Pistons coach and President of Basketball Operations STAN VAN GUNDY in an op-ed for TIME.com wrote under the header, "Athletes Who Protest Are Patriots." In a time where bigotry "seems on the rise and commitment to racial equality on the decline, I have an obligation as a citizen to speak out and to support, in any way possible, those brave and patriotic athletes who are working to bring change to our country." These athletes "could take the easy route and not placed their livelihoods at risk by standing up for what they believe in." They are "risking their jobs to speak up for those who have no voice." They are "working to make America live up to its stated ideals." Everyone should "join them in ensuring their collective voice is heard" (TIME.com, 11/14).
TAKE IT TO COURT: ALEX RODRIGUEZ' former brother-in-law CONSTANTINE SCURTIS is "forging ahead" with a "multi-million dollar civil lawsuit against Rodriguez." Scurtis accuses Rodriguez of "fraud, breach of fiduciary duty, unjust enrichment and civil conspiracy, stemming from their years-long partnership in ACREI L.L.C (Alex Constantine Real Estate Investments), a real estate venture the two started in 2003" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 11/12).
WELCOME TO THE HALL: Former NFL coach GARY KUBIAK, former NFLer VINCE YOUNG and former Texas Tech AD and men's basketball coach GERALD MYERS have been selected for induction into the Texas Sports HOF (HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 11/15)....NBC Sports Washington Wizards analyst KARA LAWSON has been selected for induction into the Virginia Sports HOF (NBCSPORTS.com, 11/14).
EARNING RECOGNITION: A number of sports business execs made Forbes' Sports 30 Under 30 list for '18, including: Harlem Globetrotters Manager of Corporate Partnerships DAVID BRAUN; CAA NFL agent PATRICK COLLINS; CAA Exec ALISON GALLAGHER; NFLPA Manager of Player Affairs DIOR GINYARD; Excel Sports Management Dir of Business Development CHRISTINA MILANO; MLB Counsel ALEX ROSEN; City Football Group Dir of Partnership Sales PREETAM SEN and Relevent Sports CEO DANIEL SILLMAN (FORBES.com, 11/14). Meanwhile, the Baltimore Business Journal named Under Armour Senior Manager of Product Customization LINDSAY WILNER and Ravens VP/Broadcasting & Game Day Productions JAY O’BRIEN to its '18 40 Under 40 list (BIZJOURNALS.com, 11/14). The Memphis Business Journal named Grizzlies Senior Coordinator of Business Operations KANDACE STEWART to its 40 Under 40 list (THE DAILY).
NAMES: The Greg Olsen Foundation has partnered with the Carolinas HealthCare System’s Levine Children’s Hospital to announce that The HEARTest Yard Fund has "committed to support a cardia neurodevelopment program." Panthers TE GREG OLSEN and his wife, KARA, founded the fund after their son T.J. was "born with a severe congenital heart defect" in ’12 (PANTHERS.com, 11/14)....Islanders C JOHN TAVARES, RW JORDAN EBERLE and D NICK LEDDY visited Birch Elementary School in Merrick, N.Y. yesterday and “braved the inquisitions” of students as part of Islanders School Day. The Islanders dispatched 23 players to 10 schools to “talk about things like bullying, health and nutrition, and teamwork" (NEWSDAY, 11/15)....OuterBox Solutions SEM Strategist BRENDAN BOWERS has “written another book” about LEBRON JAMES called “LEBRON JAMES VS. THE NBA.” The book was published by Chicago-based Triumph Books (CRAINSCLEVELAND.com, 11/14)....UNLV officials on Monday announced that the school’s new pro golf management center will be named after men’s golf coach DWAINE KNIGHT (REVIEWJOURNAL.com, 11/13)....SERENA WILLIAMS and her fiancé, Reddit co-Founder ALEXIS OHANIAN, are set to marry in New Orleans tomorrow (N.Y. POST, 11/14).
