Washinton has put a pause on its cheerleading team after Jamilla Keene, the Cheerleading Director, was removed from her position.
🚨BREAKING🚨
Washington Football cheerleading is on PAUSE. Jamilla Keene, Cheerleading Director, has been removed from position. Team is bringing in a rebranding consultant. Team's currently under investigation for mistreatment of female employees
A new report shows that the Washington Football Team is putting a pause on its cheerleading program, with the Cheerleading Director, Jamilla Keene, being removed from her position.
According to the report from WUSA9, the program say they are re-envisioning the program and are going to take the team to another form. The team is bringing in a consultant from Carnival Cruise for rebranding, according to the source.
This news comes after a months-long investigation into the team’s alleged mistreatment of female employees. There were stories of cheerleaders being mistreated and asked to do things by ownership that led to sexual harassment allegations. Haynes reports that it is not clear if the removal of Keene has anything to do with the investigation, which is reportedly coming to an end.
Back in 2019 after Kawhi Leonard helped the Toronto Raptors win their first title in franchise history, it felt like everyone knew he probably wasn’t going to stay.
It was reported that he had always had intentions of going home to LA to play for either the Lakers or the Clippers — we just didn’t know which one. Ultimately, he ended up with the Clippers.
But it allegedly may have come with a bit of improper help, according to recent accusations. The NBA is launching an investigation into the Clippers’ recruitment of Leonard that offseason, according to The Athletic’s Sam Amick, after a man named Johnny Wilkes claimed Jerry West owed him $2.5 for swaying the All-Star forward their way.
Yup. That’s a lot. Don’t worry. It’s all explained right here.
Wait, what???
Yes, you read that all correctly. The NBA is investigating the Clippers to see if Wilkes had a hand in helping West and the Clippers land Leonard in 2019 after he left the Raptors.
Wilkes is claiming that he was promised $2.5 million from the organization for information on Leonard that would’ve helped them recruit him.
Alright. Who is Johnny Wilkes?
Wilkes claims to be best friends with Kawhi Leonard’s uncle, Dennis Robertson, who is also his agent. He also claims to be fairly close with Kawhi Leonard himself. He and Robertson were high school basketball teammates.
Why is Wilkes suing the Clippers?
Wilkes says that Jerry West had an oral agreement with him to pay $2.5 million to pass on information about Kawhi Leonard to help the team recruit him in free agency.
He said that he informed West that he was close to Leonard in April of 2019, according to a report from ESPN, and that he could provide them with pivotal information to recruit Leonard. He also said that he got to work recruiting Leonard for the Clippers as soon as the Raptors won a title in 2019.
What information is he saying he gave the Clippers?
Wilkes claims he told the Clippers they could sell Leonard on four separate points.
First, they needed to trade for Paul George to get Leonard to sign with them. Second, they had to promise Kawhi that he’d have a great life as a Clipper and they’d take care of him after basketball. Third, they had to promise to do whatever it takes to beat LeBron James. And, finally, they’d have to fund a $100 million marketing campaign for Leonard that included getting his uncle a house in Southern California with a travel expense.
Wait, a house for his uncle? Wasn’t that a thing before?
It was! The NBA actually investigated that last year, Amick reports. The investigation didn’t turn anything up, but they did say they’d reopen it if there were any further leads that came forward. This might be considered one of those leads.
Have the Clippers said anything about this?
Yes. The Clippers say the lawsuit is filled with “inaccuracies and baseless allegations.” They released a statement condemning it.
More from the Clippers' statement:
"(The Clippers) are providing the NBA with evidence that the allegations are false.”
He says Wilkes had absolutely nothing to do with him coming to the Clippers.
Kawhi tells reporters that Johnny Wilkes — who insists he was promised $2.5 million for helping the Clippers land him — had "nothing to do with me coming here"
Wilkes was a Dorsey HS teammate of Kawhi's uncle Dennis Robertson before playing at Colorado and Cal State Fullerton
So what happens if the NBA finds Wilkes is telling the truth?
Well, we don’t really know. But it certainly won’t be good. It looks like the Clippers may have violated the NBA’s “Other Indirect Contact” free agency rule, per ESPN.
“The NBA’s investigation would pertain to “Other Indirect Contact” as detailed under Article 35A (3) of the NBA constitution, which “prohibits indirect communications, such as those made through intermediaries.” The Clippers could be fined up to $10 million and lose draft picks if they are found to have violated the rule.”
So, yeah, Clippers fans. This could get bad, or it could be nothing.
A federal investigation has been launched after two grizzly bears were killed by black bear hunters last week near Great Falls, Montana.
A federal investigation has been launched after two grizzly bears were killed by black bear hunters last week near Great Falls, Montana.
Grizzly bears are federally protected and the investigation is being conducted by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, in cooperation with Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks.
Neither agency is offering specific details, pending results of the investigation.
However, Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks (FWP) issued a news release stating that the hunters killed one male and one female grizzly bear during the black bear season. No cubs were found.
Montana’s spring black bear hunting season ended May 31 in some regions, but continues through June 15 in other regions.
It remains unclear whether the hunters thought they were shooting at black bears, but “correct identification is critical,” FWP stated.
In Montana, hunters must pass a test to make sure they can tell the difference between the two species before they are issued hunting tags. The test consists of 15 multiple-choice questions and hunters must answer at least 12 correctly to receive a certificate of completion.
FWP noted that color and size are not clear indications. Black bears are sometimes lighter in color, and grizzly bears can look black. Grizzly bears are sometimes smaller than adult black bears.
“Grizzly bears are expanding into more places in Montana, and we are also heading outdoors in higher numbers right now, which means it is more important than ever to review bear safety and identification tips,” FWP cautioned.
–Grizzly bear images (top two) are via Wikipedia; black bear image is courtesy of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Does Ronda Rousey honestly hate WWE fans? Or is this all a set-up for a return?
Ronda Rousey is in the headlines again this week for comments she made bashing WWE fans.
In an interview on the “Wild Ride” podcast, which is hosted by Steve-O of Jackass fame, Rousey again ripped into WWE fans, who had a less-than-cordial relationship with Rousey during her run as a performer with the company last year.
Talking with Steve-O about her decision to leave wrestling, Rousey asked:Â “What am I doing it for, if I’m not being able to spend my time and energy on my family, but instead spending my time and my energy on a bunch of [expletive] ungrateful fans that don’t even appreciate me?”
She continued: “I love performing. I love the girls. I love being out there … but, at the end of the day, I was just like, ‘[expletive] these fans, dude.'”
Her hatred of the WWE fans seems sincere enough, but this is also the WWE we’re talking about here. Which leads us to the big question: Is this all a work?
(Quickly, for the non-wrestling fans: A “work” is any planned or scripted part of the ongoing, never-ending storytelling that exists in the world of professional wrestling. A “shoot,” on the other hand, is when an unscripted moment occurs.)
And, as far as I can tell, WWE fans can’t quite make up their minds with this right now. Is Rousey just baiting fans intentionally, staying relevant to the sport while she takes a break from WWE, and setting up her inevitable return as a heel? Or does she genuinely hate the fans for the way they treated her during her run?
No one has any idea. Look at what it’s doing to these poor fans.
I don’t know I find more hilarious – WWE fans continually insisting Ronda Rousey is terrible at the business while seemingly never being able to tell if her comments are a work or a shoot or Ronda Rousey getting angry about being disliked by fans while playing the role of a heel.
Upon listening to the Rousey podcast, it sounds more like a work to me. People are taking it as a shoot, but she was on her way to turning heel before Mania. And Steve O seems to be leading her. Steve O has ties to the WWE so to be it sounds more like a work.
1.) WWE fans really, earnestly did not react well to Rousey when she joined WWE. Not in a “we get mad at the heel” kind of way. She wasn’t a heel (“heel” is a villain in wrestling parlance). More in the, like, “we just hate this person and don’t want to watch her” kind of way. They let her know about it, too. So for her to be genuinely angry isn’t out of the question. Score one for shoot.
2.) Steve-O has appeared on WWE before. Score one for work.
3.) Rousey keeps talking about WWE openly, and making sure to disparage fans, instead of just dodging the question, which anyone with her media training absolutely knows how to do.
The more I read up on it, the more I think we’re in a wonderful, muddled middle ground here. A worked shoot, or a shoot that’s slowly being worked. Or something. Rousey is genuinely mad at WWE fans for things they said to her, but also smart enough to realize she can channel that anger into a possible WWE return as a heel in the future.
So is Rousey using her twitch/Facebook stream to do work shoot interviews to establish a character? Cuz it sounds like she'll return as a heel, if at all. Can't just call WWE fans "ungrateful" and not get NUCLEAR heat for it. Especially if that's how she really feels.
The best moments in WWE recently (other than insane WrestleMania, filmed boneyard matches) have come when the writers find genuine, real-life disagreements and transform them into works.
If Rousey takes the hurt she felt from WWE fans, who thought she was uninteresting and handed too much too soon after her transition over from UFC, and channels that into something interesting, that’s great. It will actually go a long way toward making her more believable as a WWE character.
Law enforcement in Loudon County, Virginia is conducting an ongoing investigation into the death of a 21-year-old woman who was dropped off at an area hospital last Thursday by Redskins safety Montae Nicholson and another man.
Law enforcement in Loudon County, Virginia is conducting an ongoing investigation into the death of a 21-year-old woman who was dropped off at an area hospital last Thursday by Redskins safety Montae Nicholson and another man.
Law enforcement in Loudon County, Virginia is conducting an ongoing investigation into the death of a 21-year-old woman who was dropped off at an area hospital last Thursday by Redskins safety Montae Nicholson and another man.
Law enforcement in Loudon County, Virginia is conducting an ongoing investigation into the death of a 21-year-old woman who was dropped off at an area hospital last Thursday by Redskins safety Montae Nicholson and another man.
