Nike, Thunder F KEVIN DURANT and the Kevin Durant Charity Foundation yesterday announced the "Build It And They Will Ball" courts renovation initiative to increase the number of high-quality basketball courts accesible to underprivileged youth across the U.S. and internationally. The court underlays will include Nike Grind, a material made from recycled athletic shoes and Nike manufacturing scrap (Roc Nation).
KNIGHT IN SHINING ARMOR: A Portland OREGONIAN editorial stated there "should be no question that over the past 50-plus years," Nike co-Founder & Chair PHIL KNIGHT has "been an overwhelmingly positive influence" on the state. Nike has "grown to be by far the largest Oregon-based business, has helped attract many other companies to Oregon, has donated millions to charity and has become an integral part of the state's image." The question is "whether the state is prepared for the post-Knight era." Knight, despite all his success, "was never hugely popular in Oregon, except among fans" of the Univ. of Oregon's sports teams. Some of that "probably is a product of his personality and some of it because Oregon does not easily embrace financial success." Maybe that is "the biggest difference of all between Nike and Oregon." It is "hard to be successful without fully embracing success" (Portland OREGONIAN, 7/6).
OFF THE GRIDIRON: Former NFLer PHILLIP BUCHANON at the NFL Rookie Symposium last month told his story "as a cautionary tale to other athletes who discover their life enhanced but at the same time complicated by newfound wealth." Buchanon, who is four years removed from the NFL, is the author of "NEW MONEY: STAYING RICH," in which he "details where all the money went -- including a startling request from his own mother." Buchanon wrote, "Soon after the draft, she told me I owed her a million dollars for raising me the past 18 years." He said at the symposium, "If I had it all over again to do differently, I'd look for a team of mentors to help me with football stuff, family stuff and finances" (SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS, 7/3)....Former NFLer RASHARD MENDENHALL is "working as a staff writer" on HBO's "BALLERS." His literary interests, plus his firsthand knowledge of life in the NFL -- "the stuff fans don't see -- make him an essential asset." Exec Producer EVAN REILLY said, "Rashard just had a different point of view than other players we talked to. He's so thoughtful and introspective and curious, and he's got real creativity" (MEN'S JOURNAL, 7/'15 issue).
DIAMOND EXCHANGE: Maryland baseball coach JOHN SZEFC received nearly a 60% boost "in base salary in the new five-year contract he signed last week." The contract is for $251,000 annually. His previous deal, which was "redone after Szefc led the Terps to the NCAA tournament" in '14, included a base salary of $160,000 (Baltimore SUN, 7/7)....Houston baseball coach TODD WHITTING "received a $50,000 pay increase" from the university as "part of a reworked contract." His annual base salary "increased to $300,000, making him the highest-paid baseball coach" in the AAC (HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 7/7).
NAMES: NBA Commissioner ADAM SILVER is among the new additions to Duke's BOT (TWITTER.com, 7/7)....Nearly 15,000 bars of soap “that include a national hotline for victims of sex trafficking are being placed” in as many as 100 hotels around Cincinnati during the All-Star festivities “to raise awareness of the issue” (CINCINNATI.com, 7/6)….Former NFLer ROB KONRAD “rejected" offers for a book or movie about his story of being trapped at sea for 16 hours after falling off a boat (MIAMI HERALD, 7/7)....The ’84 L.A. Olympics torch that BRUCE JENNER carried “is going on the auction block, where it could fetch $20,000 or more” (FOXSPORTS.com, 7/6)....Yankees DH ALEX RODRIGUEZ on Thursday “quietly celebrated his 3,000th hit at the Polo Bar” in N.Y. with a group that included RAPLH LAUREN’s daughter DYLAN and her husband, PAUL ARROUET (N.Y. POST, 7/7)....The ECHL named Toledo Walleye Dir of Ticket Sales BRIAN PERKINS its Ticket Exec of the Year for '14-15 (ECHL).
IN MEMORY: BMX racer SCOT BREITHAUPT on Saturday was "found dead in a tent in a vacant lot" in Indio, Calif., at the age of 57. Breithaupt, who "helped start a craze" for BMX, was also a "key promoter, co-founding a trade magazine, establishing a professional organization for BMX racers and developing components for the bicycles" (L.A. TIMES, 7/7)....Bowie State Faculty Athletics rep FREDDIE VAUGHNS passed away on Saturday. He served in roles for the CIAA FAR Association and its symposiums (CIAA).
