Sports
LeBron Signs 2-Year Contract with Cavaliers
TOM WITHERS, AP Sports Writer
CLEVELAND (AP) — The Cavaliers can exhale for another year. They’ve got LeBron James’ signature on a contract.
The four-time MVP, who brought the Cavs back from irrelevancy to the brink of an NBA championship this season, signed his two-year, $47 million deal on Friday. The commitment allows him to maintain financial flexibility and keeps pressure on Cleveland’s front office to keep building.
The deal includes a player option for the 2016-17 season. He finalized the agreement shortly before hosting a private screening for a new movie in which he has a supporting role.
He’s the unquestioned star with the Cavs, who are thrilled he’ll be back and expect him to complete his career wearing wine and gold.
“LeBron’s re-signing today is a reflection and continuation of his strong, personal commitment to help deliver championships to Northeast Ohio and Cavs fans everywhere,” general manager David Griffin. “We share this deep level of commitment with him. His impact upon this team, his community and the game are impossible to overstate and we look forward to continuing on our mission together.”
James’ signing comes a day before the one-year anniversary of his return to Cleveland after spending four seasons in Miami.
The 30-year-old has indicated he will finish playing career with the Cavs, who went from being a lottery team to Eastern Conference champions in James’ first season back.
James will likely opt out of his contract again next summer so he can cash in when the league’s salary cap jumps thanks to a new $24 billion TV deal.
James averaged 25.3 points, 7.4 assists and 6.0 rebounds in 69 regular-season games. However, his biggest contributions may have come off the floor as his leadership helped instill a belief in a Cleveland team that dropped to the bottom of the league during the four years he was with the Heat.
He scored in double figures in all 69 games, increasing his consecutive double-digit scoring streak to 641 — third-longest in history.
Despite missing 13 games — he sat out two weeks to rest a sore back and knee — he was one of just three players to amass 1,700 points, 500 assists, 400 rebounds and 100 steals.
The 11-time All-Star finished third in the MVP voting, a slight that seemed to motivate him during the postseason.
In 20 playoff games, he averaged 30.1 points, 11.3 rebounds and 8.5 assists, joining Hall of Famer Oscar Robertson as the only players to average at least 30, 11 and 8 in a postseason.
James saved his best for last, dominating the finals but failing to lead the Cavs to a championship as they were beaten in six games by the Golden State Warriors. James averaged 35.8 points, 13.3 rebounds and 8.8 assists in the six games, the best statistical performance in finals history.
Copyright 2015 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Arts and Culture
Gov. Newsom and First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom Host 2024 Hall of Fame Ceremony
Former Assembly Speaker and San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown and three other African Americans were among 10 luminaries inducted into the 2024 Class of the California Hall of Fame on Feb. 8. The 17th Annual California Hall of Fame ceremony was held at the California Museum.
By California Black Media
Former Assembly Speaker and San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown and three other African Americans were among 10 luminaries inducted into the 2024 Class of the California Hall of Fame on Feb. 8.
The 17th Annual California Hall of Fame ceremony was held at the California Museum.
“The California Hall of Fame is one of our families’ favorite traditions as it is a time to come together to celebrate remarkable Californians as well as their loved ones because we know that it is about partnerships,” Siebel Newsom said. “The governor likes to say that California is a dream factory because it doesn’t matter what zip code or background you come from, the California dream is alive and well to everyone who calls this state home.”
The other Black honorees were filmmaker Ava DuVernay; Federal Judge and civil rights leader, the Hon. Thelton Henderson; and basketball Hall of Fame player and broadcaster Cheryl Miller.
“It’s what I’ve been waiting for and to be among a great group of individuals that also deserve the honor,” Brown told California Black Media on the event’s red carpet before the ceremony began. “No, I never thought someone from Texas would be recognized this way. But here I am, and it all happened in the great state of California. It’s a fantastic feeling.”
Other 2024 inductees are: master chef and “mother of fusion cuisine” Helene An; computer scientist and “father of the internet” Vincent A. Cerf; all-female pop punk band The Go-Gos; Chicano Rock band Los Lobos; former U.S. Secretary of Defense and Congressman Leon E. Panetta; and artistic director and choreographer Brenda Way.
This year’s honorees join a history-making club with over 150 inspirational Californians previously inducted for their groundbreaking achievements and personifying the state’s innovative spirit.
“It’s just a humbling experience. I want to thank the Governor and First Partner. Who would have thought 100 years ago (that I would be inducted?) It’s incredible,” Miller said after her induction. “I want to thank the governor and First Partner for an incredible event.”
During his acceptance speech, Henderson said he was deeply honored.
“You know, it really would have been a really big deal to be inducted into the Hall of Fame in the area where I grew up, for example, South Central Hall of Fame, or the Watts Hall of Fame, or the Straight Out of Compton Hall of Fame,” he said. “But being inducted into the California Hall of Fame, Hall of Fame of the greatest state in the country in this great nation is something else.”
Community
El Cerrito High Senior Jayvon Bolds Named to Blue-Grey All-American Bowl
El Cerrito High School senior Jayvon Bolds is set to play in the Blue-Grey All American Bowl game at Cowboy Stadium in Dallas on Jan. 8. Bolds, an 18-year-old scholar athlete whose favorite subject is history, was nominated for the honor by Rodney Alamo Brown, founder of Soulful Softball Sunday who also serves as an announcer for the Texas bowl game.
By the Richmond Standard
El Cerrito High School senior Jayvon Bolds is set to play in the Blue-Grey All American Bowl game at Cowboy Stadium in Dallas on Jan. 8.
Bolds, an 18-year-old scholar athlete whose favorite subject is history, was nominated for the honor by Rodney Alamo Brown, founder of Soulful Softball Sunday who also serves as an announcer for the Texas bowl game.
“It’s a real honor,” Alamo Brown stated about Brown’s selection for the bowl game. “This makes him an All-American.”
Bolds will play three positions for the Eastern team: kr, slot back and special teams—i.e., kickoff and punt return.
“The plan is to line up Bolds all over the field and let him do his thing. He’ll be a weapon for our staff,” said NFL veteran Tampa Bay Buccaneers standout and All-American Bowl Coach Dick Bell. “In a game like this, with the platform being an NFL facility with former professionals as assistants and mentors, he’ll have a chance to shine on one of the biggest stages around.”
Recently, Bolds received a scholarship offer to continue his higher education at Clarke University in Dubuque, Iowa.
Bolds maintains a 3.3 GPA and is heavily involved in leadership as he is the vice president of the Black Student Union.
Blue-Grey Football launched in 1989 by founders Gus and Erik Bell with the aim of helping prospects gain national exposure so that they can improve their chances to secure college scholarships.
Some of the nation’s most talented young football players compete in the annual game, with Fox Sports, CBS Sports and USA Today regularly providing coverage, as well as ESPN.com, Scout.com, Rivals.com and 247Sports.com.
Bolds’ family is planning on traveling to Dallas on Friday and is seeking donations from the community to offset the enormous cost. Those who are willing to donate may do so by sending their donations to this cash app, $Juanita Towns.
Rodney Alamo Brown contributed to this report.
Book Reviews
Book Review: “Who Got Game? Basketball”
A little less than two feet. That’s how far you can get your two feet off the floor if you’re an average kid doing an average vertical jump. Not quite twenty-four inches, but don’t worry: the taller you grow, the higher you could be able to jump. Practice some, dribble a little, shoot more three-pointers, and you might jump right into a book like “Who Got Game? Basketball” by Derrick Barnes, illustrated by Jez Tuya.
A little less than two feet.
That’s how far you can get your two feet off the floor if you’re an average kid doing an average vertical jump. Not quite twenty-four inches, but don’t worry: the taller you grow, the higher you could be able to jump. Practice some, dribble a little, shoot more three-pointers, and you might jump right into a book like “Who Got Game? Basketball” by Derrick Barnes, illustrated by Jez Tuya.
Here we are, football season’s almost over, and your mind has turned to other things – namely, hoops set high over your head, and a round bouncy basketball. Kids like you who “got game” have had it for more than a century. Yes, the game of basketball was created by Dr. James Naismith in 1891 in Massachusetts.
In the years since, basketball has changed a lot, thanks to what Derrick Barnes calls “pioneers.” Julius “Dr. J” Erving improved the dunk. Before that, in 1950, the NBA first allowed Black basketball players on the teams. There have been super-tall players (Manute Bol and Gheorghe Muregan were both seven feet, seven tall) and smaller b-ballers – five-three Muggsy Bogues had a vertical jump of nearly four feet! – and just two years after the game was invented, America had its first women’s team.
A lot of off-court people poured themselves into the game, too. Barnes writes, for example, about Pat Summitt, hoopster, leader, and “one of the greatest coaches in all of sports history.” Her record of 1,098 wins ranks her at first-place in coaching women’s basketball, and as the coach with the second-most wins overall.
You can probably guess that in a book about buckets, there are bucketfuls of stats. Barnes includes a list of NBA players who jumped to a team right out of high school. He writes about the greatest basketball park ever, he explains why winners cut down the net, how Title IX changed the game, why backboards rarely break into a zillion pieces anymore, high scores, bad injuries, “hoops movies,” and where in the world you can pick up a game today.
So, your 9-to-13-year-old loves basketball so much that they dribble a ball in their sleep? They think their favorite jersey is church wear? Then you’ll be the hero of the day when you bring home “Who Got Game? Basketball.”
But first, there’s one big thing you need to know: this is not a how-to book. There aren’t any instructions inside here, no rules or plays to follow. Instead, author Derrick Barnes makes young b-ballers happy by sharing little-known info about the game they love so much, short lists, great stories about great players, wins and losses, and phrases they should know to talk the talk. All this knowledge is supported by colorful illustrations by Jez Tuya that kids will enjoy alongside the facts.
This book is for die-hard young b-ballers, but don’t be surprised if an adult finds a thing or two to learn here. “Who Got Game? Basketball” is a book any fan will want to jump on.
“Who Got Game? Basketball” by Derrick Barnes, Illustrated by Jez Tuya, c.2023, Workman Publishing, $16.99, 172 pages.
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