Who are the NBA's leading rookies?
With the first quarter of the NBA season behind us, a number of rookies are busy making a name for themselves in the world's top basketball league.
While many newcomers take a while to step up from college ball and develop into solid senior-level players, some make the leap with surprising ease - and it's not always the ones you'd expect to be such a success.
Here’s the best of a group of first-timers seeking to follow in the footsteps of past Rookies of the Year such as Michael Jordan, Tim Duncan, Allen Iverson, Shaquille O'Neale, LeBron James and Kevin Durant. FULL POST
Bullying in the NFL: Problem or part of the game?
Miami is the center of an NFL media storm, and it’s not because the storied franchise is in the hunt to make their first playoff appearance since 2008.
One of the team’s offensive linemen, Richie Incognito, allegedly bullied a teammate by leaving offensive and racist voicemails on his teammate’s phone and repeating similar behavior over their time together in the last two years.
That teammate, second year offensive lineman Jonathan Martin, has since separated himself from the team, while Incognito has been suspended by the Dolphins until further notice.
Martin's legal counsel, David Cornwell, says in a statement that his client “endured harassment that went far beyond the traditional locker room hazing."
Cornwell went on to say: “Jonathan attempted to befriend the same teammates who subjected him to the abuse with the hope that doing so would end the harassment. FULL POST
Washington Redskins: Racist or a sporting exception?
In 1947, Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in American sport when he took the field for the Brooklyn Dodgers as the first African American to play in the formerly all-white baseball league.
Seven decades later, even though the racial tensions are nowhere near what they were when Robinson made history, one of the United States’ most storied sporting franchises still clings to a term many critics argue supports racial intolerance.
The NFL’s Washington Redskins have carried their name since 1933, when they were the Boston Redskins. When the football team moved to the capital four years later, they brought the name with them and have held it ever since. FULL POST
American college football faces up to the pressures of professionalism
The NFL has cemented itself among the popular sporting leagues in the world thanks to huge events like the Super Bowl and its endeavors to bring the game to the UK. However, in the United States, collegiate football, also known as NCAA football, is just as popular as its professional counterpart.
Unlike the NFL where there are only 32 teams across the country, collegiate football has more than 120 teams. This means every area across the country has a local team they can identify with. For instance, while the Dallas Cowboys may be the most popular team in the NFL, there is the same, if not more support for Texas, Texas A&M or Texas Tech’s football teams.
Since it’s inception in 1906, the collegiate system has insisted on keeping its athletes amateur, forcing student athletes to rely fully on their scholarships to get them through their college days. FULL POST
