REPORTING FROM THE JOCK-OSPHERE:
A CUBAN ON EUROPE
by Ryan Corazza and Evan Bartsch
Jocks blog. We report. (You decide!)
Mark Cuban: In Praise of Europe
The Mavs—and maybe soon Cubs?—owner on the benefits of players going to Europe:
"The more NBA players in Europe the better," he writes. "The movement of players is taking away the stigma and fear that younger players perceive when they are asked to play in Europe before signing an NBA contract. Knowing that they will be competing against Josh Childress, Earl Boykins, Carlos Arroyo, et al, and getting a chance to get real minutes, AND make good money is a win for everyone.
"European Soccer has done a phenomenal job of inventing tournaments that drive huge revenues and TV dollars. This would allow the NBA to do the same thing. Take a Christmas break, or do it in the summer, where the top 6 records in the league play the top 6 teams over there, with the revenues from the event being split primarily among the participant teams rather than equally among all NBA teams. Not only would that be a great revenue source for all the teams involved, but it would create a huge economic incentive for the other 24 NBA teams and all overseas team to become top tier teams.
"Then of course we could create our own World Cup type tournament every 4 years."
It's always about that bottom line.
Derek's fans have questions, and the Jeter man has their answers. Pretty intense. Wait, actually, what's the opposite of intense? Check it out:
Q: My softball team is currently 0-10. Every time we have a game my team thinks we are going to lose so no one tries. Is there anything that you do to help your team with confidence? - Sami
DJ: Sometimes, you learn more from your failures than your successes. Try and take something positive from every game and get your team focused on that before the next one.
Q: Why don't you wear sunglasses during day games? - Lille Marie A.A.
DJ: Good question. I do wear them on occasion, but not all that often. It's just personal preference, I guess.
Q: One thing that I love about how you play is that you never make excuses. Where did you learn this? - Raymond Sherman
DJ: My parents taught me that you have to be accountable for your actions, and I've always lived by that rule on the field and off.
I sincerely hope that first fan with the losing softball team is a kid, and not some adult from a beer league writing into the Yankee Captain in an attempt to salvage their season. Either way, it's lovably after school special.
Chris Cooley: Jason Taylor's MJ Xmas in July
Chris details how the latest addition to the Redskins, defensive great Jason Taylor, won the locker room over:
"Jason Taylor made a huge impact in the locker room his first week of training camp," he writes. "The team arrived to the locker room prior to an afternoon practice finding a heap of stacked boxes in front of Jason's locker. Very shortly after, Jason started handing out everything Michael Jordan. I'm not talking about a couple shirts, guys were packing back four or five pairs of shoes, shorts, hats, anything you can think of with the Jordan logo on it.
"This was taken as an extremely grateful gesture by all the guys, some even teased it was his way of making quick friends. To my surprise, a week later and the Michael Jordan Christmas was on again. This time more guys were aware of what was going on, and because the first handout went so well the crowd quickly grew to over 20 players. From all accounts the second MJ handout was even more successful than the first.
"Thursday, week three of Redskins training camp, and why wouldn't there be another enormous shipment of Jordan gear to Taylor's locker? Were talking thousands of dollars in gear and although it took me three weeks to gain interest into what was going on, I'm now hooked. Jason says, "They (Nike) just send me all the new stuff they're working on, I mean all the new colors and styles and I try 'em out." Well, not just Jason Taylor is trying out the new Nikes, because by handout number three, 40 Redskins were wrestling for anything they could get their hands on."
I hope Coach Zorn is taking notice. "Note to self: the players will fight to the burger for MJ swag; let's dress up our opponents in MJ polos. The NFC East will be ours, oh yes."
Darren McFadden: No More Sodey Pop
It's hot at training camp. And that means keeping that diet nice and strict for Darren McFadden.
"I'm a guy who likes to drink soda but it's something I don't do right now," he writes. "I've completely cut it out. I'm just drinking water, Gatorade or G2—the stuff that keeps me hydrated. They have a real healthy menu for us now while we're here in camp … chicken, food that's healthy with not a lot of fat. I'm going to try my best to stick to the diet when we get out of camp. Right now you have no choice but to do it, but when we get out I am going to try my best because I feel like it helps out a whole lot."
We imagine he's fueling his car the same way.
"Anybody watch that new show Buzzin' on MTV?" he writes. "Those two cats are hilarious and pretty talented as well. Not even going to try and front, I had no idea who they were before the show. And to be honest, I probably wouldn't have even known they had a show, but it comes on after Run's House and you know I get down with Run's House! The new season has been GREAT! Catch it last night? If not, check out how Diggy handles himself in a few meetings. Pretty impressive for a 13 year old. I'm definitely excited to see what this cat comes up with for his clothing line. If it's hot I'll have to make sure to hook up my younger cousins with some of it!"
James Blake: Checking in from Bejing
James and the gang touch down in the land of Olympics:
"Travel for a tennis player can be one of the toughest parts of our job," he writes. "But traveling with a group like this makes it so much easier and more fun. Arriving was a little bit hectic with the attention the Williams sisters attract. The media at the airport was pretty aggressive, but we had a great team of security that got us out of there quickly and efficiently. And then it was off to the hotel.
"We made it quickly thanks to the specific Olympic lanes on the highway. I think our trip would have taken about 2 hours if we didn't have that lane and were sitting in traffic. But instead we were in our rooms in about 20 minutes. Now I'm just anxious to practice and even more anxious to play in my first Olympics. The opening ceremonies are on Friday and I believe that will be an experience that I'll never forget."
Careful, James: if the matches are outdoors, you may have to wear one of these.
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