TL's Sunday Sports Notes

TL’s Sunday Sports Notes | Nov. 12

November 13, 2023 by Terry Lyons

While We’re Young (Ideas) Looks at Boston Common Golf

By TERRY LYONS

BOSTON – There’s a new sports franchise in town and its players will begin hitting golf balls this January with games in Palm Springs Gardens Florida, not The Country Club or TPC Boston. Let’s welcome Boston Common Golf to the Commonwealth and jump on the “merch” to stuff your Christmas stockings, just before the initial TGL Season Preview on ABC this December 30th.

TGL is a connection to Tiger Woods’ brand and is backed by Woods and PGA Tour superstar Rory McIlroy.

Fenway Sports Group introduced the team this week at a press gathering at MGM Fenway a little while after the players were given a tour of the ballpark.

The TGL season will begin on Tuesday January 9, 2024, with coverage of ESPN and ESPN+. The first match will be broadcast at 9pm ET, a day after the College Football National Championship game.

The second week of matches will be broadcast Tuesday, January 16 at 7pm ET, a day after the NFL plays its Monday Night Football wild card playoff game. The promotional value of the CFP and NFL should not be lost on fans, as TGL golf executives carefully picked the dates to find open windows in the “big event” and NFL playoff game schedules. They’ll switch from Tuesdays to Mondays to allow the PGA Tour players time to travel to the next tour stop on Monday night or Tuesday morning, especially as the Tour swings through the home base of Florida and the Southeastern USA at the same time of year.

Mike McCarley, Founder & CEO, TMRW Sports and TGL and former golf executive for NBC Sports and the Golf Channel is calling the shots and has been working on the concept for nearly three years.

One by one, McCarley checked the items off his “To Do” list, partnering with Tiger Woods, attracting talents like Rory McIlroy and scores of others, securing an IP deal with the PGA Tour itself – proving its far better to work in conjunction with the Tour rather than to butt heads much the way LIV Golf made the scene a couple years ago.

In addition to introducing the four players (McIlroy, New England’s own Keegan Bradley, Australia’s Adam Scott and England’s Tyrell Hatton) to call the Boston Common Golf their home team, the TGL rolled our news releases this week like putts on a practice green .

On the same day the Boston Common Golfers were introduced, the general rules and the introduction of a shot clock to golf were put in place along with a handful of other assorted goodies revealed:

The SoFi Center, a purpose-built arena (studio) in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, on the campus of Palm Beach State College, will act as home base. Full use of technology is a foundational element of TGL, and it will offer fans a progressive, shorter format presentation of team golf.
The Custom-Built Venue is a first-of-its-kind experience for golf enabled by a data-rich, virtual course paired with a tech-infused, short-game complex.
TGL Teams: The six TGL teams will each have four players assigned. A TGL match will feature three players competing for each team in a modern match play format.
Modern Match Play: TGL matches will feature two teams squaring off across two sessions: nine holes of Triples, 3 vs. 3 team alternate shot, and six holes of Singles, head-to-head competitions. Each hole is worth one point and most points wins the match.
Tech-Enabled Fan Experience: There will be a high-energy, greenside fan experience (picture the Phoenix (Waste Management Open) with every shot live within a two-hour televised match. All TGL players will be mic’d up.
Referees will be employed to monitor the shot clock and rules.
Inaugural Season: 15 regular season matches followed by semifinals and finals matches, on ESPN, ESPN2, and ESPN+ in the U.S.

The league also announced Jupiter Florida as its sixth (and final) franchise for the 2024 season. It’s no secret, Woods hails from Jupiter and he’ll be cashing sports franchise owner David Blitzer’s checks when the competition begins.

Blitzer is personally investing in Jupiter Links GC and is the first person to hold equity stakes in five North American major sports teams. Blitzer founded Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment with Josh Harris and is co-chairman and managing partner of its portfolio highlighted by the Philadelphia 76ers (NBA), New Jersey Devils (NHL), Prudential Center in Newark, NJ, and Joe Gibbs Racing (NASCAR). Blitzer also is a co-owner of the Cleveland Guardians (MLB) and Washington Commanders (NFL). Additionally, Blitzer is a General Partner of Crystal Palace Football Club (English Premier League) and owns stakes in a variety of soccer clubs around the globe, including Real Salt Lake of Major League Soccer (MLS) and the Utah Royals of the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL). Blitzer needs to back a WNBA franchise and he’ll be in business.

(L to R: (PR emcee) is Zineb Curran, Lev, Bradley, Hatton, Scott and McIlroy. (Photo @DigSportsDesk)

Here’s a look at the TGL’s full ownership as of November 10th:

Atlanta Drive GC: led by Arthur M. Blank, AMB Sports and Entertainment (Atlanta Falcons, Atlanta United, PGA TOUR Superstores). Team roster currently includes Justin Thomas.
Boston Common Golf: led by John Henry, Tom Werner, Mike Gordon, and Fenway Sports Group (Boston Red Sox, Liverpool FC, Pittsburgh Penguins, RFK Racing). As previously mentioned , team roster currently includes Rory McIlroy, Keegan Bradley, Tyrrell Hatton, and Adam Scott. The team will be run by club president Mark Lev of Fenway Sports.
Jupiter Links GC: led by Tiger Woods’ TGR Ventures and David Blitzer (Philadelphia 76ers, New Jersey Devils, Cleveland Guardians, Washington Commanders, Crystal Palace FC, Real Salt Lake, Utah Royals, Joe Gibbs Racing). Team roster currently includes Tiger Woods.
Los Angeles Golf Club: led by Alexis Ohanian (Angel City FC), Seven Seven Six, Serena Williams, and Venus Williams; as well as limited partners the Antetokounmpo brothers, Alex Morgan, Servando Carrasco, and Michelle Wie West. Team roster currently includes Collin Morikawa.
TGL New York: led by Steven A. Cohen (New York Mets), Cohen Private Ventures.
TGL San Francisco: a group led by Avenue Sports Fund with Marc Lasry, the Golden State Warriors’ Stephen Curry; and limited partners Andre Iguodala and Klay Thompson. Iguodala, by the way, was just named executive director of the NBA Players Association.

Look for a “Western Division” in either Phoenix/Scottsdale, Arizona or Frisco, Texas to pop-up in a year or two, allowing Tour players based in Arizona, California, Nevada and Texas (among other locales) to play at a venue closer to their home base.

Does a Texas Friscos franchise sound alluring for Jordan Spieth’s participation in 2025 or beyond? Dallas Cowboys team owner Jerry Jones’ or Mavericks franchise guru Mark Cuban’s money awaits.

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: The Fifth Set, a tennis apparel company that provides patented “SweatRoute” technology to keep tennis players dry, comfortable, and at the top of their game, is making its product(s) available to the mass audiences. Serving-up its inaugural collection with men’s shorts, the product is now available exclusively on www.thefifthset.com and retails for $72.00. Shorts are available in three colors and four different sizes. The full product launch is coming off the heels of a successful Kickstarter campaign where the start-up crowdsourced more than $9,000 through pre-orders of the tennis shorts.

“The Fifth Set is a labor of love that solves a real problem that plagued my game for nearly 30 years — wet tennis balls from sweat-drenched pockets, causing a ‘sweat tsunami’ whenever I served,” said Yoni Malchi, The Fifth Set’s CEO and founder, as well as a lifelong tennis player. “After discovering a void in the market for tennis shorts with waterproof, breathable, and accessible pockets, I received a patent on my own design, which is a game-changer for tennis players at every level.”

The Fifth Set’s patented shorts offer three key differentiators:

Sweatproof: Pocket liners are constructed with a waterproof layer and heat-sealed seam. Combined with a water-resistant outer body, the shorts redirect moisture to keep tennis balls fully protected.

Breathable: The body and pocket liners are breathable to promote comfort, as well as quick and agile movement. The pocket liner’s microporous, waterproof layer protects from sweat while keeping the player cool.

Accessible: Pocket openings are unsealed, but stay closed, preventing sweat from seeping in and allowing quick accessibility for frequent use.

“During the pandemic, one of the biggest retail trends that evolved was that consumers have become more demanding for unique, top-quality products that are also function-specific,” said Danielle Malchi, co-founder of The Fifth Set. “With more people focused on fitness than ever before, consumers are seeking truly innovative products to help them reach their personal goals and needs, and we are here to support them in this endeavor.”

The company is based in Parkland, Florida.

TIDBITS: This week, thee NBA staged its (seemingly annual) Mexico Game regular season game, an exciting 120-119 Atlanta Hawks victory over the Orlando Magic in front of 19,986 fans in Mexico City just as the NFL was in between a pair of regular season games in Frankfurt, Germany. (Bet, the New England Patriots’ season ticket holders were happy to dish off a home game).

Meanwhile, not to be outdone, the NHL is staging their Global series this week in Sweden.

For the NHL, its an unprecedented event with four NHL Clubs traveling to one European City (Stockholm) to play four regular season games between Nov. 16-19th. The Toronto Maple Leafs will become the 26th NHL franchise to play an international game while the round-robin of games will be the second time that both the Detroit Red Wings and Minnesota Wild have traveled abroad to play regular-season games. It’ll be the third such trip for the Ottawa Senators.

NHL Global Series Results (Credit: NHL Morning Skate)

HOME SALE: Former Celtics guard Malcolm Brogdan headed to Portland (along with the injured Robert Williams) in the trade that brought guard Jrue Holiday to the Boston Celtics. In the home transaction, Brogdan gained a slim $125,000 ($4,440,000 to $4,525,000) in the off-market deal which took only a week to close.

PODCAST ANYONE? – Give this a try, if you dare:

BIG EAST: From November 6 to November 10th, the eleven member teams of BIG EAST played 15 games and won all but one of them. DePaul was the lone loser, dropping its opener vs Purdue Fort Wayne, 82-74. All 14 of the others went into the Conference “win column,” including Butler, Marquette, Villanova and Xavier all startings with a 2-0 record.

The annual Gavitt Games begin this week, pitting BIG EAST teams against those of the BIG TEN. The series of contests pitting two of the great college basketball conferences in the land are conducted in memory of the late Dave Gavitt, Basketball Hall of Fame administrator and contributor to the game and the first Commissioner of the Big East Conference.

BILL HANCOCK: Air Force Superintendent Lieutenant General Richard M. Clark will replace the legendary college athletics and Olympic administrator Bill Hancock as the new executive director of the College Football Playoff. Mississippi State President/CFP Board of Managers Chair Mark Keenumnoted, “General Clark’s experience leading the U.S Air Force Academy as a three-star General and also being a four-year letter winner with the U.S Air Force Football team gives him a strong background to excel in this crucial leadership role. I would add that we will surely miss Bill Hancock, but I want to note that Bill has graciously offered to stay on board through January 2025 to help General Clark get ready. Bill will remain at the helm throughout this season, while 2024 will mark a year of transition. Bill has been an outstanding leader for CFP’s first 10 years. Everyone in college football owes Bill a debt of gratitude.”

TL’s Sunday Sports Notes | Nov. 5

November 5, 2023 by Terry Lyons

“Good Night, Bad Knight”

By TERRY LYONS

NEW YORK – We’re here on earth for such a short time, it’s hard and it’s wrong to write someone off for eternity just for their shortcomings on earth. But, in the situation of Coach Bobby Knight’s death, I’ll make an exception.

Forever the optimist, this columnist always tries to seek-out the best in any one person, and maybe – in the case of Bobby Knight – it was to seek-out the guy who loved to fish in Montana or hunt in his native Ohio. I hoped to uncover some speck of good in Knight but the only universe of judgement in my playbook was the guy who coached basketball at West Point, Indiana and, after finally being fired at IU, Texas Tech in Lubbock.

Let’s be clear: My opinion on Knight is culled from experience, some firsthand but mostly from live television or well-reported stories from his own players or those who covered him. Knight had an amazing friendship with Indiana sportswriter Bob Hammel, a man who had the Inside Stuff on Knight’s controversial career at IU. His friendship was a rare hit amongst the many media members he berated, often crossing the line of decency of one human being to another.

For a man who was a bully or tried to act like one, often intimidating an unsuspecting questioner, Knight had very thin skin in terms of accepting criticism. Of the media he once said, “All of us learn to write in the second grade … most of us go on to greater things.” That was in response to the late curmudgeon Andy Rooney’s column criticizing IU for not firing Knight after one of his major transgressions, of which he had many. Most were born of his “my way or else” attitude towards anyone who wasn’t within his inner circle.

Interestingly, there was a memorable time when Knight tried to intimidate a former IU coaching colleague who was jogging in the gymnasium during basketball practice. That fellow coach was Doug Blubaugh, a gold medalist as a welterweight wrestler at the 1960 Olympic Games in Rome. Upon being cursed out and told to leave the gym, Blubaugh pinned Knight up against a wall. Legend has it from firsthand accounts, “In seconds, Blubaugh had wrenched “The General” by the collar and slammed him, sputtering and squirming, against the far wall of Assembly Hall. Calmly, Blubaugh explained he was IU’s wrestling coach and that Knight would never address him that way again.

Knight never challenged him again.

It gets much worse: “I think if rape is inevitable, relax and enjoy it,” said Knight to Connie Chung of NBC News in an awkward 1988 interview. According to Associated Press, Knight contended the quote was taken out of context, later saying: “The word rape can be used in several ways. One is in something that has gone out of control or over which you have no control. It obviously was in that context that I was using the word.”

I believe, at that point in time, Knight should’ve been fired from IU, never to be within 100 miles of educating the youth of America ever again – at any school …anywhere.

Aside from the boorish behavior, childish rants, one other incident crossed the line and that was Knight’s treatment of Rance Pugmire, a volunteer SID who worked an NCAA tourney as the moderator of press conferences. Let the video tape tell the story for itself, but I must say, as a fellow PR guy, this just burned me up.

Yet, the enablers – enabled. His peers spoke glowingly of him and stepped up to support him back then. All of the same stories of Knight’s “greatness” resurfaced this week on talk radio.

They spoke of Knight with reverence and his place amongst basketball victories, some 902 career victories to go along with three NCAA titles and five trips to the NCAA Final Four. They spoke of his many charitable efforts and contributions. They spoke of his induction to the Basketball Hall of Fame and coaching the 1984 USA men’s basketball team to the gold medal at the 1984 Summer Olympic Games in Los Angeles.

To be fair, his accomplishments, his X’s and O’s (replicated by coaches around the world and even in playgrounds by astute players with high basketball IQs, and his contributions to and love of the game are second to none. My friend, Andy Jasner, son of the great Philly basketball writer, Phil Jasner, shared this story:

“Bobby Knight was a polarizing figure,” wrote Andy on Thursday. “You never knew what you were going to get. When I was assigned to write a feature on him as a young reporter, I did what I was taught to do. I did my homework and then tried to set up an interview. Never received a phone call back despite numerous attempts. Then I went after it again using knowledge taught by Phil Jasner. I left a message with a bit of my background about Dad and Coach Chaney. About a week later the phone rings. It’s Coach Knight. He said and I’m paraphrasing — “you got me with Coach Chaney.” “Coach Knight and I talked for about 45 minutes. The interview was maybe 15 minutes. Everyone has their story. This is mine. Before we hung up, he told me to call him anytime. I ran into him years later and he called me by name. Asked if I needed anything. I know he was polarizing. This is my personal memory. RIP,” concluded Andy, finishing up his tribute.

Stories like Andy’s abound and I was so glad he shared his experience.

Then, why do I fall on the critical side of Knight’s fence?

It was his modus operandi that set the coach back and that is the focus of my criticism. Simply put: An examination of Knight’s full body of work makes him a person who should NOT have been anywhere NEAR an institution educating our youth.

My personal interaction with Knight came only once and was in preparation of the ‘84 Olympics, back when the NBA helped ABA/USA by gathering some players to scrimmage against the Olympic team.

With only three years of NBA experience under my belt, I flew from LaGuardia Airport in Queens to Providence for the first of those scrimmages. It was an early Sunday morning when I arrived at the (then) Providence Civic Center to find an empty building with the exception of the late Bill Wall – the executive director of ABA/USA – who was struggling to hang a wrinkled ABA/USA banner on the center court scorer’s table. ABC Sports had the TV rights to game and their tech crew and talent were nowhere to be found.

Within 30 minutes, there were a few more building workers, a few more TV techs – laying wires to their cameras and then a buzz of activity when the men’s Olympic team rolled in. NBA players strolled in as well, all coming from different locations and most driving themselves to the arena. The NBA “All-Stars” all had a New England connection. I can remember Boston College’s Michael Adams and a few others dressing for the game. Most hadn’t touched a basketball since April and Adams’ BC classmate, John Bagley, asked me if I had some sneakers in my bag and what size I wore.

“Eleven and 1/2,” was the reply.

“Oh, I need some 15s,” said Bagley sadly. “But, let me try your shoes on.”

Next thing I knew, Bagley was in the NBA lay-up line with his 15s jammed into my red and white, size 11 1/2 PONY low-cuts.

I threw together our roster and the players grabbed jerseys and we recorded each player’s uniform number as things settled down with some 59:00 on the countdown clock.

All good.

With a few minutes to myself, I strolled down the Civic Center corridor to pay a visit to my St. John’s University bud, Chris Mullin, who had earned a spot on the ‘84 Olympic team. Mo was getting dressed and he perked up with that great Brooklyn accent upon seeing a friendly face. I wished him well, made note we’d see each other another time or three on the road to Los Angeles.

It was time to leave the locker, giving some respect to our “opponents,” but upon exit, I bumped into the head coach of the United States’ team – yes, Bobby Knight. I extended a hand, which he shook as I introduced myself, stating, “I’m here from the NBA league office and will be helping out with our players.” Straight, short and to the point. “If I can do anything to help you guys, please let me know.”

Knight nodded and said rather politely, “Well, if we need any help from you, we’re in big trouble.”

I laughed out loud, didn’t say another word but did the best pivot move he’d ever seen – the kind ARMY cadets do in drills – as I walked out of the locker – never to utter another word nor be in the same room with the great Bobby Knight ever again. That said, I never held a grudge but DID thoroughly enjoy a 1999 NCAA second round tournament game when my Johnnies drilled Knight’s No. 19 Hoosiers by 25 points – (St. John’s 86, Indiana 61).

Payback’s a bitch.

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: One minute Boston College football fans were calling for the firing of head coach Jeff Hafley, the next they’re making plans for a Bowl Game or even a longshot at the ACC Conference Championship game … The various investment funds originating in Saudi Arabia have, to date, invested in LIV Golf, Formula 1, Premier League club Newcastle United, and Mixed Martial Arts. … According to Front Office Sports, “Saudi Arabia just secured the 2034 FIFA World Cup — but its aggressive ambition to be involved in as much of professional sports as possible shows no sign of slowing.” … That includes the sports of cricket and involvement with the ATP and WTA along with ownership of at least two major tennis tournaments. … Boston-based DraftKings (NYSE: DKNG) banked $790 million in revenue for the quarter, a 57% jump compared to third-quarter 2022. The increase due to strong customer retention and growth, the company said. … Boston Common Golf players Rory McIlroy, Keegan Bradley, Adam Scott, and Tyrrell Hatton will join Boston Common Golf President & CEO Mark Lev (a former Celtics front office man) for a press conference this Monday to share details of their new venture. … ESPN will televise the 2023 Rawlings Gold Glove Awards Show on Baseball Tonight Sunday, November 5, from 7:30-8:30pm EST. The show will emanate from ESPN’s Bristol studios. Karl Ravech will host the telecast with analyst Doug Glanville. … There’s been no reputable confirmation on the rumor the NBA’s new In-Season Tournament home basketball courts were built in Chernobyl.

NBA ZONE: As promised as the NBA’s In-Season Tournament began Friday, here’s one viewpoint of how the 2023-24 NBA Regular Season will shape-up. (Look for my In-Season tourney predictions but the 2024 NBA Playoff Predictions will await another week or two).

EASTERN Conference: It’s a 1 and 1-A race between the Boston Celtics and Milwaukee Bucks, and Celtics backers are simply thrilled Nick Nurse (former Toronto head coach) is with Philadelphia and newbie Adrian Griffin (sans asst. Terry Stotts) is heading-up the Buckaroos.

The race for the Cs and Bucks will be determined on which team indoctrinates its new star acquisition the best, the quickest and stays the healthiest.

As of November 1, Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla and his merry band of assistants (including the surprising but brilliant employment of Jeff Van Gundy to the staff, has newcomers Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porzingis indoctrinated to the Celtics’ offense and the shares of the Celtics’ way have been fully purchased and deposited for safety. Meanwhile, Milwaukee is maxed-out on potential league MVP and man for all seasons Giannis Antetokounmpo and former Portland Trail Blazer great Damian Lillard, both banking 45.6m for their efforts.

That leads us to insert the 2023-24 list of highest team salaries in the NBA, according to HoopsHype (USA Today), before we survey other grounds in the league – East and West:

TOP TEN NBA TEAM SALARIES for 2023-24:

Golden State Warriors = $208,923,886
Los Angeles Clippers = $198,182,527
Phoenix Suns = $187,933,275
Milwaukee Bucks = $185,264,014
Boston Celtics = $185,232,476
Miami Heat = $181,726,509
Denver Nuggets = $179,569,508
Philadelphia 76ers = $171,559,536
New Orleans Pelicans = $169,909,579
Los Angeles Lakers = $168,238,712

Quick Notes: Please take note that the “large market” New York Knicks (14), Brooklyn Nets (18) and Chicago Bulls (13) are not amongst the Top Ten. Also note, the acquisition of James Harden took the LA Clippers to No. 2, behind only the Golden State Warriors who are paying Steph Curry a cool $51,915,615, Klay Thompson $43,219,440 and newly acquired guard Chris Paul $30,800,000. … And, I still can’t believe there’s a team in the NBA named the Pelicans.

Back to the League-wide look: The Philadelphia 76ers remain the Eastern Conference’s No. 3 pick by consensus. Joel Embiid is the reigning league MVP and a force to be reckoned with, but the 76ers’ depth remains iffy. Oft-injured and divisive guard James Harden was banished to the LA Clippers, stating 76ers coach Doc Rivers had him “on a leash” but the fact he doesn’t need to play or run a system, because “he is a system,” were parting shots and spoke volumes of Harden’s new place in the NBA.

The East’s next-best team is either the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Miami Heat or the New York Knicks. Only the Heat can be considered dangerous and contenders. ‘Nuff said?

WESTERN Conference: The NBA’s West is a party of one – the Denver Nuggets, the defending champions who are quite likely to repeat as long as center Nikola Jokic remains healthy.

After the Nuggets, there’s a significant drop to the No. 2 club, probably the Phoenix Suns but possibly the LA Clippers, Dallas Mavericks, Golden State Warriors or LA Lakers. Everyone outside of the Rockies has flaws the size of boulders, not diamonds.

The Sacramento Kings could improve (again) and would be a nice surprise for the Western Conference finals.

TIDBITS: Let’s take a quick look at the new NBA “In-Season” Tournament and predictions for the right to play for the first NBA Cup.

West: Group A:

Phoenix Suns*
L.A. Lakers
Memphis Grizzlies
Utah Jazz
Portland Trail Blazers

West: Group B

Denver Nuggets*
LA Clippers**
Dallas Mavericks
New Orleans Pelicans
Houston Rockets

West: Group C

Sacramento Kings*
Golden State Warriors
San Antonio Spurs
MinnesotaTimberwolves
Oklahoma City Thunder

East: Group A

Philadelphia 76ers*
Cleveland Cavaliers
Atlanta Hawks
Indiana Pacers
Detroit Pistons

East: Group B

Milwaukee Bucks*
Miami Heat**
New York Knicks
Washington Wizards
Charlotte Hornets

East: Group C

Boston Celtics*
Brooklyn Nets
Toronto Raptors
Orlando Magic
Chicago Bulls

West Quarterfinals: Denver v. LA Clippers and Phoenix Suns v. Sacramento Kings

East Quarterfinals: Boston Celtics v. Miami Heat and Milwaukee v. Philadelphia

On to Las Vegas:

Semis: Denver v. Sacramento and Boston v. Milwaukee

Finals: Denver over Boston

MVP: Nikola Jokic

QUARTERLY REPORT: MORE REALLY BAD INVESTMENTS: A look at some bad investments made in the past few months. This follows a previous list of doozies.

Platelet-Poor Plasma Co.
The Whole Seven and a Half Yards Co.
Mike Pence University
Theranos II
Chernobyl Mike’s Sub Shop
Cryptocurrency Exchange FIX
You Can NOT Be Sirius XM Radio (Investors should’ve known when every channel was DJ’d by John McEnroe)
Actual Intelligence

*All of the companies above seem to be solid investments as time goes by, as WWYI explores all and lists its batch of sure-fire hits at the market. Please note: “The investments and services offered by us may not be suitable for all investors. If you have any doubts as to the merits of an investment, you should seek advice from an independent financial advisor.”

TL’s Sunday Sports Notes | Oct 29

October 29, 2023 by Digital Sports Desk

By TERRY LYONS

BOSTON – When the NBA tipped-off the 2023-24 regular season earlier this week while MLB’s Texas Rangers and Arizona Diamondbacks became unlikely World Series foes and the Boston Bruins began their NHL season at 6-0 before falling to the Anaheim Ducks, 4-3 in overtime, and the NFL hit “Week 8” of a promising season to come, we all looked forward to Sunday, October 29th when all four major sports will be in action of the same day. It’s come to be known as “Sports Equinox.”

If you’d like, you can toss-in the English Premier League and the MLS for a five sport equinox with a tip of the cap to the PGA Tour which is smartly taking a weekend off before returning with the World Wide Technology championship in Los Cabos, Mexico from November 2-5.

Add-in some weekly college football and you have what many believe is the best week of the year for sports fans.

Great? Only great if you prefer a World Series between such unlikely participants Arizona and Texas instead of a Fall Classic with 100-win teams like Atlanta Braves and LA Dodgers vs upstart and extremely likable Baltimore Orioles.

The NFL and NHL are knee-deep in highly competitive and unpredictable seasons ahead. Yes, the Philadelphia Eagles and San Francesco 49ers look good in the NFC while the Kansas City Chiefs look like the team to beat in the AFC. But, don’t be surprised if you’re watching the Miami Dolphins, Buffalo Bills, Jacksonville Jags or Baltimore Ravens rep the AFC this February.

Similarly, the NBA of 2023-24 will be rush to the finish for talented teams that can stay healthy and peak on the 1st of May. In the East, the Milwaukee Bucks and Boston Celtics are getting the most favorable look by Las Vegas oddsmakers while the West is still in the hands of the Denver Nuggets for most observers.

And, they’ll run the first ever “In-Season” tournament to get the ball rolling. It should be interesting as it makes early season game count even more than usual. This columnist likes the idea a lot and loves the NBA promo just as much. If you haven’t seen the spot, it’s entitled, “The Heist” and it’s a take-off of a Sopranos episode meeting Ocean’s 11. I only wish they’d have put some of the players in team uniform and had a cameo by team mascots Rocky or The Coyote. The theme will repeat in additional spots as the In-Season Tournament progresses. Give it a look, knowing the tournament’s finale will be in Sin City:

The full cast of “The Heist” includes:

The Mastermind: Michael Imperioli (“Goodfellas,” “The Sopranos”)
The Heavy: Anthony Davis (Los Angeles Lakers)
The Sly Guy: DeMar DeRozan (Chicago Bulls)
The Ice Man: Trae Young (Atlanta Hawks)
The Lookouts: Julius Randle (New York Knicks) and Darius Garland (Cleveland Cavaliers)
The Vet: Draymond Green (Golden State Warriors)
The Inside Man: Kawhi Leonard (LA Clippers)

WWYI will do a more in-depth look at the NBA in the next week or two. Preseason predictions are often quite inaccurate, so this columnist will await the 10-game mark of the regular season to make some enlightened observations and predictions.

For the others?

MLB World Series: Texas is up 1-0 as of column creation, so Texas 4-games-to-1
NFL: KC Chiefs over the San Francisco 49ers – 27-21.
NHL: Las Vegas Knights over the Boston Bruins – 4-games-to-2

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: With the start of each pro season, WWYI usually runs Team Valuations calculated by our friends at Sportico, but since my company subscription ran-out a few weeks back, we’ll look to the old standard of Forbes for NBA Team Valuations of 2023-24.

Team, State, Current Value, 1-year change in value (%), debt/value (%), revenue, income

1. Golden State Warriors CA $7.7b 10 14 $765 M $79 M

2. New York Knicks, NY $6.6b 8 4 $504 M $169 M

3. Los Angeles Lakers, CA $6.4b 8 1 $516 M $159 M

4. Boston Celtics, MA $4.7b 18 4 $443 M $88 M

5. Los Angeles Clippers, CA $4.65b 19 2 $425 M $-12 M

6. Chicago Bulls, IL $4.6b 12 4 $372 M $115 M

7. Dallas Mavericks, TX $4.5b 36 3 $429 M $83 M

8. Houston Rockets, TX $4.4b 38 5 $381 M $125 M

9. Philadelphia 76ers, PA $4.3b 37 3 $371 M $120 M

10. Toronto Raptors, 🇨🇦 $4.1b 32 5 $305 M $75 M

NFL FUTURE FANS: A new kids’ game, Future Fans, was born when one of those iconic sports moments happened but for a young Dad watching the game with his young child, there was no one there to really share it with. The specific game was the 2022 AFC Championship game and the Cincinnati Bengals were about to earn their first trip to the Super Bowl in 33 years. Mike Schroder, a lifelong Bengals fan, watched nervously alone, wishing his then five-year-old daughter would watch with him.

Mike had spent countless hours trying to teach her about football and she knew the players and the fight song, but he couldn’t get her to watch the game. In that moment, he wondered whether there was a better way to get her engaged as a fan, and what that might mean for their future relationship together.

Mike (Schroder) sought out his friend Michael (Gold) and a small business was built on the belief that shared experiences in sports creates and sustains lifelong bonds. Michael (Gold) saw the power of his friend’s idea, reflecting on the central role of sports in the relationships in his life – going to Cincinnati Reds games as a kid with his grandmother, Ohio State college football games with his dad, and now Columbus Crew soccer games with his own kids.

Together, Michael and Mike set out to teach kids the rules of sports in ways they could understand – through stories, games and toys. They built Future Fans with the knowledge that life for parents of youngsters is quite busy – but win or lose, participation as a player or viewer in sports provides an opportunity to spend time together, and maybe, all week long talk about the next big game. Sports adds a bond between people over a shared passion – the experience of life as a true fan. Future Fans exists so everyone can experience a lifetime of great moments with their favorite teams, and enjoy the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat – together.

To get a Future Fans game for yourself or a friend or family member, visit: AMAZON

TIDBITS: The NBA on TNT and its emmy award winning wrap-around show enjoyed its debut this week, and was certainly beyond “mid-season form.” … Amongst the revelry and chaos, Charles Barkley made his viewpoint known when he commented, “Golden State is the fourth-best team in California,” placing the Warriors behind an unnamed order of the Los Angeles Clippers, LA Lakers and Sacramento Kings.

Later on as the “Inside the NBA” stars were enjoying local cuisine, the producers had a little surprise – especially for Shaquille O’Neal and Barkley.

Shaq: “Chuck, if you put him around your neck, I’ll give you 100,000 dollars.”

The BIG NOON (Big 12) game on FOX on Saturday ended at 4:30 (ET). Good game, but a rain (and some lightning) delay from 1:08pm (ET) to 2:02pm (ET). Kansas upset OK, 38-33, to snap an 18-game losing streak. … Saturday, in the FOX studio show before the Clemson vs N.C. State, Steve Smith Jr. said that “N.C. State was a basketball school.” After N.C. State upset Clemson, 24-17, Wolfpack head coach Dave Doeren told the game announcers of CW Network, to tell Steve Smith “he can kiss my ass.” … On Friday night, with the Miami Heat in town to take on the Celtics in Boston’s home opener Celtics all-stars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown told guard Derrick White that he had to be more aggressive this season. White responded and was trending on “X,” the artist formerly known as Twitter, all day Saturday after posting a 28 points, six rebounds, three blocked shots and five 3-pointers made line vs the Heat. Celtics opponents can expect – at least – four players to score in double figures, maybe six players. Tatum, Brown, Kristaps Porzingis, Derrick White and toss in Jrue Holiday and Al Horford for the six-some.

WEMBY & WILT: Much was said this week over San Antonio Spurs rookie first overall selection Victor Wembanyama’s NBA debut when he finished with 21 points on 7-of-19 shooting (0-for-6 from deep), 12 rebounds, three blocks and two steals in the Spurs’ 126-122 overtime victory. … Without any doubt, he’ll be fabulous. … But consider this, Wilt Chamberlain’s NBA rookie debut on October 29, 1959 showed a final (hand-written) boxscore of 43 points, 28 rebounds. … Keep in mind, the NBA didn’t track blocked shot until the 1973-74 season. Can you imagine?

While We’re Young (Ideas) continues to grow and is enjoying a whopping, grand, incredible 73% “open rate,” as of last Sunday. FYI (for those not in the business of PR or e-Newsletters, the norm of 27.9% is considered quite good.

LPGA – BOSTON: While the PGA Tour has taken a pass on the Boston market the last few years, the LPGA and Fenway Sports Group are planning a tournament at TPC Boston for 2024.

In a formal announcement this week, which included Massachusetts Governor Maura Healy on the dais, the LPGA Tour and FM Global named TPC Boston in Norton, Mass., as host golf course for the 2024 FM Global Championship. From Aug. 29 to Sept. 1, the newly created tournament will feature a field of 144 players competing for a $3.5 million purse, the largest prize fund on the LPGA Tour outside of the majors and Tour Championship.

The last time the LPGA played in Greater Boston/Mass was 20 years ago and the 2004 U.S. Women’s Open, held at Orchards Golf Club in South Hadley, Mass. It was won by Meg Mallon.

TL’s Sunday Sports Notes | Oct 22nd

October 22, 2023 by Terry Lyons

By TERRY LYONS, Editor in Chief of Digital Sports Desk

FOXBORO – The Dog Day Afternoons of the NFL season are fast upon us. The anticipation of early September pro football and the heat of the Summer of 2023 are long gone. They’re in the rearview, optimism be damned, as 38% of the 2023 NFL regular season is in the books. In their place, reality has set in for the New England Patriots’ and the cruel dose of reality is accompanied by a 1-5 record, a last place position in the AFC East, a three-game losing streak and a (-80) score differential in the six games gone by.

In Week Seven, the Buffalo Bills travel to New England while the NFL schedule-makers provide the Patriots with a road trip to play the Miami Dolphins in Week Eight. New England’s one-and-five record of the morning of October 22 can easily be one-and-seven by the time All Saints Day rolls around and the only Saint you’ll need to know is St. Jude – the patron saint of lost causes as it’s ugly and it could get really ugly.

New England Coach Bill Belichick, waxing reminiscent like his famous, “On to Cincinnati” monotone retort of late September, 2014, had only a “We’re getting ready for Buffalo” message for the media and fans of the Patriots.

Belichick delivered his plan this week in much the same manner as he did when his 2-2 Patriots team of 2014 went on to Cincinnati and won seven straight and 10 of 11 games en route to a Super Bowl win over Seattle that February, his fourth of six Super Bowl titles in the 21st Century.

Except, this season, the “We’re getting ready for Buffalo” isn’t flying with the fans in Foxboro, nor Fitchburg, nor Fall River. It’s not flying in Falmouth (Mass. or Maine) and it’s not flying with fans or players anywhere near the six States encompassing New England. Rumors of Belichick’s future are flying in every direction – mostly South – and they include a report from Monday Morning QB’s Albert Breer that stated Patriots team owner Robert Kraft has been in discussion of what a “post Belichick” world would look like “for a while,” (as in weeks/months or years) he wrote.

The Dog Days will do that to coaches in the NFL, but never before to Belichick, certainly since he took over the Patriots in late January of 2000.

The Dog Days also wreak havoc on NFL players from coast-to-coast. Let us count the ways as we peruse NFL Injury Reports leading up to Sunday, Oct. 22nd.

The Buffalo Bills have been decimated by injuries decimating their defense, including defensive tackle DaQuan Jones (torn pectoral muscle), cornerback Tre’Davious White (Achilles’)-out for season, and defensive tackle Ed Oliverruled out of the game this weekend because of a toe injury. The Buffalo Bills are also missing RB Damien Harris – neck, on the injured reserve list, and leaving the rushing duties to RB James Cook.

ALSO OUT – are QB Jimmy Garoppolo – back injury (LV Raiders), QB DeShawn Watson – strained right rotor cuff (Cleveland Browns), QB Justin Fields – thumb injury (Chicago Bears).

Injured with game-time decisions to play or not to play are the SF 49ers duo of RB Christian McCaffrey – oblique and WR Deebo Samuels – shoulder. Listed as questionable is NY Giants QB Daniel Jones – neck; New England RB Rhamondre Stevenson – ankle remains questionable on a lengthy Patriots injury listing; GB Packers RB Aaron Jones – hamstring; and Seattle Seahawks WR DK Metcalf – hip.

Meanwhile, injured RB David Montgomery -ribs (Detroit Lions); RB Kyren Williams – ankle, (LA Rams); TE Pat Freiermuth – hamstring (Pittsburgh Steelers) are doubtful.

Let’s not overlook the big-name injuries earlier this season, including NY Jets QB Aaron Rodgers (Achilles’ – out for season), Cleveland Browns RB Nick Chubb (severe knee – out for season), NY Giants RB Saquon Barkley (knee – questionable after missing a month), LA Rams WR Cooper Kupp – (returned last week after missing six weeks with hamstring injury), and Cincy Bengals QB Joe Burrow (calf) has been nursing his injury all season and just getting into form in mid-October.

What does it all mean?

Injuries are a huge part of the NFL season and each club has the “next man up” mentality to replace its fallen soldiers. Often, the opportunity supplied to a reserve or practice player is enough motivation to fill the hole admirably, but more frequently on offense rather than defense. The injuries to the defensive unit of the Buffalo Bills might’ve side-tracked a Super Bowl season. In the Bills’ AFC, Kansas City remains the favorite while the Miami Dolphins continue to impress. In the NFC, San Francisco, Philadelphia, and Detroit all stand at 5-1 and will all will fight-it-out for the right to represent their conference come February. May the healthiest team advance.

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: The World Golf Hall of Fame recently announced that NBA All-Star and champion Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors will receive The Charlie Sifford Award presented by Southern Company, which honors recipients for their spirit in advancing diversity in golf. Curry receive the award on June 10, 2024, at the World Golf Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony presented by CME Group held during the 124th U.S. Open at Pinehurst Resort & Country Club in the Village of Pinehurst – not far from Curry’s alma mater – Davidson College in North Carolina. The Charlie Sifford Award was created in 2021 to honor an individual who personifies Sifford’s groundbreaking achievements through perseverance, confidence, respect, and adaptability.

MOST MARKETABLE ATHLETES: SportsPro, a sports marketing e-News and event company with a decidedly European tone, named its 50 most marketable athletes of 2023. Not surprisingly, Lionel Messi – the great Argentine striker who “wowed” the MLS crowds backing the Inter Miami CF club this year.

Here’s the Top 20:

Lionel Messi, soccer, MLS Miami
Lebron James, NBA, LA Lakers
Alex Morgan, USWNT
Giannis Antetokounpo, NBA, Milwaukee Bucks
Megan Rapinoe, USWNT (recently retired)
Mikaela Shiffren, USA Alpine Ski Team
Lewis Hamilton, F-1 motorsports, British/Mercedes
Simone Biles, USA Gymnastics
Kylian Mbappe, soccer, PSG France
Max Verstrappen, F-1, Belgium/Dutch, Red Bull
Novak Djokovic, tennis, Serbia
Coco Gauff, tennis, USA
Stephen Curry, NBA, Golden State Warriors
Naomi Osaka, tennis, Japan
Lucy Bronze, soccer, Britain, FC Barcelona
Robert Lewandowski, soccer, Poland, FC Barcelona
Leah Williamson, soccer, Britain, Arsenal
Aryna Sabalenka, tennis Belarussia
Angel Reese, USA, college basketball, LSU
Alphonso Davies, soccer, Ghana/Canada, Bayern Munich

Some Notes Worth Considering: Eight of the Top 20 were soccer players, marketable worldwide but limited in a great degree in the USA; Three of the Top 13 were NBA players; Angel Reese is the lone American basketball player; A total of “Zero” NFL, MLB, NHL nor PGA Tour players are in Top 20 and you had to dig to No. 29 for golfer Rory McIlroy and to No. 35 to come up with KC Chiefs TE Travis Kelce (and, no, he was not pictured with pop star Taylor Swift) and the Top 50 revealed no MLB nor NHL players.

SILVER SCREEN: Two motion pictures featuring endurance sports will entertain us from now through the Christmas holidays. Starring Annette Bening and Jodi Foster, NYAD dives into the story of Diana Nyad and her triumphs, friendships, and her will to dig deep into the human spirit. The movie is available via Netflix. … With a promotional lift in Boston via The Head of the Charles Regatta, another spectacular endurance story, entitled, “The Boys in the Boat” is an inspirational drama based on The New York Times’ No. 1 best selling non-fiction novel written by Daniel James Brown in 2013. The film, directed by George Clooney, is about the 1936 University of Washington rowing team that competed for gold at the ‘36 Summer Olympics in Berlin. The movie reflects the true story of a group of underdogs at the height of the Great Depression as they are thrust into the spotlight and take on elite rivals from around the world as Nazi Germany surfaces beneath the Olympic flame. The movie rights were once owned by the Weinstein Group, but with Harvey Weinstein serving a life sentence behind bars, the rights were eventually acquired by Lantern Entertainment of Dallas who chose Clooney to direct. You heard it here first, watch NYAD on Netflix and find time to head to a movie theatre near you to see “The Boys in the Boat.” … Get the “Inside Look.”

Then, maybe, head out to Las Vegas and catch U2 performing at The Sphere where Van den Berg is filling-in for Larry Mullen, Jr. while the longtime U2 drummer, 61, recovers from undisclosed surgery with plans to return to the band. The price of a floor ticket for U2 is averaging $956.

TIDBITS: Former Celtics champion and basketball HOFer Kevin Garnett’s Big Ticket Sports is planning a joint-venture with Pro League Network to create str33t, a new 3×3 pro streetball-style basketball league. Str33t’s first series is expected to launch in early 2024, ahead of the Paris Games, which marks the second Olympics 3×3 basketball will be contested as an Olympic sport. … The league and USA Basketball’s efforts toward the Paris Olympics are not connected.

BREAKING GOOD? – Breaking is the only sport making its debut at Paris 2024. At the Paris 2024 Games, the breaking competition will comprise two events – one for men and one for women – where 16 B-Boys and 16 B-Girls will go face to face in solo battles. Athletes will use a combination of moves and improvise to the beat of the DJ’s tracks. Breaking made its Youth Olympic debut at the Youth Olympic Games in Buenos Aires in 2018. … Sport climbing, surfing, and skateboarding were also selected by the IOC as demonstration sports for the 2024 Olympic Games.

PITINO EXHIBITION “W”in DOUBLE OT: St. John’s defeated Rutgers, 89-78, in double-overtime of the charity exhibition game, the Dick Vitale Pediatric Cancer Research Fund at the V Foundation. … St. John’s Nahiem Alleyne buried a game-tying 3-pointer at the buzzer to force double-overtime. He led all scorers with 19 points on Saturday at Carnesecca Arena. It was new coach Rick Pitino’s first game as St John’s head coach, but the “W” won’t count in the record books.

TL’s Sunday Sports Notes | October 15

October 15, 2023 by Digital Sports Desk

While We’re Young (Ideas) – Basket-Fy Yourself

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

BOSTON – There’s a saying, maybe call it words of advice: “Stick with what you know best.” Or, in the immortal words of Ignaz Bernstwin (1836-1909), “Do what you know best, if you’re a runner – run. If you’re a bell – ring.

That’s what we’ll do today as this reporter knows the sport of basketball the best and we’ll look at it in three segments.

First, the WNBA: The league has enjoyed, perhaps, its best season since former WNBA President Val Ackerman tossed-up a ceremonial tip-off between Lisa Leslie of the LA Sparks and Kim Hampton of the NY Liberty to start in the inaugural season in the Summer of 1997.

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How quickly those 26 years flew past sports fans, proving the league is here to stay.

The season began with the return of All-Star Brittney Griner who was unlawfully detained in Russia and eventually released in a prisoner exchanged in a State Department led effort to bring Griner home after an airport search uncovered vaping cartridges with less than a gram of hash oil, purchased legally in Arizona but illegal in Russia where she was traveling from playing overseas at her UMMC Ekaterinburg club located in Russia’s fourth largest city situated in Perm Provence. Griner was exchanged for an arms dealer, Viktor Bout, who had served 10 years of a 25-year Federal sentence in the USA.

Jewell Loyd of the Seattle Storm won the 2023 WNBA All-Star Game MVP after an impressive 31-point performance.

Game 3 of the WNBA Finals will tiup-off at 3pm (ET) today in New York with the Las Vegas Aces leading the New York Liberty 2-games-to-0 in their best-of-five series. The WNBA Finals feature a match-up of two super teams in league history. Jackie Young, A’ja Wilson and Kelsey Plum have proven too much for the Liberty during their stay in Vegas as Hall of Famer Becky Hammon guides her Aces. No team has ever come back to win a series from an 0-2 deficit.

While overall WNBA viewership is up 27% over last season, the Sunday games in this series are going up against NFL regular season and MLB Postseason telecasts. An uphill climb for a league that concluded its season on Labor Day weekend back when Val Ackerman tossed the ball.

Next Up, the Collegians: Yes, it’s been written in these pages before, but each year, a favorite day for all College Basketball fans is the day their Blue Ribbon College Basketball Yearbook arrives in the mailbox. It happened just last week, and this column was teased with a quick look at the great Chris Dortch’s predictions for the 2023-24 BIG EAST Conference.

This week, we’ll take a good look at the Blue Ribbon predictions for the Top 25 in College ball and maybe – just maybe – the patented preseason NCAA bracket will be back for the most ridiculous attempt at a preview.

The College Basketball Blue Ribbon Preseason Top 25:

Kansas
Purdue’
UConn
Marquette
Michigan State
Tennessee
Duke
Arkansas
Creighton
Baylor
Kentucky
Houston
Gonzaga
Florida Atlantic
Arizona
North Carolina
Texas A&M
Texas
Alabama
Mississippi State
USC
Miami
Colorado
Villanova
San Diego State

No major surprises were installed in those selections, except for the fact of an ever-increasing shift of dominance from the former East Coast powerhouses, like Syracuse, Georgetown, Maryland, Virginia, Florida, Providence, and St. John’s, to the Midwest and South.

Blue Ribbon named Purdue’s 7-4 Senior center Zach Edey the preseason Player of the Year and Kansas senior center – 7-1 Hunter Dickinson Newcomer of the Year. Dickinson is not exactly a “newcomer,” as he played three years at Michigan but entered the college basketball transfer portal for his senior season and chose Kansas over Villanova, Kentucky, Maryland and Georgetown.

Milwaukee Bucks’ Damian Lillard (r) and The Freak

Saving the best for last, here’s a little look at the pros:

NBA SEASON OF 2023-24: Training camps for the NBA began on September 27 (for teams traveling outside of North America) and October 3 (for the entire league) and the NBA Preseason began October 5 in Abu Dhabi with a pair of Minnesota Timberwolves’ wins over the Dallas Mavericks. (BTW, Dallas went on to lose another game as they stayed in Europe and fell victim to Real Madrid, 127-123 on October 10).

The big change in the NBA schedule of 2023-24 is the incorporation of an “In-Season” tournament which tips-off November 3 and concludes with a December 7 & 9 semis and championship in Las Vegas.

Looking towards the regular season, the talk of the league is Damian Lillard’s summertime trade from Portland to the Milwaukee Bucks and how he’ll fit in with All-Star bigman Giannis Antetokounmpo and the rest of the talented Bucks roster. Keep in mind, Bucks NBA Finals champion coach Mike Budenholzer was fired May 4 of this year and replaced by Toronto assistant Adrian Griffin.

Milwaukee is the team to beat in the East while Denver remains the front runner out West. Next week, we’ll look at the individual divisional ladders and make some predictions for the 2024 NBA Playoffs. While contemplating the NBA, this columnist will take a crack at the impossible —> predicting the 2024 NHL Stanley Cup Playoff contenders and winners.

TID-BIT: Keeping up with the Basketball Jones theme, please examine the ESPN list of Top 100 players in the NBA. For a limitation of space on this missive, here’s the ESPN Top 10, in descending order:

No. 10: Anthony Davis, LA Lakers

No. 9: LeBron James, LA Lakers

No. 8: Shea Gilgeous-Alexander, OKC Thunder

No. 7: Kevin Durant, Phoenix Suns

No. 6: Jayson Tatum, Boston Celtics

No. 5: Steph Curry, Golden State Warriors

No. 4: Luka Doncic, Dallas Mavericks

No. 3: Joel Embiid, Philadelphia 76ers (last year’s MVP)

No. 2: Nikola Jokic, Denver Nuggets

No. 1: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks

Thoughts: Devin Booker of the Phoenix Suns is missing from the Top 10, although to ESPN’s credit, he clocks in at No. 11. Personally, with Kevin Durant’s lack of lateral defensive ability (and lack of desire to play any D), the obvious move is to switch Booker with Durant. … At the top of heap, there’s no reason not to list Denver’s Nikola Jokic at No. 1 and The Greek Freak at No. 2. Jokic and the Nuggets are defending champions and he was the MVP of The NBA Finals. That deserves a No. 1 position. … NBA fans and fans of the 76ers might be wary of Joel Embiid’s progress and conditioning for the 2023-24 NBA season. Just sayin’ … New 76ers coach Nick Nursestressed running and conditioning in his first training camp with his club. Undoubtedly Embiid will be a focal point to examine as Nurse plays an up tempo, move-the-ball, FAST game. … Meanwhile, Sixers 10-time all-star guard James Hardenremains at odds with Philadelphia GM Daryl Morey. Harden is on the Sixers’ books for a cool $35.6m this year and – although he is trying to force a trade – there aren’t any takers at that inflated number. The 76ers are also paying Embiid ($47.6m) and Tobias Harris a cool $39.2m per year. There’s a have and have not on the team payroll in Philly.

TL’s Sunday Sports Notes | Oct 8

October 8, 2023 by Terry Lyons

By TERRY LYONS

BOSTON – No New York Yankees. No New York Mets. No Boston Red Sox. No San Diego Padres.

But, yes, the Mets, Yankees and Padres, with a combined $876.4 million tab for player salaries this season, all missed the postseason.

The Mets fired GM Billy Eppler and their skipper Buck Showalter while the Red Sox gave the trap-door approach to their head of Baseball Ops and defacto team GM Chaim Bloom. If you add expectations of the LA Angeles to the mix, add to the carnage with Angels Manager Phil Nevin hitting the unemployment line. The SF Giants fired manager Gabe Kapler and the Winter Meetings are two months away.

The 2023 Postseason started slowly with less-than-compelling Wild Card match-ups all ending in a short series (2-0).

The MLB Divisional Playoffs are expected to bring increased interest and batter baseball. In the National League, the Atlanta Braves – baseball’s best – are facing a tough, playoff-tested Philadelphia Phillies team while the winner of the LA Dodgers vs AZ Diamondbacks awaits (think Dodgers).

In the American League, the State of Texas planted two franchises in the divisional playoff bracket – the defending World Series champion Houston Astros and the Texas Rangers. They can meet if the Astros dispose of the Minnesota Twins and the Rangers can defeat upstart and entertaining Baltimore.

Regardless of the results this year, the Baltimore Orioles will be “here to stay” in MLB Postseasons to come.

As postseason progresses, an examination of Baseball’s vital signs shows a very healthy patient. Major League Baseball attendance experienced its largest growth in 30 years in 2023, said the league in a regular season-end statement. Total attendance of 70,747,365 was up 9.6 percent over 2022 (64,556,636) and the average attendance of 29,295 was up 9.1 percent.

Seventeen of the 30 MLB teams drew more than 2.5 million fans, matching the most in MLB history, and eight attracted more than 3 million. Eleven weekends drew more than 1.5 million fans, compared to a total of five such weekends over the previous four full seasons (2018-19, 2021-22) combined.

Factoring into the sport’s increased “watchability” waas a decrease in the average length of the games, thanks in large part to pitch clocks. The regular season games of 2023 averaged 2 hours, 39 minutes and 49 seconds, the shortest since 1985 and a decrease of 24 minutes from last season.

Only nine games lasted 3 1/2 hours or longer, down from 390 such games back in 2021.

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: The USA Basketball Men’s World Cup team settled for a 4th Place finish this summer in Manila with Germany, Serbia and Canada gaining the top three spots. The groomsmen instead of the groom approach continued this weekend in Amsterdam where the USA Basketball 3×3 entry from Miami took 2nd Place behind a squad from Vienna, Austria. … The second-place finish marks Team Miami’s sixth straight Top 4 finish on the World Tour, including their second runner-up finish of the campaign.

In a rematch of their Saturday “pool play” game, Vienna sought revenge vs. Miami in the Tournament Finals, winning the tightly contested battle, 21-19. Jimmer Fredetteput Miami into the lead, 8-7, with a two-pointer with just under seven minutes remaining. Vienna tried to pull away multiple times, but Miami hung-on and grabbed a 19-18 lead with 3:28 remaining after the Americans went on a 6-1 run. Both teams had empty possessions before Vienna scored the game’s final three points. Fredette led Miami with 10 points. Dylan Travis pulled down a team-high five boards. … The Miami 3×3 entry will next compete at the Doha Challenger on Oct 10-11.

NWSL VALUATIONS: Fresh off a newly reported four-year deal for game rights, divvying up coverage between ESPN, CBS, Amazon and Scripps, the sports business publications – Sportico – released valuations for the National Women’s Soccer League. Here are the Top 10:

Angel City FC – – $180 million
San Diego Wave – – $90m
Kansas City Courant – – $75m
Portland Thorns – – $65m
Washington Spirit – – $54
North Carolina Courage $52m
Houston Dash – – $50m
OL Reign – – $49m (Olympique Lyonnais)
NJ/NY Gotham FC – – $48m
Racing Louisville FC – – $47m

Two other clubs, Orlando and Chicago rated at $47 million or less.

The WNBA just awarded a franchise the the Golden State Warriors’ organization at the value of $50 million.

TIDBITS: The Minnesota Twins snapped an 18-game postseason losing streak with a win in their best-of-three Wild Card series vs. Toronto. It marked the longest losing streak in any major North American sports league. Minny’s 3-1 Game 1 win over the Blue Jays, was dominated by a player who was five years old the last time the Twins won a playoff game. Twins DH Royce Lewis drove in all three runs with a two-run home run in the first inning and a solo shot in the third. …

RIVALRY WEEK: Dare you to say that three times and fast! With No. 12 Oklahoma’s 34-30 upset over No. 3 Texas in Saturday’s Red River Rivalry, it’s time to wax philosophic on the greatness of college football, something city-folk in New York don’t understand.

Here’s my non-comprehensive list of the best rivalries in college football:

Army vs. Navy This year to be played in Foxboro, Mass
The Game – Harvard vs. Yale
The Iron Bowl – Auburn vs. Alabama
Michigan vs Ohio State – Usually, it settles the Big 10 championship)
USC vs. Notre Dame – a rivalry based in great games, every year)
Georgia vs. Florida – aka “the World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party”
Miami vs. Florida State – ‘Canes vs. ‘Noles
California vs. Stanford – Public vs. Private
UCLA vs. USC – West Coast elite, in the Rose Bowl
Lafayette vs. Lehigh – The Rivalry which dates back to 1897

And, don’t forget the Catholics vs the Convicts (ND vs. Miami) of yesteryear.

THINGS TO PONDER ON A SLOW DAY: Back by popular demand are a listing of a few things I think about.

Ready?

For years and years we’ve all been shaken by the sound of the Emergency Broadcast System … Repeat after me: “Station XYZ is conducting a test of the Emergency Broadcast System. This is only a test. If this had been an actual emergency, an official message would have followed the tone alert you heard at the start of this message.” … “This concludes the test of the Emergency Broadcast System.” … Okay, I get it. … It’s an important function and it grew from a directive from President John F. Kennedy in the very early ‘60s during the Cold War. … Now! Tell me this? During the damn GLOBAL PANDEMIC of 2019-2020 did you hear one peep from the Emergency Broadcast System? … That said, they tested an upgraded version this week.
Why are there three different ways to describe the exact same thing?

In New York, it’s a car ACCIDENT
In Boston, it’s a CRASH
In Texas, it’s a WRECK

There’s “Fender-Benders,” “Pile-Ups,” “Collisions,” and “Smash-Ups.” Can anyone explain the origin of all of these descriptions and tell is why we need so many different ways to tag the same disasterous thing? Maybe we should slow down and drive safely, especially in the local neighborhood where the speed limit states “20 mph,” and not double nickels.

TL’s Sunday Sports Notebook | Sept 24

September 24, 2023 by Terry Lyons

While We’re Young (Ideas) on Ryder Cup, Best/Worst of NFL

By TERRY LYONS

BOSTON – The Opening Ceremony of the 2023 Ryder Cup will take place this Thursday at 10:00am ET. The foursomes and four-ball competition starts this Friday, September 29th with first tee time at 1:35 AM (ET) and the Ryder Cup will be presented to the winning team on Sunday, Oct 1, 2023 – a week from today.

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TV coverage of the biennial match play golf tournament will be provided by a combination of USA Network and its parent company, NBC Sports. Streaming is available via NBC’s Peacock Network and the Ryder Cup (www.rydercup.com) and the Ryder Cup app.

The TEAMS:

🇺🇸 The visiting USA Team will feature:

Scottie Scheffler
Wyndham Clark
Patrick Cantlay
Brian Harman
Max Homa
Xander Schaufele
Sam Burns
Rickie Fowler
Brooks Koepka
Collin Morakawa
Jordan Spieth
Justin Thomas
Captain: Zach Johnson

🇪🇺 The European host team will feature:

Rory McIlroy
Jon Rahm
Viktor Hovland
Tyrrell Hatton
Matt Fitzpatrick
Robert MacIntyre
Justin Rose
Tommy Fleetwood
Shane Lowry
Ludvig Aberg
Sepp Straka
Nicolai Hojgaard
Captain: Luke Donald

FUN FACTS: The USA has NOT won on European soil since 1993 at The Belfry. … In 2021, the USA won the Ryder Cup at Wisconsin’s Whistling Straits, marking a record of a 10-point victory, the largest since the USA and Europe (not the UK) squared off in 1979. … The USA has No. 1 rankedScottie Scheffler but Europe can claim No. 2-5 with N. Ireland’s Rory McIlroy, Spain’s Jon Rahm and Norway’s Viktor Hovland. … If you place Hovland at the No. 1 slot because of his 2023 FedEx Cup victory and Erling Haaland as the No. 1 footballer in the world, playing for Man City, you’ll note Norway has the top two athloetes in teh world. Add Germany as the FIBA World Cup champion, and Serbia’s Nikola Jokić of the Denver Nuggets as the MVP of the NBA Finals, you get the picture on the marvelous results being registered by European athletes.

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: After this weekend’s three game set with the Chicago White Sox, the Boston Red Sox will have only two more games at Fenway Park before the turf plays host to some Thanksgiving high school football games. The Red Sox face the Tampa Bay Rays (2 games) and the Baltimore Orioles (4-games at Camden Yards) to close out the year against two of the American League’s very best.

Saturday, September 23rd, also known as Week 4 of the College Football season, is really Game 1 for a lot of teams as they face conference competition across the nation. There’s some great non-Conference battles, too, as in Ohio State playing Notre Dame in South Bend.

The “Instant Classic” of the weekend was the Florida State at Clemsongame, won by Florida St., 31-24 in overtime.

There were so many great college football games on TV that my remote threatened to join the United Auto Workers’ picket lines. … The remote was so worn out that it asked for seven days off and an all expenses paid vacation trip to Aruba. … There were so many great games going on at the same time that a friend in New York City walked 8,700 steps as he went from screen-to-screen inside a Sports Bar.

The losers in the deal? How about LIV Golf, being televised by the CW Network facing big-time college football comp on ABC, CBS, ESPN and ESPN2 and everything on ESPN+, FOX, the ACC Network, the Big Ten Network, CBS Sports Net, and so on.

Wouldn’t LIV Golf be better off basing its September tournaments in Europe where they could play to an early morning audience in the USA, say 7:00am to 11:00am ET?

THE BEST AND WORST OF THE NFL: Frequently, there are despicable acts of violence by NFL fans at stadiums across the country. This week? It was too much as a fan in Buffalo was apprehended as the USA Todayheadline read: An unidentified football fan who was naked and “covered in human excrement” was discovered in a construction site hole near the Buffalo Bills home opener on Sunday. The extent of his injuries was a cut on his forehead.

Believe it or not, it got worse. Much worse.

Dale Mooney, a 53-year-old New England Patriots’ fan and New Hampshire resident, fell unconscious in the fourth quarter of New England’s Sunday Night Football game against the Miami Dolphins, falling unconscious in the upper deck of Gillette Stadium in Foxborough and could not be revived.

He was punched by a Miami Dolphins fan and fell down, witnesses said, but the blow might not have been the cause of Mooney’s death.

“Preliminary autopsy results did not suggest traumatic injury, but did identify a medical issue,” according to a statement Wednesday from the Norfolk District Attorney’s Office. “Cause and manner of death remain undetermined pending further testing.”

The fact of the matter is that a drunken Patriots fan jawed throughout the game and then confronted a rival Miami supporter. There’s been no formal or final determination by the authorities and the incident remains under investigation.

The incidents this week prompt a listing of the worst fans (and best fans) in the NFL:

WORST FANS:

Worst – J.E.T.S. – Jets, Jets, Jets ✈️

2nd – J.E.T.S. – Jets, Jets, Jets ✈️

3rd – J.E.T.S. – Jets, Jets, Jets ✈️

That’s no typo!

4. Eagles 🦅

5. Raiders 🍂

6. Dolphins 🐬

7. Cowboys 🤠

8. Patriots 🇬🇧 —> 🇺🇸

9. Bengals 🐅 (lethargic/front runners)

10. Steelers ⚒️

BEST and MOST LOYAL NFL FANS:

1. Packers

2. Giants

3. Bills

4. Da Bears

5. Broncos

6. Cowboys

7. Seahawks

8. Chiefs

9. DC Commanders

10. Lions

TIDBITS: While We’re Young (Ideas) is NOT a gossip column. It’s not Page 6. It’s not even TMZ. But, the Taylor Swift & Travis Kelce dating “thing” is just too much to let pass by without mention. Rumors began circulating that Kelce and Swift were dating weeks ago, about the time Kelce suffered a bone bruise in practice two days before the Chiefs’ 21-20 season-opening loss to the Detroit Lions.

Kelce missed that game – his first DNP since 2013 – but returned for NFL Week 2 when he scored a touchdown in a 17-9 road win over the Jacksonville Jaguars.

While Kelce and Swift have remained silent, friends of Swift and the brother of Kelce have been feeding the frenzy.

“It’s hilarious how much traction this has gotten,” said Jason Kelce, the KC tight end’s brother. “Right now, it’s like that old game in school called ‘telephone’ where everyone is whispering in everyone’s ear and hearing random stuff. No one actually knows what’s going on, especially when you’ve got Jason Kelce on live television telling people both sides … The guy can’t stay out of the frickin’ headlines.”

“I try to keep his business kind of his business, stay out of that world. But having said that, I think he’s doing great, and I think it’s all 100% true,” J. Kelce added.

Sources with a Swift insider resume also broke silence and commented on her behalf.

“She and Travis have hung out twice, and it’s nothing serious. She thinks he is very charming, and they have been texting this last week,” said the Swifty exclusively to The Messenger. “He is a little embarrassed at how much attention they are getting, but he has told her he would love to continue seeing her.”

“They are seeing where things go.” However, the football star has some stiff competition for the singer’s attention. “Her friends are always playfully suggesting people to set her up with,” the source continues.

Calling Tom Brady?

Nah.

SOCCER HUB: The National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) announced that Boston was awarded expansion rights for the league’s 15th team. Boston Unity Soccer Partners (BUSC), an all-female core ownership group led by a diverse and dynamic leadership team, will head-up the venture. The new club is set to kick-off in the 2026 season, bringing world-class women’s soccer back to the country’s No. 9 media market to play in a region with a championship legacy for a fan base that has earned a reputation as one of the most passionate in all of sports.

The announcement follows the addition of two other NWSL expansion teams earlier this year, Utah Royals FC and Bay Area FC, which are both slated to begin play in 2024.

RIP DENNIS D’AGOSTINO: A week after writing a memorial tribute to the NBA’s Bruni Gill, it’s another sad day to recognize the sudden passing of New York Mets, New York Knicks and our NBA Finals/All-Star Game media relations cohort Dennis D’Agostino. … Dennis’ upbeat attitude, a hard work ethic to always get the job done right and a unique personality and sense of humor that was loved and appreciated by everyone he came in contact with over his many years in sports. D’Agostino most recently re-located from his native New York (Whitestone) by way of Fordham University in the Bronx to Los Angeles where he and his bride, Helene Elliott of the LA Times, enjoyed their lives together in a grand way. … This columnist has fond memories of D’Agostino at the Mets, Knicks and at LA Dodgers games but also from the many New York Knicks media trips to Saratoga Race Course. Etched in my mind is the day he inserted a VHS tape of “Day at the Races” – the Marx Brothers’ classic – into a player for a long bus ride from The Garden to Saratoga Race Course for a summertime Knicks’ media outing! … We laughed and laughed and -zip – we were in Saratoga! D’Agostino’s memorial service will be held in New Jersey on September 30.

PARTING WORDS AND MUSIC: While considering a post highlighting the recent stadium concerts performed by Taylor Swift, there’s absolutely no chance this week’s column isn’t going to plug the “Garden-to-Garden” pair of concerts by the Tedeschi Trucks Band to be played this week.

We’ll start off at TD Boston Garden on Wednesday, September 27 and conclude Friday, September 29 at New York’s Madison Square Garden, the World’s Most Famous Arena.

Derek Trucks’ cohort as lead guitarist for the Allman Brothers Band, Warren Haynes, will sit-in at the Boston show, while Phish phenom Trey Anastasioand Norah Jones will each make appearances with TTB at NYC’s Garden.

It’ll be great.

Here’s a sampling of the Tedeschi Trucks Band doing “Anyhow” and Blind Willie McTell’s “Statesboro Blues,” performed at the most beautiful, striking and astonishing concert venues in the world, at Red Rocks outside of Denver, Colorado.

While We’re Young (Ideas) is a weekly Sunday Sports Notebook and news column 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 10pm to pick-up a copy of the Sunday papers. Inside, just waiting, was a sports-filled compilation of interesting notes, quotes and quips.

TL’s Sunday Sports Notes is brought to you by Digital Sports Desk.

TL’s Sunday Sports Notes | Sept 17th

September 17, 2023 by Terry Lyons

By TERRY LYONS

BOSTON – The NBA Board of Governors did it. They voted in a new policy (set of rules) to curb the “load management” issue the league has been wrestling with since the ‘80s.

Here is the league statement issued earlier this week:

NEW YORK – (Official NBA News Release) – The NBA Board of Governors approved a new Player Participation Policy, which is intended to promote player participation in the NBA’s regular season. The new policy will take effect with the start of the 2023-24 regular season and enhance and replace the Player Resting Policy, which was implemented prior to the 2017-18 season.

The Player Participation Policy primarily will focus on star players. A star player for purposes of the policy is any player who, in any of the prior three seasons, was selected to an All-NBA Team or an NBA All-Star team. This definition also applies, following a given season’s All-Star Game, to any player who is named an All-Star during that season.

Under the policy, unless a team demonstrates an approved reason for a star player not to participate in a game, then, among other things, the team must:

Manage its roster to ensure that no more than one star player is unavailable for the same game.
Ensure that star players are available for all national television and NBA In-Season Tournament games.
Maintain a balance between the number of one-game absences for a star player in home and road games.
Refrain from any long-term “shutdowns” in which a star player stops playing games.
If resting a healthy player, ensure that the player is present at the games and visible to fans.

The policy includes exceptions for injuries, personal reasons and pre-approved back-to-back restrictions based on a player’s age, career workload or serious injury history.

If you recall, I pontificated on load management in a prior column.

That said, I’m still awaiting load management guidelines from the NHL, as their players play one line and sit and rest for two or three others while the goal-keepers often alternate games.

I’m awaiting the PGA Tour’s load management to address the fact most players can take weeks or consecutive weeks off, or play only at course that suits their game.

I’m awaiting MLB’s system for regulating star catchers who rarely catch consecutive games, never a doubleheader as rare as they are these days. Or, how about a few more Shohei Ohtani’s to play a position and pitch at least a game a week?

How about 11 NFL football players per team who only play on one side of the ball? Pansies!

It seems to me, only the NBA players are criticized for sitting out now and then after having the living daylights beaten out of them by strong defensive players, then traveling for a game the next night or the night after.

Embed from Getty Images

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: Hope is an amazing and powerful human element. It is one of the two most powerful and lasting human conditions – hope and love. … There are thousands of “love songs” but fewer about “hope.”

“Don’t Stop Believing,” by Journey comes to mind. As does, “Land of Hope and Dreams,” by Bruce Springsteen. “I Will Survive” was a song empowering women in the late 1970s and Gloria Gaynor nailed it.

This week, as the 8,040th day passed from September 11, 2001 to September 11, 2023, we mouned once again. That’s 22 years of mourning, of time passing by from the day terror hit New York City, Wash DC, and the sticks of Pennsylvania with the attacks that resonating around the world.

Each year, we learn about another story, another family, another Ground Zero responder falling to cancer from that steaming pit of terror in downtown Manhattan. Each year, the surviving family members pay tribute to their loved ones, telling stories of their lives without their hero. It’s hard and it gets harder every year as some of the newborns or yet-to-be-borns turn 21 or 22 years of age. It’s gut-wrenching.

Every year since moving to Boston and learning of “the man in the red bandana,” known to all as Welles Crowther, a Nyack, NY bred lacrosse player who attended Boston College and accepted a job at Sandler O’Neill + Partners, L.P., which was a full-service investment banking firm and broker specializing in the financial services sector. Crowther always wanted to work on Wall Street, said his mother, Allison, to Tom Rinaldi of ESPN. But, Welles confided in his late father, Jefferson, that he’d go crazy looking at a computer screen for the rest of his life, noting his true calling was as a firefighter, a vocation or a calling he wanted to pursue in the City of New York. He’d already been training as a junior fire fighter in his hometown of Nyack, just north of the city in Rockland County.

Most know Welles’ story. If you don’t, please visit HERE.

In viewing and re-viewing the various features and September 11, 2001 accounts, I learned this year of the fact a few of the injured workers from offices high in the World Trade Center were sitting on the floor, as low as possible, avoiding smoke and intense heat from flames all around them.

They had given up hope. Some chose to jump, as told by my Holy Trinity HS classmate, Tom Junod in Esquire.

How could you ever blame them as they were experiencing unimaginable horror and were also physically injured, some in wheel chairs and unable to walk. They’d given up hope until they encountered Welles Crowther – who spoke to them in calm, confident and definitive terms.

At least a dozen people were motivated enough to follow Crowther to the ONLY open staircase and the only path to a life-saving descent to the lower floors where fire fighters met them and escorted most to safety.

I thought about it again today, as the Boston College football Eagles took to their Chestnut Hill field to play No. 3 ranked Florida State, an expected, one-sided outcome of an Atlantic Coast Conference match-up that was tagged by BC as “The Red Bandana Game.”

On September 14, 2014, this columnist was fortunate enough to experience the inaugural “Red Bandana” game, a first for Alumni Stadium at BC. The opponent? The No. 9th ranked PAC-12 powerhouse, USC. The score? Boston College 37, USC 31. The contest was among the most exciting sporting events I’ve ever witnessed in person. How could it not be?

I remember, being new to Newton/Chestnut Hill back at that time, and watching this Boston College video. It sent shivers up my spine. Please notice the written script, rather than spoken words. I would place this on my MUST WATCH list.

Saturday marked the 2023 version of “The Red Bandana Game” and the BC Eagles came out fighting, taking a 7-0 first quarter lead and trailed by only seven, 17-10, at the half. Hope dwindled at the 11:20 mark of the third quarter with No. 3 Florida State leading 31-10.

That’s just not the way it goes at Boston College on “Red Bandana Game” day. Look up and 31-10 became 31-16, then 31-22 and 31-29 by the 5:19 mark of the fourth quarter.

“This is winnable,” wrote a friend of BC whose daughter graduated two or three years ago.

It was not.

Boston College fell short, but they did what Welles Crowther did for at least a dozen people. They had hope, showed hope. Hope was on display today. Certainly nowhere near the length Crowther was to endure, as it says in John:15 – “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his fellow man” which was later edited to say “friends” instead of fellow ma. That is a passage not lost by the late Jefferson Crowther’s telling of his son’s story.

It wasn’t lost on September 11, 2023.

BACK BY POPULAR DEMAND —> TIDBITS: The ever-helpful D1-Ticker noted former North Carolina Supreme Court Justice Robert Orr argued the NCAA’s current transfer restrictions violate antitrust law, writing: “After all, it’s the collective power of the NCAA and those 1200 institutions who have imposed punitive limitations on these student-athletes by limiting their ability to transfer. Of course, these limitations apply to absolutely no one else who walks the campus halls or treads on the sports fields of the universities. Administrators, coaches, professors, other students, literally everybody, can jump to a new school with no punitive limitation – except students wanting to play college sports governed by the NCAA. As much as athletes transferring may irritate the schools and fans, there is a fundamental right to do so without any sort of punishment or limitation.” Orr has a point, wouldn’t you say? …

BOSTON BRUINS @ 100: The Boston Bruins unveiled three commemorative Centennial jerseys to be worn during the club’s 100th year, to be celebrated this season of 2023-24. The new jerseys – which were unveiled live during the Centennial Takeoff fashion show event at Logan Airport’s JetBlue hangar – include a new primary home and away look, as well as a vintage alternate expected to be worn for select Original Six® matchups during the coming season.

Developed in conjunction with adidas and the National Hockey League, the Bruins’ Centennial uniform collection pays homage to the club’s 100-year history with both unique and nostalgic highlights. The home and away jerseys carry elements of recent black-and-gold sweaters, but with a festive twist, featuring sparkling “Centennial gold” in place of the traditional Bruins gold. Meanwhile, the alternate jersey, which features brown and gold, is inspired by vintage sweater designs from the club’s origins. All three styles will include a commemorative Centennial patch worn on the right shoulder to mark the historic milestone.

“For reaching such a monumental milestone – our 100th year – we really wanted to do something special with the sweater,” said Bruins President Cam Neely, in a club news release. “(We’re introducing) three bespoke jerseys, each featuring an original crest design as well as unique elements meant to honor a century of Bruins hockey.”

A spin-off of the recent black and white home and away jerseys worn by the Bruins, the Centennial primary uniforms feature new crests, coloring and striping. For the first time since the early 1990s, the club’s primary uniforms are adorned with complementary team crests – a gold-trimmed Spoked-B on the home uniform and a black-trimmed Spoked-B on the road uniform.

Whooo!

NLL DRAFT: One of the great, un-sung events of the sporting calendar, the National Lacrosse League Draft took place this weekend, near Hamilton, Ontario (Canada).

The top lacrosse prospects from North America took the next step in their careers today as the National Lacrosse League conducted its annual Entry Draft, this year held at the Toronto Rock Athletic Centre (TRAC).

Hearing their names called first were Dyson Williams (Oshawa, Ontario) by the Albany FireWolves, Adam Poitras (Whitby, Ontario) by the Las Vegas Desert Dogs and Callum Jones (Burlington, Ontario) by the New York Riptide.

The rest of the first round of the 2023 NLL Draft:

(4) Vancouver (from Las Vegas), Payton Cormier (Oakville, Ontario)

(5) Panther City (from Saskatchewan), Ryan Sheridan (Victoria, B.C.)

(6) Georgia, Toron Eccleston (Calgary, Alberta)

(7) Vancouver (from Philadelphia), Brock Haley (Brooklin, Ontario)

(8) Georgia (from Panther City), Jacob Hickey (Toronto)

(9) Vancouver (from Rochester via Las Vegas), Brayden Laity (Maple Ridge, B.C.)

(10) New York (from Halifax), Jake Stevens (Puslinch, Ontario)

(11) Calgary, Bennett Smith (Edmonton, Alberta)

(12) Saskatchewan (from Toronto), Levi Anderson (Calgary, Alberta)

(13) San Diego, Matthew Wright (Oakville, Ontario)

(14) Albany (from Colorado), Nicholas Volkov (Milton, Ontario)

(15) Rochester (from Buffalo), Graydon Hogg (Oshawa, Ontario)

(16) *Rochester (from Calgary), Ben MacDonnell (Oshawa, Ontario)

(17) *Albany, Zachary Young (Oshawa, Ontario)

(18) *Vancouver (from Saskatchewan via San Diego and Philadelphia), Connor O’Toole (Brampton, Ontario)

(19) *Georgia (compensatory selection), Kaleb Benedict (Onondaga, Ontario)

“We recognize the importance of this day to the players selected in the NLL Entry Draft,” said NLL Commissioner Brett Frood. “For our franchises, it is a chance to build and reinforce their rosters, and for fans it’s a peek at the next generation of NLL stars.”

If you haven’t noticed, take a look at the hometowns, cities, provinces and native country of ALL of the players.

BRUNI: Speaking as a former NBA spokesperson, we recently learned of the death of one of our own, Ms. Brunilda B. Gill-Nelson, known to many of us as the beloved, “Bruni Gill.” Ms. Nelson passed away September 4, 2023, most likely from complications from a stroke suffered in 2021. These notices are coming far too often. Friends and family will gather on September 30, 2023 and the family requested, “that everyone please come in color as the family will be dressed in blue. The celebration of life will begin at 10am (ET) and a memorial service starts a 11am at Elmwood United Presbyterian Church, 35 Elmwood Avenue, in East Orange, NJ 07018. … If you didn’t know Bruni, you never entered the NBA office at 645 Fifth Avenue. Hired as a receptionist, Bruni was a beacon for everyone who entered the office. Whether an employee – she knew every single employee’s name and what they did for a living – or a league sponsor, or vendor, or Olympic Tower worker, or player or team GM, or team/franchise owner – Bruni greeted you with a positive vibe, a sincere hello, accompanied by a smile that only Earvin “Magic” Johnson could match. Bruni was later promoted to the NBA Events Department where she performed miracles of event management with her colleagues, proven time-after-time-after-time again. No matter what the issue, Bruni was there and ready to solve it or help solve it. … Without a doubt, she is a Top 5 hire in NBA history – any office, any department, or at any team. There is no one who would dispute that fact. God Bless Bruni, Rest-in-Peace-and-Love with an entire organization and league’s support and condolences to the family. (Note: If you’d like further information or to contribute to the fund to support the memorial service, visit: HERE).

PARTING WORDS & MUSIC: Sometimes I wonder. When someone with the lifetime credentials of a Bruni Gill heads to the Pearly Gates, just what does St. Peter think and do?

A song by Elton John contemplates that situation. It hails from his glorious “Tumbleweed Connection,” and was written about a soldier of war passing to the other side.

This one is dedicated to our Bruni with the thought that if St. Peter needs a new receptionist, I’ve got just the beautiful soul to help out.

Here are buds Rich Pagano (Drums and Vocals), Jeff Kazee (Keyboard) and John Conte (Bass) doing their interpretation of the great “Early Elton” epic:

TL’s Sunday Sports Notebook | Sept 10

September 10, 2023 by Terry Lyons

By TERRY LYONS

BOSTON – In 1975, cable television was not available in our town, but was available one town to the north as CableVision and other wanna-be providers fought over territorial rights for pseudo-monopolies in a lucrative business to wire-up the five boroughs of New York City and all of Long Island.

On September 1 of this year, Benjamin Mullin, writing in The New York Times, shared his views from a shareholder’s meeting of Charter Communications. Mullin informed his readers: “One of the biggest cable companies in the United States has a message for media companies, its major partners in a decades-old business: The traditional cable-TV model is broken, and it needs to be fixed or abandoned. Cable TV has become too expensive for consumers and providers, Charter Communications said in an 11-page presentation to investors on Friday, adding that cord-cutters and rising fees are contributing to a “vicious video cycle.”

No shit, Sherlock.

A group of 14-and-15-year olds could’ve predicted that back in 1975.

A look-back into CableVision’s past beckons back to the 1960s when Charles Dolan, father of Madison Square Garden Center, and the New York Knicks and New York Rangers franchise owner, James Dolan, created Sterling Manhattan Cable for Manhattan Island tv viewers and launched Home Box Office as the first of many cable-only content purveyors.

Knicks and Rangers games quickly disappeared from “over-the-air” WOR-TV 9 and fans were quick to find good friends with cable. Just ask former New York Islanders forward – J.P. Parise – who, on April 11, 1975, scored the series-winning goal to eliminate the favored New York Rangers and begin a magical run for the Islanders in the ‘75 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs – all to be seen on Cable TV.

CableVision became Cablevision and it was sold, along with HBO, to Time-Life Inc. A few mergers and acquisitions later, Warner Communications got into the act and Time-Warner Cable accepted monthly checks from most of us Manhattanites. For the most part, Cablevision operated in New York and Boston until it purchased Cable TV systems in Colorado, Montana, Utah and Wyoming to enter the fray as Optimum West. The three year venture from 2010 to 2013 upped the ante on Optimum from $1.37 billion to $1.63 billion. The new system’s owners?

You guessed it – Charter Communications.

Looking back at Mullins and the paper of record – The New York Times informed readers: “Charter and the Walt Disney Company, owner of popular cable channels including ESPN and FX, which will not be available to Charter’s nearly 15 million pay-TV subscribers until both sides agree on how much Charter will pay Disney to carry its channels. Subscribers to Charter’s Spectrum TV service will be without access to the U.S. Open tennis tournament and college football games during (the Labor Day) holiday weekend.

“These so-called carriage fights are commonplace in the media industry, with channels going dark for days or weeks on cable systems while the two sides — cable providers and content creators — haggle over how much the channels are worth and how to bundle them. But Charter’s suggestion that parts of its own business model are in disrepair adds a new wrinkle to the crisis facing the cable-TV business.

“The fight comes at a time of declining subscriptions: More than five million Americans end their cable-TV subscriptions annually, according to research from SVB Moffett-Nathanson.

“Almost every traditional media company is trying to hold on to its cash-rich cable partnerships while building streaming businesses that will eventually replace those alliances. But investors in traditional media companies have also grown impatient with attempts to build new streaming businesses, saying they are not as profitable as cable TV used to be.”

Again – the NYT with the MONSTER revelations!

Mullin continued: “The pressure is forcing traditional media companies to wring cash from their businesses in other ways, including teaming up with competitors to bundle their streaming services.

“Adding to the challenges, tech companies like Apple and Amazon are willing to pay top dollar to acquire live sports rights, further driving up programming costs. Cable companies, for their part, have weaned themselves off depending wholly on traditional TV revenue, by offering services like wireless internet.”

Round and round it goes, and where it will stop? Nobody knows.

CableVision to Cablevision to Rainbow – add some adult programming, ahem. Then HBO, HBO West, and then SportsChannel to begin the trend of Regional Sports Networks the nation around.

In 2017, Cablevision went for a whopping $17.7 billion (including debt) to European telecom conglomerate Altice.

During the many transitions, there were carriage disputes du jour. From WABC-TV (NY) to the Food Network to FOX to the MSG Network (then owned by Gulf & Western) to YES Network to the NFL Network and Tennis Channel – all had their greedy fights to squeeze cash from every subscriber, one household at a time. Over decades, the services bundled programming to force subscribers to pony up one set for a multitude of sports even though they might only want Tennis or NBA TV.

The Cable TV companies had you by the billboards with their take it or leave it programming offers – never served a la carte.

Then came the cord-cutters!

YouTube, Sling Box, Hulu, FuboTV, and DIRECTV satellite dishes. They multiplied and content providers shifted strategies to look for the broadest of broadcasting opportunities. Sporting leagues, with the NBA taking the lead, embraced the new generational viewing habits – away from traditional TV, traditional cable and on to short highlights fit for mobile consumption. And, along came TikTok riding a wave of new programmers from Twitter (X), Tencent, Facebook, Amazon, Apple and every other content provider on the face of the earth – all able to go global with the flip of a switch.

Where does it leave us?

Nowhere Land.

Instead of studying the lay of the land, researching and grasping their future, television programmers, sports league properties, big-time communications conglomerates – shopping broadband – and even hardware providers – see Samsung TV – are all GUESSING what comes next, never KNOWINGwhat’s next.

The sports properties simply cash-in via the highest bidders and are rock-solid as the only real DVR-proof programming with live sports.

Marketers are utilizing newcomers, such as Samsung TV, to launch 24/7 FAST Channels like the deluge of infomercials being aired by DRAFT Kingsthis week, all in an effort to acquire sports gamblers.

Even Conan O’Brien found a new home.

In 1992, Bruce Springsteen performed his rock song, “57 Channels )and Nothin’ On),” but the truth is, the Boss is somewhere around 2,000 channels off in his pronouncement, but correct in his summation.

Everyday, it gets worse for the consumer, as it becomes more lucrative for the greedy cable and telecommunications companies – all with no resolution and no end in sight.

For those of us going month-to-month and pay check to pay check, the mounting expenses from a monthly cable-broadband-phone bundles are being supplemented by added offerings, like Netflix, Peacock TV (with its lure of Premiership soccer and PGA Tour event coverage amongst many other sports and original programming). Add ESPN+ or Paramount+, MAX(with original programming and motion pictures garnered from HBO) and a few others – you’re looking at a $200-a-month cable bill.

That’s a lotta boxes of pasta.

Today, they’ve got me at 1:00pm (ET) as I scream, “Give me my NFL RedZone or give me death!” And, the NFL Sunday Ticket is available to one and all on YouTube TV.

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: It’s only fitting to kick-off this first weekend of the NFL regular season with a column-full of football notes, lists, and even some predictions.

THE GUYS YOU WISH YOUR DRAFTED IN YOUR FANTASY LEAGUES: Otherwise known as the best of the best at each position for 2023:

QBs:

Patrick Mahomes
Jalen Hurts
Josh Allen
Joe Burrow
Lamar Jackson

RBs

Christian McCaffrey
Austin Ekeler
Saquon Barkley
Derrick Henry
Bijon Robinson

WRs

Justin Jefferson
Tyreek Hill
Ja’Marr Chase
Stefon Diggs
Garrett Williams
- Cooper Kupp – injured

TEs

Travis Kelce (injury or not)
Mark Andrews
George Kittle
Tyler Higbee
Darren Waller

NOTE: Although they decide almost each and every game, for sake of this column, screw the Kickers and Team Defense/Speical Teams listings.

TL’s Sunday Sports Notebook | NCAA College Football in NYC & The Hub

September 3, 2023 by Digital Sports Desk

By TERRY LYONS

CHESTNUT HILL – If this column were to be written from hometown New York some 15 years ago, the opening of the College Football season would NOT have registered as a major sports weekend. New York City is not a college sports town. Yes, there are plenty of taverns that welcome college football fans to congregate for their school’s games – they call it LSU HQ or ACC Football Hub and dozens of other bars that establish themselves as the place to be if you’re from Faber College and you’re looking for your game.

To the extent of anything you might call Division I NCAA College Football in New York is few and far between. Columbia University provides the IVY League experience while Fordham University plays in the sub-division (FCS) and is a partial member (just for football) in the Patriot League. (Otherwise, for most sports, Fordham toils in the A-10).

After that, you’re looking at trips to Staten Island (Wagner), Long Island (Stony Brook), or points much further away and mainly Upstate NY (Albany, Buffalo, Cornell, Marist (Poughkeepsie), Colgate (Hamilton, NY) or Syracuse.

Here in Boston, the city’s College football fans face much the same problem. Although Boston is home for some 35 colleges and universities and more than. 154,320 students descend upon Boston every August/September, Boston remain a pro sports town with a lot of colleges. If you look at Massachusetts as a whole (as in counting the likes of Holy Cross in Worcester, Wellesley, Springfield, UMass in Amherst), the State’s population grows by some 483,488 from college students studting in the Commonwealth.

Yes, that’s a half-million Red Sox fans created every year.

Boston College rates highest in the Boston area college football meter, playing a highly competitive schedule in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). This weekend, Alumni Stadium in Chesnut Hill played host (and LOST) to Northern Illinois University in a non-Conference game vs FBS club with a devastating loss as the Eagles opened 2023 with high hopes but a realistic viewpoint when looking at a schedule that includes: No. 8 Florida State, and ACC tough Miami, Virginia, Louisville, Virginia Tech and Syracuse, among others. With a rotating ACC schedule, the Eagles were spared match-ups vs the likes of Clemson, North Carolina, Duke, NC State and Wake Forest.

Geez: Even next week’s opponent – Holy Cross – is a challenger.

Believe it or not, very soon, BC might face SMU, Cal or Stanford in the 2024-25 season as ACC school presidents and chancellors voted to allow the westward expansion Friday. That’ll make the ACC register 18 schools while the Pac 12 was reduced to the Pac 2 (Oregon State and Washington State), rendering the Pac 12 Network useless.

Looking elsewhere back in Boston, you can see Harvard compete in the IVY, or the UMass Minutemen play as an independent FBS school. Holy Cross plays in the Patriot League while Tufts always fields a competitive Division III team over in Somerville where you can see Bates, Williams, Colby and Wesleyan (New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick is a proud alum).

Before Notre Dame defeated Navy over in Dublin, it was 32 weeks of the year without college football. This weekend, it’s open the floodgates.

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: USA Today sprang a list of the “Ten best colleges for sports fans” this week. The paper touted, “From game day thrills to championship victories: Experience college sports like never before,” although every year, it’s sort of the same, isn’t it? The list (with commentary by WWYI):

Connecticut – Guess they missed football?
Florida State – Once upon a Time?
Alabama – ‘Roll Tide
Florida – Bad start this week
Indiana – Fans, yes, BIG TEN football championships – Nada
LSU – Should be #1?
Wisconsin – Don’t the Sports get in the way of the Partying?
Penn State – Called on the account of White Out.
Michigan – Good enough for The Big Chill, Good Enough for the List
Notre Dame – Should be No. 2

USA BASKETBALL UPDATE: The USA Basketball 5×5 Men’s senior national team, competing in the 2023 FIBA World Cup in Manila, will play its second round match vs Lithuania today, Sunday September 3 at 8:40am (ET). For you Saturday night bulldog edition readers, that means “Get Up” tomorrow and for you Sunday morning readers, “Turn on the TV.”

In their most recent game, the USA was losing to Montenegro, 39-38, at halftime, trailing for the first time in this World Cup tournament. A much-improved second half secured the win, as Anthony Edwards scored a team-high 17 points – all in the second half. Edwards leads the U.S. A. in scoring, averaging 16.5 points per game. Improved team field goal shooting made the difference. The US shot 13-for-37 (.351) in the first half, but responded with a 17-for-36 (.472) performance in the final two quarters. The U.S. also shot 1-for-9 (.110) from “3” in the first half before going 4-for-10 (.400) in the second half.

The U.S. is seeking its sixth FIBA Men’s World Cup gold medal.

3×3: In addition to the senior men’s national team for 5×5, the 2023 USA 3×3 U18 national team finished atop Pool B at the 2023 FIBA 3×3 U18 World Cup on Friday. The U.S.A. joins seven other nations who will play for the gold medal on Sunday. The Americans went 2-0 in pool play after defeating Brazil and Germany on Thursday.

Notice basketball isn’t only distinguished by “men’s and women’s” anymore? Now-a-days, you need the 5×5 (five on five) or 3×3 (three on three) to be added for FIBA ball.

USA FOUNDATION: The USA Basketball Foundation made an important announcement this week as the second Torch Leadership in Sport Mentoring cohort will be staged. A fully funded program, Torch Leadership will run from this September to May 2024.

Torch Leadership provides opportunities for minority students to be mentored by USA Basketball executive staff with the goal of empowering the next generation of BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and People of Color) leaders in sport by introducing them to opportunities at USA Basketball and other sports-related entities.

“It is an honor to welcome our second Torch Leadership cohort to the USA Basketball family,” said Jennifer Lynne Williams, USA Basketball Foundation chief development officer. “The application process was extremely competitive with 130 students applying to be a part of this special program. The 120% increase in applications is a direct testament to the importance and value of Torch. I look forward to working with each student as they develop their leadership skills and learn more about the business of sport,” she added.

TIDBITS: Readers surely have heard the term, “Once in a Blue Moon.” That’s a true statement when it comes to this columnist receiving the No. 1 draft choice in the annual SWFL Fantasy Football League, known nationally as the best league with the best team captains and best rules which includes the game-changing, ultra-difficult requirement of TWO active quarterbacks and THREE wide receivers and/or tight ends. The challenge of the TWO QBs changes draft strategy, especially in the 1st and 2nd rounds, will make my No. 1 pick (this Tuesday night at 7pm ET) a choice between the quarterback trio of Kansas City’s Patrick Mahomes or Philly’s Jalen Hurts – with Buffalo’s Josh Allen receiving consideration. … NFL Insider Adam Schefter has my club, the LOVETRONS (in honor of the late Darryl Dawkins residence on earth as it is in heaven), selecting Mahomes who was a clear 30 points higher than the others and the top overall scorer in the SWFL for multiple years. … Next week, I’ll list the club and that’s about all you’re gonna read about Fantasy Football, unless something is incredibly newsworthy.

A RARE – MUST WATCH – TV SPOT: The PepsiCo/Frito–Lay ad, certainly worthy of clearing the high bar as a Super Bowl-level commercial is seeing airtime this week as the NFL opens its 2023 regular season come Thursday night when Detroit travels to Kansas City for an 8:20pm (ET) tilt on NBC.

The theme of “retirement” is a great idea but “coming out of retirement” might not be so great idea for many players, including the inclusion of the show-stopper at the finish. Pepsi broke the bank by pulling some of the greatest recent stars together for the shoot (or series of shoots). No spoilers here in the intro. It’s a MUST WATCH!

DigitalSportsDesk.com

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