Raptors' Andrea Bargnani finished for the season. Could amnesty be next?

The Toronto Raptors fans have had enough of former overall number one pick, Andrea Bargnani. They've had their wish granted because Bargnani is finished for the year with an elbow injury.  The same elbow that cost Bargnani some court action this year.

Bargnani missed 26 games earlier in the year with wrist and elbow injuries. He’s now suffered a new injury in the same elbow — an “avulsion sprain” — that will sideline him 3-4 weeks.

Fans would love to see the big man shipped out if town. General manager actively tried to trade Bargnani before the trade deadline but couldn't find any takers. It appears the Raptors might be stuck with a player who has disappointed them one too many times.

There could be hope though. The idea of Bargnani being waived via the amnesty clause has been floated out there. It might be difficult to part ways with a player once thought of to be a cornerstone of the franchise. But  the decision is made a lot easier since Bargnani has two years and $22 million left on his contract.

If Bargnani is set free during the offseason is there still a place for him in the league? While some may say he should go back to Europe, I think he could excel in a place where expectations for him to carry a team aren't so high.

In my opinion, I really think Bargnani would fit in well with the San Antonio Spurs. The Spurs have an international flavor plus he could play under Tim Duncan for a few years. Think about it, the Spurs have earned Nazr Mohammed a few extra paychecks. It damn sure wasn't his time in Detroit that did it.

The Los Angeles Lakers and the Chicago Bulls could possibly be a landing spot for Bargnani. More so the Bulls where he could come in as a sixth man.

No one knows what's going to happen but one thing is for sure. Bargnani more than likely is headed out of Toronto.

Alabama athletic director Mal Moore in hospital for heart problems

The man responsible for getting the Alabama football program to the level where they're at is currently in the hospital. Not Nick Saban, but athletic director Mal Moore, the man who hired Saban.

Moore has been hospitalized with heart problems. Moore also was in the hospital last August because of an irregular heartbeat but was released after the tests were negative.

University spokeswoman Debbie Lane said Wednesday that Moore has been admitted to Brookwood Hospital in Birmingham for tests and treatment "regarding pulmonary problems." She said no further information was available on the 73-year-old's status.

Moore has headed the athletic program since 1999 and was the man who hired Saban, arguably the Tide's best coach since Bear Bryant roamed the sidelines. He's also been with the university for more than 50 years dating back to his playing days for Bryant.

Two NFL general managers get pranked

Two 20-year-olds are looking at being in some big trouble because of a bad telephone prank. The prank involved two NFL general managers and now the law is looking to get involved.

The NFL is looking into a 'conversation' between Buffalo Bills general manager Buddy Nix and Tampa Bay Buccaneers general manager Mark Dominik last Friday. It happened to be recorded and appeared on Deadspin on Tuesday.  

From Deadspin:


On Thursday afternoon, the pranksters called Buffalo's publicly listed front office phone number. They claimed to be Bucs GM Mark Dominik and asked to be transferred to Buddy Nix. To their surprise, they were. Panicking, they hung up as soon as he answered.

Then Buddy Nix called them back.

And he kept calling back. Into Thursday evening, resuming again on Friday morning, Nix's personal number kept lighting up their cell phone. They ignored it, until they came up with a plan. They would call Mark Dominik, claim to be Buddy Nix, and send the two on a phantom game of phone tag.

So they rang up the Buccaneers, but while on with Dominik's secretary, Buddy Nix called again. It was perfect. They answered Nix's call, then fell silent while they were patched through to Dominik. They put the call on speaker, recorded with a second cell phone, and sat back and listened to the fun.

The call lasted about six minutes and after some initial confusion about wrong numbers, the pair settled in to discuss their own personnel, with Nix describing some of the team's frustration with the slowed progress of quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick. As far as juicy gossip or major revelations, there really wasn't anything of the sort, just two guys in the same profession chatting politely about business.

"We are aware of the report on Deadspin involving a phone conversation with Bills GM Buddy Nix," the Bills said in a statement. "We have made the league aware of the report and are reviewing it with legal counsel."

The Buccaneers did not respond to a request for comment.

In the state of Florida what these two unknowns did was a third degree felony. In New York they might have a loophole in which they can escape punishment.

"In Florida, it is a third degree felony so you are talking about a criminal violation," Jeff Hermes, the director of the Digital Media Law Project at Harvard University's Berkman Center for Internet & Society, said. "The Florida wiretapping law does have a civil cause of action."

Federal and New York state law requires "one-party consent," meaning that you can record a conversation as long as you are a party to that conversation. The pranksters may have a loophole here in that by Nix calling their number thinking it was Dominik's, they were technically a party to the conversation.

"This is a circumstance where there was an affirmative misrepresentation," Hermes said. "I'm not entirely sure how that would affect this analysis. A court could say 'you dialed a number, you didn't know for sure, you thought it was a person's number due to this person's misrepresentation. You're responsible for initiating the call and the consequences. If that results in the person you call starting a recording, that's on you.' I think it's a stronger argument to say under these circumstances where the call was initiated as a result of the misrepresentation that the person doing the misrepresentation shouldn't be treated as the legit recipient of the call." 

We'll have to see if these two yahoos get punished or end up with a slap on the wrist.

Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra is dating a former Heat dancer

You would figure that a NBA coach would be married and have children. And whoever they're married to would be in the same age bracket.

Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra, 42, has surprised many by who he's dating. Spoelstra appeared at a fundraiser Saturday night with his girlfriend, Nikki Sapp. Sapp is a 24 year old former Heat dancer.

An 18-year-old Sapp started dancing for the team in 2005, while a 34-year-old Spoelstra was serving as an assistant for Pat Riley. She danced with the squad for three seasons, then left before Spoelstra took over the Heat's head coaching position in 2008. 

Outside of Phil Jackson, no one really knows about who a coach is dating or married to. We all know Phil didn't do too bad (Jeanie Buss) and based on the looks of Sapp, Spoelstra isn't doing too bad either. But that age difference makes you wonder. Oh well. Play on player.

"It girl" of the week: Bria Myles

The "It Girl" of the week is Bria Myles

Former 49ers kicker Mike Cofer has Super Bowl rings stolen

Former San Francisco 49ers kicker Mike Cofer had two Super Bowl rings stolen out of his Las Vegas area home last Thursday. 


 Authorities say burglars made off with two Super Bowl rings from the Las Vegas-area home of former San Francisco 49ers kicker Mike Cofer.

Cofer told Henderson police he was watching his son's high school baseball game when the break-in occurred Thursday at his four-bedroom home.

Cofer's ex-wife, Lisa Cofer, told the Las Vegas Sun the thieves also took a coin collection, an Xbox game console and several games. She says they left a diamond ring.

I hate to be somewhat critical, but when will these athletes put their championship rings on lockdown?

Washington State assistant Jim Mastro declines to help NFL teams defend the Pistol

San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick had a great deal of success in his first year as a starter. He led the 49ers to within a whisker of the Super Bowl title. NFL teams are still trying to figure out a way to contain Kaepernick after he excelled in the 49ers version of the Pistol offense.

The Pistol is generally was the formation Kaepernick played in while starring at Nevada. Former coach Chris Ault is thought of as the inventor of the Pistol. Former Ault and current Washington State assistant, Jim Mastro, is the godfather.

With the knowledge Mastro possesses, NFL teams have come calling. Mostly to get some insight and some knowledge on how to stop it.

Mastro has declined NFL offers due to his loyalty to Kaepernick.  Mastro told CBSSports.com's Bruce Feldman, as long as Kaepernick is in the NFL he won't help teams with ways to defend the Pistol.

"As long as Colin [Kaepernick] is in the NFL, I'm not going to do that," Mastro told CBSSports.com Monday. "He is like a son to me.

"There are plenty of people they [NFL teams] can get ahold of that can help them."  

I'm wondering if the Green bay Packers were one of those teams. Kaepernick single handedly destroyed the Packers, running for 181 yards in the process.