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Griffin fastest QB at combine, runs 4.41 in 40 and Sources: Nats' Zimmerman gets $100M deal
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Heisman Trophy winner Robert Griffin III ran the fastest 40-yard dash by a quarterback Sunday at this year's NFL scouting combine with an official time of 4.41.More From ESPN.comAndrew Luck, RG3 and Trent Richardson didn't work out at the combine, but they still made an impression on Day 5, writes John Clayton. Story• Vote: Luck or RG3?• Stats & Info: Deceptive athleticism• Radio: Mike & Mike weigh in• More: Schedule | Combine blogGriffin was unofficially clocked with a two-run average of 4.38 seconds before his official time was released later Sunday. Andrew Luck, the Heisman runner-up and favorite to be the No. 1 pick, later ran twice, getting clocked unofficially at 4.66 and 4.59. [Read the full article]
Third baseman Ryan Zimmerman and the Washington Nationals agreed to a six-year, $100 million extension Sunday, baseball sources told ESPN The Magazine's Buster Olney. Zimmerman also received a full no-trade clause from the Nationals.More from ESPN.comWhile the Nats' $100 million investment in Ryan Zimmerman is a risk, he's as good a bet as any to remain productive and one of the game's elite third basemen, Buster Olney writes. Blog ESPN Stats & Information examines Ryan Zimmerman's extension from several angles, including where his contract ranks among third basemen and a troubling trend in his statistical profile. BlogThe Nationals announced Zimmerman's extension Sunday afternoon but didn't disclose financial terms. [Read the full article]
Joel Zumaya's season is over, his time with the Minnesota Twins ended before it began because of a damaged elbow.Now he has to decide whether his once-promising career is finished as well, and the reliever with the rocket right arm and the pattern of recurring injuries sounded like he's ready to quit rather than endure another arduous year of rehabilitation.Over And Out for Zumaya?Joel Zumaya has a torn ligament in his right elbow and will miss the entire season, the latest setback for the hard thrower who has been plagued by injuries since 2006 and hasn't pitched in the majors since June 28, 2010."Right now, my perspective is probably not," Zumaya said Monday, two days after tearing the ulnar collateral ligament in his throwing elbow. [Read the full article]
Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant suffered a nasal fracture during the Western Conference's 152-149 win over the East on Sunday night, the team announced on its website.More From ESPN.comEvery bit as meaningful as the points Kobe Bryant scored Sunday night was the point he made, Michael Wallace writes. Story• Lakers Blog | ESPN Los AngelesBryant was bloodied by a hard foul from Miami's Dwyane Wade and stayed in the game, but he left to be evaluated afterward. A CT scan revealed a broken nose.He was expected to be examined and re-evaluated by ear, nose and throat specialist Dr. John Rehm on Monday when he returns to Los Angeles. He didn't attend the postgame media session Sunday."Yeah, I obviously didn't try to draw no blood, but I took a foul," Wade said afterward. "Kobe fouled me two times in a row, so he's still got one up on me. [Read the full article]
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Kershaw agrees to two-year deal with Dodgers and Rangers hire assistant to help support Hamilton
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Los Angeles Dodgers left-hander and reigning National League Cy Young Award winner Clayton Kershaw agreed to terms on a $19 million, two-year contract Tuesday, avoiding an arbitration hearing that had been scheduled for Feb. 14.SweetSpot: Peek at Kershaw's FutureThe Dodgers have done a great job of managing Clayton Kershaw's workload, positioning him to vie for more Cy Young awards in the future, David Schoenfield writes. BlogKershaw was in his first winter of arbitration eligibility, meaning he still will have one more winter of eligibility, following the 2013 season, before he potentially becomes eligible for free agency after 2014. [Read the full article]
FORT WORTH, Texas -- The Texas Rangers have hired Shayne Kelley as a major league staff assistant and part of his duties will be to support Josh Hamilton, general manager Jon Daniels said Tuesday night. Kelley, a graduate of the University of Alabama, will also help hitting coach Scott Coolbaugh and the Rangers coaching staff as part of his duties.Daniels said that Kelley has already started in his position and accompanied Hamilton to New York on Monday as the slugger saw two doctors, one with MLB and one with the union. Daniels said he's expecting a full report on that meeting within the next few days.More on the RangersRichard Durrett and the ESPNDallas.com team have the inside scoop on the Rangers, the American League and Major League Baseball. Blog | ESPN DallasThe meetings with doctors were Monday, a week after Hamilton said he had "three or four" drinks during dinner in Dallas and then had more drinks later that evening. [Read the full article]
Tom Brady's teammates might not blast Gisele Bundchen for her comments about New England Patriots receivers, but New York Giants running back Brandon Jacobs has no problem doing it."She just needs to continue to stay cute and shut up," he told reporters Tuesday at MetLife Stadium, where the Giants were honored for beating the Patriots 21-17 in Super Bowl XLVI.espnW: It's All Gisele's FaultTom Brady came up short on Super Sunday for the second time. The common theme? No, it's not the Giants. Pats fans should blame Gisele Bundchen, writes Sarah Spain. StoryPatriots receiver Wes Welker failed to make a difficult catch in the fourth quarter that might have helped New England ice a victory. Tight end Aaron Hernandez and wide receiver Deion Branch also had balls hit off their hands during the Patriots' final desperation drive."My husband can not f------ throw the ball and catch the ball at the same time. [Read the full article]
To experience everything that ESPN.com has to offer, we recommend that you upgrade to a newer version of your web browser. Click the upgrade button to the right or learn more.Kendrick Perkins can live with being dunked on as part of the game. He can even handle being tweeted about being dunked on.But LeBron James' Twitter reaction to Blake Griffin's did-you-see-that dunk over Perkins didn't sit well with the Oklahoma City Thunder center.Perkins found himself in Griffin's career highlight reel when the Los Angeles Clippers forward soared over him, absorbed contact and threw the ball down into the basket, fingers grazing the rim, in the Clippers' 112-100 win Jan. 30.Perkins then found himself on Twitter, where James, among others, could not contain his amazement over what he had seen."Dunk of the Year! @blakegriffin just dunked on Kendrick Perkins so hard!!! Wow! I guess I'm No. 2 now. [Read the full article]
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Big Ten exploring a four-team playoff and Luke Winn: By The Numbers: Breaking down No. 2 Syracuse's zone efficiency
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The Big Ten, which helped squash the notion of a four-team playoff to crown a national champion in college football several years ago, is taking another look."Our process is working perfectly," Hancock said. "One of good things about our process is that there's no timetable so that a deliberate and thoughtful decision can be reached."The tricky part is our 11 conference commissioners and the Notre Dame AD may have 12 different opinions about the direction we should go over the next six to eight months."Hancock, who still expects a conclusion in July, said the group of BCS decision-makers will meet again at the end of this month.Michigan State athletic director Mark Hollis said all of the Big Ten athletic directors are comfortable exploring the possibility of a four-team playoff. [Read the full article]
In the past week I've spent 25 hours charting tape of Syracuse's 2-3 zone, which means I've heard announcers say some version of "you can't settle for long jump shots" enough times to make an auto-tuned compilation, if I were so inclined. Jim Boeheim's zone always gets analyzed, because it's central to the Orange's identity, but this season it's particularly discussion-worthy. It's the most efficient defense Boeheim's had since per-possession data has been tracked (2003-present), and it's forcing far more turnovers than any Syracuse zone during that era.My hope with this charting project was to generate some fresh talking points about the 2-3 by quantifying each defender's individual impact. The sample was every possession of 15 games -- Syracuse's Big East schedule and its four biggest nonleague contests, against Virginia Tech, Stanford, Florida and N.C. State. [Read the full article]
He went in as the prospective G.O.A.T. and emerged as the presumptive goat, but what Tom Brady really is after Super Bowl XLVI is a living testament to the human need -- embedded in the race -- for individual scapegoats.While the name of the Super Bowl goat changes hourly -- Brady? Belichick? Bundchen? -- the name is hardly important. But history does demand that the role be filled. The Giants' Ahmad Bradshaw was somehow fitted for goat horns after scoring what proved to be the Super Bowl's game-winning touchdown. In retrospect, Patriots' coach Belichick became a possible goat for allowing Bradshaw to do just that. As for the game's biggest hero, Mario Manningham -- Goat is his middle name. (Or very nearly so: It's Cashmere.)This goat business can get confusing, but suffice to say that the star of every game requires an anti-star. (The reverse holds true as well. [Read the full article]
The Tigers officially accepted an invitation on Wednesday to be part of the conference's next incarnation in 2013. Memphis is the seventh school, and fourth from Conference USA, to sign up since December for future membership in the Big East. The Tigers will compete in the Big East in all sports."It certainly is an historic day for us," University of Memphis President Shirley Raines said during a teleconference with Big East Commissioner John Marinatto and Memphis Athletic Director R.C. Johnson.Memphis has been trying to upgrade its conference affiliation for years, and the Big East was always the most likely landing spot. The Tigers were snubbed during the Big East's last massive expansion in 2005 and lost a longtime rivalry with Louisville in the process.Now with the Big East rebuilding again and eventually in need replacements for West Virginia, Pittsburgh and Syracuse, there was finally room for Memphis. [Read the full article]
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Tiger happy headed into Pebble Pro-Am event and Thunder get by Warriors despite Ellis' 48 points
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Preparing for his first PGA Tour event of the 2012 season, Tiger Woods said Tuesday that a poor final round in Abu Dhabi two weeks ago when he had a chance to win has not deterred him and that he is pleased with the state of his game.Woods failed to close out a win despite holding a share of the 54-hole lead with unheralded Englishman Robert Rock.Wojciechowski: A Happy Tiger?Tiger Woods feels good about himself and it shows as he brings his improved game to Pebble Beach, Gene Wojciechowski writes. StoryBut Woods took the positives out of the result, which he viewed as a continuation of strong play toward the end of 2011, when he was third at the Australian Open, had a solid Presidents Cup and won the unofficial Chevron World Challenge. [Read the full article]
Oklahoma City Thunder forward Kevin Durant (35) is unable to score against the Golden State Warriors in the first...For the latest addition, the lanky forward hit a go-ahead bank shot with 14.2 seconds remaining and the NBA-leading Oklahoma City Thunder overcame career performances by Monta Ellis and David Lee to beat the Golden State Warriors 119-116 on Tuesday night.The NBA's two-time scoring leader has shook up defenders every which way this season and is making a strong case for his first MVP award. Durant also had a buzzer-beating 3-pointer against Dallas on Dec. 29 and a dunk with 2.9 seconds left in an overtime victory Monday night at Portland."It's one of those things where you shoot it and you're like, 'Aw, that's a terrible shot,' " Durant said of his game winner. [Read the full article]
Los Angeles Clippers guard Chauncey Billups suffered a torn left Achilles tendon Monday night and will miss the remainder of the season, the team announced Tuesday."I feel sick for him," Clippers coach Vinny Del Negro said Tuesday when reached on his cell phone by ESPNLosAngeles.com's Ramona Shelburne. "He's such a pro. After the game last night it was bittersweet. Everyone was just quiet in the locker room, quiet on the plane. People know how much Chauncey means to us -- his character, his leadership. Not only his ability to play at a high level, but his character and the intangibles he brings. That's why we brought him here. I just feel sick for him."More on the ClippersFor more news, notes and analysis of the L.A. Clippers, check out the Clippers Report. BlogBillups suffered the injury with 5:59 left in the fourth quarter of the Clippers' 107-102 overtime victory over the Orlando Magic on Monday. [Read the full article]
The Big Ten, which helped squash the notion of a four-team playoff to crown a national champion in college football several years ago, is taking another look."Our process is working perfectly," Hancock said. "One of good things about our process is that there's no timetable so that a deliberate and thoughtful decision can be reached. [Read the full article]
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