As posted earlier, NBA player Paul George broke his leg during a Team USA practice game last night. This injury has created a big conversation about whether or not NBA players should be playing games outside of the regular season. If players get injured in these non-paying games, they can hurt their team for the whole next season. I personally think that if players want to play, they should be allowed to play whenever they want, plus international competition is a way for NBA players to play with other players they normally wouldn't be able to be on the same team with. Many NBA owners disagree with me.
Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban
Mark Cuban, the owner of the Dallas Mavericks, is not known for being shy about his opinion. Cuban is against NBA players playing in international competitions, especially the Olympics, and has been for a while. In 2012, Cuban said "It's just the epitome of stupidity that we would allow
ourselves to be used so other corporations can make tens, if not hundreds of
millions, of dollars. There's some guys sitting at the Olympic headquarters
going, 'Those dumb-asses, we're taking all their best guys for nothing.' " This Paul George injury has only added fuel to the fire. He is now stressing the financial risks to allowing NBA players to compete in these competitions. After all, owners are making an investment in these players, and part of that is hoping they don't get injured.
I can understand where he and other owners are coming from, but these same players would probably be playing basketball in their home gyms if they weren't playing with Team USA. Granted, they may not be playing as hard at home, but this sport is something they have put their hearts and souls in to all their lives, and they should be allowed to play whenever they want if they are healthy enough to do so. Plus, I'm sure if the NBA refused to allow international competitions, a lot of really tall, strong, athletic guys would get really pissed. That doesn;t sound like a good thing to me.
Last night during the White Blue practice game for the NBA's USA Team, Indiana Pacer's star player Paul George broke both his tibia and fibula with just less than 10 minutes left in the game. I've seen a lot of injuries in basketball, but this one has to be one of the hardest to watch. Warning, this video is graphic.
After being taken off the court and the game being cut short, fans and fellow NBA players took to Twitter to show George support. He Tweeted back saying "Thanks everybody for the love and support.. I'll be ok and
be back better than ever!!! Love y'all!!" Twitter gave him the opportunity to reassure his fans and colleagues directly that he is feeling okay and optimistic. George has over 800,000 Twitter followers, and his daily tweets probably help his fans feel close to him. Especially now with his injury. He is probably going to appreciate all of the support he is getting since sources say he is out for the season. First Derrick Rose with his injury last year, now him?
Speaking of Derrick Rose, he is also playing for Team USA which has been pretty controversial. The Chicago Bulls super star injured his left ACL in a playoffs game again the Philadelphia 76ers in the 2011-2012 season. He returned the next season to play only ten games before tearing his right knee meniscus. These Team USA games are the first time he's played competitively since his second injury. It's controversial because he isn't being payed to play for Team USA, and if he injures himself again, he may be out for another season. After what happened to Paul George, anything is possible. After signing a 5 year, nearly 100 million dollar contract with the Bulls, I assume they'd like to have him play.
Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice has made a terrible mistake. On February 15th Rice knocked his (then) fiance Janay Palmer unconscious in an Atlantic City elevator. Hotel cameras caught Rice carrying her unconscious body out of the elevator. Palmer and Rice have been together since high school, and it seems this incident haven't kept them from being together. They said "I do" to each other not long after. That is one forgiving woman! This incident has been brought back up to the surface this month after Rice received his two game suspension that will take place at the beginning of this upcoming season. Today he apologized again for his actions claiming that he made the "Biggest mistake" of his life, and that it was a "one-time incident." He also said, "My actions that night were totally inexcusable. That night I replay over and over in my head. That's not me. My
actions were inexcusable. That's something I have to live with the rest of my
life."
Ray Rice publicly apologizing earlier today
ESPN Commentator Stephen A. Smith
The length of the suspension has been met with a lot of controversy, some thinking that it should be longer, and some supporting the decision. There has also been controversy over the hotel incident itself. ESPN commentator Stephen A. Smith was suspended for a week after commenting on the incident on the network's TV show First Take. He said "But what I've tried to employ the female members of my
family, some of who you all met and talked to and what have you, is that again,
and this what, I've done this all my life, let's make sure we don't do anything
to provoke wrong actions." This understandably didn't sit well with viewers, and the complains started being tweeted in. Even ESPN's Michelle Beadle tweeted "So I was just forced to watch this morning's First
Take. A) I'll never feel clean again B) I'm now aware that I can provoke my own
beating." Smith has since apologized and will be back commentating next week.
Both of these guys royally messed up. I hope that it truly was a one-time incident for Ray Rice, and if I had a Twitter account, I would have been tweeting my disappointment and disapproval at Stephen A. Smith along with everyone else. Professional sports figures and commentators need to realize that people look up to them, and are always watching.
Cleveland Browns player Johnny Manziel, also known as "Johnny Football", has created quite the reputation for himself. At only 21 years old, there are years of offenses against him. As an athlete at Texas A&M, he created controversy by gambling, drinking under age, oversleeping, and more. Click here to see 16 outrageous things he did in college including a tweet saying that he couldn't wait to leave college. Fast forward to being drafted by the Browns in this years NFL draft, he soon after posted a picture of himself with a stack of money (seen below). He is known to be a risk taker on and off the field, making all of his actions unpredictable. Since being drafted just a month ago, he has continued to create controversy and has even been accused of having a drinking problem.
He has made several sort of apologies and statements about his behavior including "Nothing on the weekends that I'm doing is hopefully hurting
any of my teammates in the locker room, " and "I don’t think there’s anything wrong with me going out and
having a nightlife and having a social life. I mean, I am 21 years old, and I do like going out."
Even with controversies making Manziel a household name, he is a great quarterback and is a favorite to start this upcoming season over Browns veteran Brian Hoyer. And even though he is known for his flashy life style, he recognizes that he's made mistakes saying, “There’s some things I wish I could have gone back and done
a little differently, but (I’m) continuing to move forward and try to represent
this organization and this team in a positive manner and in a positive light.” All of us looking at his actions need to remember that he's still young and only a rookie. He has amazing potential in the NFL, and if he can clean up his act, he is bound to surprise us all.
It's true! There isn't much going on in the sports world that is really blog worthy, at least to me. I'm not a huge fan of baseball, and I'm still patiently waiting for my favorite sport, football, to begin. Golf feels like the only thing left for me to talk about. One thing I am cynically excited about is how bad Tiger Woods is doing. He hasn't won a major title in six years. Right now one of the four yearly major competition in in progress, the British Open. I objectively understand that Woods is still considered one of the greatest golfers of all time due to his past winning record, but since the news of his infidelity broke in 2009, he lost me as a fan. I'm now rooting for Rory McIlroy.
I admittedly care about athletes private lives, and info i learn about their private lives helps decide whether I'm a fan or not. Tiger Woods is not the first athlete to lose me as a fan for a personal scandal. He is however a great example of how sports media doesn't only report on athletic ability, and sports media aren't the only outlets reporting on athletes. There is a growing desire from fans to know more in depth information on our favorite athletes. That's why we fans follow their social media profiles, and why media outlets have been increasing their coverage of athlete's personal lives (Rowe, 2007). Back in 2009, Woods' scandal was big news and was covered by what felt like every media outlet there was. The negative attention lost him endorsement deals, and the public outcry may have been the largest contributor to his sub par game play (at least for his standards). Now, in 2014, anything in an athlete's personal life makes news and can be seen all over the internet, social media, TV, print, and even heard on the radio. None of their actions are safe since anyone can be a journalist with a smart phone, and with endorsements on the line, athletes better be on their best behavior.
Let me set the scene: Minnesota Timberwolves player Kevin Love is not loving playing for the team anymore. His contract expires after this next NBA season, and he is very open about not wanting to stay a Timberwolf. In fact, he is "Anxious" to leave. He is arguably a top 5 player in the NBA, and will likely be highly sought after. The Timberwolves, knowing that he isn't going to stay with the team is now looking for a trade. At least that way they can get something good out of him leaving. The top two teams up for consideration right now are the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Golden State Warriors. It is even rumored that super star, and returning Cavalier, Lebron James has reached out to Love to seriously consider Cleveland.
The Cavaliers have a good offer up to trade for Love; The number one pick from the NBA draft, Andrew Wiggins. Before Love was even rumored available, the Cavaliers probably wouldn't of ever though to give up Wiggins, but Love is a hot commodity right now, and the timing could be just right after Lebron returning. Sounds live a winning combination to me. No offense Wiggins. As for the Warriors, they could have possibly locked down Love weeks ago, but they don't want to give up Klay Thompson, and who can blame them? He is an up and coming star, and arguably the Warriors second best player, right behind Stephen Curry. Plus, if Thompson and Curry were separated, there would no longer be the "Splash Brothers," named for being two of the best three point shooters in the NBA.
My opinion? Trade with the Cavaliers! Since the Big Three (Lebron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh) have been diminished, why not create a new one with James, Love, and Kyrie Irving? I'm down for that!
Confession: I am not a video gamer. I have no interest in video games. I am however married to a man who loves the NBA 2K video game series. He gets them as soon as they come out each year. It was recently announced that the newest edition, NBA 2K15, will be released October 7th, 2014, taking advantage of the holiday shopping season (as always). The athlete on the cover of the game was also announced, and this year it will be Oklahoma City Thunder player, and 2013-2014 MVP, Kevin Durant (As seen above).
Each year the series improves the graphics and adds new features. So far, we know that more athletes are lending their voices to My Player mode, where video game players can play the game as a new player they've created. One of the athletes to lend their voice is cover man Kevin Durant. Also making news is that 2K Sports will be tracking how many gamers will play as the Cleveland Cavaliers in the game instead of the Miami Heat after Lebron James' recent announcement to return to Cleveland.
Aside from the 2K series being fun, there is some skill involved. Kim and Ross (2006) came up with three components to sports video games that are unique to them. They are Knowledge application, identification with sport, and fantasy.As I mentioned, my husband loves the game. He played basketball all of his life until college, and is able to use his real life understanding and skill to help himself in the game. He also likes to play because it is a way to escape real world problems for a little while and lose himself in the sport he loves. Luckily, since this is not a violent video game, there isn't much of a chance of my husband becoming aggressive due to playing it (Anderson & Carnagey, 2009). As a wife, that is very important to me. As long as he doesn't become addicted, then he is welcome to continue to purchase the new NBA 2K games each year.
If you've been living under a rock the last two days, then you've missed out on some major NBA news. Lebron James has made his decision where he is going to play ball next year... and announced it without an hour long ESPN interview about it! He is headed back home to the Cleveland Cavaliers where fans were burning his jersey for leaving the team just 4 years ago. James wrote an essay to Sports Illustrated to explain his decision. The summary of the essay is that he had always envisioned himself ending his career back in Ohio where it started, and he wants to bring championships to it. He also thinks it will be a good fit for his family. James has two sons with wife Savannah, and a little girl on the way. I predict that there are about to be a lot more Cavaliers fans.
James took a 2 year contract for $42.2 million. That's a lot of dough, but not nearly as much as he is going to be making the Cavaliers. Forbes estimates that James will bring in $400 million for the franchise by playing for them again. Seems like the Cavaliers made a good deal on this one.
Free agency news doesn't stop there! Chris Bosh announced that he is staying with the Miami Heat after being offered a 5 year, $118 million dollar contract. Many speculate whether or not Bosh is worth this much money without the other members of the Big Three, Dwyane Wade and Lebron James. Whether he is or not, the Big Three are officially split up, and an era has come to an end.
The final name making news, and his final free agency decision is New York Knicks Carmelo Anthony. He is also staying put with a 5 year, nearly $130 million dollar contract. No other team even came close to the amount of money the Knicks offered him. I say that all three players made smart moves this week.
Last week, I reported rumors about Lebron James being altruistic and making a pay cut for the Miami Heat. It was rumored he was doing this because he wanted to open up salary cap space for other promising players to join, in hopes for another NBA Championship title. I'm not saying that it absolutely wont happen, but he has been staying silent through all of the speculations, and his agent has been meeting with other teams about what they can offer him. It seems that James is looking for a maximum salary deal, and is willing to relocate to achieve one. Fans were heart broken when he left the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2010, and heart break may be back on the table again.
On the other hand, who can really blame James? He is arguably the best player in the league, and I would think that most people would agree that the best player should get compensated the best. Go get your money Lebron!
James isn't the only free agent making waves. Carmelo Anthony is also looking for a maximum salary deal. the front runners right now are the New York Knicks, where he has played for several years, the Los Angeles Lakers, and the Chicago Bulls. Anthony has said that he is not only concerned about money, but also that he lives in a place where his family will feel comfortable, even if that means sacrificing a championship right away.
It's still unknown what Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh are going to do with their free agency. As a fan of the Big Three I want to see them and James stick together, but Wade and Bosh don't even know what James is doing yet. Their free agency is bound to end eventually, and fans like myself will just have to be patient and inevitably speculate until then.
If Luis Suarez wasn't a name you were familiar with before, it sure is now! While playing Italy in the World Cup, Uruguay team player Suarez bit an opponent on the field for the third time. First was in 2010 when he bit Otman Bakal on the shoulder, then there was Branislov Ivanovic in 2013 who as bit on the arm, and finally Giorgio Chiellini who was bit on the shoulder last week during the match against Italy. Biting seems to be nothing new for this soccer player, but the evolution of his apology of his most recent biting is something to look at. Originally after the incident with Chiellini, Suarez defended himself with non-apology claiming that he lost his balance, making his body unstable. He said "At that moment I hit my face against the player, leaving a small bruise on my cheek and a strong pain in my teeth." Poor him, right? After receiving no sympathy, no one buying his story, and being banned from playing for four months, he tried to repair his image and save face by officially apologizing and promising to never bite another player again. Kruse (1981) would probably agree that this is a situation where an apology is need, and categorize this apology as the athlete stressing a strong desire to be a team player. Hey, at least his team won the match 1-0. The following video shows all three biting incidents. Ouch!
Suarez's world famous bite has made him alienate
some fans, while gaining others. Time will tell if his apology and promise to
never bite another player will earn him back the fans he lost. Rumors are
circling about him possibly being traded to Barcelona after the World Cup is
over, and if he is, will his new fans follow him?
Could it be? Could Lebron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh
be leaving the Miami Heat? After James recently announcing his free agency,
today Wade and Bosh opted out of their contracts too. All three players were
found having lunch together at Soho Beach House in Miami just three days before
Wade and Bosh announced their free agency. They were thought to be discussing
their future plans together.There is a lot of speculation going around, the
most popular being that the Big Three aren't going anywhere. By all three
opting out of their contracts, the Heat now have $55 million open for fresh
contracts this year. All three star players would be looking at a pay cut, but
the new talent would help add high quality players in hopes for another run at
the NBA championship. If this act of altruism for the sake of the team is true,
then all three players are showing to their fellow teammates and fans that the
love of the team is greater than the love of money, and that they'll do
anything to win another championship. How can you not like the message they may
be sending?
Just for argument, what would happen to the Heat if their Big Three chose to leave? The Heat have been defined by these three star athletes for four years now, and have made it to the NBA Finals all four years as well. These players have brought more fans, viewers, and overall attention to the team since they signed on the dotted line. It would practically feel like a whole new team without them, and it actually could be. There is only one player from last season who still has a contract with the Heat; back-up point guard, Norris Cole. Time will tell what is in store for the Miami heat and the Big Three. Fans will hopefully find out within the next month.
Many soccer fans were surprised when Germany born Jurgen Klinsmann was chosen to coach the U.S. soccer team. Many were surprised again when he cut star play Landon Donovan from the World Cup team. Then they were surprised a third time when Klinsmann publicly said that the U.S. team realistically wouldn't win the World Cup. All three of these incidents have shocked the public and have put Klinsmann in the spotlight. He seems to be making good choices for the team during game time, but how can cutting the star player, and publicly saying the team can't realistically win be affecting the players?
By cutting Donovan, he has proven that no one on the team is positioned higher than another in his eyes. This is a message to everyone that you need to be well rounded, and perform at your best at all times. The name on the back of your jersey won't grant you special treatment. As a player, this could either be comforting or creating more stress. As a former star athlete for Germany, he must know the stress that a coach can inflict on his players, and might adjust his coaching techniques according to his experience.
When players are asked in interviews about their coach, and his coaching techniques, they seem to support him with confidence. It's unsure from the outside looking in exactly what his leadership style/behaviors is, but from Chelladurai and Saleh's (1978) multidimensional leadership theory, I would guess that he uses a mixture of all five (Autocratic, democratic, social support, positive feedback, and training and instruction). Mixing the five has been shown to be very effective, as long as the autocratic style doesn't overpower the others. Time will tell if Klinsmann's leadership style will make a significant difference for the team. So far, it is looking good.
I am a fourth generation high school cheerleader. Although I had fun most of the time, my dream was to be a high school wrestler. I was prohibited from even attempting this dream since my mom wouldn't sign the parent consent form for tryouts. Long story short, I got out of cheerleading when I left high school and went back to my first love, track and field. This scenario is all to familiar in youth sports, and the parental pressure can continue all the way in to the professional leagues, where parental support can also be found. One of the greatest golfers of all time, Tiger Woods and the relationship with his father Earl is a prime example of parental support. The late Earl Woods has been supporting Tiger's golfing career all the back when Tiger was very young. At just two years old, Earl brought him on the Mike Douglas Show to show off his swing. Tiger has always spoke highly of hid dad and the endless support and encouragement he received.
There are definitely other examples of professional athletes receiving parental support throughout their lives, and sometimes it can go too far and can put too much pressure on them as kids, just like my mom did to me. As youth sports are becoming more and more competitive, and arguably dangerous, some parents are reluctant to allow their kids to play sports at all. Recently, NFL quarterback Tom Brady's father has spoken out against allowing young boys to play football due to the risk on concussion and other injury. If he knew about possible long term ramifications of playing football back when Tom started playing football at age 14, he "Would be very hesitant to let him play."
These two child-parent relationships in regards to sports are great examples of how parents can support, encourage, and look out for the best interest of their kids. As people continue to idolize professional athletes, perhaps they will begin to idolize supportive sports relationships as well.
After the Spurs won the NBA Championship, sports fandom has shifted its focus on the FIFA World Cup currently being held in Brazil. And why not? It only comes around once every four years! Team USA fans have been showing their support both physically at the games, and in their homes or local bars watching on TV. If you haven't been watching the World Cup, you at least know about it thanks to sponsor commercials. Companies such as McDonald's, Adidas, and Nike have been taking advantage of World Cup excitement, and capitalizing on patriotism of sport. It's not everyday you get to cheer for just one team representing your whole country. They all market differently, but one of my favorites is this McDonald's commercial.
After seeing commercial after commercial promoting the World Cup with images of people playing soccer in diverse settings, this commercial stands out by incorporating humor while creating a positive sentiment towards the tournament.
If you are watching the World Cup, you've been seeing non-stop advertising. I wasn't able to watch the USA vs Ghana match, but I asked everyone I know who has been watching if there is any advertisement/sponsorship on Team USA's jerseys. Ever person I asked said 'No:, even the most devout fans. I was surprised by their answers because I know that it's common in Major League Soccer to have advertisements on team jerseys but heard that it' different for the World Cup. I had to look this up for myself to be sure, and found that they were all wrong.
The question is, has advertisement in sports become such a norm that people forget (or don't recognize) that they are being advertised to? As you can see, there is a Nike symbol on the right side chest of the jersey. Arguably, it is placed over the heart. Whether the placement is intentional in that way, who knows?
McAllister (2010) found that in 2007, more than 80% of the college football championship had visual advertisement. I would guess that those statistics are comparable to the 2014 World Cup, and his 4th and 6th criticism of sponsorship are coming true. "Commercials and actual content are increasingly blurred," and "encroachment of advertising in to public arenas is legitimized." What does this mean for our future? Advertisement on helmets, jock straps, or even athletes being asked to tattoo sponsor's symbols on their body? One thing is clear, we will continue to be advertised to in new and more unique ways and it's simply inescapable as a devoted fan.
When you
introduce yourself to somebody, one of the first pieces of personal information
you give them is your occupation. For me, I don’t have a career yet, so I
introduce myself as a Grad student at SUU. Many people have had to use the “Student”
occupation one time or another and professional athletes are no exception. Granted,
they were able to add “College athlete” to their occupational identity, but the
“Student” label shouldn’t be ignored.
Sadly, it
was ignored at the University of North Carolina. In 2011, 19 football players signed
up for an African-Americans Studies class. There was little to no class that actually
took place, and the students accepting grades they didn’t earn. After an
investigation, it was found that between 2007-2011 there were 54 African-American
Studies classes that were fraudulent.
This may be
considered old news, but the University is in the headlines again. This time it’s
not for a former football player taking advantage of fraudulent classes, but a former
basketball player. Former UNC basketball player Rashad McCants unveiled earlier
this month that at as a student, he rarely went to class, tutors wrote his
papers, and he even ended up on the Dean’s List Spring of 2005, the same year
the team won the national title. He said that he signed up for “Paper classes”
where as long as you turned in one term paper by the end, you were given a
grade. It’s hard to say how far this fraud is known up the university’s
academic ladder, but McCants claims that his coach Roy Williams knew at the
time, and even accuses Williams of making unethical suggestions to swap classes
to improve his GPA for eligibility. Williams
denies all claims, but McCants holds firm on his allegations.
Assuming all
of this news that just came out is true, it begs the question of whether or not
college athletes appreciate their education, and include it in their identity. Sure
their universities come in to play in the major leagues when they are drafted
and introduced before the games, but aside from that, how much is their educational
experience valued? I am no longer a college athlete (I used to run track), but
being a student is a large part of my identity and has been for years now. When
I hear about college athletes putting sports ahead of their education so much
that they are willing to cheat to maintain athlete status, it really bothers
me. I understand that they all have dreams of making it big, but the fact is
the large majority of them wont. What they will have left is their education,
and their education will automatically become a larger part of their identity
simply by default from not getting drafted. Even if they are drafted, they won’t
be a professional athlete forever, and their identity will inevitably change again.
Professional athletes have been getting
themselves in trouble via their Twitter account for years now. Our greatest recent example is Dolphins
player, Don Jones. After hearing of openly
gay NFL hopeful Michael Sam being drafted by the St. Louis Rams this last month
and watching Sam’s televised kiss with his boyfriend, Jones tweeted remarks
including “OMG,” and “Horrible.” Deeming his tweet inappropriate and unacceptable,
coach Joe Philbin announced that Jones was to be fined, temporarily
suspended
from the offseason workouts, and participate in educational
training. Jones has since deleted the controversial tweet, set his Twitter
account to private, apologized to Michael Sam, completed his suspension and
educational training, and has been reinstated to the Dolphins. This story has been a frenzy for any sports news journalist or enthusiast, regardless of what sociopolitical side you take on the controversy. It also sparked a national discussion on free speech.
Michael Sam
Thanks to advances in social media,
this controversy is possible. Even with social media rules and regulations
athletes agree to obey, they are still causing trouble for themselves and their
team. I believe that we are only in the first stages of what social media will become. New apps and websites will continue to develop, and it will become harder to control what athletes are expressing to the public as social media becomes a bigger part of our daily lives. Journalism will also continue to change and adapt with technology. Fans will become more involved with both newscasters and athletes, and as they become "Friends" with these public figures on Facebook, the very definition of "friend" will change. This trend may be what made Jones' comments so impactful. We feel like our favorite athletes are at times an extension of our own family and moral codes, and as a pseudo family member, fans either fought to defend or denounce him.
