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      Michigan punishes itself for football infractions

      May 25, 2010 /

      The University of Michigan has decided to punish itself following an investigation into the football program revealed that multiple violations had occurred, including problems relating to length of practice time and activities of graduate assistants.

      Here’s a list of Michigan’s self-imposed penalties, via ESPN.com:

      Penalties self-imposed by the Michigan football program Tuesday:

      • Cut back practice and training time by 130 hours over the next two years, starting this summer.

      • Cut number of assistants from five to three and banned them from practices, games or coaching meetings for the rest of 2010.

      • Recommendation for two years of probation. The school said it should not be tagged as a repeat offender despite a 2003 scandal in the basketball program.

      • Letters of reprimand issued to seven people — including head coach Rich Rodriguez.

      • Acknowledged for first time that staffer Alex Herron was fired after his claim of not being present during some activities was discredited by players.

      This is all well and good, but as Michigan AD David Brandon noted, the NCAA will ultimately determine what the appropriate punishment is. And it make take months before the NCAA comes to a conclusion about what kind of penalties Michigan should suffer.

      That said, it’s noble of the program to take action instead of waiting to hear its fate. In essence, its taking responsibility for what happened and is obviously taking the matter very serious. It’s a shame that such a storied program would have to punish itself because of something like this, but it’s nice to see a University be proactive for once.

      Nevertheless, this is just another reminder of the embarrassment that Rich Rodriguez has brought to Ann Arbor. Nothing short of a bowl win this year will save his job.


      Photo from fOTOGLIF

      College Football, External Sports

      The Knicks’ plan to woo LeBron

      May 25, 2010 /

      Chad Ford wrote an interesting article with a look at the Knicks’ plan for this summer. An Insider subscription is required, so I’ll refrain from excerpting, but here’s how the plan goes…

      The first angle is that LeBron (or Dwyane Wade) will get to play alongside another superstar. According to Ford’s sources, Plan A is LeBron and Chris Bosh, Plan B is Wade and Bosh and Plan C is LeBron and Wade. The Knicks see Bosh as an ideal fit along either wing player due to his ability to stretch the floor with his jumper. If they can’t get Bosh? Look for the Knicks to make a run at a certain seven-foot German who plans to opt out of his contract in Dallas.

      The next pitch is that the Knicks’ supporting cast is not as bad as it seems. Danilo Gallinari, Wilson Chandler, Bill Walker and Toney Douglas can all shoot, and the Knicks think that once a couple of big names are on board, there will be a few solid vets (like Grant Hill?) who will be willing to play on the cheap in order to have a chance at a ring.

      Thirdly, the Knicks will use Mike D’Antoni, who is familiar with LeBron, Bosh and Wade from his time as Team USA assistant, as their leading pitchman. They think that once he starts diagramming plays, he’ll convince these stars that he can make best use of their respective talents.

      Lastly, the Knicks will talk about what a championship would mean to the city of New York. No one can usurp Michael Jordan in Chicago, and Miami’s fans aren’t die-hard like Knicks fans. If you win a title, you will own the world’s greatest city. That’s a pretty strong pitch.

      Needless to say, it’s going to be a pretty interesting summer. One thing that might make the dominoes fall a little faster is the fact that most of the top free agents — LeBron, Wade, Bosh, Nowitzki, Joe Johnson, Rudy Gay, etc. — are sitting at home right now watching the playoffs. They have time to consider their options, recruit each other, talk to teams through back channels and form some sort of plan for July 1. The #1 domino is LeBron, and he’s going to have plenty of time to figure out where he’s headed. Once he decides, the pieces may fall into place pretty quickly.


      Photo from fOTOGLIF

      External Sports, Fantasy Basketball, NBA, News, Rumors & Gossip

      Milton Bradley admits to thoughts about suicide

      May 25, 2010 /

      Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times writes that troubled Mariners’ outfielder Milton Bradley has pondered suicide following years of stress and frustration stemming from baseball.

      The answer was simple. For the last two years, since he first came back from a torn ACL in his knee, suffered late in the 2007 season when he fell while arguing with an umpire, Bradley has been allowing “unpleasant thoughts” into his head. Thoughts about what? Well, sometimes suicide.

      “When you start feeling that the only way you can end it is to kill yourself, that’s not a healthy feeling,” Bradley said of the constant negativity and anxiety that surrounded him. “So, I needed to get away, to step back for a bit. There are too many people I care about in this world to let things go down that road.”

      Now, obviously that’s an attention-getter right there. It’s what folks will be talking about in the street tomorrow. But it’s only part of what Bradley wanted to convey. This doesn’t mean he was about to end his life. What it does mean is that Bradley, as a man who does an awful lot of thinking and put quite a bit of thought into the answers he gave me this morning, began pondering the merits of suicide. He told his wife that he could understand why people chose to end their lives. Not that he was about to rush out and do it himself. But that he could sympathize with their feelings. And that’s not a good thing. To be so unhappy that suicide begins to look like a reasonable alternative.

      Sometimes we all get caught up in the actions of an athlete and forget that they’re all human. I’m guilty of this too; I see a headline and think to myself, “Well, that’s just Milton Bradley – he’s crazy.” But it takes an article like this to really put things into perspective.

      Athletes are paid an enormous amount of money to play a game. But with that money comes stress and the pressure to succeed on a consistent basis. In today’s world, the media has access to everything so these athletes’ private lives are often on full display. That only leads to more pressure and stress, and as a human being I only hope that these athletes can deal with these circumstances.

      Here’s hoping Bradley gets the serious help he needs.


      Photo from fOTOGLIF

      External Sports, MLB

      The transformation of J.J. Redick

      May 25, 2010 /

      One bright spot for the Magic in this Boston series has been the play of reserve guard J.J. Redick. In four games, he has averaged 11.5 points and has hit 7-of-13 shots from long range.

      So how did the former first round pick go from appearing in just 76 games in his first two seasons to playing crucial minutes in an Eastern Conference Final?

      I can’t point to just one thing, though he wouldn’t be getting any minutes if he wasn’t playing good defense. He has done a nice job of chasing Ray Allen around screens, which is something that the guy starting ahead of him — Vince Carter — doesn’t do very well. Redick is a nice matchup for Allen because it takes a while for Ray Ray to put the ball on the floor, and that allows Redick, who is not fleet of foot, to cut off the drive.

      He’s also making his shots, which is another area of the game where Carter is really struggling. Sure, Carter has the athleticism to penetrate, but what’s the point of having him on the court if he’s only making 37% of his shots and 18% from long range? If you’re Stan Van Gundy, wouldn’t you rather have Redick out there? At least he’ll knock down some shots when given the opportunity.

      It has been an interesting road for the former college player of the year. He certainly had his detractors coming into the league, but when you can shoot like he can, there’s a place for you in the NBA, assuming you can figure out how to defend. And that’s exactly what Redick has done.


      Photo from fOTOGLIF

      External Sports, Fantasy Basketball, NBA

      Wizards already trying to move Arenas?

      May 25, 2010 /

      Former Washington Times reporter John Mitchell thinks so…

      The Washington Wizards are going to use their number one draft pick to select John Wall, the freshman point guard out of the University of Kentucky. They see Wall as the cornerstone of the franchise for at least “the next decade”, which is why they are going to do everything in their power to prevent the player from ever sharing a locker room with controversial guard Gilbert Arenas, according to two league sources with knowledge of the team’s future plans.

      According to one source with intimate knowledge of the team’s plans, the Wizards front office, headed up by President Ernie Grunfeld, doesn’t want Arenas – released earlier this month from a Washington DC halfway house after serving 30 days for a felony gun conviction – anywhere near Wall, whom the team has already decided it will select with the top pick in the June draft. After Arenas was convicted Grunfeld traded away four starters.

      One source tagged Arenas as “the reason why a core of players that reached the playoffs” on multiple occasions had to be broken up, “and it was entirely due to what he did. He poisoned the team. He is a cancer.”

      The Wizards’ options include trying to trade Arenas, who has four years and more than $80 million in salary remaining on his contract. But that is not the only option. According to a source the team will “definitely consider buying out” Arenas’ contract. This flies in the face of the public position the Wizards have taken with Arenas.

      Trading Arenas before next season is not going to be easy. We’re talking about a 28-year-old, shoot-first point guard with knee problems, a contract that still has four years and $80 million remaining, and a propensity to bring loaded firearms into work. Needless to say, in this economy, it’s going to be very tough to move him.

      How much would it take to buy him out? And if the Wizards have to resort to that, why are they keeping the man that signed him to this ridiculous contract, general manager Ernie Grunfeld, on board? Instead of taking a cautious approach with Arenas, who was coming off of knee surgery two seasons ago, Grunfeld panicked swung for the fences and offered him a contract that no other team would even dream of.

      One team that could potentially use Arenas’s services are the Knicks. Once they sign their two “big-name” free agents — whether it’s LeBron James and Chris Bosh or Rudy Gay and David Lee — they could trade Eddy Curry’s expiring contract for Arenas. Once the Knicks have their two stars locked up, they’re probably not going to care how far over the cap they go. Owner James Dolan will do what it takes to build a winner, and if Arenas looks like he’s still All-Star caliber, they may pull the trigger.

      (Note to Knicks fans: I don’t think acquiring Arenas is a good idea.)

      But that raises the question — how long will the Wizards wait? Arenas missed the last few months of last season and teams will want to see how he plays before taking on his monstrous contract and adding his quirky personality to their locker room. How does this happen if the Wizards are intent on keeping Arenas and Wall apart?


      Photo from fOTOGLIF

      External Sports, Fantasy Basketball, NBA, NBA Draft, News, Rumors & Gossip

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