Rotoworld: Oregon RB LaMichael James and Oklahoma State WR Justin Blackmon among top 10 players who are being overhyped for the 2012 draft.
SportsTalk: Albert Pujols signs with the Angels and Prince Fielder joins the Tigers. Which team is better now?
The Detroit Red Wings equaled an NHL record with their 20th straight win at home, beating the Philadelphia Flyers 4-3 Sunday night on the strength of Johan Franzen's tiebreaking goal early in the third period.
PBT: Boston's Rajon Rondo continues to be named in trade talks, which is madness. The Celtics guard creates offense and makes everyone around him better, which was evident in Sunday's win over the Bulls.
Arc's five up, five down: After No. 11 Michigan State's 58-48 upset of No. 3 Ohio State, you'd be a fool to discount the Spartans' national title chances now.
Miami coach Al Golden says the worst is behind him, but his headaches figure to continue now that former booster Nevin Shapiro, now in jail, says his involvement with the Hurricanes program will result in stiff penalties.
Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods greeted their Sunday pairing at Pebble Beach with optimism. But the day would end happily only for one.
The United States completed a 5-0 rout of Switzerland in the Davis Cup on Sunday, with 19-year-old Ryan Harrison and John Isner winning closing singles matches.
Zambia has won the African Cup of Nations, beating pre-tournament favorite Ivory Coast 8-7 on penalties in a dramatic final at Stade de l'Amitie.
Tessa Worley of France fought off gusting winds to win a second consecutive World Cup giant slalom Sunday in the Andorran Pyrenees. Overall leader Lindsey Vonn was more than a second behind and finished eighth.
Robins: It’s the Year of the Dragon on the Lunar calendar, and this Chinese influence could extend to it also being the year of the Pekingese on the green carpet at the 136th Westminster Dog Show on Tuesday.
AP
STARLIGHT, Ind. - Rick Pitino knows what it’s like to change your mind after taking a new head coaching job. The Louisville coach readily admits he had second thoughts in the days after leaving the comfort of Kentucky for an ill-fated run with the Boston Celtics a decade ago.
Still, Pitino said Wednesday that the outcry following former player and protege Billy Donovan’s decision to renege on a contract with the Orlando Magic to return to two-time defending national champion Gators was “mind-boggling.”
The Magic released Donovan from the contract on Wednesday night.
Donovan, who played for Pitino at Providence and later was an assistant under him at Kentucky, is in the process of getting out of a five-year, $27.5 million contract he signed with the Magic last Friday.
“He probably made a decision with his head and then followed his heart,” Pitino said at a Louisville function. “It’s a totally unfortunate situation. I know Billy. I know he feels bad about it.”
Pitino said he talked to Donovan before he agreed to the contract with the Magic, but didn’t advise him either way.
“I told him what the NBA was all about, the good and the bad just like there is college basketball and it was up to him to make a decision,” Pitino said.
Pitino knows both sides of the coin. He led Providence to the Final Four in 1987 before moving on to the New York Knicks. He left the Big Apple for Kentucky, only to return to the NBA with the Celtics in 1997, a move he’s questioned in hindsight.
“It’s very difficult because you want to try something different and the NBA is very alluring,” Pitino said. “It’s alluring economically. It’s alluring because it’s on TV, the playoffs are on TV, it’s very exciting. You think you want to try it. I wanted to try it. I knew I wanted to try it ... because I knew what it was all about.”
Pitino said he told Donovan not to interview with the Magic unless he though he was capable of taking the job.
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“Whether it was a mistake or a blessing, when he went back down to Gainesville for that press conference, that’s when it hit home,” Pitino said. “It’s something he regrets, but it’s something he has to live with. In the end, he knew where he wanted to be.”
Ultimately, Pitino said any provision in Donovan’s settlement with the Magic that would prevent Donovan from taking a job in the NBA in the near future could be a good thing for the Gators.
“He was going to get killed recruiting-wise because everybody would say ’Oh, he’s going pro next year,”’ Pitino said. “Now he’s going to be able to rebuild that thing the right way because he can’t go pro. So they did him a favor by doing that.”
Arc's five up, five down: After No. 11 Michigan State's 58-48 upset of No. 3 Ohio State, you'd be a fool to discount the Spartans' national title chances now.
Tim Hardaway Jr. scored 15 points and Evan Smotrycz added 13, helping No. 22 Michigan remain unbeaten at home with a 70-61 win over Illinois on Sunday.
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Zambia has won the African Cup of Nations, beating pre-tournament favorite Ivory Coast 8-7 on penalties in a dramatic final at Stade de l'Amitie.
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The Red Wings have finally started to embrace a record they've been chasing.
