Tag: boycott

Saints’ win over Bucs was highest-rated FOX NFL opener in 4 years

The New Orleans Saints drew a huge audience in their Week 1 game with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the highest NFL on FOX broadcast since 2016.

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So much for all that chatter about a boycott. FOX Sports reported an overnight rating of 16.2 from its Week 1 game between the New Orleans Saints and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, a four-year high for the season’s first FOX NFL Game of the Week.

This game received a higher viewership rating than its 2019 counterpart (15.9), and projects to rank best among all national telecasts since Super Bowl LIV earlier this year once all markets report their individual ratings. It turns out that Drew Brees and Tom Brady can still draw a crowd.

It will be fascinating to track each team’s progress over the course of the 2020 season; while Brees and the Saints were self-critical in looking for ways to improve and clear up their remaining weaknesses, Brady and the Buccaneers must reevaluate their own areas of strength to find what went wrong.

For now, the Saints are sitting alone on top of the NFC South standings, and they’re hoping to hold onto that spot as they prepare for Week 2’s Monday Night Football game with the Las Vegas Raiders.

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Over 15 years in league, Chris Paul has ‘never seen anything like’ NBA protest

Oklahoma City Thunder point guard Chris Paul said that he’s never seen anything like the NBA strike and that he’ll never forget it.

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The voices the NBA players were able to use publicly last week was a far cry from 15 years ago when Chris Paul joined the league.

It was different than six years ago, when Paul’s Los Angeles Clippers protested owner Donald Sterling but chose not to boycott or strike the game.

Over the days that athletes forced the NBA to postpone games, the now-Oklahoma City Thunder point guard said he hadn’t experienced anything like this.

“Fifteen years in this league and Iā€™ve never seen anything like it,” Paul said. “Obviously I wasnā€™t the oldest one in the room, I think (Miami Heat center) Udonis Haslem was, but the voices that were heard, Iā€™ll never forget it. Iā€™ll never forget it.”

After the Milwaukee Bucks did not walk onto the court to play the Orlando Magic on Wednesday, the Magic and players on the other four teams scheduled to play that day also went on strike.

There was a meeting with players and coaches, where Black former NBA players and current coaches John Lucas of the Houston Rockets and Doc Rivers and Armond Hill of the Los Angeles Clippers spoke.

Then, athletes had a players-only meeting.

“Guys are tired. And I mean tired. And when I say tired, weā€™re not physically tired, weā€™re just tired of seeing the same thing over and over again,” Paul said.

The strike came in response to police shooting Jacob Blake, a Black man in Kenosha, seven times in the back.

The league agreed to three demands, all of which had a focus on voting: NBA governors will work with local officials to use arenas as voting sites; players, coaches and executives will form a social justice coalition; and more advertising time will be spent on encouraging voting and civic engagement.

“You get a chance to read and see pictures of the Cleveland Summit, for those who came before us, and the Muhammad Alis, and the Jim Browns and the Kareem Abdul-Jabbars, and how powerful they were,” Paul said.

“Weā€™re not saying that weā€™re that, but what weā€™re doing right now in our league is huge.”

Paul thinks that younger players in the NBA will be able to use the experience to create more change within the league and society.

“I think for the young guys in our league, to get a chance to see how guys are really coming together and speak and see real change, real action,” he said.

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NBA Boycott: What needs to happen next after NBA players refused to play

The NBA players are fed up.

The NBA’s season seems to be saved for now, but on Wednesday night it felt like it was hanging by a thread.

NBA players protested against police brutality and violence against Black people on Wednesday by not playing in games. They also considered not playing for the rest of the postseason with both the Lakers and Clippers initially being in support of that measure.

After a good night’s sleep and some time, things have reversed and the players are set to play again between Friday and Saturday.

But we got the message loud and clear. The players want to do more and they want the league to do more with them. If they don’t? Basketball could be in trouble.

Mike Sykes has more on how the league needs to move forward to make sure that doesn’t happen.

Report: Thunder among NBA teams that voted to continue playing

The Los Angeles Lakers and Clippers reportedly voted to not continue playing, while the other NBA teams voted to resume the playoffs.

After the strike on Wednesday in which the six NBA teams scheduled to play boycotted the games, players inside the bubble met to discuss how to proceed.

Among the results of the meeting: The Oklahoma City Thunder were one of the teams that voted to continue playing, according to The Athletic’s Shams Charania.

Every team still inside the bubble except the Los Angeles teams, the Lakers and Clippers, voted to continue playing.

ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported that the Lakers’ and Clippers’ votes to not continue playing the season was “more of a polling, than a final vote” and that playoff resumption “remains still up in the air.”

Wojnarowski also tweeted that discussions will continue Thursday and that it is unlikely the games scheduled that day will take place.

ESPN’s Dave McMenamin reported that his source said players felt like they did not accomplish much in the meeting and that there is a “feeling of ‘uncertainty'” going into the night.

The Board of Governors are scheduled to meet at 11 a.m. Thursday.

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The strike was prompted by the Sunday incident in Kenosha, Wisconsin in which Jacob Black, a Black man, was shot in the back seven times by a police officer as he opened the door to his car.

The police had been responding to a domestic violence call. Blake’s family told ABC Chicago that Blake had gotten out of the car to try to break up the fight. Video shows police following him with their guns out as he walked back to his car, and after Blake opened the door, he was shot several times.

The Milwaukee Bucks, whose home stadium is less than an hour north of Kenosha, were the first NBA team to decide to strike. Their opponent, the Orlando Magic, joined in as game time approached.

Both the Bucks and Magic were among teams that voted to continue the season, according to Charania.

The Thunder and Houston Rockets were scheduled to play after them, but those two teams decide to strike as well. The Los Angeles Lakers and Portland Trail Blazers shortly followed suit.

Not long after, the NBA announced all games had been postponed, meaning there would be no forfeits.

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Breaking: Washington to postpone Thursday’s scrimmage to protest shooting of Jacob Blake

Washington is joining a number of sporting teams in boycotting over the shooting of Jacob Blake.

It was reported by NBC Sports Washington’s JP Finlay on Wednesday night that the Washington Football Team would postpone their practice on Thursday ā€” which was set to be a scrimmage taking place at FedEx Field ā€” until further notice.

The postponement comes in the wake of the shooting of Jacob Blake in Wisconsin, which led a number of sports leagues to halt operations in order to reflect and find how to use their platforms to incite change.

The first domino fell on Wednesday afternoon when the Milwaukee Bucks players boycotted their Game 5 NBA Playoff game against the Orlando Magic, refusing to play. Since then, a number of other teams and sporting leagues have joined in the boycott, demanding change.

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NBA postpones all games Wednesday after teams including Thunder boycott

After the Bucks, Magic, Thunder and Rockets boycotted their games to protest the response the shooting of Jacob Blake, the NBA announced all games Wednesday are postponed.

The Milwaukee Bucks boycotted Game 5 of their series against the Orlando Magic after the shooting of Jacob Blake, a Black man, in Kenosha, Wisconsin.

The Magic followed suit, also boycotting the game.

Not long after, The Athletic’s Shams Charania reported that the Oklahoma City Thunder and Houston Rockets had also decided to boycott their game.

Then, Charania tweeted that the Los Angeles Lakers and Portland Trail Blazers would not play either.

Minutes later, he reported that the NBA had decided to postpone all games Wednesday as the league and players decide what to do.

NBA players in the bubble will meet Wednesday night to discuss further steps, according to Charania.

With the announcement of the postponement, there officially will not be any forfeits from the players’ decisions Wednesday.

Blake was shot in the back seven times by a police officer onĀ Sunday as he opened the door to his car. He survived but is paralyzed, the family’s attorney told CBS News.

Police had reportedly been called for a domestic incident. Blake’s family said Blake had gotten out of his car to try to break up the fight, according to ABC Chicago. Video shows police following him with their guns out as he walked back to his car, and after Blake opened the door, he was shot several times.

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Report: Thunder, Rockets to boycott Game 5 in protest alongside Bucks, Magic

The Thunder and Rockets will reportedly follow the lead of the Bucks and Magic and boycott Game 5 after the shooting of Jacob Blake.

The Oklahoma City Thunder and Houston Rockets will reportedly follow the lead of the Milwaukee Bucks and Orlando Magic and boycott Game 5, according to The Athletic’s Shams Charania.

The boycotts were prompted by the police shooting of Jacob Blake, a Black man, in Kenosha, Wisconsin.

Blake was shot in the back seven times by a police officer onĀ Sunday as he opened the door to his car. He survived but is paralyzed, the family’s attorney told CBS News.

Police had reportedly been called for a domestic incident. Blake’s family said Blake had gotten out of his car to try to break up the fight, according to ABC Chicago. Video shows police following him with their guns out as he walked back to his car, and after Blake opened the door, he was shot several times.

There have been in Kenosha since, and the National Guard was called into the area, according to the Washington Post.

The Thunder were scheduled to hold the usual pregame press conference at 3:45 p.m. Central Time. It was initially postponed 15 minutes and then later canceled.

After Game 4 of the Thunder and Rockets series, Oklahoma City point guard and National Basketball Players Association president Chris Paul brought up Blake in an on-court interview.

ā€œI donā€™t know, thatā€™s all good and well, I just want to send my prayers out to Jacob Blake and their family,ā€ Paul said.

ā€œThe things that we decided to come down here to play for and we said weā€™re gonna speak on, the social injustice and the things that continue to happen to our people ā€” itā€™s not right. Itā€™s not right,ā€ he said before pivoting to other issues.

ā€œThe win is good, but voting is real. Iā€™m gonna challenge all my NBA guys, other sports guys, letā€™s try to get our entire teams registered to vote. Thereā€™s a lot of stuff going on in the country. Sports, itā€™s cool, itā€™s good and well, itā€™s how we take care of our families, but those are the real issues we gotta start addressing.ā€

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The NBA world salutes the Milwaukee Bucks for boycott of Game 5

The Milwaukee Bucks boycotted Game 5 of their series with the Magic in response to the police shooting of Jacob Blake.

Over the last few days, NBA players have been talking about what to do in response to the shooting of Jacob BlakeĀ ā€” a Wisconsin man who was shot by police eight times and is now paralyzed from the waist down.

On Wednesday, they figured it out. The Milwaukee Bucks chose to boycott game 5 against the Orlando Magic in protest of police brutality.

The game’s tip-off was set for 4:10 p.m. EST. When time came for the game to start, the Bucks refused to leave the locker room. Top NBA executives posted up outside of their locker room, according to reports, before they were eventually told the Bucks weren’t going to play.

It’s unclear what happens next. Normally, when a team fails to appear for a game they forfeit automatically and are fined, per ESPN’s Bobby Marks. But it’s unclear if that will apply to Milwaukee here.

And the Magic aren’t accepting a forfeit.

One thing here is for sure ā€” we haven’t quite seen anything like this in recent years. This is an entire team refusing to play as a means to stand up for what they believe in. We’ve seen protest in sports before, but rarely do we have moments like this.

NBA players applauded the move by the Bucks after getting the news, including LeBron James.

*WARNING:Ā There is some NSFW language included in these tweets*

NBA fans reacted the same way.

Good on the Bucks. This is what taking a stand looks like.

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Big 12 Conference should keep an eye on the Pac-12 dispute

The Pac 12 Conference has a labor dispute on their hands. How they handle it could impact the Big 12 and other Power Five conferences.

For years there has been an argument on paying college athletes. The NCAA rules have prevented the players from earning any money while maintaining amateur status and playing for their college of choice. We all remember the last time it occurred. You have seen the movie about the Pony Express. SMU’s football program was given the death penalty after paying their players.

Many thought that we were heading in the right direction with NIL bill (name, image, likeness) that would allow players to earn money off their own names. While there has been some progress, it was still in it’s infancy stage. However, while that has been a work in progress the athletes of the Pac-12 Conference have gone ahead and taken things into their own hands.

According to the Players Tribune, they have made a list of demands or they will boycott the season. Some of those demands directly reflect the COVID-19 situation as college football seasons draws near. While other demands are in regards to pay for players. This has been brewing for some time now before the demands were made known to the public.

COVID-19 Protections

Allow option not to play during the pandemic without losing athletics eligibility or spot on our teamā€™s roster.

Prohibit/void COVID-19 agreements that waive liability.

Their first set of demands according to the Players Tribune concern COVID-19 agreements. Next we will look at the demands concerning pay for administrators, staff and the commissioner.

Preserve All Existing Sports by Eliminating Excessive Expenditures

Larry Scott, administrators, and coaches to voluntarily and drastically reduce excessive pay.

The demands go on to list ways to combat social injustice such as civic-engagement task force, assist those who come from low-income households and help with medical expenses. Then there are the requests for proper financial compensation.

Fair Market Pay, Rights, & Freedoms

Distribute 50% of each sportā€™s total conference revenue evenly among athletes in their respective sports.

The list of demands has sparked conversation nationwide about how college football and fall sports could function under these demands? As previously stated, NCAA rules prevent athletes from being paid. The conference would likely need to separate from the NCAA unless they drastically changed their rules. If you read about the potential for Power Five conferences hosting their own championship, this was already a possibility.

If the Pac-12 gave in to these demands, the remaining Power Five conferences would have to follow suit. For the Texas Longhorns, they earned $156.1 million in revenue last season. For a split among the players, it would come out to about $780,000 per player based on 100 players on the team. If you calculate it by the Big 12 it comes out to about $312,5000.

This just creates more questions based on do they take out money for tuition? Do they keep their scholarships? Are all athletes paid the same? Do preferred walk ons gets a smaller amount? This is a huge dispute that the whole college football world will be monitoring.

Stay tuned to Longhorns Wire as we keep you up to date.

Pac-12 student-athletes threaten boycott unless demands are met

Pac-12 student-athletes have explained the terms to avoid a boycott.

The year 2020 has seen sports take a major turn at activism and athletes becoming more vocal about their rights. The latest comes from student-athletes in the Pac-12. They have written an article for The Players Tribune outlining demands and saying they will boycott unless they are met.

#WeAreUnited in our commitment to secure fair treatment for college athletes. Due to COVID-19 and other serious concerns, we will opt-out of Pac-12 fall camp and game participation unless the following demands are guaranteed in writing by our conference to protect and benefit both scholarship athletes and walk-ons.

Oregon star DB Jevon Holland: ā€œWeā€™re not your entertainment, weā€™re human beings… We donā€™t know the long term risks. We have no idea how itā€™s going to affect our body regardless if we show symptoms or not. I refuse to put my health at risk for somebody elseā€™s benefit.ā€