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Stephen Curry Reiterates Desire To Be Part Of Panthers' New Ownership Group

Warriors G Stephen Curry yesterday "reiterated that he is serious about purchasing an ownership stake" in the NFL Panthers with the team now officially for sale following their elimination from the playoffs, according to Connor Letourneau of the S.F. CHRONICLE. Curry said, “I’ve had conversations with plenty of people about it, trying to figure out the right way to go about it, and just the different approaches I could take. Obviously, I have a day job, but I have people that are plugged in and trying to see that happen. I’m very interested in doing what it takes to make that happen.” Letourneau notes Curry would "not able to be a majority owner," but he surely has "enough money to make a sizable investment in the franchise." If Curry and rapper Sean "Diddy" Combs purchase the Panthers, they would be the "first African-American owners in NFL history." Curry: "Knowing and having an opportunity to break that trend and stat, why not? That’s a pretty powerful opportunity, and one that I know doesn’t come around that often" (S.F. CHRONICLE, 1/9). Curry added, "I don’t want to overblow it to say I would be flying back and forth to Charlotte and in meetings all day and trying to have that perspective. But I do bring a certain value to whatever ownership group would be. Doing it kind of my way. I don’t know exactly how that will play out. I think that will be an opportunity to move the needle" (THEATHLETIC.com, 1/8). NBC Sports Bay Area's Ray Ratto noted Curry "would have to come up with $600 million on his own" if he wanted to "buy this team to run it." He "can't go to the bank and borrow" that much, and if he brings other investors in, they "come in on top of his $600 million." Ratto: "I don't think he's got the money for it. Nobody is going to loan him the kind of money he wants and let him run it" ("The Happy Hour," NBC Sports Bay Area, 1/8).

STRANGE DAYS AHEAD: In Charlotte, Joseph Person notes this stands to be the Panthers' "most significant offseason in franchise history" with the sale ongoing, and Panthers coach Ron Rivera "agreed this is going to be a different offseason." Rivera said, “It’s going to be weird, to be honest. And the thing that you hope as we go forward is that we’ve done enough, we’ve done some really good things, that the next person coming in will take a look at us and see how we do things.” Panthers interim GM Marty Hurney yesterday "came close to tears" when asked about Jerry Richardson selling the team. Hurney said, “It’s more emotional. Anytime, the finality of losing a playoff game is always hard to take. And then when you have all these other things, it’s hard.” Person notes Hornets investor and NASCAR team co-Owner Felix Sabates is "part of a group that wants to buy the team from Richardson." Rivera has ties to Sabates, but he said that he "hasn’t talked about the sale of the Panthers with Sabates." Rivera does hope "whoever buys the team keeps it in Charlotte" (CHARLOTTE OBSERVER, 1/9).

CAM CONCUSSION INVESTIGATION
: In DC, Mark Maske notes the NFL and NFLPA yesterday "launched a joint formal investigation" of the Panthers’ handling of the head injury suffered by QB Cam Newton during Sunday’s Wild Card loss to the Saints. The Panthers could be "subject to discipline" from NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell if the league and union "determine the team violated the NFL’s concussion protocols." Newton "absorbed a hard hit on a fourth-quarter sack Sunday and had to be helped up" from the ground. He was "evaluated in the medical tent on the Panthers’ sideline" but returned after missing only one play. The Panthers "announced he had been evaluated for a concussion and cleared to play" (WASHINGTON POST, 1/9). In N.Y., Peter Botte writes the NFL's concussion protocol "remains a complete farce, as underscored yet again by the sham" that the Panthers conducted despite the "supposedly updated and toughened rules." Chiefs TE Travis Kelce and Bills QB Tyrod Taylor "both left their team’s respective losses over the weekend with concussions and did not return." Their absences "affected both outcomes, which you’d hope wouldn’t serve as further deterrent for coaches and players to do the right thing when it comes to head trauma" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 1/9). ESPN's Louis Riddick said the concussion protocol does not need an "overhaul, it just needs to be applied." Riddick: "You can't just pick and choose when to do it. You can't have the player determine when he wants to be taken to the locker room. You can't have people explain it away. It has to be ironclad" ("NFL Live," ESPN, 1/8).

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