Morning Buzz, November 24, 2004

The Morning Buzz will not publish Thursday or Friday in observance
of the Thanksgiving holiday. We will return Monday, November 29.

D-APPAREL DUMPS RON ARTEST AS ENDORSER AFTER BRAWL IN DETROIT

The N.Y. DAILY NEWS reports that LA Gear, which was set to distribute a new shoe and apparel line next month under Pacers F Ron Artest’s TruWarier brand, “has yanked images of Artest and the products off its Web site while it mulls its options.” Also, D-Apparel, an “upstart athletic wear company that had Artest pitching its headbands, decided to dump him” (N.Y. DAILY NEW, 11/24).

Meanwhile, the N.Y. TIMES reports that Pacers co-Owner Herb Simon and team management are “considering convening a special session of the NBA Board of Governors” to discuss the suspensions levied against Artest, Stephen Jackson and Jermaine O’Neal following last Friday’s brawl at The Palace of Auburn Hills (N.Y. TIMES, 11/24).

LAURIE FAMILY PULLS NAMING RIGHTS TO PAIGE SPORTS ARENA

The ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH reports that the Laurie family has “relinquished the naming rights to the $75[M] Paige Sports Arena” on the Univ. of Missouri’s campus. The decision came “less than a week after allegations of academic cheating surfaced about” Wal-Mart heiress Paige Laurie, for whom the arena was named (ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH, 11/24).

OLD SCHOOL UNIFORMS ON TAP FOR THANKSGIVING DAY GAMES

As families and friends gather for Thanksgiving, there will be plenty of sports programming on TV, in addition to Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in N.Y. The following details the featured programming:

Pre-Game Snack:

Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade will kick off the day at 9:00am ET with live coverage on NBC and CBS.  The NFL will have a float in the parade.

Main Course:

CBS will air Colts-Lions at 12:30pm ET, with Jim Nantz and Phil Simms in the broadcast booth.  The Colts will wear uniforms from the ‘56 season that feature three blue horizontal stripes on the sleeve and horseshoes on the back of the helmet instead of the sides. The Lions will wear uniforms worn by the team from ‘35-48.

Fox will air Bears-Cowboys at 4:30pm ET, with Joe Buck, Troy Aikman and Cris Collinsworth in the booth.  The Bears will wear uniforms from the ‘46 season, which feature a solid orange jersey with navy block numbers. The Cowboys will don uniforms from their ‘62 season.

For the second straight year, the NFL will use a special football, “The Duke,” which was the boyhood nickname of Giants co-Owner Wellington Mara.  “The Duke” was used in the league from the ‘30s through ‘69 (THE DAILY).

Dessert:

TNT will air T’Wolves-Pacers at 8:00pm ET and Nets-Clippers at 10:30pm.

ESPN will air NCAA football: West Virginia-Pittsburgh at 8:00pm ET.

MEN WHO TRIED TO SHAKE DOWN CARMELO ANTHONY ARRESTED

The N.Y. DAILY NEWS reports that three men who “tried to shake down NBA star Carmelo Anthony for $3[M] in exchange for video of the player in a nightclub brawl were busted on the upper West Side yesterday,” and will be arraigned today. Rapper Sugar Ray allegedly “spat in the face of La La Vasquez, an MTV personality who is Anthony’s girlfriend and the rapper’s ex, and the two men began duking it out” (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 11/24).

Anthony’s agent Calvin Andrews yesterday released a statement that read in part, “Carmelo chose not to give in to these demands and we turned the matter over to the authorities. This is a desperate attempt by ill-intentioned people trying to cash in on a random brush with fame” (BDA Sports Management).

GOLF TOURNAMENTS SQUARING OFF THIS WEEKEND IN ASIA

The Shinhan Korea Golf Championship, part of the PGA Tour’s Challenge Season, begins Thursday at the Jung Mun Golf Club on Jeju Island, South Korea, the same day the Asian Tour’s Volvo China Open begins in Shanghai. BLOOMBERG NEWS reports that the Asian Tour “refused to release any of its players for the Korean tournament.” Asian Tour CEO Louis Martin, on the Shinhan tournament: “This is about 30 Americans coming in on our territory and playing for a lot of money and taking away a lot of money. I don’t think it’s doing anything to promote golf in Asia” (BLOOMBERG NEWS, 11/24).

MORNING BRIEFS

N.Y. Mayor Michael Bloomberg wants the city’s Campaign Finance Board to investigate whether Cablevision President & CEO James Dolan’s spending on TV ads in opposition to the proposed West Side stadium is a violation of election laws (N.Y. POST, 11/24).

Ricky Williams’ attorney David Cornwell yesterday said that he “has received a proposal from the NFL that will allow Williams to serve a four-week suspension at the end of this season and make Williams eligible to participate in team activities afterward” (MIAMI HERALD, 11/24).

The Sonics yesterday unveiled their new alternate road uniforms, which the team will debut against the Nets on Friday. The Hawks, Mavericks, Warriors and Hornets also have introduced alternate road uniforms this season (Sonics).

ESPN’s coverage of Florida-Florida State college football last Saturday night averaged 3,943,000 HHs, making it the third most-viewed regular-season college football game ever on cable. The ‘94 FSU-Miami game holds the record with 4,846,000 HHs (ESPN).

The FCC yesterday “levied the maximum $55,000 fine against Miami’s WQAM-AM 560 for airing graphic descriptions of rape, sodomy and child molestation during the now-defunct ‘Scott Ferrall Show’ in 2003” (MIAMI HERALD, 11/24).

Vikings VP/Sales & Marketing Steve LaCroix yesterday said that the team “probably would pick one of their corporate clients or a sponsor” to sit in the on-field seats at Sunday’s game against the Jaguars as part of an NFL feasibility study (BLOOMBERG NEWS, 11/23).

An item purported to be the cup thrown from the stands at Pacers F Ron Artest on Friday night was put up for auction on eBay on Monday, but was pulled from the sight Tuesday afternoon when the price rocketed to $99,999,999 (AP, 11/23).

A LIGHTER BUZZ

Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger appeared on CBS’ “Late Show” last night, where CBS’ David Letterman said he is “single-handedly bringing life back to the Steel City.” Roethlisberger, on rookie hazing: “Every Saturday morning, I either have to bring donuts if it’s early, or if it’s later, I have to bring Popeye’s.” After the interview, Roethlisberger and Letterman went outside of the Ed Sullivan Theater to the street to play “The Late Show Quarterback Challenge” where they tried to throw footballs into the open windows of passing cabs (“Late Show,” CBS, 11/23).

THE BACK PAGES

The Morning Buzz offers today’s back page sports covers from some of the nation’s major metropolitan tabloids:

N.Y. Post	N.Y. Daily News
Philadelphia Daily News	Newsday

IN OTHER NEWS….

The HOLLYWOOD REPORTER notes that Viacom has “agreed to pay the U.S. Treasury $3.5[M] to settle all its pending indecency claims except the one the company faces” for the Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show. Under the agreement, Viacom will “delay live programming across its radio and TV properties and set up a companywide compliance plan aimed at preventing violations” (HOLLYWOOD REPORTER, 11/24).

FINAL JEOPARDY!

Last night’s “Final Jeopardy!” category was “State Facts.”

“This state and its capital were named for two dukedoms held by the same British man.”

LAUGH TRACK

THE MONOLOGUES:

CBS’ David Letterman: “The NYPD just broke a Mob-operated limousine company and I was thinking, ‘I think I rode with them once from the airport. I had to ride in the trunk.’ … This is New York City. You do not have to take a Mob-owned limousine. You can take an Al Qaeda-owned cab. … President Bush is back from his trip to Chile, and I thought this was very nice. He brought back a poncho for Dick Cheney’s lesbian daughter. … Bush has a big problem, and don’t kid yourself. It turns out that he ignored an intelligence memo about the Indiana Pacers. … Dan Rather announced that he is stepping down as anchorman of the CBS News in March. The good news is he will be replaced by Conan O’Brien” (“Late Show,” CBS, 11/23).

NBC’s Jay Leno: “To avoid any trouble, we’re cutting off beer sales after the seventh joke. … Dan Rather announced today he is leaving as the anchor of CBS News, although Rather said he has not been able to verify it so it is not official yet. … Good news for Mike Tyson today, drafted by the Indiana Pacers. … I was stunned. When I saw the (Pacers-Pistons) fight, I thought at first, ‘Thank God they settled the hockey strike.’ … This whole thing is a huge PR nightmare for the NBA. In fact, they’re now calling Kobe’s arrest the good old days. That was a more innocent time. … So far nine players have been suspended. Do you know who I feel sorry for? Not the players, but their illegitimate kids, because it’s always the illegitimate kids that suffer. … Nine players suspended. In fact today, the Indiana Pacers changed their name to the Indiana Pacer. … Some bad news for Chicago Bulls fans: none of their players suspended for the year. They’ve got to keep playing now” (“The Tonight Show,” NBC, 11/23).

LAST NIGHT’S TV MONITOR

FINAL JEOPARDY ANSWER

“What is New York?” The state and its capital were named for James, who was Duke of York and Albany.

If you have any questions, comments or suggestions, please let us know at:
dailyinsider@sportsbusinessdaily.com

The Morning Buzz provides an early update of the news and headlines each Monday through Friday at approximately 9:00am ET. If you would like to sign up for an e-mail alert to the Morning Buzz, go to My Account and personalize your e-mail alert options.