Last night Coby White scored a game-high 27 points to lead the Bulls past the Thunder 124-103 in preseason action in Oklahoma City. The Bulls will stay in the OKC to wrap up the preseason tomorrow night against the Thunder.
In College basketball, The 21st-ranked Duke Blue Devils opened Atlantic Coast Conference play with a 75-65 win on the road over Notre Dame. The Irish are now 2-3 and will face Purdue on Saturday.
The Raiders host the Chargers in an AFC West matchup on Thursday Night Football tonight in Las Vegas. The Raiders have lost three of their last four games, but remain in the playoff hunt at 7-and-6. Los Angeles is just 4-and-9.
The Blackhawks are promoting general manager Stan Bowman. He’s been named president of hockey operations. Bowman will continue to serve as General Manager and oversee all aspects of Hockey Operations as he enters his 19th season with Chicago. The Hawks also named Danny Wirtz as Chief Executive Officer and hired Jaime Faulkner as President of Business Operations.
The Supreme Court will hear two cases on whether NCAA athletes should be paid. They could forever change the student-athlete business model by examining whether the NCAA violated antitrust law by limiting the amount of college benefits athletes could receive. The case will be argued in 2021 with a decision expected before the end of June. The NCAA says it’s pleased the Supreme Court will review the case.
The NCAA’s Division I Council has granted blanket waivers for all athletes to play immediately. The announcement includes all Division I sports, but is contingent on certain criteria being met. Transfers previously were required to sit out a season unless granted a waiver by the NCAA. Also the waiver only applies to student-athletes that transfer from another D-1 school and not from other NCAA divisions or schools outside the NCAA. The decision should have an immediate impact on basketball programs, with some transfers becoming eligible for games next week.
Major League Baseball has reclassified the Negro Leagues as a major league and will count the statistics and records of its 3,400 players as part of its history. The Negro Leagues consisted of seven leagues that existed from 1920-1948. The change means Hall of Fame pitcher Satchel Paige could add nearly 150 victories to his career. Paige at the age of 42 made his major league debut for the Cleveland Indian in 1948.