WSD Sports Page: Tim Hudson cruises as Giants blank Cubs

Tim Hudson is better than ever with the Giants, Stanley Cup Playoffs >>> NBA Playoffs again, and 50 Cent throws a horrible first pitch in today's sports page.

The Lede: Can Oklahoma City Thunder sustain momentum against San Antonio Spurs in WCF?

MLB: Giants 4, Cubs 0

Tim Hudson returned to dominant form after pitching seven scoreless innings and giving up just six hits. San Francisco has been used to that dominance and haven't seen it since beating the Dodgers back on May 11th with his hip injury and Colorado's crazy weather.

On offense, the Giants got on the board early with two quick runs. Angel Pagan was able to get to third on Hunter Pence's single, and the teams' first out also came with a run as Buster Posey hit far enough to record a sacrifice fly to reel in Pagan. Pablo Sandoval grounded out, but Michael Morse brought in another 2-out RBI.

Two more runs were tagged on in the bottom of the fifth with another sac fly by Posey and Sandoval was able to reel in Pagan. The top five batters in the lineup combined for seven hits, all four RBIs, and just one strikeout.

NL West Rundown: The Giants were unable to improve their 1st place status as both the Dodgers and Rockies collected wins against the Reds and Phillies, respectively. They remain 4.5 games ahead of LA and 5 over Colorado.

Zack Greinke had 11 strikeouts, tying a career-best, for the Dodgers while Wilin Rosario drove in three runs (all with two outs) to aid in the Rockies' win.

• NHL: Canadiens fend off Rangers in wild 11-goal game -- Montreal went up 4-1 in the second period before New York tied it up in less than five minutes. Then the Habs responded quickly with a 5-4 lead and cruised to a 7-4 Game 5 victory to stave off elimination.
• MLB: 50 Cent pitches a disaster -- Sure, everyone laughs this off including Curtis Jackson himself, but that's a little embarrassing to go through life and never, ever throw anything. Ever.
• MiLB: Manny Ramirez tries to stay relevant with the Iowa Cubs -- He's some sort of player-coach dude that will coach players while taking at-bats when nothing is really happening on the team. Okie dokie.
• MLB: Andrew McCutchen, Juan Lagares rob each other in Pirates-Mets game -- Both players had incredible catches in the outfield to remove extra-base hits, and ironically, they were against each other.
• NBA: Sterlings not on same page with potential Clippers' sale -- Donald wants to fight to keep the team, but Shelly is on the move to sell it. She knows what ultimately will happen. The team will be sold, and she'd rather do it now than later.

Today's Slate
(Central times listed)

TENNIS
French Open - Currently playing on ESPN2/Tennis Channel and online on ESPN3

STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS - ROUND 3
-Kings at Blackhawks (LA 3-1) - 7:00 NBCS

NBA PLAYOFFS - CONF FINALS
Heat at Pacers (MIA 3-1) - 7:30 ESPN

MLB
-Cubs at Giants - 2:45 CSCH/CSBA
Rockies at Phillies - 6:05 RSRM/CSPH
Padres at D'backs - 8:40 FSSD/FSAZ
Reds at Dodgers  - 9:10 FSOH/SNLA

WSD Sports Page: Can Thunder defeat the Spurs without Ibaka?

Without the contributions of Serge Ibaka, the Oklahoma City Thunder's defense gave up 122 points against the San Antonio Spurs in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals. The final presents one major question to us -- can the Thunder compete without the aid of Ibaka?

Since the Spurs are so well-coached under Gregg Popovich, who's been a complete master at running his old crew by playing a lot of younger guys throughout the course of the season and exposing matchups, did just that by ramming the offense in the paint.

The Spurs outscored the Thunder 66-32 inside the paint. Tim Duncan and Kawhi Leonard had a combined 43 points and the three main guards -- Tony Parker, Danny Green, and Manu Ginobli -- had incredibly efficient nights combining for 20-of-31 from the field. Parker dished out 12 of the team's 28 assists.

Without Ibaka, the Thunder's reliance on Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook running the show alone won't be enough. Derek Fisher went 4-of-6 from downtown to keep the Thunder within striking distance, and OKC even took the lead after Westbrook went off at the start of the second half.

But that was the problem. That burst of energy wasn't sustained, and the only two points that weren't scored by Durant or Westbrook in that whole quarter were two Fisher free throws with 53 seconds left in the period.

Without Ibaka's beastly presence inside, and the Spurs nearly coasting with their starters for an entire NBA season, it's going to be impossible for the Thunder to win the series unless they can find a third starter that can actually produce at least half of what Durant and Westbrook do. Basically, You can't have box scores with the dynamic duo taking 40 shots and scoring 53 points while the other three starters shoot the ball 10 times and score five points (and two of them having goose eggs in the points column).

And one of their bigs needs to somehow slow down the Spurs' offensive train. They have the offense, but we've seen how bad this defense is without Ibaka this season. OKC did go 4-0 against SA this season, but that doesn't matter with the current matchups and the Spurs not playing in regular season mode. Now the Thunder are left with having to figure out this puzzle.

Other Headlines

NBA: League charges Sterling with damaging the product

The NBA even pointed to the CNN interview almost two weeks ago as more evidence on why LA Clippers owner Donald Sterling needs to be ousted. His whole tangent on Magic Johnson clearly showed that he's got a real beef with him, and there's angst between both of them. Personally, I believe Sterling more just has a vendetta on Johnson than black people, but he stupidly called out a race because he didn't want to just omit Johnson from coming to games. Hindsight is 20/20.

NBA: Draft Lottery tonight before Game 2 of ECF

The Milwaukee Bucks are the favorite to hoist the number one pick in the draft, but everyone will be keeping their eye on the lottery to see if NBA franchise favorites, the Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers, will end up sneaking up there. The Bucks have a 25 percent chance while the Celtics and Lakers have a 10.3 percent chance and 6.3 percent chance, respectively. Depending on who picks it up and what their needs are, the popular trio of Andrew Wiggins, Joel Embiid, and Jabari Parker are expected to come off the board very quickly.

NFL: Discussing playoff expansion to 14 teams

It's going to happen, the question is how and when? ESPN put up 10 questions surrounding the topic, and it's a very good read. There's enough positives here that the NFL would be dumb not to extend the postseason. You're still holding less than 50 percent of the teams that will be eligible for the postseason so it doesn't water down the regular season, there's a ton if income of hosting more games for players, teams, and the NFL itself, and they would be removing one of the four weeks of the preseason. Sure, there will be more teams at .500 or even lower that will make the playoffs under this new format. But we all survived when the Seattle Seahawks marched in winning the NFC West at 7-9, right? Right.

Today's Slate
(Central times listed)

NBA PLAYOFFS - CONF FINALS
Draft Lottery - 7:00 ESPN
Heat at Pacers (IND 1-0) - 7:30 ESPN

MLB
Dodgers at Mets - 6:10 MLBTV
D'backs at Cardinals - 7:15 FSMW
-Giants at Rockies - 7:40 MLBTV
Twins at Padres - 9:10 FSNO

WSD Sports Page (5-3-14): Damian Lillard leads Portland Trail Blazers to the Western Conference Semifinals

Damian Lillard and LaMarcus Aldridge are men amongst boys in Portland, the San Francisco 49ers pick up the option for Aldon Smith, and college lacrosse continues to dazzle. All in today's sports page.

The Lede

It took 24 Western Conference first round games, but a team finally advances to the next round. Damian Lillard makes a shot with 0.9 seconds on the clock, giving the Portland Trail Blazers a ticket to the next round over the Houston Rockets.

How much of a badass was Lillard? Against Houston, the man can do everything. In this playoff series, Lillard averaged 25.6 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 7.4 assists in 45 minutes of action. All of that is above his normal season averages.

Also tack on an incredible 45.9 percent shooting from downtown and constant drilling from the free throw line. The man had it all, and he was one of the two big reasons why the Blazers are headed to the next round.

Another one is LaMarcus Aldridge, who rebounded from his off night in Game 5 and put down 30 in the series clincher. His efficiency died when compared to his first two games in the series, but it knocked his percentage down to 50 percent, which just explains how freaking nuts he was in the first two games at Houston -- which was about a 59 percent average for those scoring at home.

These last two games in the series weren't like the insane, zero-defense affairs. But at some point you just gotta be a little tired from scoring all the time, right?

Poor Dwight Howard. He was non-existent in his first and only playoff series with the Los Angeles Lakers. He was certainly the man for the Rockets averaging 26 points and 14.2 rebounds per game, but the Laker fans already having fun slapping him on the ass as he exits the door.

Can't blame them for how he left, but he was certainly not the reason why Houston isn't moving on.

Their defense is.


Other Headlines

1. NBA: The latest on Donald Sterling and V. Stiviano -- Sterling admits that he should have "just paid her off" while the woman spoke to Barbara Walters on 20/20 and insists that Sterling should publicly apologize. Considering Sterling's history, he is a racist, and any sort of apology would be fabricated garbage that would just be wasting everybody's time.
2. NBA: Dallas, Brooklyn force even more Game 7s. That brings us to a total of five Game 7s in the NBA this weekend. Most of the time you'd be lucky to have a single game on Saturday night, and the second round usually began the next day. Enjoy it!
3. NHL: Chicago lays the wood down with 5-2 shellacking. Patrick Kane closes it out with two goals in the third period.
4. NFL: 49ers pick up the option for Aldon Smith. I'm still firmly against it, but ultimately it was the right move in a business sense and it's not a surprise after hearing all signs pointing to go in the past couple days. It's only guaranteed until next March, and again, I've got the under on that bet he'll stay clean until then.
5. NFL: Colin Kaepernick comes out and says the Miami "incident" has changed him. Unless you're an idiot like Aldon and haven't grown up after screwing up royally over three times in your life, you quickly learn that a target is on your back when you're a big figure. But, perhaps Joshua David should just tell him to shut the f*ck up.
6. LAX: Ivy League semifinals both ended in one-goal games. The only time Ivy League sports is exciting is when the Harvard men's basketball team has their moments and when their teams meet on the field for men's lacrosse.

Yesterday's Favorites

• Giants 2, Braves 1 - Tim Lincecum picks up his second win of the season thanks to Angel Pagan's leadoff home run and Michael Morse's solo shot in the sixth inning to break a 1-run tie. Sergio Romo's eighth save was like watching the end of an NBA game. Long and brutal.
• NCAA Baseball: West Virginia 5, Texas 3 - It's the Longhorn's third straight Big 12 loss despite Brooks Marlow going 4-for-5 and the team getting the same amount of hits as the Mountaineers (11). Texas was down 4-0 until the seventh inning when they put up three straight runs. And that was it.

Today's Slate

Central times listed.

ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE

-Tottenham at West Ham - 6:45a NBCS

Sunderland at Man United - 9:00a NBCS

Man City at Everton - 11:30a CNBC

STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS - ROUND 2

Canadiens at Bruins (MON 1-0) - 11:30 NBC

-Kings at Ducks (Game 1) - 7:00 NBCS

NBA PLAYOFFS - ROUND 1

Hawks at Pacers (Game 7) - 4:30 TNT

Grizzlies at Thunder (Game 7) - 7:00 TNT

Warriors at Clippers (Game 7) - 9:30 TNT

MLB

Dodgers at Marlins - 6:10 SNLA/FSFL

-Giants at Braves - 6:10 CBA/FSS

Mets at Rockies - 7:10 SNY/RSRM

D'backs at Padres - 7:40 FSAZ/FSSD

LAX

AE: UMBC vs Albany (Final) - 9:00a ESPNU

-Johns Hopkins at Loyola - 11:00a CBSS

Army at Notre Dame - 11:00a ESPNU

Colgate at Syracuse - 3:00 ESPN3 (ONL)

BE: Denver at Villanova (Final) - 3:30 FS1

ECAC: Fairfield vs Air Force (Final) - 4:00 FS2

Lizards at Bayhawks - 6:00 PT

Hounds at Launch - 6:00 TLN (ONL)

CBB

Baylor at Oklahoma - 2:00 FSOK

Texas Tech at Kansas - 2:00 ESPN3 (ONL)

-Texas at West Virginia - 3:00

Kansas St at TCU - 4:00 FSSW

WSD Sports Page (5-2-14): Los Angeles Clippers give 'thoughts and prayers' for Donald Sterling's cancer

Why the Los Angeles Clippers should be honest on their thoughts on Donald Sterling, Roy Hibbert doesn't show up again, and getting to know the Kansas City Royals' awesome starter Jeremy Guthrie all in today's sports page.

The Lede

#56284343 / gettyimages.com

Later last night during the NBA playoffs, reports came out that embattled Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling has been dealing with prostate cancer for an extended period of time. And now some of those on the team are giving their "thoughts and prayers" to him.

Um, what?

We all deserve to say what we feel. However, some things shouldn't be said -- case and point, everything Donald Sterling said -- but those awful, disastrous feelings he has was made in his own home. That was in a private home where we all have said things that aren't fit for the public to hear.

I'm not saying we say crap to that level, or at least in a serious matter that he was. But now that it's public knowledge, that's just the way it goes. Smarter people wouldn't have put themselves in that position or even have those thoughts of being an owner is equivalent to the days when white men owned black slaves -- like Sterling believed.

But having to sugarcoat a statement to wish Sterling the best? I'm sorry, but Blake Griffin isn't giving his "thoughts and prayers" to Sterling. Prostate cancer is a terrible thing and everyone should hope that he gets better from it. Leave it at that.

Acknowledge Sterling's cancer, hope that he fights it, and move on. Don't give him well wishes, because we know damn well you don't mean that. After the comments were released on Saturday, you turned your shirts inside-out and looked away from the franchise's name. Players were thinking about boycotting the game.

Say what you want, but just be smart about it. Because most people can sense what BS is, and that's anyone one this Clippers that's giving well wishes to their racist owner that's on the clock.


Other Headlines

1. NBA: Playoff recap. All three games ended with the road team forcing Game 7 on Saturday night. The marathon begins at 4:30 PM Central time and all games are on TNT. That's a bummer, ESPN.
2. NBA: Roy Hibbert's non-existent again, but it doesn't burn the Pacers. He had zero points and four fouls last night. So when is this guy finally going to get right?
3. NHL: Canadiens win in double-OT against the Bruins. The first game of the Stanley Cup Playoffs' second round went into multiple overtimes, because hockey.
4. NFL: Mike Holmgren believes Johnny Manziel's a long shot to be a starting quarterback. Ditto.
5. MLB: Royals starter Jeremy Guthrie launches a ball in the upper deck. He felt some fans deserved it. Asked if he's worried about repercussions? He's more worried about the home runs he's given up. Players like this would make it easy to have a beer with.
6. MLB: Bar owner wins $1.5 million after New Jersey didn't let him open up "Buck Foston" bar. He won because the city's defense wasn't at all the real reason why they wouldn't let Lawrence Blatterfein open the bar.
7. NFL: 49ers mull over picking up the option on Aldon Smith, decision must come today. Reports say they are going to do it. Regardless of whether or not he does get picked up, he needs to prove he can make it through a season without getting in trouble. I'll take the under.

Today's Slate

(A.K.A. Games that I'm keeping track of) - Central times listed.

STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS - ROUND 2

Rangers at Penguins (Game 1) - 6:00 NBCS

Wild at Blackhawks (Game 1) - 8:30 NBCS

NBA PLAYOFFS - ROUND 1

Raptors at Nets (TOR 3-2) - 6:00 ESPN2

Spurs at Mavericks (SA 3-2) - 7:00 ESPN

Rockets at Blazers (POR 3-2) - 9:30 ESPN

MLB

Dodgers at Marlins - 6:10 SNLA/FSFL

-Giants at Braves - 6:35 CBA/FSS

Mets at Rockies - 7:40 SNY/RSRM

D'backs at Padres - 9:10 FSAZ/FSSD

LAX

IVY: Penn vs Cornell (Semi 1) - 4:00 ESPN3

MLL: Cannons at Rattlers - 6:30 ESPN3

IVY: Yale vs Harvard (Semi 2) - 7:00 ESPN3

CBB

-Texas at W Virginia - 6:00

Texas Tech at Kansas - 6:00 ESPN3

Kansas St at TCU - 6:30 FSSW

WSD Sports Page: Adam Silver saves the NBA playoffs with Donald Sterling beatdown

Why Adam Silver saved the NBA playoffs, why Joey Crawford could have cost the Oklahoma City Thunder their playoff series, and a conspiracy theory involving Matt Cain and the San Diego Padres all today on the sports page.


The Lede

In a matter of days, NBA commissioner Adam Silver saved the league from a dark, ugly cloud hovering over the 2014 playoffs. The ugly, racist tape that involved Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling took away from a weekend of fantastic playoff action. It was only going to continue siphoning the atmosphere until Silver took swift action, and he certainly did that.

Banned for life and a $2.5 million fine, the most he was able to allow under the NBA constitution. All of that going to charity. You can bet that Silver would have fined him more if possible. And he will move as fast as possible to get a majority vote from the owners to kick Sterling out of power.

Silver quickly sided with the overwhelming majority of dismissing Sterling for everything he said. Some have chimed in with trying to defend the first amendment, that how we obtained Sterling's comments were unjust and wrong because he didn't know that he was recorded. But despite all that, it's out there in the open. America will forgive a lot of mistakes, but condemning people of color and talking about how you're owning them is something that doesn't get a second chance.

Sterling may not go to jail for what he said, but he might as well change his name and move to a different country. He won't be respected by anybody.

Mark Cuban, who even talked about how it was slippery slope if the NBA throws the book at him, quickly tweeted in support of the decision. Silver demanded that owners will not sit in the gray area. They're uniting together to kick the racist out of power.

To Silver: You backed down anybody that wanted to sit in the gray area of what the right decision was for Sterling's punishment. You wouldn't let this ugly crap hang around through the rest of the season, only suspending him until the summer. You threw the gauntlet and in the first days of being the NBA commissioner, you set a no-BS atmosphere for the owners that will trickle down to the players. You're in power of this league, and no one will want to face punishment from you.


Other Headlines

1. NBA: The Washington Wizards move on to the next round. Apparently they only played three quarters in the 75-69 victory. Better yet, they'll probably face the Atlanta Hawks.
2. NBA: Joey Crawford stops Kevin Durant's free throw shooting to make scoreboard operator light up "Bonus," leads to Durant missing 2nd free throw. The Thunder lost 100-99 in their fourth overtime game.
3. NBA: Clippers rebound with 113-103 victory. Now that the Sterling dark cloud is gone, perhaps they can get back to being a favorite to win it all this postseason.
4. NHL: Three Game 7s tonight. Forget the NBA, it's puck night tonight. Will the Los Angeles Kings be the next team to complete a four-game comeback?
5. NBA: Boxers interested in owning the Los Angeles Clippers. I'm much more into the conspiracy theorgy of Magic Johnson being in the Instagram photo on purpose so he can try and buy the franchise.

Yesterday's Favorites

• Giants 6, Padres 0 - Matt Cain's start was scratched after cutting his hand in a kitchen accident, leading to a start by Yusmeiro Petit and a shutout outing. Considering Cain's poor history against San Diego, conspiracy theorists unite!
• Texas 6, Prairie View A&M 3 - Longhorns scored five runs in the first three innings and starting pitcher Lukas Schiraldi had a career-high eight strikeouts in six innings of work.

Today's Slate

(A.K.A. Games that matter to me) - All times Central.

UEFA CHAMPIONS - SEMIFINALS

Atletico Madrid at Chelsea - 1:45 FS1

STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS - ROUND 1

Rangers at Flyers (Game 7) - 6:00 NBCS

Wild at Avalanche (Game 7) - 8:30 CNBC

-Kings at Sharks (Game 7) - 9:00 NBCS

NBA PLAYOFFS - ROUND 1

Mavericks at Spurs (Tied 2-2) - 6:00 TNT

Nets at Raptors (Tied 2-2) - 6:30 NBATV

Blazers at Rockets (POR 3-1) - 8:30 TNT

MLB

Dodgers at Twins - 7:10 SNLA/FSNO

Rockies at D'backs - 8:40 RSRM/FSAZ

-Padres at Giants - 9:15 FSSD/CSBA

WSD Sports Page: Los Angeles Clippers' playoff run likely over

More on the Donald Sterling mess, a San Francisco 49ers fan sues the NFL for not being able to buy a tickeet to the NFC Championship, and recapping all the sports in today's sports page.

The Lede

The Los Angeles Clippers are probably done and it's a damn shame

On Sunday, the Clippers played a lifeless game against Golden State, losing 118-97 in a game that was essentially over after Stephen Curry made all the baskets in the first quarter. Despite deciding to play the game after a team meeting on Saturday, they certainly didn't show up mentally. And they shouldn't have played the game.

What does it take to supplant Donald Sterling, an NBA owner that's incredibly racist, believing that he still owns black people by clothing them and feeding them on his team? What does it take to cancel an NBA game? Apparently more than this.

Before disaster hit, the Clippers were looking like the best team in the West heading into the weekend. They held on to a victory on the road against an exciting Warriors team on Thursday. San Antonio now is down 2-1 against Dallas. Oklahoma City is barely getting past a tenacious defense in Memphis. Portland and Houston don't have the defense to continue on in the postseason. The East's biggest threat is Miami, and the Clippers obviously wouldn't have to worry about that until the final series of the postseason.

Now? It's probably over. The NBA is too late on its swift action to mentally repair the team. Doc Rivers is mulling over working for Sterling right now. Some players should feel the same way. In fact, this whole team might implode because why would anyone want to play under Sterling? Say what you will about sticking together and playing as a team, but more of what transpired on Sunday will happen.

Other Headlines

1. NFL: San Francisco 49ers fan sues NFL because he couldn't buy tickets for NFC Championship. He lives in Nevada, and that was one of the 44 states that wasn't allowed to purchase a ticket. This isn't new for the NFL, the Broncos even did it without the scrutiny because they didn't cut off a close geographical location like the Seahawks did with California. There's honestly a valid point here to be made, but we'll see how far this really gets in the court system -- especially since the suit is referring to Qwest and not CenturyLink, the old name for the Seahawks' stadium.
2. SOCCER: Barcelona player Dani Alves eats a banana that was thrown at him during a game. It's the greatest video of the weekend.
3. NBA: Shaq tried to race Kenny Smith to the video board, but falls over thanks to a trash can. This is the second greatest video of the weekend.
4. MLB: Ryan Braun injures teammate Jean Segura, then gets injured himself. Milwaukee is having one hell of a great start to the season at 18-6 after Saturday night, but Braun apparently has had enough of it.
5. NCAA: SEC sticks with eight game schedule, but demands teams schedule one game from a power conference. So, why not just have a nine-game conference schedule so that each team will be forced to play nine good teams? Whatever, maybe this means Iowa State and Vanderbilt can get a series going.

Yesterday's Favorites -- includes San Francisco Giants, Texas Longhorns baseball

Playoff Report -- recapping everything that happened in the Stanley Cup and NBA playoffs.

Today's Slate

SOCCER

Newcastle at Arsenal - 2:00 NBCS

STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS - ROUND 1

Penguins at Blue Jackets (PIT 3-2) - 6:00 NBCS

Avalanche at Wild (MIN 3-2) - 8:00 CNBC

-Sharks at Kings (SJ 3-2) - 9:00 NBCS

NBA PLAYOFFS - ROUND 1

Heat at Bobcats (MIA 3-0) - 6:00 TNT

Hawks at Pacers (Tied 2-2) - 7:00 NBATV

Spurs at Mavericks (DAL 2-1) - 8:30 TNT

MLB

Rockies at D'backs - 8:40 RSRM/FSAZ

-Padres at Giants - 9:15 FSSD/CSBA

WSD Sports Page: The unfortunate realization of Donald Sterling

The Lede

Donald Sterling's racist comments just shows ugly side of sports

Yesterday was a tough day in sports. Racism became front page news all day, overshadowing another great day of NBA playoff basketball, when a tape that featured a conversation between Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling and his mistress girlfriend, V. Stiviano.

I won't dive into the whole story behind Sterling and Stiviano. TMZ has you all covered for that. But the brief summarization is this: Sterling had a heated argument with Stiviano, and didn't like that fact that she was "assciating with black people." He said that she could "sleep with [black people]," she could "bring them in," but "not to promote it on that ... and not to bring them to my games."

Everybody in the NBA (well, not the Houston Rockets, for some reason), ESPN, and NBA on TNT, especially those of color, made their remarks on the situation, and they were all just a tamer approach to what Snoop Dogg said earlier in the day. If TV was uncensored, I'm sure someone like Barkley would have made himself really known.

Obviously, my opinion holds true with all of them. NBA commissioner Adam Silver will have to be swift and make a decision early this week about what to do. With the damning evidence and previous history with racism involving Sterling, he should receive a suspension for the rest of season, banning him from going to Clippers games and anywhere else in the NBA, and he should be forced out as the Clippers owner during the offseason. There's simply nothing he can do to repair his image now.

Unfortunately, that doesn't eliminate the racism that still exists in our world. Every day I'd like to think that racism isn't as big of a deal as it was the day before, that more people get it. But it's moving slower than it should be. Much of the older generation still feels uncomfortable around black people, and think they're just crazy-different from the rest of the world. That especially holds true with the older generation in the Midwest.

No, those same old people say the exact same things about younger people that aren't wearing suits and being a "normal" person. Just like they say blacks are loud and annoying, they'll say the same stupid things about a white guy that has a mohawk, tattoos all over the place, or plays role-playing games with their other nerd friends.

That old, stupid way of thinking still exists in sports, and it still exists with owners. It still exists with those that are running college football bowl games. In a way, just like inside Sterling's warped, pathetic mind, they thrive off of being an owner because that still gives them the advantage over black people. They're making money off of what these athletes are doing on the court.

It's like the modern-day version of slavery. Black people now make a lot of money and enjoy what they do, but these white owners still sit back in their luxury suite at games, watch them work, and rake in the money.

I would like to think most owners and those that run bowl games don't think that way. But unfortunately, some of them still do, and that's simply disgusting.

Sterling's actions proved that there's still a long way to go unfortunately. And hopefully the action taken against Sterling is stiff and strong, enough to get backwards-ass owners thinking a little bit differently.

Recap of my favorite teams from yesterday.

Today's Slate
Games that I'll be keeping an eye on today.

SOCCER - BARCLAY'S PREMIER LEAGUE
Chelsea 2, Liverpool 0
Man City 2, Crystal Palace 0 - 2nd Half on NBCS

STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS - ROUND 1
Flyers at Rangers (Tied 2-2) - 11:00a NBC
Blues at Blackhawks (CHI 3-2) - 2:00 NBC
Ducks at Stars (ANA 3-2) - 7:00 NBCS

NBA PLAYOFFS - ROUND 1
Bulls at Wizards (WSH 2-1) - 12:00 ABC
Clippers at Warriors (LAC 2-1) - 2:30 ABC
Raptors at Nets (BKN 2-1) - 6:00 TNT
Rockets at Blazers (POR 2-1) - 8:30 TNT

MLB
Padres at Nationals - 12:35 FSSD/MASN2
-Indians at Giants - 3:05 STO/CSBA
Phillies at D'backs - 3:10 CSPA/FSAZ
Rockies at Dodgers - 3:10 RSRM/SNLA

LAX
ACC: Syracuse vs Notre Dame - 12:00 ESPNU
PL: Lehigh at Loyola - 12:00 CBSS
Bayhawks at Cannons - 12:00 LAXN
Rattlers at Lizards - 5:00 CBSS

CBB
Virginia at Florida St - 12:00 ESPN3
Kansas at Baylor - 1:00 FCS623
Oklahoma at Texas Tech - 2:00 FSSW
-Oklahoma St at Texas - 2:00 LHN
Oregon at Oregon St - 3:00 ESPNU