The day after the MLB All-Star Game is generally regarded as the slowest day in sports of the entire year. There are no MLB events. The NHL, NBA and NFL are on break. Everyone goes into shutdown mode. It would have been a great day for, say, the NHL to announce its schedule ... but that anticipated event didn't happen. Instead, we were left to odd items throughout the day — confirming, we suppose, the vast slowness of it all.
1Tim Hardaway Jr. went on Twitter to clear up what is apparently a misconception: "My father is not Penny Hardaway. It's Tim Hardaway." Next tweet: "That's why my name is Tim Hardaway JR." Well, yes, that's usually how it works. Hardaway Jr. was a first-round pick by the Knicks in last month's draft, and he is most definitely the son of the former NBA player who shares his name. Penny Hardaway was also a former NBA player — Anfernee, officially — but he is not the father. So cancel all DNA tests.
2Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Manziel appeared at SEC media day, which we imagine is something like Super Bowl media day combined with the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show. Manziel disputed a report that he had been sent hom from a recent Manning Passing Academy appearance for partying too hard. "I'm still going to live my life to the fullest," Manziel told reporters, ensuring, unfortunately, that the uncomfortable poking and prodding of a fun-loving 20-year-old will continue.
3 A nearly 10,000-square-foot home in Florida that belonged to Daunte Culpepper was foreclosed upon, the AP reported. He bought the house in 2006 for $3.6 million after joining the Dolphins. But he played just one season in Miami, and 2006 was about the worst possible time to buy a house. You'll recall that Culpepper once signed a $102 million contract with the Vikings, but he received only a fraction of that money.
4 In a true sign of boredom, reports emerged Wednesday that the Lakers are hoping to pursue LeBron James or Carmelo Anthony in free agency ... next year. Never mind that James is trying to win a third consecutive title with Miami. It was a classic made-for-ESPN.com story, complete with speculative sources.
michael rand
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