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Franchises

FRANCHISE NOTES

          NBA: In Philadelphia, Phil Jasner reports that 76ers
     President Pat Croce told NBA Commissioner David Stern that
     he will refuse to pay the $50,000 fine levied against the
     team for C Matt Geiger's flagrant foul against Pacers G
     Reggie Miller on Saturday.  Jasner writes that "after heated
     conversations" with Stern and league Exec VP Rod Thorn,
     Croce told 76ers Chair Ed Snider that if "the league
     insisted on the $50,000 fine, he would give up the
     presidency of the team."  Croce: "I told (Stern) he could
     take the fine and shove it.  I told him I'm not paying.  Not
     a dime.  He said, 'That's another issue'" (PHILADELPHIA
     DAILY NEWS, 5/15)....In Boston, Peter May wondered that
     while Celtics Chair Paul Gaston continues to dismiss talk of
     a possible sale, "Why, then, are we hearing that he is at
     least listening more intently to offers? ... Could Gaston
     turn his back on $300 million or more?  Would that be in the
     best interests of stockholders?" (BOSTON GLOBE, 5/14).
          MLB: In Toronto, Dave Perkins writes on the Blue Jays'
     attendance woes despite the team's 21-18 record.   Perkins:
     "If these Jays continue to draw poorly from now on, it will
     be time for this ownership to find a serious buyer.  They
     should do it quickly, too, before they run the franchise so
     deeply into the ground that only a moving van will be able
     to extricate it" (TORONTO STAR, 5/15)....In CA, David
     Holbrook reports that while the A's are currently in first
     place in the AL West, the team is "having trouble drawing
     fans at home ... and analysts say the team's future in the
     East Bay is more in doubt as a result."  The team is
     currently averaging under 15,000 fans per game, the "fifth
     worst draw" in MLB.  A's Dir of PR Jim Young: "We're
     disappointed but not panicking" (CONTRA COSTA TIMES, 5/15).
     ...In Toronto, La Presse political columnist Lysiane Gagnon
     writes on the Expos' future in Montreal: "Let's end this
     silly game. It's more than time to say goodbye to the Expos. 
     Let them move to a city that likes baseball.  Montreal will
     easily recover from the loss" (GLOBE & MAIL, 5/15). 
          NHL: The SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL's Daniel Kaplan reports
     that Chase Manhattan Corp. is lending the Blue Jackets $45M,
     the "bank's first NHL loan of any kind in roughly three
     years."  The loan "will partially finance" the team's $80M
     expansion fee, pay for leasehold improvements at Nationwide
     Arena and fund a "practice rink that will be attached to
     that facility" (SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL, 5/15 issue)....Today
     is the deadline for season ticket renewals for the Flames,
     and in Calgary, Ethan Baron reports that as of Friday, the
     team was "still more than" 3,000 short of its 8,450-renewal
     goal."  Ownership has said it will put the team up for sale
     if 14,000 season tickets aren't sold by June 30.  As of
     Friday, the team had sold 1,801 new season tickets and 5,157
     renewals, bringing in a total of 6,957 sales (CALGARY SUN,
     5/15)....Outgoing Devils Owner John McMullen said he has no
     regrets about selling the team: "I never said 'regrets.'  I
     said 'remorse.'  There's a big difference.  I have to send a
     dictionary out to these people" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 5/14).

SBJ Morning Buzzcast: March 25, 2024

NFL meeting preview; MLB's opening week ad effort and remembering Peter Angelos.

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On this week’s pod, our Big Get is CBS Sports college basketball analyst Jay Wright. The NCAA Championship-winning coach shares his insight with SBJ’s Austin Karp on key hoops issues and why being well dressed is an important part of his success. Also on the show, Poynter Institute senior writer Tom Jones shares who he has up and who is down in sports media. Later, SBJ’s Ben Portnoy talks the latest on ESPN’s CFP extension and who CBS, TNT Sports and ESPN need to make deep runs in the men’s and women's NCAA basketball tournaments.

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SBJ I Factor features an interview with AMB Sports and Entertainment Chief Commercial Office Nana-Yaw Asamoah. Asamoah, who moved over to AMBSE last year after 14 years at the NFL, talks with SBJ’s Ben Fischer about how his role model parents and older sisters pushed him to shrive, how the power of lifelong learning fuels successful people, and why AMBSE was an opportunity he could not pass up. Asamoah is 2021 SBJ Forty Under 40 honoree. SBJ I Factor is a monthly podcast offering interviews with sports executives who have been recipients of one of the magazine’s awards.

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