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| Monday’s Morning Mashup: NFL teams pay tribute to school shooting victims | 12.17.12 at 7:52 am ET |
Welcome to Monday’s Morning Mashup. For the latest news, start at our WEEI.com home page or click here for the top stories from our news wire.
MONDAY’S BROADCAST HIGHLIGHTS:
NFL: Jets at Titans, 8:30 p.m. (ESPN; WEEI-FM)
NBA: Rockets at Knicks, 7:30 p.m. (NBA TV)
College basketball: Detroit at Syracuse, 7 p.m. (ESPN2)
College basketball: IPFW at Notre Dame, 7 p.m. (ESPNU)
College basketball: Texas State at Northwestern, 7 p.m. (Big Ten Network)
College basketball: UNLV at UTEP, 8 p.m. (CBSSN)
College basketball: Cornell at Vanderbilt, 9 p.m. (ESPNU)
AROUND THE WEB:
Patriots players show their respect during a moment of silence for victims of the Connecticut elementary school shooting prior to Sunday night's game. (AP)
♦ The NFL paid tribute to the victims of the Connecticut elementary school shooting during Sunday’s games. The Patriots had a pregame tribute featuring 26 flares in honor of the 20 children and six school employees who died Friday. The team’s End Zone Militia silenced the guns that they normally fire after the Patriots score.
“Out of respect for those that were killed, we were asked yesterday not to fire the muskets, which we all agreed with,” End Zone Militia sergeant Bob Elliott said. “It was just such a horrific thing. It’s hard to put it into words.”
Some teams darkened their scoreboards and lowered their flags to half-staff, while the players (including those on the Patriots) wore helmet decals with black ribbons.
Giants receiver Victor Cruz, whose team lost to the Falcons in Atlanta, wrote the name of 6-year-old victim Jack Pinto on his cleats and gloves with the words “My hero,” “This one is 4 U” and “R.I.P.” Cruz spoke to the child’s family on Saturday night after learning that the boy was a big fan of the standout receiver.
“There are no words that can describe the type of feeling you get when a kid idolizes you so much that they want to, unfortunately, put him in a casket with your jersey on,” said Cruz, a former UMass star. “I can’t even explain it.”
Cruz heard about the boy’s admiration for him via Twitter and contacted the family Saturday night.
“I was in the hotel [in Atlanta] and as I was talking to them I was fighting back tears,” Cruz said. “You could hear everybody in the background crying as well. It was tough to listen to.”
Texans defensive end J.J. Watt wrote “Newtown, CT” on his shoes for his team’s game against the Colts in Houston.
“We’re playing football, and there’s something much bigger going on in this world,” Watt said. “I just wanted them to know, and I wanted everyone to know, that our thoughts are with them. Nothing is bigger than that. We played our game today, but honestly our thoughts are with them, the families, the teachers, the friends, the first responders, who had to go see that. My dad is a first responder. They were just kids.”
♦ Redskins linebacker London Fletcher, a native of Cleveland, enjoyed a successful homecoming on the field Sunday as his team won at Browns Stadium, but things didn’t go so well for some of his family members in the stands. Two cousins and an 18-year-old nephew were arrested and his aunt suffered a heart attack during an incident with stadium security, according to the family.
Family members, who were wearing Redskins gear, insist that they were harassed by Browns fans and security.
“While the game was going on, first the fans were picking at us, and we were getting things thrown on us,” Fletcher’s aunt, Yvette Huston, told Cleveland’s NewsChannel5. “One of my nephews had gotten punched in the face.”
Added Huston, who was wearing a neck brace after a visit to the hospital: “The security grabbed my one son by the chest and snatched him right in front of me. I’m like, ‘Why is you snatching on him?’ And [the response was], ‘He’s going to jail.’ Then they came and started attacking our family.”
♦ Andrew Bynum, in his first year with the 76ers after seven seasons with the Lakers, spoke before Sunday night’s Lakers-Sixers game in Philadelphia and said his progress was stunted by playing alongside Kobe Bryant.
“I thought it really helped me a lot obviously at first, because he draws so much attention it’s hard for guys to double team and key on you, so it helped me tremendously,” said Bynum, who has yet to play this season due to knee problems. “Later, I felt I was able to get the ball more and do more things with the ball, so I could definitely see how it could stunt growth.”
Bryant, who scored 34 points in the Lakers’ 111-98 win, not only wasn’t offended by Bynum’s assessment, he agreed with it.
“For sure, because when you’re playing with me you obviously have to sacrifice something,” Bryant said. “Same thing with me and Shaq [Shaquille O'Neal]. You kind of offset each other to a certain extent. So, I mean, that’s true. When he gets back and he’s healthy, he’ll come out here and he’ll be the focal point of their attack and he’ll be getting the ball more and you’ll see big games from him more consistently.”
ON THIS DAY TRIVIA: On Dec. 17, 1966, which Patriot rushed for 78 yards in a 38-28 road loss to the Jets, giving him 1,458 yards on the season?
| Monday’s Morning Mashup: Linebacker Bart Scott tries, fails to organize Jets’ media boycott | 11.19.12 at 7:56 am ET |
Welcome to Monday’s Morning Mashup. For the latest news, start at our WEEI.com home page or click here for the top stories from our news wire.
MONDAY’S BROADCAST HIGHLIGHTS:
NFL: Bears at 49ers, 8:30 p.m. (ESPN; WEEI-FM)
NBA: Magic at Hawks, 7:30 p.m. (NBATV)
College basketball: Marquette vs. Butler, 3:30 p.m. (ESPN2)
College basketball: Indiana vs. Georgia, 5:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
College basketball: North Carolina vs. Mississippi State, 6 p.m. (ESPN2)
College basketball: Texas A&M vs. St. Louis, 7:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
College basketball: UCLA vs. Georgetown, 8 p.m. (ESPN2)
College basketball: Texas at Chaminade, 9:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
College basketball: Kasas vs. Washington State, 10 p.m. (ESPN2)
College basketball: USC vs. Illinois, midnight (ESPN2)
AROUND THE WEB:
Bart Scott
♦ Just when you thought it might be quiet in the Jets locker room following Sunday’s win over the Rams that ended a three-game losing streak, linebacker Bart Scott provided the controversy this team seems unable to avoid. Scott, unhappy about unnamed players criticizing backup quarterback Tim Tebow in a New York Daily News story last week, ordered his fellow defensive players to say nothing but, “Both teams played hard — anonymously,” to reporters.
Scott’s influence apparently isn’t as strong as he thought, as at least two players — safety Yeremiah Bell and linebacker Bryan Thomas — ignored Scott’s instructions. Scott yelled at Thomas, calling him “a [expletive] sellout.” Interjected Bell: “Stop it. Just stop.”
Scott then relented and spoke “calmly and openly to the media,” according to the New York Post.
♦ Andrew Bynum, who has yet to play for the 76ers since being acquired from the Lakers in the offseason because of a bone bruise in his right knee, said Sunday that he injured his other knee bowling last Saturday night.
Bynum said the left knee swelled after the bowling, and on Tuesday an MRI revealed damaged cartilage.
“I didn’t twist it or fall or nothing,” Bynum said before his team played the Cavaliers. “It kind of broke off cartilage and it made the bone bruise bigger. Obviously [how] is the question, it’s relatively nothing, it’s three steps [and roll]. That’s the most important thing and why everyone is being so cautious. I can’t answer and [doctors] can’t now either, we’re trying to figure out what’s going on.”
Added Bynum: “Obviously in hindsight you shouldn’t go bowling, but it’s not more than anything I’ve done in my rehab.”
♦ Red Wings defenseman Ian White is the latest player to check in with some negative comments about NHL commissioner Gary Bettman, and his might be the harshest.
“I’ve got to be honest: I personally think he’s an idiot,” White said. “Since he’s come in, I think he’s done nothing but damage the game.”
This is the NHL’s third lockout during Bettman’s tenure. The last one forced the cancellation of the 2004-05 season.
“If you think of all the moves he’s made, teams that are all struggling seem to be the teams that he put in places where there’s not viable markets for hockey,” White added. “Three work stoppages — I don’t know if he’s in control of the owners or what he’s saying, but I think it’s only seven of the owners that have to agree on something to have something pass. You’d think it’d be at least 50 percent. It just doesn’t seem like they’re running a democratic process, if you will.”
ON THIS DAY TRIVIA: On Nov. 19, 2000, who became the Patriots’ all-time leader in games played when he started his 207th career game?
| Report: Sixers center Andrew Bynum to have non-invasive knee procedure | 08.13.12 at 5:29 pm ET |
Newly acquired Sixers center Andrew Bynum will undergo a non-invasive knee procedure in Germany (AP)
Newly acquired Sixers center Andrew Bynum is apparently looking to help eliminate a repeat of the knee injuries he’s had in the past.
According to John Mitchell of the Philadelphia Inquirer, Bynum will undergo the same experimental procedure on his knee that Kobe Bryant, Grant Hill and Alex Rodriguez have had on their knees. The report did not say on which knee he’ll have the procedure on, but it did say that it was not surgical and that his knees are fine.
Mitchell’s source said that while Bynum isn’t feeling any pain in his knees, he is exploring options to prolong the health of his knees. He reportedly chose this procedure because of the success his former Lakers teammate Bryant had with it.
The procedure is known as Orthokine/Regenokine and will be performed by Dr. Peter Wehling in Germany as it is not yet done in the United States.
Bynum, who missed 124 of a possible 328 games from the 2007-08 season to 2010-11 season, dislocated his left knee cap in January 2008 forcing him to undergo arthroscopic surgery. Then he had surgery on his right knee after the 2009-10 season.
The 24-year-old, who averaged 18.7 points and 11.8 rebounds last season, was acquired by the Sixers last week in the trade that sent Dwight Howard to the Lakers and Andre Iguodala to the Nuggets.
| Report: Lakers, Magic in trade talks for Dwight Howard | 08.09.12 at 2:53 pm ET |
The Dwight Howard trade rumors are swirling again. Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports is reporting that the Lakers, Magic, 76ers and Nuggets are in the midst of four-team trade talks that would send Howard to the Lakers.
Wojnarowski outlined that the potential trade could send Howard and Nuggets forward Al Harrington to the Lakers, 76ers guard Andre Iguodala to the Nuggets, Lakers center Andrew Bynum to the 76ers and Lakers forward Pau Gasol along with Nuggets guard Aaron Afflalo to the Magic.
The trade is not imminent, but talks have increased and become more serious over the past week.
| NBA free agency roundup: Rockets join Dwight Howard trade talks | 07.11.12 at 10:48 am ET |
Magic center Dwight Howard remains the hottest commodity this offseason. (AP)
Since it is July 11, free agent signings and trades can be made official. Some teams have publicly announced deals while others still are yet to be official. Here is a recap of the most recent NBA offseason moves.
• The Rockets joined trade talks for center Dwight Howard, ESPN reported.
Sources told ESPN the Rockets and Magic are exploring a scenario in which the Rockets would send draft picks to Orlando, the Magic would send Howard to the Lakers and the Lakers would move Andrew Bynum to the Rockets.
The Rockets and Magic also are said to be considering a direct trade.
Howard averaged 20.6 points last season, one that was cut short to 54 games due to injury. In 2010-11 Howard averaged 22.9 points and shot 59.3 percent from the field in 78 games.
The 26-year-old was drafted first overall by the Magic and has played all eight of his NBA seasons with Orlando.
• The Grizzlies came to an agreement with guard Jerryd Bayless on a deal that will be made official Wednesday afternoon, ESPN reported.
The 23-year-old averaged 11.4 points last season with the Raptors. He has also played for the Blazers and Hornets over his five-year career. Bayless was drafted 11th overall in 2008 by the Pacers.
Memphis signed Bayless as one solution to guard O.J. Mayo‘s departure. Mayo played for the Grizzlies for four years, averaging 15.2 points per game and shooting 43.3 percent from the field.
• The Blazers have elected not to sign Roy Hibbert to an offer sheet under the belief the Pacers would match any offer, ESPN reported. Since Hibbert is a unrestricted free agent, the Pacers would have had three days to match any contracts offered by other teams. The Blazers had considered giving a four-year, $58 million deal to Hibbert.
The 25-year-old averaged 12.8 points per game last season with the Pacers. Read the rest of this entry »
| Lakers center Andrew Bynum on future: ‘I’ll play anywhere’ | 05.22.12 at 3:07 pm ET |
Andrew Bynum backs down Thunder center Nazr Mohammed during the Lakers' season-ending Game 5 loss Monday night in Oklahoma City. (AP)
Monday night’s loss to the Thunder ended the Lakers’ season and now they have some moves to make on their three team-optioned players.
The most expensive of the three is center Andrew Bynum, who would receive $16 million if the Lakers picked up his team option. In a postgame interview Bynum responded to questions about a long-term contract with uncertainty.
“I’m not sure,” Bynum said. “It really doesn’t matter to me. I’ll play anywhere. I think for the most part I had a pretty decent season and OK postseason. This last game was probably the worst game I played in the playoffs. It sucks. We’re going fishing, and now the focus is next year and coming back stronger and adding things to your game.
TNT’s Craig Sager followed up his previous question by inquiring about Bynum’s desire to stay with the Lakers, and Bynum answered positively.
“I definitely want to stay,” Bynum said. “You kind of asked an open-ended question. Obviously things are going to be different come next year, but I’m going to be ready.”
Bynum, 24, averaged 16.7 points, 11.1 rebounds, and 3.1 blocks over 12 playoff games this postseason.
| Wednesday’s Morning Mashup: Mike Milbury apologizes for comments about Sidney Crosby | 04.04.12 at 7:27 am ET |
Welcome to Wednesday’s Morning Mashup. For the latest news, start at our WEEI.com home page or click here for the top stories from our news wire.
WEDNESDAY’S BROADCAST HIGHLIGHTS:
NBA: Spurs at Celtics, 7:30 p.m. (CSNNE; WEEI)
NBA: Thunder at Heat, 8 p.m. (ESPN2)
NBA: Lakers at Clippers, 10:30 p.m. (ESPN)
NHL: Red Wings at Blues, 7:30 p.m. (NBCSN)
MLB: Cardinals at Marlins, 7 p.m. (ESPN)
MLB preseason: Mets at Yankees, noon (MLB Network)
MLB preseason: Angels at Dodgers, 3 p.m. (MLB Network)
AROUND THE WEB:
Sidney Crosby didn't let Mike Milbury's criticism affect him Tuesday night, leading the Penguins past the Bruins. (AP)
♦ NBC hockey analyst Mike Milbury apologized Tuesday for calling Penguins star Sidney Crosby “a punk” and making a sarcastic reference to his concussion problems during an interview on a Philadelphia radio station Monday and. Milbury had criticized Crosby for instigating a late-game brawl in the Penguins’ loss to the Flyers on Sunday.
“In hindsight, I realize what I said was inappropriate and wrong, and I want to apologize to the Penguins organization and their fans,” Milbury said.
Crosby took issue with Milbury’s accusation that he started the ill will Sunday by cross checking Brayden Schenn, who retaliated a few seconds later with a cross check to the back.
“I don’t really know what he’s looking for — if he’s looking for attention or what. I don’t know what it is,” Crosby said Tuesday before leading his team past the Bruins, 5-3. “I don’t have much to say there. I don’t where that came from, and you can really twist something a certain way and he’s obviously showing he’s capable of doing that. He’s pretty good at twisting things around, that’s for sure.”
♦ Mohammad El Akkari of the Lebanese Division A team Moutahed scored 113 points in a 173-141 victory over Bejjeh on Tuesday, according to FIBA Asia. The 27-year-old guard was averaging only 7.6 points in 23 games before his outburst. Akkari hit 40-of-69 shots, including 32-of-59 3-pointers, and one free throw.
“Thank God for this performance. I think it’s all a result of my practice,” Akkari said, adding: “I also want to thank my coach for letting me play that long and all my teammates for helping.”
♦ According to an ESPN report, Lakers center Andrew Bynum was fined by the team for “numerous infractions,” including skipping a meeting with general manager Mitch Kupchak. Bynum, who was benched after shooting a 3-pointer in a game last week, missed Tuesday night’s victory over the Nets due to a sprained ankle.
Lakers coach Mike Brown did not directly confirm the fine, saying: “I’m not concerned with Bynum’s attitude. … I don’t have a problem with Bynum.”
♦ One day after Lions running back Mikel Leshoure was arrested in Michigan after being caught chewing marijuana, defensive lineman Nick Fairley was arrested in his hometown of Mobile, Ala., for marijuana possession. Fairley, like Leshoure a rookie in 2011, was pulled over after reports of a car repeatedly speeding through a Mobile subdivision.
“We hold all of our players to a high standard of behavior, and the recent charges against Nick and Mikel Leshoure are not consistent with those standards,” the Lions said in a statement. “We are extremely disappointed.”
ON THIS DAY TRIVIA: On April 4, 2001, which pitcher made his Red Sox debut and threw a no-hitter in a 3-0 victory over the Orioles in Baltimore?
| Andrew Bynum benched late in Lakers win | 03.29.12 at 11:10 am ET |
Andrew Bynum was the latest Laker to be benched this week. (AP)
Lakers stars are earning plenty of bench time lately. One game after coach Mike Brown benched Kobe Bryant, center Andrew Bynum rode the pine late in the Lakers’ 104-101 win over the Warriors Tuesday. Bynum was benched for most of the fourth quarter and some of the third quarter after he missed a 3-pointer with 10:05 left in the third quarter and 14 seconds remaining on the shot clock. Bynum recorded just seven 3-point attempts in his seven-year career.
The shot seemed to be the final straw in Bynum’s game that led Brown to bench Bynum, but Brown refused to elaborate on the specifics of Bynum’s benching following the game.
“If I don’t feel like he’s playing the right way, I’ll take him out the game,” Brown said. “I didn’t feel like he was playing the right way. I didn’t feel like we were playing the right way as a club when he was on the floor. That’s why I took him out the game.”
Bynum’s behavior did not improve on the bench. He refused to join the team in huddles during timeouts and mocked taking the shot on the bench shortly after Brown pulled him from the game. After the game, Bynum said he would not change the way he approaches three-pointers following the benching.
“I guess, ‘Don’t take 3s’ is the message, but I’m going to take another one and I’m going to take some more, so I just hope it’s not the same result,” the infrequent three-point shooter Bynum said after the game. “Hopefully I make it.”
| Report: Magic deny rumor of Dwight Howard trade to Lakers | 02.27.12 at 2:11 pm ET |
With the NBA’s second half set to begin and with the trade deadline just over two weeks away, trade rumors surrounding Magic center Dwight Howard are likely to reach a fever pitch, and Orlando is doing its best to quell any speculation surrounding its big man.
In the aftermath of Sunday’s All-Star Game, the Magic denied (via the Orlando Sentinel) a rumor that they have a deal with the Lakers and a third team that would send Howard to Los Angeles to play alongside Kobe Bryant.
The rumor said that the Magic would send Howard, Hedo Turkoglu and Jameer Nelson to the Lakers in exchange for Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol. A third team, the Raptors, could also be a part of the deal, with Toronto sending Jose Calderon to the Magic, according to the report.
The 26-year-old Howard is fresh off his sixth All-Star appearance. This season, he is averaging 20.1 points and 15.3 rebounds per game.
| Andrew Bynum to LA Times: ‘I think the season will start on time’ | 08.15.11 at 1:32 pm ET |
In an interview with the Los Angeles Times’ Lance Pugmire Sunday, Andrew Bynum said that while the NBA lockout might cost the team the preseason, “I think the season will start on time.”
“Player salaries aren’t the issue as much as people buying teams and arenas that have been devalued by the things that are part of everyone’s life now,” Bynum said. Bynum also said he plans to stay in the U.S. during the season.
Pugmire did not ask Bynum about the cheap-shot forearm to a defenseless J.J. Barea in the Lakers’ final playoff game of the 2010-11 season, a blow that cost Bynum the first five games of the upcoming season (whenever it happens) and an additional $25,000. When asked about a reported incident in which Bynum parked in a handicapped space at a local grocery store, Bynum refused to answer.
