Charles Barkley on Lakers: ‘They not going to win next year’

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The Los Angeles Lakers won the NBA offseason. LeBron James officially signed with the Lakers on Monday. It is a four-year deal worth $153.3 million.

Getting LeBron usually means you’re a championship contender, but the Lakers still have some work to do. Los Angeles, as it is presently constructed, is not a championship team, so says Hall of Famer Charles Barkley:

“They not gonna win next year,” Barkley told TMZ Sports about LeBron and the Lakers.  “Well, it depends who they going to bring in here. Magic has done a fantastic job, him and Rob(Pelinka). LeBron is a great player, but they need to get better.

Getting better for the Lakers means trying to pry Kawhi Leonard from the Spurs, who reportedly wants out of San Antonio. At this point, the Lakers are a playoff team with LeBron. However, if they can get Leonard, they become a championship caliber team.

Magic Johnson has done a great job, but he has a little more work to do!

Garcia: ‘I’m in the best shape physically and mentally that I’ve ever been in’

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WBC lightweight Champion Mikey Garcia worked out for the press Tuesday at Fortune Gym in Los Angeles as he prepares for his 135-pound title unification against IBF titlist Robert Easter Jr. Saturday, July 28 live on SHOWTIME from STAPLES Center in Los Angeles in an event presented by Premier Boxing Champions.

For the Oxnard, CA native, July 28 is an opportunity for him to fight in Los Angeles. Something he has not done in a long time.

“It’s been seven years since I last had the chance to fight here in LA, and that was even before I was champion,” Garcia said today at his media workout. “Now after all of my accomplishments, I get to come home and put on a unification match for my local fans.

“Every time I walk into the ring, there’s a moment where I get butterflies and feel the emotions from the fans. This time it’s with my hometown fans, and that’s really special. I’m really looking forward to it because I know the fans are going to show up and show their love and support.”

Garcia is considered by many to be one of the pound-for-pound best. At this point of his career, Garcia feels he is at his best:

“I think I’m in my prime right now. I’m in the best shape physically and mentally that I’ve ever been in,” Garcia said. “I need to take advantage of the moment right now and take on the biggest challenges. I want to give the fans fights to remember. Those are the fights that excite me the most.”

Easter’s height(5’11) could present an issue for Garcia, but the 30-year-old is confident he will be able to still have success:

“I know Easter is very tall and has a longer reach than me. In the gym, we’ve been working on sparring partners who present different challenges and made adjustments from there,” Garcia said. “I have to catch him reaching in or put pressure and work my way inside. There are different things that I’m capable of doing.”

The SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING® triple-header (10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT) will also see Cuban heavyweight slugger Luis “The Real King Kong” Ortiz returning to action to face former title challenger Razvan Cojanu in a 10-round bout and unbeaten super lightweight contender Mario “El Azteca” Barrios taking on hard-hitting Jose Roman in a 10-round showdown.

Photo: Esther Lin/SHOWTIME

Luis Ortiz: ‘I’m looking to make a statement on July 28’

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Cuban heavyweight slugger Luis “The Real King Kong” Ortiz returns to action to face former world title challenger Razvan Cojanu in a 10-round bout on Saturday, July 28 live on SHOWTIME from STAPLES Center in Los Angeles in an event presented by Premier Boxing Champions.

The three-fight SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING telecast (10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT) will open with unbeaten super lightweight contender Mario “El Azteca” Barrios taking on hard-hitting Jose Roman in a 10-round showdown. The event is headlined by lightweight world championship title unification bout between WBC Lightweight World Champion Mikey Garcia and IBF Lightweight World Champion Robert Easter Jr.

Tickets for the live event, which is promoted by Ringstar Sports and TGB Promotions, begin at $50, plus applicable fees, and are on sale now. To purchase tickets, visit AXS.com.

After having heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder nearly out on his feet in their March classic, Ortiz (28-1, 24 KOs) eventually succumbed to the power of the unbeaten champion. Now, Ortiz looks to get back to world title contention on July 28. Originally, from Camaguey, Cuba, now residing in Miami, Fla., Ortiz will fight in Los Angeles for the first time as a professional. Ortiz quickly became one of the most avoided men in boxing with victories over Bryant Jennings, Tony Thompson and Malik Scott on his way to the memorable showdown with Wilder.

“I’m looking to make a statement on July 28 and get back to challenge for the heavyweight championship of the world,” said Ortiz. “I’m excited to be back in the ring. I am thankful to have this opportunity. To all the fans in Los Angeles, don’t miss this great card at STAPLES Center. ‘The Real King Kong’ is coming to LA!”

A native of Romania and fighting out of Burbank, Calif., Cojanu (16-3, 9 KOs) challenged then WBO heavyweight world champion Joseph Parker for the title in May 2017. Cojanu took the New Zealand champion the distance but lost via unanimous decision in the champion’s home country. Standing over six-foot-seven, Cojanu scored three straight knockout victories in 2016 to earn the title shot and will return to the ring for his first fight in the U.S. since January 2016.”I’m proud and confident to know that I will be stepping into the ring against a worthy opponent on July 28,” said Cojanu. “Luis Ortiz is a world-class fighter with a lot of experience, which will give me the opportunity to show my skills to all the fans at STAPLES Center in Los Angeles and watching on SHOWTIME.”

 

LeSean McCoy denies domestic abuse allegations

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Buffalo Bills RB LeSean McCoy was accused of domestic violence on Tuesday. According to an Instagram post from a woman who claims to be a friend of McCoy’s girlfriend, the six-time Pro-Bowler allegedly beat his girlfriend.

Here is a picture below:

https://twitter.com/balleralert/status/1016699362720862210

Also, in the Instagram post, McCoy was accused of abusing his son, his dog, and taking steroids.

McCoy denies these allegations. Here is his response below via Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/p/BlDrodGBN6v/?taken-by=shadymccoy

 

The Bills have released a statement about the allegations against McCoy:

Let’s hope none of this is true.

Mitrione-Bader set for October 12 in Connecticut

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The semifinals of the 2018 Bellator Heavyweight World Grand Prix begin Friday, Oct.12 at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. and will feature the return of exciting knockout artist Matt Mitrione (13-5) as he steps inside the Bellator cage against light heavyweight champion Ryan Bader (25-5), who continues his quest to become a two-division world champion.

The event will be broadcast on Paramount Network at 9 p.m. ET/8 p.m. CT and will stream LIVE on DAZN, while preliminary action will stream on Bellator.com and globally on the Bellator Mobile App. Additional bouts will be announced in coming weeks.

 Bellator: Mitrione vs. Bader kicks off the semifinals of Bellator’s 2018 Heavyweight World Grand Prix, which will crown a new Bellator World Heavyweight Champion. On the opposite side of the bracket, Fedor Emelianenko (37-5, 1 NC) is set to square off with Chael Sonnen (31-15-1) at a later date.

 Matt Mitrione entered Bellator’s Heavyweight World Grand Prix fresh off a first-round KO of Fedor Emelianenko at Bellator NYC this past June. Now, following a victory in his first-round matchup with Roy Nelson at Bellator 194, Mitrione advances to meet the always-dangerous Bader. Splitting his training between Indianapolis and Combat Club in South Florida, the Illinois native looks to be in the best shape of his career. Prior to his MMA career, Mitrione was a standout defensive end at Purdue University who subsequently earned his way into the NFL, playing six seasons as a member of the New York Giants and Minnesota Vikings. He ultimately found his way into MMA where he became a high-level competitor, defeating the likes of the late Kimbo Slice, Derrick Lewis and Gabriel Gonzaga.

 Ryan Bader will make his fourth appearance for Bellator and the first since his 15-second TKO finish of “King Mo” Lawal at Bellator 199, which served as Bader’s first round pairing in the grand prix. Fighting out of Tempe, Ariz., Bader began his professional career by steamrolling the competition en route to a 12-fight unbeaten streak and winning one of the most competitive seasons of The Ultimate Fighter in 2008. “Darth” continued his path of dominance by collecting 15 victories over some of the 205-pound division’s top talent, including wins over former world champions “Rampage” Jackson, Rashad Evans and Phil Davis twice. The former two-time NCAA Division I All-American wrestler from Arizona State University will look to become one step closer to being a current two-division Bellator champion on Oct. 12.

Stephen A. Smith: ‘All Kawhi wants to do is get the hell out of San Antonio and end up in L.A.’

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At this point, we can only assume where Kawhi Leonard wants to play next season. He reportedly wants out of San Antonio and wants to be in Los Angeles. In terms of whether that is with the Clippers or Lakers, no one truly knows.

Leonard, 27, has put the Spurs in a tight spot because of his reported desire to be in Los Angeles.

“All Kawhi wants to do is get the hell out of San Antonio and end up in L.A,” ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith today on First Take.

Listen below:

The Spurs still have to do what is best for their organization. If I’m the Spurs, and I’m trading Leonard to a Western Conference team, I would rather deal him to the Clippers.

There is no way I would want LeBron James and Kawhi Leonard on the same team. That combination would be tough to beat for years to come!

The ideal situation is to trade Leonard to the Eastern Conference, but you may not get enough back in return because those teams are not sure they can re-sign the two-time All-Star.

Leonard can opt out of his contract after next season.

Larry Holmes believes Wilder beats Joshua(VIDEO)

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One of the biggest fights that can be made in boxing is WBA/IBF/WBO/IBO heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua(21-0, 20 KOs) versus WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder(40-0, 39 KOs) in a heavyweight unification bout. The two sides have been going back and forth but were unable to come to an agreement.

Now, Joshua is expected to battle Alexander Povetkin in September.

If and when Joshua fights Wilder, former heavyweight champion Larry Holmes believes Wilder would get the victory.

We caught up with the “Easton Assassin” at the 4th annual Heart of a Legend Celebrity Golf weekend in Easton, PA. Holmes discussed his Heart of Legend Celebrity Golf weekend, the state of boxing, his golf game, and Joshua-Wilder.

Listen below:

For more information about the Heart of a Legend foundation, go to the website www.heartofalegend.org.  

Photo:  Ed Diller/DiBella Entertainment

Holmes on Big Ben: ‘As long as he stays healthy, he’s going to produce'(VIDEO)

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Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger had another tremendous season in 2017. At the age of 35(turned 36 in March), Roethlisberger has proven that he has a lot left in the tank after throwing for 4251 yards and 28 touchdowns.

Even in a playoff loss to the Jaguars last season, “Big Ben” was impressive as he threw for 469 yards and five touchdowns.

There has been a lot of speculation about how much longer Roethlisberger will play. The Steelers did select QB Mason Rudolph in the third round of this year’s draft. However, Roethlisberger says he will take it year by year.

“I’m healthy, and just lots of prayers and spending time with family. I’m still going to take it one year at a time but just feeling like what you have left in the tank,” Roethlisberger told ESPN in May.

With all that the Steelers have on offense, expect Roethlisberger to have another big-time season, and according to his former teammate Santonio Holmes, if Roethlisberger can stay injury free, he will continue to put up great numbers.

“As long as he stays healthy, he’s going to produce,” Holmes recently told goforitradio.com.

We recently caught up Holmes in Pittsburgh, and he discussed his catch in Super Bowl 43, Steelers prospects for 2018, and how many more years Roethlisberger could play in the NFL.

Take a listen:

Ex-Eagle Avant questions whether fans, players will be okay with Foles going back to the bench(Video)

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When Eagles QB Carson Wentz went down in Week 14 with a torn ACL against the Rams, the thought was when Wentz is healthy he is the starter in Philadelphia. Then, the impossible happened. Nick Foles stepped in and would eventually help the Eagles win Super Bowl 52 and become Super Bowl MVP.

With all that Foles accomplished last season, if Wentz is healthy Week 1,  Foles goes back to the bench.

Former Eagles wide receiver Jason Avant believes that won’t be a problem for Wentz and Foles; however, Avant thinks others may have an issue with the situation:

“The only thing I think everybody is naive of is that the city won’t be able to handle it great,” Avant recently told goforitradio.com. “The media won’t be able to handle it, and sometimes, people in the locker room may not be able to handle certain things, so I think it’s the people around them that’s going to struggle with it.”

It should be interesting to see what would happen if Wentz has some struggles early in the season. Would the fans turn on him? Would be very interesting to see.

Listen below as Avant talks Foles and Wentz, the Eagles chances of repeating, and his upcoming appearance in the American Flag Football League:

 

 

 

Pacquiao-Matthysse to air on ESPN+

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The next chapter in the storied career of former eight-division world champion and future first-ballot Hall of Famer, Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao, will stream live and exclusively in the United States on Saturday, July 14 at 9 p.m. ET on ESPN+ — the recently-launched multi-sport, direct-to-consumer subscription streaming service from The Walt Disney Company’s Direct-to-Consumer & International segment in conjunction with ESPN. This will be Pacquiao’s first fight since headlining cable television’s highest-rated and most-watched boxing telecast since 2006, when he fought Jeff Horn in July of 2017 on ESPN.

Pacquiao will challenge Lucas “La Maquina” Matthysse for the WBA welterweight title at the Axiata Arena in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. In addition, in the world championship co-feature, Filipino power puncher Jhack Tepora (21-0, 16 KOs) will face Edivaldo “Indio” Ortega (26-1-1, 12 KOs) for the vacant WBA featherweight title. Pacquiao and Matthysse are expected to enter the ring at roughly 11:30 p.m. ET. ESPN+ is available to all fans on the ESPN App and ESPN.com.

Pacquiao-Matthysse will cap a full day of boxing on the ESPN family of networks, as Regis “Rougarou” Prograis will defend the WBC Diamond super lightweight title against Juan Jose Velasco, and lightweight sensation Teofimo Lopez will face William Silva, live on ESPN and ESPN Deportes at 7 p.m. ET and via streaming on the ESPN App from the Lakefront Arena in New Orleans. Undercard action from New Orleans will stream live on ESPN+ starting at 4:30 p.m. ET.

“I am very happy that all of my fans in America will have a chance to watch my next fight on ESPN+, and I am looking forward to putting on a show,” Pacquiao said. “Matthysse is a great opponent. I am training with all of my heart because I want to be champion again.”

“This extraordinary event only affirms ESPN’s commitment to providing boxing fans with the biggest and best fights in the sport,” said Bob Arum, Top Rank’s founder and CEO. “Manny Pacquiao is one of the greatest champions in boxing history, and his fight against Matthysse promises to be a sensational one.”

“This matchup is a perfect example of the world-class caliber of events we envisioned for ESPN+ when we announced our agreement with Top Rank,” said Burke Magnus, ESPN Executive Vice President of Programming and Scheduling. “Pacquiao vs. Matthysse, which will stream live and exclusively on ESPN+, shows the commitment we have to delivering fans the best of boxing year-round on our direct-to-consumer platform.”

Pacquiao (59-7-2, 38 KOs), the living legend from General Santos City, Philippines, will look to score his first knockout victory since 2009. Before losing the WBO welterweight world championship to Jeff Horn via controversial unanimous decision last July, Pacquiao recaptured the title on November 5, 2016 by defeating then-champion Jessie Vargas at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas. In a career that has spanned more than two decades, Pacquiao has victories against legendary fighters like Oscar De La Hoya, Miguel Cotto, Juan Manuel Marquez, Shane Mosley, Erik Morales, Marco Antonio Barrera, and Ricky Hatton.

Matthysse (39-4, 36 KOs) won the vacant WBA welterweight title Jan. 27 in Los Angeles with an eighth-round knockout over Thailand’s Tewa Kiram. One of boxing’s best punchers, pound-for-pound, he is an all-action brawler who has participated in multiple Fight of the Year contenders, including an 11th-round knockout win over John Molina in 2014 and a 12-round majority decision victory over Ruslan Provodnikov in 2015. Matthysse has won two straight since a 10th-round knockout loss to then-undefeated Viktor Postol on Oct. 3, 2015.

Upcoming exclusive boxing on ESPN+ includes the July 28 battle for the vacant World Boxing Organization 130-pound title as Puerto Rican star Christopher Diaz faces Masayuki Ito at the Kissimmee Civic Center.  Diaz-Ito will stream live and exclusively in the United States at 9:30 p.m. ET with undercard action starting at 6:30 p.m. ET