Bernard's Flow of Thoughts

2018 NBA free agency began at 12:01 a.m., and headlines are already being made. Team front office executives couldn’t officially contact players until the clock struck midnight, and now that it’s past 12, the floodgates are open. Max contracts are expected to be handed out left and right, while some other free agents won’t know where they’re signing until the biggest dominos fall. With free agents like LeBron James , Paul George , DeMarcus Cousins and DeAndre Jordan available, anything could happen. So instead of scrambling all over the place to find these deals, we rounded all of them up to make your life easi er. Here are all this year’s free agency signings as they happen: July 1 Dope article from sbnation.com

BE Modern Man is an integrative program that honors the essence, image, and accomplishments of today’s man of color. With features of today’s leaders, executives, creatives, students, politicians, entrepreneurs, professionals, and agents of change—these men share the common thread of creating a new normal while setting the bar in tech, art, philanthropy, business, and beyond. The BE Modern Man is making a positive impact, his way, and has a story to tell. BE MODERN MAN CARLOS V. DAVIS Age: 39 Profession: Chief Empowerment Officer, Stand & Deliver L.L.C., a professional development firm One Word That Describes You: Driven Social Media: Facebook: Carlos V. Davis | Twitter: @mrresourcemogul | Instagram: @mrresourcemogul What does being one of the BE Modern Man 100 Honorees mean to you? It is a humbling honor and privilege! I don’t do what I do for awards, so it is a blessing to be recognized for the work I do for our community. What is your “Extraordinary Impact?” “Wha...

Soonish, LeBron James will rock the sports world by announcing where he’ll play basketball in the 2018-19 season. His recruitment is one of the highest-profile pursuits in sports history, matched in America only by the last two times he was a free agent, in 2010 and 2014. The people best positioned to give LeBron advice on where to play? Probably his family, friends, and agent. But the best people to give LeBron advice on how to announce ? Definitely college football recruits, who are known for announcing their school choices in myriad creative ways after dramatic recruiting processes . LeBron never went to college and thus never got to have his own National Signing Day ceremony, as he’s pointed out during previous decisions. These teens know exactly how he should play it. Idea No. 1: A slow-motion video where a Cavs jersey becomes a Lakers jersey the second LeBron finishes a thunderous dunk Four-star Oregon receiver commit Josh Delgado explains: “You’d have to be really creat...

The field may be weak, but we have ourselves a worthwhile leaderboard heading to the weekend at the Quicken Loans National . The names that needed to make the cut, did. And really, the one, all-important draw is back in contention and within scaring distance of the leaders at TPC Potomac. Tiger Woods will have another late weekend tee time on Saturday, playing at 12:25 p.m. ET alongside Joel Dahmen. Woods started Friday’s second round near the cut line, but shot up the leaderboard with a 5-under 65. That put him in a tie for 11th place at the 36-hole midpoint and just four shots off the lead. Brian Gay, Ryan Armour, and Beau Hossler all hold the lead at 9-under, which would have won last year’s event on this same course by a good two shots. It’s only going to get hotter, play firmer and faster, and toughen up on the weekend. It looks like we’re headed for a winner in the double digits but it might not be too deep come Sunday night, giving Tiger plenty of time to close that gap. Wood...

DeAndre Jordan is opting out of his contract with the Clippers to become an unrestricted free agent, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski . Much like LeBron James ’ decision not to opt into his contract, this move by Jordan doesn’t tell us a whole lot about his free agency intentions, but it does limit where he can go. Jordan is now as an unrestricted free agent and has the freedom to negotiate a long-term deal with the Clippers, Mavericks or any team that has cap space. Dope article from sbnation.com

LeBron James will test the waters of free agency this summer. The four-time NBA MVP will opt out of the final year of his three-year contract with the Cleveland Cavaliers , according to a report from Cleveland.com’s James Vardon. LeBron James’ agent informed the Cavs he will not exercise his $35.6 million option and thus will become an unrestricted free agent, sources told @clevelanddotcom ... Story coming — Joe Vardon (@joevardon) June 29, 2018 James immediately becomes the hottest name in a free agent market that also includes all-stars like Paul George and DeMarcus Cousins. He’s coming off arguably his best season as a pro after dragging a disheveled Cavs team all the way to the NBA Finals , where they were swept by the Golden State Warriors . Dope article from sbnation.com

If you’ve been plugged into the internet the past few months, you may have that heard Drake’s new album Scorpion was set to be released on June 29. A torching at the hand of a Pusha T diss track and a Drake statement later , we have 25 tracks of new music, some of which come with sports references. Drake’s a big sports guy. He’s a fan of just about anybody who has ever sniffed success, making him the ultimate NBA celebrity fan. He entered his final form during the 2018 NBA playoffs . And he has never held back when it comes to stuffing sports into his lyrics. So here are the best sports references from this latest ting . Can’t be ignoring the stats / Based off of that / They gotta run me the max, they gotta run me the max / They gotta double the racks — “Talk Up” Hey, good timing for NBA free agency ! Drake implies that based on his previous credentials, he needs a max contract like a hot button NBA free agent — say, LeBron James — and that’s true. If artists were athletes, Drak...

The NFL has completed its investigation into allegations that Buccaneers quarterback Jameis Winston groped an Uber driver. Winston was issued a three-game suspension by the NFL for violating its personal conduct policy, the quarterback announced in a statement Thursday. “First and foremost, I would like to say I’m sorry to the Uber driver for the position I put you in,” Winston said, via NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport . “It is uncharacteristic of me and I genuinely apologize. In the past 2 1/2 years my life has been filled with experiences, opportunities and events that have helped me grow, mature and learn, including the fact that I have eliminated alcohol from my life. “I know I have to hold myself to a higher standard on and off the field and that I have a responsibility to my family, community, and teammates to live above the platform with which God has blessed me. I apologize to my teammates, the Buccaneers organization and fans for letting them down and for not being able to be ...

In the past two years, Kevin Durant has twice denied LeBron James ’ efforts to win a fourth NBA championship. If ESPN reporter Stephen A. Smith is correct, that may have been all James can handle. Smith reported Thursday on ESPN’s First Take that multiple sources told him James reached out to Durant via text message to gauge his interest in playing together in 2018 — and not with the Cavaliers . James wanted to know if Durant, the 2017 and 2018 NBA Finals MVP, wanted to join him as a member of the Los Angeles Lakers . LeBron James reached out to Kevin Durant via text, from what I’m told, about coming to Los Angeles. I don’t know what Kevin Durant ’s response to him was. That’s not the information I got. But I will tell you that I did hear is that behind the scenes Kevin Durant was like ‘Why would I do that? You know what, as far as I’m concerned LeBron James is a big time player but the way I look at it, I should be perceived as the best in the world. Why would I think about...

UNDERMANNED CELTICS FIGHT HARD, AGAIN, BUT CAN’T SURVIVE LEBRON INJURY In late March, the unthinkable happens: As LeBron tears down on a fast break, he’s undercut by Rajon Rondo and badly twists his left ankle. With Boston well ahead of the pack, Brad Stevens announces that LeBron will be shut down before the playoffs. Without James and Porzingis, a starting lineup of Ntilikina, Brown, Tatum, Marcus Morris, and Horford thrives. James comes back for the first two of the Eastern Conference Finals against Philadelphia, but isn’t himself and the Celtics lose both. Boston announces that LeBron will be shut down and they’ll move forward without him. The Celtics somehow force a Game 7 on their home court, despite being undermanned. Before Game 7, a local radio station host does a segment on why LeBron is “a crybaby as we always knew him to be” for not fighting through the injury. The topic dominates three straight days of “Undisputed ” as Skip Bayless declares victory . They should cal...