’s in the third-place game of the Wooden Legacy. Kaiden Rice scored 19 of his team-high 25 points after intermission. Timothy Ighoefe grabbed a career-high 14 rebounds and blocked three shots.

The holiday weekend continues on Saturday with four games – all home contests for league teams and all on FS2. At noon ET, Providence hosts Saint Peter’s. St. John’s meets NJIT at Carnesecca Arena at 4 p.m. followed by SIU-Edwardsville at Creighton at 6 p.m. and Northern Illinois at Marquette at 8 p.m.

Big East: Four on the Floor

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PARADISE ISLAND, BAHAMAS – (Staff Report from Official News Release) – Connecticut, Xavier and Georgetown complete tournament play away from home on Friday, while undefeated DePaul hosts Northern Kentucky.

UConn (5-1) meets VCU in the third-place game of the Battle 4 Atlantis at 1:30 p.m. ET on ESPN2. The Huskies suffered their first loss of the season, a 64-60 decision to Michigan State on Thursday, after a late lead slipped away. The Huskies got double-double performances from Adama Sanogo (18 pts., 10 rebs.) and Tyrese Martin (16 and 12).

Xavier (4-1) also tries to bounce back from its first loss of the season when it plays Virginia Tech in the NIT Tip-Off at Barclays Center at 7 p.m. on ESPN2. Jack Nunge had 24 points off the bench in an 82-70 loss to Iowa State on Wednesday. Xavier hopes to get Adam Kunkel back after he missed the Iowa State game with an illness.

Georgetown (2-2) meets Saint Joseph’s in the third-place game of the Wooden Legacy at 9 p.m. on ESPNU. The Hoyas lost to San Diego State 73-56 late Thursday. Aminu Mohammed finished with 20 points and Dante Harris added 19. With a 15.5 scoring average, Mohammed is one of only two true freshmen in the league to lead his team in scoring. Creighton’s Ryan Nembhard (14.2) is the other.

DePaul (4-0) hosts Northern Kentucky at Wintrust Arena in the second of three games in the Blue Demon Classic. FS2 will televise at 5 p.m. DePaul has won 30 of its last 36 games against non-league competition. Western Illinois was the previous opponent for both teams.

Sports Biz: MSG, Caesars Take Gamble

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NEW YORK – (Staff Report from Official News Release) – Madison Square Garden Sports agreed to a multi-year marketing partnership with Caesars Sportsbook, an entity of Caesars Entertainment, making Caesars Sportsbook an Official Sports Betting Partner of the New York Knicks, New York Rangers, Madison Square Garden Arena and MSG Networks. In addition, the sportsbook operator will gain significant digital media exposure via MSG Sports’ and MSG Entertainment’s platforms. MSG will offer its menu of hospitality experiences at The Garden that will be available to Caesars Rewards program customers.

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Caesars Sportsbook will have a branded, premium hospitality space inside Madison Square Garden that will be open for all Knicks and Rangers home games, and additional events. Caesars Rewards members – including customers that sign up for the Caesars Sportsbook mobile app – will have an opportunity to access the space, which will undergo a full refurbishment leading into the 2022-23 Knicks and Rangers seasons. Once complete, the space will be highlighted with Caesars Sportsbook branding and feature unique programming, including special guest appearances, giveaways, and enhanced activations, all available through Caesars Rewards.

Through this partnership with Caesars Sportsbook, a part of the largest gaming and entertainment company in the US, MSG Networks and Caesars Sportsbook will also launch a new content series on MSG Networks and its social media channels featuring Caesar himself, JB Smoove. A longtime Knicks fan and avid New York sports fan, JB Smoove embodies the legendary Caesar in Caesars Sportsbook’s national advertising campaign and the new content series “One Course with JB Smoove” will integrate Caesars Sportsbook betting odds and content.

“We’re thrilled to welcome Caesars Sportsbook – a renowned brand in the sports betting industry– to the MSG Sports and MSG Entertainment families,” said Ron Skotarczak, Executive Vice President, Marketing Partnerships, MSG Entertainment. “Caesars Sportsbook is a key player in the growing world of sports betting – and we look forward to utilizing this partnership to further strengthen our brands’ connection with Caesars customers, while also providing the company with significant exposure across our unrivaled set of assets.”

MSG Networks and Caesars Sportsbook will launch a 20-part programming marathon to bring back the hit series, “Four Courses with JB Smoove.” The show, which premiered in 2013, showcased JB Smoove having conversations with acclaimed athletes and celebrities from the comfort of a dinner table, and will now be updated with Caesars-themed content.

“I am thrilled to be reunited with my friends at MSG Networks,” said JB Smoove, Emmy nominated actor-comedian. “I can see it now: Caesar in the Mecca! A match made in heaven!”

Caesars Sportsbook will receive prominent exposure inside Madison Square Garden, including TV visible signage, in-arena LED messaging, GardenVision features and activations on the court and ice during Knicks and Rangers games. Digital boards outside of Madison Square Garden and in the new Moynihan Train Hall will also feature Caesars Sportsbook branding on display to the millions of people who walk by every day.

“Caesars Sportsbook is ready for expansion into New York,” said Eric Hession, Co-President of Caesars Digital. “To partner with these legendary New York brands for compelling creative content and branding uniquely positions us to reach the avid sports fans in the region.” 

The easy-to-navigate Caesars Sportsbook app is currently live in 20 states and jurisdictions – 14 of which are mobile – and operates the largest number of retail sportsbooks across the country.

College Hoops Fans, It’s Christmas Day

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“When it’s not always raining there’ll be days like this
When there’s no one complaining there’ll be days like this
When everything falls into place like the flick of a switch
Well my mama told me there’ll be days like this.”

  • Van Morrison, Days Like This
YouTube player

 

By TERRY LYONS

BOSTON – If you aren’t paying attention to the sports calendar, a day like this might slip right on by. There are plenty of examples for great and underrated days in sports. One, The Breeders’ Cup, just passed by – seven World Series games in one day of horse racing – gone.

A few others?

  • The Army vs Navy Game
  • NCAA Tournament Thursday
  • NFL Championship Sunday (Monday is the MLK, Jr holiday, too)
  • Patriots’ Day in Boston (Boston Marathon in the morning and running all day; The Sox at 11am at Fenway)
  • Iron Bowl – Auburn vs Alabama in NCAAF (November 27 this season)
  • El Clásico – Real Madrid vs Barcelona (Every time they play)

We’ll take you through Opening Evening/Night for College Basketball 2021-22. (All times Eastern Standard):

4:30pm – The broadcast begins with some Bad News with some Good News. The Bad: FS-1 starts its broadcast and our minds immediately think, “John Tesh wants his song back,” as Roundball Rock, the NBA on NBC intro theme, seems SO out of place as has been the case with FOX/FS-1 coverage of the BIG EAST. The Good: The wonderful and familiar voice of Bill Raftery rises from the TV’s speakers like the smell of fine wine or aged single malt Scotch – as in Raftery’s favorite phrase – “Just One More.” Raftery is such a great asset for college hoops and seemingly every fan looks forward to listening to “Raft” all the way until March Madness.

“ONIONS!”

4:31pm – By the time everyone looks up, Villanova is up 7-0 on Mount St. Mary’s or is it Mt. Saint Mary’s. One thing is for sure, it’s NOT St. Mary’s.

4:42pm – Raftery gives us the very first “ball screen” reference of the new season.

4:50pm – A break in the action and the endless stream of Insurance ads allows time to check the TV schedule for the rest of the evening. There are dozens of games, but these stand out and will be included in this running story as the night goes on with an obvious BIG EAST theme.

  • 6pm – Akron at Ohio State … a little early in the season to give Akron 16.5 points, eh?
  • 6:30pm – Central Connecticut at UConn … They’re Back, if you dare drive to Storrs.
  • 6:45pm – (The alphabet games begin with … IUPUI at Butler (That is Indiana University Purdue U Indianapolis)
  • 7pm – BIG BOY Game No. 1 – Kansas vs Michigan State in Game 1 of Champions Classic at The Garden
  • 7:30pm – Alpha 2 … UMBC at UMass (University of Maryland – Baltimore County for you alphabet fans)
  • 8pm – More alpha … UAPB at Creighton … University of Arkansas Pine Bluff! Be there.
  • 8:30pm – A tough one: SIUE (Southern Illinois University Edwardsville) at Marquette
  • 9pm – The various ‘college networks all tip-off vs each other with a TV remote challenge:
    • Houston Baptist at Texas (Longhorn Network)
    • Louisiana Tech at Alabama (SEC Network)
    • Navy at Virginia (ACC Network)
  • 9:30pm – BIG BOY Game 2 with Duke vs Kentucky at MSG
  • 10pm – Longwood at Iowa (Big Ten Network) – might be with Ernie, Chuck, Kenny and Shaq by then?

5:25 pm – Villanova heads to the lockers with a halftime lead, 45-21, over Mount St. Mary’s. “All ‘Nova,” they say. Collin Gillespie, a 6-3 senior guard for Villanova QBs the team while scoring seven points. From Kyle Lowry to Scottie Reynolds to Ryan Arcidiacono to Donte DiVincenzo to Jalen Brunson, Villanova recruits solid point guards and two position guards with the best of them. Nova Coach Jay Wright recruits to his system and it works, year-after-year.

5:35pm – A quick check of the entire NCAAB scoreboard shows that Manhattan defeated Manhattanville, 99-42, meaning Manhattanville is in for a very long season. Also, when looking at the Columbia at Fordham pregame, the odds show the Fordham Rams favored by 9.5 over Columbia U, an IVY League school on the sidelines since March 2020.

5:41pm – One game in and I can’t believe I’m looking forward to the Akron vs Ohio State game.

5:45pm – FS-1 having “technical problems” and Bill Raftery is pressed into solo play-by-play and commentator action before Jimmy Jackson joins the broadcast from FOX Sports Studios. Play-x-Play man Aaron Goldsmith does not return.

 

Editor’s Note: (This will be updated many times tonight, no more than 30 minutes between updates ideally).

5:50pm – During another lengthy FS-1 timeout, it allowed time to check the Mississippi Valley State at St. John’s pregame notes. A stop on ESPN dot com also showed fans are selling tickets online from $3 to $68. The problem? The $3 seats were better located than the $68 seats.

5:55pm – Bill Raftery informs us – with the score 65-40 – that “the next 10 minutes are important for The Mount.” They taught Raft that line at Nielsen TV Ratings school.

6pm – It’s off to the Akron at Ohio State game. We are soon reminded that Jerry Lucas, John Havlicek and Nate Thurmond once played ball at Ohio State but LeBron James grew-up and played high school ball in Akron, Ohio.  Score? 8-6, Akron early.

For some reason, it bothers me that Ohio State has a big map of Ohio on their court, copying Indiana. Shouldn’t Ohio have the rights to the map? It’s not like Indiana State has a map of Terre Haute.

6:17pm – It has become apparent that college basketball will be played this season in front of fans and indoors, of course. Not a mask will be seen or worn by students (and fans) in the stands, all packed-in like sardines and screaming their brains out. That leads to the very obvious prediction that there will be COVID+ outbreaks in college hoops this season. … If the Ottawa Senators (of the NHL) can have five guys break-out with COVID+ with some pretty serious NHL protocols, including the glass and boards as a barrier for the team benches, then college hoops – with the crowd on top of the players and benches could be in big trouble. Good Luck.

6:22pm – It also looks as though College Basketball coaches will dress down, much like their NBA counterparts. Gotta wonder if Rick Pitino, head coach of Iona, will wear cuff links with his sweats?

6:24pm – Technical difficulties will be the buzzword for Opening Tip-Off night of College Hoops 2021-22. ESPN2 lost video for only a few seconds and switched to remote side-by-side of the announce team, sitting in their home studios. What the COVID pandemic taught the networks is that they can save money and NOT send their broadcasters to the games. Airfare, hotel accommodations, meals and per diem all saved by networks. The fans lose as it’s not like you’re getting any discount on ESPN channels for the less than in-depth coverage with commentators staring at TV monitors instead of getting the first-hand knowledge, interactions, experiences and insights from courtside on-site. Boo.

6:30pm – ESPN breaks away at the 8:00 minute mark with Ohio State leading Akron, 20-17. (Reminder: The line was Akron +16.5). Now, it’s decision time. Do we watch five more ESPN2 commercials or do we flip for tip of the Central Connecticuit vs UConn game? With Villanova winning, 91-51, ‘Nova’s Justin Moore leading the team in scoring with an impressive opening-eve 27, it’s time to head back to FS-1.

6:33pm – The ball is tipped at Gampel Pavillion in beautiful Storrs. Full house. The Huskies are described as “an NBA team disguised as a UConn team,” by former NBA and UConn player Donny Marshall, a better than average TV commentator. He’s right, as UConn opens up a 15-5 lead at the first break (15:43 left in 1st Half).

6:55pm – It’s time for the alphabet game portion of the night to begin as IUPUI and Butler give it a run at historic Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.  Quick thought: Wouldn’t it be cool if the PxP guy said Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis instead of IUPUI every time down the court?  One problem. It’s four minutes into the first half and IUPUI has yet to score. (But they trail by only three points).

7pm – It’s time to head to the Varsity game and it’s great to see Dan Shulman and Jay Bilas do their pregame stand-up for Michigan State vs Kansas from courtside at Madison Square Garden with Holly Rowe adding to the broadcast from courtside, too. Bilas is the best in the business, as he notes “the energy (in The Garden) is amazing.” Pretty good for neutral court. No anti-COVID+ masks at MSG either, by the way.

7:16pm – ESPN wastes NO TIME with a classy video taped message montage and best wishes salute to Hall-of-Fame basketball contributor Dick Vitale who is battling lymphoma with a weekly chemotherapy sessions. Vitale has put so much time, effort and money behind the ESPN-led “V Foundation” in memory of Coach Jimmy Valvano, it’s now time for everyone in the college and worldwide basketball community to stand-up to support Dickie V. Donate $ HERE.

7:23pm – A break in the action of the Michigan State vs Kansas game allows some time to look at the Bracketology work on ESPN.com and predictions for the March Brackets and NCAA Tournament teams.  It’s a LONG way off and very difficult to predict in November, but here’s a look-see. Digital Sports Desk will do a bracket for While We’re Young (Ideas) either this weekend or next. See Joe Lunardi‘s first crack at it HERE.

Hey Joe? St. John’s is a “last four in,” eh? See you in Dayton!

7:35pm – At the three HOUR mark for this column and the College Basketball season is well underway across this nation. With the three hour mark came the first bathroom break of the evening and, with that, I broke out my favorite book, the Blue Ribbon College Basketball Yearbook – a must for these early season games. I plugged this in a Sunday Sports Notebook but, it’s worth another plug to purchase it HERE. Spring for the Spiral bound version and the digital edition for travel and easy storage as a PDF on your computer or IUPUIPad.

7:45pm – As the games play, a thought comes and I can’t say it’s the first season that this thought has come along. When you see the likes of Kansas and Michigan State competing against each other at The Garden, it’s very apparent that they are playing at an entirely different level than the rest of the pack. With 2:59 left in the first half, Kansas leads Michigan State, 32-31.

Meanwhile, ESPN is promoting its halftime show and the next rankings of the NCAA Football Top 25. ESPN’s Rece Davis and Kirk Herbstreit are at The Garden for the upcoming halftime show, previewing the 9pm EST reveal of the CFP rankings. Everyone likes Georgia, many like undefeated Oklahoma, but after that?

Back to College Hoops. Amazing! Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski will accept an award from Champions Classic, and its sponsor, State Farm. Of course, Coach K has been a $tate Farm guy forever. Talking heads are debating whether Coach K (five NCAA titles) or John Wooden (10 NCAA titles) is the best college basketball coach of all time.

Duke’s Coach K starts the 2021-22 season, announced to be his last, with a career record of  1,170–361. Wooden went 664–162 in his basketball coaching career, although there were fewer games played overall and the NCAA Tournament was limited to 16 teams when the Wizard of Westwood coached at UCLA.

8pm – ESPN is going full throttle as Rece Davis is joined by LaPhonzo Ellis and Seth Greenberg on the set (on MSG’s floor). You can’t help but wonder why ESPN gets its college coverage so finely tuned while its NBA coverage struggles annually, outside of key play-by-play man Mike Breen.

8:10pm – A quick flip back to ESPN2 and a tune-in at Columbus, Ohio shows Akron going up by a point (66-65) after 6-8 sophomore forward Ali Ali hit a three-point FG and converted the free throw after he was fouled on the play. With 0:06 remaining, Ohio State’s 6-8 sophomore forward Zed Key took a feed from Malachi Branham and scored the game-winner with less than 0:01 on the clock. The win marked the first “barn-burner” and “buzzer-beater” of the new college hoops season. As noted above, Akron and its (+16.5) covered quite easily, but lost a heart-breaker.

8:35pm – Kansas’ 6-5 senior guard Ochai Agbaji drains a three-pointer to make it 61-50 Jayhawks. It continues to look as though the teams at The Garden are playing a different sport than the rank and file early season games elsewhere in college hoops.

8:50pm – With Kansas in control, there’s time to start surfing a few of the other games. The first three clicks were greeted by more insurance commercials, but a stop at New England’s NESN+ brought about the UMBC at UMass game, a close 48-44 affair with 10:55 left. With a tip from the announce team, we see UMBC is 3-20 from three-point range while UMass is 0-10 from downtown. Note to NCAA Basketball: It might be time to bag the three-point shot. (Kansas won 87-74).

9:00pm – In other A-10-related action, St. Bonnies is drilling Siena (22-10 in second half) and Davidson is up by 27 over Delaware. Meanwhile, out in Western Massachusetts, the Minute People finally hit a “3” and were leading 54-46 when the channel surfing headed to the various Sports Nets.

9:01pm – FS1, aka the BIG EAST Network, went to split screen for Fairfield at Providence and Niagara at Xavier.  On FS2, Marquette was holding a slim lead over Southern Illinois -Edwardsville. Long way to go. Coach Shaka Smart is in his first year at Marquette and brought a few of his Texas recruits along with him. By the way, NYC soccer fans might note, the “Special Assistant to the Head Coach” at Marquette is Nevada Smith.

9:05pm – A look at the ACC Network put forth an early Upset Alert 🚨 as Navy led No. 25 Virginia 5-0. The lead floated out to sea seconds later and Virginia led 7-5 when it was time to look elsewhere. Remember, colleges play an exhibition or two but there’s no “real” preseason games. It is evident tonight. Navy would prevail 66-58 for the ONLY upset of the first night for the Top 25 teams. Virginia is sure to drop out of that elite group.

9:15pm – Bonus programming! A look at the YES Network from New York showed a Southern U. vs Louisville billboard but the fans of college hoops were being treated to Oklahoma hosting Northwestern State (that of Natchitoches, Louisiana). OK was up 45-33 upon tune-in and we noted 6-8, 275 lbs center Larry Owens along with two players from Athens, (Greece, not Georgia), one from Tbilisi, (Country of and not State of Georgia), and one player from Israel. Can you imagine the culture shock upon arriving from Athens to Natchitoches? And, just how did that happen? NWSU head coach Mike McConathy is in his 23rd year, so go figure?

Meanwhile, in between games at The Garden, ESPN has turned it back over to the College Football Playoff rankings.

9:25pm – The College Game Day crew (football) finally gets around to the Top 10. They reveal in reverse order and here ya go, ICYMI.

  1. Georgia
  2. Alabama
  3. Oregon
  4. Ohio State
  5. Cincinnati
  6. Michigan
  7. Michigan State
  8. Oklahoma
  9. Notre Dame
  10. Oklahoma State

The CFP Show had some serious arguing over rankings that don’t mean a thing on November 9th.

9:32pm – When in doubt, back to the BIG EAST as Creighton and Arkansas Pine Bluff are battling it out (63-57 upon tune-in time with 12:42 left in the 2nd half). Arkansas Pine Bluff led 47-38 at the half but a little 29-7 run did that lead in. Creighton is very tough at home and any BIG EAST team to go on the road to Omaha and come back with a “W” is fortunate.

9:37pm – The FS1 producers switched to a live look-in for the end of the Niagara at Xavier game as Niagara missed a shot down the stretch that could’ve put the pressure on Xavier in a big way. X ended up winning 63-60 after Marcus Hammond hit a full court heave-ho for three at the buzzer. Xavier was favored by 17 points.

9:45pm – Yes, it was time to check in at TNT where Milwaukee was leading Philadelphia, 118-109,

9:50pm – It’s time to settle in for the final game of the night, with all due respect to that Longwood vs Iowa game on the Big Ten Network. No. 9 Duke and No. 10 Kentucky playing in front of a packed house at Madison Square Garden (18,132) is “the” way to put an exclamation point on the first night of the NCAA Basketball Season.

ESPN is making it clear the entire season will be a tribute to Coach K, and rightfully so. Coming out of a break, ESPN rolled old photos and footage of Coach K at Army and getting a couple important victories – including No. 1,000 at The Garden against St. John’s, by the way.

Speaking of St. John’s, they drilled Mississippi Valley State, 119-61.

10:10pm – ESPN catches a very incognito Bruce Springsteen amongst the crowd at MSG. The Boss was  joining his daughter, Jessica, a 2014 Duke grad and 2020-21 USA Equestrian team silver medalist at the Tokyo Games.

10:13pm – Game score going back and forth between Duke and UK as the first half develops into a decent game, albeit somewhat physical.

10:25pm – The refs give each team a talking to, as the game got “chippy” and there was some jawing. Duke led 29-25 with 4:00 remaining in the 1st half.

10:40pm – At the half, Duke led 39-35 as the Kentucky team and head coach John Caliperi headed to the lockers. Coach Cal said on the TV interview with Holly Rowe, “we almost lost two exhibition games.”

11:00pm – Kentucky comes out hot in the 2nd half and it becomes quite apparent that this game is likely to go down to the wire.

11:10pm – Direct TV: Serena v. Wonder Woman; Serena …Wonder Woman.

11:12pm – Players, competing at high speed and rate, are cramping up a sign of not being in “game shape” as of yet.

11:45pm – Duke’s young team, despite four players cramping-up, close-out the Kentucky Wildcats, 79-71. Freshman Trevor Keels led the way for the Blue Devils with 25 points. Duke’s 6-10 freshman forward Paulo Banchero added 25 points.

Later in the night: Both Gonzaga and UCLA both won big over their opponents. The Zags taking Dixie State (Utah, by the way), 97-63 and UCLA – who Jay Bilas touted as the No. 1 team in the country – defeated Cal-Bakersfield, 95-58.

While We’re Young (Ideas) – November 7

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30 Years Ago, “Magic” Johnson Announced He Had HIV+

By TERRY LYONS

The date was November 7, 1991 and this reporter, then the Director of Media Relations for the National Basketball Association, was driving a rented Toyota Camry in the outskirts of Orlando, Florida, zipping along on the Florida Bee-Line highway when his pager did the appropriate thing for that exact time and place. It buzzed.

Keep in mind, these were old school “General Hospital” style radio pagers and it was a few years before Blackberry or Motorola flip phones would power our communications department and the rest of the connected world. At that point in time, we had just discarded our IBM Selectric typewriters for some “All-in-One” system that was tied to a mainframe computer the size of a Mack truck that took up an entire office on the 15th floor of Olympic Tower, the NBA’s headquarters.

The one line message was marked URGENT and it stated to call Brian McIntyre, the eventual Basketball Hall of Fame Bunn Award winner, and my immediate boss. He had entered an “801” number which I recognized as the Salt Lake City Marriott. He was in Utah to make the formal announcement for the 1993 NBA All-Star Weekend. Then NBA Commissioner, the late David Stern had called McIntyre at 5:00am (Mountain time) and advised him of the need to cancel the Salt Lake press conference and be ready to meet Stern for a flight to LA.

I was in Orlando to stage a small press conference to announce the players on the All-Star ballot and begin a deep dive into the planning for the 1992 All-Star Weekend which would be held in Orlando Arena with hotel HQ at Disney World. Aside from the screaming and crying of toddlers on the flights to and fro’ McCoy AFB aka Orlando International Airport, it was going to be a great year to join the wonderful workers from the league’s special events, security and broadcasting departments to lay the foundation for the All-Star weekend activities. (The simple remedy for those flights, by the way, was an upgrade to First Class, a Bloody Mary, accompanied by a heavy dose of Led Zep and some good stereo headphones).

As I drove along after receiving the page, I came upon a toll booth and its rather small six-car parking lot which had an old school telephone booth alongside. I paid my toll on the Bee-Line, walked to the phone booth and typed in the phone number along with my AT&T 16-digit calling card number which I had memorized forwards and backwards from overuse.

On the other end of the line, McIntyre was all business and, with the great relationship we had (then and now), I could easily sense there was something very wrong. In other words, there was a strong disturbance in the force that was (and still is) a foundation in the inner workings of the NBA Family.

From October 17-19 or so – a few weeks before that momentous notification – we had staged the 1991 McDonald’s Open in Paris, France. It was a tournament of international club champions from the EuroLeague, Spain’s ACB, France’s champion Limoges and the NBA’s rep – (but not reigning champion) – the Los Angeles Lakers. The preseason tournament was staged at Bercy Arena and the basketball fans of France and what seemed to be the entire European continent had come out in droves to cheer Earvin “Mag-eek” Johnson and the Lakers.

After the Lakers squeaked by Spain’s Joventut Badalona (116-114) in Paris, everyone returned to the USA for the remaining week or two of preseason games before the regular season tipped-off on November 1, 1991. In that timespan, the Lakers had extended Johnson’s contract and with that redux came a physical and insurance policy to guarantee the deal.

In 100% confidentiality, the results of that physical were made known to Los Angeles Lakers athletic trainer Gary Vitti who was told by the Lakers’ team doctors to ask – well, maybe tell – “Magic” Johnson to return from Salt Lake City, Utah to Los Angeles for a meeting in their offices. Vitti instinctively knew there was a major issue and that very soon everyone – Johnson, Vitti, every LA Lakers player and, really, everyone in the world’s life would be changing.

As McIntyre told me the terrible news – in confidence, of course, as we were probably among only five or six people in the world who knew what was coming – he hung-up the phone quickly as he was preparing to meet Stern. I was left on the side of a highway, holding the hand-set of the public phone in total shock. Earvin “Magic” Johnson had tested HIV+ and was going to announce his retirement from the NBA within the next 24 hours.

For the short term, everything went on as originally planned. we staged a press conference at Orlando Arena where Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck crashed and ambushed the event, proving early what we were up against in the Disney school. I was thinking to myself, “we should invoice Disney for $1,500,000 and welcome them to the NBA sponsor family.” Little did I know they’d eventually own both ABC and ESPN and be the league’s No. 1 source of revenue.

Instead of staying in Orlando for a game and two days of planning meetings, I gave some lame excuse that I had to “get back to the office,” and flew home to NYC, knowing the news might break at anytime. It held, until Johnson walked up to the podium the next day with his Lakers’ teammates in attendance and Commissioner Stern sitting right next to him, right where a league Commissioner should be sitting in support of a player.

Remember, at that time, even though the HIV/AIDS crisis had ripped through the 1980s, the virus was mostly misunderstood and the United States government hadn’t lifted a finger. Although famous actors, rock stars, fashion designers, a NASCAR driver and famous musicians such as Liberace had died from the AIDS virus, it remained far from the mainstream and was thought of as mostly an epidemic amongst the homosexual community and intravenous drug users.

On November 7, 1991, that would all change. The news of Magic Johnson confirming he had the HIV+ virus was front page of every newspaper in the world, lead-story on every newscast and sportscast, shocking a world that envisioned the Lakers star and NBA Most Valuable Player dying a terrible death.

Seventeen days later, Freddie Mercury, the lead singer of the rock band Queen, would pass away in London at the age of 45. Only one day before, Mercury announced he had tested HIV+ and had AIDS.

We quickly realized, while many others chose to keep their illness confidential – which was certainly their right – Magic Johnson was approaching this monumental announcement in a different way.

Right from the get-go, Johnson was going to work his magic, “I plan on going on, living for a long time, bugging you guys, like I’ve [sic] always have. So, you’ll see me around. I plan on being with the Lakers and the league — Hopefully, David [Stern] will have me for awhile — and going on with my life,” he said that November day.

“And I guess now I get to enjoy some of the other sides of living…that because of the season, the long practices and so on. I just want to say that I’m going to miss playing. And I will now become a spokesman for the HIV virus because I want people — young people to realize that they can practice safe sex. And you know sometimes you’re a little naive about it and you think it could never happen to you. You only thought it could happen to, you know, other people and so on and all. And it has happened, but I’m going to deal with it and my life will go on. And I will be here, enjoying the Laker games, and all the other NBA games around the country. So, life is going to go on for me, and I’m going to be a happy man,” he continued.

“But the Commissioner, David Stern, has been great in supporting me. And I will go on and hopefully work with the league and help in any way that I can. I want to thank also (Lakers General Manager) Jerry West for all he’s done. Dr. Kerlin. Dr. Mellman — he will tell you who my other doctors (Dr. Ho) are that have helped me through this — as well as, like I said, my father, in a sense, (LA Lakers team owner) Dr. Jerry Buss, for just drafting me and me being here.

“Now, of course, I will miss the battles and the wars, and I will miss you guys [the reporters]. But life goes on,” he concluded.

One thing was apparent for everyone in the small Forum Club press lounge that afternoon. No one … and I mean NO ONE … thought Magic Johnsonwould be alive, well and thriving as an incredible businessman, part owner of the LA Dodgers, regular in the NBA legends family and an entrepreneur and philanthropist in the Year 2021, 30 YEARS later – which is today.

POST SCRIPT: In 2007 when I first left the NBA to begin a new and different life in New England, I wrote some thoughts on the occasion of Magic Johnson’s 48th birthday (he is now age 62).

“You just can’t help but think back to that November, 1991 day when Magic walked up to the podium at the Forum in LA to announce to the world that he had the HIV virus,” I wrote.

“There were only two or three people in the room that day that knew what it meant; Earvin’s newly hired specialist, Dr. Ho and a few of his colleagues. Magic had the financial wherewithal to hire the very best in the medical field. At that time, Dr. Ho had been researching the HIV/AIDS virus for nearly a decade and hadn’t witnessed anyone with the virus battle the “PR” fight against the virus the way Magic could and would.

Magic brought the virus to the front pages and the sports pages. He successfully preached that the virus could affect the everyday man and woman. Magic changed his diet, his exercise regimen and said he would retire from the NBA.

That season, the NBA All-Star ballots were counted and Earvin was the leading the way. Of course, we all know that Magic was the MVP of the ’92 game and would go on to win a gold medal at the ’92 Barcelona Olympics Games, then eventually return for limited play in the NBA.”

IN 1996: Similar to some of the thoughts noted here today, I googled a few key words and this quote I spoke to LA Times sports writer Steve Springer came up from a retrospective done on November 3, 1996 – marking five years rather than the 30 we are celebrating today.

“What we in the NBA, the media and people all over the world have learned in the last five years is monumental,” said Terry Lyons, an NBA vice president. “And Magic Johnson is the reason, hands down. He put the news about the virus on the front page all over the world. He probably saved a lot of lives, when you stop and think about it. Until then, the medical community had been 10 years ahead of the rest of us in terms of knowledge. . . . Magic brought the two sides together.”

LISTEN to THE FOLLOW-UP PODCAST where “PR MAGIC” was discussed with Noah Coslov.

PGA Tour: Matsuyama wins in Japan

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CHIBA, JAPAN – (Staff and Wire Services Report) – Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama shot a 5-under-par (65) and finished withan eagle on the final hole, to record a five-stroke win on Sunday in the ZOZO Championship. Matsuyama, the reigning Masters champion, finished at 15-under (270) to earn his first title on home soil at Narashino Country Club.

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It’s the seventh PGA title for the 29-year-old Japan native, who was coming off a disappointing finish at The CJ Cup @ Summit last week. He now trails K.J. Choi for most career PGA titles by an Asian player by one.

Matsuyama had an eagle and a bogey on the front nine, but found his groove on the back nine by picking up three birdies in five holes. After a bogey on No. 17, Matsuyama sent his second shot on the par 5 No. 18 to within 12 feet of the hole before nailing the eagle putt.

“It was one of my biggest goals to win in front of the Japanese fans here in this country as well,” said Matsuyama, who finished runner-up to Tiger Woods at the inaugural ZOZO Championship in 2019.

“Also, in 2019 Tiger won the Masters and went on to win the Zozo Championship, so I’m glad that I would be able to emulate that as well.”

Cameron Tringale, who started the day one shot behind Matsuyama and briefly led on Sunday, bogeyed the final two holes to finish at 1-under 69 and in a tie for second at 10-under 270 overall.

“To really slam the door and hit an incredible second shot (on 18) and hole the putt, it was storybook,” Tringale said of Matsuyama’s performance.

Fellow American Brendan Steele shared the second-place finish after shooting a 4-under 66, with two late bogeys offsetting six birdies.

Tringale has now finished runner-up four times while competing in his 314th start of his career.

Sports Biz: Costacos Goes Digital

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SEATTLE – (Staff Report from Official News Release) – Award-winning artist John Costacos, who established a genre of sports art with his famed sports personality poster creations, along with co-founder and CEO Justin Moorad and Digital Art Director Mike Campau, unveiled a new blockchain-based digital collectibles company, the Costacos Collection.

The Costacos Collection is partnering with an initial lineup of legendary NFL, MLB, and NBA players and their charitable foundations, including Warren Moon, Troy Aikman, Jim McMahon, Roger Clemens, Will Clark, and others to be announced in the coming weeks. The Costacos Collection – the predecessor of which sold over 30,000,000 posters from 1986-96 – utilizes the blockchain medium to help the world’s greatest athletes capture their most significant moments, tell their most meaningful stories, and create new digital experiences to connect with fan communities. In addition to re-imagining John’s revered poster art, the Costacos Collection is creating new digital art as NFTs, with the tokens serving as the ticket to the company’s upcoming Hall of Fame Metaverse.

The Topps Company will also be a partner of the Collection, drawing on content from its vast historical archives and working with Costacos to create new content with Topps’ current-athlete partners.

CostacosCollection.com will serve as the gateway to the company’s listings as well as post-sale experiences, which will include communities and experiences exclusive to NFT owners. The company plans to fill the gap where Big Tech’s social media has failed: enabling fans to connect with and support their heroes directly. Through community engagement features, museum-style social displays, games, raffles and giveaways, trading and staking based on live and AI-generated sporting events, and the bridging of the digital with physical items and events, the company is pursuing a vision not held back by any one particular partnership or association.

“We believe in the long-term power of the technology,” said CEO Justin Moorad. “With a chain-agnostic approach, we’re able to form partnerships across the ecosystem – from the highest-quality art minted securely on Ethereum, to games built on Solana, to opportunities for proprietary fungible tokens, the Costacos Collection is building technology that positions our athletes at the center of the evolving landscape.”

John Costacos’ posters included imagery, slogans, and nicknames that stuck with players for the rest of their careers, including his first poster, Kenny Easley’s “The Enforcer”, the Oakland A’s “Bash Brothers,” Charles Barkley’s “Get Off My Backboard,” Jerry Rice’s “Goldfingers,” Michael Jordan’s “Space, The Final Frontier,” Joe Montana’s “The Golden Great,” Jim McMahon’s “Mad Mac,” Walter Payton’s “Chicago Vice,” Rickey Henderson’s “Man of Steal,” Troy Aikman’s “Strong Arm of the Law,” and many others with athletes such as Jackie Joyner-Kersee, Ken Griffey Jr., Bo Jackson, John Elway, Karl “Mailman Malone, Dominique Wilkins, and Magic Johnson. In addition to working with legacy athletes, Costacos will create new digital artwork with a growing number of today’s future Hall of Famers, Rookies of the Year, and Heisman-level college athletes.

“As an athlete of color and an entrepreneur, and as someone with roots in Seattle personally and professionally, nothing exuded cool more than a Costacos poster,” said Hall of Fame quarterback Warren Moon. “The Costacos Collection will now be able to recapture that cool in digital art, which is going to be fun for all the veteran athletes from all sports who became part of his ‘must have collection’ as well as for a new generation who will be engaging with this unique artwork for the first time. It’s an honor to be part of this unveiling.”

“My relationship with every athlete came from listening to their creative process and thinking of what we, as fans, would want to see, and that process has never really changed over the years,” Costacos said. “The growth of digital technology gives us an exciting chance not just to offer pieces in digital form, but to take them and retell the story with the athlete’s input now 20 years later with additional custom content.”

“John Costacos and his artwork helped expand the reach of the most legendary athletes of a generation to fans who knew us for being in unique artwork sometimes more than what we did on the field,” said Ivan “Pudge” Rodriguez. “Now being able to revisit that artwork as NFTs will open new doors for fans who can collect the pieces yet again. I know for the LatinX audience that craves connecting with its heroes, this will be a fun and unique experience that should open more opportunities for NFTs as well.”

Born and raised in Seattle, Washington, Costacos attended the University of Washington and graduated with a degree in Finance, notably with no formal education in graphic design, photography, printing or art. A lifelong sports fan, John and his brother Tock had a fascination with mixing sports and pop culture in a time when the two areas rarely shared a stage. He created T-shirts of his alma mater’s football team titled “Purple Reign,” a reference to the Washington Huskies’ purple colors and Prince’s song “Purple Rain,” and quickly sold out of his initial run of 20,000 T-shirts. That led to a second project when John dreamed up the slogan “Real Men Wear Black” and put it on a T-shirt for LA Raiders fans. That popular design, with no marketing budget, was a massive commercial success. It sold out in very short order and got the brothers an invite to the Raiders headquarters in El Segundo, California, where they met All-Pro defensive back Lester Hayes, who asked them to create “Lester’s Court,” modeled after a reference to “The Judge” nickname Hayes earned while playing at Texas A&M and an allusion to the very popular “The People’s Court” television show. The images were shot in a courthouse with Tock dressed in San Francisco 49ers colors, presenting footballs marked with game dates of Hayes’ interceptions. The Hayes imagery was wildly popular and the pair started to pursue poster-making in full force, beginning with local Seattle Seahawks star Kenny Easley. The Easley poster led to another poster of Chicago Bears sensation Jim McMahon, and the business skyrocketed from there.

Costacos was out of the art and sports world for almost two decades until 2016, when he was commissioned to relaunch his unique point of view for a poster of then-rising star Russell Wilson, to raise money for Wilson’s “Why Not You” Foundation, a non-profit dedicated to education, children’s health and fighting poverty.  The fundraiser for the release of the poster, hosted by ESPN’s Kenny Mayne, netted $435,000, highlighted by the auction of the first two printed posters for $30,000 each. In 2018, Costacos created a poster of New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge for Adidas to announce their endorsement deal with him. It was prominently featured on billboards and bus stops across New York City and became a must-have piece for thousands of fans. The interest in the original Costacos pieces has also never waned, as evidenced by UFC President Dana White purchasing 40 original Costacos works in a New York art gallery for over $100,000 alongside Hall of Famer Alex Rodriguez who spent nearly $40,000 himself on a series of posters the last time the original pieces were on public sale a few years ago. These recent instances, along with the encouragement and persuasion of a growing list of elite athletes and collectors, raised the itch for Costacos to get back in the game.  But this time Costacos, ever the pioneer, presents a unique twist to the traditional, combining his rare mix of artistic vision and his penchant for capturing sports figures, into breath-taking, cutting-edge digital form.