Rixon Sports Report - Sat. May 31st, 2015 (Weekend Edition)

- Zion Williamson facing serious sexual assault allegations

- Mets have a new President of Business Ops

- Yasiel Puig wins major court battle

- PBS funding cuts could affect H.S. Sports coverage

Transcript

Thank you for listening to the Rixon Sports Report, the fastest three minutes in sports for the Saturday, May 31st weekend edition.

NBA forward Zion Williamson has been accused on rape, according to a lawsuit submitted to Los Angeles Superior Court on Thursday.  In addition to rape, the plaintiff, known only as Jane Doe, also accused the Pelicans star of sexual, physical, emotional and financial abuse over the span of the relationship that lasted from 2018-2023.  Fox Sports with the full story, which, trigger warning, has some very disturbing allegations.  Williamson’s New Orleans based attorney said the relationship was consensual and casual, and called the allegations “categorically false and wreckless.”  

Man, Steve Cohen moves fast.  After Scott Havens’ departure as the Mets  President of Business Operations on Tuesday, the position has already been filled.  Lew Sherr, the CEO of the US Tennis association has been tasked to fill the role and will start in July.  Sherr will now be tasked with helping the Mets navigate the process of bidding for one of the three available casino licenses that Steve Cohen wants as he attempts to reclassify parking lots adjacent to Citi Field from parkland to commercial land for a casino.  Havens’ is one of a string high-profile departures at the Mets.  More at Fox Sports.

Former Major league all-star outfield Yasiel Puig won a major battle in federal court, as the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit affirmed a lower courts ruling that he could not face repercussions for evidence revealed during negotiations when Puig agreed to plead guilty to offenses related to an illegal gambling operation run by Wayne Nix for which Puig was a client.  The rationale from the courts?  The judge had not yet agreed to the terms of that agreement.  Puig withdrew his guilty plea and we still await trial as he maintains his innocence.

And finally, CNBC Sport with a great piece on how funding cuts to PBS could negatively affect high school sports coverage.  Over the last ten years PBS has invested heavily in covering high school sports, mainly state championships.  The ratings show this bet is paying off, especially in areas where there are no pro-sport teams.  I can support this, haha.  I went to Iowa for a wedding a few years ago and the whole town shut down on Friday night for football, it was a real “Friday Night Lights” experience.  President Trump signed an executive order looking to cut federal funding to NPR and PBS in early May. 

Thank you again for listening to the Rixon Sports Report.  As always you can find links to these stories at RixonSports.com