Press Box: Tony George-led group makes bid for IndyCar Series
AUTO
A Tony George-led group has made an offer to Hulman & Co. for the IndyCar Series, according to a SportsBusiness Journal report, citing sources.
The proposal Indianapolis Motor Speedway owner included a seven-figure cash offer to control management and absorb future losses for the series, which reportedly lost $7 million this year.
George didn't return calls from SportsBusiness Journal seeking comment. A Hulman & Co. spokesman said, "We're not going to confirm or deny what we get because we get unsolicited proposals all the time. The series isn't for sale."
OLYMPIC SPORTS
The Tour de France will have no winner if the International Cycling Union agrees with the American officials' decision to vacate Lance Armstrong's seven titles from 1999 to 2005, TDF director Christian Prudhomme told ESPN.com.
Prudhomme called this week's U.S. Anti-Doping Agency report on Armstrong "damning."
The cycling union, the sport's international governing body, must decide within the next three weeks whether to appeal USADA's decision to bar Armstrong for life and eliminate his racing wins.
UCI president Pat McQuaid declined to comment on the USADA report, which suggested that Armstrong doped and pressured teammates to do the same.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Former Oklahoma State basketball player Darrell Williams received a suspended sentence Friday in a sexual assault case, and was set to be released from prison, according to multiple reports.
Williams, 23, was accused by two women of groping them and reaching inside their pants without their approval at a party in December 2010. He was convicted on counts of rape by instrumentation and sexual battery in July, and had been in prison ever since.
He had requested a new trial based on new evidence, according to his attorney. In the absence of physical evidence, assistant District Attorney Jill Tontz relied on the women's testimony.
The women testified that they identified Williams after being shown a photo of the Cowboys basketball team. Williams denied the charges.
"I don't know what happened in the basement," Williams said on an audio recording that lawyers played during the trial. "I was probably misidentified."
---Cavaliers forward Tristan Thompson said that he paid for Texas sophomore guard Myck Kabongo to come to Cleveland, according to a Cleveland Plain Dealer report.
Kabongo is being investigated by the NCAA.
"Did I pay for him? Well, yes and no," Thompson told the paper. "You know, I actually had to pay for it and then had his brother reimburse me, which is totally fine with the NCAA. We discussed that. Again, we want to respect the process. I think everything's going to work out. I don't see no eligibility issues, but that's for the NCAA to work out."
NCAA investigators have questioned Kabongo about his relationship with agent Rich Paul, who represents Thompson and Miami Heat star, LeBron James.
Yahoo! Sports reported that Paul called NBA offices on Kabongo's behalf leading to the 2012 draft. Kabongo chose to stay in school rather than enter the draft.
In 34 starts for Texas last season, Kabongo was third on the team in scoring with 9.6 points per game and led the Longhorns with 5.2 assists a game. Paul also represents two former Longhorns, Thompson and San Antonio Spurs guard Cory Joseph.
NBA
The Houston Rockets waived guards Kyle Fogg and Demetri McCamey, the team announced Friday.
Fogg scored three points with two rebounds in the preseason opener against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday. He averaged 9.6 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.2 assists in four years collegiately at Arizona.
McCamey played for the Chicago Bulls during the NBA Summer League, appearing in five games. He played overseas last season in Turkey and Israel. McCamey was the only active player in the nation during 2010-11 while at Illinois with at least 1,600 career points and 700 career assists, becoming just the second player in Big Ten history to reach both of those milestones.
NHL
After two days of labor talks ended without an agreement, the NHL and NHLPA have no further meetings scheduled.
The two sessions dealt with secondary issues like free agency and drug testing, and not much progress was made in those areas, according to an ESPNNewYok.com report. There were no discussion on economic issues, and NHL commissioner Gary Bettman and NHLPA executive director Donald Fehr also didn't meet.
The union wanted to meet Friday, but the league cited scheduling conflicts.
"Until we're tackling the major issues, I'm not sure what the urgency is to meet on a 24/7 basis," NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly told ESPNNewYork.com.
