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Sports
Nate Thurmond Dies At Age 74 After Battle With Leukemia
DJ Khaled Thanks Dwyane Wade For ‘13 Years Of Blood, Sweat And Tears’
DWYANE WADE
Dwyane Wade agreed to a deal with the Chicago Bulls last Wednesday night. Many were shocked to hear he would be leaving the Miami Heat after 13 seasons. Heat fan DJ Khaled, who has in- spired many NBA players via his Snapchat, posted a nice thank you note to Wade.
DJ
DJ Khaled also has other friends in the NBA out- side of Miami, including Chris Paul. Maybe next year he can swing by the banana boat vacation party.
Venus And Serena Williams’ Father, Richard, Had Stroke Before Wimbledon 2016 Final
Richard Williams (father of Venus and Serena Williams) and then-girlfriend Lakeisha Gra- ham in New York May 6, 2014.
Serena and Venus Williams’ 74-year-old father, Richard Williams, suffered a stroke right before the 2016 Wimbledon tournament.
According to Williams’ third wife, 37-year-old Lakeisha Williams, the pa- triarch of the Williams fam- ily is still recovering.
“His condition is fair; he’s up and walking around, but he’s not at 100 percent,” Lakeisha Williams said.
“He needs speech therapy, psychological therapy and physical therapy, but for now, he refused,” she said. “I’m try- ing to get him under control and relaxed so that when we come back from out of town we could try to get that going. But he doesn’t wish to be bothered with anybody.”
“His mind is thinking that they’re going to put him back in ‘prison’—which is what he calls the hospital,” she said. “He thinks we are just going to take him back to the hospital, but that is not correct.”
Broncos Sign Von Miller For 6 Years; Deal Worth $114.5M
Beauty Unlimited
SHANISE
This week’s Beauty Unlimited feature is the lovely Shanise, and her energy and self confidence will con- vince anyone that she is very dedicated to being suc- cessful. Shanise loves being in front of the camera, and her presence is felt as soon as she enters the room. Congratulations to Shanise as this week’s Beauty Un- limited feature.
Fortunately for Khaled, his other friend on the team, Hassan White- side, is expected to stay on the team after agreeing to a deal with the Heat last Friday.
Jets, Muhammad Wilkerson Reach 5-Year Deal Prior To Deadline
The Denver Broncos have signed outside linebacker Von Miller to a six-year deal through the 2021 season, the team announced Friday.
The deal is for $114.5 mil- lion and includes a record $70 million guaranteed. That makes Miller the highest- paid non-quarterback in NFL history based on guaranteed money, as well as the highest- paid player in Denver fran- chise history.
Miller, the reigning Super Bowl MVP, tweeted a photo of himself in a Broncos jersey Friday with the caption "FOR LIFE."
VON MILLER
The deal, which ended the sometimes testy negotiations of the past five months, got done when the Broncos sig- nificantly pumped up the guaranteed money from an offer that Miller and his rep- resentatives turned down in June.
The New York Jets signed veteran defensive lineman Muhammad Wilkerson to a new long-term contract prior to Friday's deadline, the team announced.
The five-year deal is worth $86 million, of which $36.75 million is guaranteed at sign- ing, including a $15 million signing bonus. The contract, which averages $17.2 million per season, also includes an
MUHAMMAD WILKERSON
injury guarantee of $53.5 million.
Nate Thurmond, the tena- cious defensive center who played with Wilt Chamber- lain and was an iconic figure in two cities, died Saturday after a short battle with leukemia. He was 74.
The Golden State Warriors announced the death of one of the team's most respected play- ers less than a month after they lost the NBA Finals to the Cleveland Cavaliers in seven games. Both franchises previ- ously retired Thurmond's No. 42.
Thurmond, an Akron, Ohio native, played 11 of his 14 seasons with the Warriors and retired after the 1976-77 sea- son, one year after leading the "Miracle" Cavaliers to an im- probable trip to the Eastern Conference finals.
"Without a doubt, he is one of the most beloved figures to ever wear a Warriors uniform," Golden State owner Joe Lacob said.
Current Cavalier and Akron native LeBron James posted a tribute to Thurmond on his Twitter account, as did current
Former Detroit Lions run- ning back Jahvid Best is set to become the first former NFL player to participate in the Summer Olympic Games after being approved to rep- resent St. Lucia in track and field next month in Rio.
Best will run in the 100 meters for St. Lucia, a Caribbean island with an es- timated population of just over 163,000. Best was born in Vallejo, California, but his
JAHVID BEST
father holds dual citizenship in St. Lucia and the United States.
Former Lions RB Jahvid Best First Ex-NFL Player In Summer Olympics
NATE THURMOND
Warriors star Stephen Curry. The 6-foot-11 Thurmond is considered one of the most dominant centers in NBA his- tory. He was voted one of the NBA's 50 Greatest Players in 1996 and was No. 92 on ESPN's All-Time #NBArank Top 100. He was inducted into the Bas-
ketball Hall of Fame in 1985. "Nate Thurmond was a giant of his era and one of the greatest players in the history of our game," NBA commis- sioner Adam Silver said in a
statement.
Thurmond's play and
numbers weren't flashy, but he earned the respect of his peers and knowledgeable basketball fans for his consistency, de- fense and strength.
Ray Rice Says His 'Window For Playing Is Closing'
Ray Rice still hopes to re- turn to the NFL, though he says he's running out of time.
Rice has not played in the league since being suspended at the start of the 2014 season for domestic violence. He told NJ.com on Thursday he knows he might not get an- other opportunity.
"I don't want to ever say I'm giving up, because that's never going to be me," Rice said be- fore playing in a charity soft- ball game. "I'm happy. I'm in the best shape of my life, and I know if it doesn't happen this year, it's probably something I have to deal with. But you know what? It's not the end of my life.
"I know that the window for playing is closing. But if my
RAY RICE
window closes, I'm going to make sure I open up a thou- sand more opportunities for kids, to give them an opportu- nity to pick up where I left off. That's where I'm at. I've got three Pro Bowls and a Super Bowl. There's a lot of people that can't go out there and do what I did. But I don't want it to end that way, it's safe to say."
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