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TL Thanksgiving Notebook | 2025

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By TERRY LYONS, Editor-in-Chief of Digital Sports Desk

RYE, NY – It is wise to give “Thanks and Eat Pie” while giving special thanks and praise to others on this Thanksgiving Week of 2025. Let us first salute the two most important groups for every sports fan on Thanksgiving Day – the Detroit Lions and the Dallas Cowboys. A special thank-you to all the people who work behind the scenes every Thanksgiving Day since time can be told, no matter if they’re the chain gang for the Lions-Cowboys, the “guys” in the trucks, the talented women – corporate-remote production-sideline reporters-statisticians-graphics-play-by-play and anchors – thank you all.

This season, the Green Bay Packers travel to nearby Detroit to face the divisional rival Lions in the early game (1:00pm EST) while the Kansas City Chiefs will have a relatively short flight to Dallas to play the vaunted Cowboys at AT & T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

Post Thanksgiving Day dinner, this year’s night game will feature the Cincinnati Bengals vs. the Baltimore Ravens in a game that looked great on the schedule before Cincy QB Joe Burrow had surgery to aide his turf toe injury. Burrow will not be back for Thanksgiving.

We’ll watch anyway and snacks await.

HERE NOW, THE THANKS: First, let’s give thanks to the NFL Red Zone, and its seven hours of uninterrupted coverage of the NFL, it’s Oct-o-Box, its “witching hour(s), “ “when wins become losses and losses become wins.” … Let’s also give thanks to NFL RedZone play-by-play man Scott Hanson, a gift from heaven. … While we’re at it, thanks go out to Ian Eagle, Kevin Harlan, Jim Nantz & Tony Romo, Kenny Albert and an RIP to the“Goose,“ as in Tony Siragusa who was taken in 2022, far too soon and too young (age 55). (Thanks to Goose-the-band, too, with a reminder December 12th is Goosemas in Providence, Rhode Island).

Thanks for Penny (Lane) and (Mighty) Max, our two pups. There’s nothing like an hour of toy chasing and scampering around the house with two pups playing tug-of-war and chase the ball.
Mighty Max (left) and Penny (Lane) (right), exhausted after play time

Thanks for the Road Not Taken.

Thanks for all of New England. Great place. Chatham, Mass wins. Osterville gets the Silver. Head south to New York/Long Island’s Montauk Point for the Bronze.

See if you can enjoy Horse Racing at Saratoga Race Course next summer.Belmont Park is great and is under construction for total renovation. It’s tough to top Del Mar.

Brand new Blue Jeans are nice.

I love a good segue. Layla to Behind Blue Eyes is the best I’ve ever connected. Try it. Crossfade at about nine seconds.

Do you know Jack Straw from Wichita? We can share what we got of yours ‘cause we done shared all of mine. Bruce Hornsby says: “Runnin’ down by the Lakeshore, She did love the sound of a summer storm. It played on the lake like a Mandolin.”

Thanks to Stevie, Elton, Billy, Bruce Hornsby and The Professor.

Madison Square Garden and Fenway Park are still my favorite places to be, and my home – a place where I truly know my soul has a place to rest.

I love the smell of freshly cut green grass. They smell like … Victory.

I can’t stand when my nice, fresh, green grass turns to brown dust in August, only to return again in late September. With that fact, there is hope for the Spring of 2026. “Green grass and high tides forever,” said the Outlaws, “Castles of stone, souls and glory.”

Let’s step back towards NYC and The Garden (and Felt Forum); I liked Golden Gloves Boxing and hope we can return it to its glory days.

I‘m really liking the NBA Basketball School concept and we’ve bought in for NBA Basketball School – Türkiye, starting in Istanbul in January.

How about “raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens or bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens?”

Is thanks in order as “67” is all the rage? – (Including, Dictionary.com Word of the Year) – Maybe so, but did you know that in all of the NFL’S retired uniform numbers, there’s not one “67,” in the bunch, so it’s not a favorite. Meanwhile, “27” is a fave and thank you Darryl Sittler, the Toronto Maple Leafs great.

For those who have HBO Max and tuned into The Pitt for its first season, you’re good. For those who did not, there will be a re-launch of the acclaimed television series when The Pitt airs on TNT. The Emmy-award winning medical drama will air on TNT starting December 1, 2025, at 9 PM ET. The first season will be re-broadcast uncensored, with three back-to-back episodes airing each Monday through December 29. This TNT version leads up to the premiere of Season 2 of the series to be broadcast on HBO this January.

The Pitt lead actor Noah Wyle won his first Emmy for Best Lead Actor in a Drama for his role as Dr. Michael “Robby” Robinavitch on the HBO Max medical drama and it came 26 years after his last nomination for his work on the medical drama, ER. Here’s my personal list of the best 10pm dramas on TV:

  • The West Wing
  • The Wire
  • Homeland
  • The Sopranos
  • House of Cards (which got far too ridiculous as it evolved)

Honorable Mention: Goes to: M*A*S*H, Breaking Bad, Cheers, Seinfeld, Murder One, Law & Order:Take Your Pick, but Mariska Hargitay gets the nod for the Special Victims episodes.

Sorry, I Missed: Mad Men, Succession, Curb Your Enthusiasm, The Office.

I’m thankful for Ken Burns and his documentary currently airing on PBS. Burns’ latest documentary, The American Revolution, is a monumental six-part, 12-hour miniseries that premiered on PBS (WGBH- TV in Boston) on November 16, 2025 and has been running nightly.

Burns and his team spent nearly a decade on this series drawing from first-person accounts, scholarly interviews, and innovative visuals – many debunking or delving deeper beneath the surface of recognized and accepted teachings of the ultra-complicated war.

There is no better narrator for a documentary than Peter Coyote. He has been the anchor for the best of the best Burns docs.

The series begins in the 1760s, with the French and Indian War’s fallout sparking colonial resentment toward British taxes and policies. It traces the escalation through key flashpoints like the Boston Massacre, the Declaration of Independence, Valley Forge’s horrors, and Yorktown’s triumph, ending with the fragile birth of a republic. The depth of involvement by the French and Spanish, along with the all-fronts wars on-going in Europe (at the same time) paint the picture of England’s place in world history, nevermind the domestic in-fighting between patriots, loyalists, Native Americans and slaves.

It proves to be far more complicated that Lin Manuel-Miranda’s quick and clean version depicted in Hamilton the Musical.

I think I liked the Broadway version the best.

Burns has produced 30 documentary series, including the current epic on the American Revolution. I’ll list a few of my personal favorites or recommendations (as the word favorite doesn’t fit many of the topics Burns explains):

  1. The Viet Nam War
  2. Baseball
  3. The Civil War
  4. The National Parks
  5. Congress
  6. Jackie Robinson
  7. Country Music

RECENT INVESTMENTS – MUST-GIVE THANKS FOR THE BUCKS: Back by popular demand are the amazing (but not profitable) investments made by Digital Sports Desk Enterprises this past year.

  • We sunk a cash investment into the next craze in Satellite Radio: Superficial XM
  • Things didn’t go well for our Fantasy Sports/Gambling app: Combine Kings
  • There’s a new sport for SPEED RACERS: Invest with us in NASBUGGY
  • Media is Hot, Hot, Hot! MSNBC is MSNow, so invest in MSFOX television
  • With the success of the Peacock Network and their work in sports, the competition is investing in a similar effort to delve into the action. Let us dig deep for:
    • Ostrich Network – Politicians appear with their heads in the sand
    • Ravens Network – No, not the Baltimore football team, but the second coming of Sesame Street, a la “Count” the Ravens, nevermore.
    • The Pelican Network – How about 24/7 NBA New Orleans Pelican basketball? With summers covered by a non-stop loop of The Pelican Brief. (That’s the John Grisham thriller novel starring Julia Roberts in the motion picture).

IMPRESSED or NOT: Since I’m honestly impressed, I will also give thanks to/for:

  • College basketball’s No. 1 ranked Houston Cougars and coach Kelvin Sampson
  • College basketball’s Purdue and Alabama teams, too. They’re both good.
  • Grown men in baseball uniforms jumping up and down on a November night after winning the World Series
  • Tears for Fears
  • Tailgating
  • The Boston Marathon and the 11:00am Red Sox game at Fenway
  • Dave Roberts, Dan Campbell, Mark Daigneault, Mike Vrabel and Paul Maurice
  • Al Arbour, Gil Hodges, Red Holzman and Weeb Ewbank
  • Lou Carnesseca, Kevin Loughery, Dickie McGuire and Joe Lapchick
  • John Kresse and Bob McKillop
  • Bob Lanier, Dikembe Mutombo, Darryl Dawkins and Bill Walton
  • Jerry West
  • Arnold Palmer and an ice cold Arnold Palmer (on a hot summer day)
  • Rory McIlroy, rolling in a 25-foot putt or driving the ball 325+
  • David Bowie, Duran Duran, Jerry Garcia and Simple Minds
  • Derek Trucks, Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix and Brian May
  • Traeger Grills (Super Smoke), Grilled/Smoked/Roasted Chicken Breast
  • Well done BBQ Burgers and Grilled Corn, Brussels Sprouts and Broccoli
  • Pizza

LET’S GIVE THANKS FOR THE RIGHT TO VOTE: Important things?

  • The right to vote
  • Rights for women’s health issues
  • Freedom of speech, freedom of the press, and the right to peacefully assemble
  • The right for an American with a passport to travel the world while abiding by the laws of the country they chose to visit

THANKS AGAIN: To my guys, Brian McIntyre, Matt Winick – former NBA colleagues, now simply friends for life. Helen Wong, too. (It’s so great, as she’s teaching in the NYC public school system now).

Nowadays, I have a love/hate relationship with my old stomping grounds of New York City. I love and miss the West Village and the Upper West Side. Less so for Midtown and the UES. Even less for Queens.

The love is being there for the annual Big East basketball tournament at The Garden.

The hate is having to drive, so I often take the train (Amtrak) or drive to Westchester and take the Metro North into Manhattan. On Thanksgiving Day morning, I can do the drive in 2 hours, 45 minutes – three hours max. One day last month, it took nearly seven hours. Blah.

THANKS AGAIN: For my fireplace and a full cord of hardwood.

I really like my Bose Sound bar, Spotify play lists, my CDs, and some good, old vinyl.

I do sound tests with Steely Dan’s aja and Stevie Nicks’ Stand Back. There are others.

If you can get the drapes to move on the beats of the bass drum, you win.

Alan Parsons and Todd Rundgren get some airplay in the house. For those interested, Parsons hails from Willisden (Middlesex), a town five miles west/NW of Charing Cross (London) while Rundgren hails from Upper Darby, PA – not far from Philly.

ELO-Over and Out!
ELO at TD Garden (Photo by T. Peter Lyons)

We enjoyed fare-thee-well tours by The Who and ELO with Jeff Lynne’s “Over and Out” concerts (2024-25). I couldn’t believe Roger and Pete could pull it off one last time, but that they did on a great summer night at Fenway Park. as far as ELO, I was not surprised at all. They were note for note – fabulous.

The Who-The Song is Over!
Roger Daltrey of The Who at Fenway Park (photo by T. Peter Lyons)

Switching gears once again, I’m quite happy with Turner’s coverage of the Big East, but the jury’s still out on St. John’s for a run through the conference and into March Madness. They need to improve on the defensive end in a big way, and it would be great to see someone – anyone – start drilling a few 3s.

Purdue, (previously mentioned) Houston, UConn, Arizona and Alabama look pretty good. It’s a very long way to go until the various conference tournaments come around, but we’ll all rejoice in the Thanksgiving and Christmas college hoop tourneys (and one-offs) coming this week.

In college football, I’ll be shocked – SHOCKED – if any team in the land can give Ohio State a run. Single game playoffs can do that, though, I guess.

If you can’t sing a lick, a great Karaoke song to pick is “Lonely Days” by The Bee Gees. Look up the lyrics and you’ll get what I’m saying. Plus, it’s an all-time great sing-along.

A really bad choice would be “I’ve Seen All Good People” by YES and you should think twice before choosing “American Pie” by Don MacLean.

Let’s give thanks to Rolling Stones drummer, the late Charlie Watts, and his great hi-hat cymbals in the ballad, “Angie.” (which segues quite nicely into “No Sugar Tonight” by The Guess Who.

There’s always room for thanks for my special Williams-Sonomo Apple-Orange Cranberry Sauce for Thanksgiving Day (and sandwiches thereafter). You’ll never look at Cranberry Sauce the same way again, especially that old Ocean Spray – right out of the can – style that has the imprints of the tin can on the sides.

From the Vault:

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A Memory of an Old Friend

Note: Reprinted from a Digital Sports Desk column of November 18, 2019

By TERRY LYON(S)

There’s a very special bond shared with Philadelphia Inquirer columnist Bill Lyon that only the letter “s” could separate. He had a highly demanding job as lead sports columnist in a sports-loving city where the games frequently ended just as his deadline approached. In Philadelphia, no sportsman wore glass slippers, so … somehow, through sheer talent … Bill Lyon endured and excelled, an hour and a half before the clock struck midnight. Just as many a writer with a west coast, pacific time zone deadline would be sitting down to craft a game story or sidebar, Lyon would be packing up for the night, computer tucked away in his bag slung over his shoulder with his work already placed in a column, flush-left, adorning the front page of the sports section or maybe A-1 of the newspaper, if the game just concluded was as worthy as his prose.

Embed from Getty Images

Bill Lyon was a gentleman and a professional. He covered sports in Philadelphia and his job placed him in press boxes and locker rooms all across America. He wrote about the Phillies and baseball, the Eagles in football, the Flyers in ice hockey, but the bond shared revolved around the Philadelphia 76ers and NBA basketball. Bill rode shotgun alongside the Inquirer’s beat writers for 76ers basketball. From Hall of Famer Bill Livingston to the eccentric style of the late George Shirk to the solid reporting of Frank Lawlor or Joe Juliano, and nowadays Keith Pompey. Bill marched side-by-side at the broad sheet Inquirer with the great Bob Ford, as Lyon cranked out columns, on tight deadlines, with an upbeat approach and depth that few could even imagine, nevermind dream up and publish in 20 or 25 minutes.

During his tenure, he covered Julius “Dr. J” Erving and Moses Malone of the Sixers, although Lyon’s personality was undoubtedly more Maurice Cheeks than Darryl Dawkins. As the seasons changed, he covered Steve Carlton or Mike Schmidt of the Phillies, Randall Cunningham and Donovan McNabb of the Eagles, Rick Tocchet and Eric Lindros of the Flyers, prize fights, golf tournaments and maybe an Olympics or ten, but it was adjacent to NBA hardwood where we met and spoke quite often.

You see, long before the days of electronic mail, voicemail or iPhone 11s, Motorola Razors, Blackberries or any other type of mobile, voice-mail enabled devices, Bill Lyon was the recipient of hundreds upon hundreds of my hotel messages. Back in the day, they say with a degree of reminiscence and disdain at the same time, hotel phone operators took a pen and a pad of pink, pre-printed message slips and wrote down the name and phone number of a caller who used a telephone with a hard line and dialed the main number seeking out a guest. In our case, we frequently stayed at the same NBA media headquarters hotel and Lyon would appear on the operator’s screen before Lyons, and thus the problem.

Bill and I formed a bond in 1981 or so, and we made a pact, written in stone and not on a pink message slip. That pact was to diligently and without judgement, frustration or fatigue, with neither snow, nor rain, nor heat, nor gloom of night, nor first flights out, nor late nights at the hospitality room stay our bond to swiftly deliver the message or voice mail to one another during our appointed round. The ratio of Lyons to Lyon messages was probably, oh, roughly 100-3. Bill would either call, or sometimes it was easier to just walk them over. From the Los Angeles Airport Marriott to Boston’s Copley Place, the Lyon-to-Lyons message center was more reliable than a Maytag, more efficient than a GM factory and stronger than U.S. Steel. We traveled the land, undaunted by incompetent hotel operators and mixed up messages.

He marveled at the number of media credential requests, or later, of the sheer volume of international media seeking NBA information.

Likewise, his editors or occasionally his wife, Ethel, might cross telephone lines into the land of Lyons rather than Lyon. The mishaps were usually met with good-natured laughs and a promise to pass a message along or even better. As the Lyon-Lyons tandem learned over the years, we’d compare notes before a “Game 1” and then be able to say, oh no, he’s in Room 404, let me see if I can transfer your call.

It was a special bond.

Yesterday, Jim Nantz of CBS Sports informed me and the rest of the world of Bill Lyon’s passing and, at the same time, he reminded me a fantastic and wonderful bond had officially and irreversibly ended.

That made me quite sad.

Rest In Peace, old pal. You’ve got a smooth operator now.

TL’s Sunday Sports Notes | Nov 16

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TL’s Sport Notebook | Nov. 9th

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2025 MLB Champion Los Angeles Dodgers (MLB)

By TERRY LYONS, Editor of Digital Sports Desk

CHESTNUT HILL – Here’s the text of a letter to be sent to Major League Baseball this week. It addresses the 2025 MLB season:

Commissioner Rob Manfred

The Office of the Commissioner of Baseball

1271 Avenue of the Americas

New York, NY 10020

Dear Commissioner Manfred:

I trust you’ve had a modicum of rest since the grand finale of the 2025 World Series and I hope this letter finds you, your family and your talented staff in the best of health and spirits.

Each season, you probably receive thousands of letters, e-mails and other forms of communication broaching every known topic regarding Major League Baseball and I imagine most of them are filed under the vertical of complaints. Surely, team executives, club managers and fans write to you to address perceived problems in the game, poor umpiring, rising ticket prices or to address specific issues of poor fan behavior, suggestions or disagreements regarding rule changes or to share their opinions on everything from Baseball Hall of Fame inductions to Minor League (MiLB) baseball policies.

This letter comes under an area not related to any of the previously mentioned topics. It comes to you as a message of sincere thanks and congratulations on a job well done for the recently concluded season. I honestly wonder just how few letters you receive that simply say, “Thank You,” and point out a few of the things that made this season your best, your crowning jewel of accomplishment in your tenure as the Commissioner of Baseball.

The 2025 Baseball season can be compared to the finest things life has to offer. It might equate to the very best vintage of Opus One. The season enjoyed the best finishing stanza since Eric Clapton wrote the closing instrumental for “Layla.” This season was everything a professional sport strives for in its entire existence.

Surely, there were problems. There were some bench (and bullpen) clearing brawls, some bad calls, some rained-out games, and some untimely player injuries. There were unfortunate job losses to Managers and a few players waived into the abyss of eternal free agency. There were broken bats and Baltimore chops. There were some games played in freezing cold and unbearable heat, but that’s what Mother Nature had in store for some games that began way back on March 26 and concluded on November 2.

In 2025, we lost Hall of Famers like Dave Parker and Ryne Sandberg and even the great Bob Uecker who must be in the “front row” up in heaven’s Field of Dreams. Speaking of which, I understand that the Philadelphia Phillies and the Minnesota Twins will play in Iowa next summer. Nice move, sir.

But, all of the ups and downs are somewhat out of your control as the supreme leader for professional baseball played in the United States and in Canada. You must focus on the bigger picture and sometimes look five, ten or twenty years down the baseline. With that in mind, this letter is to underline and congratulate you for the finer things in Baseball.

First, was last. Yes, the last game of the 2025 World Series was an instant classic, as were the vast majority games of the Series and the MLB postseason. Together, we witnessed the very best in Baseball, some performances of the Century, to be sure.

World Series Most Valuable Player in Dodgers right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto put forth a performance in Los Angeles’ 5-4 victory in Game 7 of the World Series which surely will go down as one of the greatest pitching performances in the annals of baseball history. Not to be overlooked was his complete game, one run outing in Game 2.

Yamamoto-san’s fellow Japanese teammate, Shohei Ohtani, had an equally impressive World Series and an MLB postseason for the ages. His .333 batting average included nine hits, three homers, five RBIs and six runs scored in the seven games of the 2025 World Series. Of course, he pitched quite well and started Game 7 with the weight of Los Angeles and an entire nation on his shoulders.

While the players from Japan have been recognized, how about an all-out salute to our neighbors to the north in the Toronto Blue Jays, American League pennant winners and another team for the ages. The Blue Jays had most of Canada rooting for them and rightfully so as Montreal-born and Dominican-bred Vladimir Guerrero, Jr. was magnificent. Historians of the game could close their eyes and see tiny, four-year old Vlad, Jr. tipping his little batting helmet as his father was given a standing ovation as he stood in his No. 27 Montreal Expos uniform – a picture worth ten thousand words.. Now, it’s Vlad, Jr’s turn to soak in the applause, and he was just a few outs shy of a World Series win at home.

There were others – far too many to mention in this missive to you, dearest Commissioner – but those others aren’t just from the two World Series teams. The MLB All-Star Game had two impressive rookies in pitcher Shane Smith and shortstop Jacob Wilson. And, that James Wood of Washington is something else, isn’t he?

The rule changes adopted a season or two ago have paid off with ten times their basic value, a gamble – yes- but one that made sense and reduced overall games times to make a night out at the ballpark quite enjoyable, especially in the shrines that are Fenway Park in Boston and Wrigley Field in Chicago.

As to those locales, Pete Crow-Armstrong is entertaining the fans at Wrigley while Garrett Crochet and Roman Anthony have rejuvenated the mighty Red Sox for sellout crowds at tiny Fenway. Paul Skenes looks great in Pittsburgh and Tarik Skubal is among the best pitchers the game has ever seen.

You might have some work to do out in Colorado with those Rockies, but that worry is for another day.

This is all about celebrating the present and your work during the 2025 big league season. It was magnificent.

So, on behalf of Baseball fans everywhere, from Sea (of Japan) to shining (Caribbean) Sea, and all those in between, it’s been a great 2025, crowned by a World Series that earned the tag, “Fall Classic.”. Congratulations go out to you, Commissioner, and to all your hard-working colleagues at the Office of the Commissioner of Baseball, along with the MLB Network, MLB Advanced Media, MLB.com, the MiLB and the umpires, too. Thanks for a great year.

Fully knowing you have club owners’ and GMs’ meetings, the annual Winter Meetings and plenty of other things to attend to before Pitchers and Catchers report on or about February 11, 2026 and the World Baseball Classic will be staged once again next spring, I hope you can take a short break and relax. But, your planned retirement, circled for January 2029, will come around faster than you think, so enjoy – maybe treasure – the remaining days of your service to the game of baseball. Ride the high wave of 2025 to even greater heights in 2026 with the winds of appreciative fans breezing behind you until you choose to sail toward the sunset.

Sincerely,

A Fan

cc: Gary B. Bettman (NHL); Roger Goodell (NFL) and Adam Silver (NBA)

bcc: Mark Walter, Chairman of MLB club owners

a group of people sitting at a bar watching tv

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: After a total debacle with their partnership with Barstool Sports, PENN Gaming now has folded the deck in the midst of a $2 billion deal with ESPN. Earlier this week, PENN made two timed announcements before the markets opened Thursday morning.

First: PENN Entertainment, Inc. (Nasdaq: PENN) (“PENN”) and ESPN announced that they have mutually agreed upon the early termination of their exclusive U.S. online sports betting (“OSB”) agreement, effective December 1, 2025.

Under the terms of the original commercial agreement, announced in August 2023, ESPN agreed to provide PENN with media, marketing services and the exclusive right to the ESPN BET trademark for OSB in the United States in exchange for $150 million per year in cash payments to ESPN and warrants to purchase common stock of PENN. The agreement had an initial term of 10 years, with the right for either party to terminate the agreement after the third year if specific market share performance thresholds were not met.

“When we first announced our partnership with ESPN, both sides made it clear that we expected to compete for a podium position in the space,” said Jay Snowden, CEO and President of PENN Entertainment. “Although we made significant progress in improving our product offering and building a cohesive ecosystem with ESPN, we have mutually and amicably agreed to wind down our collaboration. We plan to refocus our digital strategy on our growing iCasino business, while continuing to capitalize on our omnichannel advantage as the nation’s leading regional retail casino operator.”

Snowden continued, “Looking ahead, we plan to rebrand our OSB offering in the U.S. to theScore Bet®, with a target date of December 1, 2025 to coincide with the expected launch of sports betting in Missouri, subject to regulatory approvals. We currently operate theScore Bet brand in Ontario, Canada.

The termination cut the losses to $450 million, according to reported terms of the deal.

Upon completion of PENN’s deal with Barstool, Snowden oversaw the sale of the Barstool deal back to Barstool head honcho Dave Portnoy for a grand total of $1.00 a few years after the $380 million PENN acquisition of Barstool in 2020. That’s $387,999,999 down the drain.

Secondly: ESPN PR issued this news release, stating: ESPN and Draft Kings Inc. (Nasdaq: DKNG) (“Draft Kings”) announced an agreement, naming Draft Kings the exclusive Official Sportsbook and odds provider of ESPN, effective December 1, 2025. This agreement, which unites two of the most iconic brands in sports, will deliver fans premium sports betting content and experiences.

Beginning in December 2025, Draft Kings entertainment products will be exclusively integrated across ESPN’s ecosystem with a full rollout expected in 2026. Fans will be able to enjoy betting features and access to offerings including DraftKings’ sportsbook, daily fantasy, and Draft Kings Pick 6 at launch.

Together, Draft Kings and ESPN will collaborate to advance their shared commitment to responsible gaming, by dedicating prominent assets to educate, raise customer awareness and promote responsible play through campaigns and integrations.

“Our betting approach has focused on offering an integrated experience within our products,” said Jimmy Pitaro, Chairman, ESPN. “Working with Draft Kings, a leader in the space, will allow us to build upon that foundation, continue to super-serve passionate sports fans and grow our ESPN direct-to-consumer business. We are excited about this new collaboration with Draft Kings.”

Draft Kings will also play a major role across ESPN’s digital platforms. Draft Kings will power the betting tab within the ESPN app and their customers will receive special promotions for ESPN Unlimited, ESPN’s newly launched direct-to-consumer product.

“ESPN’s unmatched visibility across the world of sports make this collaboration a natural fit,” said Jason Robins, CEO and Co-Founder of DraftKings. “As an innovative leader in digital sports entertainment, DraftKings is uniquely positioned to integrate our technology and products with ESPN’s iconic brand and storytelling power. Together, we’re delivering a seamless, engaging, and responsible experience that elevates how fans connect with live sports.”

Put together, ESPN will not skip a beat, or even a Bad Beat.

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: A few random thoughts and items from the notebook … A strong opinion – besides the headline grabbing gambling scandal that rocked the start of the NBA regular season – the NBC Sports/Peacock broadcasts (and studio shows) have been terrific. What a novel idea: Focusing on the game at hand and the league/basketball news. Amazing how that works so well. It’s certainly better than Stephen A. Smith and Ben Stiller’s blabber/non-X and O/fan/rah, rah approach witnessed last year from Madison Square Garden. … I’d love to see Stephen A. come back down to eaarth and play it straight alongside an accomplished coach. … Amazon Prime doing quite well, but admittedly, I find my viewing habits much more on the FIOS cable side, rather than switching over to the streaming side of the screen. … It was great to see Ernie, Chuck, Kenny and Shaq back in action. … Underdog, too. … On the music side, circle December 12-13 in Providence, Rhode Island for Goosemas 2025.

On Friday, the NCAA announced xix former men’s college basketball players at three schools — New Orleans, Mississippi Valley State and Arizona State — participated in gambling schemes that included game manipulation or sharing information with known bettors, according to informed sources. … Two cents? Beware of the Mid-Majors with this issue.

Aryna Sabalenka, the top-ranked women’s tennis player in the world will play and exhibition against former Wimbledon finalist Nick Kyrgios in a “Battle of the Sexes” match in Dubai on December 28th. It’s not exactly Billie Jean King vs. Bobby Riggs, but it should be fun. The match will be staged at the 17,000-seat Coca-Cola Arena in Dubai (UAE). Both Sabalenka and Kyrgios will be featured in an exhibition at New York’s Madison Square Garden on December 8 but not against each other: Sabalenka will play Naomi Osaka and Kyrgios will face Tommy Paul.

WHEELS UP: The Pittsburgh Penguins and Nashville Predators will depart their respective cities for a pair of regular-season games at Avicii Arena in Stockholm, Sweden, scheduled on November 14 and November 16. The clubs will begin practices on Tuesday, November 11th. The 2025 NHL Global Series will mark the 15th NHL season to include regular-season games outside North America. The event marks the league’s return to Sweden and is a pillar of the NHL’s continued international focus, following the success of the 4 Nations Face-Off. The two games featuring the Penguins and Predators will mark the 17th and 18th games played in Stockholm, which has hosted more NHL regular-season games than any other city outside of North America. The games will be covered for TV locally and via the NHL Network.

TIDBITS & NUGGETS: In preparation for a special THANKSGIVING column, I encourage our legions of readers to post a comment/note or to Direct Message your roving reporter with a “Favorite Thing” or something you are especially Thankful for this year. Indicate if you’d like your name used or not. The Sunday Notes of November 23rd will be dedicated to Thanksgiving while the November 30th column will be a hodgepodge of notes and observations from my personal Thanksgiving Week (Nov. 24-29th). We’ll see if it is just a few notes or if it merits timeline. One note on that: The apple wood chips have already been purchased for the all day smoking of two birds.

More to come on Thanksgiving, so send in your faves.

THE BEATLES: Did you know that on this date (November 9) in 1961 Brian Epstein travelled to The Cavern Club in Hamburg, Germany to see The Beatles play for the very first time. It would take several more trips before Epstein and the lads would agree to have Epstein manage the band which he did until his death in 1967. Coincidentally, on November 9, 1966, Beatles great guitarist and song writer, the late John Lennon, met Yoko Ono for the first time. Lennon’s future wife was showing of her work at the Indica Art Gallery in London and she supposedly didn’t know who Lennon was at the time. The two wouldn’t “come together” until 1968.

THIS JUST IN a.k.a. the BUTT FUMBLE? Former New York J-E-T-S quarterback Mark Sanchez will not return to the Fox Sports analyst both as the former NFLer faces a trial stemming from his alleged attack on a truck driver last month. “We can confirm that Mark Sanchez is no longer with the network. There will be no further comment at this time,” a Fox Sports spokesperson said Friday.

Sanchez had been off the air since the October 4 dust-up at the Westin Hotel in downtown Indianapolis. Sanchez was in Indy for the NFL game between the Colts and Las Vegas Raiders when he confronted a truck delivery man before allegedly attacking and injuring him.

Sanchez was stabbed in the chest in the incident and he spent a week in an Indiana hospital. The trucker, who claimed self-defense and has not been charged, is suing Sanchez and Fox Sports for unspecified damages.

To replace Sanchez, Fox hired Super Bowl-winning quarterback Drew Brees.

TL’s Halloween 🎃 Sports Notes | Nov 2

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The Reservoir near Boston College (Photo by Victoria Lyons)

By TERRY LYONS, Editor of Digital Sports Desk

CHESTNUT HILL – Today’s column begins with a simple question. Why is the NBA and its players singled out for the practice of “Load Management” while many other sports employ the same treatment but remain unscathed of criticism?

I think load management started with Track and Field and Boxing, to allow the athletes plenty of time to recover from prior races or bouts. I don;t think any of us have any issue with that practice, although I do remember former San Antonio Spurs and USA Basketball Dream Team center David Robinson quizzing USA champion hurdler Edwin Moses on his sparse schedule on a Dream Team bus ride returning to the Ambassador Hotel from the Barcelona ‘92 Opening Ceremonies.

The Admiral shook his head, hearing Moses didn’t compete between the Olympics and Worlds while the Spurs might face the Lakers (Shaquille O’Neal), the Rockets (Hakeem Olajuwon), the Knicks (Patrick Ewing) and the Celtics (Robert Parish) within a week or two.

Taking that exchange aside, Load Management is utilized in a number of other sports besides track or boxing. In fact, it’s used in the toughest of sports – ice hockey – where your starters only play 1/3rd of a game, and share time with 3 or often 4 lines, Defense has 6 guys splitting the time. Goalkeepers need two guys to carry the load.

In baseball, starting pitchers only play every four or five days, and their catchers never play in a day game after a night game. All baseball players frequently get a day off. In the bullpen, relievers and closers rarely pitch two days in a row and the prized closers can only throw for three outs, lasting one half an inning.

In American football, the lineup of players (11) are divided into two groups, so 22 guys play instead of 11. There are offensive units and defensive units and also special teams are entirely different players to manage the load and help avoid potential injury. The teams play one game a week.

Of course, in the NBA, the great Michael Jordan swore he HAD to play, as he didn’t want to disappoint a fan who saved a ton of money and bought a ticket months before the scheduled game. MJ set very worthy barometer and played all-out nearly every single night of his career with that fan/ticket buyer in the back of his mind for motivation.

Other examples?

Thoroughbred Race Horses are load-managed with the best of ’em, so much that even the three weeks off between the Preakness and Belmont seems far too short for a Triple Crown contender.

I’m just not sure why basketball gets singled out?

Do you know why?

BC vs. ND: Your roving reporter had the pleasure to attend the Boston College vs. Notre Dame college football game on Saturday. BC’s campus was glowing, and Alumni Stadium – the place Doug Flutie built – was sold out.

It was an absolutely gorgeous New England day with a pure, postcard blue sky. When the game began, Notre Dame was a 29.5 point favorite over the hometown Eagles, but at the half, BC trailed 12-7 and was very much in the game. Then, when Boston College’s Luca Lombardo kicked a 25 yard field goal late in the third quarter, the 10-1 Notre Dame over BC fan ratio was silenced as the scoreboard read ND 12-10.

Boston College had every opportunity to take the lead in the fourth quarter but failed to convert on two 4th Down and 1 yard plays. ND countered with another touchdown to make it, 18-10.

ND broke it open when Jeremiyah Love ran 94 yards with 11:07 remaining in the game. BC could do no more. It was the strongest effort of the season by the Eagles but that effort did nothing for the “win column,” as only an opening week of the season victory over Fordham has been the winning effort.

It was an incredibly exciting event.

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: It’s getting late in the 2025 College Football season and both Indiana and Vanderbilt are legit Top 10 and College Football Playoff Bowl bound, for sure. The next thing you know, St. John’s will be ranked No. 5 or No. 6 in College Basketball. … This season, the college football playoffs feature a 12-team format where the five highest ranked Conference Champions and the next seven highest-ranked teams will qualify. The four highest-ranked teams overall receive a first-round bye and are seeded 1-4, while the teams seeded 5-12 play in the first round, with higher seeds hosting the games on campus. The quarterfinals and semifinals are played in the big time bowl games. Here’s the schedule so you can plan ahead.

  • First Round: December 19–20, 2025
  • Quarterfinals: December 31, 2025, and January 1, 2026
  • Semifinals: January 8–9, 2026
  • National Championship: January 19, 2026, in Miami Gardens, Florida

TIDBITS & NUGGETS:Does everyone have their complete set of NBA team #Hashtags for the 2025-26 season? If not, here they are:

If we’re going to rank a few, how about a Top 5:

  1. #TakeNote for the Utah Jazz
  2. #RepTheDistrict for the Wash DC Wizards
  3. #FearTheDeer for the Milwaukee Bucks (longtime fave)
  4. #WeTheNorth for the Toronto Raptors (Another longtime fave)
  5. #LakeShow for the LA Lakers (Third longtime fave)

NBA CUP: We are all about to be overtaken by the NBA Cup and its artistic dominance of basketball courts at every NBA arena. This season, many of the courts have the same overall design and differ only in colors and the names of the team cities emblazoned at center court. Here in Boston, we long for a simple design with some parquet flooring as the main play. Not this year. Elsewhere, the red tones are just too much and do not reflect well. In other locales, such as Los Angeles, the Lakers’ gold (call it yellow) glows in the dark. Many fans like the gray motif, and Brooklyn does it well, along with Chicago, Golden State, Memphis, OKC, Orlando, Portland, Sacramento, San Antonio.

COSM: The late David Stern, NBA Commissioner from 1984 to 2014, had a dream of broadcasting NBA games to make every viewer in the world experience the game as though they were sitting in a courtside seat. That dream is a step closer to reality and the league announced its latest tech deal to take that small step, or giant leap – depending on how you see it.

The NBA and Cosm, an immersive technology, media, and entertainment company, announced a new long-term partnership to produce and distribute live NBA games in shared reality at Cosm’s immersive entertainment venues through 2030 and beyond. During the 2025-26 NBA season, Cosm will produce and present key national games across the league’s broadcast platforms via ABC/ESPN, NBC/Peacock and Prime Video as well as select games and events during NBA All-Star Weekend, NBA Playoffs and NBA Finals.

In February 2023, the NBA became the first-ever professional sports league to partner with Cosm ahead of the opening of the first immersive entertainment venue in Los Angeles’ Hollywood Park in July 2024. Cosm has since opened its second venue in Dallas at The Colony’s Grandscape and is slated to open three additional venues in Atlanta, Detroit, and Cleveland in 2026 and 2027. Other future locations are yet to be announced..

Last year, Cosm reimagined the way NBA fans can experience games, leveraging its innovative camera and production technology to capture and distribute live games back to its 87-foot-diameter, 12K+ LED domes. Cosm venues blend state-of-the-art visuals with the energy of the crowd to create an arena-like atmosphere that provides fans with a view of the game from a range of unique angles, including behind the bench and under the rim. In particular, the Los Angeles venue in Inglewood will be a marquee destination for fans during NBA All-Star activities in February 2026.

“The response from fans at Cosm domes last year demonstrated what an incredible way it is to experience an NBA game,” said Teddy Kaplan, Vice President, Head of New Media Partnerships at the NBA. “We couldn’t be more excited to extend our partnership and look forward to working in lockstep with Cosm to engage our fans as they expand their footprint to different markets across the country in the coming years.”

“The NBA took the leap to be our first league partner, and we are honored to extend the foundational partnership that started it all,” said Jeb Terry, President and CEO at Cosm. “With our shared spirit of innovation, passion for the fan experience, and belief in the power of Shared Reality, we will continue to super-serve NBA fans for many years to come, and in many more locations.”

WNBA LABOR AGREEMENT – TIMEOUT: With the expiration date of the WNBA’s current collective bargaining agreement upon them, the WNBA players association agreed to the extension with the league as previous talks had stalled in an attempt to strike a new deal. According to a news reports from ESPN and The Athletic, the WNBA and WNBPA reached a resolution on a 30-day extension after considering it for two days. The prior agreement expired on October 31.

Keep in mind, the W signed a new 11-year media deal with Versant in late September. The agreement potentially tips-off for the 2026 season and includes at least 50 WNBA games annually and portions of the WNBA Playoff and WNBA Finals games during select years. Versant, the parent company of cable networks and brands soon to be spun off from Comcast has been rapidly acquiring sports rights and diving deeper into women’s sports in particular. The latest agreement expands upon a previous broadcast package between the WNBA and Versant’s USA Network signed in 2024.

REDFORD TRIBUTE: Anyone sick of NFL football, yet? Probably not, but that’s why God invented the DVR (a.k.a. Tivo, Thank-you). Tune in or record, you’ll have a great time watching all the hits!

The Sting is a personal favorite, but The Way We Were is an amazing motion picture, often overlooked.

NOVEMBER 2 – TCM’S TRIBUTE TO ROBERT REDFORD

6:00 AM A Bridge Too Far (1977)

9:00 AM Barefoot in the Park (1967)

11:00 AM Downhill Racer (1969)

1:00 PM The Candidate (1972)

3:00 PM All the President’s Men (1976)

5:30 PM The Sting (1973)

8:00 PM Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)

10:00 PM The Way We Were (1973)

12:15 AM A River Runs Through It (1992)

2:30 AM The Hot Rock (1972)

4:30 AM War Hunt (1962)

PARTING WORDS & MUSIC: This will mark two weeks in a row with movie clips, as last week was a clip of The Sting. If you’ve seen the motion picture featured today and you can make it through this clip without tearing up, you are NOT human. Here’s to Robert Redford and Barbra Streisand – two of the all-time greatest.

While We’re Young (Ideas) is a weekly (every weekend) collection of Sports Notes and News written by Terry Lyons. The posting of each notebook harkens back to the days when you’d walk over to the city news stand on Saturday night around 10:00pm to pick-up a copy of the Sunday papers. Inside, just waiting, was a compilation of interesting sports notes, quotes and quips in a column that always sold a few newspapers. Wire Service reports are utilized within the column.

TL’s Sunday Sports Notes | Oct 26

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By TERRY LYONS, Editor of Digital Sports Desk

BOSTON – Credibility. It’s such a powerful word yet it comes with such a fragile state of being. One’s credibility can be built-up over a lifetime but lost in a minute or two. Even if you’re not involved with a situation whatsoever, if you don’t voice a strong opinion on that newsworthy issue, you can lose credibility just by not saying a single word.

It is with that in mind, I think I’m almost obligated to write today on the NBA’s season opening (alleged) gambling bombshell that exploded on the third day of the 2025-26 season, not even 12 hours after 7-5 San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama put up 40 points and 15 rebounds in a 125-92 Spurs’ thrashing of the Dallas Mavericks on October 22.

Yet, the morning of October 23, the word began to circulate in NBA and mainstream news circles that “NBA Players” were involved in a gambling scandal. Social media carried the ball, a palm, spin and travel that would’ve made Earl “The Pearl” Monroe quite proud. Word circulated quickly that Portland Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups was involved and Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier was arrested the morning after a DNP-coaches decision in Orlando where the Magic slipped past the Heat, 125-121 in their exciting season opener.

Two hours of online mayhem led to a 10:00am (ET) news conference by the Feds of the Eastern District of New York – complete with beady-eyed FBI Director Kash (Don’t call me Cash) Patel in the center of the dog-and-pony show laying out indictments which included accusations against Billups, Rozier and retired NBA guard Damon Jones. The Rozier and Jones indictment is HERE.

Interestingly, the inclusion of Jones, once a member and teammate of Cleveland Cavaliers (now LA Lakers) superstar LeBron James, allowed media speculators to drag NBA royalty into the mix at no extra charge.

In regard to Billups, the charges were related to a conspiracy to rig illegal poker games. The games took place in New York City, East Hampton, Long Island, and throughout the United States and a total of 31 defendants were arrested in 11 States, including members and associates of the Bonanno, Gambino, and Genovese organized crime families. The charges were filed by the US Justice Department at the Brooklyn headquarters of the Eastern District of New York which also has offices in Central Islip, Long Island.

The multiple card games at the alleged locations caused losses to the many victims of at least $7,150,000. It is alleged that Billups’ role was to act as a “Face Card,” or in other words, as a lure to attract unsuspecting victims and to add a sense of professionalism to the atmosphere at the gambling games of chance.

In terms of charges in the card game portion of the bombshell indictments, crimes of fraud, money laundering and extortion have been tacked on to the basic illegal gambling and wire fraud counts.

Now, for some perspective:

No. 1 – I do not know anything about this case other than from watching the press Eastern District of New York press conference and reading the court documents.

No. 2 – It is important in these situations to know that speculation is wrong and there are very few people who know what is at the root of these cases. For that reason, the feds choose not to comment regarding the on-going investigation and league and team legal and security teams must keep their mouths shut, yet cooperate with the investigators.

Remember one of the most important lessons from reading this weekly missive: “Never miss an opportunity to keep your mouth shut.”

No. 3 – Social media (and to a great extent, the mainstream media) in an effort to fill the airwaves with opinions, innuendo, erroneous assumptions and, generally, useless information that fans/readers/listeners/viewers consume, often break the golden rule of justice in these United States. That is the fact the accused person is assumed innocent until proven guilty through a court of law, usually by a jury of their peers.

Now, a few things that I learned over years of experience in the sports world:

No. 1 – When the indictments are unsealed, they look awfully convincing and the accused seem so guilty of the charges written on the papers. However, prosecutors must prove the case in court, and we all (anyone who has ever served on Jury Duty) know that there is often some “reasonable doubt” left open by the prosecutors and pointed out by the attorneys of the accused.

No. 2 – In cases involving organized crime, the feds (and sometimes local or state police) will use people accused of lesser crimes to turn and testify against those facing more serious charges – prosecuting the “big fish” by using the “little fish.”

Overall, it is very important not to jump to conclusions.

This week, more than once, I read online – in stories by legitimate reporters and in posts by total dimwit fans – the question of “how could a player who has made millions do such a thing?”

Let’s slice that up?

No. 1 – A statement such as that is already assuming the player is guilty. The assumption is being made without a single ounce of evidence put forth by the prosecution.

No. 2 – In many cases involving organized crime, a player/celebrity – or really anyone – can be used by the “bad guys” just because they were in the wrong place at the wrong time, or – sadly – because a longtime friend or relative (no matter how close) has dug themselves into a hole on the wrong side of the law.

In many cases, the threat of harm or public exposure to the athlete, his immediate family, his friends or a threat to hurt his career can become powerful tools used by organized crime to sink their hooks into a player/celebrity. Often, the “ask” of said player/celeb is something very simple and seemingly legal. As in, “All you have to do is come over to the house at 9:00pm and socialize with our guys, have a drink, relax, watch tv, watch the game and hang out for an hour or two.”

Or else.

The “or else” can be underlined with pictures of the player/celeb’s kids at school or the local playground, maybe a photo or short motion picture on an iPhone of a wife, daughter, girlfriend or – they’ve gone as far as – a mother shopping at the local grocery store to prove, “they know where you, your friends and family live.”

The verbal threat of violence – often never even considered to be carried out by the mobsters – is enough to draw the player/celebrity into the scheme.

So, the “how could a player making tens of millions do such a thing” is understood a little more if the full story is told in the court of law. As it should be and, hopefully, will be if the charges stand.

Remember? Sometimes, a case can not be made and – even though an indictment from a Grand Jury has come down – prosecutors can not “make the case” and must dismiss the charges.

white clouds and blue sky

THE SKY IS FALLING: From a distant memory, maybe call it a totally un-related comparison, I can remember back to 1987 when a fax machine in the NBA office was spewing out a multi-page Maricopa County indictments of 13 people, including Phoenix Suns players, former players and even the team photographer for the club.

As I read the indictments – which seemed so convincing, and were the very first time I was going to be “in the room where it happened,” – I thought that a number of people would be going to jail. I ran the pages of the indictment down to the Commissioner’s office as they came in, maybe two or three pages at a time, so they could be reviewed. When they were all complete, I awaited instructions for what would come next – a statement, Legal instructions on our official comment when answering media calls, maybe arranging a media conference call or drafting an NBA statement.

When it all played out, months later, here’s a synopsis of what resulted:

Player testimony: Suns player Walter Davis, who was cooperating with authorities after entering a rehabilitation program, provided grand jury testimony that led to the indictments. He was not charged but was suspended by the team after suffering a relapse. Suns rookie center William Bedford was also granted immunity in exchange for his testimony.

Dismissed charges: The case against most players ultimately fell apart due to lack of evidence, and no one went to trial. Suns veterans James Edwards and Jay Humphries entered a deferred prosecution program, and charges against them were later dismissed.

Probation: Suns reserve Grant Gondrezick and two other individuals pleaded guilty to lesser charges and received probation.

The enormity of the charges as they came across the fax machine seemed insurmountable. The reality? It was a very thin case and little, if any, evidence was produced. The charges were dropped.

At that time, four players had been dismissed from the NBA because of violation of the NBA/NBA Players Association anti-drug program. The situation with the Suns resulted in the NBA initiating a Player Programs Department – the first ever in professional sports – and Celtics legend, Tom “Satch” Sanders was hired to head-up the department and staff-up to be able to properly serve the NBA and its players.

Arguably – not – it was one of the most important decisions the late David Stern ever made and the hiring of Sanders was – possibly – the most impactful in league history.

What to Expect? – The season will not be pretty for the Portland Trail Blazers. The league placed Billups and Rozier (both active in the league) on mandatory suspension and the Blazers asked assistant coach Tiago Splitter to step up as interim coach. The Heat will “hear it” from the opposing fans as they travel through the 82 game schedule for 2025-26.

It will take time for legal proceedings to move forward, in part because of a busy schedule in NY’s Eastern District. The accused are promised a fair and speedy trial with full legal representation to defend the charges. The feds will have to build and present their case. No timetable has been made public.

In Closing: I have to advise to all readers to follow the case closely but to make no judgements. After writing this column, I plan to keep my mouth shut because I have no information and do not plan to seek out information.

It would be wise for others – not in the know – to do the same.

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: On the heels of a gambling scandal in the pro ranks, the NCAA approved a rule change on Wednesday that will allow its athletes and athletic department staff members to bet on professional sports. Two weeks after a Division I cabinet approved the change, Division II and III management councils signed off on it, allowing the new rule to go into effect Nov. 1. The ruling doesn’t change the NCAA rule forbidding its athletes from betting on college sports. The NCAA also prohibits sharing information about college competitions with known gamblers. The NCAA also doesn’t accept advertising or sponsorships of NCAA championships by betting or fantasy sports gambling sites. Go figure?

The South Bay Lakers selected 2025 NBA champion Dillon Jones (6-5, 235, Weber State) with the first overall pick in the 2025 NBA G League Draft. The Osceola Magic selected Tyler Smith (6-9, 224, NBA G League Ignite) with the second overall pick, while the Greensboro Swarm selected Ace Baldwin (6-1, 190, Penn State) third overall pick. Jones, the No. 26 overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft, appeared in 54 games for the Oklahoma City Thunder last season. The Weber State product also averaged 10.4 points and 4.3 rebounds in four games for the Washington Wizards at NBA Summer League.

Michael Baiamonte, the Miami Heat’s in-arena public address announcer and the second longest tenured PA man in the NBA, will retire at the conclusion of the 2025-26 season. Baiamonte has announced more than 1,500 professional basketball games including six NBA Finals.

Lawrence Tanter of the LA Lakers is the longest tenured public address announcer in the NBA, working for the Lakers since 1982-83.

TIDBITS & NUGGETS: As it relates to future prosecution in the feds’ gambling cases against some 31 defendants, the National Security Law firm notes, “Federal prosecutors are always looking to build cases that allow them to climb the criminal enterprise ladder. They may cast a wide net, targeting individuals with the hope of flipping them to build a case against higher-level offenders. Defense attorneys can turn this dynamic in their clients’ favor.” … In EPL action, Liverpool matched their worst EVER run at Brentford when they lost, 3-2, to the home but 10th place club on Saturday. It was Liverpool’s fourth consecutive league loss.

Tom Aspinall, the UFC’s undisputed heavyweight champion, had a disastrous start to his title defense on Saturday, as his bout ended in a no-contest at UFC 321 in Abu Dhabi. Aspinall (15-3) was unable to continue after title challenger Ciryl Gane (13-2) accidentally poked his right eye during an exchange at 4:35 of the opening round. Aspinall was provided five minutes to recover, but referee Jason Herzog stopped the show once the champ said he couldn’t see. Aspinall was immediately transported to the hospital post-fight.

While the sports industry, media and fans all poo-poo the NBA for its start-of-season gambling scandal, the vast number of media outlets leads their NFL coverage with “Best Bets,” “Sleeper Picks,” “Fantasy Football Props,” and other teases for sports gambling on Sunday’s NFL schedule. … Jimmy the Greek would be proud.

El Clásico – be there. It’s on TV (ESPN2 or ESPN+) Sunday at 11:15am.

Embed from Getty Images

THIS JEST IN: North Carolina still hasn’t won a game against an NCAA Power Four Football opponent under Hall of Fame pro coach Bill Belichick, but Saturday’s 17-16 overtime loss to ACC rival and No. 16, Virginia, showed some improvement. The Tar Heels dominated Virginia at the line of scrimmage, racking up six sacks and largely stopping Virginia’s ground game, but UNC a failed 2-point conversion in overtime which proved to be the difference. Belichick was going for the victory in the final play.

YOU CAN’T MAKE IT UP: There’s no TACOS in Texas! According to the Associated Press, Texas Tech is banning the throwing of tortillas by fans on kickoffs after the 14th-ranked Tech Red Raiders were penalized twice and fined for objects being thrown onto the field in their most recent home game. TT Athletic director Kirby Hocutt said the fans entering the stadium would be instructed to discard tortillas, and there would be reminders before kickoff for anyone who took tortillas in to give them to stadium workers in order for them to be thrown away. Anyone caught throwing tortillas would have their ticket privileges revoked from the rest of the academic year across all sports, Hocutt said. The announcement came a little more than a week after the Red Raiders were given two unsportsmanlike conduct penalties after kickoffs in a 42-17 win over Kansas.

TL’s Sunday Sports Notes | October 19

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St. John’s is issuing “Replica Rings” to longtime fans (file photo)

By TERRY LYONS, Editor of Digital Sports Desk

BOSTON – As the 2025-26 college basketball season is now underway (St. John’s defeated Towson, 73-63, in a Saturday afternoon exhibition at Carnesecca Arena in Queens), there’s a new kid in town as some major Div I basketball programs appoint celebrity (and full time) General Managers to the mix of coaches, assistant coaches, graduate assistants and other assorted people on the team bus.

Boston Celtics great Jayson Tatum (recovering from an injured Achilles) made some headlines in Boston and Durham, North Carolina when he and Duke University announced the NBA All-Star would be the new GM of the Blue Devils. Tatum will still keep his “daytime” job as a star player for the NBA Celtics as he works his way back into playing, jumping, sprinting and full court defensive condition. Tatum’s rehab and therapy session are reportedly ahead of schedule for a possible return come NBA Playoff time.

But Tatum lending his name, his game and his money to the Duke University basketball program follows a very interesting trend which is not new to this season but trending upward as the money flows into collegiate sports.

Back in April of 2023, Villanova Vice President and Director of Athletics Mark Jackson announced the creation of a new position, General Manager of Basketball, and named former Wildcats’ Associate Head Coach Baker Dunleavy to fill the role.

There were a sprinkling of others which led to the big scoop. St. Bonaventure alum and multi-million dollar earner Adrian Wojnarowski left his mobile device and his 24/7 job as an NBA Insider for ESPN, dropped the serious coin and became the GM of men’s basketball for his alma mater. It was more of less a dream “retirement” job where Woj can still work 24 hours a day, but rather than scoop San Antonio Spurs leads, he can improve the Bonnies’ chances of making the big Dance. Surely, he’ll get some good tips on up & coming talent from RC, right?

Davidson basketball GM Austin Buntz spent several years at Under Armour, and originally joined Davidson’s athletic department in the fundraising department. But he’s recently moved over into the GM role, which he describes as “an extension” of the coaching staff.

Buntz was “one-upped” when Golden State Warriors guard and Davidson Wildcats’ most famous alum, Stephen Curry, signed on as defacto GM. Curry, at the direction of Coach Bob McKillop, led the 2008 Davidson team to a wild ride through March Madness only to fall a game away from the Final Four. And, while Curry fell short in college he made up for it in the pro game as an 11-time NBA All-Star and four-time NBA champion, in addition to his three-time USA Basketball gold with the senior national team at the Paris Olympics (2024) and twice at the Worlds (2010-Turkey; 2014-Spain).

Curry lending his name and frequent appearances on campus helps build the Davidson brand globally while raising much needed money for NIL, and general expenses, noting the small collection of alum from such a small Carolina school.

Think that’s enough? How about other active NBA players like Portland’s Damian Lilliard as a GM for Weber State; Brooklyn’s Terance Mann helping out at Florida State; Atlanta’s Trae Young lending a GM hand at Oklahoma.

It’s not just hoops, either, as Andrew Luck is a football GM for his alma mater, Stanford; Michael Lombardi has an active, day-to-day gig as GM with Bill Belichick’s North Carolina Tar Heels and former NFL head coach Ron Riviera is lending a hand at Cal, all according to a short list assembled by The Old Gray Lady,” The New York Times by way of its sports subsidiary, The Athletic.

For major change, however, college athletic departments, as a whole, need to operate in similar fashion as a pro franchise, complete with a pro mentality of investing in their product, staffing up properly – especially in ticket sales – more facility and game operation improvements, along with front office savvy. Of course, the initial investment is something college ADs refuse to entertain, so they dip their toe in the water, a bit, as long as the newly created positions come with a major donation. to the “U.”

The changes need to be much more substantial. Colleges and the NCAA have long kept a straight arm up against the professional sports leagues, citing the need for compliance and keeping their products squeaky clean and far away from the big bad wolf of professionalism and money.

Well, the barn door blew wide open when the NCAA lost its case to Ed O’Bannon and the world of N.I.L. hit the colleges like a cold slap in the face. No longer could the payments go under the table or in FedEx envelopes to addresses unknown. As it’s been written here before, Now, It was Legal (NIL). Let the Vitamin Water guy (Mike Repole) fund coach Rick Pitino’s St. John’s starting five and some.

GM positions for college basketball are the perfect example of what is really needed. Instead of the head coach making each and every decision as it relates to his program, a trusted GM – even one reporting on a dotted line to both the basketball coach and the AD – can accomplish much more, especially in season. A good GM can run a much better and deeper scouting department (both high school prospects and potential transfer portal options, never mind the upcoming oppenents.

A good GM can make 10 decisions a day that the head coach need not concern himself with at any level. It would free-up time for the coach to coach his team and better prepare for the next game. In addition to a good GM, college coaches for both basketball and football should have a right hand man to clear and guard his/her schedule for the most important activities. If the school marketing department needs a photo shoot, schedule it through the right hand man. If the development office needs some meet and greets on a road trip, run it through the right hand man to best schedule the task. That way, it’s sure to get done and the head coach doesn’t get five calls from five different people for the same requirement/obligation.

The big question is whether the power hungry, control everything head coaches, who control all aspects of basketball and football, will yield their power and responsibilities to a newfound colleague or not?

Of course, football and basketball are the revenue generators but a more professional approach needs to take place within every sport and the athletic office as a whole.

Can the colleges and college conferences make sacrifices for the greater good of college sports as a whole?

Along with the schools moving ahead, the NCAA and individual college conferences need to call a cease fire and form a truce. No more raiding each others’ colleges until a fair and universal approach can be negotiated. In other words, will the NCAA or the colleges have the clout, or will the NCAA be relegated only to run post season play?

The BIG EAST Conference will gather industry leaders this week to discuss the “Future of College Basketball” (Monday, Oct. 20, from 2:00 to 5:30pm (ET), at the Empire State Building), a day ahead of BIG EAST Basketball Media Day on Tuesday, Oct. 21st.

The seminar will start with a “One-on-One” with NCAA president and former Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker who will sit down with Bonnie Bernstein, a former reporter for CBS and ESPN and now Founder/CEO, of Walk Swiftly Productions.

There will be four additional panel discussions which are all listed in the BIG EAST agenda – HERE.

The BIG question for Big Charlie – will he re-establish the NCAA and his own power to rule over all of college athletics or will he allow each conference to run amok the way things have been going, which resulted in the Pac-10 imploding? Stanford and Cal playing in the ATLANTIC Coast Conference and other abnormal activities have turned college athletics into a very bad lesson in geography and business sense.

three white baseballs on gray textile

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: MLB’s Gold Gloves finalists were named earlier this week. These players are the best defensive gloves in the game of baseball. Players from the Boston Red Sox are in BOLD.

American League

P – Jacob deGrom, Texas Rangers; Max Fried, New York Yankees; Luis Severino, The Athletics.

C – Dillon Dingler, Detroit Tigers; Alejandro Kirk, Toronto Blue Jays; Carlos Narváez, Boston Red Sox.

1B – Ty France, Minnesota/Toronto; Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Toronto Blue Jays; Carlos Santana, Cleveland Guardians.

2B – Andrés Giménez, Cleveland Guardians; Luis Rengifo, Los Angeles Angels; Marcus Semien, Texas Rangers.

3B – Ernie Clement, Toronto Blue Jays; Maikel Garcia, Kansas City Royals; José Ramírez, Cleveland Guardians.

SS – Corey Seager, Texas Rangers; Taylor Walls, Tampa Bay Rays; Bobby Witt Jr., Kansas City Royals.

LF – Steven Kwan, Cleveland Guardians; Wyatt Langford, Texas Rangers; Tyler Soderstrom, The Athletics.

CF – Kyle Isbel, Kansas City Royals; Ceddanne Rafaela, Boston Red Sox; Julio Rodríguez, Seattle Mariners.

RF – Wilyer Abreu, Boston Red Sox; Adolis García, Texas Rangers; Cam Smith, Houston Astros.

UTIL – Ernie Clement, Toronto Blue Jays; Mauricio Dubón, Houston Astros; Daniel Schneemann, Cleveland Guardians.

National League

P – Matthew Boyd, Chicago Cubs; David Peterson, New York Mets; Logan Webb, San Francisco Giants.

C – Patrick Bailey, San Francisco Giants; Carson Kelly, Chicago Cubs; Luis Torrens, New York Mets.

1B – Bryce Harper, Philadelphia Phillies; Matt Olson, Atlanta Braves; Spencer Steer, Cincinnati Reds.

2B – Xavier Edwards, Florida Marlins; Nico Hoerner, Chicago Cubs; Brice Turang, Milwaukee Brewers.

3B – Ke’Bryan Hayes, Pittsburg/Cincinnati; Ryan McMahon, Colorado/NY Yankees; Matt Shaw, Chicago Cubs.

SS – Nick Allen, Atlanta Braves; Mookie Betts, Los Angeles Dodgers; Masyn Winn, St. Louis Cardinals.

LF – Ian Happ, Chicago Cubs; Tommy Pham, Pittsburgh Pirates; Kyle Stowers, Florida Marlins.

CF – Pete Crow-Armstrong, Chicago Cubs; Victor Scott II, St. Louis Cardinals; Jacob Young, Washington Nationals.

RF – Corbin Carroll, Arizona Diamondbacks; Sal Frelick, Milwaukee Brewers; Fernando Tatis Jr., San Diego Padres.

UTIL – Miguel Rojas, Los Angeles Dodgers; Javier Sanoja, Florida Marlins; Jared Triolo, Pittsburgh Pirates.

Winners will be announced on November 2nd.

TIDBITS & NUGGETS: Formula-1 racing dumped ESPN to sign a five-year deal with Apple TV. While the fringe sports trend towards big money and long term deals with streaming services, they fall short with the ability to extend their audience/reach. F-1 can kiss nightly/weekly news highlights on SportsCenter goodbye.

In other words, the ESPN TV coverage of F-1 will be as terse as their parting shot statement after the Apple TV deal was announced: “We’re incredibly proud of what we and Formula 1 accomplished together in the United States and look forward to a strong finish in this final season. We wish F-1 well in the future.”

Sort of an F-U to F-1?

Speaking of ESPN, many an NBA fan expressed some outright glee when former Golden State team GM and now former NBA on ESPN studio analyst Bob Myers took a lofty position as president of Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment – the parent company for the Philadelphia 76ers (NBA), New Jersey Devils (NHL), Washington DC Commanders (NFL) and The Prudential Center in Newark (home of the NJ Devils).

“Our goal has been to hire, grow, and retain the best and brightest executives in the world and we are a stronger, more dynamic organization with the addition of Bob Myers,” Harris and Blitzer said in a statement.

Myers was already working as a senior advisor on the Commanders’ reorganization plans.

Let’s see if the Commanders, Sixers and Devils can get one of the greatest players in their respective sports with the seventh pick of the draft?

Miami’s Erik Spoelstra was named head coach of the USA Basketball Men’s National Team through 2028. Spoelstra was selected by USA Basketball’s Men’s National Team managing director Grant Hill and was approved by the USA Basketball Board of Directors.

In addition to an Olympic gold coaching effort as an assistant coach at the Olympic Games Paris 2024, Spoelstra was an assistant coach to Steve Kerr at the 2023 FIBA Men’s World Cup, where the USA finished fourth. He also served as head of the 2021 USA Basketball Men’s Select Team, which trained alongside the 2020 USA Men’s National Team ahead of the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo.

Spoelstra is the perfect choice for this time and place, but it’s sort of amazing his boss, Pat Riley, never had an opportunity to coach the USA at the Olympic Games.

TL’s Sunday Sports Notes | Oct 12

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By TERRY LYONS, Editor of Digital Sports Desk

BOSTON – This weekend, “Dateline Boston” is a short 6,680 miles away from last week’s “Dateline Abu Dhabi” attention grabber across the top of WWYI, and the adventure flew by in five fun-filled, exhilarating, inspirational days. Five days of the way life is supposed to be lived when you’ve been chasing a ball around the world since 1980 (and before, as a young player, rather than an NBA executive). I must admit, your columnist was a bit rusty in the category of worldwide travel for basketball events.

From the Fall of 1985 until the Beijing Summer Olympics, there were trips to NBA events like Basketball w/o Borders, McDonald’s Opens/Championships, NBA China Games, NBA Japan Games, NBA London Games, NBA Live events, EuroLeague Final Fours, USA Basketball qualifiers, FIBA World Cups, initially known to us asWorld Championships of Basketball (WCOB), and the Olympic Games, of course. You name it, we did it. Occasionally, we even tucked-in a vacation to a cool place.

As they say in TV buzzword land, “there was a lot to unpack from the trip to Abu Dhabi (UAE),” and it wasn’t just the gold medals, international gifts, and take-home merch from friends of U-17 tournament winner Turkey.

After seeing the NBA international preseason games, featuring the New York Knickerbockers and Philadelphia 76ers in Abu Dhabi, the main take away was a simple thought – one born decades ago when the advertising firm of Goodby-Berlin visited the NBA headquarters at Olympic Tower in New York’s Rockefeller Center.

My thought? “Man, do I love this game, as in “I Love This Game.”

It’s been mentioned here once before, but the NBA tagline of “I Love This Game” was replacing the all-time favorite of “NBA Action, It’s Fan-tastic!” Both were two of the greatest promotional campaigns in sports – maybe even advertising history. An entire generation of fans grew up running to their TVs to see the highlight-driven campaign with a new celebrity endorsement concluding each spot.

“I Love This Game” came up after about eight ad agencies presented everything they could possibly conjure up in terms of research and creative to for the maturing NBA brand. From Saatchi & Saatchi to the top ad firms of Britain to Donny Deutsch, with all the principals in the room along with their top lieutenants, they all struck out, presenting absolutely nothing that resonated with a chosen few to take-in the eight presentations over two days.

Upon conclusion of the final presentation by Goodby-Berlin of San Francisco’s (then Goodby-Berlin-Silverstein), Andy Berlin – in total frustration and fully knowing his presentation went up in flames – pivoted and simply exclaimed, “I JUST wish I knew why you guys LOVE the GAME so much?”

Bingo!

Rick Welts, then the President of NBA Properties, stopped in his tracks and shouted across the room – in glee – “That’s It! – I Love This Game.”

For the record, there were a good handful of women in the room where it happened, including Judy Shoemaker, a marketer who had cut her teeth with McDonald’s out in Oakbrook, Illinois and Paula Hanson, the head of NBA Team Services who had become a world class info machine and secret sauce concoctor for the selling of tickets to a sold-out McNichols Arena for Denver Nuggets games in the ABA and NBA.

That was it.

Never have so few words described exactly what we were selling to sports fans and casual non-sports fans. People all around the world loved the game of basketball. Both men and women, boys and girls all played the game, and, pretty much, knew the rules. Put the ball in the hoop on one end, and do your best to stop your opponent from scoring on the other end. Welts knew in an instant that we had the phrase we were looking for, one that would tag each commercial spot for TV, but would also stand-up as artwork for print ads, pop-up boards at the NBA Store or at events. It also was wide-open territory for the NBA teams to use as they pleased, along with the wide-ranging “NBA Cares” moniker which would tag every single community relations department event, of which there were plenty, and they were growing exponentially as the NBA league office staffed up.

The simple description of “I Love This Game” also worked internationally. Yes, it could easily be translated, but the word “Love” was known and used globally, maybe thanks to The Beatles and “All You Need is Love,” many decades earlier.”

The catch phrase brought out the basic truth, too.

Players, coaches, referees, front office workers, and the fans just loved the game. And, there were a growing number of USA and global media who felt the same way. They had earned their way to the NBA Beat, sometimes by default as more senior media members hadn’t caught the bullet train the NBA was about to become.

Plus, “it was just cool” to cover the league. We were young and hip (that used to be a cool word for “with it”). The players were internationally known, world class athletes but they also played cool and were dressed even cooler off the court – whether it was New York Knicks legend Walt “Clyde” Frazier calling games in a leopard suit and tie, Michael Jordan dressed impeccably in a perfectly tailored suit at his post-game interview, or even Allen Iverson pushing the latest sports memorabilia with a NY Yankees cap and baggy jeans, the latest of styles in decades of the NBA players being, playing, and dressing in an authentic way.

Yes, when it went to the extremes (picture Dennis Rodman in a wedding dress on 5th Avenue in New York, autographing his latest book), the NBA had to rein it in a bit, but the players adjusted quite quickly and nicely – becoming walking fashion campaigns for Nike, Adidas, etc., while making the “arena arrival” shots among the most interesting television moments.

One personal anecdote happened one day when a one-hour interview was set up for British media legend Ian Whittell, who had met then-Commissioner David Stern many times, but this would be their first formal sit-down for The Times (UK). Upon Whittell’s arrival, which was the first time he ever visited the Olympic Tower, I just happened to be listening to Nirvana’s new “Unplugged” album, an all-timer.

Suffice it to say, Whittell hadn’t visited a stodgy British or FIFA futball executive with the PR guys pushing a Nirvana CD to the limits of acceptable volume in a business office. Little did I know at the time, but it made an impression.

As the galaxy and its stars combined in ’92 and thereafter, the talent grew in unimaginable ways, and from Hakeem Olajuwon (Nigeria to USA), to dozens of other MVP-level players (Steve Nash-Canada), Dirk Nowitzki-Germany, Tony Parker-France, Tim Duncan-USVI), to Yao Ming of Shanghai, China – the ball kept bouncing to new heights.

Enter Victor Wembanyama (France), Zaccharie Risacher (France), Deandre Ayton (Bahamas), Ben Simmons (Australia) and a handful of other non-Number One picks, like league MVPs, Nikola Jokić of Serbia and “Shai” (Shaivonte Aician) Gilgeous-Alexander of Canada, and you’re fielding an All-Star team.

Just this Saturday morning, upon turning on the TV to CNN World News, up popped Shawn Marion, former All-Star and triple-double machine of the Phoenix, dressed sharply and doing an interview about his experiences in Macau (China) where the Brooklyn Nets are facing Marion’s Phoenix Suns in a pair of sold-out exhibition games. (Suns 132-127 in OT in Game 1; while Game 2 is 7:00am ET Oct. 12 – see NBA.com for info).

When you tie it all together with a big bow, one that circles the circumference of the Earth, the sport of basketball travels quite nicely, and it’s enjoyed all over the globe by like-minded people.

All you need is an open mind, a competitive spirit, and the love of the game.

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: It’s 10 days until Opening Night for the hometown Boston Celtics. In recent days, there’s been talk of miraculous progress on All-Star wing Jayson Tatum’s recovery from the Achilles’ injury he suffered last spring during the NBA Playoffs. Tatum encouraged a lot of this fever when he posted a social media video of his workout, complete with a dunk.

A torn Achilles’ tendon is one of the most devastating injuries a basketball player can suffer, and for an NBA player to recover to play again at such a high level, the rehabilitation process is a long and strenuous process which usually takes a full year before players can run and jump.

Tatum is only 27 years old and in tip-top condition, so his body could be healing at warp speed. His medical care, having immediate surgery and subsequent world class medical advice and therapy sessions, has obviously provided a substantial effort towards his ultimate return to NBA play. It could still take many months, but there’s hope in Boston that Tatum might return to playoff action, if the Celtics can hold on and qualify.

Early returns show the NBA’s Eastern Conference to be a showdown between the Cleveland Cavaliers, New York Knicks, and the Orlando Magic as frontrunners. Detroit and Atlanta could surprise.

In the West, it’s tough to pick anyone other than the defending NBA champion OKC Thunder. If forced to pick ‘possibles,’ it would fall to the Denver Nuggets. The rest of the West remains a very tough “out” as they say, with the Dallas Mavericks, Minnesota Timberwolves, and Houston Rockets all very good basketball teams. The rest will fight it out for playoff qualification.

By the way, in the NHL, it looks like the defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers are still the team to beat, despite a couple injuries to key players like center Aleksander Barkov (knee) and forward Matthew Tkachuk expected to be sidelined until December while he recovers from offseason surgery to correct a sports hernia and torn adductor muscle.

After that, you can never count out the Tampa Bay Lightning and Carolina Hurricanes.

In the West, look for Edmonton Oilers to make their way back to the Final, while the Vegas Knights, Dallas Stars, and Colorado Avalanche all deserve mention.

TID-BITS AND NUGGETS: The Boston Bruins opened 2-0, a bit of a surprise considering full speculation the ice hockey club would be in rebuilding year or two after failing to make the 2025 NHL Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time since 2014-15 and 2015-16. Top notch goalkeeping by 26-year old Jeremy Swayman and 31-year old backup, Joonas Korpisalo of Finland, will be the difference maker (or not). … NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said there’s a good chance the league might celebrate the 20th anniversary of its annual Winter Classic in the place where the outdoor event first launched – Orchard Park, New York. That was a jaw-dropper as snow flakes fell, and all of a sudden every TV viewer from Buffalo to Montreal to Detroit and Boston nostalgically recalled their days skating on iced-over ponds, shoveled for hockey games.

“I’m not making an announcement or committing to it, but we’re kind of focused on whether or not we can do it around the 20th anniversary of the original Winter Classic,” Bettman said while meeting the press at the Sabres’ season opener in Buffalo. A 2028 game could be played at the new Highmark Stadium in Buffalo, a major step forward for the NFL’s Buffalo Bills franchise but ample reason to mark the January 1, 2008 (20-year) anniversary come 2028. A new venue would mark significant improvement over the old relic, Ralph Wilson Stadium in the Buff.

THIS JEST IN: Banana Ball continues to grow. The famed Savannah Bananas remain the benchmark for the barnstorming style of rollicking entertainment (see Harlem Globetrotters for hoops), but earlier this week, founder Jessie Cole announced more growth for his brand of fan-friendly, whacky baseball.

Cole said the Savannah Bananas will be joined by five teams in a new league in 2026, and the club scheduled appearances in 75 stadiums in 45 states. Cole said Banana Ball drew 2.2 million fans in 2025 and he hopes that number grows to 3.3 million in 2026. That’s 3.3 million inflatable yellow bananas sold to adoring fans everywhere.

YOU CAN’T MAKE IT UP: Professional tennis player Goncalo Oliveira claimed a kiss caused a positive methamphetamine drug test, which resulted in his being suspended for four years by the International Tennis Integrity Agency this week.

Oliveira, who represents Venezuela, was provisionally suspended in January following a positive test in November 2024 while competing at the ATP Challenger event in Manzanillo, Mexico. Both his A and B samples contained the banned substance.

The Portuguese-born player denied taking the drug and made his kiss-and-tell argument at a hearing with an independent tribunal, which decided Oliveira couldn’t prove the drug’s presence was unintentional. Oliveria received credit for time served from his provisional suspension, meaning he will be eligible to compete professionally again on Jan. 16, 2029

SPORTS BIZ: J-E-T-S … Ireland, Ireland, Ireland: (Staff note from Official News Release) – Prior to the New York Jets’ NFL international game against the Broncos in London this weekend, the New Yorkers announced new United Kingdom-based partnerships with Helix Wireless, Hershey’s, and Topman. The team’s newest international sponsors will be joined in Britain by existing partners: Avery Dennison, Choose NJ, Nike, and Visa, bringing an extensive lineup of activations and programming that can be enjoyed by fans this week for the regular season NFL game at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London on Oct. 12.

“We’re proud to expand our partnership with Helix Wireless as they join us in London, building on their impactful presence in the U.S.,” said Jeff Fernandez, Senior Vice President of Business Development + Ventures for the New York Jets. “Alongside Hershey’s and Topman, and in collaboration with our existing global partners, this dynamic lineup will deliver an unforgettable week of fan engagement and celebration leading into our game at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.”

Helix Wireless will join the Jets across the pond as the presenting partner of Touchdown Tailgate, an all-encompassing fan experience full of activations, giveaways, games, food, music, and merchandise at Vinegar Yard on Saturday, Oct. 11.

  • Helix Wireless will be visible on player uniforms with a Practice Jersey Patch, which will be worn throughout the week at the team’s training grounds to be showcased at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium with exclusive video board features.Helix Wireless is also a US market partner.
  • Hershey’s and Topman will also be a part of the Jets UK sponsorship lineup as supporting partners of Touchdown Tailgate. Hershey’s will host an activation consisting of Reese’s-themed games, prizes, and product giveaways.
  • Topman will be rolling out a Green Carpet and double-decker bus at Touchdown Tailgate, where fans can take part in a one-of-a-kind photo opportunity.
  • Both partners will be highlighted on the team’s social media channels.

As a part of its continuing partnership with the New York Jets, Nike will join Hershey’s and Topman as supporting partners of Touchdown Tailgate.

  • Nike will host a live customization activation where a local artist will paint one-of-a-kind Jets pieces on Nike Air Force 1s, which will be raffled off to lucky winners during NYJ events.
  • Nike will provide championship rings to three-time Jets NFL Girls Flag League champions Ealing Fields. The rings will be presented to the team by Jets Legends at Touchdown Tailgate, before they are honored on-field at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium during the Jets game against the Broncos the next day.

SISTER JEAN, 106: October 9 (the birthday of The Beatles’ John Lennon) was a sad day in the world of American sports. The announcement by Loyola-Chicago said it all:

“A life of faith, service, and basketball. Sister Jean Dolores Schmidt, BVM, a beloved icon of Loyola University Chicago for more than six decades and a member of the Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary since 1937, passed away on October 9, 2025 at the age of 106. Celebrated worldwide for her infectious smile, quick wit, and basketball acumen, Sister Jean — as she was affectionately known to friends far and wide — was universally adored and touched the lives of countless people throughout her lengthy tenure at Loyola and her incredible life.”

Sister Jean with esteemed alum during run to Final Four in 2018: Photo: by McIntyre

Dateline | Abu Dhabi

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By TERRY LYONS, Editor of Digital Sports Desk

ABU DHABI – Greetings from Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates. The city is hosting a pair of NBA Preeason games between the New York Knicks and the Philadelphia 76ers. Abu Dhabi is the capital city of the UAE, and the largest and most populated of the seven emirates. It is quite an amazing place.

Is it hot? Yes, like Las Vegas during the prime heat of the NBA Summer League (July) or USA Basketball training (August), but it doesn’t have the “strip.” It does have the Grand Mosque, one of the most spectacular sights ever seen. Photos do not do it justice.

Here’s an attempt to help set the scene:

Grand Mosque exterior (file photo)

Grand Mosque, Abu Dhabi (photo by T. Peter Lyons)

While the Knicks vs. 76ers game was certainly the marquee event of the trip, as with most NBA international preseason games, there is a whole other ancillary program working all around the games. Here in Abu Dhabi, there’s:

  • The NBA Experience – It used to be called “Jam Session”
  • NBA House – The highlight of the NBA Experience
  • NBA Store – Great, 5th Avenue-like NBA Store in nicest Mall ever
  • NBA Basketball School – Tournament

The NBA Basketball School tournament is HUGE. It’s run at three venues, all world class level training facilities with multiple courts, one of which is on site at New York University (NYU)’s Abu Dhabi campus. There are competitors at the U-15 and U-17 levels for both boys/young men and girls/young women. There are teams from all over the world: Australia, Dubai, India, Poland, Italy, Lebanon and a “combo” Europe team. There’s also start-up NBA Basketball Schools here – without team – all learning from the experience for future beginnings, and that includes a great program that just began last week in Tiblisi, Georgia (former USSR). Tbilisi is near and dear to this writer’s heart as it was one of three cities (Moscow, Tbilisi and Vilnius (Lithuania) the Atlanta Hawks toured in 1988, but that is a column for another day (the stories are endless).

The reason your roving reporter/columnist is here this week is to assist/advise NBA Basketball School – Türkiye, via a very longterm relationship born on the basketball court at the 2002 FIBA Worlds in Indianapolis (Türkiye played quite well, the USA did not). That tournament was sponsored by Turkish Airlines and that airline later became the title sponsor for EuroLeague Basketball.

My friend and contact is Devrim KIVANÇ who coaches basketball for many, many years and then started his own “MVP” camps for youth. It is quite a successul program, based mostly in Istanbul – a city that is even more amazing that Abu Dhabi, and that’s a pretty serious statement.

Coach Devrim also ran some great camps in conjunction with the Philadelphia 76ers going back a decade but it came to an end because of COVID-19 and trouble getting USA visas for students/campers. Coach Devrim and I have been working with the NBA to plan for an NBA Basketball School to begin in Istanbul very soon. More to come on that.

Team Boxscores: (surf around on “other games, too) —> HERE

This column is being written anout 60 … countdown to 45 minutes before a scheduled Team Türkiye meeting (5:00pm Saturday) in advance of a 5:30pm team bus to compete in the championship/Finals of the event.

To that end, the U-17 team (4-0) – the players are playing together for the very first time. They’ve run a fluid offense, played hard with a tough defense and have the results to prove it. The good news was winning games – the bad new, the event schedule called for the U-17 Finals to be held at 7:00pm tonight, the same time of Game 2 of the Knicks vs 76ers gme at Etihad Arena – a great facility in which the NBA has played multiple years and USA Basketball played leading up to the 2024 Paris Olympics. It’s great, and thankfully VERY well air conditioned.

Time zone differences, time constraints pre-game and post game will not allow for While We’re Young (Ideas) to report the results of the tournament, but this is the important part:

Every team of the NBA Basketball School program has already won. In fact, they’ve all won – Gold, Silver and Bronze in the most important aspects of such an experience. I’ll rattle off just a few of an endless list, and I’ll do it via stream of consciousness.

Here we go:

  1. The experience of playing ball, working within a team structure and learning the key life lessons that basketball can bring to the youth of the world has been accomplished in ways I couldn’t even dream of in 1980 when I started at the NBA in New York. I couldn’t even dream of it post-1992 when the Dream Team captured the world’s imagination and allowed athletes from all over the world to experience the very best the NBA had to offer. Post 1992, the NBA hit a springboard for global growth, and I was asked to switch from NBA Media Relations to International Communications, beginning in February of 1993.
  2. The players from each country were given ample time to interact with each other and learn even more about different nations and cultures. That was the best take-away from this event.
  3. The NBA has created an unbelievable program and its “back of the house” is so well planned, produced and offered to potential new schools (and the existing ones, of course) and it includes handbooks and software programs to allow for cohesive sign-ups, communications and sharing of information primarily for the individual camp, but also to share with the league and the other schools. In the biz world, they call it “Best Practices.”
  4. The teams/players getting to see the NBA game was probably a “once in a lifetime” experience for the players. Although preseason games can be a bit rough around the edges on the front end of October (they’re quite better when we used to take Texas teams to Mexico City on – say – October 30/31), the spectacle of an NBA game, music/game operations, dance teams, mascots and all the ancillary programming is quite amazing for the kids – and the adults.
  5. (Side note) – It wasn’t until I sat down in the arena with a “premo” center court seat that I realized it was the first NBA international preseason game I ever attended when I could sit in the stands and have fun (rather than be working and worried about every second and every activity – including my No. 1 concern back then – NO INJURIES, please). PS: The cold Amstel Light wasn;t bad, either.
  6. The competition was very good, pretty high level and well coached. The traveling parties from all the different countries operated like pro-level event companies. The players were polite and respected each other and their chaperones.
  7. A good handful- especially from Australia – travlled with parents of the players who all shared the unbelievable experience. We had a small handful of parents for Türkiye, but actually are doing a conference call with the parents as a surprise “pre-game motivational talk” for the guys at the meeting – now only 20 minutes away.
  8. I could list another 100 things, but will stop now because of the fact, it’s time to freshen up, get the game face on, grab my pass (I always hung my credentials on my hotel room door knob or door lock during my days with USA Basketball at the Olympics so I’d never forget the pass), and I’ve been doing it here – a HUGE throwback in my mind’s eyes to the Olympics and 120+ international preseason games I worked between 1985 and 2008.
  9. It’s GAME TIME!

HERE NOW … No MORE NOTES!

We’ll be back next week wit your regularly scheduled programming.

Go Türkiye. 🇹🇷

This event has been one of those “pinch me!” Is this actually happening – moments of my life and I hope I’ve shared just a small glimpse of that experience with you.

 

TL’s Sunday Sports Column | Sept 29

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Bethpage State Park (file photo)

By TERRY LYONS, Editor of Digital Sports Desk

OLD BETHPAGE – The datelines read “FARMINGDALE” but the Bethpage State Park I grew up alongside was in Old Bethpage, New York – one of Long Island’s smaller towns. Old Bethpage was so old …

How old was it?

It was so old that Old Bethpage had a Village Restoration Museum and its records show that the USA Ryder Cup team of 1636 lost to England, 18 1/2 to 9 1/2. We kid, we kid – it was actually England, 11-1 as it wasn’t until 1961 when the number of points available doubled from 12 to 24.

Back in Revolutionary War times, the biggest battle of ‘em all was “The Battle of Long Island” which was fought August 27, 1776, just a little bit more than a month after the USA declared its independence day of July 4, 1776.

Yes, you have to go pretty far back to find a US victory.

Now, why all the gloom and doom. This column is being written after Europe shredded Team USA on Day 1, 5 1/2 to 2 1/2, and then concluded the Saturday morning matches much to the same tune. At publication time, the USA trailed Europe, 8 1/2 to 3 1/2 with the afternoon matches teeing off just as Notre Dame was playing Arkansas (ND 56-13 winners) and a few hours before Cal took on the local Boston College team (Cal won, 28-24).

*Upon further review in the 8 o’clock hour, the European lead over the USA was of record proportions, a la the largest lead going into Sunday singles under the current format that dates to 1979.

ABC sports television commentator Al Michaels once exclaimed, “Do you believe in MIRACLES?” Well, yes we do, but the trouncing Europe has given the USA over the first sets of matches in the 2025 Ryder Cup makes it very difficult to think our man and team captain, Keegan Bradley, can orchestrate a comeback.

It’s not unprecedented, as the 1999 “Battle of Brookline” at The Country Country Club in Massachusetts proved. The USA trailed Europe, 10-6, heading into the Sunday final round of singles. The United States battled back and won the first six matches of the day, then went on to win 14 1/2 to 13 1/2 when American Justin Leonard holed a 45-footer which was followed by Spain’s José María Olazábal miss from 22 feet which halved the hole and gave the USA it’s remarkable win. However, there’s a considerable difference between 10-6 and 11 1/2 to 4 1/2.

If there’s a miracle to be had, think of the day the New England Patriots trailed the Atlanta Falcons by the score of 28-3 in Super Bowl LI (SB-51 in 2017), only to come back and win, 34-28, in overtime, and cement the legacy of QB Tom Brady as the Greatest NFL QB of All-Time.

Although the NBA’s Michael Jordan is roaming the fairways at Bethpage Black, Tom Brady will not, so the USA might need Brady, Bill Belichick and even James White to comeback on Rory McIlroy, Tommy Fleetwood and Jon Rahm.

Some of you will be reading this late Saturday night and others early on Sunday morning. The Ryder Cup singles matches begin at 12:01pm (ET), so we’ll all see if there’s a new “Miracle Mile” to be constructed on Long Island and that is highly unlikely given the 11 1/2 to 4 1/2 whooping the Europeans handed the Amerks over the Friday-Saturday span.

Column contributor, the Marvelous T, looked out his backyard window with Bethpage State Park in sight, and came up with this:

“The outlook wasn’t brilliant for the American Twelve today

The score stood 11.5 to almost nothing with but one more day to play

And when Henley slumped at the First, then Cantlay did the same

A pall-like silence fell upon the patrons at Bethpage

Then from eighty thousand throats and more there rose a raucous yell;

It rumbled through the Island breeze, it rattled in Farmingdale;

It knocked upon Garden City, and recoiled upon Cliffs of Sea,

For Scottie, mighty Scottie, was advancing to Bethpage’s tee

“Fore” cried the maddened thousands, and Echo answered Rough;

But one scornful look from Scottie and the audience was Fluff,

They saw his face grow stern and cold, they saw his muscles strain,

And they knew that Mighty Scottie couldn’t let a match go down again.

Oh, somewhere in this favored island, the sun is shining bright;

The Band is playing somewhere, and in Montauk hearts are light,

And somewhere men are laughing, and somewhere children shout;

But there’s no joy in thee Island Trees, as Mighty Rory just holed out.”

– Apologies to Ernest Thayer

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: All of the scuttlebutt about Bethpage Black and Bethpage State Park, in general, brings back a lot of memories, mostly from the 1960s and ‘70s when we were growing up on Long Island.

The State Park was a bicycle ride away, even with a set of golf clubs draped over your shoulders. Bethpage Black was – pretty much – forbidden territory. It was just too difficult and would cost an amateur golfer about 36 lost golf balls, at the least. But the great thing about Bethpage was the fact the public golf courses numbered – FIVE! Yes, five golf courses, all color coded, almost like the seats at Madison Square Garden. Without looking it up, I’ll review:

  • Yellow – The Yellow Course was the easiest of the five and one we played often.
  • Green – I enjoyed playing the “Green” the most as it was medium-easy but played to a lefty’s slice. The greens and aprons were well kept and a short chip-in with a 7-iron was my specialty.
  • Blue – The “Blue” was a bit longer and more difficult as it include a ton of trees and some hills. The course could east up lost balls, many under pine cones and needles.
  • Red – The “Red” was long and pretty tough. Hit a chipmunk and you won! There were chipmunks and squirrels everywhere you looked.
  • “The Black” – It was only with neighbor, we’ll call him, Ernie, when we were allowed to accompany the scratch golfer and friend of the starter for a late afternoon round, often just nine holes. It was Ernie who taught us, “The Ernie Explosive,” a technique to easily remove a golf ball from one of the zillions of sand traps (bunkers) protecting every green in Bethpage like a Doberman would protect his family.

The “Ernie Explosive” combined with the “best golf tip I’ve ever heard,” made escaping from sand traps as easy as baking a cake in an “Easy Bake Oven.” Ernie’s advice was to choke up a bit on your sand wedge, with a very firm grip. Then to take some sand and follow through completely. Pretty simple.

Part two – the best tip ever (from Golf Magazine) – was to use Ernie’s exact philosophy but to picture taking a slice out of the sand – the width and shape of a $1 bill – slicing it out directly under the ball in the sand. That vision along with “Ernie’s Explosive” made for the perfect mental and physical combination to hit highly successful and very accurate wedge shots from the sand – worry free – not matter how big or deep the trap might be.

Good old Ernie.

TIDBITS & NUGGETS: An hour or so after watching Cal defeat BC in person at a highly entertaining, yet disappointing game for hometown BC fans, the television was turned on to the Alabama at Georgia SEC game. … The reaction? … It’s two different sports. The same goes for Ohio State, Penn State and “The “U” of Miami, Florida, amongst a handful of others. … The size of the players alone put the SEC, the BIG TEN and the upper echelon of the ACC in another category.

THE GREATEST RUSHING OF THE FIELD: “Without regard to human life!”

Says NBA broadcaster Kevin Harlan, quoting his Dad, “If you wake up every morning and your feet hit the ground and you’re excited about your day, that’s what – I found out what it was!”

September 28: Today marks 25 years since the Quarterfinals of the men’s basketball tournament at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games. The USA defeated Russia 85-70 in that round. Lithuania knocked off the former Yugoslavian Republic, 76-63, to set up the epic Semifinal match of September 29th. Click for the complete bracket: HERE

Reminder: Your NFL Sunday kicks-off early (9:30am ET) as Minnesota will face Pittsburgh at Croke Field in Dublin, Ireland.

THIS JEST IN: The WNBA suspended Minnesota Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve for Game 4 of the semifinal series against the Phoenix Mercury. Reeve was ejected during the final minute of Minny’s 84-76 loss to the Mercury in Game 3 on Friday night and she then unloaded on the game officials in a post game press conference.

“Her conduct and comments included aggressively pursuing and verbally abusing a game official on the court, failure to leave the court in a timely manner upon her ejection with 21.8 seconds to play in the fourth quarter, inappropriate comments made to fans when exiting the court and remarks made in a post-game press conference,” said the WNBA’s statement.