Page 25 - Florida Sentinel 6-23-17

Sports
Dwyane Wade Tells Bulls He's Picking Up $24M Option For 2017-18
Kevin Durant To Decline Option, Re-Sign With Warriors
KEVIN DURANT
Golden State Warriors su- perstar Kevin Durant will de- cline his player option for the 2017-18 season and technically become an unrestricted free agent on July 1, but he will re- sign with the team, league sources tell ESPN.
The 2017 NBA Finals MVP will turn down a player-option salary of approximately $28 million to momentarily hit free agency with the intentions of taking less than the max he's el- igible for as a 10-year veteran. This is in order to improve the Warriors' chances of re-signing Andre Iguodala.
Kyrie Irving Could Push For Trade
If LeBron James Plans To Leave Cavs
KYRIE IRVING
Kyrie Irving and LeBron James have developed a great relationship both on and off the court since James re- turned to Cleveland, and Irv- ing may have no interest in playing for the Cavaliers if Le- Bron leaves again.
LeBron can opt out of his contract next summer, and he is expected to do just that. Whether or not he re-signs with the Cavs depends upon what happens between now and then, but suddenly it does not seem like a sure thing. Ac- cording to Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times, Irving has already been thinking about potential trade destina- tions if LeBron ends up leav- ing Cleveland.
Sources told Cowley that Irving has been in contact with some of his Team USA teammates about potentially joining forces. Chicago could be an option.
Lakers Trading D’Angelo Russell, Timofey Mozgov To Nets For Brook Lopez, Pick
D’ANGELO RUSSELL
Future Hall of Famer Dwyane Wade has informed the Chicago Bulls that he will pick up his $23.8 million player option for next season, a league source said.
Team personnel have be- lieved for several months that the 35-year-old would pick up the option because it was highly unlikely he would be of- fered that much money on the open market.
Now that Wade has made his decision, the Bulls must focus on whether they will trade Jimmy Butler at some point before Thursday night's NBA draft. League sources say
DWYANE WADE
the Bulls' front office contin- ues to listen to potential offers for the All-Star swingman, and there is more momentum for a full-scale rebuild within the or- ganization than there has been in years past.
The Los Angeles Lakers are making some moves ahead of Thursday’s NBA Draft.
According to The Vertical’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the Lakers are trading D’Angelo Russell and Timofey Moz- gov to the Brooklyn Nets for Brook Lopez and the 27th pick in Thursday’s draft.
Russell was the No. 2 overall pick by the Lakers in 2015, but he could become expendable if the team is planning on selecting Lonzo Ball No. 2 overall on Thurs- day.
Mozgov has three years and $48 million remaining
on his contract, so he is a salary dump. Lopez mean- while is under contract for just over $22 million next season and then is set to be- come a free agent.
If the Lakers are planning on taking Ball, then trading away Russell allowed them to get Mozgov’s contract off the books — no small feat. They also will have Lopez’s expiring contract, which will give them lots of salary cap flexibility next offseason, when they will likely try to sign Paul George to a big deal. And in the meantime, Lopez is still an effective big man.
Conor McGregor Sparring Partner: UFC Star Has No Shot Against Mayweather
Conor McGregor is being backed by a lot of the early Las Vegas action for his bout against Floyd May- weather, Jr., but one of the UFC star’s former sparring partners says he has no shot at winning the fight.
Former IBO welterweight champion Chris van Heer- den, who sparred with Mc- Gregor in May 2016, told TMZ he was out of shape when he worked out with McGregor and was still able to dominate the Irishman.
“It’s crazy, I read all these posts where people say May- weather’s gonna have his hands full landing on Conor because of Conor’s skill and footwork and movement,” van Heerden said. “I’m no
CONOR MCGREGOR AND FLOYD MAYWEATHER
Mayweather and — out of camp, out of shape — I landed (punches) on Conor McGregor at will.
“It’s crazy to think people can actually compare a fighter that’s 0-0 in a boxing ring compared to a legend that’s 49-0 and has beaten the best and best in the world.”
Petition Calls For Dennis Rodman To Be Removed From Hall Of Fame
The Victims of Commu- nism Memorial Foundation has started a petition on change.org calling for the NBA to remove Dennis Rodman from the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame following his praise and defense of North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un.
In the petition, the founda- tion said that Rodman has consistently defended Jong- un, who Rodman calls his "friend for life”.
Rodman has traveled to North Korea on five different occasions. His latest trip was last week, just hours after the release of Otto Warmbier, an American college student who had been imprisoned with hard labor for trying to steal a propaganda banner.
Dennis Rodman calls the dictator of N. Korea Kim Jong-un, a friend, and visits the country.
Warmbier,
been confined for 17 months, died Monday afternoon after reportedly being in a coma for a year. Not much was known about what happened, but brain scans since his re- turn showed severe damage.
who had
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