LEAGUE NOTES

          CBA: CBA Commissioner Steve Patterson has "made it
     known" that his league "would be shifting its focus,"
     according to Michael Arace of the HARTFORD COURANT.  Arace:
     "The CBA wants bad students who can fill it up" (HARTFORD
     COURANT, 9/14).  NBA Kings GM Jerry Reynolds: "It sounds
     like the CBA is getting pretty desperate.  The league is
     struggling as it is, and to go get guys out of high school
     and pay them a lot more money than they've been paying
     regular players doesn't make sense" (STAR-TELEGRAM, 9/13).
          MLS: With "pathetic attendance figures" in Denver,
     K.C., Dallas, and "lately" L.A., "it all adds up to dark
     storm clouds on the horizon" for MLS, according to Grahame
     Jones on ESPN SportsZone.  But Jones points to the well-
     attended World Cup qualifying game in Portland earlier this
     month and writes, "Something dramatic needs to be done.  A
     statement needs to be made.  A three-way agreement between
     MLS, the city of Portland and Nike would be such a
     statement. ... Soccer should concentrate its efforts in
     areas where it is strongest instead of trying to blanket the
     country.  Portland could be a model" (SportsZone, 9/14).