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"Continuous effort -- not strength or intelligence -- is the key to unlocking our potential." ~ Liane Cardes, Author
Germany vs. Argentina: How they compare.
By MATTIAS KAREN (AP Sports Writer)
The best player in the world goes up against the ultimate team machine, on the world's biggest stage.
When Lionel Messi's Argentina takes on Germany in Sunday's World Cup final, it looks at first glance like a meeting between brilliant individual scoring talent and the tight discipline of a collective unit.
But this game will be about much more than that.
Argentina has shown that it can play just as tactically as the Germans, eking out narrow victories and doing whatever is needed to win. Germany, meanwhile, has put on two of the most explosive displays of the tournament - beating Portugal 4-0 in its opening game and then demolishing host Brazil 7-1 in the semifinals.Add in the rich history between these two teams - who faced each other in two straight World Cup finals in 1986 and 1990, winning one each - and it's anyone's guess who will come out on top at the Maracana Stadium.
Here is a look at how the two finalists compare:
GOALKEEPERS:
Manuel Neuer's reputation as one of the best goalkeepers in the world has only grown in Brazil, where he has been one of Germany's best players throughout the tournament, especially in the knockout rounds. Aside from being a first-class shot stopper, the Bayern Munich goalkeeper showed his versatility by repeatedly rushing out to help the defense in the second-round win over Algeria. He then made key saves to deny Karim Benzema an equalizer for France in the quarterfinals, and a number of impressive stops against Brazil.
Sergio Romero has answered most skeptics who questioned whether he was good enough to play for a top team in a World Cup. Romero was only a backup for his club Monaco this past season, but came through big in the penalty shootout against the Netherlands with two saves to send his team into the final. He has kept three straight clean sheets in the knockout rounds, but will face his greatest challenge yet against the clinical Germans.
Advantage: Germany
DEFENSE:
Germany's defense has improved vastly since coach Joachim Loew took captain Philip Lahm out of midfield and put him back in his favored position as right back after an erratic display against Algeria in the second round. Mats Hummels has been a steady anchor in central defense, and Germany had little trouble neutralizing the explosive attacks of both France and Brazil. Whether they can deal with Messi is another matter.
Argentina's defense was seen as its main weakness going into the World Cup, but the team has now gone 330 minutes without conceding a goal in the knockout rounds - including two extra time periods. The back four, which includes Manchester City duo Pablo Zabaleta and Martin Demichelis, made Dutch strikers Arjen Robben and Robin van Persie look plain ordinary.
Advantage: Germany
MIDFIELD:
This is Germany's biggest strength, a unit without weakness that plays together as a well-oiled machine. Bastian Schweinsteiger and Sami Khedira shore things up defensively while Toni Kroos and Mesut Ozil direct most of the attacks going forward. Germany's ruthless display against Brazil was orchestrated by the clinical efficiency of its midfield, and a similar display on Sunday might just be too much for Argentina to handle as well.
The Argentines, meanwhile, are hoping that Angel Di Maria will recover from a thigh injury to play in the final. Di Maria's pace and ability to take on defenders on the wing was sorely missed against the Netherlands, when his team struggled to find ways forward. Defensive midfielder Javier Mascherano was one of the best players on the pitch against the Netherlands and is the key to keeping Germany in check.
Advantage: Germany
ATTACK:
Germany has the highest-scoring player in World Cup history in Miroslav Klose. But Argentina has Messi, and two other top forwards to boot. While Messi hasn't scored in the three knockout games, his four goals in the group stage reminded everyone of why he's a four-time world player of the year. Even with Sergio Aguero and Gonzalo Higuain in the team, Messi has always been the key to Argentina's success - and never more so than in the biggest game of his career. For Argentina to have a chance, Messi will have to create goals - either for himself or for his teammates.
Germany aren't bad up front either: Klose netted his 16th career World Cup goal against Brazil, and his teammate Thomas Mueller already has 10 in just two tournaments.
Advantage: Argentina
World Cup winners to receive $35 million in prize money, what did the U.S. get?
By Joe Prince-Wright
With the 2014 World Cup tournament almost over, now is a good time to have a look around and see how much money teams have won for their performances during the tournament.
That’s right, Sepp Blatter has got his checkbook out. Happy days.
As set out by FIFA back in December 2013 the winners, either Germany or Argentina, will receive $35 million in prize money from soccer’s world governing body. The total amount of prize money rose by a whopping 37 percent to $576 million for the 2014 tournament from the $420 million handed out during South Africa 2010.
Even the runner up will bag $25 million, while Brazil and the Netherlands will battle it out in the third place match for a cool $22 million… the loser, and subsequent fourth place team, still get $20 million.
So, what about the USA? What did Jurgen Klinsmann’s men earn after their hard-fought journey to the round of 16?
$9 million.
Every team who got knocked out of the round of 16 made $9 million. As for those teams who made the quarterfinal stage, they each received $14 million. So, in theory, the U.S. were a Chris Wondolowski chance away from bagging an extra $5 million in prize money. Too soon?
$9 million isn’t bad though, right? Coupled with the $1.5 million FIFA gave all 32 nations for ‘preparation costs’ I’d say that the U.S. Soccer Federation certainly did okay out of qualifying for the 2014 World Cup. Plus, look at all the sponsorship deals the U.S. signed and everything else that comes with enhanced exposure after the record TV numbers.
However, here is where it gets interesting. The 16 nations who were knocked out at the group stages, how much do you think they got? The answer is $8 million.
So even if the U.S. felt like they made a monumental leap forward, prestige wise, in qualifying from the ‘group of death’ and making the knockout rounds, they only received $1 million more than Cameroon, Honduras or Australia who all finished bottom of their groups without a single point in the tournament.
Does that seem a little unfair? Perhaps. Regardless, if FIFA is dishing out prize money, it don’t see any teams complaining.
Anyway, here is the list in full as to how much money each team made from the 2014 World Cup. Do you think this is the fairest way of splitting up the humongous pot of money? Any other suggestions?
PRIZE MONEY WON AT 2014 WORLD CUP
1. TBD – $35 million
2. TBD – $25 million
3. TBD – $22 million
4. TBD – $20 million
5. Colombia - $14 million
6. Belgium - $14 million
7. France - $14 million
8. Costa Rica – $14 million
*** ELIMINATED AT ROUND OF 16 ***
9. Chile - $9 million
10. Mexico - $9 million
11. Switzerland - $9 million
12. Uruguay - $9 million
13. Greece - $9 million
14. Algeria - $9 million
15. USA - $9 million
16. Nigeria – $9 million
*** ELIMINATED IN GROUP STAGE ***
17. Ecuador - $8 million
18. Portugal - $8 million
19. Croatia - $8 million
20. Bosnia - $8 million
21. Ivory Coast - $8 million
22. Italy - $8 million
23. Spain - $8 million
24. Russia - $8 million
25. Ghana - $8 million
26. England - $8 million
27. South Korea - $8 million
28. Iran - $8 million
29. Japan - $8 million
30. Australia - $8 million
31. Honduras - $8 million
32. Cameroon – $8 million
FIFA World Cup Scores. July 9, 2014.
ESPN.comWorld Cup winners to receive $35 million in prize money, what did the U.S. get?
By Joe Prince-Wright
With the 2014 World Cup tournament almost over, now is a good time to have a look around and see how much money teams have won for their performances during the tournament.
That’s right, Sepp Blatter has got his checkbook out. Happy days.
As set out by FIFA back in December 2013 the winners, either Germany or Argentina, will receive $35 million in prize money from soccer’s world governing body. The total amount of prize money rose by a whopping 37 percent to $576 million for the 2014 tournament from the $420 million handed out during South Africa 2010.
Even the runner up will bag $25 million, while Brazil and the Netherlands will battle it out in the third place match for a cool $22 million… the loser, and subsequent fourth place team, still get $20 million.
So, what about the USA? What did Jurgen Klinsmann’s men earn after their hard-fought journey to the round of 16?
$9 million.
Every team who got knocked out of the round of 16 made $9 million. As for those teams who made the quarterfinal stage, they each received $14 million. So, in theory, the U.S. were a Chris Wondolowski chance away from bagging an extra $5 million in prize money. Too soon?
$9 million isn’t bad though, right? Coupled with the $1.5 million FIFA gave all 32 nations for ‘preparation costs’ I’d say that the U.S. Soccer Federation certainly did okay out of qualifying for the 2014 World Cup. Plus, look at all the sponsorship deals the U.S. signed and everything else that comes with enhanced exposure after the record TV numbers.
However, here is where it gets interesting. The 16 nations who were knocked out at the group stages, how much do you think they got? The answer is $8 million.
So even if the U.S. felt like they made a monumental leap forward, prestige wise, in qualifying from the ‘group of death’ and making the knockout rounds, they only received $1 million more than Cameroon, Honduras or Australia who all finished bottom of their groups without a single point in the tournament.
Does that seem a little unfair? Perhaps. Regardless, if FIFA is dishing out prize money, it don’t see any teams complaining.
Anyway, here is the list in full as to how much money each team made from the 2014 World Cup. Do you think this is the fairest way of splitting up the humongous pot of money? Any other suggestions?
PRIZE MONEY WON AT 2014 WORLD CUP
1. TBD – $35 million
2. TBD – $25 million
3. TBD – $22 million
4. TBD – $20 million
5. Colombia - $14 million
6. Belgium - $14 million
7. France - $14 million
8. Costa Rica – $14 million
*** ELIMINATED AT ROUND OF 16 ***
9. Chile - $9 million
10. Mexico - $9 million
11. Switzerland - $9 million
12. Uruguay - $9 million
13. Greece - $9 million
14. Algeria - $9 million
15. USA - $9 million
16. Nigeria – $9 million
*** ELIMINATED IN GROUP STAGE ***
17. Ecuador - $8 million
18. Portugal - $8 million
19. Croatia - $8 million
20. Bosnia - $8 million
21. Ivory Coast - $8 million
22. Italy - $8 million
23. Spain - $8 million
24. Russia - $8 million
25. Ghana - $8 million
26. England - $8 million
27. South Korea - $8 million
28. Iran - $8 million
29. Japan - $8 million
30. Australia - $8 million
31. Honduras - $8 million
32. Cameroon – $8 million
FIFA World Cup Scores. July 9, 2014.
Wednesday, July 9, 2014
Netherlands (2) 0
Argentina (4) 0
Bear Down Chicago Bears!!! Bears DE Lamarr Houston: If you don’t love the game, 'get out'.
By John Mullin
Lamarr Houston spent the first four years of his career with the Oakland Raiders before leaving to become a Bear this spring. One of the reasons behind his signing – besides the $21 million guaranteed over three years on a five-year deal topping out at $35 million – was a change in culture.
He is not, by nature, a vocal type, but has a simple point of view:
“The environment here is different and you can appreciate it around here, because it’s about football,” Houston told CSNChicago.com. “And loving the game. If you don’t do that, get out.”
Houston, who has played at 300 pounds at times in his career, is going into training camp at 275, about what he played at last season. Then he was primarily a right end; now he is the starting left end in standard personnel packages.
Houston is several inches shorter than Corey Wootton, now a Minnesota Viking, but in the same weight class and arguably better suited for holding the point of attack, a priority this offseason after the debacles up front last year.
“We’re putting a premium on toughness and being rugged and being stout,” said coordinator Mel Tucker. “And having tremendous anchor in our d-line and being able to control blockers. That violent shed and get off blocks and make plays and push the pocket in the passing game.
“And then win the one-on-ones. And in order to do that, you have to be tough and you have to be physical. It’s the trenches. And that’s what we’re looking for and that’s what we have with those guys and that’s just the way it’s got to be in the front with those guys.”
Training camp, when pads come on and hitting can happen without risk of violating the collective bargaining agreement, is the time when competitions become meaningful, particularly for linemen. When camp opens in two weeks, however, the mission statement for the defensive line will involve competition, but also will be focused perhaps more on developing something cohesive within a group that had virtually none of it in 2013 and now has a virtually all-new cast of characters.
It is a position group in which three of the four starters and six of the top eight on the depth chart were not even with the Bears this time a year ago. Only nose tackle Stephen Paea and backup Nate Collins were in a Chicago uniforms during training camp ’13. Houston was a Raider, Jared Allen was a Viking, Jeremiah Ratliff was a Cowboy, Willie Young was a Lion, and Ego Ferguson and Will Sutton were getting ready for college seasons. Even backup defensive end David Bass was a Raider through preseason.
Lines on either side of the ball like time together and its resulting comfort levels. The lack of familiarity on the current Bears defensive line is real but is not a concern.
“It’s different, but the big thing is we’ve got a lot of older guys with experience,” Houston said. “The coaching staff understands what they’re trying to get out of guys. But football is football so that doesn’t change too much.”
No players selected in NFL's Supplemental Draft.
By Rob Rang
For the second consecutive year the NFL's annual Supplemental Draft came and went without a single player getting selected.
The supplemental draft is very different from the media bonanza that occurs each spring. For one, players have to petition the NFL to be considered. This year there were four players available - New Mexico wide receiver Chase Clayton, North Carolina linebacker Darius Lipford, Virginia-Lynchburg defensive tackle LaKendrick Ross and SMU running back Traylon Shead.
A breakdown of each player can be read here.
With the draft concluded, each player is now considered a street free agent and can be signed by any team.
The massive Ross has drawn interest from several NFL teams. The 6-foot-6, 360-pound defensive tackle sat out last season after being ruled academically ineligible.
"He is not going to sign with a team for at least a couple of weeks. He is just not in shape," agent Glen Lansky told NFLDraftScout.com on Thursday. "When he worked out for the scouts (July 7) he said he would do a couple of things and wound up doing everything and it was obvious he just isn't in shape yet.
"There are some teams interested, but he started working with a trainer today and realistically it will take at least a couple of weeks for him to take part in a serious workout for a team. He is focused on this, but it will take time."
The supplemental is carried out via e-mail among teams and is not televised. Because of this, the draft took only a few minutes to begin and finish.
The teams, slotted into three groups based on their won/loss percentage the previous year, contact the league with a list of the players they would draft and the round in which they would take them. Any team that uses a supplemental draft pick would then lose the corresponding selection in the next year's draft.
The supplemental draft was originally created for players who had lost their eligibility between the primary NFL Draft in April and the beginning of the next season. Typically they are players who ran afoul of the law or failed to keep up with their academic obligations.
A total of 43 players have been selected since the draft's inception in 1977. Among the most notable Supplemental selections were quarterback Bernie Kosar (Cleveland, 1985), wide receiver Cris Carter (Philadelphia, 1987), linebacker Brian Bosworth (Seattle, 1987) and, most recently, wide receiver Josh Gordon (Cleveland, 2012).
How 'bout them Chicago Blackhawks? Toews, Kane agree to eight-year contract extensions.
By Chris Kuc, Tribune reporter
Talents the likes of Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane come around once in a lifetime in the NHL.
No one realizes that more than Rocky Wirtz, John McDonough, Stan Bowman and the rest of the Chicago Blackhawks’ hierarchy, so they did not wait long to lock in the young forwards to eight-year contract extensions worth a reported $10.5 million per year that will run through the 2022-23 season.
Like they did with their second NHL contracts, Toews and Kane agreed to new deals together that should help ensure that the Hawks remain Stanley Cup title contenders for the next decade or so.
“The signings of Jonathan and Patrick symbolize an important milestone in franchise history," Blackhawks President John McDonough said in a statement.
The extensions will keep the dynamic duo from reaching free agency and kick in for the 2015-16 season.
“I could not be more grateful for the amazing moments and opportunities I've been given by the Chicago Blackhawks," Toews said.
"I look forward to many more years of success with the Blackhawks," Kane said.
Toews, 26, and Kane, 25, already have amassed hockey resumes that put them in discussion for the Hockey Hall of Fame. In addition to both being two-time Cup champs, each has won a Conn Smythe Trophy as most valuable players in a postseason.
Toews has won two Olympic gold medals while playing for Canada and has a Selke Trophy as the league’s top defensive forward. Kane has a silver medal obtained while playing for the United States and was the NHL’s Calder Trophy winner as rookie of the year in 2008.
Toews was the Hawks’ top pick (third overall) in the 2006 NHL entry draft and has gone on to amass 195 goals and 245 assists in 484 career-regular season games.
Kane, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2007 draft, has 178 goals and 315 in 515 career regular-season contests.
Impact of Toews, Kane on Blackhawks goes beyond numbers.
By Tracey Myers
Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane have become synonymous with Chicago Blackhawks hockey — together.
You can't think of one without the other, can't talk of the abilities of one without saying the same about the other. And if you're a Blackhawks fan, you can't imagine one here without the other.
Now, you don't have to.
As we've written in this space several times, it's never been a question of when Toews and Kane would re-sign lucrative, long-term deals with the Blackhawks; it was when they would sign. That happened on Wednesday, as each signed eight-year extensions worth a reported $84 million apiece (a $10.5-million AAV).
But this isn't about the numbers that Toews and Kane will receive with these new deals, which run through the 2022-23 season. It's about the numbers they've already put up with the Blackhawks: 440 points thus far for Toews, 493 for Kane and, of course, two Stanley Cups they helped the team win. It's also about the numbers they'll likely put up for years to come, and we won't even try to guess how many there will be.
Toews and Kane get it, too. There was never a question they were re-signing here. They're part of a core that's already won two Cups and has the potential to win several more. Yes, there will be a tweak or two to this team heading into the 2014-15 season — the Blackhawks are a little more than $2 million over the cap, and have to get under the $69-million cap before the regular season begins. But many of the pieces are still in place to keep this machine running a few more years.
“Who could ever think of a better situation to be in?” Toews said at the Blackhawks’ closing interviews on June 3. “I think back to the day I was drafted. I had absolutely no idea all this would be in store for me in my short career so far. I’ve been so fortunate to be a part of a group of unbelievable guys. The majority of our team has been together since I’ve been here and just to see the growth of this franchise in the city of Chicago, the amazing fans we have here, there’s no doubt in my mind there’s no better way to have it as a hockey player.”
Toews and Kane are dynamic players, certainly. But their effect on Chicago hockey goes beyond that. These two helped resurrect a franchise, resuscitated a hockey market that was dying to return to its glory days. Toews and Kane brought hockey back, they brought fans back, they brought the Stanley Cup back. Their agent, Pat Brisson, summed it up in his statement today.
"Jonathan and Patrick are among the most dynamic and impactful players in the NHL today," he said. "The great support the Blackhawks organization has shown them over the past seven years has been instrumental to their accomplishments on the ice. It has been a great partnership and we look forward to continued success.”
Thanks to these two, so do the Blackhawks.
Just another Chicago Bulls Session… NBA roundup: Still no word on Anthony.
By The Sports Xchange
Free agent forward Carmelo Anthony is keeping Phil Jackson waiting by the phone.
The New York Knicks president remained optimistic Thursday that Anthony will choose to remain with his team. Anthony is believed to have received a maximum contract offer of five years and $129 million from the Knicks.
"The two of us, I think, feel really passionately about what we're trying to get accomplished," Jackson said of Anthony, according to ESPN.
Anthony opted out of his contract on July 1 to become a free agent. Jackson said Anthony has not returned text messages in several days. The seven-time All-Star made visits to the Chicago Bulls, Dallas Mavericks, Houston Rockets and Los Angeles Lakers last week.
--The Atlanta Hawks signed free agent guard-forward Thabo Sefolosha on Thursday.
Sefolosha and the Hawks reached agreement last week on a three-year, $12 million contract.
The 30-year-old started 61 games last season for the Oklahoma City Thunder and averaged 6.3 points, 3.6 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.3 steals.
---The Cleveland Cavaliers officially signed point guard Kyrie Irving to a contract extension, the team announced Thursday.
The extension is reported to be a max contract allowed under the collective bargaining agreement at five years and $95 million. The new deal begins next year and will run through the 2019-20 season. Irving had one year remaining on his contract.
Irving was the first overall pick in the 2011 draft by the Cavaliers and has career averages of 20.7 points, 3.7 rebounds, 5.8 assists and 1.4 steals in 33.7 minutes through 181 games with the team. An NBA All-Star in each of the past two seasons, Irving was MVP of the 2014 All-Star Game, where he became the second-youngest player to win the award.
---Jarrett Jack and Tyler Zeller were traded by the Cavaliers, who needed the cap space to advance their pursuit of LeBron James and other big-name players.
Jack and his $6.2 million salary was shipped to the Brooklyn Nets along with Sergey Karasev. The 20-year-old Karasev was the 19th overall pick in the 2013 draft. Zeller and a lottery protected first-round pick went to the Boston Celtics in exchange for a second-round pick as part of three-team deal that also included Marcus Thornton, who is in the final year of his contract and is scheduled to make $8.69 million next season.
The trades shed a total of $9.35 million in salary for the Cavaliers.
---The Toronto Raptors officially announced the re-signing of Kyle Lowry on Thursday while also trading forward Steve Novak and a future second-round draft pick to the Utah Jazz for point guard Diante Garrett.
Financial terms of Lowry's deal were not disclosed, the team reached an agreement on a four-year deal worth a reported $48 million on July 3, quickly taking the eight-year veteran off the free agent market. Lowry averaged 17.9 points, 7.4 assists and 4.7 rebounds last season for the Raptors, who made the NBA playoffs for the first time since 2008.
Novak was acquired by the Raptors last off-season and averaged 3.3 points, 1.1 rebounds and 10.0 minutes in 54 games during the 2013-14 season. Garrett has averaged 3.5 points, 1.7 assists and 14.8 minutes in 71 career games in two NBA seasons.
---To sign free agent forward Chris Bosh to a four-year, $88 million contract, the Houston Rockets have some work to do. That includes trying to unload point guard Jeremy Lin and his $14.89 million salary.
The Philadelphia 76ers could take on Lin's contract if paired with a key draft asset or two. Lin, 25, would be a candidate for a buyout. There's also a major decision to be made on the contract of restricted free agent Chandler Parsons. He signed a three-year, $46 million offer sheet with the Dallas Mavericks on Thursday.
With three days to match the offer, the clock is ticking for Houston and Bosh, who was planning to wait for LeBron James to decide whether he would return to Miami.
---Pau Gasol is being heavily courted by the Chicago Bulls, Oklahoma City Thunder and Los Angeles Lakers, but the NBA champions are still in the running for the 13-year veteran free agent.
Gasol, limited to 60 games last season, is the top offseason target of the San Antonio Spurs, who are making another push to gain favor with the 7-footer.
Gasol is reportedly most likely to sign with the Chicago Bulls, who are in a holding pattern until New York Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony makes his long-awaited call on his next home. The Bulls would use Gasol at power forward next to Joakim Noah, the NBA Defensive Player of the Year, as a replacement for Carlos Boozer. Boozer could come off the bench if he is not released using the amnesty clause.
---Veteran point guard Steve Blake agreed to a two-year deal with the Portland Trail Blazers.
Yahoo Sports reported Blake would make $2 million each season of the contract.
This is Blake's third stint with the Blazers in 11 seasons in the NBA. He spent last season with Golden State and Los Angeles, going from the Lakers to the Warriors at the trade deadline.
Blake rejoins veteran Chris Kaman, a teammate with the Lakers last season. Kaman signed a two-year, $9.8 million deal with the Blazers on Thursday to back up Robin Lopez.
---The Charlotte Hornets extended an offer sheet to restricted free agent forward Gordon Hayward, the team announced Thursday.
Terms were not disclosed, but the deal is a four-year, $63 million offer, according to multiple reports. In accordance with the NBA's collective bargaining agreement, Hayward's current team, the Utah Jazz, has three days to match the offer.
The 6-foot-8 Hayward saw action in 77 games for the Jazz last year, averaging career highs of 16.2 points, 5.2 assists, 5.1 rebounds, 1.4 steals and 36.4 minutes. He led the team in scoring and minutes played, ranked second in assists and was tied for third in rebounds.
---The Washington Wizards officially re-signed center Marcin Gortat, the team announced Thursday.
Multiple media outlets reported previously that Gortat received a five-year, $60 million deal.
Gortat averaged 13.2 points, 9.5 rebounds and 1.5 blocks in 33 minutes per game last season with the Wizards. He shot .542 from the field in 81 games.
A Bunch Of NBA Role Players Are Suddenly Getting Monster Contracts In Free Agency. What's Your Take?
By Tony Manfred
Jodie Meeks got $19 million.
One of the strongest trends of NBA free agency so far has been perfectly average players getting bigger-than-expected contracts.
The three prime examples:
- Channing Frye (199th out of 337 qualified players in PER) signed a four-year, $32-million deal with Orlando.
- Jodie Meeks (143rd in PER) signed a three-year, $19-million deal with Detroit.
- Avery Bradley (211th in PER) signed a four-year, $32-million deal with Boston.
You could also point to Darren Collison (three years, $16 million) and C.J. Miles (four years, $18 million) as examples on a smaller scale.
The simple explanation for this that is that teams have an unexpectedly large amount of money to spend.
The salary cap went up 7.7% to $62.3 million between 2013-14 and 2014-15. That gave every team about $5 million more to spend. Since the salary cap is directly related to basketball-related revenue, it's fair to take this as a sign that the league is in good financial health right now.
There's also going to be a big windfall coming after the 2015-16 season from a new TV deal. Live sports rights are booming right now, which means the league stands to see a significant revenue increase after the 2016 season. That will automatically bump up the salary cap. The ~$8 million Channing Frye makes in 2016-17 will look smaller in 2016 than it does now.
Even without the unexpected salary cap bump, there are just a lot of teams with money to spend this summer. Almost half the teams in the league are under the salary cap, and there are 10 teams with at least $15 million to work with in free agency. When so many teams can afford to overpay for a guy, he's going to end up getting a favorable contract.
The big free agency dominos have yet to fall. Once that happens, teams are going to start making moves like crazy. With so much free cap space around the league, we should expect even more deals like this in the coming days.
Chicago Sports & Travel, Inc./AllsportsAmerica Take: It's only a matter of time before the owners wake up and smell the coffee. The NBA Kardashian Drama and Clown show will soon be coming to an end. All of this courting and dining for so called superior talent is truly a farce. Everyone with any sense knows it's all about the money. All of these so called superstars are staying where they will get the most money and play the team owners that chase them to massage their egos. They may have the talent but they don't have the leadership skills to motivate role players to elevate their games. This current phase in the NBA will soon pass also. Ticket prices will go up, cable rates will go up, NBA apparel will go up, your Nikes and Adidas will go up and before you know it, the players will be locked out to restructure contracts and the most disappointing fact of all is that some of these so called superstars are not going to win a ring and will find themselves with financial hardships. I long for the old NBA where owners, GMs and coaches drafted players, built a team that played together to win together. Kinda like the Boston Celtics, The Chicago Bulls, Detroit's Bad Boys, The Los Angeles Lakers and even currently, The San Antonio Spurs. As we said in our sports quote of the day last Friday, 07/04/2014, "Character is doing the right thing when nobody's looking. There are too many people who think that the only thing that's right is to get by, and the only thing that's wrong is to get caught." It's all cyclical, what goes up must come down and what goes down will eventually come back up. It's just hard to watch the craziness between the cycles. Oh, one more thing, has anyone noticed that American sports team owners are buying professional soccer teams around the world? I wonder if they know something we don't? I wonder if they really foresee what's coming down the road for American sports other than drug violation and suspensions, contract squabbles, health lawsuits, players arrest and on and on. It's starting to seep into the college level. Contrary to popular belief, greed is not always good. I do believe in the American way and I know that we will work our way through this. I just hope it's in my lifetime. By the way, whoever thought the world's largest corporation, General Motors, would go bankrupt?
Now you know what we think and how we feel, we'd love to know, what’s your take?
Marion P. Jelks, Chicago Sports & Travel, Inc./AllsportsAmerica Blog Editor. Please use the comment section below and have at it. Let us know your thoughts.
Chris Sale, Anthony Rizzo named MLB All-Stars as Chicago sweeps Final Vote.
By Mike Oz
Chris Sale, Anthony Rizzo named MLB All-Stars as Chicago sweeps Final Vote.
(Getty Images)
White Sox ace Chris Sale and Cubs slugger Anthony Rizzo have been named to the AL and NL All-Star teams after a feverish four days of text messages, online vote and tweets as part of MLB's Final Vote campaign.
Chicago ruled, getting the biggest chunk of the 52.5 million votes cast and sending two deserving players to the MLB All-Star game in Minneapolis next Tuesday. Sale has the best ERA in the AL, while Rizzo's 20 homers are second in the NL.
The six-hour final flurry of Twitter votes Thursday was incredible. Each player was assigned a hashtag (#TargetSale, for example) and each use of that hashtag counted as a vote. That hashtagmania accounted for a quarter of all the votes cast, as fans averaged 65,000 votes per minute.
Here's a breakdown of the final vote tally, per MLB:
On the NL ballot, Rizzo passed Justin Morneau (Colorado) on Wednesday night and ultimately held off both Morneau and the leading Twitter vote-getter, Justin Upton (Atlanta). Rizzo received 8.8 million votes and became the first Cubs player to win the All-Star MLB.com Final Vote. The top three were followed by Anthony Rendon (Washington) and Casey McGehee (Miami).
The AL winner, Sale, became the fourth White Sox player to win the All-Star Game MLB.com Final Vote, using his 6.7 million votes to join Paul Konerko (2011); A.J. Pierzynski (2006); and Scott Podsednik (2005) as Chicago’s South Side winners. Sale held off a late charge from Garrett Richards, who trailed only Upton in Twitter voting. Fellow AL starting pitchers Rick Porcello (Detroit), Corey Kluber (Cleveland) and Dallas Keuchel (Houston) followed Sale and Richards.
No surprise for Sale, who is one of the most dominant pitchers in baseball. He essentially led the Final Vote from start to finish. Meanwhile, Rizzo had to overtake Morneau, who had the support of Colorado (where he plays for the Rockies), Minnesota (where he was an MVP for Twins) and Canada (where he's from).
Morneau getting back to Target Field as an All-Star would have been a nice story, and there's still time for it to happen outside of the Final Vote campaign. All-Stars will be added to the teams in the coming days as others drop off the team.
Erick Aybar, for instance, was named as a replacement for Alex Gordon on Thursday afternoon (and deservedly so). A couple of the pitchers that Sale topped (especially Richards) still could make the All-Star game that way too.
The All-Star roster jumbling surely isn't over, but thankfully the Twitter hastags are.
Rory McIlroy drives green on 436-yard hole, sets course record at Royal Aberdeen.By Emily Kay
Rory McIlroy smashes the track record at Royal Aberdeen as Phil Mickelson and Stacy Lewis get off to strong starts in their title defense in the U.K.
Rory McIlroy overcame his professed dislike of foul-weather golf by conquering the conditions and the Scottish Open field to set a course record at Royal Aberdeen with an opening-round 7-under 64 Thursday. In fact, McIlroy used those conditions to his advantage at one point during a birdie streak on Thursday, bombing his ball up into the wind at the links course's 436-yard 13th hole and driving the green. It was the most impressive moment during another blistering opening round for McIlroy.
McIlroy, playing in a cool and windy atmosphere came in a couple of hours after Kristoffer Broberg, who, with his own stellar 65, held the course record until the two-time major champion dunked his final par putt on the 18th. Broberg, from Sweden, was in the first threesome off the first tee at 6:30 a.m. local time and posted a flawless six-birdie round that was one shot clear of the previous track record set by Mark Halliday in 2010.
"I played really, really well," Broberg, a four-time Challenge Tour winner in 2012, told the Daily Mail. "I woke up at 4 a.m. and saw the wind out there. There was a little less wind to start, but it got more windy after eight holes so it's the same for everybody."
McIlroy, also among the morning wave of players tuning up on the Scottish links for next week’s British Open, served early notice that Broberg’s glory would be short-lived when he pumped in four consecutive birdies between holes eight and 11. After disappointing par on the par-5 12th, McIlroy got back on track with a birdie at the 13th when he drove the green. With just one bogey amid eight birdies, the former world No. 1 hoped to follow in fellow competitor Phil Mickelson’s footsteps and sweep the Scottish and British championships.
"Phil definitely opened the eyes of a lot of guys, I think," McIlroy told reporters on the eve of Thursday’s start about Mickelson’s ability to win both U.K. tourneys in 2013. "Me personally, I played with Phil the first two rounds at Muirfield, and I could see he was just ‑‑ he was ready, he was sharp. He played a competitive week the last week. He had won obviously but he just looked like he was ready for the links challenge and everything that it was going to present us with.
"That's when I sort of [began] thinking I might play the Scottish next year," said McIlroy, who noted that other players, including Justin Rose, Rickie Fowler, and Jimmy Walker were of similar mindsets. "There's a few guys that I think Phil has really influenced to come over and play some links golf, competitive links golf, before The Open."
McIlroy has played well this season, with six top-10s on the PGA Tour, though he missed the cut at the Irish Open last month before jetting off to a vacation with some buddies ahead of this week’s contest.
Mickelson, who went back-to-back at Castle Stuart and Muirfield last year, posted an eagle on the par-5 sixth on his way to a 68, to sit four shots behind the early clubhouse leader.
Elsewhere in the U.K., Stacy Lewis got off to a strong start to her defense of the Women’s British Open, finishing her first round at Royal Birkdale with a 1-under 71. One of just six players under par in the early going, top-ranked and tourney favorite Lewis will enter Friday’s second round two strokes back of morning leader Ayako Uehara.
Michelle Wie, coming off her first major championship win, a disappointing T8 finish to Lewis’ victory in Arkansas two weeks ago, and tipped by odds-makers to come in second to Lewis at Birkdale, carded an opening 75. A birdie on the 18th may give the four-time LPGA winner confidence heading into Friday’s second round.
Top 10: Counting down New England's best.
By David Caraviello
Lobstah. Chowdah. Race Cahs.
Yes, once again it's time to venture to the northernmost outpost of NASCAR's national division, and a New Hampshire Motor Speedway that's been drawing strong crowds to the Granite State ever since it first opened its doors to the sport's premier series over two decades ago. There's a good reason why -- get past the accents and the crustaceans, and you discover a racing culture in New England that's as strong as that in any other region of the country.
It's reflected in the schedule this weekend at New Hampshire, which features not just the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and NASCAR Nationwide Series, but also a K&N Pro Series East race, the Whelen Modified Tour and a Whelen Modified All-Star Shootout -- a 25-lapper bringing together drivers from both the Whelen Modified and Southern Modified tours. The 1.058-mile New Hampshire track has emerged as a mecca for racing not just in the state but in the region, and twice a year gearheads from Bangor to Bridgeport descend upon it in droves.
So naturally, drivers come with the territory. And New England -- for the more geographically-challenged, that encompasses Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut -- has produced a bunch of them throughout all of NASCAR's divisions. They'll be there again this weekend in force, some competing for race wins and championships. Drivers from New England have been as much a constant in NASCAR as tires and fuel, and as we once again head back to their home region, here are the top 10.
10. Reggie Ruggiero
He may never have won a series championship, but "The Reg" was always among the men to beat on NASCAR's Modified Tour. A native of Rocky Hill, Connecticut, Ruggiero won 44 events, good enough to rank him second all-time in the victory column. Ruggiero won a number of track championships, and finished in the top 10 in the final standings 13 times in 16 seasons between 1986 and 2001. Ruggiero started four races in what is now the Nationwide Series and recorded a best finish of 10th at Martinsville Speedway in 1987, but he made his name on shorts tracks in New Hampshire and Connecticut before becoming a legend in the Modified ranks.
9. Jerry Nadeau
One of the more star-crossed drivers in recent NASCAR history, Nadeau fought his way up from touring cars to break through with Melling Racing in 1998. Two years later, he was driving for powerhouse Hendrick Motorsports. Although that union lasted less than three seasons, it produced the crowning moment of Nadeau's career -- a victory in the 2000 finale at Atlanta. While it would prove his lone career victory, the native of Danbury, Connecticut, compiled 19 top-10s and was on pace to win a race at Sonoma before a gear failure intervened. He was 10 races into the 2003 season with MB2 Motorsports when he crashed in practice at Richmond, suffering the head injury that would end his career.
8. Ted Christopher
Want somebody who's done it all? That would be Christopher, a hotshot who's competed in almost every NASCAR series there is, and won in many of them along the way. The native of Plainville, Connecticut, claimed NASCAR's Whelen All-American championship for weekly track racers in 2001, by winning 15 of the 18 events he started at Thompson (Connecticut) Speedway. In 2008, he added the Modified crown, by winning the title and the final race in one fell swoop. His 42 victories on that circuit rank third all-time. Christopher has also competed in all three of NASCAR's national series, earning top-10 finishes in both the Camping World Truck and Nationwide ranks.
7. Bugs Stevens
OK, so it's not his real name. When Carl Bergman of Rehoboth, Massachusetts, wanted to pursue a racing career while still serving in the military, he knew his superiors might object -- and with that, the legend goes, Bugs Stevens was born. At the track, though, it didn't matter -- all opponents knew was, this Stevens guy was fast. He won four track titles at Stafford (Connecticut) Speedway, one on dirt and three on asphalt. When he moved into the Modified ranks, Stevens won three straight series championships from 1967-69. He also made three starts in what is now the Sprint Cup Series, and finished sixth at Charlotte in 1970.
6. Rob Moroso
He never had the chance to realize the promise so many saw in him, perishing in a traffic accident near Charlotte in 1990, when he was just 22. But it was clear that Moroso was bound for big things, particularly after a Nationwide Series career where he won six times -- including three times at Charlotte -- and claimed the 1989 championship for a team owned by his father, Dick. The native of Madison, Connecticut, moved into the Sprint Cup ranks when he was 21, in cars owned by his father and overseen by legendary crew chief Jake Elder. Moroso's best finish was ninth at Daytona in July of 1990, and he was driving home from a 21st-place result at North Wilkesboro when he lost his life.
5. Pete Hamilton
One of the best big-track specialists of his or any age, Hamilton made his name on the sport's largest speedways. The native of Dedham, Massachusetts, won the title in NASCAR's former Sportsman division in 1967, and then moved south to race in the big time. Hamilton's big break came in 1970 when he hooked up with juggernaut Petty Enterprises -- and driving that iconic winged Plymouth, there was no looking back. Hamilton that season won the Daytona 500 and swept both Talladega events, and added a Daytona qualifier (then a points event) for Cotton Owens the next year. Hamilton retired early due to a neck injury, but as New England's only Daytona 500 champion, his legacy was secure.
4. Andy Santerre
In more recent years Santerre has been known as a crew chief who won seven races in the K&N Pro Series ranks. But make no mistake -- the dude could wheel it. The native of Cherryfield, Maine, is generally regarded as the greatest driver in the history of the K&N Pro Series East, winning four straight championships on the circuit from 2002-05. Santerre won Rookie of the Year his first season in 1993, finished in the top four in points the next three seasons, and then left to compete in the Nationwide tour, where he won at Pike's Peak in 1999. He later returned to collect his four Pro Series crowns, solidifying a legacy on the circuit that includes 23 race wins, good enough for third all-time.
3. Ricky Craven
The pride of Newburgh, Maine, made an impact on NASCAR from the beginning, winning Rookie of the Year in what's now K&N Pro Series East in 1990. The next year he started winning big and didn't stop, claiming 10 victories -- including four in a row -- en route to the title. That same season he added two victories in the Nationwide Series, and the next year was at the national level full-time. Although his career would be interrupted by the aftereffects of a concussion, Craven still won in all three of NASCAR's national series. He claimed a Camping World Truck Series race at Martinsville in 2005, and won twice at the Sprint Cup level -- most famously in that photo finish with Kurt Busch at Darlington in 2003.
It may have taken a little longer than some expected, but the can't-miss kid has made it, and in a big way. As a 16-year-old Logano dominated his one K&N Pro Series East season, winning his debut from the pole and adding four more victories. He was an immediate contender in the Nationwide Series, scoring eight wins before he was old enough to drink. Now with Team Penske, the native of Middletown, Connecticut, has broken through as a premier level championship contender, making the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup for the first time last season, and owning two victories already this year. Logano has five career Sprint Cup wins, and at just 24, he's only getting started.
1. Mike Stefanik
It's enough of a feat to win a single NASCAR championship. Stefanik has won two in one season -- and done it twice. He's the only driver ever to do that, claiming dual titles in both Whelen Modified and K&N Pro Series East in 1997 and 1998. It's part of an unparalleled resume that includes nine total NASCAR crowns, seven of them coming on a Modified tour where the native of Wilbraham, Massachusetts, still competes. His 74 wins are the most all-time in that series. The 56-year-old Stefanik remains one tough customer, as his famous sound byte from the Battle at the Beach a few years ago will attest. Ranked the second-best Modified driver of all time behind immortal Richie Evans, and the sixth-best ever in the Pro Series, his legacy is ironclad. But he'll be there in his No. 1 car at New Hampshire, ready to build on it all the same.
Trophy envy? NASCAR doesn't have it.
By George Winkler
The entire reason my kids play soccer is to get the trophy at the end.
And, you know, they might be on to something.
Some trophies truly are awesome.
Take the Stanley Cup, for instance.
It gets white-glove treatment before somebody wins it, then it gets passed around like a garden gnome, showing up in pictures as a cereal bowl, a baptismal font, or even as an impromptu horse feedbag.
Don't believe me? Google funniest Stanley Cup pictures and try not to laugh.
Not to be outdone, NASCAR has its own set of cool trophies. NASCAR knows how to honor a victory, with burnouts and Victory Lane celebrations where you can sip champagne, wear black hats and fire six-shooters in the air.
However, the celebration is not complete until the race winner hoists the trophy overhead. Just ask Jimmie Johnson, who has nine Miles the Monster trophies from Dover (one of the coolest; think Incredible Hulk meets abominable snowman).
When asked where he puts them all, Johnson said: "I have a great man cave. It's a big warehouse and I have a huge bar that I restored and it's got a big top shelf on it."
Jimmie, if you're reading this, please, please, invite me to your man cave.
But while we wait for Jimmie's invite, let's take a look at a slideshow of some of the best trophies in NASCAR.
Some trophies truly are awesome.
Take the Stanley Cup, for instance.
It gets white-glove treatment before somebody wins it, then it gets passed around like a garden gnome, showing up in pictures as a cereal bowl, a baptismal font, or even as an impromptu horse feedbag.
Don't believe me? Google funniest Stanley Cup pictures and try not to laugh.
Not to be outdone, NASCAR has its own set of cool trophies. NASCAR knows how to honor a victory, with burnouts and Victory Lane celebrations where you can sip champagne, wear black hats and fire six-shooters in the air.
However, the celebration is not complete until the race winner hoists the trophy overhead. Just ask Jimmie Johnson, who has nine Miles the Monster trophies from Dover (one of the coolest; think Incredible Hulk meets abominable snowman).
When asked where he puts them all, Johnson said: "I have a great man cave. It's a big warehouse and I have a huge bar that I restored and it's got a big top shelf on it."
Jimmie, if you're reading this, please, please, invite me to your man cave.
But while we wait for Jimmie's invite, let's take a look at a slideshow of some of the best trophies in NASCAR.
Sensing rivals, calm Nibali defends Tour lead.
By JAMEY KEATEN (Associated Press)
Vincenzo Nibali is growing comfortable in his yellow jersey.
He's not taking the Tour de France lead for granted, though.
Despite the stunning departure of reigning champion Chris Froome in a crash the day before, the Italian says he's ''afraid'' of two-time champ Alberto Contador, and senses other contenders are looking for opportunities to strip him of cycling's most coveted jersey.
Nibali took another, if small, step on Thursday toward the Tour crown by maintaining his lead as the pack arrived in Reims - whose famed Cathedral hosted many French coronations - in a drizzly and crash-marred sixth stage won by German sprint specialist Andre Greipel.
Nibali, who has won cycling's two other Grand tours - the Spanish Vuelta and Italian Giro - made it five straight days in the yellow shirt that he hopes to take home when the race ends on the' Champs-Elysees on July 27.
It's still very early, though, and the race has only had one real climbing day so far: Far tougher up-and-down days are ahead this weekend in the Vosges mountains, in the Alps in week two, and the Pyrenees in week three.
But Nibali says he is ''calm'' and feeling good physically, his Astana team is the best-performing squad so far, and several rival teams have been losing riders to crashes.
''I'm still afraid of Contador,'' said Nibali, adding that he expects the Spaniard and other yellow jersey aspirants to attack when the race enters the eastern Vosges range on Saturday - culminating with a tough uphill finish in Monday's Stage 10.
''It's true that you can lose a lot of energy defending the yellow jersey, but I've been riding well,'' Nibali said through a translator. ''It's a heavy task to wear it ... (but) to have the jersey could be a little advantage in the coming stages. We'll take it day by day.''
Contador, a day after losing about 2 1/2 minutes to Nibali on a muddy ride over cobblestones, was dealt another setback on Thursday: His Saxo-Tinkoff teammate Jesus Hernandez, who was expected to help him up the climbs, dropped out after a crash that left him dazed on the roadside.
Richie Porte, who inherited the leadership of Team Sky after Froome quit, also lost a teammate. Spanish veteran Xabier Zandio was taken to hospital with a suspected broken rib and severe back injury from a group spill with about 79 kilometers left.
The race medical report listed a total of 14 riders with varying injuries from ''two big crashes.''
''It was such a stressful day - horrible actually,'' Porte said, crediting support from his team. ''The guys were around me all day, and while we lost Xabi Zandio to the crash, the rest of us kept out of trouble and we live to fight another day.''
Greipel, the Germany champion, collected his sixth career Tour stage win ahead of Norway's Alexander Kristoff in second and France's Samuel Dumoulin in third over the 194-kilometer (120-mile) ride. Greipel's job got easier after countryman Marcel Kittel, who has dominated the sprints this year, got a late flat.
''I had really good punch today, I am really happy,'' said Greipel, a Lotto Belisol rider who turns 32 next Wednesday. ''Of course I'm not looking at Kittel. I don't need to hide. I am still one of the fastest in the bunch.
''There was a lot of pressure on us, on my shoulders. It's a big relief for us.''
The top of the standings didn't change, as most of the contenders for victory in the three-week race trailed close behind the muscular Greipel. He was not a challenger for the overall title; like many sprinters, he does not fare well on the climbs that are crucial to winning in Paris. He's 37 1/2 minutes behind Nibali.
Overall, Nibali has a two-second lead over Danish teammate Jakob Fuglsang. Peter Sagan of Slovakia was third, 44 seconds back. Porte, an Australian, was another 70 seconds back in eighth place. American Andrew Talansky, who won the Criterium du Dauphine in June, was ninth, 2:05 behind Nibali. Spaniard Alejandro Valverde was 10th, 2:11 back, and Contador was in 18th, 2:37 behind.
With the Tour giving a nod to 100 years since the start of World War I, French President Francois Hollande honored the fallen and took a ride with race director Christian Prudhomme on Thursday. The Tour chief led a ceremony honoring 1909 winner Francois Faber, one of three winners of early Tours who died in the war.
Stage 7 on Friday will be the Tour's second longest, another mostly flat 234.5-kilometer (146-mile) trek from Epernay to Nancy.
College Football Hall of Fame opening Aug. 23.
AP Sports
The new College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta will open on Aug. 23.
The date was announced Thursday.
The opening of the 94,000-square-foot facility was timed to coincide with two games at the Georgia Dome to begin the college football season: Mississippi vs. Boise State on Aug. 28, followed two days later by Alabama vs. West Virginia.
The hall was previously located in South Bend, Indiana, but was plagued by poor attendance. Five years ago, the National Football Foundation announced a deal to move it to Atlanta, on a site near the Georgia Dome and overlooking Centennial Olympic Park.
Also Thursday, the foundation announced a lead sponsor for the facility, which will be known officially as the College Football Hall of Fame and Chick-fil-A Fan Experience.
NCAA President calls for 'scholarships for life'.
By JOSEPH WHITE (AP Sports Writer)
NCAA President Mark Emmert told a Senate committee Wednesday he supports ''scholarships for life'' and other reforms in how athletes are treated, then did such a good job of casting himself as a powerless figurehead that one senator told him: ''I can't tell whether you're in charge or whether you're a minion.''
Emmert faced a skeptical Senate Commerce Committee and said he feels college sports ''works extremely well for the vast majority'' and that the overall current model of amateurism should be preserved.
But he listed several changes he'd like to see enacted.
In addition to the end of the standard year-to-year scholarships, he said scholarships should also cover the full cost of attending college, not just basics such as room and board.
He also called for better health, safety and insurance protocols and said universities must confront what he called the ''national crisis'' of sexual assault.
Emmert said such changes could come about if Division I schools decide to remake their decision-making structure in the coming weeks, giving more authority to the five biggest conferences.
He reiterated that the schools themselves are in charge of the rules and emphasized the challenge of creating a consensus among college presidents, coaches and athletic directors.
That led to sharp words from Sen. Claire McCaskill, who leveled the ''minion'' statement and added: ''If you're merely a monetary pass-through, why should you even exist?''
The Missouri Democrat was particularly concerned with research that showed a significant percentage of universities allow athletic departments to handle sexual assault investigations of athletes.
Emmert said he was ''equally surprised and dismayed by'' McCaskill's numbers and that he would work to put an end to the apparent conflict of interest.
The hearing came as the NCAA faces pressure from multiple fronts to reform how athletes are treated and compensated.
The organization is awaiting a judge's ruling following a three-week trial in Oakland, California, in which former UCLA basketball star Ed O'Bannon and others are seeking a share of revenues from the use of their names, images and likenesses in broadcasts and videogames.
Also, former Northwestern quarterback Kain Colter is leading a push to form the first union for college athletes.
Emmert testified in the O'Bannon trial, where he opposed any effort to pay players because it would destroy the bedrock of amateurism on which college sports is based.
There have been moves, however, to pay more attention to the athlete's concerns. Emmert noted that multiyear scholarships were recently reinstated after being banned for close to four decades. The Big Ten last month came out in support of guaranteed four-year scholarships and improved medical coverage for athletes.
Also testifying was former University of North Carolina football player Devon Ramsay, who spoke of the red tape he had to endure to clear his name after allegations of plagiarism. UNC has been dealing with a long-running academics and athletics scandal, and Ramsay said he came to the conclusion that the school ''was more concerned with penalties and losses of scholarships than protecting one of its own.''
Ramsay also called for mandatory summer internships that would help prepare athletes for future careers. He said it's ''almost impossible'' to complete an internship at a competitive football school because of the time demands made by coaches.
''The NCAA as an institution no longer protects the student athlete,'' Ramsay said. ''They are more concerned with signage and profit margins.''
Committee chairman Jay Rockefeller also took the bigger view, questioning whether the amateur model is sustainable. He told Emmert: ''I think I am just very skeptical that the NCAA can ever live up to the lofty mission that you constantly talk about.''
''I don't see how a multibillion dollar commercial enterprise can merely be an amateur pursuit,'' the West Virginia Democrat said. ''I don't see how the NCAA will ever be capable of truly making a safe, quality educational experience for students their No. 1 priority.''
Rockefeller said he doesn't plan to drop the issue. He dropped veiled threats of using subpoena power and the committee's special investigation unit should the Democrats retain control of the Senate and the NCAA not move forward with reforms.
Near the end of the hearing, which lasted just under three hours, Rockefeller said too much of the hearing was conducted in ''self-protection mode.''
''My real feeling from this hearing,'' Rockefeller said, ''is that we haven't accomplished much.''
Emmert declined an invitation from Rockefeller to make a concluding statement. After the hearing, Emmert deflected questions from reporters while being led to a freight elevator to leave the building.
Six storylines to watch entering the July evaluation period.
By Jeff Eisenberg
The July evaluation period began Wednesday, which means coaches from every program in the nation will spend the next three weekends crisscrossing the country to scout top prospects at the summer's most prestigious grassroots events.
Here's a look at some of the most intriguing storylines as coaches hit the road to begin assembling their 2015 recruiting classes and to get an early look at future targets:
1. Will the Malik Newman-Diamond Stone package deal come to fruition? One year after Duke-bound Jahlil Okafor and Tyus Jones stuck to their word and both chose the same school, another potential package deal featuring two top 10 recruits has emerged. Six-foot-3 shooting guard Malik Newman and 6-foot-10 center Diamond Stone have been adamant about wanting to play together in college in recent weeks even though one is from Mississippi and the other is from Wisconsin. Most potential package deals like this one eventually fall apart when the players decide different schools appeal to them, but the fact that the Okafor-Jones one did not may force schools to take the possibility seriously. UConn, Kentucky and Kansas are among the programs recruiting both Newman and Stone, while other schools have wooed the coveted class of 2015 prospects separately.
2. Can Bruce Pearl recruit without being on the road? Since Bruce Pearl's three-year show-cause penalty runs through late August, Auburn's new coach is prohibited from being on the recruiting trail during the most crucial month of the offseason. That means he'll have to rely on his assistants to make in-person evaluations and put in face time with the Tigers' top targets for the next three weeks. Pearl has already landed coveted transfer guards Kareem Canty (Marshall), Antoine Mason (Niagara) and K.C. Ross-Miller (New Mexico State), but he needs a strong 2015 class to fuel a speedy rebuilding process. Achieving that despite having to remain home in July will be a big challenge.
3. Which other new coaches will make an early splash? Cal's Cuonzo Martin and Missouri's Kim Anderson are well positioned this month thanks to some of the assistant coaching hires they made. Yanni Hufnagel, one of Martin's new assistants, has thrived in his previous stops at Harvard and Vanderbilt by luring academic-oriented West Coast prospects to those well-respected institutions. Hufnagel should have an even easier time finding success with that strategy at Cal, another excellent academic school in a more geographically friendly location. As for Anderson, by retaining Tim Fuller and hiring former Huntington Prep coach Rob Fulford, the ex-Division II coach has a staff that should easily make up for his inexperience recruiting at the highest level. Fuller is a former Rick Pitino aide at Louisville with a reputation as an elite recruiter, while Fulford coached Andrew Wiggins, Gorgui Dieng and others at Huntington and is extremely well-connected across the country.
4. Will family ties help Oregon State? To ensure an impressive recruiting class next year, all Oregon State must do is cajole the sons of two members of its coaching staff into playing for their fathers. Tres Tinkle, the son of new Oregon State coach Wayne Tinkle, is a 6-foot-6 small forward rated the No. 124 recruit in Rivals.com's class of 2015 rankings. And Stephen Thompson Jr., the son of newly hired Oregon State assistant Stephen Thompson Sr., is a 6-foot-3 shooting guard rated No. 70 in the 2015 class. Snaring the younger Tinkle and Thompson would be a huge score for a talent-starved Oregon State program that lost all five starters to transfer, graduation or the professional ranks this offseason. Of course, it's no shoo-in Tinkle and Thompson will come to Corvallis. Tinkle recently told Rivals.com he has scholarship offers from USC and Utah and has spoken with the likes of Gonzaga, Notre Dame, Stanford and Cal. And prior to his father's hiring at Oregon State, Stephen Thompson Jr. told Rivals.com he had been hearing from San Diego State, Arizona State, Stanford, Gonzaga and UConn, among others.
5. Who will Kentucky get? History suggests it's a near-lock that Kentucky will land at least a couple of the elite prospects in the Class of 2015, but so far it's unclear which of next year's elite recruits the Wildcats have the best chance to sign. They already have a commitment from four-star shooting guard Charles Matthews and they're also heavily involved with numerous other prospects including top 10 guards Newman and Jaylen Brown and top 10 big men Stone and Cheick Diallo. They also would be considered a top contender for Thon Maker, an athletic, perimeter-oriented 7-footer who may reclassify from the class of 2016 to 2015. Something that will be interesting to follow with Kentucky's recruiting is whether playing time concerns impact the decisions of the 2015 class. With Kentucky boasting nine former McDonald's All-Americans and first-round hopeful Willie Cauley-Stein on next season's roster, there's a good chance some talented players return in 2015-16, meaning starting jobs will not be a guarantee for top recruits at Kentucky the way they might be at other schools.
6. How healthy is Harry Giles? Before tearing multiple ligaments in his left knee while playing for the U.S. U-16 team last summer, Giles was considered a contender for the No. 1 ranking in the class of 2016. The highly touted 6-foot-10 forward has since been cleared medically and returned to game action in May at a Nike event in Virginia, but he played limited minutes. July will represent another chance for Giles to prove he has regained his explosiveness as he'll play with the CP3 All-Stars at the Peach Jam July 16-20 and will participate in training camp for the U.S. U-17 team the following week in Colorado Springs. Monitoring Giles' progress will be numerous high-profile coaches. The Winston Salem, N.C. native had interest from virtually all of the nation's top programs prior to his injury.
On This Date in Sports History: Today is Friday, July 11, 2014.
MemoriesofHistory.com
1914 - Babe Ruth debuted in the major leagues with the Boston Red Sox.
1960 - In Honolulu, HI, the first tournament held outside the continental U.S., sanctioned by the U.S. Golf Association, began.
1985 - Nolan Ryan of the Houston Astros became the first major league pitcher to earn 4,000 strikeouts in a career.
1987 - Bo Jackson signed a contract to play football for the L.A. Raiders for 5 years. He was also continued to play baseball for the Kansas City Royals.
1994 - Shawn Eckardt was sentenced in Portland, OR, to 18 months in prison for his role in the attack on figure skater Nancy Kerrigan.
1995 - Mickey Mantle made his final public appearance. It was to increase awareness of organ donation programs.
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