Under the Shadow of a Knight

Basketball

By

Dr. Rodney Blackman

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March 31, 2017

5

Under the Shadow of a Knight — New IU men's basketball head coach Archie Miller addresses the media in a press conference on Monday. Miller will take over for former coach Tom Crean. Photo: Greg Gottfried / Indiana Daily Student

NCAA Men’s Basketball Finals! What an absolutely great time of year. And so interesting! The story lines go on and on…How cool is that! Anything is possible, this time of year, right?

No.

There are some things that are just not possible. These things are beyond us.

They cannot happen – simply – Can. Not. Happen. No matter how hard one might try, or how oddly talented one might be, some things are just not possible – no matter even, what kind of assistance one has…

For example, things like –

Running a 2-minute mile, or…

As a human, traveling the speed of light, or…

Counting to infinity, or…

Actually comprehending how difficult it is to coach men’s basketball at Indiana University – in the shadow of Robert Montgomery Knight.

Former Indiana University head men’s basketball coach Bob Knight. Photo: LM Otero/AP

Dear Archie Miller…just a couple of quick questions – first, where is Dayton? No, nevermind that. But, that’s where you were, right? Ok, so – mmmmmmm, can you tell me – Is it possible to stand in front of thousands of rabidly hungry Indiana basketball fanatics and say…

“Hiya! I actually have no idea what I’m getting into here – but I hear Indiana is a cool place for basketball, and I’m just going to do my sparky hopeful best to win us some games.”

Is that possible? Because that would most precisely be the truth. And, because, no matter what you stand up in front of people and say – that, dear Archie, is what people hear – almost word-for-word. Might as well be blah-blah-blah-blah-blah.

And, Us? Who is us? Who – is – us?!!? Who, are you!?!

“A cool place for basketball?” Are you for real? Do you have any idea about the avalanche of stress and pressure that you just invited into your life!!!??!! We’re talking Indiana, here man. Indiana. IU. Go IU. Go get ‘em, Hoosierboys!

Oh wait – let’s give a shout out for that movie, “Hoosiers,” Great flick, yeah?. We loved it. And an extra special shout out to my boy Scott Summers, whose character in that movie, “Strap,” was a young lad of prayer. Interestingly, as an aside – Scott Summers and I played high school basketball together – guess where? Yup. Brownsburg, Indiana.

But for sure, our dear Archie must start praying now, and he’ll likely need to keep praying…

But – the only people who seem to have any idea how hard it would be to coach men’s basketball at Indiana University, now – still in the shadow of Bobby Knight – are the guys who turn down the job.

Now see, here’s the thing – for years, people have been wishing for Steve Alford to take the job. For years. Decades, even. When I was there as an Associate Instructor, from 1997 – 2002, even then the buzz was to get Alford and usher him right in. But let’s give Steve Alford some credit. He’s a smart guy. It’s not about money for a guy like Alford. If he ever does take the job coaching at Indiana University, it will be because, for whatever reason, he can do so without being under the shadow of a Knight.

By Dr. Rodney J. Blackman

Dr. Rodney J. Blackman is the Chair of Recreation Management at the United States Sports Academy, and can be reached at [email protected].

Women’s History Month Ends With USA Women’s Team Getting a New Deal

Gender Issues

By

Evan Weiner

-

March 31, 2017

0

Women’s History Month Ends With USA Women’s Team Getting a New Deal — In this Nov. 4, 2014, file photo, Team United States' Monique Lamoureux, right, celebrates her goal against Team Finland with teammate Alex Carpenter The U.S. women's hockey team had threatened to boycott the world championships because of a wage dispute. Photo: Jeff Bassett / AP

For a few days, the labor dispute between the United States Women’s Hockey Team and USA Hockey was a big story. The women’s team threatened to sit out the world championships without a collective bargaining agreement. A deal was struck and the team will take part in the tournament. The women’s team has achieved parity with the men’s team in travel and insurance costs.

In 1967, hockey was little more than a back-burner sport with sparse interest in the United States and that had much to do with National Hockey League owners refusing to expand the game.

The Original Six marketing tool is more about ineptitude than a misty-eyed look back. The NHL was whittled down to a six-team league because of World War II when the Brooklyn Americans franchise, which played in Manhattan’s Madison Square Garden suspended operations in 1942 because Red Dutton didn’t think he would have enough players for the 1942-43 season. The NHL retired the franchise in 1946. From 1942 through 1967, there were three American teams who at one time were in some way controlled by the Norris family in Chicago and Detroit by team ownership and in New York with the arena ownership.

The league had teams in Boston, Montreal and Toronto. The NHL turned down an application for the dormant Montreal Maroons to surface in Philadelphia in 1946 and proposals from interested owners in Los Angeles and San Francisco in the 1940s and Cleveland in the 1950s were rejected. The NHL only expanded in 1966 because television money was available in the United States and the Western Hockey League with teams along the Pacific coast threatened to claim major league status.

The NHL today is international in scope, women’s hockey grew out of expansion and Title IX, a US federal law which gave girls greater educational opportunities. The Original Six impeded the growth of the hockey.

By Evan Weiner For The Politics Of Sports Business

This article was republished with permission from the original publisher, Evan Weiner.

Wasserman: LA 2024 an ‘Opportunity, not an Ultimatum’

Olympics

By

The Sport Intern

-

March 31, 2017

0

Wasserman: LA 2024 an ‘Opportunity, not an Ultimatum’ — Casey Wasserman, chair of Los Angeles 2028, speaks at a news conference in Los Angeles, California, U.S., January 25, 2017. Photo: REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson

Have you ever asked yourself why you really love the Olympic and Paralympic Games? Because they’re the world’s greatest spectacle of sport? Because we glimpse what human athletes are capable of at their best? Or, because it’s something more ethereal, more sublime – more, human? I think we love the Games for their universal values, expressed so simply to all humanity through sport. That’s their secret; yet, it’s a precious secret that, as we are seeing in these challenging times, needs protecting and care to endure.

The Games also need cities, and in recent years, several have withdrawn from bidding for the Games because of cost concerns and dwindling public support. In response, the International Olympic Committee is considering awarding both the 2024 and 2028 Games together, to ensure that both remaining Candidate Cities are winners.

But only one city offers a sustainable solution for the future of the Olympic Movement in 2024 and beyond. That’s Los Angeles.

To thrive in the future, the Games need to be connected to it. This process must begin in September of this year when the IOC chooses the 2024 Host City because the Movement cannot wait until July 2024 to get it right.

In my city, there is an unshakeable public confidence for the Games. Even after Boston 2024 withdrew, LA’s faith in the Olympic Movement encouraged us to step forward with our city’s 10th Olympic bid – a global record. According to an independent poll by Loyola Marymount University, 88% of Angelenos support our bid a city where almost 40% of the population was born outside the US. That’s called unity, not diversity.

And crucially, 88% of LA’s 18-34-year-old population supports our bid. This is important because it was precisely this age group that led to the demise of the Budapest 2024 bid. But the IOC does not have to be concerned about young adults in LA; our city is an oasis of Olympic optimism at a time when it is greatly needed by the Movement. And, our technology and our storytellers speak to this generation every day.

But, given enough negative and challenging news, no city is forever immune from the anti-Olympic voices. LA 2024’s unique offer to the Olympic Movement – over-whelming public support, zero-risk budget, a proven Olympic legacy and unparalleled connectivity with youth around the world isn’t timeless; therefore, it must be activated now to give LA 2024 and the IOC seven years to help stabilize the Olympic world. We fear that the Olympic Movement’s current detractors will be emboldened by a choice for 2024 other than LA, because only LA offers a true example for repeatable Olympic success for future Host Cities.

As the IOC’s partner, LA 2024 will focus on the future instead of the past. This bid campaign isn’t about whether a city is capable of hosting the Games – it’s about which city is best suited to serve the future of the Olympic Movement.

The 2024/2028 strategy under consideration by the IOC is precisely the type of new thinking that the Movement needs. But, it only works if the IOC chooses the right 2024 city – the city that brings new ideas and new solutions to the Games – not more of the same. So instead of “now or never,” we think the IOC should focus on “new, or more of the same?” That city is LA; and by the way, LA 2024 is not an ultimatum, LA 2024 is an opportunity. But as in life, opportunities only exist for brief windows of time.

LA offers the Movement a “no surprises” plan that can help restore the credibility of the Games, ensure financial stability for the Olympic Movement and create new opportunities to engage with young people around the world. LA’s vision for 2024 is relevant now, and cannot wait until 2028. Those of us who love the Olympic and Paralympic Movement can’t afford more of the same.

By Casey Wasserman

Casey Wasserman is the chairman of the Los Angeles 2024 Candidature Committee.

This story first appeared in the blog, The Sport Intern. The editor is Karl-Heinz Huba of Lorsch, Germany. He can be reached at [email protected]. The article is reprinted here with permission of Huba.

Reviewing Tournament Success from the ‘One-and-Done’ Era

Basketball

By

Benjamin Billman

-

March 31, 2017

0

Reviewing Tournament Success from the ‘One-and-Done’ Era — Former UCLA freshman Lonzo Ball. Photo: AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli

The 2017 NCAA tournament was packed with fantastic freshmen. Jayson Tatum was primed for a breakout performance for Duke. Lonzo Ball was ready to back up his dad’s praise by leading UCLA to the Final Four. De’Aaron Fox and Malik Monk formed the best backcourt in the country. Josh Jackson was a vital cog in the winning machine at Kansas. Other freshmen such as Lauri Markkanen at Arizona, Jonathan Isaac at Florida State, and Miles Bridges at Michigan State all showed flashes of brilliance and will more than likely become lottery picks in this summer’s NBA draft. Unfortunately, or fortunately based on who’s judging, all of the aforementioned players could not reach the peak of college basketball by having their respective teams advance to the Final Four.

The battle rages on as to the NBA rules that force basketball players to attend college for one season before becoming eligible for the draft. The 2006 draft was the first in which high school players had to wait one year to be eligible to enter the NBA, and thus the one-and-done era began. There is no question that many of these players have gone on to greatness in the NBA, but the question remains on how it has affected the college game. Can teams that recruit these high-level players be competitive at the highest level and win national championships? Let’s break it down by looking at each college basketball season to see if these talented freshmen have led to national success in the NCAA tournament.

2006: There were no key players in this year’s freshmen mix that played large roles in college basketball. Tyrus Thomas of LSU was a redshirt freshman, so he was actually in college for two seasons before going pro. His team did advance to the Final Four. Shawne Williams out of Memphis was a first round pick, and he was one of the key players in helping them reach the Elite Eight. Florida won the title with sophomores and juniors.

2007: This was the first year in which one-and-done players emerged as key components in college basketball. Ohio State featured Greg Oden, Mike Conley, and Daequan Cook. They advanced all the way to the national championship game before losing to a deep and experienced Florida team featuring Al Horford and Joakim Noah. Kevin Durant played one season at Texas where he averaged nearly 26 points per game. He was unable to lead the Longhorns past the first weekend of the NCAA tournament. Georgia Tech had two players in Thaddeus Young and Javaris Crittenton that both left after one season. The Yellow Jackets did win 20 games but lost to UNLV in the first round of the NCAA tournament. While the results in 2007 were mixed, coaches and fans did see the benefits of recruiting one-and-done talent in order to be successful.

2008: Two Final Four teams were led by freshmen. Derrick Rose, the No. 1 selection in the NBA draft, took Memphis all the way to the national championship game before losing in overtime to a Kansas team that featured many upperclassmen. Kevin Love was vital in helping UCLA reach their 3^rd consecutive Final Four, but they lost in the national semifinals to Memphis. A few other players such as Michael Beasley at Kansas State and O.J. Mayo at USC both got their teams to the NCAA tournament but had very little success.

2009: No one-and-done players were able to make a mark in the NCAA Tournament this season. North Carolina, which featured senior Tyler Hansbrough, cut down the nets in Detroit. Tyreke Evans, who was the 4^th pick in the 2009 NBA draft, had moderate success by helping Memphis make the Sweet Sixteen. The Final Four featured no key freshmen that left after one season.

2010: John Calipari arrived at Kentucky in 2009. That is all you need to know about where this article is about to go. Freshmen John Wall, DeMarcus Cousins, Eric Bledsoe, and Daniel Orton announced their arrival by leading Kentucky to the Elite Eight. Unfortunately they lost to a talented West Virginia squad led by senior Da’Sean Butler. While the season ended in disappointed for the Wildcats, the seed had been planted in Lexington for future recruiting classes. Xavier Henry was a highly touted freshman at Kansas, but they were shocked by Northern Iowa in the 2^nd round of the NCAA tournament. In the end, the national final featured Duke and Butler, two experienced squads with players that had been developed over multiple seasons.

2011: Kentucky advanced to the Final Four with talented freshman Brandon Knight, but they lost to eventual national champion Connecticut. UConn was led by Kemba Walker, a player who had already played in the 2009 Final Four. The Final Four also featured veteran teams in VCU and Butler. Kyrie Irving was injured for most of the season at Duke but returned in time for the NCAA tournament. Duke lost in the Sweet Sixteen to Arizona. Texas featured two talented freshmen in Tristan Thompson and Cory Joseph, but they were unable to get past Arizona in the 2^nd round.

2012: By many accounts, this was the most successful season for one-and-done players. Kentucky won the national championship with Anthony Davis, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, and Marquis Teague leading the way. They showed no signs of immaturity in taking down experienced teams Louisville and Kansas in the national semifinals and final. This has been the crowning achievement of John Calipari’s tenure at Kentucky. Bradley Beal led a young Florida team to the Elite Eight before losing to an experienced Louisville squad.

2013: Things hit rock bottom with freshmen this season. No one-and-done player of significance played much of a role on any of the Final Four teams. Louisville, the national champion, was loaded with experience. Michigan, the national runner-up, was young, but no players were one-year talents. Syracuse and Wichita State were both veteran teams in the Final Four. Ben McLemore of Kansas recorded a nice season, but they lost to Michigan in the Sweet Sixteen. Kentucky did not even make the NCAA tournament. Nerlens Noel missed a majority of the season with injuries, and the Wildcats lost to Robert Morris in the 1^st round of the NIT.

2014: This was a deep year for talented freshmen, but the results were mixed. Kansas featured Andrew Wiggins and Joel Embiid, but they lost in the 2^nd round to Wichita State. Jabari Parker was a star at Duke, but they were upset in the 1^st round by Mercer. Kentucky had a roller-coaster in which they were on the cusp of missing the NCAA tournament at different points during the season. They caught fire in March though and advanced all the way to the national championship before losing to a Connecticut team featuring talented senior leader Shabazz Napier. Julius Randle and James Young were the two young talents for Kentucky who left after one season. Veteran squads Wisconsin and Florida also advanced to the Final Four.

2015: The most important game of the one-and done era occurred in the national semifinal when undefeated Kentucky faced off against experienced Wisconsin. Kentucky featured freshmen Karl-Anthony Towns, Trey Lyles, and Devin Booker along with some holdovers from the previous season. They were 38-0 entering the game against Wisconsin. The Badgers had Frank Kaminsky, Sam Dekker, and a slew of other players that had been in the program for multiple seasons. The game was close, but Wisconsin pulled out the victory. While the talented freshmen of Kentucky failed to take down Wisconsin, the national championship was a different story. Duke, who also featured multiple one-and-done players, defeated Wisconsin. Jahlil Okafor, Justise Winslow, and Tyus Jones led the way for the Blue Devils. For the second time in the one-and-done era, a team full of freshmen won a national championship.

2016: Of the 30 first round picks in the 2016 NBA draft, 10 were freshmen. Of those 10 freshmen, only Malachi Richardson of Syracuse saw his team make a deep run in the NCAA tournament. The best freshman in the country, Ben Simmons, couldn’t lead LSU to the tournament. Kentucky freshmen Jamal Murray and Skal Labissiere couldn’t get past Indiana in the 2^nd round. It was an overall disappointing season for one-and-done players. The Final Four featured experienced teams in Villanova, North Carolina, Oklahoma, and Syracuse. The championship game ended with amazing heroics first from UNC’s Marcus Paige and then Villanova’s Kris Jenkins on a game-winning buzzer beater.

2017: The Final Four is full of experienced rosters even though the freshmen earned a lot of the press entering the tournament. South Carolina, Gonzaga, Oregon, and North Carolina are all led by juniors and seniors who rely heavily on experience. The projected #1 draft pick Markelle Fultz failed to get to the NCAA tournament with Washington. Lonzo Ball had a phenomenal year at UCLA, but he had a poor game in a loss to Kentucky in the Sweet Sixteen. Josh Jackson at Kansas was a game away from the Final Four, but his team lost to Oregon. Jayson Tatum at Duke lost in the 2^nd round to South Carolina. The most successful freshmen were Malik Monk and De’Aaron Fox at Kentucky. It took a last second shot from Luke Maye at North Carolina in the Elite Eight to knock them out.

Conclusion: Other than Kentucky in 2012 and Duke in 2015, the teams dominated by one-and-done talent have for the most part fallen short of expectations in the NCAA tournament. As mentioned earlier, the 2015 Kentucky Wildcats will go down as a great example of experience beating potential when they lost to Wisconsin in the national semifinals. John Calipari has taken full advantage of the NBA rules and annually gets the best recruits. Opinions differ on how successful he has been overall with the talent he accumulates every season. Some say that he has done a great job of bringing together big talents with even bigger egos and gets them to play as a team. Others argue that with that much talent, the Wildcats should be winning national titles every year.

In the end, there is an annual influx of talented that freshmen that are in college only because the NBA forces them to be. In my opinion, there should be no restrictions on players jumping straight from high school to the pros. The current crop that will be in the 2017 NBA draft all would have been just fine in the NBA without a year in college. It is a pity they lose out on a year of salary and have to pretend to be interested in the college they attend. In many ways they are using their respective schools as a spring board to the pros, and the schools use the athletes by making millions in revenue. Overall though, the NCAA tournament results haven’t been affected much by the one-and-done rule. Experience and veteran leadership still rules college basketball.

By Ben Billman

Ben Billman is currently a doctoral teaching assistant at the United States Sports Academy. He lives in Mobile, Ala. with his wife Jennifer and son Derrick. He is originally from Indiana, and therefore has a deep love for the game of basketball. Reach him at [email protected].

Mike Rowbottom: Why Sport and Statuary Rarely Mix Well

Social Media

By

Inside The Games

-

March 30, 2017

0

Mike Rowbottom: Why Sport and Statuary Rarely Mix Well — Photo: Rafael Marchante / Reuters

Is there anything more awkward than discovering that a statue of yourself looks nothing like you?

I cannot answer this question as it has not yet happened to me. But Cristiano Ronaldo could, if he were so minded, having seen the bronze version of his own good self that was presented to public view this week at Madeira Airport – henceforth to be known as Aeroporto Cristiano Ronaldo.

The local boy made good. But, sadly, the local boy was not made good. The bust in his honour is a fine resemblance – but not of him.

As many kind souls have taken to social media to point out, the sculptor has done an impressive job in capturing the former Arsenal, Manchester City and Ireland forward Niall Quinn. Or perhaps the former Charlton, West Ham and England full back Paul Konchesky.

Looking closely again at the bust in question, it has at least got one detail of the Real Madrid and Portugal forward’s features right – the parting is spot on.

A few miles down the road in Madeira – which has already named a hotel after Ronaldo and established his personal museum – there is another full statue of him on display.

It is certainly recognizable as a man in football kit. And, again, the parting is impressively reminiscent of the real thing. That apart…

A few years ago Lillian Bolt, the outspoken aunt of track and field superstar Usain Bolt, expressed her frustration over stalled plans to erect a statue of her famous nephew in his Jamaican birthplace of Falmouth, Trelawny.

“He has dominated the world like no other athlete, he caused the world to watch athletics again, and most important, achieved more than any other track athlete, yet no monumental recognition, not even a statue, not even a bust,” she raged to the local press.

“He is a foreigner in all the other countries that he visits, but they have shown that they value his worth more than his own people.

“The Bible is never wrong, a prophet has no honor in his own country, and that is so true with Usain.”

In the meantime other countries have honored him with a range of representation. There is a floral statue of him in Birmingham, a waxworks version at Madame Tussauds in London and, in Germany, an effort entitled “Bolt of Bolts”, composed entirely of spare bolts and scrap metal.

Careful what you wish for, Aunt Lillian…

That said, it has been confirmed this month that plans are well advanced for an eight-foot statue of Bolt – who has said he will retire after running at this summer’s World Championships in London – to be erected at Jamaica’s National Stadium in Kingston in time for the independence celebrations in August.

The statue, commissioned by the Jamaican Ministry, is being designed and created by renowned Jamaican sculptor Basil Watson.

It sounds as if it might turn out to be a success. If so, it would be in a minority as far as sporting tributes of this kind are concerned.

It is simply hard to remember any good ones – and easy to recall representations that have fallen short of their noble intentions.

The statues of West Ham’s three heroes of England’s 1966 World Cup victory, Bobby Moore, Geoff Hurst and Martin Peters, along with Everton’s Ray Wilson, who was part of the scene that was recreated in bronze, celebrate the peak of home football prowess and also stand as a memorial to the great captain, Moore, following his premature death in 1993.

The West Ham Champions statue at Upton Park – left to right, Martin Peters, Geoff Hurst, Bobby Moore (aloft), Ray Wilson. Photo: By Mat Macwilliam at English Wikipedia

Nothing could be more fitting.

But for all the attention to detail in the pose, with Moore hoisted as he had been on that early summer evening of July 30 on the shoulders of Hurst and Wilson, the faces are unlike any of the players represented. Sorry, but if you are going for accurate representation, make it accurate.

The single statue of Moore at Wembley is better – but I’m sorry, for me Brian it just does not look like Bobby Moore…

There was a similarly well-intentioned and poorly executed statue of Sir Bobby Robson erected at Newcastle United F.C.

But that was a model of verisimilitude compared to some other sporting statuary created in recent years around the world.

Perhaps two of the worst are those created to celebrate the achievements of the Barcelona and Cameroon forward Samuel Eto’o, and the former England manager Sven Goran Eriksson.

The strange representation of the late Michael Jackson that was erected outside Fulham FC’s ground in 2011 by then owner Mohammed Fayed, a friend of the singer, was widely execrated for its inaccuracy and inappropriateness.

Louisa Buck, contemporary art correspondent for The Art newspaper, described it as “a spectacularly bad piece of kitsch that doesn’t even look all that much like Michael Jackson.”

Change the name around, and it is a description that would fit many a sporting statue around the world.

But not the one outside Leeds United F.C depicting their former midfielder Billy Bremner.

Yes, the arms are too big and too long to be completely representational. But the overall effect is a convincing recreation of that exasperating but eternally effervescent player.

Similarly, the representation at the Nou Camp of Johan Cruyff, the celebrated Barcelona and Netherlands star who died last year, is unequivocally abstract.

Yet it conveys something of the essential element of a footballer who holds his place in the company of Pele, Maradona, Lionel Messi and…who else was it? Ah yes. Cristiano Ronaldo.

By Mike Rowbottom

Republished with permission from insidethegames.biz.

Armour: The Missing Numbers in Roy Williams’ Record Book

Basketball

By

Nancy Armour

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March 30, 2017

0

Armour: The Missing Numbers in Roy Williams’ Record Book — North Carolina men's basketball coach Roy Williams. Photo: By U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class David Danals, via Wikimedia Commons

North Carolina is happy to tout a laundry list of Roy Williams’ numbers. Wins and ACC titles, for example. Or Final Four appearances.

(This is two in a row, for those counting, and fifth in 14 years.)

There’s one number, however, on which North Carolina is noticeably silent: Williams’ total compensation. Specifically, the money he gets from outside sources. That includes money from shoe contracts, basketball camps, speaking engagements and TV and radio shows — sums that surely dwarf his base salary.

Williams and North Carolina aren’t alone, either. An annual review of coaches’ pay by USA TODAY Sports found more and more state schools have stopped collecting information on outside income and benefits paid to their coaches.

What NCAA Tournament Coaches Make: Salary Database

“Coaches are going to hit $10 million a year,” said Dan Rascher, a sports economist who is the academic director for the Sport Management program at the University of San Francisco. “That’s just crazy. Regular people are going to be like, `What is happening?’ So I think part of this is trying to slow that train down or keep our eyes off of it.”

The NCAA used to require schools to collect information on income and benefits that any athletic department employees received from outside sources. Most schools would disclose that information but some, including North Carolina’s flagship university, refused.

Tired of policing what could range from a single pair of shoes to a multi-million shoe contract, the schools’ representatives on Division I’s top governing bodies dropped the reporting requirement last spring. Lo and behold, with no obligation to track the extra income, many schools are deciding they can’t be bothered.

This isn’t pocket change, either. South Carolina’s Frank Martin gets a cool $1.9 million for endorsements and radio and TV appearances. That’s in addition to his base salary of $350,000 and a supplement from the school of $200,000.

Technically, Martin’s $1.9 million is not considered outside income because South Carolina negotiated the deals and they were then written into Martin’s contract. But that’s just legalese. He’s getting paid by outside entities, just as Williams is.

And considering Williams’ accomplishments — and the fact his base compensation of almost $2.1 million this year ranks 24th among the 63 coaches whose teams made the NCAA tournament and for whom financial information is available — it’s safe to say he’s getting at least what Martin is from outside sources and probably more.

Much more.

But we won’t know because North Carolina won’t make it public. Won’t configure Williams’ contract to ensure the outside income is transparent, either.

“It’s uncomfortable for them and creates lots of questions. Why is the highest-paid employee in the state often a head football coach?” said Rascher, who has testified against the NCAA in cases involving economics. “So I understand why they want to keep this information hidden from the public.

“But at the same time, they are government employees, and these payments pertain to jobs as government employees.”

Now, it’s true the money from the side gigs isn’t coming out of the pockets of taxpayers. But that’s beside the point. The money, as Rascher said, is a byproduct of being a state employee. Or, as the old saying goes, the name on the front of the uniform is a heck of a lot more important than the one on the back.

Sure, someone like Williams could retire and still command a contract from Nike or have kids lining up to attend his basketball camps. But he’s one of a small number of coaches who could do that. Most have drawing power because of the school they represent.

A school that’s funded by taxpayers.

Think about it this way: If a governor or state legislator was getting money from outside sources, particularly companies or people who could influence their decisions, there would be a ferocious uproar if the details weren’t disclosed.

Why should the outside income and benefits these coaches get be considered any differently?

“On the surface, it doesn’t matter. But it gets down to, to me, fundamental fairness,” said B. David Ridpath, an associate professor of sports administration at Ohio and fellow at the Center for College Affordability and Productivity.

“How much control does that outside entity have over that coach? … Who’s having influence?” asked Ridpath, the compliance director at Marshall from 1997 to 2001. “That always worries me, and I think we need to be completely upfront from where these payments are coming in.

“We would worry about it if it was the mayor, we would worry about it if it was a congressman,” Ridpath added, “and I think we should ask the same questions of who’s really controlling college athletics.”

Oh, we have. With nothing requiring schools to track outside income and benefits anymore, however, don’t count on many answers. Or anything close to transparency.

It’s all well and good to brag about wins and losses. But those aren’t the only numbers that matter.

By Nancy Armour

This article was republished with permission from the original author and 2015 Ronald Reagan Media Award recipient, Nancy Armour, and the original publisher, USA Today. Follow columnist Nancy Armour on Twitter @nrarmour.

Olympic Bidding Process is ‘Toxic,’ Former IOC Marketing Director Says

IOC

By

Inside The Games

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March 30, 2017

0

Olympic Bidding Process is ‘Toxic,’ Former IOC Marketing Director Says — In this photo taken Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2015, two cormorants fly over the coast in the Black Sea resort of Sochi, Russia. One year after Russia hosted the Winter Games, most of the Olympic venues stand empty and billionaires that the Kremlin asked to foot half of the bill are in a hurry to offload the unprofitable assets. Photo: AP Photo/Dmitry Lovetsky

Former International Olympic Committee (IOC) marketing director Michael Payne has claimed that the bid process for the Olympic Games has become “toxic” and requires significant change.

Payne’s comments here at SportsPro Live come at a time when Los Angeles and Paris are the only two remaining bidders for the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

It is a two-horse race after the unprecedented decision of three cities – Hamburg, Rome and Budapest – to withdraw during the process due to local opposition.

There are also fears that cities, particularly in Western Europe, are less willing to bid for the Olympics.

Such is the apparent reluctance, the possibility has been raised of awarding both the 2024 and 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games at the IOC Session in Peru’s capital Lima on September 13.

Both Los Angeles and Paris, however, have claimed they are each only interested in 2024.

Speaking in a session entitled “Is this the end of mega-events as we know it?”, 59-year-old Payne said “it’s not the end of mega events”, but “it is the end of bidding for them as we currently know.”

“I think the IOC is facing a perfect storm and the whole bidding process has become toxic and it’s requiring significant change,” he added.

“And I think the reason why it’s declining is actually very simple.

“It’s the media, or more specifically the social media, and the way that the social media is impacting on all aspects of all institutions from Governments – and to this extent International Federations and global sports bodies are not immune – and the way social media is empowering a debate in the local community about whether to stage an event is a good idea or not.

“Politicians are being faced with having to justify whether it’s a good idea or not and most politicians, most sports bodies, have done a very poor job at explaining the rationale.”

Payne believes much of the problem stems from mixing the capital, infrastructural costs and the actual operating costs of hosting the Games.

In December, Tokyo 2020 unveiled a budget of between $14.4 billion and $16.2 billion.

It was down from the the maximum budget cap of $18 billion cited by Tokyo 2020 President Yoshirō Mori the previous month.

Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike warned last month, however, that the budget could still spiral to as much as $27 billion.

Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike. By Copyright by World Economic Forum (www.weforum.org) – originally posted to Flickr as Yuriko Koike – World Economic Forum on the Middle East 2008, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=4482282

But Payne said here that much of the cost increases have got nothing to do with the Olympics, claiming “it’s infrastructural issues across the other side of the country.”

In terms of the Winter Olympics, he believes the Games are suffering from the legacy of Sochi 2014 which it is claimed cost more than $50 billion.

This is despite the operating budget being far lower at $2.2 billion.

The following Winter Olympic bidding race for 2022 was marred by lost referendums in Polish city Kraków, Munich in Germany and Davos in Switzerland, with China’s capital Beijing ultimately going on to be awarded the Games against sole rival Almaty.

“They [Sochi 2014] were great Games, but President [Vladimir] Putin thought he was doing everyone a favour by saying ‘I’m going to spend $50 billion – this is going to be great,'” Payne said.

“And as a result, every town and village in Switzerland, Austria, Scandinavia [were thinking] $50 billion?

“Forget it, we can’t stage the Olympic Games.

“The IOC at the time should have immediately stepped in and said the cost of the Games is $2 billion, which is pretty well funded by private money.

“The $48 billion is infrastructure; nothing to do with the Olympics.

“It’s an infrastructure for re-building the region and the IOC should have banned the use of the word ‘Olympic’ to do with anything on infrastructure.

“You can then begin to have a debate – what is the cost of the Games versus the infrastructural development?

“Because if you understand that the cost of an Olympic Games is only $2 billion, and you’ve already got all the venues, that’s a totally different discussion.”

By Daniel Etchells

Republished with permission from insidethegames.biz.

Magic Johnson Among Sports Leaders to Join LA 2024 Board

Olympics

By

Inside The Games

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March 30, 2017

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Magic Johnson Among Sports Leaders to Join LA 2024 Board — Earvin "Magic" Johnson. Photo: Associated Press

Basketball legend Earvin “Magic” Johnson is among the several owners and executives from American sports teams to have joined Los Angeles 2024’s Board of Directors.

Johnson, who was appointed as a vice-chair of the Californian city’s bid for the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games in November 2015, is a leading figure at four teams across four different sports.

He owns Major League Baseball’s (MLB) LA Dodgers, Major League Soccer’s (MLS) LAFC and Women’s National Basketball Association’s (NBA) LA Sparks, while he serves as President of basketball operations at NBA’s LA Lakers.

Johnson is one of the most well-known figures in basketball having won the NBA title five times with the Lakers and the Olympic gold medal in 1992 with the United States’ so-called “Dream Team” in Barcelona.

The hall-of-famer became an entrepreneur, philanthropist and motivational speaker after his retirement from the sport and the 57-year-old is currently chairman and chief executive of Magic Johnson Enterprises, which provides services and products to ethnically diverse communities.

He will be joined on the LA 2024 Board by a further 12 representatives, including LA Dodgers President and chief executive Stan Kasten, who is also the owner of LA Sparks.

Dan Beckerman, the Governor of the MLS’s LA Galaxy and the National Hockey League’s (NHL) LA Kings, also features on the list.

Other MLB representatives are Mark Attanasio, the owner and chairman of the Milwaukee Brewers, and Larry Baer, President and chief executive of the San Francisco Giants.

LA Clippers owner Steve Ballmer is one of five other Board members from the NBA along with LA Lakers owner and Governor Jeanie Buss, Atlanta Hawks owner Tony Ressler, Boston Celtics co-owner and managing partner Steve Pagliuca, and Detroit Pistons owner Tom Gores.

Completing the line-up are two representatives of the National Football League (NFL) – LA Rams chief operating officer Kevin Demoff and New York Giants co-owner and chairman Steve Tisch – and LA Kings co-owner Ed Roski, Jr.

LA 2024 say the owners and executives will lend their talent and expertise in sports presentation, promotion and community engagement to help the Bidding Committee create a new Games for a new era.

“LA 2024 is fortunate to have many of America’s top professional sports team owners and executives on our Board of Directors, lending their talent and expertise to our work to create an innovative, low-risk and sustainable Games in 2024,” LA 2024 chairman Casey Wasserman said.

“LA 2024 is focused on the future of the Olympic Movement, and as we look to help all Olympic sports grow and access America’s $250 billion sports market, our Board members’ strategic insight and deep experience will be invaluable.

“On behalf of all of us at LA 2024, I want to thank our Board members for supporting our work to bring the Olympic and Paralympic Games back to the United States.”

It is claimed Los Angeles’ professional sports teams sell more than 12 million sports event tickets annually – more than the annual attendance of some of Europe’s top football leagues.

“Consulting with the top executives in professional sports, LA 2024 seeks to grow every Olympic and Paralympic sport in the $250 billion US sports market and worldwide, and connect International Federations with America’s 100 million young people,” a statement from the Bidding Committee reads.

Los Angeles are up against Paris in the race to stage the 2024 Games.

The International Olympic Committee is due to choose a host city at its Session in Peru’s capital Lima in September.

By Daniel Etchells

Republished with permission from insidethegames.biz.

Nightengale: Cubs’ 2017 Challenge at Hand: From Revelry to World Series Repeat

MLB

By

Bob Nightengale

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March 29, 2017

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Nightengale: Cubs’ 2017 Challenge at Hand: From Revelry to World Series Repeat — Oct 28, 2016; Chicago, IL, USA; Chicago Cubs manager Joe Maddon (70) smiles before game three of the 2016 World Series against the Cleveland Indians at Wrigley Field. Mandatory Credit: Jerry Lai-USA TODAY Sports

The Chicago Cubs clubhouse is littered with strewn boxes, clubhouse attendants furiously going in and out of the door, loading luggage and equipment onto the huge orange moving van in the parking lot.

It’s just like the start of any other season, the Cubs kept saying Tuesday, getting ready to move out of their spring training home, preparing for the 2017 season.

But, come on, who are they fooling? This has been a spring like no other.

Huey Lewis stopped by to sing Take Me out to the Ball Game, while Jimmy Kimmel stretched out behind home plate. The folks from 60 Minutes dropped in for interviews. Cubs President Theo Epstein was declared the world’s greatest leader by Fortune magazine. And Mesa became Chicago’s most popular tourist destination, with legions of fans camped out every morning just to see their favorite players walking by them.

You didn’t need to see the large decal on the moving van, the one reading “World Champion Cubs,” to know this will be a season no living Cubs player has experienced.

When the Cubs play Sunday night against the St. Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium, it will be the first time in 16,945 games they will open the season as defending World Series champions.

There were no rings or even a trophy commemorating the triumph when the Cubs last won, in 1908.

Now, for the entire season, wherever they go, whoever they play, they will be reminded they are World Series champions, with an inquiring nation wanting to know if they can dare repeat.

Chicago’s Ben Zobrist was named the World Series MVP. Photo: SI.com

“We’ve got to find a way to forget everything that happened,” Cubs second baseman Ben Zobrist said. “You’ve got to move past it, and it won’t be easy. We’re not going to be able to really do that until after the ring ceremony.

“Once we have that in the bag, then we’ll really have to turn the page.”

The problem is the Cubs won’t have the ring ceremony at Wrigley Field until April 12, eight games into the season. They desperately want to get off to the same hot start of a year ago when they went 25-6 and built an 8½-game lead in the National League Central race.

“We had open dialogue with our players about these moments, whether it’s raising the pennant or the ring ceremony,” Epstein said. “We collectively decided that the best way we can honor 2016 and everything that happened before us is to continue to put the team first and come together as a ballclub.

“That’s the best way to honor it, so when we see the trophy, when we see the ring, it reminds us of the small sacrifices that the players have made, the culture that they built. When you win, you can either get complacent or hungrier.

“Our guys have definitely got hungrier.”

The Cubs, who won 103 games last year, and 200 over the last two seasons, are vying to become the second NL franchise in 95 years to win back-to-back World Series championships, joining the 1975-76 Cincinnati Reds.

Then again, there are 29 other teams that will do everything in their power to make sure it doesn’t happen.

The Cubs are heavily favored to again win the NL Central, but the New York Mets, Los Angeles Dodgers, Washington Nationals and San Francisco Giants are all expected to stand in the way in the quest for the NL pennant.

The same American League teams that were in the postseason a year ago are favored to return. Yes, we’re talking about the Cleveland Indians, Boston Red Sox, Toronto Blue Jays and Texas Rangers, with perhaps the Houston Astros supplanting the Baltimore Orioles.

“If you want to talk about a team that’s hungry,” Cubs catcher Miguel Montero said, “how about the Indians? Man, are they good.”

The Indians, who took the Cubs to 10 innings in Game 7 of the World Series, could win 100 games, executives and scouts widely predicted this spring.

Maybe even by Labor Day.

While we eagerly await to see if we’ll have our first World Series rematch since the New York Yankees and Dodgers in 1977-78, we’ll be curiously watching whether the Seattle Mariners end baseball’s longest active postseason drought at 15 years. Whether the Mets will return to the World Series for the second time in three years. Whether the Nationals will get their first postseason series win. Whether the game’s best pitcher, Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw, will be in his first World Series. Whether the game’s best player, Mike Trout of the Los Angeles Angels, will get his first postseason game win. Whether the Giants can win a World Series in an odd year. Or whether this is really the year of the Astros.

“It doesn’t matter what we did last year, or anyone else did, either,” Montero said. “You’ve got to flip the switch. Everyone needs to move on and start over, because on Sunday, we’re all 0-0.

“The reality is that we won last year. And the reality is that we have a legitimate chance to do it again. Will we do it?

“I think the world is waiting to find out.”

By Bob Nightengale

This article was republished with permission from the original publisher, USA Today. Follow Bob Nightengale on Twitter and Facebook.

Academy Displays Complete Set of Rio 2016 Olympic Games Posters at Museum

Olympics

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Subscriber_Mann-aaf

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March 29, 2017

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Academy Displays Complete Set of Rio 2016 Olympic Games Posters at Museum — United States Sports Academy

The United States Sports Academy is continuing a longstanding tradition of collecting and displaying official Olympic posters by adding a full set of official Rio 2016 Olympic Games posters to the American Sport Art Museum & Archives (ASAMA) public sports art collection.

The Rio 2016 poster collection, which includes all 15 official posters from the Games, will be displayed on campus as part of the Academy’s public sports art collection at ASAMA. The collection includes 13 official posters, as well as posters featuring the logos for the Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Representing all aspects of culture and sport in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, the colorful and imaginative posters were displayed at Deodoro Olympic Park during the Games, then distributed to local schools at their conclusion. The posters feature a wide range of topics – a muscular runner on Copacabana Beach, a child flying a kite, fishing and the sea – to more traditional Olympic representations of the five rings, the Olympic Torch and the laurel wreath of the ancient Olympics. Others are more abstract, featuring bold colors and patterns representing the vibrant life in Rio de Janeiro.

Only a small number of complete sets of the posters were produced, including the sets produced for the Academy.

The works were created by 12 Brazilian artists – Alexandre Mancini, Antonio Dias, Beatriz Milhazes, Claudio Tozzi, Ana Clara Schindler, Gringo Cardia, Gustavo Greco, Gustavo Piqueira, Gut Lacaz, Juarez Machado, Rico Lins, and Kobra – as well as one Colombian artist, Olga Amaral. The posters are part of a rich Olympic tradition which started with the 1912 Olympic Games in Stockholm, Sweden. The posters are selected by the Olympic Organizing Committee for each Olympic Games and are considered historic artifacts for each edition of the Games.

The Academy was able to procure a full set of the highly sought after posters because of its broad network of contacts in the international world of sports. Academy National Faculty member Daniel Bertorelli of Brazil, and his wife, Sansarah, were instrumental in assisting the Academy in securing the official posters from Rio. Bertorelli also gave credit for securing the posters to Rio 2016 Committee members Dr. Carlos Arthur Nuzman, president; Mario Andrada, director of communications; Carla Camurati, director of culture; and Jose Nascimento Brito, council member.

Bertorelli, who owns a film production company in Rio, carried the Olympic Torch as it wound its way through Brazil en route to the lighting of the Olympic Cauldron in Rio de Janeiro on 5 August 2016. He worked with the Rio 2016 Olympic Committee and served as one of the master of ceremonies for the Rio 2016 Olympic Torch Relay. He has also served as a former governor of the American Society of Rio, where he worked as an ambassador to educate the public about the symbolism of the Olympic Torch.

In addition to serving on the Academy’s National Faculty, Bertorelli is an actor, screenwriter and founder of The Hercules Company, an entertainment film production company in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Hercules focuses on action, adventure and sports audiovisual content.

To see all of the posters, click here.

Based in Daphne, Ala., the United States Sports Academy is an independent, non-profit, accredited, special mission sports university created to serve the nation and world with programs in instruction, research, and service. The role of the Academy is to prepare men and women for careers in the profession of sports. For more information about the Academy, call (251) 626-3303 or visit www.ussa.edu.

Founded in 1984, ASAMA is dedicated to the preservation of sports art, history, and literature. The ASAMA collection is composed of nearly 2,000 works of sport art across a variety of media, including paintings, sculptures, assemblages, prints and photographs. The museum is open free to the public from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays. For more information, go to www.asama.org.

By Eric Mann

Eric Mann is the communications assistant at the United States Sports Academy. Reach him at [email protected].