Cousins says he wants to stay in Sacramento

For all the headaches he provides, DeMarcus Cousins is a good basketball player. To me he's a younger version of Zach Randolph as troubling as that might sound. He does come with less off court baggage. The young big man can flat out play and provided that he's surrounded by a good team he'd probably less of a headache. Instead he's in Sacramento with teammates just as young as he is and not much veteran leadership. Good thing head coach Keith Smart appears to have broken through to the young man.

Earlier this year there was a reported rift between Cousins and former coach Paul Westphal. Then there was Lakers center Andrew Bynum saying he felt bad for Cousins for having to play in Sacramento. Reports were saying he was trying to force himself out of Sactown. Despite the troubling season Cousins has continued to perform and says he wants to remain in Sacramento.

“Sacramento is where I want to be,’’ he said. “I want to bring the organization back, help the organization get started back winning. I love the city of Sacramento. That’s where I want to be. End of story.


“We can dig a hole, throw that topic in there, cover it with dirt, pack it down. I want to be in Sacramento. End of story.’’  


Don't worry Sacramento, DeMarcus is in it for the long haul. Now about those Tyreke Evans rumors.  

Epstein blames Chicago bars and nightlife for past failures

Anyone that has been to the city of Chicago knows that there is a bustling nightlife there. Apparently new Chicago Cubs president Theo Epstein knows it as well.

Epstein has credited the local bars and nightlife for ruining the careers of players of Cubs past. He also blamed it for the team's inability to win. I'm sure the billy goat, black cat, and Leon Durham might have something to say about it. Epstein is trying to change the culture there and bring a title to the Cubs and end the long suffering curse, just like in Boston.

Epstein says he's not going to tolerate Cubs players hanging out into the wee hours of the night.

"It's been a factor in ruining some careers," the team president said. "And I'm sure it's been an impediment to the Cubs in winning. ... The approach we're going to have is the opposite of laissez faire. We're not just going to say, 'Oh, that's the way it is. This is Chicago. Boys will be boys. I'm sure they're going to get enough sleep and I'm sure they'll show up the next day ready to play.'


"That's a failure on the organization's part. We have to take a very proactive approach in setting a high standard." 


Sheriff Epstein will be laying down the law. Hey at least outfielder Reed Johnson has his back.


"It's important for young players to recognize that you need to get your sleep," veteran outfielder Reed Johnson said. "This is your career. This is what you do for a livelihood. You need to treat it that way, especially in our park. You don't have that extra 10 hours when you wake up in the morning to get ready for that 7 o'clock night game.


"You've got to be able to get into that routine. ... I know I'm in bed probably by 9, 10 o'clock at night to get ready for that day game."

"If you do it year after year after year, it's definitely going to catch up with you," Johnson said. "You've got to nip that in the bud and get it under control. It's the best thing, not only for the player's career but for the team as well. We're going to need everybody at their best to put up as many wins as we can get."

For Epsteins sake he better hope this translates into more wins or some of the players who are having their "off field activities" taken away from them will be grumbling saying it doesn't make a difference if their out partying or getting a good night's sleep. 

Mayweather says he offered Pacquiao $40 million for fight

There is a lot of talk about how Floyd Mayweather is ducking Manny Pacquiao, but if you ask Mayweather he'll tell you he's done all he could to make it happen in the past few months. Mayweather seems to be over the drug testing flap that initially put the superfight out to pasture. Now it's all about the money.

Mayweather won't give Pacquiao a 50-50 split and told Bob Costas that he offered $40 million to Pacquiao for a May 5th date. Manny balked and now Mayweather will fight Miguel Cotto instead.


"I tried to get it done. I tried to get it done for May 5th," Mayweather told NBC Sports' Bob Costas on "Costas Tonight." 


"It would have been Mayweather vs. Pacquiao, but, I got turned down."


Mayweather explained why he won't give Manny the 50-50 split. The main reason is that he feels Pacquiao's buy rates aren't high enough to garner a split.




"Absolutely not. I'm not giving up the split. I'm not. I can't. I can't afford to," Mayweather said. "I gave this sport my whole life. I have record-breaking numbers that I've done. He has no record-breaking numbers.

"I had done my homework, seen what he was used to making in big fights. I offered him $40 million. I told him I would wire him $20 (million) within 72 hours. I keep 100 percent of the revenue. So why would I even give a guy 50-50? 


"I'm not just the highest paid guy in the sport of boxing. I'm the highest paid athlete."

To Mayweather's credit he's trying to do something, so all the chatter about him ducking Pacquiao should quiet down. I think Mayweather has seen enough of Pacquiao to find some weaknesses to exploit. People tend to forget that Mayweather is a top notch ring general.

If the hold up id over money it would be a shame that it would be the reason why this fight doesn't happen. Is $40 million not enough. Please. You never saw Roberto Duran or Marvin Hagler say that enough wasn't being offered to take a fight.

Hearns says Pacquaio and Mayweather should "go for it"

Back in the day there wasn't a problem to get a match made in the sport of boxing. I grew up in an era of great heavyweights with a stellar middleweight/welterweight class. Fighters had no problem taking on a megafight. You  think Marvin Hagler had any second thoughts about fighting Thomas Hearns? No. It seemed that the only fighter that ducked anyone was Sugar Ray Leonard. That's another story for a different day.

Thomas Hearns fought in what is considered to be a golden age of boxing, especially the welterweight and middleweight classes. So when he hears about all this posturing and bull about why Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao won't fight, he'll say they should just "go for it".

 Hearns said Mayweather and Pacquiao need to “put it all on the line and go for it.”


“We believed in taking on all comers,” Hearns said. “Every fight wasn’t necessarily a good fight, but to us we knew we had to take the fight in order to move on. If we didn’t take a fight, we couldn’t move ahead.


“We knew we had to perform because if we didn’t do that, another man would get up on us. We never wanted anybody to have the upper hand over us. You wanted to have the upper hand.”


In other words, they were willing to take on the best to be the best because that's where the big money was. Hearns believes that Mayweather and Pacquiao will settle their differences, but every time you look up one of the two are fighting someone else. Hearns wouldn't say he's disappointed but would like the two to come together.

It’s not my concern,” he said. 


Hearns endured some tough losses but doesn't look back on his career with any regrets.


“If not, just think how fights would have been different,” he said. “You wouldn’t have had the chance to see all the fights you saw. You wouldn’t have had a chance to have all the thrills from seeing us fight, me and Ray Leonard and Marvin Hagler and Roberto Duran. You would have never seen that.


“I thank God because God allowed that to happen in my time and I fought great fights.”


Too bad enough boxers today don't have the same mindset about taking on all comers.

Jalen Rose wants the banners back up in 2013

The Ed martin scandal kept a black cloud over the Michigan basketball program for over a decade. That cloud is now finally being lifted and Michigan basketball is relevant once again.

The violations from the Fab Five era and a handful of others resulted in probation and shame. The administration took down the Final Four banners, a Big Ten tournament banner and vacated wins from those years. The university also disassociated itself from players involved in the scandal, mainly Chris Webber, the late Robert Traylor, Maurice Taylor, and Louis Bullock among others until 2013.

Jalen Rose played on the Fab Five teams and is now an analyst for ESPN. Rose was a commentator for the Illinois-Michigan game tonight and had some things to say about the immediate future regarding the Michigan program. He wants to see those banners back up.

“Of course, I’m a Michigan fan. I’m an alumnus, I have an endowment at the University,” he said tonight before broadcasting the Michigan-Illinois game at Assembly Hall. “I bleed maize and blue. I want our banners back up in January 2013. Of course I do.”



Looking up at the large ring of honor at Assembly Hall and seeing dozens of banners for a program with less history than U-M got him going.


“Look around this arena, see how they appreciate their players, what they brought to the table,” he said. “Ninety percent of those guys, you don’t even know who they are. That’s an appreciation they show their players. Michigan has retired (five) jerseys in their lifetime, been to six Final Fours and I was playing in two of them.”


“I hope so, I think so, I have a lot of faith,” he said. “I really like Mary Sue Coleman, the president and obviously Dave Brandon, the AD.”


Rose can keep hoping because I think the current administration won't want to bring up the past. I would like to see the banners restored, but I just don't think that'll happen. They'll probably stay locked up in the basement of the library.

Hot Wheels

The Tampa Bay Rays gave manager Joe Maddon a three year extension last week which was well deserved. Maddon has built the Rays into an AL East contender and kept the team competitive despite financial constraints.

So after the extension was finalized Maddon did a little shopping for a reward for himself. He ended up getting himself a 1956 Chevy BelAir. Maddon called it a "new contract present".

Maddon bought the car in Arizona, had it restored and updated, and delivered to the Charlotte Sports Park. It has air-conditioning, so he said you'll see him driving it around Tampa and St. Petersburg once the season starts.


Maddon said he was looking for a Charger, Roadrunner or Barracuda, but couldn't find one he liked so instead picked this one over a '57 Nomad. "When I drive this it's pretty quick when it starts up, and I love the color and I love the interior,'' he said. Maddon already has two restored convertibles - a '67 Galaxy and a '72 Chevelle.


Maddon said his wife, Jaye, endorsed the purchase, which she named Bella.  "She was all for it,'' he said. "My wife is kind of like a guy sometimes - she likes big flat-screen TVs, she likes watching football on Sundays, she likes fast cars, she used to drink martinis, though she kind of toned that down a bit. She's got a lot of great man-cave qualities about her.''


Looks like Maddon went car shopping and ended up on 'Pimp My Ride'. It's a cool car and if I had the time and money I'd do the same. If the Rays keep winning, Maddon will have his own showroom.

Odom with Mavericks D-League affiliate

This has been a lost season for Dallas Mavericks forward, Lamar Odom. After unexpectedly being dealt to the New Orleans Hornets, then to the Dallas Mavericks, Odom clearly hasn't been the same player he was with the Los Angeles Lakers. The former Sixth Man of the Year has been in a year long funk.

There was a brief flirtation with retirement to get over some personal issues, issues that still seem to dog Odom. He recently took some personal leave time to be with his ill father in Los Angeles before the All-Star break. Now he'll be suiting up for the Mavs' D-League affiliate, the Texas Legends, to "get his legs back" before he rejoins the team.

Odom is likely to play at least one game with the Mavericks' D-League affiliate in nearby Frisco to, as one source said, "get his legs back under him." The Texas Legends play the Austin Toros at home Thursday night, but sources said it's more likely Odom practices with the Legends on Friday while the Mavericks are in New Orleans and then plays Saturday's home game with the Legends, also against Austin, while the Mavericks are playing host to Utah.


There are some Mavericks that feel Odom won't be rejoining the team, but I don't think Mark Cuban will be having any of it. All I know is that Odom has hurt the defending champions more than he has helped them. He could still be a valuable piece to the Mavericks puzzle, if he has his head on straight and is ready to play.

"It's going to work itself out one way or another," Mavericks guard Jason Kidd said Tuesday of the Odom situation. "We just hope it works itself out soon."


Said Mavs guard Jason Terry: "We've got to go with the players we got. If you're here, you can help us. But our sympathies go out to his family." 


This is more to get Odom in gear than to "get his legs back". If you ask me, this is more of a heart and head check than anything.