Tracy McGrady of the Nueva York Knicks distracts Jason Richardson of Phoenix Los Suns with his signature maraca trick during an NBA Noche Latina game last week (katchop)
And about the only thing uglier than the Bulls‘ performance on a national stage was the sombrero and pancho TNT broadcaster Charles Barkley briefly wore courtside.
“Los Bulls are muy terrible,” Kenny Smith cracked during the TNT broadcast.
You don’t need a translator to understand the Heat’s 103-74 blowout victory makes the Bulls’ playoff aspirations muy difficult.
Mike Tomlin of the Pittsburgh Steelers gets pinched by a crab during an NFL game in Baltimore against the Ravens in 2009 (katchop)
Steelers spokesman Dave Lockett told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette the team just learned about the allegation on Monday and was looking to gather more information.
The suit also alleged that Holmes and members of the Orlando police department pressured Mills not to press charges because of his standing as an NFL player. Holmes, the MVP of Super Bowl XLIII, offered money to Mills, the suit said.
The incident allegedly took place on March 7, two days after Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger was accused of sexual assault in Georgia.
Injured Boston Bruins center Marc Savard says the hit that Matt Cooke of the Pittsburgh Penguins gave him was dirty.
Matt Cooke of the Pittsburgh Penguins has a history of questionable hits, such as this ugly incident in which Cooke injured a Dallas Stars Ice Girl with an elbow to the head, just so he could be the one to collect the hats for Sidney Crosby after a hat trick (katchop)
To me, it was a shoulder and I watched the (Mike) Richards on (David) Booth hit,” Savard said before the Bruins faced the Calgary Flames. “I think that was a shoulder. … I think mine was more of an elbow, so I think there was an attempt to injure there.”
The hit was not penalized on the ice or upon review by the league. NHL vice president Colin Campbell decided Cooke used his shoulder, not his elbow.
“I was, obviously, very unhappy with what happened and I think it could have been avoided very easily,” Savard said.
290 pound JaMarcus Russell of the Oakland Raiders shows up at the first day of off-season workouts (katchop)
Oakland Raiders quarterback JaMarcus Russell reportedly tipped the scales at 290 pounds when he reported for offseason workouts, according to ESPN.
This is Jared Lorenzen territory.
Russell weighed 271 pounds, according to one report, but that may have been about 19 pounds shy of his true girth.
The Oakland Raiders have been linked to Donovan McNabb in trade rumors. Russell’s lack of production and poor conditioning are two major reasons behind that interest.
Brook Lopez, Devin Harris and the rest of the NJ Nets unsuccessfully attempt to stop a Houston Rockets Power Dancer earlier this year, after the Nets felt her halftime routine ran too long (katchop)
The New Jersey Nets eliminated any chance of finishing with the worst record in NBA history, beating the Detroit Pistons 115-107 on Friday night.
Brook Lopez had a career-high 37 points and Yi Jianlian had a career-best 31 to lead the Nets to their ninth win. For the first time this season, the Nets have won two consecutive games.
Even if New Jersey (9-63) loses its final 10 games, it can do no worse than tie the league mark for the worst record (9-72), set by the Philadelphia 76ers in 1972-73. Hey, and that’s not the worst.
Donovan McNabb of the Philadelphia Eagles seems likely to be traded, and multiple teams are alleged to have interest in the QB.
The Philadelphia Eagles are about to trade Donovan McNabb to the Oakland Raiders. Or the Buffalo Bills. Or the St Louis Rams. (katchop)
A person familiar with trade discussions involving McNabb told the Associated Press the Philadelphia Eagles will only consider a deal for the six-time Pro Bowl quarterback if it includes a pick among the top 42 in next month’s NFL draft.
The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity Thursday because the team doesn’t comment on potential trades.
After months of saying McNabb would return for another year, Eagles coach Andy Reid acknowledged Wednesday he was listening to offers for McNabb, Kevin Kolb and Michael Vick.
Oakland, Buffalo and St. Louis are considered to be most interested in McNabb. Each team has two picks in the top 42.
Several members of the Washington Capitals were interviewed by authorities after their chiropractor was arrested for receiving shipments of steroids (katchop)
Douglas O. Nagel, 50, of Reston, was arrested Tuesday morning in Virginia and charged by Florida authorities with seven counts of soliciting to deliver a controlled substance, specifically steroids.
The Polk County (Fla.) Sheriff’s Office alleges that Nagel received regular shipments of steroids, including testosterone and nandrolone, from Richard Andrew Thomas of Lakeland, Fla. Thomas has since pleaded guilty in federal court to possessing steroids with intent to sell. He awaits sentencing.
According to an affidavit, Thomas told police that Nagel boasted about supplying steroids to members of the Capitals and Major League Baseball’s Washington Nationals.
Amar'e Stoudemire of the Phoenix Suns turned into the Hulk moments before he dunked on Anthony Tolliver of the Golden State Warriors (katchop)
Let’s clear the air on this. I concur with Aldridge: “Holy s—.” Plenty comes into play with this dunk to get this reaction from the masses, and not only because of the devastating finish and the PHX pop at the end. No, much of the awe comes from the notion everyone except for poor Anthony Tolliver knows it’s coming. This was no sucker punch. This was a telegraphed roundhouse that connects flush on the jaw and knocks everyone dead.
Jimmie Johnson won his 1st race at Bristol Motor Speedway, and his 50th overall.
Jimmie Johnson used a recalled Toyota Prius to win for the 1st time at Bristol Motor Speedway (katchop)
Man, we have worked so hard for this,” Johnson said in Victory Lane. “I thought we were in trouble there, but those four tires were everything, and I was in the outside lane [for the restart], which was helpful. About time, man. I’m so proud of this team. I am so proud of us setting a mark and going at it and accomplishing what we wanted to.
“We’ve been off here over the years. We focused on what we needed to do and got it done [Sunday].”
Johnson also fired a shot across the bow of fellow competitors who might think the No. 48 Chevrolet team is peaking early.
“Well, we have a lot of racing left — there is no doubt about it,” he said. “But when we’re winning at tracks we aren’t supposed to, the boys better look out — even that No. 2 car [Busch] that doesn’t want the No. 48 to win.”
Northern Iowa shocked the world by defeating Kansas in the NCAA Tournament.
Marcus Morris of Kansas was sad that his team lost in an upset to Northern Iowa, but he was devastated that it also meant that the hours he spent on his NCAA bracket sheet were now a waste (katchop)
The biggest upset in a tournament full of them was done. Northern Iowa had taken down mighty Kansas.
Playing with poise down the stretch and getting another big 3-pointer from Farokhmanesh, Northern Iowa pulled off one of the biggest NCAA upsets in years by knocking No. 1 overall seed Kansas from the bracket with a program-defining 69-67 win on Saturday.
“If anybody’s going to shoot that shot, I want it to be Ali,” UNI’s Jake Koch said.
This year’s NCAA tournament has been defined by its upsets. Eight double-digit seeds got through the first round. No. 10 Saint Mary’s beat Villanova on Saturday and No. 11 Washington shoved aside New Mexico.
Ron Washington, manager of the Texas Rangers, takes a break during the 7th inning stretch (katchop)
In recent days, it was revealed that Washington tested positive for cocaine last year. This, Washington said, was the only time he had used the drug. Later, Washington admitted that he had used amphetamines and marijuana during his playing days.
The cocaine episode, coming from a Major League manager, was a major lapse in judgment. But the revelation about amphetamine use by someone who played in the ’80s? It would have been bigger news if he had said that he had NOT used amphetamines. “Beaning up,” was a pervasive part of the baseball culture then, and anyone who says otherwise is defying the truth or was not there.
The NBA has been celebrating it’s Noche Latina event this month.
The NBA is celebrating it's Latin players and fans this month (katchop)
The NBA has one of the largest and fastest-growing Hispanic fan bases in U.S. professional sports, and we want to continue building their interest in the game through participation, programming and events,” said Saskia Sorrosa, Sr. Director of Marketing for the NBA. “This initiative celebrates the NBA’s unique and dynamic fan base with a focus on our Spanish-speaking communities.”
Noche Latina, first launched during the 2006-07 season, will feature celebratory uniforms developed in conjunction with La Agencia de Orci & Asociados, a U.S. Hispanic agency, to display the team name as spoken by the Latino population. Rather than translating the team names literally, market research concluded that Spanish-speakers in the U.S. refer to them differently. The Miami Heat, for example, is called “El Heat”; the San Antonio Spurs are “Los Spurs.” Noche Latina uniforms were carefully selected based on the uniforms that had the most affinity within the Hispanic population.
Ron Washington, manager of the Texas Rangers, often fantasizes about the 1st base foul line (katchop)
It is not surprising that the Rangers gave manager Ron Washingtona second chance after he tested positive for cocaine last year. This is the land of second chances, and the organization has no more shining example of what the best use of second opportunities can produce than in the case of Josh Hamilton.
But now that the story of Washington’s failed drug test is public, the question is how long the Rangers can afford to stand behind their man.
Brandon Dubinski of the New York Rangers attempts to regain control of his rocking horse and avoid a collision with Montreal Canadians' goalie Jaroslav Halak (katchop)
Their 3-1 Garden loss to the Montreal Canadiens pushes them three points back of Boston at the playoff cut line, following the Bruins’ victory Tuesday night in Raleigh.
And it all had their mild-mannered captain thoroughly steamed afterward and telling his team it had better “grow up” or go home.
“It’s immaturity,” Chris Drury told the Daily News, speaking of why his Rangers tend to lose ground almost as soon as they’ve gained it. “That’s what it’s been all year. Simple answer.”
The remedy? “Grow up fast or you’re gonna be watching a lot of playoff hockey in 12 or 13 games, or whatever the hell we have left.”
Some people think that Alex Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals is Satan (katchop)
With the league still reverberating from Matt Cooke’s completely unpunished cheap shot on Marc Savard, you now have a plainly illegal yet clearly less dastardly hockey crime dealt a game misconduct and two-game ban.
Another Cooke-like rat, Tampa’s Steve Downie, tried to put a figure-four leglock on Sidney Crosby on the same day Ovechkin hit Campbell, and walked away scot-free. In another game, Islander tough guy Matt Martin drilled Dion Phaneuf face-first into the ledge along the boards from behind with no puck in sight after he and his teammates had vowed to get even with Phaneuf for an incident earlier in the season. Martin’s punishment? A two-minute penalty.
But they got Ovechkin, a guy who stands up for himself and requires no goon for backup.
Robert De Niro is taking on a role as Green Bay Packer great Vince Lombardi.
Robert De Niro will play Green Bay Packer icon Vince Lombardi in a new film (katchop)
Robert De Niro is set to play Vince Lombardi in an upcoming movie.
ESPN announced Tuesday that the Academy Award-winning actor has agreed to play the Hall of Fame coach in the film it is developing with Andell Entertainment and the NFL.
“Lombardi” will chronicle the years in which he transformed the Green Bay Packers from the NFL’s worst team to league champions. It is tentatively scheduled to be released in 2012 during the weekend between the conference championship games and the Super Bowl.
NY Mets manager Jerry Manuel is employing new motivational techniques this season to get his players to fight through injuries (katchop)
So now that Jose Reyes is likely to be keeping Carlos Beltran company on the disabled list when the season opens, the result of his mysterious thyroid problem, you want to say the Mets are simply a cursed franchise these days.
Certainly it felt like that here at the club’s spring training complex yesterday as word spread that Reyes’ elevated thyroid hormone levels will sideline him for two to eight weeks, during which he can’t do anything strenuous that would raise his heart rate.
As one Mets person said, “This nightmare can’t be happening again.”
Because of the Manny Pacquiao - Joshua Clottey fight, Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has had to make several public appearances... despite not yet having undergone his annual off-season facial reconstruction (katchop)
Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has always been one of the boldest and most innovative risk takers in the NFL. His latest high-stakes gamble is the new Cowboys Stadium, a $1.2 billion palace in Arlington, Tex.
Arum and Jones, two of the shrewdest men in their professions, have teamed up to stage a 12-round welterweight match between Manny Pacquiao and Joshua Clottey at Cowboys Stadium on Saturday night.
Arum and Jones have underlying motives for holding this fight at Cowboys Stadium, which will be scaled down to 45,000 fans with the lowest price ticket being $20. Jones wants to showcase his stadium as a sports and entertainment mecca. Last month it was the site of the NBA All-Star game. Next year Cowboys Stadium will host the Super Bowl and, in 2012, it will be the site for the NCAA Final Four.
So yours truly is in a photoshop contest run by the always amusing Puck Daddy on Yahoo Sports. The premise was to alter a photo of Sidney Crosby celebrating his gold medal winning goal for Canada in Vancouver.
Chris Chelios became the second oldest player in NHL history when the Atlanta Thrashers recalled the 48 year old defenseman (katchop)
I don’t know,” Chelios said when asked why he keeps playing. “Our teams, Detroit especially the last 10 years, we had a lot of success. Not being able to crack that lineup, there were a lot of other teams I thought I could help. And then things have gone very well in [AHL] Chicago with the Wolves.
“I’m just lucky to have an opportunity and I want to make the best of it. Obviously the goal here is to make the playoffs and hopefully I can help them.”
Places not as good as Katchop that you still might go to anyway:
