HOT SCALE (1-10): 7

Big Willy Styles has stepped up has is baller status. Following in the foot steps of Jay Z (not where rapping is concerned) Will Smith has become an NBA team owner.  Alongside five others, Smith has invested to help save the struggling 76ers franchise.

Apparently they’re all struggling these days, not only making a profit, but making decisions on how to end the NBA lock out.  Yesterday the owners and players met for 16 hours and weren’t able to come up with a solution. 16 hours!  What the heck went on behind those doors for 16 hours, I’d sure love to know.

But let’s not rain on the 76ers parade with all that talk.  The fact that Will Smith who is famously from Philly has invested in his beloved city is a big deal.  And guard Evan Turner seems to think the same.  He tweeted, “I think it’s dope that the Fresh Prince is one of our new owners. Maybe Willow can perform at halftime”.
Apparently Turner is a fan of Willow’s catalogue.  Should Turner be referring to his technically new boss as the “Fresh Prince”?  That show has been off the air for 15 years now, let’s move on.  At least call him Hancock circa his 2008 film.  And please, give Will some credit, he’s released four solo albums (Willenium anyone?).  I think the man could throw down a tune or two if need be.

This is all good news for the league that may or may not see a season.  It’s even better news for fans, as ticket prices will be slashed for their viewing enjoyment (a great distraction for us little guys as owners and players squabble how to divvy up their millions).

Jay Z who has already been fined by the NBA $50, 000 for illegal contact with University of Kentucky players last season should teach Will a thing or two about the biz.

Here’s a thought: maybe the league can reinvest all the money from various fines throughout the year into their ‘struggling” teams instead of donating it to these so called ‘various charities”.

Just an idea.

Thanks to REX for the image.

So I caught the latest episode of The T.O. Show and was really astounded to hear Mr. (Terrell) Owens say that he had no income coming in at that time.

What?!  How is this possible?  The same guy who, when his issues with the Philadelphia Eagles organization went public, the paparazzi was taking overhead video in helicopters of him playing basketball on the court at his house?  The same guy who held this news conference with his agent, Drew Rosenhaus, at his home, after the Eagles situation came to a head?

I hope he was just being dramatic for television’s sake.  There is no way that someone that highly visible should not have multiple streams of income coming in, in addition to any endorsements or league-related income.

In fairness, T.O. did say that his financial advisor did him wrong, so maybe this has something to do with it.  But often, it’s the athletes who call the shots and are more than happy to support their many family members, yet at the same time are reluctant to make business moves with their millions.

If we learned anything from the lockouts in the NBA and NFL, it’s that having multiple income streams is invaluable because league income is not guaranteed even when it’s “guaranteed,” as NBA contracts are.

This is obviously problematic, for a variety of reasons:

• If you’re always spending your money and never bringing any in, then, logically, it will eventually run out.
• If you happen to die prematurely, your family will be stuck.  Even if you have a great life insurance policy, it likely won’t equal what you would have made over the course of your lifetime.
• Even if you live a normal life, when you die, the next generation will likely be thrown for a loop because they depended on you for income.
• And, most importantly, if you never do anything in the course of your playing career other than play and do occasional endorsements, you’re severely limiting your post-career options.

If I could, I’d like to offer a few suggestions directly to those athletes who are interested in doing something now to increase their current and post-playing cash flow:

1. Teach your family to fish. As my friend and fellow blogger @BlitzandGlam tweeted, if an athlete has family members who are able to work, they should be working.  This doesn’t mean putting them to work at Mickey D’s, but it could mean either helping them to start their own business or, *IF* you trust them, and they want to do it, helping you to run yours.  Everyone, no matter who they are, has a talent.  Find out what they love and what they’re good at and help them to find something that jives with their talents.  Obviously, you should take a cut of this business since you’re putting up the money but this shouldn’t be met with too much resistance…

2. Hire a talent agent.  They’re not just for actors anymore.   The big stars in sports have them, but even lesser-known athletes can get themselves hired for roles.  I know of a number of athletes who had just OK professional careers but leveraged their contacts while playing to get themselves financially situated for their futures.  If you’re not comfortable with public speaking but want to speak to the people, then take some public speaking and/or acting classes or hire a private coach.  Even those famous people we think are on the top of their game still use coaches, and the tips the coach will give you are quite valuable (i.e., did you know that trying to over-act on camera can help you appear “normal” and more interesting?).  And you don’t just have to limit your work to speaking engagements.  There are a variety of ways that your likeness can be used that don’t involve you speaking to large crowds.  These include voice-over work, walk-on roles on TV shows, local commercials, radio ads, etc.

3. Attract corporate sponsors to your (active, functioning, well-run) foundation.  One thing I learned from working with my good friend @marshawnevans is how important it is for athletes to have foundations that attract corporate sponsors –  particularly for NFL players who do not always get a lot of exposure.  Because of this lack of visibility and the many preconceived notions about professional athletes, hosting corporate-sponsored events for your foundation allows you to gain exposure and access to corporations and the people in them in a way that you might not otherwise have.  In addition, having your own foundation helps you control the image that you put out into the world and allows sponsors and the public to see a different side of you.  It’s no secret that people like to work with people they know.  The corporations (and again, the people in them) who sponsor your community work may be the same ones to partner with you down the road on your business venture; or companies that have heard of you and your foundation’s work may be more interested to work with you.  In either event, it’s a good idea to let them get to know who you are while you have the opportunity to do so.  It is much harder to market yourself when you’re no longer playing.

(While this is not foundation-related, NBA player Shane Battier recently tweeted about his partnership with ServiceMaster Clean in which he is giving scholarships for people to start their own businesses.  I saw more than a few retweets and kudos to him for making a difference in this way.)

4. Use social media to your advantage.  Even if you’re not into self-promotion, using social media to engage your fans and attract more people to the areas mentioned above is a wise – and free – idea.  I don’t know personally, but I have to believe that Chad Ochocinco derived an enormous benefit, both to his personal brand and to his pockets, by how well he connected with his Twitter followers during the off-season and the NFL lockout.  He was involved in so many extra-curricular activities, including trying out for a soccer team and hanging out with pro soccer stars in Europe, about which he constantly tweeted.  He also tweeted directly with his fans as often as he could, even allowing fans to video with him on U-Stream from time to time.  People might think he’s silly and in need of attention, but I think he’s smarter than some people like to admit, and his options will be limitless post-career because of the access to himself that he has given to others.  You don’t have to do as much as #85, but you should try to move past doing no social media at all.

5. Act like a tennis shoe, and “just do it.”*  Last, but certainly not least, don’t put off #1-4.  Everyone gets busy and pushes things to the side.  But it’s no longer sufficient to say “I’m focusing on my career, I don’t have time right now,” because there are good people out there for hire whose job it is to make time to help you make your money work for you.  The only thing you as an athlete really have to do is make the decision to move forward…and maybe spend a few hours a week taking acting or public speaking lessons.

Now, I recognize a lot of these suggestions will fall on deaf ears because they depend on you, the athlete, who can be fickle and hesitant about getting involved in businesses that might fail.  This is quite understandable.  But don’t let the fear of putting your name on something that fails stop you from putting your name out there at all; you can also pay people to help you spin your failures into successes (this is something you can learn from the corporations who sponsor your foundation).  Besides,  most people, including your backers, won’t care that your business didn’t last.  They just care that you demonstrated a willingness to try.  Just ask Donald Trump, who has had a career full of not always “successful” ventures yet still manages to get people to give him money for new ones.  Those people and companies who make the big bucks tend to be the ones who take the most chances.

So what are you waiting for?  It’s time to become a business, (wo)man.

*Shout out to Doo Doo Brown.  (Thanks also to Zuri Berry for the T.O. photo.)

OVERTIME

Jon “Bones” Jones has surely silenced his critics.  After an impressive title defense win against Rampage Jackson where he dominated the fight, I think we can officially say Jones is a legitimate force.  Rampage admittedly was in the best shape of his life, yet was no match for the über athletic, tactically creative, and most definitely cocky, Jones.

Jones (who should be nick named Jon “Long” Jones) has the longest reach in UFC history, at an astounding 84 and a half inches.  That’s 11 and a half inches longer than his opponent Rampage.  His gangly arms made headlines leading into the fight,  but it was Jones’ daddy long legs that were doing the damage when the bell rang.  His leg kicks dominated Jackson and kept him at bay.
This fight got me thinking.  Wouldn’t it have been great to know what Jones’ leg length advantage was?

Before each fight, the UFC has their Tale Of The Tape that breaks down the vital stats of each fighter: origin, age, weight, height, and reach.  Boxing has shown the same stats for years.  We’ve been groomed to associate the term “reach” to mean arm/punch length.  However, noticeably absent in MMA in particular the UFC, there isn’t a stat on the leg reach of each fighter.  Just short of telling me their zodiac sign, it’s a non factor what the kick advantage one fighter has over his opponent.  In MMA, punches and kicks are thrown.  Arm and leg reach work in conjunction.  Why tell me one stat without the other.  When men buy a suit, doesn’t the tailor take your arm length, and inseam?  A jelly sandwich is ok, but with peanut butter, fuggedaboutit!  Some things work best together.  There needs to be this statistical addition, and a change in the terminology culture in reference to “reach”.

Sometimes it’s hard to believe that the UFC has only been around since 1993.  1993!  I remember that was such a great year. Basement jams were the ish and Hip Hop was some real music.  ’93 was my personal best year as a sports fan too; the Jays were World Series Champs and the Bulls had three-peated their way into a dynasty.  Good times.  Man, I’m sounding old.  My point is, ’93 wasn’t that long ago, and we are privy to the UFC’s evolution right before our eyes.  The UFC is touted as “the fastest growing sport in the world”, but like all things new, there is still room for improvement.

Those who know me may think I’m championing this leg reach movement  because I’m a disproportionate girl who has problems finding jeans long enough to fit, and you may be right.  But I still  think the addition of this stat not only completes the UFC’s Tale Of The Tape picture, it separates them from every other fighting league.

Dana, you’re welcome.

Thank you to bleacherreport.com for the image

(For the record, I have “placed” in my leagues in all years but one, that I can recall.  This year, I am 2-0 in one league and 1-1 in the other.  And I picked up Cam Newton in  both leagues…)

HOT SCALE (1-10): 10

By now, everyone has likely seen the outcome of the Floyd Mayweather/Victor Ortiz fight.  Things were humming along like a typical Mayweather fight – not doing too much but doing just enough to be winning the fight and letting his opponent wear himself out. Then he turns it up a notch in the 4th round, and even Ortiz lands a punch that took Pretty Boy a solid 30 seconds to shake off.  Ok, this is going to be a fight, I think to myself.

And then I see the head butt.

Now, I’m old enough to vividly remember the Mike Tyson/Evander Holyfield fight when Tyson bit the latter’s ear off.  This wasn’t that bad, but it was still pretty flagrant.  (Ironically, Tyson claimed in the documentary Tyson that he bit Holyfield’s ear in retaliation for Holyfield’s head butting.)  Sure, Ortiz is 10 years younger than Mayweather, but he’s old enough in boxing years to know that head butting has no part in the sport.  It’s not even like a low blow, which is still at least a punch.  I saw it, but I couldn’t fathom at what point in Ortiz’ career he would have ever delivered a “leaping head butt” such that he would resort to such a move in the biggest fight of his life.

I was thinking the referee might disqualify Ortiz since I know that an intentional head butt can be punishable with a DQ, particularly when they cause gashes.  I’m assuming the referee didn’t see that Ortiz’ head butt drew blood on Mayweather’s chin, but in retrospect, the two point deduction for Ortiz was probably appropriate (particularly when Mayweather’s only boxing once a year).

So, I’m still pretty hyped up, yelling at the screen that Ortiz is fighting dirty and (wrongly arguing) that the ref should have stopped the fight.  The fighters reconvene, and appear to hug each other, hands down.  Next thing I know, Mayweather clocks him –  then clocks him again!

I *literally* hopped out of my chair at the restaurant when it happened.  I thought for sure Mayweather was about to have his first loss for punching before the round began.  When I realized this KO was going to stand, I yelled to the waiter “Hand down, man down!” which he got a big kick out of, and he agreed.  (I later learned NBA commentator Mark Jackson also tweeted his now famous saying, which I must say makes WAY more sense in boxing.)

I then got into a debate with my other half over whether it was a dirty punch.  His main premise was that you don’t hug a man then punch him.  I can’t say I’ve ever really been in hand-to-hand combat before (besides in kickboxing class), but at the time, I thought it was hard to cry foul after Ortiz had just done the fouling.  I still thought it might have been a sucker punch, but I was willing to give it a pass.  It’s boxing, after all.  How civil can it be?

We left the restaurant before I could catch Mayweather’s post-bout interview with Larry Merchant, but it was definitely worth the wait.  I won’t post it here because the language is a little strong, but it’s not hard to find.  This picture says it all:

I’m not usually for ignorant behavior, but that might be the most entertaining interview exchange I have ever seen, hands down (no pun intended).  Merchant was brave to put his hand on Mayweather’s shoulder and say what he did, and the fact that Mayweather didn’t clock him, too, only proves that he may be a lot of things but a dummy is not one of them.  I’m guessing that their history of similar-but not-as-amusing exchanges might have something to do with Merchant’s free-talking ways:

Ah, Mayweather.  So entertaining yet so talented.

But it wasn’t until I watched the replay of the KO a few times that I realized what I had actually seen.  From a different angle, Mayweather had his hands up the whole time, and almost pushed Ortiz off, yet Ortiz somehow was still trying to make nice for the headbutt and decided not to start fighting.  The fight had started, and Mayweather did what he was supposed to do –  fight.  He didn’t have an obligation to keep letting Ortiz hug on him when there were only about 10 seconds left in the round.  10 seconds to do some damage.  That’s the part I haven’t seen discussed, but that’s why Mayweather came back so ready to fight.

The fact that Ortiz didn’t read Mayweather’s body language is what got him knocked out. Why the referee wasn’t looking and Ortiz wasn’t keeping his eyes on Mayweather, even though the clock had started, we might never know.

People have asked why Ortiz wasn’t that upset.  My best guesses are: 1) he just got out of the biggest payday of his life relatively unscathed (well, in the short term, anyway) and/or 2) he felt dumb for trying to make nice and not being on guard like he had been taught his whole life.  

Or maybe it was a little bit of both.  I heard that in the 24/7 on HBO leading up to the fight that his corner told him to keep his hands up at all times, so perhaps he has a history of doing this…but it could just be a general comment that is now being blown up, for obvious reasons.

Either way, that will go down as one of the most bizarre sporting moments I have ever seen.  But bizarre sells.  They don’t call him “Money Mayweather” for nothing.

The floor is now open…what say you?

October 11, 2007

So the NCAA has released figures indicating that graduation rates are rising among student athletes at Division I colleges and universities. Of course, the story begins with statistics on the “high-profile” sports like men’s basketball, football, and baseball, and women’s soccer, basketball, volleyball, and softball. They say that men’s basketball graduation rates jumped 8 percent.

Then, in the press release, NCAA President Myles Brand tells a fib :

“NCAA student-athletes are students first, and by and large they are good students,” he said. “They have been afforded the privilege of competing in their chosen sport while pursuing their studies as full-time students, and most of them are handling those twin responsibilities quite well.”

Perhaps he’s referring to the National Civil Aviation Authority, and not the NCAA that employs him, but I’ll stop picking on him, so never mind. It’s B.S., and I don’t mean a bachelor of science.

In whose universe are student-athletes “students” first? Only in the name you call them.  Speaking from personal experience, both what I saw and and heard and what has been told to me, at least some of these “student-athletes” aren’t going to class (not every school allow this), and if they do, several more of them are not doing the work . . .not because they don’t want to (ok, not always) but because the coach and the team’s boosters, who did graduate from that school, don’t want classes to interfere with their playing.  And heck, playing some sports is a full time job. Who would want to do extra work after that kind of grueling schedule?

And if studies did take precedence, then how come they don’t take you to meet the professors on recruiting trips?  No top-grossing athletics university would want school interfere with an athlete’s ability to play their sport. Because if they do, they are going to get lambasted by the press and their classmates for under-performing.

I wanted to save my NCAA rant for the Reggie Bush post, but I think I’ll just jump right into it here.  College sports are only amateur because the NCAA has one of the biggest rackets going. They get, for free, the services of these soon to be pro athletes under the guise of promoting education when nothing could be further from the truth. They exploit their talent, give them a few bucks to attend their school, and get (again for free) what they should be paying for. The players become household names but they don’t get paid a dime for anything, all in the spirit of not tarnishing the “sanctity” of college sports. The NCAA says that a free education is payment enough to these kids, but when they’re making millions while the kids get flack for taking $1 from anyone other than their family, the whole thing smells a little funny.  (It gets even funnier when these players start making millions in the NBA or NFL and then end up giving that money right back, but I digress.)

Once you parse through the minuscule increases in the graduation rates, and keep in mind that these are numbers for people who entered the college or university from 1997 to 2000 and graduated by 2007, you get to the real numbers. The lows. The bottom line is that if a school is graduating less than 1 in 5 of all of its players – or none at all, if you played basketball at the University of Maryland – then these overall increases are irrelevant because somebody is being failed.

Plus, just graduating is not enough. What classes are they taking and what kind of degree are they getting? And more importantly, are they doing the work themselves? I don’t think it’s a big secret that the administrations themselves often do everything they can to make sure that the students pass their classes, by any means necessary. They just don’t trust their student-athletes to do their school work. This does an extreme disservice to the student-athlete, who may have trouble getting another job besides the one and only job they recruited them to do: to play ball.

The student-athletes have suffered enough for far too long with this system.  If they’re not going to really emphasize education in the “high profile” college sports, then so be it, but please don’t insult our intelligence by trying to convince us otherwise.

As every fiber of my being wants to yell a Nick Diaz for blowing the biggest opportunity of his life, I can’t help but think WTF?!

In a bizzare turn of events, Diaz who was scheduled for a title fight against Welterweight champ Georges St. Pierre has been scratched from the UFC 137 card. After inexplicably missing press conferences in Toronto and Las Vegas, UFC President Dana White was forced to find a replacement for Diaz’s absence.

Diaz has clearly lost his mind.  Anyone bold enough to pull a fast one on Dana White is obviously not playing with a full deck of cards.  White had told  Diaz when he approached him about the fight that the amount of money he would make on this one fight would top all other winnings he has ever earned combined! COMBINED!  Not to mention, the notoriety he would gain, and most importantly, his shot at the being the new Welterweight Champ.

So, I repeat, WTF?!

Diaz is known to have anxiety issues when it comes to the media, but I don’t think any ‘ol excuse can justify his unprofessional, erratic behavior.  I think it’s safe to assume that this is more than a social anxiety problem.  In the past, it may have been easy to absolve his absences on press days and chalk it up to his “rebellious” side, or “Diaz being Diaz” but this is straight up ludicrous. (Sidenote: the fact that “Diaz being Diaz” is even considered as a pardon for his “ass hole like” beaviour is unacceptable.  You’re a grown man!)  You can be the baddest (yes, baddest) bad man in the world, not give a what about anything, but you don’t handle the situation like that.  Never like that.

Maybe I’m getting soft, but I actually feel sorry for the guy.  Anyone who can throw away their lifes work; blood, sweat, tears, you name it, for no apparent reason, needs help.

In a league like the UFC where fighters are a dime a dozen with everyone clawing at their shot at stardom, I don’t think Diaz should be tossed to the curb, rather, he needs help now more than ever.  Could this be early signs of CTE rearing its ugly head?  Maybe.  Or maybe Nate really is a prick.  I hope it’s neither.  Selfishly, I just want to enjoy and appreciate Nate doing what he does so well, and that’s being a great fighter.

Here’s to hoping he get’s it together.

HOT SCALE (1-10): 7

I’m not sure if this is an ESPN thing, but I heard no fewer than two different commentators in two vastly different sports question whether there is a need for a commissioner.

On Doug Gottlieb’s radio show, he suggested that the solution to this Texas A&M leaving the Big 12 to join the SEC to chase for the money debacle was to have a college football commissioner who could fairly represent the best interests of college football as a whole.

A few hours later, I listened to John McEnroe push for a commissioner of tennis after several players voiced their disapproval for being rushed out to play on slippery courts at the U.S. Open, allegedly for the sake of making money and pleasing fans.  With the now two-day long rain delay, McEnroe had plenty of time to wax philosophic about the unfairness that players face with their unprotected status, and even promote his book, You Cannot Be Serious, where he apparently discussed this issue at length.

I know commissioners get a bad reputation, particularly in football, but maybe they are, in fact, a necessary evil (kind of like lawyers – it’s ok, I accept it).  What do you think?  Would a commissioner be a good thing for either college football or tennis?*

*Extra credit if you have an opinion on both!