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Show 6 Mountain West Minority Reporter & Sentine’, AGU st 10, 1990 "Sports News Nuggets’ search over; Bickerstaff named Federal appeals court hears Shaw-Celtics case ‘Denver (AP) — The Denver Nug- gets’ tortuous search for a general Bickerstaff, who coached the Sat- tle SuperSonics for five seasons before manager has ended at Bernie becoming the team’s vice president of Bickerstaff’s doorstep. basketball operations on May 15 was named general manager of the Nuggets on Wednesday. The appointment of the 46-year-old Bickerstaff filled a position that had been in limbo fer ive months. Nuggets president Carl Scheer called Bickerstaff ‘‘the guy who’s going Charlotte, N.C. (AP) — Golfers to be the architect of a new regime in Lee Elder and Charlie Owens accus- Denver.”’ ed Shoal Creek Country Club of. Bickerstaff said Wednesday he tokenism Wednesday for admitting an thought the Nuggets needed improvehonorary black member to avoid proment in rebounding and perimeter tests at next week’s PGA shooting, but was satisfied with Doug Championship. Moe as head coach. He promised no Elder and Owens, who are black, wholesale personnel changes. also criticized civil rights groups for “I’m not going to come in and act calling off their plans to protest at the on impulse,’’ he said. ‘I’m going to previously all-white club in Birmtalk to people in this organization. I’m ingham, Alabama when it hosts the going to listen, observe, analyze the tournament. information, and then make decisions. “You need a tub awater and you I’ve learned that a situation is never get a teardrop and you’re satisfied,”’ exactly what you thought it was lookOwens said. “‘No, it didn’t go far ing in from the outside.”’ enough.’’ Bickerstaff attended the All-Star After Shoal Creek announced Tuesbaseball game in Chicago Tuesday _ day that it was admitting Birmingham Elder, Owens accuse club of tokenism businessman Louis Willie as an honorary member, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference canceled plans to demonstrate during the event, which starts next Thursday. The NAACP also said it would advise its members not to oe at the event. But Elder and Owens, who both play on the Seniors Tour, aren’t satisfied. | | ‘I felt that-we should go to the very end with this thing,’’ Elder said. ‘‘An honorary membership doesnt mean anything.”’ ‘‘We get one guy in there. en everything’s going to be loveydovey,’’ Owens said. *‘I don’t think they went far enough.” However, SCLC presieent Joseph Lowery said Shoal Creek’s acceptance of a black member is “‘an excellent beginning.”’ ““We didn’t get everything we would like, but compromise is a part of negotiations,’’ Lowery said. ““We hope it’s the beginning of the end of racial exclusion in golf-as a sport and in golf as a business.”’ After Shoal Creek’s founder, Hall Thompson, defended the club’s exclusion of blacks, six major sponsors pulled their ads from the scheduled telecasts of the PGA Championship on ABC and ESPN. Thompson later apologized for his remarks. IBM, Toyota, American Honda. and Lincoln Mercury said Wednesda‘: that they had not changed their deci- sion to pull ads from the telecasts. Spokesmen for Spalding Sports Worldwide and Anheuser-Busch said they weren’t sure what their com- panies would do. Anheuser-Busch was only scheduled to showa public service announcement on drinking during the ESPN telecast. In other developments: ® A California television station which had said it would not show highlights of the PGA Championship reversed. its decision. KNBC-TV in Burbank said the change was prompted by the settlement between Shoal Creek and civil rights groups. ® ABC said it was “‘pleased that the ‘black community, the PGA of America, and officials of Shoal Creek have resolved their differences and that the PGA Championship wil proceed free of any disruption.’’ e Augusta National, which hosts the Masters, said it expects io invite its first black member by mid-October. “I’m sure we will invite a black fellow in the next month or so,” Masters chairman Hord. Hardin said. ‘“We would like to expres. ourselves as waiting to have minority members.”’ | night with Scheer and Nuggets’ coowners Robert Wussler and Peter Bynoe. When an agreement was reached in the third-base box seats at Wrigley Field, Bickerstaff called the Sonics and resigned. ‘*You always hate to see good people leave your organization,’’ Sonics president Bob Whitsitt said. ‘‘This is a great opportunity for Bernie — to be an NBA general manager.”’ Bickerstaff, who indicated he would have “*‘a little more control here’’ than in Seattle, called the Denver job ‘‘a perfect opportunity and challenge for me. I think I have the ability to work collectively with a group of people and rebuild toward a common goal.”’ Bickerstaff coached the Sonics to a 202-208 record in five seasons. He relinquished bench duties in May to K.C. Jones. Bickerstaff said Wednesday he had ‘“‘no aspirations of coaching again. That should be good news for Moe whose job security has not been solid of late. “I like Doug’s style,’’ Bickerstaff said. ‘‘It’s exciting. They win.” Torre is off the air and into the Cardinals’ dugout by Bob Rains Ki St. Louis — After working nearly six years as a broadcaster, Joe Torre says his first task as the manager of the St. Louis Cardinals will be to begin thinking like a manager again. ‘‘T can’t begin to tell you howI feel,’’ Torre said Wednesday. .“Pve got goosebumps. It’s a little frightening. Thad Kind of put manap“sing out ofmy mind. It’s a challenge and a risk, but it’s definitely worth it to me because it will be ina Cardinals’ uniform.’’ Torre and general manager Dal Maxvill, his former: roommate with the Cardinals and a friend for more than 20 years, reached agreement Tuesday on a contract through the 1992 season. Maxvill flew to Minneapolis in a private jet Wednesday morning to pick up Torre and bring him back to St. Louis for a news conference. | ‘When you leave game after broadcasting, you’re not sure if you won or lost,’ Torre said. ‘“You just close the briefcase and go home. And a lot of times that’s great. ‘But after you’ve been wearing a uniform almost all of your adult life, it’s pretty tough to get it out of your system.’’ Torre, 50, will assume his new duties tonight in Philadelphia. ‘“This was not an easy thing for Joe Torre to do,’’ Maxvill said. ‘‘As much as he likes the Cardinals and managing, he had a pretty good situation broadcasting and living in southern California. But I’m glad he’s here.”” Torre will succeed interim manager Red Schoendienst, who has been run- ning the Cardinals since Whitey Herzog resigned July 6. Torre said he is not worried about being compared to Herzog, torney, In his Players dicated five-year, $6.2 million contract with contract that allowed him to end his the Italian contract was ‘‘not allowable’’ under the terms of the collective. bargaining agreement. Silfen also argued that Shaw was not properly represented by counsel and was not fully afformed of how the contract would affect his free agency status at the time he re-signed with the Celtics during a meeting with General Manager Jan Volk. Justices Hugh Bownes, Stephen Breyer, and Bruce Selya took the arguments under consideration. Neil Jacobs, attorney for the Celtics, said after the hearing that the Celtics last Jan. 26, sent Celtics a letter on June 6 saying Shaw intended to honor the second year of his less-lucrative contract with II Messaggero. U.S. District Judge A. David Mazzone ruled June 27 that Shaw must honor his Celtics contract and terminate ‘“‘forthwith’’ the two-year, $1.7 million deal he signed with Il Messaggero last August. | Thus far, Shaw, who was not pre- sent at Wednesday’s hearing, has refused to comply with Mazzone’s order. He also has not complied with a Clause in his Italian contract requiring him to inform the team of his intention to return to Rome for a second season, which expired on July 20. In his ruling, Mazzone enjoined Shaw from playing with any team but the Boston Celtics from 1990 to 1994. who won three pennants dur- Louis,’’ Torre said. ‘‘I can’t fourth in Atlanta, I wasn’t replacing Hank Aaron. I’m just trying to do the 10e I can do.”’ . Torre played for the Cardinals from 1969-74 as part of an 18-year playaward and the league batting title (363) in 1971. He managed the Mets Cleveland (AP) — ° Cleveland and Charles Barkley, who ran up $45,000 Braves for eight years, 1977-84. in fines last season. Torre said he would spend the rest of this season evaluating the Cardinals’ personnel so he could make suggestions when the team begins planning for 1991. Everybody laughed when ‘I’m going to try to learn as much Philadelphia 76ers forward Charles as I can,’’ Torre said. ‘‘I want to find. Barkley, asked about $45,000 in fines out as much as I can about the he ran up last season, said, ‘‘I’ll take ballplayers.”’ it off my income tax.”’ Torre has been in the American He can, the Internal Revenue SerLeague since 1985, working as a vice says. broadcaster for the California Angels, ‘We couldn’t find anything that so he has not had much opportunity would deny a deduction (for fines or to watch the Cardinals or their strug- salary lost because of a suspension),”’ gles so far this season. said Wilson Fadely of the IRS in ““When. we start, we start from Washington, D.C. ‘‘The indication is scratch,’’ Torre said. ‘‘I have no that it’s probably deductible. It could preconceived ideas about arlybody.”’ be considered as being an ordinary exTorre, who had been interviewed pense.’ for the general manager’s job that Spokesmen for the National Basket. eventually went to Maxvill in 1985, ball Association, National Football _ Said he was especially looking forward : League, Major League Baseball, and to working with Maxvill and Ted the National Hockey League said Simmons, the director of player deducting the fines is the player’s development, both friends and former business. teammates. *‘It’s the first chance I’ve They also say they donate most had to work with people instead of for fines to charities. people,’’ Torre said. ‘‘It’s a very ‘We collect it from the player or comfortable situation.’’ the team and serve as a conduit. We Torre said he will keep the coaching get it and give it out,’’ NBA vice staff intact through the end of the president Rod Thorn said. season. | The NHL’s Gerry Helper said player and team fines go to an emergency fund set up for ex-players who need assistance. both felt, ‘Let’s do this for this year and see what happens.’ We’ll look at it again when the season’s over.”’ Although Mack technically was a free agent, he did not seek an offer from another team. ‘“We never tested the market because Kevin really likes Cleveland and the organization and didn’t want to play anywhere else,’’ Childers said. Mack ws arrested June 29 of last year and later pleaded guilty to a felony charge of using cocaine. He served 30 days in an Ohio prison. He missed the first 12 games of the 1989 IRS ruling makes fines less taxing NFI. season. Martin Silfen. appeal, Silfen said the NBA Association had also since inthat a part of Shaw’s NBA ‘team still hadn’t received a clear ex- planation why Shaw wants to continue playing in Italy rather than return to the NBA for a second season. — ‘*(Co-owner) Alan» Cohen met briefly before the hearing with Judge Mazzone with Brian, his father, and Rehabbing Ickey Shuffles away 25 lbs. replace Whitey. When I started hitting ing career and:won the MWP arguments presented by Shaw’s at- his agent. But it didn’t shed any light on what happened,’’ Jacobs said. Volk said the Celtics weren’t making the effort to retain Shaw’s services only to trade him away, but he did not rule out the possibility of a trade. Mack, Browns ‘agree on contract Browns fullback Kevin Mack has agreed to terms of a new one-year contract, almost exactly one year since his arrest in this city on a drug charge. Browns spokesman Bob Eller confirmed a published report that Mack has a new contract and said. ‘‘Terms are not going to be released. Generally it’s not our policy to announce veteran signings.’ A source reported Mack. will receive a base salary of $600,000 in 1990 and an $80,000 bonus. “The one. year was a mutual thing,” said gece) }-) Childers. “We the ing his ten years managing the Cards. “*T look at it as I’m coming back to St. Mazzone rejected nearly all of the Boston (AP) — A federal appeals court heard arguments Wednesday on whether to enforce a ruling that Brian Shaw must play for the Boston Celtics next season rather than in Italy. The agent for Shaw, who signed a Magic Johnson | Running back Ickey Woods has reduced his weight by 25 pounds as he tries:te;win back, his, starting: job in the Cincinnati Bengals’ backfield. Woods, 24, a former Nevada-Las Vegas standout who starred as a Bengals rookie in the team’s 1988 Super Bowl season, has spent months in physical rehabilitation since he suffered a season-ending injury against Pittsburg in the 1989 season’s second game. ~ ‘‘T want to Be in the best shape possible when I hit the gridiron,”’ Woods said. “T've got a lot to prove this year.’ Woods said his left knee, in which he tore a ligament, is gradually recovering. ““There’s still some pain there and the strength isn’t where it should be, but it feels a lot better,’’ he said. ‘‘I can do everything, but I’m taking it slow because I don’t want to hurt it.”’ Woods is in the final year of a three-year contract that will pay him $256,000 this year. | Ickey Woods © Magic Johnson to purchase franchise Magic Johnson, Los Angeles Lakers superstar, may soon be doing more than just making commercials for Pepsi. Johnson and Earl Graves, the publisher of Black Enterprise magazine, reportedly have made a deal to purchase the soft-drink company’s Washington, D.C.,-area bottling operations, which would make it the largest minority-owned Pepsi franchise in the country. |
