Page 27 - 8-14-15 Friday's Edition Updated

Sports
Timberwolves Pres. And Coach, Flip Saunders Has Cancer
Cam Newton Downplays Scuffle With Teammate
SPARTANBURG, S.C. -- Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton said his scuffle with cornerback Josh Nor- man on Monday was blown out of proportion.
"Let's not get it twisted," Newton said Tuesday, his first public statements since the incident. "I see multiple people getting involved in practicing their tail off. From the outside looking in, you see scuffles. I see guys challenging each other. I see guys getting better."
Monday's scuffle began when Norman stiff-armed Newton in the helmet on the return of an interception.
Newton didn't appreciate the stiff-arm and got in Nor- man's face. The two then got into a shoving match, which led to both being pulled to the
CAM NEWTON
ground in a pile as teammates tried to separate them.
Newton eventually was pulled from the pile shouting, "Hit me like that again and I'll show you something."
Newton said if the same situation occurred again, he would do the same thing as far as playing hard.
New York Jets coach Todd Bowles called a rushed news conference Tuesday to an- nounce that quarterback Geno Smith will be out at least 6-10 weeks after an altercation with teammate, IK Enemkpali, led to Smith's jaw being broken.
After the news broke the NFL world began wondering the cause of the fight.
Though the punch was de- scribed as a "sucker-punch," nobody knew the source, other than Smith reportedly put his finger in Enemkpali's face.
At the heart of the dispute be- tween former Jets LB IK En- emkpali and quarterback Geno Smith is $600 that En- emkpali believed Smith owed him, per league sources. Enemkpali purchased a plane ticket for Smith to attend his July 11 football camp at Pfugerville High School in Pfugerville, Texas. However, days before the camp, a person close to Smith was killed in a motorcycle accident in Miami and Smith did not attend En- emkpali’s camp, per sources.
After Smith did not attend, Enemkpali demanded that the Jets’ quarterback refund him the $600 he allegedly used to purchase a plane ticket.
Geno Smith will be out for 6-10 weeks with a broken jaw.
Smith told Enemkpali he would reimburse him the money, but he did not. Enkempali confronted Smith about the money and the confrontation ended in a punch and broken jaw.
The Jets immediately cut En- emkpali afterward, with Bowles saying, "You don't walk up to another man and punch him in the face."
Enemkpali released a state- ment apologizing to the Jets and their fans, saying, "Geno and I let our frustrations get the best of us."
FLIP SAUNDERS
Minnesota Timberwolves president and coach Flip Saunders said he’s being treated for Hodgkins lym- phoma, and his doctors con- sider it “very treatable and curable.” Saunders was diag- nosed with a cancer of the im- mune system two months ago and has been undergoing chemotherapy.
He plans to remain as the Timberwolves head coach and top executive while being treated.“I am taking it step by step and day by day to under- stand how to best manage this process,” Saunders said Tues- day in a statement.
The 60-year-old Saunders returned to the Timberwolves as team president in 2013. Last year, he replaced the retired Rick Adelman on the Wolves bench and the team finished 16- 66.
Jets QB Geno Smith Sucker Punched By Teammate
Michael Jordan In Federal Court For Trial Over Grocery Store Advertisement
CHICAGO -- Michael Jor- dan was in a federal court- room Tuesday for the start of a civil trial that will scrutinize the market value of the former basketball star's brand and look at whether a grocery- store chain diluted that value by running a steak-coupon ad- vertisement that invoked his name without permission.
The trial in the city where Jordan won six NBA champi- onships with the Bulls stems from a lawsuit he filed against the now-defunct Dominick's Finer Foods for the 2009 ad in Sports Illustrated that con- gratulated him on his induc- tion into the Basketball Hall of Fame. Text above a $2 coupon and photograph of a steak read, "Michael Jordan ... You are a cut above."
Jordan, 52, entered
MICHAEL JORDAN
through the front doors of the courthouse Tuesday after Judge John Blakey denied his request to use a security tunnel. A relaxed-looking Jordan walked through a metal detector as dozens of re- porters and passers-by looked on, pulling an ID from his wal- let and showing it to security.
Serena Stuns On Cover Of New York Mag; Talks About Racism Against Her
This has been Serena Williams’ year, and later this month, the greatest athlete of our time will attempt to cap- ture the grand slam when she competes at the U.S. Open ten- nis tournament in Queens, N.Y. Williams also stuns on the cover of the Aug. 10-23 issue of New York magazine, and inside she discusses how her father had a huge impact on her life.
Williams said that her dad, Richard, instilled in her and her sisters the motto, “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.” And as a child, she said, she was made to keep a journal that included her goals and how to accomplish them. One of her goals this year is to be- come the first player since Steffi Graf in 1988 to win all four major tennis titles in one calendar year.
Williams also spoke about
One of the greatest athletes of all times Serena Williams.
how she deals with the every- day racism she faces as a black athlete—everything from her being called a man to her and sister Venus being referred to as the “Williams brothers”— but she’s learned not to let it get to her.
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