Hop you have enjoyed the start to summer. We have.
We need mailbag questions as soon as possible this week - we're headed out of town Thursday night, so we'd like to ace that ASAP.
From the "Talks too much" studios, laces out Dan.
In this Sept. 21, 2012, file photo, former Miami Dolphins quarterback Dan Marino appears at the AARP convention in New Orleans.Marino files lawsuit
And then that happened.
Dan Marino joined the concussion class-action lawsuit against the NFL.
Our feeling on this is mixed.
First, we hate how litigious our society has become. Something's wrong? Let's sue.
And we also have a hard time grasping the claim that NFL players were unaware of the dangers or possible after-career fallout from a violent game.
That said, the NFL is making tens of billions of dollars and is the monolith in today's pop culture. Forget sports, the NFL is the biggest thing on TV, in social media, in gambling circles, you name it.
And it owes a huge debt to the players that helped create this enterprise. Guys that sacrificed and played through pain and were part of the building.
Guys like Dan Marino, who still is one of the most popular Dolphins ever.
The suit was settled last year for more than $700 million but a federal judge ruled that was not enough money.
Here's an idea - let's create a full and complete post-career package for these players that ranges depending on longevity and need. The NFL is the closest thing in sports to a modern-day ATM and taking care of those that help craft is smart business.
This is not about hand-outs or charity or Obama care or any other neo-political, class debate out there. This is about taking care of the people that helped create the Utopia of sorts in which the NFL lives.
And it's the right thing to do, whether the courts are involved or not.
Of course, since there is a real NFL issue to discuss, this will be the time Roger Goodell throws out "Let's move an NFL team to London" or "Should we change the penalty flags from yellow to red and white polka dots?"
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Define a generation
The NBA got the NBA Finals it wanted - a rematch of last year's thrilling Heat win over San Antonio.
It's a match-up of teams and settings that are striking in their contrast. It's part of the charm. In fact, we had a great call on Press Row on Monday wondering why the sporting public romanticizes the Spurs, and it's a fair question. (In part, because they are non-offensive and likable and have built a championship team that has stayed together in the time of free agency and money grabs.)
So it's the glitz and glamour of Miami against the slow-and-steady Spurs. It's the fallout from The Decision against The Big Fundamental. It's dazzle and the Big Three against diligent and The Three Amigos. Daleysports.com ran a poll on who are you rooting for in the NBA Finals and after almost 187,000 votes Florida was the only state in the union pulling for the Heat.
We'll breakdown the rosters and the series later this week, but here's our NBA question of the day: Does this series get to determine the generation? Seriously, a three-peat would be historic for the Heat and cement LeBron's place. The Spurs could win a fifth title under the Pop-Duncan regime, which would be rarified air.
Stakes are high. Steaks are tasty.
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Changing scope of franchise value
Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald T. Sterling, right, sits with his wife, Rochelle, during a Clippers NBA basketball game against the Detroit Pistons in Los Angeles in this 2010 file photo.Today is scheduled to be the day the NBA owners vote on whether to punt Donald Sterling from their billionaire club.
That vote may not be needed since the reported $2 billion bid from Steve Ballmer to purchase the Clippers.
Certainly there are a slew of legal hurdles still left to clear, but this scenario is a dream sequence for all the owners, including Sterling, who will stand to turn a $12 million purchase in 1981 into a $2 billion payday.
It also means the owners may not have to vote, because as we have debated here, the owners assuredly do not want to navigate this slippery slope as Mark Cuban called it.
The owners know the league has been placed in a corner by Sterling and circumstance and even the appearance of tolerating racism and hatred such as Sterling's will not play in the stands or the locker rooms around the league. The owners also know they do not want a precedent set where some recordings can jump start a blackball process that could cost any one of them their favorite possession.
So avoiding any vote on this matter is good news for all of the owners.
Still, the news gets better. Here's a Business Insider look at how the $2 billion bid affects the potential bid of all the teams in the league.
Good times.
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This and that
Edward Snowden- This is hardly surprising, but Oliver Stone - the queen mother of all conspiracy theorists - will do a movie on the Edward Snowden saga. Egad. Imagine the government bashing in that one. Back and to the left.
- The Mets ate 103 Philly cheesesteaks in 10 hours. Discuss. And there were a couple of bullpen catchers for the Mets who ate a combined 31. Are they feeding the help in NYC?
- See this to believe it. It's an Auburn grooms cake shaped like Jordan-Hare with 0:01 on the clock.
- Tim Tebow is strill training and waiting for a comeback shot in the NFL. Here's hoping he's not holding his breath.
- According to ESPN, a Packers fan honored the Green Bay's first-round pick by naming the family cat, Ha Ha Kitten-Dix.
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Miami Heat forward LeBron James (6) checks the scoreboard in a game against the Brooklyn Nets in this May 10, 2014, file photo in New York.Today's question
In honor of Dan Marino, we'll go with three different Rushmores in which he will contend:
Rushmore of Dolphins?
Rushmore of best movie cameos by athletes playing themselves?
Rushmore of best pro athletes to never win a title?
Go and go.
It's go time.