QUICK HITS: OLYMPICS, BASEBALL AND NEW BASKETBALL LEAGUE

As we pass the halfway mark of the 30th Olympic Games, I have to ask you.  What sport or event have you enjoyed the most? Basketball?  Track and Field? Volleyball? Swimming? or maybe it's been the Gymnastics.  So far, I'd have to say for me, it's been a toss-up between swimming and gymnastics.  Frankly, I've enjoyed women's swimming better than the men.  And where the heck is baseball and softball?  I know the Olympic brass decided to bump both sports, but why would you leave badminton?  And they cheat too!!!

What a glorious night it was when the so called "Fab Five" grabbed the team title in gymnastics. And then two days later, Gabby Douglas snagged the all-around title.  I know quite a few people that didn't want to know the outcome of the the all-around because they wanted to watch the tape delay that night.  I'm still mystified as to NBC's reasoning to only stream the live coverage in the morning and run a tape delay that night.  Isn't Wimbledon shown live?  Like in Breakfast at Wimbledon.  And what a bummer for McKayla Maroney who fell in her lone individual event, the vault.  Maroney, considered the best vaulter in the world,  finished second.  She was a true treat to watch in the team competition.

The athlete I'm truly looking forward to seeing is LoLo Jones.  If ever an athlete needed some good news, it would be her....but through all her trials and tribulations, she has been a true professional.  She kind of reminds me of speed skater Dan Jansen who won a Gold Medal in his last Olympic race after suffering one setback after another.  Jones, who turned 30 on Sunday, will be competing in the 100-meter hurdles.  Round 1 begins on Monday (today).  Best to you LoLo....and not just because you're from Des Moines, Iowa, either.  You've been a class competitor for a long time!!

Will Jones finally be rewarded with Gold?

Major League Baseball is entering the long grueling days of August and September.  It's going to be a run to the finish line for many teams.  For sure, the two wild card teams that will be eligible for post-season play this season will make things even that much more interesting in both the American and National Leagues.  I missed big-time on choosing the all-star winner, but I'll take a stab at the teams I see playing in October.  In the National I think it will be Washington, St. Louis, Cincinnati, Pittsburgh and San Francisco and in the American, it looks like New York, Chicago, Detroit, Texas and LA.

There's a new professional sports league a brewing.  It's called the Basketball Alumni Legends League (The-BALL) intended to give players in similar circumstances an opportunity to pursue their on-court aspirations while remaining relatively close to their college home.  

Still in the early stages, The-Ball's soft launch is planned for next summer with a full schedule in prominent East Coast cities such as the District of Columbia, New York and Philadelphia.  Richmond and Charlotte are to be in place the following year. The league operates only in the summer to accommodate players who also may play overseas or in the NBA's D-League.  The inaugural games took place this past weekend in a showcase between teams representing the nation's capital and Philadelphia. Just what we need, another league.

Thanks for reading,

John