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Terry Lyons

Basketball Hall Elects 16 New Members

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SPRINGFIELD – A day after its COVID-19 delayed 2020 induction ceremony, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame announced the 16 honorees for the Class of 2021 which will be enshrined on Saturday, September 11, 2021 in ceremonies at Connecticut’s Mohegan Sun resort hotel and arena.

The 2021 honorees class includes nine voted in from the North American and Women’s committees, including the ninth-winningest coach in NBA history Rick Adelman, two-time NBA champion and 11-time NBA All-Star Chris Bosh, NBA Finals MVP with the Boston Celtics and 10-time NBA All-Star Paul Pierce, the first Black NBA head coach Bill Russell, four-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year and NBA Champion Ben Wallace, five-time NBA All-Star and NBA Rookie of the Year Chris Webber, two-time NCAA national champion Villanova Wildcats coach Jay Wright, seven-time WNBA All-Star and two-time Olympic gold medalist Yolanda Griffith and seven-time WNBA All-Star and three-time WNBA MVP Lauren Jackson of Australia.

Distinguished committees focused on preserving all areas from the game also selected seven direct-elect enshrinees, including the first President of the WNBA and current BIG East Commissioner Val Ackerman, NBA coach Cotton Fitzsimmons and basketball guru Howard Garfinkel from the Contributor Committee, Clarence “Fats” Jenkins from the Early African American Pioneers Committee, Croatia’s Toni Kukoc from the International Committee, Bob Dandridge from the Veterans Committee and Pearl Moore from the Women’s Veterans Committee.

“For the first time in our history, we’ll enshrine two Classes in one calendar year,” said John L. Doleva, President and CEO of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

The Class of 2021 Enshrinement festivities will begin at Mohegan Sun on Friday, September 10 with the Enshrinement Tip-Off Celebration and Awards Gala. The Class of 2021 and returning Hall of Famers will then journey to Springfield, Mass. for the annual celebratory events taking place at the newly renovated Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and MassMutual Center on September 11

While We’re Young (Ideas) – Notebook

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By TERRY LYONS

BOSTON – Whether the sport in being celebrated two hours to the south at Mohegan Sun, an hour and a half to the west in Springfield, Mass, being played at WNBA and NBA arenas nationwide or destinations around the globe, the game of basketball is in the news in a big way this weekend and for many months to come.

The Basketball Hall of Fame is utilizing the Mohegan Sun (Uncasville, Connecticut) as headquarters for the 2020 Enshrinement ceremony this weekend, then packing up the circus tents and heading to the newly renovated Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame museum in Springfield – the birthplace of basketball – to announce the 2021 class of inductees. (The names of Celtics star Paul Pierce and Ben Wallace of the Detroit Pistons’ Bad Boy era have already leaked out as ‘21 inductees).

First! The 2020 class is among the most elite in history, with Tim Duncan, Kevin Garnett and the late Kobe Bryant headlining the group. The 2020 class induction, forever to be known as a memorial tribute to Bryant, has been delayed – for what seems to be forever and a day – because of the global pandemic. While Bryant deserved top billing, for sure, the class of ‘20 represents a wide-ranging group, spanning the globe from FIBA HQ in Europe (to honor the late Patrick Baumann) to Bentley College, only 11 miles down the road where Bentley Coach Barbara Stevens calls home.

The 2020 class represents every aspect of the sport of basketball quite well. Stevens and Baylor/LSU women’s coach Kim Mulkey are inducted as top notch and deserved women’s team college coaches while Tamika Catchings (NCAA: Tennessee, WNBA: Indiana Fever, USA: Multiple Gold) represents the very best the sport has to offer, both on and off-court.

Just as you would expect with such a glorious cast, the coaches on the men’s side are among the very best with the late Eddie Sutton memorialized for his work via the college game and the great Rudy “Rudy T” Tomjanovich honored for his work with the Houston Rockets. Credited for his longtime, loyal assistant coaching efforts for Bill Fitch and as the two-time NBA championship head coach of the Rockets, Rudy T knew the game from the inside out. He was also an NBA All-Star forward (San Diego/Houston Rockets), never mind his impressive work for USA Basketball as head coach at the 1998 Worlds (Bronze during NBA labor dispute) and 2000 Sydney Olympics (Gold medal). … Remember: “Don’t EVER underestimate the heart of a champion.”

Even the media awards pay tribute to the best of the best with ABC/ESPN/MSG Network’s Mike Breen being honored for his play-by-play work and Mike Wilbon honored for print journalism. Wilbon, the Washington Post sports columnist for decades, turned Pardon the Interruption television personality extraordinaire and Breen, the voice of the NBA on ABC and ESPN, are both being honored as the Curt Gowdy Media Award winners for 2020.

Yes, with the 2020 honors, the Basketball Hall of Fame took a page from its counterpart in Cooperstown and “touched all bases” with a class for the ages. But the BHofF enshrinement for 2020 and this week’s announcement for 2021 are merely the dessert being served before the main course of hoops mania over the next few months. How? Let us count the ways:

  1. The 25th Anniversary season for the WNBA tipped-off Friday night with four exciting games, including the return of 2020 No. 1 overall draft pick Sabrina Ionescu, who had her rookie season cut short with a season-ending ankle injury in just her third pro game. Ionescu put an exclamation point on her return, hitting the game-winning three-pointer from the wing with less than a second remaining to give the New York Liberty a 90-87 victory over the Indiana Fever in the WNBA’s season opener. … As part of the WNBA’s 25th season and its focus on innovation, the league will launch the inaugural Commissioner’s Cup in-season competition during the 2021 season. Conference rivalry bragging rights, a new WNBA Commissioner’s Cup trophy and a prize pool of $500,000 will all be at stake when the inaugural WNBA Commissioner’s Cup Championship Game is played on Thursday, Aug. 12, at Phoenix Suns Arena. … Regular season WNBA action will take on an added level of importance as 60 select, intra-conference “Cup games” will determine the Eastern Conference and Western Conference teams that will advance to the first ever Commissioner’s Cup Championship Game. … The “Cup Games” will be the first home game and first road game each team plays against its five conference rivals, all set to take place in the first half of the season between May 14 and July 11, prior to the in-season scheduling break due to the Olympic Games.
  2. The Basketball Africa League, a newly formed but one-year delayed organized pro league spanning the continent of Africa, will debut May 16. Both the International Basketball Federation and the NBA are providing full support to the endeavor which features 12 pro teams.
  3. Not to be forgotten, the BAL’s and WNBA’s big brother, the National Basketball Association, will begin its 2021 NBA Playoffs with a “Play-In” tournament, a new and unproven concept to field the No. 7 and No. 8 seeds in each of the two NBA conferences. Gone is the NBA Bubble in Orlando and the 2021 playoffs will take place with a limited number of fans in each home arena, depending mostly on State and local government rules and authorities.
  4. A couple weeks down the road, the European “EuroLeague” Basketball Final Four will be staged in Cologne, Germany on Friday, May 28 and Sunday, May 30. The competing four teams include CSKA Moscow vs. Anadolu Efes Istanbul, and AX Armani Exchange Milano vs. FC Barcelona
  5. As summer approaches, the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournaments for Men and Women will be staged to determine the final national teams to compete in Tokyo. Those qualifiers will be played from June 29 to July 4th, a few weeks before the Tokyo Olympics begin (July 25th) with Iran facing a qualifier to be determined later. The delayed Olympic tournament will run through the gold medal game scheduled for Saturday, August 7 at the Saitama Super Arena, the “Brooklyn” to Tokyo’s “NYC.”

Patriots Open at Home vs Dolphins

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FOXBORO – The NFL trickled out just a few of their 2021 schedule and among the items released were each team’s season opening games. Just as they did a year ago, the New England Patriots will play the Miami Dolphins in Foxboro for each team’s first game of the 2021 NFL regular season.

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Kickoff for the Patriots vs Miami game at Gillette Stadium is scheduled or 4:25 EDT on Sunday, September 12 and will be broadcast by CBS. The game marks the fourth time in the past 10 years that the division rival Patriots-Dolphins will meet in the regular season opener.  A year ago, New England opened their season with a 21-11 victory over Miami at Gillette Stadium.

A-Rod Still Working on T-Wolves

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MINNEAPOLIS – Former Major League Baseball MVP and World Champion Alex Rodriguez and his billionaire financial backer Marc Lore have yet to complete their deal to purchase the NBA’s Minnesota Timberwolves following a 30-day exclusive negotiating window. The potential ownership group has reportedly continued to negotiate with Timberwolves’ current owner Glen Taylor.

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The Athletic originally reported an agreement was reached on a $1.5 billion price and that the team would remain in Minneapolis — a requirement from Taylor, who has owned the team for almost 30 years.

Rodriguez and Lore would first become minority owners, according to The Athletic, and in 2023, would gain full control. The deal would also include the WNBA’s Minnesota Lynx.

While We’re Young (Ideas) – Our Sunday Sports Notebook on the IVY League

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By TERRY LYONS

BOSTON – The IVY League led the way back in March 2020. Hopefully, the Presidents of the IVY League schools knew something back then and know something once again. Something more than the rest of us because the IVY League is coming back for Fall Football.

“Given the current steady decline of Covid-19 infections in this country, and the broad availability and uptake of vaccinations, we are optimistic that our campuses will be back to something close to normal by this fall, including in-person learning with students in residence,” the Council of presidents said in their statement. “And this includes our expectation for the resumption of regular competitive schedules for Ivy League athletics across all sports beginning in fall 2021.

 

Here in the Greater Boston area, Harvard announced its plans in March to have invite all undergraduates back to campus to live and attend in-person classes for the 2021 fall semester. University President Lawrence S. Bacowalso wrote to affiliates this week that Harvard will require all undergraduates living on campus in the fall to get inoculated against the coronavirus.

While most major football conferences returned to some on-field activity last fall, the schools in the IVY League sat on the sidelines. As time passed, most Division I conferences permitted conference play for the Winter 2020-21 and Spring 2021 seasons. A handful of Ivy League schools permitted teams to hold local scrimmages this spring, but Ivy League teams were unable to compete against one another.

Specifics for various school graduations and other large gatherings are being scrutinized at campuses all across America, and pro sports are gradually increasing the percentage of capacity allowing fans to watch their favorite teams. The Ivy League decision, for some reason or another, forecasts better times ahead.

Here’s hoping Harvard visits Yale for “The Game,” this coming November and a significant crowd assembles at the 64,000+ capacity Yale Bowl. One thing is for sure, whatever the percentage of capacity is allowed to watch the football game inside, there will be an equal or larger number of alum assembled in the parking lots, tailgating away and reminiscing about “Glory Days” of the past.

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PGA Tour: Final Round Preview from Wells Fargo

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THIS WEEK on the PGA TOUR: Wells Fargo Championship

COURSE: Quail Hollow Country Club (Charlotte, NC)

FEDEx CUP Points Available/Winner: 2,989/500

SOCIAL MEDIA: #PGATour #FedExCup @WellsFargoGolf

OFFICIAL SITE: (Wells Fargo Championship) – (Official Tournament Site)

TV COVERAGE: Today, May 9 – Golf Channel’s TV coverage will air from 1:00pm to 3:00pm (EDT), then CBS takes over coverage from 3:00pm to 6:00pm (EDT).

STREAMING: PGA Tour Live will offer streaming coverage of Featured Groups today from 8:00am to 3:00pm (EDT) with Featured Holes streaming from 3:00pm to 6:00pm (EDT).

PGA TOUR RADIO COVERAGE: Streaming Radio coverage today, 1:00pm to 6:00pm (EDT) on Sirius XM Satellite Radio. PGA Tour Radio is available on Sirius 208/XM 92) or online on PGATour.com.

How to Watch: (PGATourCom)

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Wells Fargo Championship Notes:

Keith Mitchell holds a two-stroke lead in search of only his second PGA Tour title and a win today would mark 798 days since his first Tour title at the 2019 Honda Classic.

Mitchell leads the field by in birdies with (18) through 54 holes trailed by Jason Dufner and Harris English (15).

Rory McIlroy is seeking his third win at the Wells Fargo Championship (others were 2010, 2015).

Gary Woodland is back atop the leaderboard and seeks his fifth career PGA Tour victory and first since the 2019 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach.

Luke List is seeking his first PGA Tour win in his 188th start as this tournament marks his sixth start at the Wells Fargo Championship. List’s best finish was T-9 (2018).

After opening rounds of (69-67), 36-hole co-leader Matt Wallace fell to T-7 after posting a third-round 2-over (73).

Since 2003, only five players have earned their first PGA Tour win at the Wells Fargo Championship.

After making the cut by one stroke, Bryson DeChambeau (T-23) made a six-stroke improvement in round three with a 3-under 68, capped by a double bogey on the par-4 18th hole. On Friday evening, figuring he had missed the cut, DeChambeau headed back to Dallas but was informed mid-flight that the wind had kicked-up at Quail Hollow and the cut-line was changing. Needing to re-fuel anyways, DeChambeau’s charter landed in Dallas, took on jet fuel and took a few hours break, and returned to Charlotte.

Wells Fargo Championship Leaderboard After 54-Holes

Keith Mitchell 67-71-66 —204 (-9)

Rory McIlroy 72-66-68 —206 (-7)

Gary Woodland 67-69-70—206 (-7)

Luke List 67-72-68 —207 (-6)

PGA Tour: Three Share Wells Fargo Lead

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THIS WEEK on the PGA TOUR: Wells Fargo Championship

COURSE: Quail Hollow Country Club (Charlotte, NC)

FEDEx CUP Points Available/Winner: 2,989/500

SOCIAL MEDIA: #PGATour #FedExCup @WellsFargoGolf

OFFICIAL SITE: (Wells Fargo Championship) – (Official Tournament Site)

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TV COVERAGE: Saturday, May 8 and Sunday, May 9 – Golf Channel’s TV coverage will air from 1:00pm to 3:00pm (EDT), then CBS takes over coverage from 3:00pm to 6:00pm (EDT).

STREAMING: PGA Tour Live will offer streaming coverage Saturday and Sunday, PGA Live Featured Groups runs from 8:00am to 3:00pm (EDT) with Featured Holes streaming from 3:00pm to 6:00pm (EDT).

PGA TOUR RADIO COVERAGE: Streaming Radio coverage Saturday and Sunday, 1:00pm to 6:00pm (EDT) on Sirius XM Satellite Radio. PGA Tour Radio is available on Sirius 208/XM 92) or online on PGATour.com.

How to Watch: (PGATourCom)

Wells Fargo Championship Notes:

The three player tie – at six under (136) – after 36-holes ties the record for most players tied for the lead at the Wells Fargo Championship (also 2007).

In his Wells Fargo Championship debut, Matt Wallace is in position for first career PGA Tour title in 41st start of his career.

Gary Woodland (67-69) – (-6) overcame two bogeys with four birdies to post a 2-under 69 in his ninth Wells Fargo Championship start while Patrick Rodgers (68-68) – (-6) offset two bogeys with three birdies and an eagle at the par-5 seventh to post a second consecutive 3-under at Quail Hollow.

After missing the cut in his last two stroke-play events on the Tour, Rory McIlroy (T-5) is inside the Top 10 after 36 holes and only two strokes behind leaders.

First-round leader Phil Mickelson followed eight birdies in round one with just one in round two, an 11-shot swing between rounds (64-75) – (-3) but only three off the lead.

After leading the Tour’s active streak for most consecutive cuts made (22), Jon Rahm missed the cut in for the first time in nearly a year (329 days).

The cutline came in at (+2).

Aside from Rahm, other notables to miss the cut included Gastonia, NC native Harold Varner III, Jason Day, Patrick Cantlay, Will Zalatoris, Ian Poulter, Tony Finau, and Rickie Fowler.

Wells Fargo Leaderboard After 2nd Round

Matt Wallace 69-67—136 (-6)

Gary Woodland 67-69—136 (-6)

Patrick Rodgers 68-68—136 (-6)

Kramer Hickok 68-69—137 (-5)

Full Leaderboard: (link)

Bruins Are In for Lord Stanley’s Cup

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NEWARK – The Boston Bruins clinched the final slot to compete in the NHL’s Stanley Cup Playoffs and battled throughout the competitive East Division of the NHL to post a decisive 3-0 shutout of the New Jersey Devils at the Prudential Center. The Bruins (31-14-6) moved into third place, a point (68-67) ahead of the New York Islanders and three behind the Pittsburgh Penguins and Washington Capitals with five games remaining.

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“You play for an opportunity to play for the cup, so we’ve accomplished the first part of that — getting into the playoffs,” Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy said. “We had our share of adversity as much with COVID rescheduling and injuries, and using different people, but the flip-side of that — the positive side of that — is you learn a little bit about guys. They get thrown into situations where they have to step up. We came out of it OK.”

Boston team Captain Patrice Bergeron scored his 20th goal of the season and Boston clinched its fifth consecutive playoff berth with the road victory. Bruins’ No. 1 goalkeeper, Tuukka Rask, stopped 20 shots for his second shutout of the season, supported by Nick Ritchie goal which broke a scoreless tie in the second period.

The Bruins won their fourth straight game and ended the Devils’ three-game winning streak.

Boston had five games remaining, including another match-up against the Devils at Newark tonight.

Celtics Suffer Costly Loss to Blazers

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BOSTON – Portland Trail Blazers guard CJ McCollum scored 10 of his 33 points in the fourth quarter and the Blazers continued their winning ways on the road with a 129-119 win over the Boston Celtics at TD Garden on Sunday night. The Trail Blazers extended their winning streak to four, all on the road, and will play two more games on this trip.

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The Blazers entered the game in the seventh slot of the Western Conference playoff standings and are trying to work their way out of the NBA’s new play-in round.

Damian Lillard had 26 points and 13 assists for Portland. Veteran forward Carmelo Anthony added 13 points for Portland — including a 3-pointer with 1:08 remaining to help seal it after Boston pulled within two points.

For the Celtics, All-Star forwards Jalen Brown and Jayson Tatum collided at the end of the game and Brown needed assistance as both players left the game and went right to the locker room. Brown has been suffering from right ankle pain and the collision seemed to stem from that fact. Tatum “seemed okay,” according to Boston Coach Brad Stevens.

Tatum scored 33 to lead Boston, as they play to avoid falling into the play-in round in the playoff stretch run of the NBA season.

 

While We’re Young (Ideas) – May 2

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Sunday Sports Notes for May 2

By TERRY LYONS

BOSTON – It happens every spring. March Madness fades into One Shining Moment which almost simultaneously brings Major League Baseball’s Opening Day and the crack of the bat. Pro basketball and ice hockey take a back-seat breather in March and early April for the dog days of their seasons, but the playoff races begin to intensify and – soon enough – every single possession of every single minute of every single game matters.

At this time of year, good teams must defeat the bad ones.

That translates to the proverbial “must win” for every team in playoff contention to defeat every team playing .500 or worse.

First, let’s take a look at the NHL’s Boston Bruins who’ve played 50 games and, as of May 1, are 30-14-6 which calculates to 65 points. They are in fourth place but only two victories (or four points) from the NHL East Division-leading Washington Capitals. Sandwiching the Bruins are the Pittsburgh Penguins and New York Islanders. The four best are lengths ahead of the bottom-feeder New York Rangers, Philadelphia Flyers, New Jersey Devils and Buffalo Sabres.

The Bruins have won nine of their last 11 games, all against East Division foes. The six remaining games are also against their division opponents, with the next two against the Devils and the following deuce against the Rangers.

Bruins’ goalkeepers Tuukka Rask and newly elevated back-up Jeremy Swayman have stepped-up their games, peaking at the right time of year for a playoff run. Newly acquired (trade deadline) forward Taylor Hall’s arrival has coincided with the streak. In the 10 games he’s been a Boston Bruin, the team is 8-2 and Hall has five goals and three assists for eight points. He’s recorded a plus/minus rating of (+9,) while his shooting percentage has risen to a lofty 14.3 percent.

To sum it up, the Bruins are winning the games they “must win” if they are to compete – and succeed – in the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs.

The Boston Celtics of the NBA can not claim such consistency. The Celtics boarded a roller coaster ride since Baylor soundly defeated Gonzaga at the NCAA Final Four. The trade deadline acquisition of Evan Fournier didn’t result in a boost a la Taylor Hall. Instead, Fournier went 0-10 and – after getting on track a game or two later – he landed on the COVID+ injured list.

From April 2nd to 17th, the Celtics won eight of nine games. From April 19th to 27th, the Celtics lost four of five, including two losses against those “must win” opponents – vs. the sub-five-hundred – Chicago Bulls (24-33), and Oklahoma City Thunder (21-41).

Heading into today’s game against the Portland Trail Blazers (35-28), the Celtics are (34-30, .531) and are holding down fourth place in the NBA’s Atlantic Division and the sixth slot in the Eastern Conference, dangerously close to the seventh-seed Miami Heat and the dreaded play-in tournament. Friday night’s miraculous 143-140 Celtics’ overtime victory over the San Antonio Spurs included a franchise/Larry Bird-tying 60-point outing by Jason Tatum to help the Cs overcome a 32-point deficit (65-33, 3:58 left in the 2nd quarter).

Starting this evening, the Celtics play eight more regular season games down the playoff stretch, two against the Miami Heat. The “must wins” are evenly dispersed over the final fortnight of the 2020-21 season and they are circled vs Orlando, Chicago, Cleveland and Minnesota. But, to be a contender and a pretender, the Celtics will need to defeat the Heat, not once but twice.

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