2.

Two days before the Fab Five documentary aired on ESPN, its executive producer and star Jalen Rose was arrested in Michigan on suspicion of drunk driving. Seems like Rose was celebrating a tad bit early on the show’s success. At the scene, he refused a breathalyzer and was taken to a nearby hospital for a blood test. Oddly enough, none of this information was released to the public until yesterday, a full 20 days after the incident. Wonder if some people in the local Detroit media are trying to help one of their own?

25,000

Tampa Bay Bucs cornerback Aqib Talib will turn himself in later this week after allegedly firing a gun at his sister’s boyfriend. His bail will be set at $25,000. Hopefully, in the troubled economy of professional football, he stashed away some money for a rainy day. The organization isn’t too thrilled about this entire incident but rode the fence in their comments. “We are deeply troubled by the serious charges filed against Aqib Talib,” Bucs general manager Mark Dominik said in a team statement. “Due to current labor circumstances, we will withhold any further comment or action.”

1-0

The U.S. Men’s National Team has played 3 games in preparation for CONCACAF duty later on this year. And thus far, they don’t have a win to show for it. Just two days after being embarrassed by Argentina, the U.S. lost 1-0 to Paraguay at a game in Tennessee. Things don’t get any easier for the team as their next opponent is none other than World Cup champion Spain before the Gold Cup. They’ll need to, at the very least, play well to have some momentum going into the tournament.

102-90

Revenge is a dish served several months after a guy screws your team, city, and state. The Cavs, playing for their dignity last night beat LeBron James and the Miami Heat 102-90. Oddly enough, LeBron did not show up for pre-game intros opting to stay in the locker room beforehand. Things even got testy for the King before tip-off as several members of his entourage were denied access into the arena. Not like Dan Gilbert isn’t one to hold grudges or anything.

104-99

In perhaps the biggest upset in NBA regular season history, the lowly Cleveland Cavaliers defending the two-time defending champion Los Angeles Lakers last night 104-99. The Cavs, who just came off one of the longest losing streaks in sports history got 32 points from Ramon Sessions en route to the win. Just last month, the Lakers beat the Cavs by an astounding 55 points, which prompted many, including LeBron to actually feel sorry for his old team. Well, who’s feeling sorry from whom now?

1-10

How big are college football rivalries down south you ask? Well, they come at the expense of poisoning trees now. Apparently, Alabama fans don’t celebrate National Arbor Day. After Auburn won the National Championship on January 10th, oak trees near a spot called Toomer’s corner where fans celebrate wins were deliberately poisoned. According to university officials, a man called into a local radio station and fessed up to the naughty deed. He also responded with, “roll tide roll”.

0735

Albert Pujols showed up for Spring Training this morning at 0735 like he has every other year. Except this time, he is without a contract and it’s arguably the biggest story in sports right now. Albert and his agent have continually said that they will NOT negotiate with St. Louis Cardinals management during the year so as not to distract him from the job at hand. That means, Pujols will go into the 2011 offseason, presumably as a free agent.

65

Lance Armstrong has called it quits….AGAIN. The 39-year old cyclist hasn’t had a good showing lately in races placing 65th in his last competitive race in Australia. Armstrong also retires amidst the doping scandals that have plagued him ever since his comeback. It truly seems that the question about Armstrong doping is a matter of when and not if.

32

Hold your breath everyone, the NFL and NFLPA could be meeting to “talk” this week about a new CBA. According to reports, both sides backed out of a Thursday negotiation because they weren’t getting anywhere. Roger Goodell spoke to owners of all 32 teams on Sunday to report back recent developments. At the very least, they deserve some credit for trying to make this work as opposed to balking at every turn like the NHL did a few years back.

90

Fedor Emelianenko, widely considered to be one of the greatest MMA fighters of all-time, has been suspended 90 days by the New Jersey State Athletic Control Board for a brutal eye injury he suffered during Saturday’s bout. Emelianenko, who many believe will retire after the Antonio Silva loss had this to say after the fight: “Maybe it’s time for me to leave,” Emelianenko said. “Maybe it’s high time. Thank God for everything. “I’ve had a long sport life. Maybe it’s God’s will.”

26

The Washington Wizards and Cleveland Cavaliers have been duking it out for NBA futility lately. The Cavs had been riding one of the longest losing streaks in league history before beating the hapless L.A. Clippers Friday night. The Wizards have not one a road game all year. So when the two met, it was truly a battle of “The Biggest Loser”. And just like the Cavs a few nights before, the Wizards were somehow able to sneak away with a win.

66

Pittsburgh Penguins great Mario Lemieux spoke up about the fight fest that took place between the New York Islanders and Penguins…and he’s not happy. In fact, he went as far as ripping the NHL for their lack of punishment for the Islanders players and organization. “We, as a league, must do a better job of protecting the integrity of the game and the safety of our players. We must make it clear that those kinds of actions will not be tolerated and will be met with meaningful disciplinary action. “If the events relating to Friday night reflect the state of the league, I need to rethink whether I want to be a part of it.” Harsh, hard words from Lemieux and of course, the NHL won’t do anything about it.

26

Going into last night’s game against the Detroit Pistons, the lowly Cleveland Cavaliers were actually favored to win. Yes, the same team who lost 25 in a row were picked to beat the Pistons. Now, the Pistons are undoubtedly not world beaters but the Cavs are absolute junk. In reality, their roster might be the worst in the league history. Not surprisingly, the Pistons laid the wood to the Cavs for most of the first half and won 103-94. Sorry Cleveland, maybe another night.

50

In the biggest rivalry in college basketball, Duke stormed back from a 14-point deficit to defeat North Carolina, 79-73. The Blue Devils miraculously scored 50 points in the second half to just 30 for the Tar Heels. One of the biggest differences in the game was the 3-pt line. Neither team was on fire but Duke was able to sink 8, while North Carolina struggled going 2-16 from beyond the arc.

1250

It was only a matter of time, but a lawsuit was filed against the NFL, Jerry Jones and Cowboys stadium by some of the 1250 fans who were not able to get seats for the Super Bowl. The fact that the NFL knew about the situation days beforehand does not help their cause. “Los Angeles-based attorney Michael J. Avenatti, a Cowboys season ticketholder who attended Sunday’s game, filed the federal lawsuit Tuesday in Dallas and seeks $5 million in damages for the plaintiffs. The suit alleges breach of contract, fraud and deceptive sales practices.”

597

Former Michigan quarterback and Heisman favorite in 2009, Tate Forcier, has decided to take his talents to South Beach and attend the University of Miami. Forcier had threatened to transfer several times in his collegiate career but last month, he was suspended from the bowl game for not attending classes. Forcer leaves the team after throwing for 597 yards, 4 touchdowns, and 4 interceptions this past season.

47

The New York Rangers fired 47 shots at Detroit Red Wings goaltender Jimmy Howard but were only able to sneak two through in a loss last night. To make matters worse, their power play was brutal as they spent the last 3:40 seconds of the game with the man advantage including a short time with a two-man advantage. But at one point, Red Wings forward Henrik Zetterberg controlled the puck in the Rangers end and it took four players to retrieve it from him. Embarrassing.

1,098,000

In a 24-hour span, golfer Mark Wilson had a lot to be happy for. His Green Bay Packers won the Super Bowl on Sunday and on Monday, he won the frost-delayed Phoenix Open. It is Wilson’s second victory in three starts this year making him one of the hottest golfers on tour. The win also propelled him to 51st in the world ranking securing him a spot in the 64-match play field coming up.

25

Is there an end in sight for the Cleveland Cavaliers? I’d venture a guess that most of the players would opt to forfeit the rest of the season instead of losing night after night. Yesterday, they stretched their streak to 25 straight games with a loss to the Dallas Mavericks 99-96. The Cavs had a chance to tie it up but Anthony Parker’s three-pointer fell just short.

50

Carmelo Anthony exploded for 50 points last night in a game against the Houston Rockets. On most nights, that would have been enough to get the Nuggets the ‘w’. But Kevin Martin scored 37 and Denver couldn’t get stops down the stretch and lost 108-103. The scoring explosion from Anthony comes on the heels of rumors that he is out of Denver in a matter of a few days. Trade talks are on the table and it appears the Knicks are back in the game.

XLV

The Super Bowl traveled down south this year to avoid weather calamities like the blizzard that’s about to hit the entire midwest and northeast. But apparently, Dallas is just a bit too close as sleet and frozen rain covered city streets as people arrived this morning. Yes, the dome will be closed for Super Bowl XLV itself, but the complaints from the media and fans will be incessant unless this lets up soon.

21

Make that 21 losses in a row for the lowly Cleveland Cavaliers. This time at the hand of a familiar foe, LeBron James and the Miami Heat. But don’t worry Cleveland fans, the King feels bad for you. “I wish the organization the best. And I wish the fans, more than anything, the best because we had a lot of great years together.”

.31

Ohio State might be the #1 team by the polls, but on the court, the Texas Longhorns might be the more impressive team. Last night, they won their first game at College Station since 2004 in impressive fashion, 69-49. It’s the defensive end that is really surprising teams too. Because of their length, the Longhorns can force teams into tough shots. Last night, the Aggies were only able to make 17 field goals on 31% shooting.

100,000

The man responsible for the infamous trip on a punt return that caused waves on the internet has now resigned from the New York Jets. Strength coach Sal Alosi, embarrassingly called it quits yesterday. “After the events that have transpired, I feel it’s best for my family and me to look for a fresh start.” The Jets were ultimately fined 100k for the incident including 50k from Alosi’s pocket.

25

It appears the Duke Blue Devils will not finish the season undefeated after all. After a 25-game winning streak dating back to last season, Duke fell to unranked Florida State last night 66-61. The Seminoles sealed the deal down the stretch with several made free throws preventing the eventual run Duke went on to get within one. Duke will more than likely fall at least one spot and be replaced with either Ohio State or Kansas.

10

Speaking of teams playing well in college basketball, Villanova stretched their winning streak to 10 games with a win over Louisville 88-74. The Wildcats look poised to make a great run in the difficult Big East and are tied atop the standings with a 4-0 record. However, coach Jay Wright has seen this kind of play before only to falter down the stretch. He’s hoping he can get more from his frontcourt players for once in tournament play.

11

LeBron James wants to explain that tweet he sent out the other night. You see, it had nothing to do with the Cavs and their 11-game losing streak. In fact, according to James, he wasn’t even the originator of the message. He copy-pasted it from someone else. Um, what? Yes, LeBron James thinks we are dumb. That’s my only explanation.

100,000,000

The Vikings have officially had it with a roofed stadium and are refusing to get a new one. If you recall during a December snowstorm, the Metrodome roof collapsed forcing the Vikings to play a game in Detroit and then one outside at nearby University of Minnesota stadium. Ironically, the Vikings are pushing for an outdoor stadium now to avoid the several hundred million dollars in costs.

Last night, the Cleveland Cavaliers played arguably one of the worst games in NBA history. To give you some insight into how bad it was, Shannon Brown of the Lakers hit a buzzer-beater at the end of the 3rd quarter to put them up 92-41. Yes, a 51-point lead with still another whole quarter left to play. The final result? 112-57, truly an embarrassing effort all around as the Cavs couldn’t even muster more than 16 points in any single stanza.

Judging from the post-game comments, the Cavs coaches and players were well-aware of how bad their performance was. The Lakers certainly were aware of it as Kobe Bryant expressed sympathy for head coach Byron Scott. But it was the tweet from former Cavs standout LeBron James that really ruffled some feathers on the internet last night. Yes, LeBron James took time out of his insanely busy South Beach schedule to comment on the affairs in Cleveland.

Now, it’s tough to tell here whether James is actually familiar with the term karma. He’s not exactly well-educated so I can’t say I would be terribly surprised. However, it seems pretty straight-forward that he is directing his anger to Dan Gilbert and the Cleveland fan base that treated him poorly in his return just last month.

Not sure what kind of reception “The King” was expecting. Perhaps he thought they’d roll out the red carpet for his highness.

Regardless, the tweet more or less signifies how out of touch with reality James is and how much of an ego he has. Then again, everything he’s done since “The Decision” has been nothing short of stupid, so in essence, I’m not sure we’ve come to expect anything less.

Williams racked up over four million views on YouTube over the course of two days, landing interviews with everyone from CBS’s Early Show to the Today Show. But his biggest interview came on his local pop radio station WNCI when a representative from the Cleveland Cavaliers offered him a job (listen to the clip below, starting at 5 minutes, 45 seconds in) doing announcing for the team and its home stadium, the Quicken Loans Arena.

As part of his hiring, the Quicken Loans Arena and the Cavaliers are also paying for a mortgage on a brand-new home for Williams.

Ignoring the obvious publicity stunt factor and our usual jokes, this is seriously just an awesome story and something genuinely touching to see happen. Congratulations to Ted Williams and we wish him the best of luck with his new start on life.

Between this and the now successful homeless musician Daniel Mustard who got his break on the Opie and Anthony show, I’m thinking I need to just go around with a camera and film homeless people until I find their hidden talent. Or they stab me. But ne’er shall the two twains meet.

UPDATE: Here’s a picture of Ted all cleaned up from a video of his interview on WNCI’s Web site. Dude’s looking sharp.

VIDEO: Ted Williams, Homeless Man With Golden Voice, Offered Job, Housing By Cavaliers [SB Nation]

Here are some of the highlights and lowlights:

As LeBron jokes with some players on the Cavs bench, a member of the coaching staff is less than amused. I’m not going to spell it for you, but suffice to say that James won’t be making a trip to his house for Sunday dinner. Video via The Big Lead:

Not breaking with tradition in any way, LeBron tosses up chalk in his pre-game ritual. The chalk may as well have been salt in Cavs’ fans wounds.

One of his best friends on the Cavs, Mo Williams, the same man who once considered retirement when LeBron left the team gave him the cold shoulder. Video via mocksession.com.

Some of the better signs that caught our eye included “LeBum, Liar Baby Jerk, and betrayed”

38

We’ll get to more LeBron stuff later but in case you missed the shenanigans last night, LeBron dropped 38 points in his first game back in Cleveland. The Heat ended up bombing the Cavs 108-90, and at no time was the game ever in doubt. In fact, the more pressing question became, how many fans would get arrested by the end of the contest.

302

The Eagles staged a 4th quarterback comeback against the Texans to win 34-24 in Thursday night action yesterday. And again, the win propelled Michael Vick into MVP talk. Coming into the season, Vick only had two 300-yard passing games his entire career. This year, he has three including his 302-yard performance against the Texans. No one knows where Vick will ultimately play next season, but it’s a good bet that he’ll be making a lot more money.

2018,2022

Soccer-loving countries Russia and Qatar will host the World Cup in 2018 and 2022 respectively. The decision came as a surprise, because, at the present time, neither are really prepared to handle such a large sporting event. Both the U.S. and England lost out on their bids, even though both were seen as safer picks in the eyes of the soccer community.

65

For only the second time in 2010, a familiar name is atop a golf event. Yes, Tiger Woods, who has arguably had the worst year of his entire life, both on and off the course, is leading the Chevron World Challenge with an opening round 65. It should be noted that there are only 18 players in the entire event, however, all 18 are ranked in the top 50. The way Tiger’s season has gone, he’ll take any win he can get, regardless of field.

90

The 90th football bust for the Michigan Wolverines was slightly more emotional than past end of the year award ceremonies. A teary-eyed Rich Rodriguez essentially begged for Michigan AD David Brandon to keep him on as coach. Though the message was not straightforward, Rodriguez led the team with a Josh Groban song, “You Raise Me Up” as players held hands. Rumors have been swirling that Michigan plans on hiring Jim Harbaugh in the near future, but thus far, the job is still Rodriguez’ through the bowl game.

4

For one of the few times in the Los Angeles Lakers history, and the first time since Pau Gasol was added to the team, they have lost four games in a row. Things aren’t looking on the up and up in the near future either as Gasol suffered what appears to be a hamstring injury. He left yesterday’s game with the Rockets in the third quarter and never returned.

180,000

So yea, that whole Cam Newton thing has been resolved, at least in the NCAA’s eyes. Newton was ruled eligible (for the time being) because, get this, he was not aware of the impropriety that occurred. If you think it’s stupid that somebody was bargaining on behalf without his knowledge, you’re not alone. I have a feeling this whole thing is going to get much uglier after the season is done and that Cam Newton will play his final game as a collegian in January of 2011.

31

Duke guard Kyrie Irving exploded onto the national scene last night in a marquee game against Michigan State. Irving’s 31 points on 8-12 shooting was nothing short of spectacular, especially given the competition. He was able to penetrate into the lane, sometimes at will, and opened up other opportunities for teammates late in the game. The Duke win concluded the ACC-Big Ten challenge, however, for the second year in a row the Big Ten pulled out on top.

0

Either Jon Gruden continues to leak info to the media, or the man is really wanted in Miami. A source told ESPN that Gruden has “zero interest” in coaching the Hurricanes. Last weekend, Randy Shannon was let go by Miami for repeatedly under performing in conference play. It makes sense for teams to shoot for the moon with Gruden, but at the same time, something smells fishy. Could this be a power play by Gruden’s team to get him a shot in the NFL?

15,779,912

In case you missed it yesterday, the LeBron James saga just got a little nastier. Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert hired a firm to look into possible tampering by the Miami Heat while James was still under contract in 2009. Though James was paid handsomely by the Cavs, $15.779 million dollars to be exact, Gilbert believes that he quit on the team and therefore had another deal in place before last year’s playoff run.

To say that Dan Gilbert is an intense guy would be a severe understatement. The night LeBron James decided that he was taking his talents to South Beach, Gilbert famously wrote an email to fans letting them know that LeBron would rue the day he left Cleveland. He even hilariously typed out the entire thing in Comic Sans font.

Gilbert’s taken pot shots at the King here and there the last couple of months, but nothing overly serious, at least nothing anybody knew about.

But it appears Gilbert was mounting his offensive behind closed doors.

The Cleveland Cavaliers have poured hundreds of thousands of dollars into a high-powered Midwestern law firm to investigate their suspicions that the Miami Heat broke NBA tampering rules while pursuing LeBron James(notes), and owner Dan Gilbert has privately vowed he won’t relent until he has a thick binder of findings to drop on the desk of the NBA commissioner, league sources told Yahoo! Sports.

This reeks of serious butthurt from Dan Gilbert. We get it, LeBron is an enormous prick, probably as big a prick as any athlete in the history of sports. But he chose another team and both Gilbert and the city of Cleveland need to move on. They still have a basketball team and organization that is having mild success this year. In fact, if some cards fall in their favor, barring catastrophe, they will probably make the playoffs.

So let LeBron have it tomorrow. Boo the hell out of him, call him and his mama names if you want.

And then go back to caring about Cleveland Cavaliers basketball.

Cavaliers probing Heat’s signing of James [Yahoo]

45,000,000

Derek Jeter might be a valuable player to the New York Yankees but the question the last few weeks has been, how much? Jeter turned down $45 million from the Bronx Bombers just last week hoping for a longer deal…a deal it seems may never come. There are rumors that he wants as much as 6-years, $150 million dollars. If that’s the case, you can say goodbye to Derek in pinstripes.

2

A little over one year after a car accident and scandal rocked the now #2 ranked golfer in the world Tiger Woods, he’s taken to Twitter to try and win his fans back. He’s even engaging in a little back and forth with them answering questions directly. Unfortunately, none of them are about his wife or mistresses, more so “what’s your favourite course and why?”. Eh, those are softballs. Ask him about the pancakes at Perkins if you’re going to loft one up there like that.

11

Speaking of divorce, there may not be an uglier or more expensive one in sports than the Frank-Jamie McCourt one. Both had 11 days to consider a proposal to settle their case, and they still couldn’t come to an agreement. The blame here lies with Jamie though, as Frank agreed to it and seems to want to move past it. Now, it could be several more years before this is decided, which of course, leaves the Dodgers ownership in the balance.

25,000

Count me amongst the confused who have no idea how the NFL fine system works. One day after Cortland Finnegan and Andre Johnson were only fined $25k for essentially beating the crap out of each other, James Harrison was fined $25k for a hit on Ryan Fitzpatrick. So next time, Harrison should just wait for the play is over, rip off a quarterback’s helmet, and drop kick him in the face. It’s all the same to the NFL.

6

The LeBron James PR nightmare train continues to roll. Only days after bumping into his coach, James makes his way back to Cleveland Thursday for his homecoming. And what a return it will be. Nothing short of a ticker tape parade with confetti falling I’m sure. Nobody knows what’s in store for LeBron other than the fans, but you can bet, security will be tight. And while I understand the frustration of Cleveland fans and think LeBron is a royal prick, uh, it’s just sports. Let’s all move on people. Ok fine, let’s move on after this game, I’ll give you that much.

208

A prankster pulled a fast one on ESPNU reporter Elizabeth Moreau. While staying in room 208 at Gainesville’s Hilton Garden Inn, a man called Moreau to tell her the hotel was on fire. After breaking some windows to try and get out the caller then told her: “that’s what you get for being a bad ex-wife” and further explained she was bad at ‘sucking dick. Um ok, awesome prank I guess.

11-01-10

It appears that current Detroit Pistons owner Karen Davidson will have a deal to sell the team by November 1st according to NBA Commissioner David Stern. At the Board of Governors meeting in New York, Stern opened with the impending Pistons sale in his opening statement. “It’s not as fast a track as Golden State, but we’re looking for something definitive to happen in the month of November.”

32

The most impressive number from the Oregon blow-out of UCLA last night wasn’t the score (60-13 if you fell asleep), it’s the number of first downs the Ducks had–32. When you constantly pick up 1st downs on um, 1st down, well then that kind of stuff is going to happen. On the other hand, time of possession could be costly sometime down the road for the defense. Almost 2-1 in favor of the Bruins last night.

7

LeBron James’ run with the Cavs was “7 years of joy” according to his Twitter account. This comes after a report that James dissed the city of Cleveland and its fans by telling them to “get over it”. Speaking of which Mr. James, mind getting over, uh, yourself.

108

Roy Halladay didn’t look like himself last night but alas, even 75% of him is good enough to win a playoff road game. Halladay hurt his groin and often rode the bike in between innings to stay loose. His pitch count was abnormally high early and somehow he sneaked out of the 6th inning having thrown 108 total while scattering 6 hits. The teams head back to Philly for Game 6. It’ll be interesting to see if both the Yankees and Phillies can pull off miraculous 3-1 deficits in the same year.

186-299

How bad has it gotten for the Pittsburgh Pirates? Royals bench coach John Gibbons said thanks but no thanks to their job opening. The Pirates last manager, John Russell, was let go by the franchise on Oct. 4th and it appears there aren’t many contenders lining up for the position. And really, can you blame them. Russell’s stint with the Pirates resulted in a 186-299 record.

LeBron has been causing heartache around the nation since his decision last week. Specifically in his native state in Ohio. But oddly enough, it was a man in Michigan who was the first to use “LeDecision” as a scapegoat for his DUI. Because, you know, he was distressed and all

Police reported that the man appeared to be intoxicated. When asked if he’d been drinking the man said that he had been drinking, and it was because LeBron James had decided to play for the Miami Heat instead of the Boston Celtics (James had actually turned down an opportunity to play for the Cleveland Cavaliers).
A breath test revealed that the man’s alcohol level was 0.16 percent. The man was cited for driving while intoxicated. Police reports did not indicate if the man was taken to jail or released.

Inevitably, the LeBron defense will be used in court cases nationwide the rest of the summer.

Assault and battery at a bar…LeBron pushed me over the edge
Robbed the neighborhood bank…needed money for tickets to LeBron’s first game
Get caught seducing older woman…LeBron’s mama has that Mrs. Robinson effect

That last one was brought to you by MILF lover extraordinaire Delonte West.

Man arrested for drunken driving after being disappointed in LeBron James’s choice to play for Miami Heat [MLIVE]

Despite his awesome use of Comic Sans in his LeBron letter, David Stern was not amused with Dan Gilbert. He slapped a 100k fine on him for the letter and his subsequent comments to the AP that James quit during the playoffs.

NBA commissioner David Stern called the comments — in which Gilbert referred to James’ decision to sign with the Miami Heat as “narcissistic” and “cowardly behavior” — “a little bit extreme,” although he did support the owner’s right to express his disappointment.

David Stern is just being a “fontist”. He might enjoy the tried and true likes of Times New Roman, Arial, and Courier New, but don’t you dare use Sans Serif or Verdana on him.

That’s a no-no.

As for LeBron, he’s a douchebag. He’s always been a douchebag. He’s just a douchebag in another city now. I feel bad for all of you that were blind to this fact before “LeDecision”.

Oh yea, but it was for the kids. My bad. What a humanitarian.

Cavs’ owner Dan Gilbert fined $100,000 {Freep}

Having met Dan Gilbert on two separate occasions, I can’t say this letter surprises me in the least. A definite, must-read.

Dear Cleveland, All Of Northeast Ohio and Cleveland Cavaliers Supporters Wherever You May Be Tonight;

As you now know, our former hero, who grew up in the very region that he deserted this evening, is no longer a Cleveland Cavalier.

This was announced with a several day, narcissistic, self-promotional build-up culminating with a national TV special of his “decision” unlike anything ever “witnessed” in the history of sports and probably the history of entertainment.

Clearly, this is bitterly disappointing to all of us.

The good news is that the ownership team and the rest of the hard-working, loyal, and driven staff over here at your hometown Cavaliers have not betrayed you nor NEVER will betray you.
There is so much more to tell you about the events of the recent past and our more than exciting future. Over the next several days and weeks, we will be communicating much of that to you.

You simply don’t deserve this kind of cowardly betrayal.
You have given so much and deserve so much more.

In the meantime, I want to make one statement to you tonight:

“I PERSONALLY GUARANTEE THAT THE CLEVELAND CAVALIERS WILL WIN AN NBA CHAMPIONSHIP BEFORE THE SELF-TITLED FORMER ‘KING’ WINS ONE”

You can take it to the bank.

If you thought we were motivated before tonight to bring the hardware to Cleveland, I can tell you that this shameful display of selfishness and betrayal by one of our very own has shifted our “motivation” to previously unknown and previously never experienced levels.
Some people think they should go to heaven but NOT have to die to get there.
Sorry, but that’s simply not how it works.

This shocking act of disloyalty from our home grown “chosen one” sends the exact opposite lesson of what we would want our children to learn. And “who” we would want them to grow-up to become.

But the good news is that this heartless and callous action can only serve as the antidote to the so-called “curse” on Cleveland, Ohio.

The self-declared former “King” will be taking the “curse” with him down south. And until he does “right” by Cleveland and Ohio, James (and the town where he plays) will unfortunately own this dreaded spell and bad karma.
Just watch.

Sleep well, Cleveland.

Tomorrow is a new and much brighter day….
I PROMISE you that our energy, focus, capital, knowledge and experience will be directed at one thing and one thing only:
DELIVERING YOU the championship you have long deserved and is long overdue….

Dan Gilbert
Majority Owner
Cleveland Cavaliers

If you think Gilbert sounds fiery in this email, trust me, he is like that in person. Just last year, he famously got into a fight at a Bar Mitzvah with a former business associate. Oh yea, he knocked him out too.

I applaud the optimism for his team, but thinking he will win a title before LeBron? This was one of those situations where someone needed to talk him off the ledge. Reads more like a scorned fan on a message board than a NBA owner.

Open Letter to Fans from Cavaliers Majority Owner Dan Gilbert {NBA.com}

The things that happen in the middle of the night I tell ya.

While you were sleeping, Alan Hahn of New York Newsday tweeted that LeBron was going to the Miami Heat. About an hour later, Chris Broussard of ESPN tweeted the same thing citing “sources with knowledge of the situation”.

(Well, no sh– Sherlock. If they didn’t have knowledge of the situation, how the hell would they have that information)

Several other in the media now seem to be saying the same thing, although not with the same conviction. Whether this is just a rumor or if the report is legit remains to be seen. By noon, there’s bound to be a LeBron to NY, LeBron to Chi, and a LeBron to stay in Cleveland post.

ESPN would only confirm that active discussions for the special are ongoing. But sources tell Broussard that representatives for James contacted the network, proposing that James makes his announcement during a 9 p.m. ET special.

Those sources said that James’ representatives requested they be allowed to sell sponsorship for the one-hour special, with the proceeds going to the Boys and Girls Clubs of America, and that ESPN agreed to the proposal but had not been told what James has decided.

The charity thing “almost” seems like true philanthropy on James’ part. That is, until you realize that it’s akin to having people play trumpets and French horns as you deliver a ridiculously over-sized check to the local children’s hospital.

This whole LeBron charade has now crossed over from absurdity to carnival-level circus freak. One NBA GM said that while talking to James and his entourage, he felt like he was dealing with children.

Yep, children with a lot of monopoly money.

My guess is that LeBron will announce he is staying with the Cavs Thursday night. A bad decision business wise and certainly a bad one in basketball terms. But given the childish manner this whole thing was handled, making an adult decision was probably not in the cards.