David Stern, who helped transform the NBA, dies at age 77.

jewishtelegraphicagency.com file photo: David Stern poses for photos with the media in undated photo

By Jerry Feitelberg

David Stern, who led the NBA from February 1st, 1984 to February 1st, 2014, passed away on New Year’s Day after suffering a cerebral hemorrhage three weeks earlier. Stern, who was born in Teaneck, New Jersey, worked at his father’s deli in New York City as a young man. He learned the value of hard work there. He received his undergraduate degree from Rutgers University and his law degree from Columbia.

Stern went to work for the prestigious law firm of Proskauer, Rose, Goetz, and Mendelsohn, which happened to represent the NBA. He joined the NBA in 1978 as general counsel under then-commissioner Larry O’Brien. From 1979 to 1981, the NBA Finals, in those dark days, were shown on tape delay. They were broadcast at 11:30 pm Eastern Time.

Stern helped negotiate a drug testing policy in 1983. The NBA was the first major sports league to do so. He also had the league adopt a salary cap aimed at helping small-market franchises stay alive.

When Stern took over in 1984, teams were struggling to stay alive. Stern also benefitted from having star players such as Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, and Michael Jordan. Stern had a domineering personality. He also had vision and instinct to lift the league from the dark days to the new levels of prosperity and popularity. The NBA is now enormously popular here in the United States and all over the world. The games are now televised in more than 200 countries and in 40 languages. Also, this will be the sixth year in a row that the NBA will have at least 100 international players.

In his time as commissioner, Stern grew the NBA to a 5 billion-dollar a year enterprise. TV revenue increased 40-fold. The league added 7 new teams to create a 30-team league. Stern started the Women’s NBA League in 1997, and the NBA developmental league, now known as the G-League in 2001.

These examples will illustrate the changes that occurred. In 1985, Jerry Reinsdorf bought the Chicago Bulls for 16 million dollars. In 2014, Steve Ballmer bought the Los Angeles Clippers for two billion. Charles Barkley had this to say about David Stern: “I think people see all the money in sports and think that it was always like that,” Barkley said this recently on the program “Inside the N.B.A.” “When I got to the N.B.A. in 1984, which was Commissioner’s first year, the average salary was $250,000. It’s almost $9 million now. And he is largely responsible for that.” Some players are now making as much as 40 million dollars a year.”

Davi Stern leaves quite a legacy. His family, and his NBA family, can be very proud of the accomplishments of this man. Rest in peace.

Cal Bears podcast with Michael Duca: Bears-Cardinal to open Pac 12 regular season tonight

calbears.com photo: The Cal Bears Grant Anticevich (15) show taking ball down court will join the Golden Bears tonight at Stanford to face the Cardinal at Maples Pavilion in NCAA Basketball action

Cal Bears podcast with Michael Duca:

#1 The Cal Bears (6-7) have lost three straight games they go into Stanford to play the Cardinal (11-2) tonight how do see the Bears faring tonight?

#2 Matt Bradley continues to lead the Bears in scoring he finished with 15 points against Harvard on Sun Dec 29th will coach Mark Fox go to Bradley in the lead scoring role.

#3 Kareem South came in second in scoring with 13 points in his last game against Harvard what are some things that coach Fox will look from South tonight against Stanford.

#4 The Cardinal are coming off a tough loss to the Kansas Jayhawks last Sunday they were 11-1 before that game the Cardinal seem to be a force to reckon with

#5 It’s the opener of the Pac 12 season and the Bears at Stanford could actually be a rivalry type game how much does coach Fox look forward to the Pac 12 schedule?

Listen to the Cal Bears basketball podcasts each Thursday with Michael Duca and on Mondays with Morris Phillips

Stanford Cardinal podcast with Jerry Feitelberg: Cardinal host Cal tonight try to shake off last loss to Kansas

gostanford.com: Group huddle with the Stanford Cardinal Daejon Davis, David McCormack, Devon Dotson, and Oscar da Silva from Sun Dec 29th vs. Kansas

On the Cardinal podcast with Jerry F:

#1 The Kansas Jayhawks (10-2) got a big victory in the Stanford Cardinals (11-2) last game 72-56. The game played at Maples Pavilion last Sunday Dec 29th and was not even close and the Cardinal picked up their second loss of the season.

#2 The Jayhawks Udoka Azubuike pulled down 13 rebounds, as Kansas won despite turning the ball over 21 times.

#3 The Jayhawks Ochai Agbaji and Devon Dotson contributed 14 points apiece, as Kansas won its fourth straight meeting with the Cardinal

#4 Talk about Oscar da Silva he’s been steady and led the Cardinal in scoring last Sunday with 19 points

#5 The Cardinal host the Cal Bears on tonight at Maples Pavilion Jerry sets this one up for us

Stanford Cardinal podcasts with Jerry can be heard at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Jose Sharks podcast with Len Shapiro: Sharks skid hits six with loss shutout loss to the Red Wings

nbcsportsbayarea.com photo: The San Jose Sharks Marcus Sorenson (20) and the Detroit Red Wings Tyler Bertuzzi (59) go for the puck in Tuesday night’s contest at Little Cesar Arena

On the Sharks podcast with Len Shapiro:

#1 The Sharks (17-21-3) suffered their first shutout loss of the season getting blanked by the Detroit Red Wings (10-28-3) goalie Jonathan Bernier who stopped 34 shots

#2 Looking back on their loss to the Los Angeles Kings last Friday at SAP Center the Sharks had a 2-0 lead and watched the Kings scored three unanswered goals to come back on the Sharks for a 3-2 win does a loss like that take the wind out the Sharks sails which resulted in getting shutout by one of the worst teams in the NHL Detroit.

#3 With all the problems that the Red Wings have San Jose put those problems on hold as the Wings got scoring help from Tyler Bertuzzi and Filip Hronek with a goal in the second and third period.

#4 Since the coaching change from Peter DeBoer to Bob Boughner, Boghner has gone 1-5 was this team primarily damaged goods when Boughner took over, do they lack their old soul after former Sharks Joe Pavelski, Gustav Nyquist, Justin Braun, and Joonas Donskoi  left the team in the off season?

#5 The Sharks head to Pittsburgh to face the Penguins (23-11-4) who have a three game win streak, the odds are not looking to good but the Sharks to respond to adversity in spite of not being able to hold leads in the third period

Catch Len on the Sharks podcasts each Wednesday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

San Jose Barracuda podcast with Marko Ukalovic: Cuda suffers 4-0 shutout loss; Can’they capitalize

photo from sjbarracuda.com

On the Barracuda podcast with Marko:

#1 The San Jose Barracuda got shutout for the first time this season, being a last place team that is struggling.

#2 To shutout the Barracuda the Stockton Heat’s goalie John Gillies stopped all of the Cuda’s shots for the shutout.

#3 The Barracuda failed to take advantage of four straight power play penalties issued to the Heat and still lost to the Heat.

#4 Austin Czarnik extended his goal streak to five games and point streak to six with a goal on Tuesday

#5 The Barracuda open a two game set with the Tucson Roadrunners starting Friday in Arizona.

Join Marko for all the Barracuda podcasts at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

 

Short-handed Warriors lose in overtime to Spurs 117-113

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Golden State Warriors, playing without D’Angelo Russell and Willie Cauley-Stein, forced the San Antonio Spurs into overtime. The Spurs won the overtime period 17-13 to defeat the W’s 117-113.

The Warriors used their 16th different starting lineup Tuesday night to take on San Antonio. The Warriors and Spurs are both having subpar seasons. The Warriors, as they have done in the last five games, played typical Warrior basketball. They moved the ball well as the recorded 31 assists. They had 5 steals and 6 blocks on defense. Coach Steve Kerr had to pleased with their effort. “We’re having a productive season; we’re just not having a winning season,” Kerr said. “I’ve enjoyed coaching this team, I just told them that. I enjoy coming in every day and working with these guys because they play hard, they play for each other, and they care about that game. So, I’m not too concerned about the record.”

The Warriors, as they did Saturday against Dallas, started well. They won the first period 32-25. The Spurs bounced back in the second quarter to outscore the W’s by five to finish the first half trailing 55-53.

The Warriors scored just 45 points in the second half. The Spurs were two points better, and the game ended in a tie. The game was up for grabs. The Spurs’ Dejounte Murray knocked down seven points in the 5-minute overtime to lead the Spurs to the win.

Game Notes and Stats. D’Angelo Russell, who suffered a right shoulder contusion on Saturday when he slammed into Luka Doncic’s hip, was not available and will be evaluated on Wednesday. Willie Cauley-Stein missed the game with an undisclosed illness. Willie will also be assessed on Wednesday.

Alec Burks led the team with 28 points, 4 assists, and 4 rebounds. Burks made 4 threes in 5 attempts. Glenn Robinson 3rd had 25 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, and connected on 3 threes. Damion Lee continued to play well. He had 20 points, 7 boards, and 2 assists. Draymond Green had a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds. He also had 9 assists.

DeMar DeRozan led the Spurs with 24. LaMarcus Aldridge had 15, Patty Mills 18, DeJounte Murray 15, and Bryn Forbes 14.

The Warriors dropped their second in a row and are now 9-26 for the season. The Spurs improved to 14-18. It was the first time since 1996 that the Spurs finished the year (2019) with a record below .500.

The Warriors meet the Minnesota Timberwolves Thursday night in Minneapolis. The game will start at 5 pm PT.

 

Sacramento Kings Tuesday game wrap: Clippers hand Kings 8th straight loss 105-87

@LAClippers photo: The Los Angeles Clippers dressed up in Buffalo Braves jerseys on throw back uniform night Tuesday at Golden One Center against the Sacramento Kings as Derrick Walton Jr (10) left congratulates Landry Shamet (20)

By Jeremiah Salmonson

SACRAMENTO–It was a David and Goliath matchup at Golden One Center on Tuesday at 2 PM PST. The struggling Sacramento Kings who are 12-21 on the year, went up against the mighty LA Clippers who were 23-11 on the season. The vibes were nervous, to say the least at Golden One Center as the Kings prepared to take on the Clippers and try and snap the teams seven-game losing streak.

In the first quarter, the Kings came out a bit flat. They only managed 23 points on 41.2% shooting from the field. Buddy Hield was the lone bright spot for the Kings offense in the first who scored 12 points on 4-5 shooting. The Clippers also seemed a bit flat coming out for the 2 PM contest. The Clippers managed to score 28 points on 47.8% shooting with Kawhi Leonard leading the way with 5 points.

In the second quarter, the Clippers began to extend the lead. Paul George began hitting his shots to end the half with 11 points. The Clippers scored 29 in the second to take a 57-40 lead into halftime. The Kings, led by Buddy Hield who had 12 points, managed to score 40 points in the second.

The rest of the offense with the exclusion of Richuan Holmes struggled. Holmes dropped 14 points in the first half, but the rest of the Kings were all under four points. The Kings had a lot of work in front of them to come back from a 57-40 deficit in the second half.

In the third, the Kings bounced back. They outscored the Clippers 33-31 in the quarter to slightly cut into the deficit. The Kings played fast and were able to get some easy buckets against a great defensive team. Kawhi Leonard carried the Clippers in the third scoring 14 points. The Kings continued to get stellar play from Richuan Holmes. Holmes scored 6 more points in the third to lead the Kings.

In the fourth, the Clippers put the game away. Sacramento’s shot just would not fall in the last quarter. They had a number of good looks but were unable to convert. Both teams shot 41% from the field but the Clippers shot 33% from three compared to the Kings 29%.

The Kings shot a disappointing 68% from the free-throw line compared to the Clippers 95%. That right there was your game. The Kings dropped their eighth consecutive game and to 12-22 on the year. The leading scorers for the victorious Clippers were Kawhi Leonard and Paul George with 24 and 21 points respectively. Leading the Kings in defeat was Richaun Holmes who was spectacular. Holmes scored 22 points on 8-13 shooting.

In what has been a rough season so far for the Kings, we flip the calendar to 2020. Kings players and coaches inferred to that fact postgame. Head coach Luke Walton said postgame, “It’s going to be a better year, 2020.” Shooting guard Buddy Hield echoed those sentiments in the locker room saying, “It’s go time – it’s a new year.

Were [34] games in so we have about [48] left – it’s go time. We can’t wait anymore.” For Kings fans, they hope that is true. Kings fans hope that same urgency will carry over into the new year. 2019 turned out to be a very disappointing year for Kings. Unfortunately, Kings fans have been disappointed for all of the 2010s. Here’s to a more successful decade in Sacramento for Kings fans!

Up Next: Kings stay home to face the Memphis Grizzlies on Thursday at 7 PM PST

Heat turn out the lights on Barracuda in 4-0 shutout win; Cuda on three game losing streak

sjbarracuda.com photo:

by Marko Ukalovic

STOCKTON, Calif- It’s not the way the San Jose Barracuda wanted to end the calendar year. The Stockton Heat continued their dominance over their NorCal rival in a 4-0  shutout victory on New Year’s Eve at Stockton Arena.

The Heat have won all six meetings against the Barracuda and currently sit second in the Pacific Division with 43 points. San Jose has lost three in a row and anchor the bottom of the division with 22 points.

Stockton (19-6-2-3) drew first blood just past the halfway mark of the first period. Rob Hamilton sent a home run pass up the ice from his own blue line that sprung Glenn Gawdin for a breakway. Gawdin skated in from left to the right before depositing the puck past Barracuda goalie Josef Korenar for his 11th goal of the season at the 9:41 mark.

The Heat outshot the ‘Cuda 13-9 in the opening 20 minutes as they had the ice tilted in their favor for most of the period.

San Jose (10-17-0-2) had its chance to get back into the game with four straight power plays in the second period. Despite getting plenty of shots on net, Heat goalie Jon Gillies and the Heat penalty kill kept the ‘Cuda off the board. Despite outshooting Stockton 15-2, San Jose found itself trailing 1-0 at the second intermisson.

Stockton put the game away with three goals in the first five minutes of the third period. With San Jose on the power play, Gawdin fed a pass over to Buddy Robinson from the neutral zone. The former ‘Cuda foward skated in and buried the puck past Korenar for a short-handed goal, his 14th of the season 31 seconds into the period.

Austin Czarnik scored his fifth goal of the season at the 4:22 mark. Luke Philp and Byron Froese received assists on the goal.

The Heat completed the scoring when Eetu Tuulola received the puck at the Heat blueline and made a move around Trevor Carrick before firing a wrist shot to the far side past Korenar for his sixth goal of the season at 5:14 mark.

San Jose had three more opportunities on the power play in the final frame but ended up frustrated on the night thanks to work of Gillies.

Gillies stopped all 29 shots he faced for the shutout win, his eighth of the season, and is 4-0 against San Jose this season. Korenar made 22 saves on 26 shots in suffering the loss.

GAME NOTES: San Jose was 0-for-7 on the power play. Stockton was 0-for-3.

  • Thomas Gregoire and Dylan Gambrell each put a team-high three shots on net.
  • Czarnik extended his goal streak to five games and point streak to six with a goal on Tuesday.
  • Robinson’s shorthanded goal was the sixth shorty against for San Jose this season.
  • Gawdin picked up a goal and an assist and is now third in the AHL in points with 33.

UP NEXT: The Barracuda continue their three-game roadtrip down to Tucscon to start a two-game weekend series with the Roadrunners on Friday 1/3 at 6:05pm at Tucson Convention Center Arena.

Sharks Lose 2-0 to Red Wings, First Shut Out of Season

sfgate.com photo: San Jose Sharks right wing Timo Meier (28), of Switzerland, looses his footing against Detroit Red Wings defenseman Madison Bowey (74) during the first period of an NHL hockey game Tuesday, Dec. 31, 2019, in Detroit.

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks lost 2-0 to the Detroit Red Wings Tuesday, ending 2019 much the way they started this season. In December, they had two wins and 11 losses. The 2-0 loss to the NHL’s last ranked Red Wings had some disappointing firsts in it, for Sharks fans.

It was Detroit’s first shut out of the season and also the Sharks’ first time being shut out. It also ended a nearly three year stretch during which the Sharks got points in games where they allowed two or fewer goals. The goals were scored by Tyler Bertuzzi and Filip Hronek. Jonathan Bernier made 34 saves in the win while Sharks goaltender Martin Jones made 21 saves for the Sharks.

If there is anything good to take away from this game, it might be that the team only gave up two goals. That is an improvement over some of San Jose’s more spectacular losses this season. They also did fairly well in the face-off circle, winning 52% of them.

Those facts are not very encouraging, though, considering the opponent in Tuesday’s match. The Red Wings are not the worst face-off team in the NHL, just the ninth worst. They are the worst in the goal scoring department.

Sharks captain Logan Couture was asked to find some positives in the game: “Well, Joner was great, that’s a positive. Um, I’m trying to think of other things we can take from this one. But Joner played well, PK had some stops, power play needs to be better, offensively we need to be better. I thought for the most part, five on five we didn’t give them too much.”

Sharks interim head coach Bob Boughner also identified the goaltender as one of the only good parts of the game:

There were some bright spots to our game. I think the maybe power play generating a goal would have been nice. I think that Jonesy played well. It’s one of those games, we didn’t give up much on the road. Defensively we’ve been tightening it up in that area. You know, we just didn’t get our bounce early and the longer the game went I thought Bernier looked more comfortable. I thought we could’ve got more bodies in front of him. But, you know, we just didn’t capitalize, didn’t execute offensively.

The first goal came at 3:15 of the second period. Tyler Bertuzzi deflected Madison Bowey’s shot from the point, after bringing the puck into the zone, then rushing into position in front of the Sharks net. A second assist went to Dylan Larkin. It was Bertuzzi’s 15th of the season.

The second goal went into an empty net at 19:11 of the third period. Brent Burns’ shot was blocked and then went to Filip Hronek, who shot it all the way down the ice into the net. An assist went to Luke Glendening.

The Sharks had three power play chances to the Red Wings’ two. No power play goals were scored. The Sharks out-shot the Red Wings in the game and 14-4 in the third period.

The Sharks next play on Thursday in Pittsburgh against the Penguins at 4:00 PM PT.

Headline Sports podcast with Barbara Mason: The advantage Cal had playing in Santa Clara for the Red Box Bowl; Have Sharks snapped out of it?; plus more

photo from sfgate.com: California quarterback Chase Garbers (7) scrabbles away from Illinois defensive lineman Ayo Shogbonyo (52) during the first half of the Redbox Bowl NCAA college football game Monday, Dec. 30, 2019, in Santa Clara, Calif

On Headline Sports with Barbara:

#1 How important, how big was it for Cal to get to the Red Box Bowl and get to stay in the Bay Area and play the game against the Illinois Illini as the Bears defeated the Illini 35-20.

#2 It has to be a relief for the San Jose Sharks to win a game after losing ten of their last 11 on Saturday they got to break the glass ceiling or ice below with a five goal 6-1 win over the Philadelphia Flyers

#3 Talk about the San Francisco 49ers and Seattle Seahawks in a game that was built and called “The NFC West Championship” played on Sunday afternoon

#4 The Oakland Raiders on Sunday had to beat the Broncos, then the Texans needed to beat the Titans and the Ravens needed to beat the Steelers, and the Colts needed to beat the Jaguars, and a victory by at least one of these teams Bears, Lions, Chiefs or Patriots in order to make the AFC Wild Card Playoffs it was quite a bit to ask for wasn’t of the Raiders?

#5 The Sacramento Kings last two loses were narrow in a game against the Minnesota Timberwolves they lost by just one in overtime but coughed up a lead in the 105-104 loss, then on Saturday they dropped another game at home by two 112-110 to the Phoenix Suns. The Kings have lost six straight games.

Join Barbara each Tuesday for Headline Sports at http://www.sportsradioservice.com