The Knicks today "made it official" by announcing that agent Leon Rose is now team President. Rose "won't hold a press conference" before tonight's Rockets-Knicks game at MSG, as he "wants to ease into the new job." In a letter to fans, Rose "called this 'a pivotal time in Knicks history,' said he will 'support' interim coach Mike Miller for the rest of the season and said the roster has 'significant future assets.'" Rose made "no indication changes are going to be made imminently in the front office or on the coaching staff" (N.Y. POST, 3/2).

LeBron James is one of the celebrities appearing in a national campaign for AT&T TV as the new streaming service launches nationally. As part of the partnership, "AT&T's technology and other resources will be allocated to the I Promise Village," tied to James' I Promise School in Cleveland. James "already has a deep relationship with AT&T through the company's Warner Bros. Entertainment and HBO divisions." AT&T TV has been "available in 13 cities to this point," and the company is "banking on James to attract subscribers" thanks in part to his 150 million social media followers (FORBES.com, 3/2).

FanDuel Sportsbook tonight becomes the first U.S. betting operator to stream out-of-market NHL games on its app through an agreement struck recently among the league, rightsholder Disney Streaming Services and betting data provider IMG Media. Betting operators will be allowed to stream as many as two out-of-market games per night under the terms of the deal, with viewership restricted to those with active, funded sportsbook accounts. The NHL is the first North American league to allow its games to air on sportsbook sites. Though new to the U.S., IMG Arena said 56 million unique viewers collectively watched more than 10.5 billion minutes of IMG Arena media content last year.

ESPN has signed Mothers Polish to a three-year renewal of the car-care product company's sponsorship of F1 coverage. Terms were not disclosed for the deal, which will see Mothers continue as the presenting sponsor of ESPN's commercial-free coverage of the racing series. As part of the renewal, ESPN now will air practice and qualifying commercial free as well. Mothers' logo appears on screen during the events and gets mentioned during outro clips after each race.

Mothers CEO Dennis Holloway said that company execs believe the sponsorship is working based on the amount of positive feedback they get from it. ESPN originally planned to have commercials when it first started airing F1 in '18, but after an issue with cutting into the Sky Sports coverage for the first race, ESPN switched to the commercial-free model. Mothers had been planning to be a major advertiser during F1 coverage, but it worked with ESPN to change its deal to the commercial-free sponsorship.

This comes as F1 also announced a media-rights extension with Bell Media's TSN and RDS, which will continue to serve as the TV home of the series in Canada through '24. The deal includes qualifying and practice sessions, and multiple F1 live feeds will be available on TSN and and RDS digital outlets.

Chip Ganassi Racing sponsor PNC Bank is launching a new marketing campaign today around its IndyCar deal ahead of the season start next week. The campaign is called "Put Them On A Podium" and spotlights some of the people who are critical to CGR's success, including driver Scott Dixon and four crew members. The plan includes social/digital spots and graphics, and the Pittsburgh-based bank has also purchased billboard space at locations in St. Petersburg and Indianapolis. The '20 NTT IndyCar Series season starts on the streets of St. Petersburg on March 15. PNC Exec VP & Head of Regional Markets Lou Cestello said the Ganassi deal “has delivered proven results,” and that the campaign “reflects our shared commitment to teamwork.” PNC Worked with Deutsch, N.Y., on the campaign. 

UniFirst will debut as the primary sponsor of Hendrick Motorsports' No. 9 NASCAR Cup Series Chevy driven by Chase Elliott for three races this season (UniFirst).

Customizable bed maker Reverie is sponsoring Gold Medal-winning U.S. sprinter Allyson Felix as she pursues an appearance in her fifth Olympic Games (Reverie).

The Predators announced a partnership with Middle Tennessee State Univ., along with the Charlie and Hazel Daniels Veterans and Military Family Center (Predators).

"It's a matter of personal preference and priority. As much as he would be honored to be an Olympian, the Fedex Cup Playoffs are also very important to him" -- Golfer Dustin Johnson's manager, David Winkle, in an e-mail explaining why his client will not be competing in the Tokyo Games (GOLFWEEK.com, 3/2).

"I wasn't trying to be malicious. I didn't mean to disrespect anyone. But professional golfers choke for two things: cash and prestige. And the PGA Tour has the most of both" -- NBC Sports' Paul Azinger, on the reaction to what was perceived as anti-European Tour commentary during the final round of the PGA Tour Honda Classic (GOLFCHANNEL.com, 3/2). 

"I'm not for the CBA that they're proposing now. The players really need to spend time and understand what's going on right now because we've put too much time and effort into this sport that we love to not have everything we deserve and work for" -- Redskins S Landon Collins, on the current NFL CBA negotiations (TWITTER.com, 3/2).

Lawyers for the NFL and NFLPA continue to draft the formal document of the proposed CBA before it is sent to players for their final ratification vote. No exact timetable given yet for when that vote of all players will occur.

— MarkMaske (@MarkMaske) March 2, 2020

At the NHL GM meetings in Boca Raton, the general managers discussed emergency backup goalie procedures, but doesn’t sound like there’s much appetite for reform. Sentiment is: it’s rare occurrence, and reacting now would be purely reactionary. Most like the system in place.

— Emily Kaplan (@emilymkaplan) March 2, 2020

Spoke to Toronto infectious diseases physician Dr. Isaac Bogoch about coronavirus. He tells me as situation evolves, NHL, NBA and other leagues need to consider canceling or postponing games or playing without spectators.
More tonight on @SportsCentre

— Rick Westhead (@rwesthead) March 2, 2020

Just a reminder than Manfred’s ruling on the Red Sox should go down this week.

— Maury Brown (@BizballMaury) March 2, 2020

If you see a tweet we will not want to miss, send it to us at editorial@sportsbusinessdaily.com.

The Jackie Robinson Foundation hosts its annual ROBIE Awards Dinner in N.Y., honoring Dorothea and Jon Bon Jovi, Ariel Investments co-CEO John Rogers Jr. and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's Kendra Gaither.

See more of this week's events.

Wyclef Jean hosts a roundtable of current and former hockey players to discuss the ways the sport overlaps with hip hop music and culture.

MSG Networks tonight launches its first-ever "Music Week," which features content that highlights the intersection of music and sports.

12th -- Rank of the Timbers' Providence Park, in terms of capacity of MLS venues. Despite this, the club's attendance "ranked fourth" in the league in '19, and is off to a strong start in '20 with 25,000-plus attending the season opener (BIZJOURNALS.com, 3/2).