JAYLIN FLEMING
Jaylin Fleming is the ultimate child prodigy. At 10, he is already such a great basketball player that he is a YouTube legend and has been featured in Dime magazine, the Washington Post and the Chicago Tribune.
At least two NBA teams have allowed the 10-year-old point guard to practice with them. After Fleming worked out with the Chicago Bulls, All-Star point guard Derrick Rose said, “He’s better than me-that’s what’s crazy about it.”
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STEPHON MARBURY
Former NBA player Stephon Marbury scored 30 points Sunday leading the North over the South 133-121 in the Chinese Basketball Association All-Star game.
Marbury currently plays for Shanxi in the CBA.
MARION JONES WITH TULSA SHOCK COACH NOLAN RICHARDSON
There was a time when Marion Jones was one of the most beloved female athletes in America. Then came the drug scandal, a felony conviction for lying to two grand juries, check fraud and a six month stay in prison. Jones ended up disgraced and being stripped of her five Olympic medals (including three golds.)
Now, the former track star is beginning a comeback. As a basketball player. Jones signed with the Tulsa Shock of the WNBA. She had previously played college basketball at the University of North Carolina.
PAUL SHIRLEY
Basketball journeyman Paul Shirley is screwed. Already an NBA washout, Shirley’s career as a blogger may be over as well.
ESPN announced it has fired Shirley as a blogger today following his comments about earthquake aid going to Haiti. In an “open letter” to the Haitian people, Shirley wrote:
“Dear Haitians-
First of all, kudos on developing the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. Your commitment to human rights, infrastructure and birth control should be applauded.
As we prepare to help you in this difficult time, a polite request: If it’s possible could you not re-build your island home in the image of its predecessor? Could you not resort to the creation of flimsy shanty-and shack-towns? And could some of you maybe use a condom once in a while?
Sincerely,
The Rest of theWorld”
Shirley also wrote, “I haven’t donated to the Haitian relief effort for the same reason that I don’t give money to homeless men on the street.”
The former NBA forward was immediately attacked by websites like The Huffington Post and a seperate column which demanded ESPN fire him. Shirley’s comments were so controversial that the gossip site Radar Online printed the entire text of his column. Somebody else accused Shirley of “Haiting on Haiti.” Since Shirley used to write for NBA.com, that league has now been accused of being “Where Compassion Goes to Die.’
Shirley knew his column wasn’t going to be well received. He even started it, “I do not know if what I’m about to write makes me a monster…” followed by, “I haven’t donated a cent to the Haitian relief effort. And I probably will not.”
ESPN has pulled Shirley’s post.
Ok, it’s bad enough that some racist assclown wants to start an all-white basketball league, but now the idea is apparently getting support from many people in the southern U.S.
We posted on Wednesday about how WJBF TV in Augusta, Georgia polled its viewers on whether or not an all-white basketball league was a good idea. SPORTSbyBROOKS has the updated numbers. An astonishing 60% WJBF viewers are IN FAVOR of whites only basketball.
If you think that poll was an an anomaly, check out the one run by the Fox affiliate in Atlanta: HERE
In that poll, 54% of the respondents said they didn’t think a basketball league that employs only whites was racist. Just one more reason that Atlanta is the most overrated city in America.
MICHAEL COOPER
USC women’s basketball coach Michael Cooper has apologized for comments he made about UCLA on Sunday. Following a close 70-63 victory over the Lady Bruins, the former Lakers star and WNBA coach stepped to the microphone and said, “F**k UCLA!”
The Pac-10 also formally reprimanded Cooper.
A proposed new basketball league that plans to use only white players claims it’s NOT being racist. The All-American Basketball Alliance states in a press release what they are looking for: “Only players that are natural born United States citizens with both parents of Caucasian race are eligible to play in the league.”
The league’s “commissioner” is a former boxing promoter named “Moose.” He’s looking to put 12 teams in Southern states and says his league will focus on fundamentals because “fundamentally sound white players are a vanishing species.” The promoter also decried the “street ball” played by “people of color.”
What’s just as shocking as somebody seeing a need for a Whites-only basketball league is the fact that there are people supporting the idea. The Augusta Chronicle first broke the news of the All-American Basketball Alliance’s formation. The paper is actually receiving letters and comments IN FAVOR of the league. Meanwhile, WJBF TV in Augusta ran a poll asking its viewers, “Do You Think An All-White Basketball Team Is A Good Idea?” An astonishing 36% of viewers voted “yes.”
THE STARTING FIVE FOR YATES HIGH RETURNS AFTER WINNING THE TEXAS 4A STATE TITLE LAST YEAR
Yates High School in Houston defeated Lee High 170-35 Tuesday night. Yates was actually ahead 100-12 at halftime.
The school was already rated as the top basketball team in the country by Rivals.com on their Top 100 list.
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SAM BOWIE: BEING CALLED A “TOKEN” BY SOME
The Idle Hour Country Club in Lexington, Kentucky has long been referred to as a “bastian of segregation.” To this day, the club has never had an African-American member.
Former University of Kentucky basketball player Sam Bowie is attempting to change that. Bowie has applied to become Idle Hour’s first black member. Bowie was a star at the University of Kentucky in the early ’80s. How good was he? He was actually chosen ahead of Michael Jordan in the 1984 NBA Draft. Bowie went on to have a long (if injury-riddled) NBA career.
Not only has Idle Hour received criticism for never having a black member, they’ve also faced legal action. The Kentucky Human Rights Commission has actively been investigating the country club since 1999. However, nobody has ever filed a formal complaint against Idle Hour for their whites-only policy. The club says they’re not racists, simply no minority has ever applied for membership.
Thanks to Bowie, the club can no longer make that claim. A decision on Bowie’s admittance is expected to be made soon. Bowie already belongs to two other country clubs in Lexington. In 1993, Bowie became the first-ever African-American member at the Lexington Country Club. Bowie has already said he expects critics of of the club’s policies to call him a “token” member.
NANCY LIEBERMAN
Basketball Hall-of-Famer Nancy Lieberman will be named the head coach of the NBA Development League’s Frisco team later today. Lieberman becomes the first female coach in D-League history. She is a longtime WNBA player and executive.
The Frisco team will play its game in suburban Dallas and be affiliated with the Mavericks. Former NBA coach Del Harris was named the team’s GM. Longtime NBA fan favorite Spud Webb will serve as the franchise’s President of Basketball Operations.
