WNBA Atlanta Dream co-Owner and U.S. Sen. KELLY LOEFFLER (R-Ga.) recently discussed her "stance on Black Lives Matter with a TV host tied to white supremacy and Nazism." Loeffler promoted the interview with OANN's JACK POSOBIEC that aired Thursday on her social media. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution "reached out to her team to ask if she was aware of Posobiec's ties to white supremacy." They "declined to address the question" (SPORTS.YAHOO.com, 8/1).
THE ART OF THE DEAL: Thirty Five Ventures co-Founder RICH KLEIMAN described the investment goals he and Nets F KEVIN DURANT share, saying, “We’ve been active in terms of being good investors for the companies that were already in our portfolio, but it really is an aspect of our business. The focus for us has been on our foundation, on our philanthropic efforts, our media and the building of our sports business platform, The Boardroom. The major investment that came from Kevin and our organization was the investment in the Philadelphia Union." Kleiman said despite the boom in tech, that field “hasn’t been a major focus.” But he added, “Now that our portfolio is four or five years old and a lot of these companies have matured and are seeing success, like Postmates and some of the other companies in our portfolio, it’s an incredible feeling” (“Closing Bell,” CNBC, 7/31).
FIGHTING MAD: Nationals C TRES BARRERA, who received an 80-game suspension for banned substances, has now "sued MLB, the commissioner’s office, the director of an anti-doping lab and two league-contracted labs in Utah and Montreal." Barrera is alleging that MLB's test for DHCMT is "junk science"; that the levels found in his system "do not qualify as performance-enhancing; that the test results can't conclusively determine when the substance entered his system; and that MLB's arbitration process was ultimately unfair because DANIEL EICHNER, the Utah lab director and an MLB-contracted expert, was the only scientist who testified." Barrera looks to "form a class of players who have tested positive for DHCMT by MLB." He is "seeking an unspecified amount of monetary damages, as well as interest on those damages and the money he won't earn from the Nationals while suspended" (WASHINGTON POST, 7/31).
NAMES: Pelicans G JRUE HOLIDAY will "donate the remainder of his salary this season, about $5 million, to businesses, nonprofits and higher learning institutions that serve the Black community and communities of color." The newly created Jrue and Lauren Holiday Fund has "committed to donate" $1.5M to organizations and businesses in New Orleans, $1M in Indianapolis and $1.5M in L.A. and Compton. An additional $1M will be "given to Black-owned small businesses in 10 U.S. cities and $500,000 will go to historically Black colleges and universities" (L.A. TIMES, 8/2)....Texans QB DESHAUN WATSON, OT LAREMY TUNSIL, WR KENNY STILLS and LBs WHITNEY MERCILUS and DUKE EJOFOR have partnered with Texas Southern Univ. this summer. The players will "attend games and provide mentoring to TSU student-athletes." Beyond investing their time, the NFL players also will "provide financial resources to the historically Black college" (HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 8/3).
IN MEMORY: JAMIE SAMUELSEN, a longtime voice on the Detroit sports media scene, died on Saturday after a "lengthy battle with colon cancer." He was 48 years old. Samuelsen was "diagnosed with colon cancer 19 months ago but kept his condition private until last week." Samuelsen spent "nearly his entire professional career in the Detroit market" (DETROIT FREE PRESS, 8/2).
