Rumors

The Los Angeles Dodgers celebrated the legacy of Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant on Friday night with a bobblehead night ahead of their matchup with the Toronto Blue Jays. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, who took over in 2016 during Bryant’s final year in the NBA, has seen up close exactly what Kobe means to the city of L.A. He was there when Bryant had a 60-point game to end his career, for countless appearances at Dodger Stadium in the years after his retirement as well as when the legend tragically passed away in Jan. 2020. It’s almost inarguable that Kobe’s impact on the city of L.A. is greater than any other athlete to don the city’s name on their uniform. With Friday night being Kobe Bryant Bobblehead Night in Los Angeles, Roberts spoke about the legend’s impact on the city, the sports world and recalls his visits to Dodger Stadium.

Lakers Nation

The Los Angeles Dodgers announced that Los Angeles Lakers center Deandre Ayton will throw out the first pitch on Aug. 9 when they host the Toronto Blue Jays. That is part of Lakers Night at Dodger Stadium and other members of the purple and gold are also expected to be in attendance to say the famous “It’s Time for Dodger Baseball” phrase before the game. Ayton recently joined L.A. after securing a buyout with the Portland Trail Blazers, allowing him to pick his new home. The former No. 1 overall pick is looking to rehab his value and it does not get better than playing alongside Luka Doncic and LeBron James on the Lakers.

Lakers Nation

Bryant's bobblehead will be given away to the first 40,000 ticketed fans of the Dodgers' home matchup against the Toronto Blue Jays on Aug. 8 -- aka 8/8, doubling down on the number Bryant wore during the first half of his 20-year NBA career.

ESPN

“Two years ago, you weren’t really thinking about this,” said Rob Tilliss, chief executive officer of Inner Circle Sports, a boutique investment bank that works within the sports and entertainment spheres. The company has worked with several professional sports teams, including the Ottawa Senators and Montreal Canadiens. “Now (as a business executive with a Canadian team) you’re thinking about hedging strategies. You’re thinking about how much of my revenue is contractual season tickets versus day-of-game tickets. “As the Canadian dollar declines, you have to adjust your budget. They’re all probably reassessing their budgets for the next year or two.” This might be a particular issue for the Toronto Raptors, the lone Canadian NBA team. Rogers’ purchase of Bell’s shares in Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment, the group that owns the Raptors, Maple Leafs, Toronto FC, among other teams and facilities, is expected to close in the middle of this year. That deal will give Rogers 75 percent control of MLSE. Rogers also owns the Toronto Blue Jays, although not under the MLSE umbrella. Rogers is a publicly traded company, and its stock price has fallen from more than $50 in December, to currently being under $40. Raptors president Masai Ujiri has never complained about MLSE’s financial support for the team, but these are unfamiliar, if not unprecedented, times.

New York Times

But in an attempt to encourage defensive tenacity, Washington’s coaches also decided to borrow from the worlds of college football and Major League Baseball. Just as the Miami Hurricanes football team used to celebrate fumble recoveries and interceptions with a turnover chain and the Toronto Blue Jays reward home run hitters with The Blue Jacket, the Wizards now recognize their standout defensive player after each win. The Wizards’ motivational device to play energetic, smart defense is a belt. “We talked about how we incentivize that being a priority for us,” Unseld said. “I think a lot of times players in any sport are kind of assigned accolades with your offensive performances. In football, certain colleges do it. We just thought of it as a gimmick in nature but (also) something our guys can kind of buy into. They can lean into it, because it’s a real belt.”

The Athletic

The Canadian government is dropping its COVID-19 border measures for all travelers entering the country, regardless of citizenship, Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos announced Monday. Under the new measures, which will take effect Saturday, travelers will no longer be required to show proof of vaccination against COVID-19 or wear face masks on planes and trains. The restrictions had impacted professional sports as unvaccinated players from MLB, the NBA, NHL and MLS were unable to enter Canada. The change comes as the Toronto Blue Jays are vying for a playoff spot and will allow potential opponents to bring unvaccinated players to Rogers Center for the postseason.

The Athletic

Kevin Chouinard: Trae Young (left calf contusion) is now listed as OUT for tonight vs. TOR.

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Those familiar with the Raptors' proposal to the Federal government say it is almost identical to the plan the Blue Jays presented, where visiting teams would be “bubbled” from the moment they arrived at the airport, for example.

SportsNet

The Raptors have also discussed playing in Tampa Bay or Nashville or as tenants in another NBA team’s arena, according to a source. Kansas City pitched its T-Mobile Center. Louisville was floated and reportedly shot down. There’s been speculation about the team moving over the border to Buffalo, just like the Toronto Blue Jays during the last MLB season. While some of those destinations offer a warmer climate, none can match the geographical sense of The Rock.

New York Daily News

Kansas City mayor Quinton Lucas has been in talks with the Toronto Raptors to potentially host the team should they be unable to play next season at Scotiabank Arena due to the Canadian government’s COVID-19 rules — the same rules that recently forced the Toronto Blue Jays and Toronto FC to find new homes to complete their campaigns.

SportsNet

One big focus for next season has been the status of the Toronto Raptors. Due to the United States’ handling of COVID-19, travel into Canada has been banned. MLB’s Toronto Blue Jays played their home games in Buffalo, and the Toronto FC of the MLS played its games in East Hartford, Connecticut. The Raptors face a similar dilemma, and league sources tell Yahoo Sports one alternate location that has been broached is Louisville, Kentucky. Former NBA player and successful businessman Junior Bridgeman has been in contact with the NBA, considering Louisville has the KFC Yum! Center that is NBA-ready.

Yahoo! Sports

We asked Covid-expert Dr. Glenn Copeland about the risks that come with such a scenario. Dr. Copeland serves as the medical director for the Toronto Blue Jays and Ottawa Red Blacks while also serving in an advisory role to 20 teams throughout the four major American leagues and at QuestCap. Dr. Copeland was quick to commend the work of NBA commissioner Adam Silver and his staff in preparing for the season’s upcoming resumption.

The Bird Writes

It’s just not increased testing leading to increased positive tests. The percentage of tests coming back positive has increased, too. The percent of new positive tests in Florida was 10% on Thursday, up from 3.17% on June 5, according to the Florida Department of Health. The Philadelphia Phillies closed their Florida facility on Friday after five players and three staff members who gathered for workouts at their Clearwater training facility tested positive for COVID-19, the team confirmed Friday. The Toronto Blue Jays also closed their facilities, according to the ESPN.

USA Today Sports

Jeff Goodman: Creighton guard Ty-Shon Alexander (16.9 ppg) expected to declare for the NBA Draft & barring a change of heart, his intention is to remain in the draft and bypass his senior season, NBA source told @Stadium. Hit to a Bluejays team that's currently in everyone’s Preseason Top 4.

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