Newsmakers: Chicago Clears First Hurdle On Road To Olympics

THE DAILY each Friday offers our take on the performances over the past week of some people and entities in sports business. Here are this week’s newsmakers.

WIN: CHICAGO –- The city was clearly more enthusiastic than L.A. about representing the U.S. in bidding for the 2016 Summer Olympics, and the USOC recognized that in giving it the nod to move forward. But now the tough part begins, and while longtime Olympics observer Alan Abrahamson says Chicago “stands a really, really good chance” of winning the bid, the city has some obstacles to overcome, not the least of which is anti-American sentiment throughout the world.

LOSE: GRIZZLIES — The team finishes with the worst record in the NBA, and JERRY WEST announces he’ll be stepping down as President of Basketball Operations. MICHAEL HEISLEY says the team will be taken off the market if a buyer is not found by May 1, and the Commercial Appeal writes in an editorial, “More than anything, ... the Grizzlies need some stability and a sense of direction. Let’s hope Heisley can provide that.”

DRAW: NBA -– A third-straight season of record attendance is nothing to sneeze at, but regular-season ratings are down across all networks, much of the coverage heading into the postseason is around the suspension of referee JOEY CRAWFORD and the headline about playoffs on MSN’s home page asks, “Where’s The Buzz?”