Dolphins DT Kendrick Norton has arm amputated after catastrophic car crash

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Tragedy has struck as former University of Miami standout and current Miami Dolphins defensive tackle Kendrick Norton’s career is likely over before it had a chance to begin. An overnight Thursday car accident found Norton hospitalized with what was described as a “catastrophic arm injury.” The injury was so severe that doctors amputated his left arm on the scene of the accident in order to remove him from the car.

As of now, according to NFL sources, the 22-year old Norton is still at Ryder’s Trauma Center at Jackson Memorial Hospital and is in critical condition. Fortunately, though Norton’s career in the NFL is almost certainly over, his life is not expected to be in danger.

His agent confirmed the news over Twitter at 11:07 A.M.

Per the Miami Herald, a close friend of Norton’s family stated that the car was cut off and ended up flipping in a multiple car crash near the intersection of the Dolphin Expressway (State Road 836) and the Palmetto Expressway (State Road 826).

Florida Highway Patrol Lt. Alex Camacho states that at approximately 1:18 A.M., Norton was driving a black 2017 Ford F250 when it rolled over onto its roof after colliding with a concrete barrier for unknown (or unconfirmed) reasons. The other car involved in the crash was a grey 2015 Maserati, which received only minor damage. Its driver, Jessie Pena, was not injured. There was, however, a second passenger in Norton’s truck, who was also injured in the crash and taken to the trauma center. Only Norton’s injuries were deemed critical, and Miami-Dade Fire Rescue brought a surgeon onto the scene.

The Dolphins released a statement stating they are aware of the tragic incident.

Norton is a former 2018 seventh-round draft pick of the Carolina Panthers, and Miami picked him up off of the Panthers practice squad on December 19 of last year. The 6-foot-3, 314 pound defensive lineman was set to compete for a spot on the Dolphins 53-man roster during the upcoming training camp after being inactive for the remainder of the 2018 season. But now, all that can be hoped for is that Norton will soon be released from the hospital, prepared to cope with the new trials ahead of him.

As a part of the Miami Hurricanes, Norton received honorable mention All-ACC honors at the conclusion of the 2017 season. During his three-year career with the Hurricanes, he played in 37 games, starting 25 out of the 26 games he played as a sophomore and junior. He compiled a grand total of 45 tackles, 18 of them for a loss, and five sacks.

More details will be added as they’re revealed.

Brasil se sacó la espinita en el Mineirao

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Brasil tenía una deuda con su afición desde que fue eliminada cayendo estrepitosamente ante Alemania 1-7 en el Mineirao de Belo Horizonte.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jhcCiJvXRZY

Aquella derrota dejó una marca en el corazón de los brasileños, en una goleada histórica que será recordada siempre pues fue un baño de calidad de los alemanes en un marco que quizás mas nunca se repita.

En la Copa América Chile 2015 Brasil fue víctima de Paraguay en los penales, tal y como había sucedido en 2011 en Argentina.

En la Copa América Centenario, la canarinha fue víctima de una injusticia arbitral y quedó fuera en la fase de grupos con un gol de mano de Perú.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5q3C2JjVyOY

En el mundial Rusia 2018 Brasil cayó en cuartos de final ante una muy buena selección belga y se esfumó así la posibilidad de quitarse esa espinita que seguía clavada en el corazón de todo un país.

Los ojos inmediatamente se pusieron en la Copa América Brasil 2019.

Brasil espanta los fantasmas del Mineirao

La victoria 2-0 ante Argentina en las semifinales de la Copa América no son un título, pero tiene un significado muy importante para Brasil.

El gigante de América volvía a disputar una semifinal de un torneo importante en este estadio, y ante su máximo rival, no podía fallar.

Una nueva eliminación de Brasil en este estadio probablemente significaría que ese era el último juego del scratch en esas instalaciones.

Sin embargo, liderados por las genialidades e intensidad de Dani Alves y la gran dupla Firmino-Gabriel Jesús, y un poco por la falta de uso del VAR y la suerte del campeón, Brasil se empezó a sacar de encima el peso de la eliminación mas humillante de una selección local en la historia de los mundiales de fúbol.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=knTBx1e-VuA

 

Un poco de ayuda del VAR

El VAR ha sido uno de los protagonistas de la Copa América Brasil 2019.

En la fase de grupos y cuartos de final se pitaron varios penales bastante rigurosos, incluyendo uno a la propia Argentina de Messi, y se anularon bastantes goles gracias al uso del VAR.

En el partido mas importante, por sus protagonistas, pasó por debajo de la mesa cuando mas se esperaba su presencia. Dos jugadas que podían haber terminado en penales para Argentina y la anulación de uno de los goles de Brasil ni siquiera fueron revisadas por el árbitro principal.

¿Hubo ayuda del árbitro a la canarinha?

 

Escuche el primer episodio de 90′ + Cinco, con Maria Hernández y Octavio Sequera, nuevos integrantes del equipo de Cinco Razones Podcast, en el que se refieren a lo que vive Messi cuando juega con la selección argentina.

 

Foto de Lucas Figueredo / Confederación Brasileña de Fútbol

 

 

Dwyane says hello, J-Rich says goodbye

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It’s not official official until July 6th, when the NBA’s free agency moratorium ends, but everyone knows Jimmy Butler is coming to the Miami Heat — including the guy most responsible for recruiting him here.

So Dwyane Wade, who had warm sentiments for outgoing players Josh Richardson and Hassan Whiteside on social media, went back to Instagram to let Butler know publicly what he’s surely been telling him privately.

With a little mockery of course.

Meanwhile, Richardson was at the Miami Pro-Am, watching his now-former teammate (but still close friend) Bam Adebayo and others.

Richardson received an ovation.

This came after Rook 2 thanked the Miami fans in a way they always wished that LeBron James had.

That was a little different from Whiteside’s departing thoughts — which the wife of new Heat center Meyers Leonard had some fun with.

Welcome to Miami, Elle.

 

 

Florida Panthers

Bobrovsky Signing Continues Great Offseason for Florida Panthers

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Lost in the wake of NBA free agency, the Florida Panthers have had a tremendous offseason thus far.

The Panthers displayed Heat-like savvy this week signing elite goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky.

That has been overshadowed of course by the events over the last 24 hours consuming this market.

Perhaps rightfully so.

NHL officials however should look at the timing of their free agency period, which aligns almost exactly with the NBA.

In signing Bobrovsky to a 7-year, 70-million dollar contract, the Cats mean business.

Only Carey Price makes more average salary in terms of goaltenders.

After bringing in veteran head coach Joel Quenneville, Dale Tallon has reloaded the Panthers from the goal line up.

 

The retirement of Roberto Luongo left an immediate need in net for the Cats.

Bobrovsky brings an elite goalie in right away to fill the void, and expectations will be high in Sunrise this year.

A two time Vezina Trophy winner, Bobrovsky will stabilize a position that was troubling last year.

Florida ranked 28th in the NHL  in both total goals allowed (273) and goal per game allowed (3.33) last year.

Bobrovsky spent the last seven seasons in Columbus and in addition to the two Vezina wins is a five-time NHL All-Star.

He has a 255-133-37 record over his nine-year career, with a 2.46 GAA and .919 SV% along with 38 shutouts.

Florida also added what many consider the best goalie to enter the NHL draft recently in Spencer Knight, watch out for a profile on him soon.

More Solid Additions

In front of Bobrovsky the Panthers solidified their blue line corps adding veteran defenseman Anton Stralman who spent the last five seasons across the state in Tampa Bay.

Stralman was a major part of the defense on the Lightning and the 12-year vet will add much needed experience and stability to the Panthers’ blue line.

Florida also added forwards Brett Connolly and Noel Acciari in a busy stretch this week.

Make sure to follow on Twitter @SportsWaveDave for the latest in Miami sports.

El Miami Heat de Butler y Adebayo

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El Miami Heat ha estado muy activo en esta agencia libre.

Pat Riley nos volvió a engañar, y volvió a hacer de las suyas para armarle un equipo a la medida de Erik Spoelstra.

Cuando se pensaba que el Heat iba a ver los toros desde la barrera, nos hemos encontrado con mucho movimiento de parte de la gerencia encabezada por Pat Riley.

Jimmy Butler había dicho desde la temporada pasada que quería venir a Miami. De hecho, en uno de los episodios de Cinco Razones Podcast Stefano Fusaro, de ESPN, nos lo había confirmado.

El Heat pudo hacer malabares y conseguir a la estrella que deseaban, y se deshicieron de la pesadilla que se había convertido Hassan Whiteside.

Ahora, nos podemos concentrar a visualizar el posible quinteto titular del Miami Heat y la rotación que va a utilizar Erik Spoelstra.

En el episodio 43 de Cinco Razones Podcast nos encargamos de analizar ese equipo que se perfila hasta los momentos para la próxima temporada, a la espera de que termine el periodo de agencia libre en la NBA.

¿En qué posición terminará el Miami Heat en la temporada regular? ¿Podrían llegar a una semifinal de conferencia al menos con este nuevo roster?

 

Escucha todos los episodios de Cinco Razones Podcast haciendo click en este link. Ricardo Montes de Oca, Leandro Soto y Alejandro Villegas acuden constantemente a los juegos del Miami Heat en el American Airlines Arena. No hay máquina de helados como en el Marlins Park, pero igual se quedan hasta el final de los juegos, a veces, cuando no se van a Bayside… 

Miami Heat

Heat Show Resolve in Wild Open to Free Agency

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The voices of doubt crept into Heat territory after a few lackluster off-seasons.

Questioning of the Riley way.

Dismissal of Heat Culture as a burden not a springboard.

Those voices now must remain quiet, in order to catch their breath.

This team was deemed unsalvageable and lost by local and national media alike.

Now they have done this.

The mutual interests of Jimmy Butler and the Miami Heat were an open secret.

In seasons past that smoke would not turn into fire.

Miami did their best to lure free agents such as Gordon Hayward to Heat Nation.

They just had something missing.

Fast forward to the present and Butler used his leverage to get out of Philly, despite new reports he had a 5-year max offer.

 

Butler wanted to be the number one guy, rightfully so.

The Heat needed that exact piece and made it happen.

It wasn’t smooth sailing by any means.

 

Dallas did not want to add Goran Dragic, instead vying for Derick Jones, Jr and Kelly Olynyk.

Meanwhile, J-Rich was already ditching Heat Culture for some cheese steaks (there’s a joke in here somewhere).

 

In the end it will be mostly forgotten, a slightly embarrassing footnote to an otherwise fantastic deal.

Which would eventually get done.

Within the same deal and lost in the Butler frenzy is a trade that Heat fans have been longing for since 2016.

Miami dealt Hassan Whiteside to Portland for Meyers Leonard and Mo Harkless.

They then flipped Harkless and a future first rounder to the Clippers to free up cap space for Butler.

Andy Elisburg is still the GOAT.

Dallas might regret losing Dragic, and he will be perfect for the same role next year as last.

If he isn’t traded next.

 

Regardless, the Heat have returned to relevance quickly, shedding bloat and keeping the young core mostly intact.

And they may not be done.

Guess who’s on the cover of the LEGEND Edition of NBA 2K20?

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Video games have progressed greatly over the last several decades, and the same can be said about the wildly popular NBA 2K franchise.

The series is consistently at the top of the gaming community, and has slowly progressed into an ESports juggernaut.  In fact, a majority of NBA teams have started to build their own teams to compete.  Everyone plays NBA 2K.  Especially those who are die-hard fans of the sport of basketball.  And when any type of news is announced, it brings the gaming community together, for better or worse.

Today, the fine folks at 2K announced their 2020 cover athlete for this year’s NBA 2K game.  And although the standard and digital editions will bolster new Lakers’ center Anthony Davis on the cover.  The LEGEND edition will have someone a little bit more special, especially to Heat fans.

The man that won three NBA championships in Miami, and also helped recruit Jimmy Butler to South Beach (we hope)-will grace the cover of NBA 2K20’s  LEGEND edition.

Here’s a teaser trailer for the NBA 2K20 news that was released earlier today.

NBA 2K20 will release on September 6 for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and Windows PC. It will also be available on Google Stadia later in the year.

And be sure to buy your Dwyane Wade LEGEND edition of NBA 2K20.

 

 

Heat do the impossible, deal Whiteside, get value

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“There are obstacles, but there are no obstacles.”

It didn’t make sense when Pat Riley said it a little over a week ago. In fact, it was so odd that it made some Miami Heat fans angry.

Anyone want to offer Riley an apology?

He told you that the Heat could move their worst contracts if necessary.

(He also told you that Hassan Whiteside would come to camp and compete and that  Goran Dragic was his starting point guard, but I told you to ignore all of that.)

 

Today, Riley and the Heat dealt one of the worst fits for their culture in recent memory, sending Whiteside to Portland for Meyers Leonard and Maurice Harkless. Who the Heat got back almost doesn’t matter, though both Leonard and Harkless are better complimentary fits here, provided neither is dealt elsewhere. The point here is, Whiteside had to go. It was long past time. And it was unfair to Erik Spoelstra to put him through another season of managing his situation.

We agree with that more than this…

 

It’s not surprising that the Blazers wanted Whiteside. They wanted to max him in 2016, when the Heat probably should have let them. And Jusuf Nurkic, their center, may miss significant time with a major injury. Whiteside is close with the Blazers’ elite backcourt, Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum.

It saves something else.

Us from having to watch players who didn’t care enough consistently.

Do you like the trade?

Apparently.

It’s polling 97-3 in favor on the @5ReasonsSports account.

The Jimmy Butler trade is now a Juwan-like mess

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There’s this perception that things comes easy for the Miami Heat, because of the historic coup of 2010.

That’s not really true, though.

Alonzo Mourning’s kidney disease, right as Pat Riley had given him an enhanced supporting cast.

Chris Bosh’s blood clots, on the very day Riley traded for Goran Dragic for pick-and-pop perfection.

And, of course, way back when, the time Riley said he had to go to a proctologist to get the 10-foot pole taken out of his rear, when David Stern took Juwan Howard away because of a salary cap technicality. The Heat did rebound well by scooping up Dan Majerle, and making some contending runs.

So here we are once more.

We thought Jimmy Butler was being sign-and-traded to the Heat, and he still might be, but there’s now a major snap. The Dallas Mavericks, the third team in the deal, weren’t on the same page as Miami. And reporters in Dallas say, because of it, the Mavericks’ current critical role in executing the overall deal is over.

At first, it appeared Goran Dragic was going to Dallas, though Dragic’s agent had not been informed.

But then…

And so…

This from the resident cap expert who focuses on the Heat:

 

More from other reporters, including the national guy who is most connected in Dallas:

But this is already so far down the road…

We will continue to update.

But the Heat appear to be stuck. They simply cannot allow the trade to be called off. Too much damage will be done to the fan base, but also to the players.

How do you bring your guys back now?

What do you tell Miami?

We, um, messed up?

Hey now, Sandy Alcantara is an All-Star

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The Miami Marlins called up Sandy Alcantara on June 28, 2018, for the first time since acquiring him along with Daniel Castano, Magneuris Sierra and Zac Gallen in a trade with the St. Louis Cardinals for Marcel Ozuna.

One year later and he is heading to the MLB All-Star Game on Tuesday, July 9, in Cleveland.

“I feel great,” Alcantara said. “I feel really happy to get to the All-Star [Game] and represent my team and my family.”

The 23-year-old right-hander has posted a 3.86 ERA and 1.40 WHIP in 13 starts this season and is the fifth Marlins’ rookie to make it to the All-Star Game, joining Alex Gonzalez (1999), Dontrelle Willis (2003), Dan Uggla (2006) and the late Jose Fernandez (2013).

“I’m really happy for Sandy,” Marlins manager Don Mattingly said. “He’s a kid that we feel is getting better through the course of the season, from last year to this year. We still feel like this is the tip of the iceberg for him. Hopefully, it’s one of many.”

The fans picked the starters and the players voted for the reserves. The Commissioner’s Office was tasked with filling out both the National League and American League rosters, making sure that every team had at least one representative. The Marlins are in the middle of a rebuild under new ownership that centers around starting pitching so it was only fitting that one of their best pitchers received the honor.

Alcantara’s next start is at Washington on Wednesday and would be on schedule to pitch during the All-Star Game.