Max n' Out Entertainment » Sports

Forbes: Cavs Turned Biggest Profit Ever During 2010-11 Season

Osupa — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 13:47:31 +0000

WaitingForNextYear.com

By Scott

Posted January 27th 2012

In a recent report put together by Forbes which discussed the current state and value of NBA franchises as well as the successful television ratings which continue to go hand-in-hand with star-centric sporting events, we find that the Cleveland Cavaliers turned their biggest profit in the history of the franchise during the season which LeBron James was no longer a fixture within Quicken Loans Arena.

Per Forbes’ Kurt Badenhausen, despite falling victim to a professional sport record 26-game losing streak, Dan Gilbert’s Cavaliers earned $33 million in operating income, good enough for third best in the NBA. This figure is largely attributed to a $30 million payroll cut (James as well as Shaquille O’Neal and Zydrunas Ilgauskas were no longer on the team’s roster) and no luxury tax, which cost the Wine and Gold $16 million one season earlier.

Unfortunately, this one-year success, spurned largely by fans re-upping their season tickets prior to The Decision, does not bode well for overall franchise value as the Cavaliers’ value is down 7% to $326 million after a 26% drop last year. Current attendance totals are down 4,000 fans per game to 16,149, which presently ranks 17th in the league.

On the positive side, if television ratings can be used as a forecast for future interest, The Cavaliers rank fifth among NBA teams in ratings within their local markets (5.84), trailing only San Antonio (8.27), Miami (7.59), Chicago (6.80) and Oklahoma City (5.88) thanks to excitement surrounding Rookie of the Year hopeful Kyrie Irving and the fourth-overall selection Tristan Thompson.

Cleveland Ranked #8 In Top Tailgating Cities in the U.S.!

Osupa — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 19:15:15 +0000

Delish.com

Posted January 22nd 2012

NFL and college football fans across the country turn tailgating into over-the-top celebrations with enviable food. Here, the best traditions from cities that have perfected pre-game festivities.

Hosting a football or Superbowl party this month? Wow the crowd with a perfect-for-football snack or one of these sensational Super Bowl party ideas.

Cleveland, OH #8

NFL: Cleveland Browns, Cleveland Browns Stadium

Local microbrews, like those from the Great Lakes Brewing Company, are popular with Browns fans. When it’s time to grill, they opt for beer-can chicken.

CLICK HERE AND CHECK OUT WHO IS THE TOP DOG IN FOOTBALL TAILGATING.

Serena Williams: I Don’t Love Tennis!

Osupa — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 15:16:18 +0000

ESPN.com

Posted January 4th 2012

Serena Williams is not passionate about the game she has dominated for so long, but not about to leave it, the 13-time Grand Slam winner said Monday, according to TennisNow.com.

“I mean, I don’t love tennis today, but I’m here, and I can’t live without it … so I’m still here and I don’t want to go anywhere any time soon,” Williams said after her first-round win at the Brisbane International, according to TennisNow.com.

“It’s not that I’ve fallen out of love; I’ve actually never liked sports, and I never understood how I became an athlete,” she said, according to the website. “I don’t like working out; I don’t like anything that has to do with working physically.”

Williams, 30, turned pro in 1995 and won her first Grand Slam title in 1999, at the U.S. Open. She has 39 career singles titles.

Williams has previously been criticized for spending time on interests outside of tennis, such as fashion design and acting. But she explained that her outside interests are actually keeping her motivated to stay in the game, according to the report.

“I just want to be able to do other things I am doing and expand on that — I think that will help keep my motivation up (in tennis),” Williams said, according to TennisNow.com. “I have always been preparing myself for life after tennis.”

LeBron James Celebrates New Year And Birthday With Engagement To Savannah Brinson!

Osupa — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 16:27:15 +0000

The PostGame.com

By Max Thompson

Posted January 2nd 2012

Can LeBron James win a ring in style? We’ll find out. Can he present a ring in style? Yes. The King topped off a New Year’s Eve and birthday celebration Saturday by getting engaged.

James, 27, proposed to longtime girlfriend Savannah Brinson, the mother of his two children, at SL Nightclub in Miami. The two have been together since James was a national prep star at St. Vincent-St. Mary in Akron, Ohio. The couple’s two boys are LeBron, Jr. and Bryce, age 7 and 4, respectively.

The engagement came just a week after Michael Jordan popped the question to Yvette Prieto, making it a popular stretch for basketball icons to get hitched.

The news was immediately followed by a host of Twitter jokes.

We’ll refrain from that and simply congratulate the happy couple. Between the end of the lockout, the birthday, and the proposal, LeBron certainly had a great fourth quarter … of 2011.

Michael Jordan Engaged To Girlfriend!

Osupa — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 15:07:56 +0000

MSN.FoxSports.com

Posted December 31st 2011

Michael Jordan is engaged to longtime girlfriend Yvette Prieto, a Cuban-American model he’s been dating for three years.

Publicist Estee Portnoy confirmed the news, first reported by WCNC in Charlotte, on Thursday.

Prieto, 32, was spotted sitting courtside at a Charlotte Bobcats game Monday with Jordan’s friend and New York Yankees star Derek Jeter.

The Bobcats owner got engaged over the Christmas weekend. No wedding date has been set.

This will be Jordan’s second marriage. He married Juanita Vanoy in September 1989, and they divorced in 2006. They have two sons, Jeffrey Michael and Marcus James, and a daughter, Jasmine.

Ex Miss Universe, NBA Star Wed In Secret!

Osupa — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 11:18:06 +0000

Entretenimiento.AolLatino.com

By Rafael Abreu

Posted December 28th 2011

On Christmas Eve, the impressive residence of Dominican singer Juan Luis Guerra and his wife, Nora Vega, became the setting for a surprise holiday wedding, according to People en Español.

Amelia Vega Polanco, who at 18 was the youngest Miss Universe in 2003 and niece of Guerra and his wife, Nora Vega, married in such a way that might be described as one of the best-kept celebrity secrets. Polanco and her new husband, Atlanta Hawks center and power forward Al Horford, managed to maintain their romance and subsequent wedding out of the public eye entirely.

The news not only surprised the worlds of sports and entertainment, but also the select guests who were invited. The event was planned in such tight-lipped fashion that guests gathered at the Dominican singer’s house for what they presumed would be a traditional Christmas Eve dinner.

The select group of guests never imagined the night would be one in which they would watch a romance reach its pinnacle second by second as it was revealed through marriage vows that came unexpected even to them.

In a very simple, yet emotional, ceremony, the bride’s parents, uncles, grandparents, and the couple’s close friends, were the only ones to witness the union between the NBA star and the singer of ‘Pasa Un Segundito’ (A Second Passes), according People en Español.

Harrison Ford, Chadwick Boseman In Jackie Robinson Biopic!

Osupa — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 16:04:50 +0000

TheWrap.com

By Tim Kenneally

Posted December 23rd 2011

Harrison Ford has officially signed on for the upcoming Jackie Robinson biopic, Legendary Pictures announced Friday.

As reported by TheWrap on Thursday, Ford will play Branch Rickey, the Major League Baseball executive who helped break baseball’s color barrier by signing Robinson to a minor league in 1945, and helped Robinson sign to the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947, making him the first African-American player in the MLB.

Legendary has signed newcomer Chadwick Boseman in the role of Robinson. Boseman, who has appeared on “Justified,” “Fringe” and “Castle,” has just finished filming the lead role in the independent action movie “The Kill Hole,” in which he’ll play Lt. Samuel Drake.

Brian Helgeland (“L.A. Confidential,” “Mystic River”) will write and direct the project, for which Legendary consulted with Robinson’s widow, Rachel Robinson.

Kobe Bryant Divorce: Final Settlement With Wife Expected Next Year!

Osupa — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 13:28:22 +0000

LATimes.com

By Victoria Kim and Lauren Williams

Posed December 19th 2011

Kobe Bryant and Vanessa Bryant had been Friday had been negotiating the terms of their divorce for some time but a final settlement is not expected to be filed in Orange County Superior Court until next year.

In the petition filed Friday, Vanessa Bryant cited “irreconcilable differences” as the reason for the divorce. In what appears to be an effort to keep the details of their split out of the public eye, the couple said in a joint statement late Friday. The statement said the couple “resolved all issues incident to their divorce privately.”

But the final judgment dissolving their marriage will be entered sometime next year, representatives for the couple said.

Though details of the settlement were not in the document, Vanessa Bryant’s mother previously told a Times reporter that the couple had no prenuptial agreement.

She told The Times in 2005 the couple choose to forgo one after months of negotiations. The court filing Friday indicated that property rights were to be determined.

“She just came home one day and said something to the effect that Kobe didn’t want a prenup, that he loved her too much,” Sofia Urbieta Laine said in a 2005 interview.

Vanessa Bryant and her attorney had signed the petition Dec. 1, long before it was filed Friday. Her husband’s response was signed Dec. 7. Both sides requested joint custody of their daughters Natalia, 8, and Gianna, 5.

Michelle Obama Event Breaks World Record For Most People Doing Jumping Jacks In 24-Hour Period!

Osupa — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 16:25:35 +0000

Associated Press

Posted December 13th 2011

WASHINGTON — Michelle Obama now holds part of a world record.The first lady announced in an email Monday that her October bid to break the record for the most people doing jumping jacks in a 24-hour period succeeded. Mrs. Obama says 300,265 people participated, shattering the old record.

In order to achieve her goal, Mrs. Obama led about 400 elementary and middle-school students from Washington in jumping jacks on the South Lawn of the White House. Other jumping jacks events were held around the world on Oct. 11.

The effort was organized by National Geographic Kids magazine in support of the first lady’s Let’s Move! initiative to promote physical fitness and healthy eating for children.

Magic Johnson Plans To Bid For The Los Angeles Dodgers!

Osupa — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 16:54:34 +0000

YahooSports.com

By ‘Duk

Posted December 6th 2011

Those of you reactionary types who were concerned that Larry King might buy the Dodgers, stage a power play and boot Vin Scully from the broadcast booth just received a good piece of news when it comes to potential celebrity owners.

Make that two good pieces of news.

The first bit is that Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban said on Thursday that he’s interested in taking a look at one of the team’s bid books as current owner Frank McCourt prepares to sell the team. The look-see doesn’t require Cuban to place a bid on the team, but this is more than we expected after he previously said he wouldn’t be interested in buying the team if it was going to sell for north of $1 billion (and it still very well could).

The second bit is that former Lakers star Magic Johnson is putting together a potential ownership group that includes former Braves and Nationals executive Stan Kasten and the backing of a high-powered financial services firm with assets of $125 billion.

Needless to say, Magic is not playing around.

From the Los Angeles Times:

“I am so hyped, I’m ready to start right now,” said Johnson in a phone interview Friday morning. “The Dodgers have been so important to this community for so many years, for so many reasons. I’ve lived through it all like everyone else and I want to make them great again.”

Johnson is that rare former sports star whose business acumen has matched his athleticism. Since retiring from the Lakers in 1996, he has made millions in investments that have focused on rebuilding inner cities. His substantial portfolio includes Starbucks franchises and movie theaters and a piece of the Lakers, which he recently sold.

“The Dodgers are my next big thing,” Johnson said. “This is not just millions of my money, this is dear to my heart. This is bringing back the brand for the people of Los Angeles.”

We had a lot of fun with imagining a world in which Larry King is running the Los Angeles Dodgers. But we’re being completely honest in saying that a Magic-led ownership group would be a godsend for the Dodgers. It’d be a godsend for baseball.

Yes, even more than Cuban — everyone’s usual go-to franchise savior — would be.

We already stated this when Johnson hinted at his first smidgen of interest last spring, but Bug Selig and Co. have to be salivating at the mere thought of Johnson replacing McCourt atop the Dodger Stadium mount. The team would be passing from one of the least-liked men in Southern California to maybe the only individual that every Los Angeleno can agree on and baseball would pick up its first black owner in the process.

And not just any token figurehead, either, but one of the most country’s most successful businessmen of any color and a guy who’d presumably have a significant stake in the venture. For a sport that is always trying to figure out how to improve its image among African-American youth, getting Magic Johnson into the fold would be one of the best trump cards imaginable.

The biggest concern, of course, was going to be whether or not a basketball man would be able to identify the right baseball men to work with, but that seems to have been solved with Johnson joining forces with Kasten. There’s obviously a lot of miles to be traveled before we seeing Magic take the keys from McCourt, but this is one heck of a start.

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