Sources Say...

By Mark Bacon

"Sources say…" is a phrase that has filled many a sports report since D.C.'s beloved NFL franchise started training camp over a month ago. It's jarring when contrasted with The Washington Redskins under Coach Joe Gibbs 1.0; the team was an amazing NFL brand. But now? Never have I seen a great franchise in sports become such a cartoon.

It boils down to one element: The Robert "Bob" Griffin III saga. It isn’t just a dominant story in the D.C. area, it’s long since caught the attention of NFL observers across the country. So it was no surprise that the latest developments in the Skins’ quarterbacking situation became a topic of conversation between Fox Sports’s Joe Buck and Troy Aikman during a telecast Sunday of a preseason game between the Saints and Texans. Here is what Aikman had to say:

“It’s pretty bizarre, huh? Someone compared the Redskins to the Kardashians, saying they’re the Kardashians of the NFL.
“I don’t think that’s fair — I don’t think the Kardashians are nearly as dysfunctional.”


If you needed more context, retired 'Skins tight end, and local favorite, Chris Cooley had provided it the day before. During the team’s official radio pregame show — before Kirk Cousins and Colt McCoy had stepped on the field in Baltimore — Cooley made several strong predictions about what would happen next. “I don’t think this organization’s going to continue to move forward with Robert at this point,” Cooley said. “I just don’t think that’s on the table anymore.”

Many other people, of course, have made similar predictions this weekend, culminating with an ESPN report that high-ranking team officials want to part ways with Griffin but are facing opposition from owner Dan Snyder and his capo, Bruce Allen. However, what's striking is Cooley is paid by the team, remains a regular at Redskins Park, and has relationships with key figures inside the building.

“I don’t even think it matters how Kirk Cousins plays tonight; I think he’s the starter,” Cooley said before Saturday’s exhibition game. “I believe that he’s going to be your starter in week one. … I think they’re at the point now where they’ve made the decision; it’s just how they go about naming him. … I think they’ve made the decision that Kirk Cousins is the starting quarterback this season. … I feel pretty confident in saying that’s where they’re going right now.”

And what would that mean for Bob? “It means one of two things for Griffin,” Cooley said, predicating that the one-time franchise quarterback would either be released, traded or deactivated.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if he goes into the season [with the Redskins], if they can’t deal him, and they just deactivate him,” Cooley said. “I don’t think that he’d be the second-string guy; I think that he’d be deactivated on this roster. But other than that, he’s released.”

High-ranking Washington Redskins front-office officials and coaches want to part ways with quarterback the former superstar "RGIII," but are meeting resistance from team ownership, according to sources.

The Redskins even have had trade conversations about Griffin with a handful of NFL teams, (sources report the Texans, Jets and Eagles were the interested parties,) but have found no interest, and it remains unclear whether ownership would allow Washington to trade him, sources said.

It is becoming increasingly apparent that Bob has lost his starting quarterback job, his luster, swag and possibly skill sets, and depending on the events and conversations in the coming days, perhaps his roster spot. Outside of ownership, there has been a notable groundswell of support from a strong segment of football people within the organization to change quarterbacks, but there is a question about whether they have the authority to part ways with Griffin, sources said.

Redskins general manager Scot McCloughan was hired this past offseason to rebuild the team, so he looms as a possible X factor in any big personnel decision that involves Griffin as teams trim their rosters from 90 to 53 players over the next week. McCloughan's ability to produce a resolution that all sides can live with now looms large.


For more than two years, Bob has had one of the most difficult tasks in the NFL. He talks to the media, he tends to instantly make things harder on himself. Even if he were to say the right thing, the challenge he has had managing expectations and reinventing his game would be immense.

He hasn’t been able to complete the task. Perhaps one day, Griffin will look as carefree on a football field as his teammates did on Saturday night, defeating the Baltimore Ravens. But it won’t happen in D.C. It’s closing time. The best franchises know how to respond, no matter the level of disappointment. It's time to move on, time to move forward.

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Former Skins Head Coach Mike Shanahan Talking About Robert "Bob" Griffin III.

By Mark Bacon

Last week, Washington NFL wanna-be-star-QB Bob Griffin was injured again. Concussion. Injured after being left in a preseason game last Thursday, wayyy too long behind a porous offensive line. The story has created a Mid-August Quarterback Controversy in DC. The tragedy has been covered from every angle, and I was going to leave it alone. And then came Mike Shanahan.

Former Skins Coach Mike Shanahan? Yeah. Him.

Promoting his involvement with the new Southern Bowl, Shanahan appeared on ESPN Radio’s “Mike and Mike,” where he was asked to comment “about either the way that [Griffin is] playing, or maybe some way that he can play better.”

“To be honest with you, you don’t get to study him on a day-to-day basis,” Shanahan said. “I don’t look at his film every day. But I can give you an opinion after my first year when I was there: you get a guy like Robert who’s been with an offense, very comfortable with what he did in college. He never had a playbook. Never had two-level throws or three-level throws. So you could see very quickly that was going to take some time.

“But you had a guy that had some great athletic skills, a guy that was very smart, a guy that was into the game,” Shanahan said. “And what you try to do is utilize those talents and go with it. You know, some guys, at the end of the season — like Robert did — he felt like he was a little bit more of a drop-back passer than a few of us thought. And now he’s going to have a chance to go out and prove himself.”

Then Shanahan was asked how to figure out when a “multi-talented” quarterback like Griffin or Marcus Mariota should be kept in the pocket, or utilized some other way.

“You know, I think there’s a few things in that evaluation process,” Shanahan said. “If you take a guy like Mariota — and I don’t know him — but if you take a look at him and you look at him last night a little bit: how he’s sitting in the pocket, how he was excellent with his footwork,  dumped the ball off a couple times at the last second. And those are the things that you’re looking for from a coordinator standpoint or a head coach standpoint: does he have the ability to stay in the pocket, shuffle, kind of buy time a little bit, or is he looking at the pass rush?

“And sometimes that just takes a little bit more time than others,” Shanahan said. “Not that you can’t correct it, but you have to do the things that he’s comfortable in doing before you go to that, or you’ve got to make a decision [that] you’ve got to go with somebody else.”

On top of Shanny's tidbits, Bleacher Report’s Mike Freeman today quoted an anonymous head coach on the latest Griffin-(Skins head coach Jay) Gruden drama. The coach said “I can’t think of a single head coach in the NFL who would take an injury-prone quarterback, put him behind a very shaky offensive line, in a preseason game, watch him take those kinds of hits and leave him in the game. It looks personal to me.” Ouch.

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Is Teddy Bridgewater the Most Important Player in UL Sports History?

By Haven Harrington



To barrow the two title theme from the old Rocky and Bullwinkle shows :Is Teddy the Most Importantly Player in UL Sports History or Why Every UL Fan should Thank the University of Miami. Think about all of the great players in UL history: Griffith, Unitas, Redman, Lyles, McCoughtry, and many more. These are all great players, but Bridgewater is the most important.

Why is Teddy the most important player in UL history? Simple. If it wasn't for Teddy Bridgwater, UL would not be in the ACC. UL would be in the AAC and pretty much a forgotten program in the college football world. Without access to a Power 5 conference all of UL sports would have suffered. Recruiting would be much harder, there would be a lot less money in the program to fund the olympic sports and the dream of wining a national football championship would be lost. All of the years spent raising the stature of the program would have been for naught. UL would essentially be back in CUSA. 

When conference realignment was just getting underway UL football was emerging from the darkest chapter in it's football history. UL football had gone from a top 5 team to start the 2007 season to a team that had a losing record and hadn't been to a bowl game in 3 years.  UL's athletic director, Tom Jurich, turned to former Florida DC Charlie Strong to turn the program around.  Charlie's first order of business was to upgrade the talent the on roster and to instill a winning attitude into a program that had lost it winning ways. Strong's first class was huge upgrade in talent across the board but it was his second class that set the stage for UL's future. The 2011 class was Teddy's class. Teddy originally committed to play for the University of Miami Hurricanes, but during that year Miami fired their HC Randy Shannon. Charlie waisted no time in going after not only Teddy, but a whole host of former Canes committees and players that were strong Miami leans. But Teddy was the star of the show.

Teddy is a once in a life time player that gave Charlie's offense it's pop. UL's offensive coordinator Shawn Watson, was a decent offensive coach, but Charlie's conservative style and reliance on defense first hamstrung the offense. If it weren't Teddy's amazing ability to get out of bad plays and into the right ones, as well as his amazing accuracy and toughness UL would not have been the team that destroyed  Florida in the Sugar Bowl and Miami in the Russell Athletic Bowl. Teddy was able to turn bad play calling into magic. His skills covered up a lot of glaring holes in UL's offense. He, more than any other players was responsible for us winning so many games. If Miami didn't fire Randy Shannon and UL instead had a different QB, we don't beat Rutgers to get into the Sugar Bowl. We don't go 12-1 and beat Miami in the Russell Athletic Bowl.  Instead we are looking at UConn getting the nod over us to join the ACC. 

So, the next time you see a Miami fan say thank you. Because if they didn't fire Randy Shannon we would be taking about a thrilling mid November match up between us Tulsa.  

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UofL Basketball Prospectus: Puerto Rico

By: Raashaan Myers

     The 2015-16 Edition of the University of Louisville Men’s Basketball team gave fans a preview of things to come for the upcoming season. I intentionally have kept pretty much kept quiet during the trip as I wanted to be able to really digest a full sample size of the trip. I wanted to see how much the team improved over the 6 days as well as get a good feel for the individual player’s games and how they guys worked as a unit. So I decided to take my breakdown and analysis of what I saw in two parts – The Team and The Players. In this first article I will take a wide scope look at the team as a whole.

     First off I truly believe this trip will do more for this team because of their considerable youth and having so many new players on the team. As I look at this team as I have stated all year long I think the talent is undeniable. The amount of overall length, speed, athleticism, and quickness of this team in my opinion makes this group one of the 10 most talent laden teams in the country.  Unlike many of Coach Pitino’s teams during his tenure at UofL this group has elite size, athleticism, and talent to spare. And because of that the prospects for this team are immediately better because of the considerable talent at his disposal. When you look at what I feel is the best lineup of PG Quentin Snider, CG Trey Lewis, WF Damion Lee, F Mangok Mathiang, C Chinanu Onuaku this still leaves five tremendously talented players available off the bench in G Donovan Mitchell, F Deng Adel, F Ray Spalding, F Jaylen Johnson, F Anas Mahmoud. In my estimation you would have a hard time finding five teams that could name a comparable 10 players on their team in terms of talent let alone ten.

     Now all that being said like Coach P indicated none of this guarantees a successful season. This team’s attitude is outstanding and they seem to genuinely like being around one another. And while it is true that doesn’t guarantee wins it can great help build on court chemistry and trust in one another. One thing I always saw from last year’s team especially pre-Chris Jones dismissal was a clear lack of trust on court between the “go-to guys” and everyone else on the team. That manifests itself in an abundance of bad shots, a lack of ball movement, and stagnant offense that would lend itself to scoring droughts.  I saw some of the same things starting last Tuesday in the first game vs the PRNT where it was almost exclusively one on one with very little ball movement, player movement, and passing. But by Friday night and Saturday afternoon I saw a team that showed signs of being much more patient, sharing the basketball, cheering each other on, and really looking to work together as a collective group offensive. I think that is a very good sign of things to come for the upcoming year.

      In terms of style of play its fitting UofL was playing with international rules as I think this team has a very “Euro” style feel to them. Coach Pitino really started recruiting to this style of play about 5 years ago to really looking to bring forth a team that focused on having 3 versatile perimeter playmakers that could all shoot, attack, and pass and pair them with 2 bigs that could run the floor, rebound, block shots, as well as step away and shoot the ball. You can really see the influence of that philosophy on this team and it is a very European style of basketball. All the big men sans Matz Stockman showed a consistent ability to handle the ball away from the basket and all were very comfortable attacking off the dribble. This puts tremendous pressure on the big man defending and can really cause issues for help defenders leaving shooters for good open looks. While they still have a ways to go in terms of efficiency running this offense the skill is there to have a very potent offensive attack. Add to that 2 deadly perimeter shooters in Lee and Lewis who showed the ability to easily and consistently knock down the longer international 3 pt shot and you have a team with excellent offensive potential.

     Defensively this team will be tenacious as ever with even better depth off the bench which will allow for a very aggressive style of man and press zone defense. The questions about Lewis and Lee having the ability to come in and sacrifice and put in all-out effort on the defensive end of the floor in true Pitino fashion were all but answered. This team has very good length defensively, are very quick on their feet with the 3 freshmen Adel, Mitchell, and Spalding as good as advertised on that end, but they still have a ways to go in terms of understanding the helpside principles and rotations to keep from allowing easy layups which the PRNT took advantage of on several occasions. That will come with practice and just time in the system.  Having the opportunity to play against an extremely experienced and talented offensive Puerto Rico squad will help speed up that process as UofL will not likely face many teams that can spread you out, shoot, pass, and attack the ways these professional players could. Also on the defensive backboard Lewis, Lee, Mitchell, and Adel proved to be willing and able to help the big men mix it up and rebound in the paint. That is another key to being a good defensive team it the ability to hold a team to one shot. The team rebounding, block out responsibilities, and guys really going after it improved as the week went on as well.

     All in all this trip worked out as well as could be imagined for this group of young talented Cardinals. I really liked the way this team competed off the bus and really gave the PRNT all they wanted game 1, then came back and really showed good character coming off a demoralizing game 2 getting blown out of the building playing hard and competing the rest of the week. The Captain Mangok Mathiang lived up to his considerable praise leading this young team and being very vocal and supportive of everyone on and off the court. Damien Lee to me looks like a lottery pick with his play the past week which is huge for a team that needs a go to guy. I also like the fire shown by Chinanu Onuaku really starting to be that physical enforcer for this UofL team and being the team’s toughness on the court while he may have gotten a bit too riled up off the court. Every team needs that toughness a la Ellis Myles and I can see that development in Nanu. This UofL team has a long way to go to get ready for March Madness, but they have done nothing be reaffirm by belief that they will have an opportunity to make another deep run when it is all said and done. Now if we can just find a way to get November here already! 

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Team USA, John Wall, Kobe and Other Dilemmas

By Mark Bacon

Last year at this time, John Wall was very unhappy about getting cut from the Team USA roster. He hinted that he hadn’t received a fair shake. This year, he still expects not to make the squad that will travel to Rio de Janeiro for the Olympics, but he sounds much more resigned to his situation.

Wall told Ben Standig of CSN Washington Saturday, “I’ll be out of the picture.” Standig noted that the Wizards point guard said it with a laugh and without bitterness.

It’s a crowded backcourt, to be sure.

Right now there are 34 players in the pool for Team USA; a who’s-who of NBA stars—not including Kobe Bryant, who may still have an outside shot at making the team. Players in the pool, including Wall, recently convened in Las Vegas for a mandatory minicamp.

Eventually, that group will be whittled down to a 12-man roster, and Wall demonstrated that he was well aware that the math does not favor him. At least half of that dozen will be front-court players, leaving room for a likely trio of point guards.

Barring injury, one of those point guards will certainly be Clippers’ Chris Paul, and Warriors star Stephen Curry, another. “Oh, yeah. Ten times out of 10 they’ll be on the team,” Wall said about that pair.

Then Wall offered another name: “Kyrie,” as in Kyrie Irving, the Cleveland Cavaliers’ guard who not only is a teammate of the very influential LeBron James but who played for Team USA Coach Mike Krzyzewski at Duke. There’s also Thunder guard Russell Westbrook, a four-time all-star, who could be moved to the Two Guard slot.

“I’m just being honest,” Wall told Standig. “Chris Paul has already won one [Olympic gold medal]. Steph Curry had an amazing last year and just won the World Cup. Kyrie just won the World Cup. Russell will probably be on the team. They’ll use him as a two-guard. “So, I probably won’t make it.”

It doesn’t seem fair, given the strides he has made toward becoming one of the NBA’s best point guards, but Wall is likely right. He happens to have the misfortune of playing during the Golden Age of Point Guards.

Wall could possibly change the dynamic with a huge season, and he said that he just found more “motivation” to have one.

Something else doesn't seem cool. Colangelo made a big deal of saying how in order to be considered for Rio in 2016 you have to attend the Vegas minicamp. Mandatory. So many players dropped what they were doing and shuffled out to Las Vegas in the middle of their offseason to run drills and have meetings. Most were happy to do it, and that's a testament to the culture of Team USA Basketball.

Now, on top of Colangelo saying that he's not going to hold minicamp next year and that instead the team will simply be chosen, all 12 spots, it turns out that the players didn't actually need to attend anyway. Bulls guard Derrick Rose didn't attend, and he can get in if he stays healthy this year. Kobe Bryant didn't attend, same deal.

I don't think it's a big deal to give Bryant some lifetime achievement award and an honorary spot on the team, even though he physically isn't in a position to contribute at a high level. By the same token, Rose has been a part of multiple gold medal teams and has put in the time. But don't make this big deal out of attendance and then basically say "Yeah, but come on, he's Kobe/Derrick Rose!" Either these guys make the commitment and come in on an off year during their summer like the rest of the players or they don't. If Team USA is going to preach the value of sacrifice, shouldn't they at least pretend to truly honor it?

Here are some other points of discussion, regarding The Rio Olympic Squad:

•    Who are the 12 guys we take?
•    Should Kawhi Leonard be a lock?
•    Does Team USA "need" DeMarcus Cousins or a lot of big men based on the style they play?
•    Will Andre Iguodala have a spot on the team if he wants to play?

Summertime Sports Shorts

By Mark Bacon

For a night in August, when usually the only game being played is on a diamond, last evening offered a few very pleasant diversions. College and Professional basketball were available for viewing or listening pleasure, and NFL Preseason tilts were being aired as well.

Team USA Basketball: Coach Mike Krzyzewski closed out this year's mini-camp with a Blue v White scrimmage. LeBron James and Stephen Curry weren’t on the floor or bench. Other players excused from playing included Carmelo Anthony, Chris Paul, Kevin Durant, James Harden and John Wall. And no Paul George. Remember a year ago, when the U.S. men's basketball team ended mini-camp with an exhibition in Vegas, where the Indiana Pacers All-Star broke his leg in a horrific fashion, after crashing into a backboard stanchion. The game was halted. This year, memories of that event led to many of the 34 camp attendees to withdraw or were not cleared by their respective NBA teams. Instead, Thursday evening was a light-hearted pro pickup game, reminiscent of the NBA All Star game. It was highlight reel followed by highlight reel, little defense, and it was evident those between the lines were having fun.

Sacramento Kings All-Star, and former UK great DeMarcus Cousins dominated, scoring 24 points and grabbed 11 boards to lead the White team to a 134-128 victory over the Blue team. Mason Plumlee added 20 points and 11 rebounds for the White team. Andre Drummond led the Blue team with 27 points and 16 rebounds, and Victor Oladipo added 25 points.

Coach Mike Krzyzewski said "I feel so good about these four days. ... I thought our guys really responded tonight (with) a lot of effort (and) enthusiasm, they had fun. They all want to be a part of USA Basketball. We had so many guys who could not play, for a variety of reasons, but even those guys throughout the week were at practices even when they weren't supposed to. Everyone did a little bit more than what they were supposed to do, and they all fit well under the USA umbrella."

College Basketball: One wonders if Coach Rick Pitino made the right move taking his young, unproven University of Louisville squad to Puerto Rico (PR) to square off in many games against the island nation's Junior and National basketball teams? It gave Pitino a chance to evaluate both Louisville's basketball team, and the Puerto Rican Men's National squad. To date, Louisville has not won a single game, and a particularly nasty 36 point smack-down at the hands of the PR National team left the Cards demoralized, and their play described as "horse shit" by Coach Pitino. That should do wonders for frail psyches. The reality is the Cards are playing against professionals in hostile venues, faced with the head scratching reality of International (FIBA) officiating, and undergoing a grueling schedule of games. Yesterday's undercard against the Junior team was scratched, and Pitino dropped that a move was underway to cancel Sunday's last game. My only comment, besides the horrible streaming service, is we're going to hear the name Damion Lee a lot this coming campaign.

Speaking of college teams headed overseas, Georgetown University is preparing to depart for a 10 day trip to play in Italy. The Hoyas are set to play four games against European professional teams during this trip. The first two are scheduled for Rome, and the final two games will be played in Florence and Lugano, Switzerland.

The Italian trip brings to mind four years ago this month, when the Hoya’s basketball team visited China on what was intended to be a goodwill trip comprising cultural exchange and exhibition games. Several days into the journey, a benches-clearing brawl in Beijing between the Hoyas and a Chinese professional club turned into an international incident with officials from both countries engaging in full damage control, including Vice President Joe Biden, who attended a game the night before the fight. One doubts similar events will take place this year, but FIBA ball is rough; some say rougher than the NBA.

NFL Preseason: When in DC, one cannot escape the cultural phenomena that is "The Skins." It's everywhere.  And the 2015 season will bring even more intense scrutiny of Washington QB, Robert "Bob" Griffin III. For the record, I'm not a fan of the man. The sideshow that follows and surrounds him has been a detriment to one of the worst teams in the NFL. They don't need it. Yet every year, he's going to be a changed man. What changes are his plummeting stats. They keep sinking. Bob was shaky, uneven, but "did what he needed to do" in coach speak. To be fair, RGIII had some relatively nice throws, and made some drive-extending plays. He completed 4 of 8 passes for 36 yards, in 19 snaps. But he came away from his quarter of action without a touchdown pass.

Backup quarterback Kirk Cousins led Washington to 17 of its 20 points. Will there be a QB Controversy in Our Nation's Capital? No. The franchise is committed for playing Griffin for now. But Cousin's comfort in Gruden system is evident.

A good sign was watching several rookies shine, notably Matt Jones, the Redskins’ third-round pick out of Florida, who can play. New faces Terrance Knighton, Stephen Paea, and rotational players Chris Baker, Ricky Jean Francois and Kedric Golston stood out, too. On a very bad note, starting TE Niles Paul suffered a season ending injury, as did backup RB Silas Redd. One of the reserve TE backups went down, too, an area where Washington cannot lose another player.

The Skins' opponent, the Cleveland Browns, has two good QBs, including Johnny Manziel, who scored a touchdown on a run, and DID NOT flash his signature money sign. "Johnny Football" showed considerable poise and maturity; "Johnny Sober" may be a very good thing.

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John Wall To Attend Team USA Minicamp

By Mark Bacon

John Wall will participate in Team USA’s minicamp in Las Vegas, scheduled for Aug. 11-13. The All Star Wizards point guard confirmed his intention to join the try outs last evening.

Wall is one of 41 invitees, and was reportedly unsure whether he would join the three-day session, after being one of first three players cut along with teammate Bradley Beal (and Atlanta Hawks forward Paul Millsap.) Beal confirmed he is also participating in the minicamp, held on UNLV’s campus.

All players invited to the minicamp are required to attend for them to be considered for the 12-man roster the U.S. will take to the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro next summer. Competition for Wall is stiff. Chris Paul, Stephen Curry and Russell Westbrook are other point guards vying for a spot in Brazil. Another NBA All Star, Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard has said that he doesn't plan to attend the minicamp in Las Vegas in August, since Team USA cut him before the FIBA World Cup last year. Chicago Bulls All Star guard Derrick Rose, has also confirmed he will not attend the three-day session.

Wall is coming off his best pro season, including starting in the all-star game and finishing second in the league in assists. The two-time all-star has resumed working out in mid-July for the first time since sustaining five fractures in his left hand and wrist in the second round of the playoffs against the Hawks.

UPDATE (August 7, 2015):  Of the 34 players who were in the USA Basketball player pool as of September 2014, 26 have said they plan to be in Vegas next week. They are: LaMarcus Aldridge (San Antonio Spurs); Carmelo Anthony (New York Knicks); Bradley Beal (Washington Wizards); DeMarcus Cousins (Sacramento Kings); Stephen Curry (Golden State Warriors); Anthony Davis (New Orleans Pelicans); DeMar DeRozan (Toronto Raptors); Andre Drummond (Detroit Pistons); Kevin Durant (Oklahoma City Thunder); Kenneth Faried (Denver Nuggets); Rudy Gay (Sacramento Kings); Paul George (Indiana Pacers); Blake Griffin (Los Angeles Clippers); James Harden (Houston Rockets); Gordon Hayward (Utah Jazz); Dwight Howard (Houston Rockets); Kyrie Irving (Cleveland Cavaliers); LeBron James (Cleveland Cavaliers); Kawhi Leonard (San Antonio Spurs); Kevin Love (Cleveland Cavaliers); Chandler Parsons (Dallas Mavericks); Chris Paul (Los Angeles Clippers); Mason Plumlee (Portland Trail Blazers); Klay Thompson (Golden State Warriors); John Wall (Washington Wizards); and Russell Westbrook (Oklahoma City Thunder).

USA Basketball managing director Jerry Colangelo announced Thursday that Los Angeles Clippers center DeAndre Jordan will join the list of seven newcomers to the pool confirmed in July: Golden State's Harrison Barnes and Draymond Green, Chicago's Jimmy Butler, Milwaukee's Michael Carter-Williams, Memphis' Mike Conley and Orlando's Tobias Harris and Victor Oladipo.

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DC's Name Game

By Mark Bacon

The U.S. Patent Office dropped the Washington Redskins name off from being a registered trademark.  But Redskins owner Daniel Snyder has still refused to change the team’s name, citing a long tradition in the District.  The team  still uses the name, but lost legal trademark protection.  Meaning anyone can use the name and logo for their own use.  The issue is the most significant political statement towards public disdain of a sports team nickname in U.S. History.

Keep in mind that this isn’t the first time a D.C. pro sports team changed a name as a result of an open debate over a name.  The late Abe Pollin, the NBA team owner in the late nineties decided to change the name of the Washington Bullets to the Washington Wizards, due to the consistent high violent crime rate of the city at the time, and because his friend, Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin, died by a bullet, literally.  Maybe a very easy change to pull off due to no real emotional connection to “bullets,” but to be frank, the logo and name suck.

The name of the Redskins is technically a warrior, or “person” to personify. It has become a hard obstacle for changing the name of the Washington Pro Football Team.  Plus, many people here do not fair well with the name change of the franchise.

Residents, and beyond, are on both sides of the fence; some argue that the name should be changed, others argue to keep it’s name.  Others have no idea what’s going on, and many don’t even see a problem with the current name “Redskins”.

I see a problem with the name—both the Skins and Wizards—but can see a problem with the argument against.  Due to the competitive, physical nature of American football, teams are named after past warriors: Vikings and Nordic types, “Fighting Irish” and other Irish types, patriots and other colonial/pioneer fighters,  cowboys and western gunslingers, rangers,  marauders and other raiding peoples,  pirates and other swashbuckling open sea types,  any variant of  Soldier, troop or warfighter from world history to present day.  No wonder we figure that we are justified to use some form of a warrior of the indigenous peoples of the western hemisphere.  Technically, many team names are based on stereotypes.

If there isn’t a team name change, perhaps the franchise can find out what Native peoples were in the D.C. area and then go with that.  Or find out what tribe is reflected on the current logo and adopt that.  Much like any fighting Irish mascot, no one has a problem with the actual tribe or affiliation being called out.  There’s minimal issue with the fact that Florida State uses the Seminoles as their team name and College mascot.  The fact that the Seminole tribe existed in Florida helps.

Another idea is to honor Black fighters.  An idea has been expressed that it would be preferable to change the team to the Washington Redtails, based on the Tuskegee Airmen who fought in World War II, a solid idea.

While looking at the name game, what about the Wizards? In light of the horrid Charlestown, SC shooting, and the debate over the Confederate stars and bars, and hate groups that support its use, the NBA franchise name Wizards conjures in my mind white hoods and burning crosses. Maybe it’s just me?

DC’s professional football and basketball teams should consider new names, in my opinion.

What are your thoughts?

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