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- Coach Mike Krzyzewski still finds fun in coaching Duke, Team USA
- Weslye Saunders cut by Colts
- Team USA basketball scrimmage: Kyrie Irving leads White team to win
- Vonta Leach close to deal with Ravens, per report
- Brian Wilson rumors: Giants, Cardinals, Rangers among teams interested
- Chance Warmack holding out of Titans camp
- Team USA basketball scrimmage: America's top young stars square off
- Harrison Barnes posterizes Ryan Anderson
| Coach Mike Krzyzewski still finds fun in coaching Duke, Team USA Posted: 25 Jul 2013 09:05 PM PDT  Coach Mike Krzyzewski's reason for committing to another Olympics cycle with Team USA is pretty simple: he still sees himself coaching Duke basketball in three years, and he likes doing both. Hard to argue with. Krzyzewski had initially thought the 2012 Olympics would be his last. But then, his most recent Blue Devils team, which finished second in the ACC and went to the Elite Eight, happened, and as Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today wrote, he got the spirit for another go-around. "I had a really great year with my Duke team. I loved my Duke team this past year," he said. "Most of the time, I love my Duke team. But I got a little bit refreshed." On the other hand, he found coaching Team USA somewhat stressful, especially dealing with players who had just finished playing in the NBA Finals and were being asked to quickly regroup mentally and physically. But his wife told him not to make the decision to retire when he was tired, and after reflecting, he opted to stay on. Coach K says he'll coach through at least 2015-16 with Duke, when he'll be 69 years old, and he'll also go for another Olympics. He reportedly never gave thought to continuing to coach the American team every summer while taking the rest of the year off, comparing it to going into battle without being "combat-ready." Krzyzewski has won 65 of 66 games since taking over as Team USA's coach, the lone outlier a semifinal game in the 2006 World Championships against Greece. He said he found leaving the program "cold turkey" to be difficult, and eventually made the commitment for four more years on the sidelines. With an NCAA-record 957 wins and three more seasons at the helm, Krzyzewski will all but certainly become the first coach ever to win 1,000 college basketball games. More from SB Nation:• LBJ likely done with Team USA | Best (and worst) Olympic moments • The top 61 rookies at NBA Summer League • SB Nation’s media days coverage, live from the scene: ACC | Big 12 | Big Ten | SEC • Bois: Dante Hall and the legend of the human joystick • Longform: The Ultimate Frisbee wars This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Posted: 25 Jul 2013 08:43 PM PDT  The Indianapolis Colts parted ways with troubled tight end Weslye Saunders on Thursday, according to NFL.com. The move comes just a week after he tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs, his second violation of the league's drug policy. Already on the roster bubble entering camp, Saunders' pending eight-game suspension pushed his status over the edge. The once-promising tight went undrafted in 2011 due to a combination of off-field issues while at South Carolina. He was initially signed by the Pittsburgh Steelers with hopes of turning things around, but was released after serving a four-game suspension for performance-enhancing drugs last year. The loss to the Colts is minimal. The team used two high draft picks on tight ends in 2012, selecting Coby Fleener and Dwayne Allen. Saunders was expected to battle for the final tight end spot with Justice Cunningham, who was selected by Indianapolis in the seventh round of April's draft. More from SB Nation:• Belichick opens up about Hernandez | Florida removes All-America brick • SB Nation's guide to sports networks • David Roth: Robert Griffin III gets up • How to defend the read option • Complete NFL training camp coverage This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Team USA basketball scrimmage: Kyrie Irving leads White team to win Posted: 25 Jul 2013 08:36 PM PDT  Team USA's intra-squad scrimmage to cap its mini-camp for young players vying for spots on the 2014 World Cup team ended with a decisive 128-106 victory for the White team, led by a game-high 23 points from Kyrie Irving. The scrimmage was, well, just that: a scrimmage, with lax transition defense:
and plenty of big dunks
no seriously
dunks happened
(Since the numbers at the scrimmage were weird: those people are Anthony Davis, Kemba Walker passing to DeMar DeRozan, John Wall, and Harrison Davis on Ryan Anderson.) Coaches Monty Williams and Tom Thibodeau made sure to get everybody involved, so the stats aren't particularly gaudy but a few players stood out. Irving shined for the winning team, looking like the best player on the court with a game-high 23 points to go along with seven assists. Kyrie Irving in an intra-squad scrimmage looked a lot like Kyrie Irving in an NBA game: comfortable, capable of beating pretty much anybody off the dribble, and finishing. His White squad trailed early, but they rallied to open up a 10-point gap in the third quarter and finished strong, with Irving providing the majority of the impetus. Chris Paul will play for the USA in 2014, and Derrick Rose wants to play as well, but one would have to imagine Irving has a strong shot of making the roster. For the Blue team, Anthony Davis looked like a virtual lock for the 2014 World Cup roster after playing a deep reserve role on the 2012 Olympic gold medal squad. His jumper looked pure, as he canned his first five attempts from the floor and finished with 22 points on 13 attempts to go along with seven rebounds. With his jumper and length around the rim, he seems perfectly suited for international ball, and the United States will need all the help they can get against the bigs of their main international competition, Spain. The rest of the squad was just trying to show their ability to fit in, knowing Mike Krzyzewski was watching from the sidelines. The coaches tried to put players in interesting scenarios -- zone defense, two-point-guard sets -- to see how they'd react to various things they might encounter if asked to be on a roster in international competition. More from SB Nation:• Kenny Anderson reveals being sexually abused • Ziller: Is Wall worth the max? It's complicated • NYC tells MSG to move ... in 10 years • LBJ likely done with Team USA | Best (and worst) Olympic moments • The top 61 rookies at NBA Summer League This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Vonta Leach close to deal with Ravens, per report Posted: 25 Jul 2013 08:14 PM PDT  Vonta Leach explored his options, visiting with the Kansas City Chiefs and Miami Dolphins, but ultimately a return to the Baltimore Ravens appears likely for the fullback, according to NJ.com. A three-time All-Pro honoree, Leach was released by Baltimore last month due to cap constraints. As a vital blocker for Ray Rice, he was a valuable part of Baltimore's Super Bowl team last season, but his $3 million cap figure was too much for the team to handle with other needs eating into its cap space. Following an unsuccessful visit with the Dolphins, however, the reunion between Leach and Baltimore became a likely outcome again. Miami is content to enter training camp with a young backfield, using Charles Clay as its primary fullback in training camp, along with former second-round pick Lamar Miller. The New York Giants also had significant interest in Leach, giving him a standing offer, but familiarity with Baltimore is likely shaping this decision. He made the Pro Bowl team in each of the last three years, and almost matched his career high in receiving yards last season. More from SB Nation:• Belichick opens up about Hernandez | Florida removes All-America brick • SB Nation's guide to sports networks • David Roth: Robert Griffin III gets up |
| Brian Wilson rumors: Giants, Cardinals, Rangers among teams interested Posted: 25 Jul 2013 08:07 PM PDT  Former-Giants reliever Brian Wilson held a workout for interested teams on Thursday, and he "looked good," reports Danny Knobler of CBS Sports. Wilson is currently trying to recover from his second Tommy John surgery. The teams in attendance were the Pirates, Diamondbacks, A's, Giants, Phillies, Rangers, Rockies, and Cardinals. Wilson presents a unique opportunity for teams to bolster their bullpens at the trade deadline without having to surrender anything of value in a trade. One scout had Wilson's fastball ranging from 90-93, and turned a positive report in on the right-handed reliever. The Pirates and Diamondbacks both lack closers at the moment, and could look to Wilson to fill that void for them. Another team that would make sense that has not yet been mentioned is Detroit, but they seem to be happy with the job Joaqin Benoit is doing. Wilson is sure to be a valued-commodity when he is ready to sign, as he has a strong track record of success as a closer for the Giants. His career ERA out of the bullpen is 3.21, and his best single-season ERA was 1.81 in 2010. More from SB Nation:• Braves will survive Hudson's tough break • Cashman responds to A-Rod's second opinion • Why do we obsess over the trade deadline? • Brisbee: On the roid rage of fans and columnists ... This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Chance Warmack holding out of Titans camp Posted: 25 Jul 2013 07:54 PM PDT  The Tennessee Titans will open training camp without their first-round pick, as offensive guard Chance Warmack will hold out over disagreements over the language in his rookie contract, according to Titan Insider. The contention is 'offset language', by which the Titans could recover guaranteed money in the event a rookie is cut before the end of his rookie deal. This has been the final stumbling block in rookies signing their contracts. The NFL's rookie pay scale ensured money is no longer a holdup, but instead the fight is waged over how much money is guaranteed, and how much could be recouped by teams. Warmack was set to help Chris Johnson's return to running dominance. The star running back had an excellent 2012 season, finishing with over 1,200 yards -- but the organization, and Johnson acknowledged that better help on the offensive line would further increase his production. Warmack was the top right guard in the draft, and a natural fit for an offense looking to run the ball. Head coach Mike Munchak was candid about what a holdout could mean to the rookie's ability to help the team in 2013.
Fernando Velasco and Robert Turner took reps at right guard in Warmack's absence, with both players switching roles throughout the day on the line's interior. It's clear the Titans need to get their first round pick into camp, and quickly -- but time will tell how general manager Ruston Webster will deal with the offset language. More from SB Nation:• Belichick opens up about Hernandez | Florida removes All-America brick • SB Nation's guide to sports networks • David Roth: Robert Griffin III gets up • How to defend the read option • Complete NFL training camp coverage This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Team USA basketball scrimmage: America's top young stars square off Posted: 25 Jul 2013 07:54 PM PDT  The country's best young basketball players are being showcased at the Team USA scrimmage in Las Vegas. From now on, when you snatch an alley-oop attempt out of midair, wave off your point guard and go coast-to-coast for the dunk, you've performed an "Anthony Davis." Or a "Brow," for short. Check out this play in the Team USA scrimmage.
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| Harrison Barnes posterizes Ryan Anderson Posted: 25 Jul 2013 07:51 PM PDT  You know those dunks that come out of nowhere because you don't realize how explosive the dunker is? This Harrison Barnes dunk on Ryan Anderson in the Team USA scrimmage came out of nowhere.
Nikola Pekovic's reaction: "Been there bro." |
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