Thank freakin’ goodness, sports fans. We can now return to our regularly scheduled obsessions. After years of speculation, weeks of anticipation and several days of feverish, obsessive anxiety, LeBron James announced on what amounted to an infomercial about him that he will join the Miami Heat next season. He will join guard Dwyane Wade and…

The saddest sports story of the summer so far happened last weekend. It wasn’t captured in big headlines, and it had nothing to do with the World Cup, the NFL or the NBA. Instead, Dontrelle Willis was ”designated for assignment” by the Arizona Diamondbacks. Five years ago, Willis looked like the best African-American pitcher in…

We’re witnessing one of the most ballyhooed off-seasons in pro-sports history. Often referred to as “the Summer of LeBron,” this NBA off-season will feature competitive bidding on three of the NBA’s four best players: Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James, Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade and Toronto Raptors forward Chris Bosh. In addition, another top 10 player, Dallas…

Violinist Regina Carter has covered a lot of musical ground in her last three recordings. In 2003, she recorded a series of etudes and originals, Paganini: After a Dream (Verve) with the famed Guarneri Cannon, the violin used by the legendary Paganini. She was the first African American invited to play the famed instrument, and…

The position of NBA head coach is one of the least understood in sports. Most of the visible things that the coach does — cheerlead, implore his team to play harder, call timeouts when the game is going poorly — are things that any casual fan could do. In the NBA, discerning the difference between…

Age is the one opponent that no professional athlete has ever truly defeated. As the NBA playoffs hurtle toward the later rounds, several of the top players are not only battling to lead their teams into the conference finals, but they are fighting the gravity that age usually exerts on player performance. The moves that…

With the dramatic emergence of Atlanta Braves rookie outfielder Jason Heyward and the new contract extension signed by Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard, the news about African Americans in baseball has turned positive, and the shift may be sustainable. Earlier this week, Howard signed a five-year $125-million-dollar contract extension, which underscores the riches that…

When Jackie Robinson broke the color line in baseball in 1947, he became the public face of integrated professional sports. A few years later, Willie Mays built on that achievement by becoming the public face of baseball. His high batting average, his ability to hit with power, his speed on the base paths and in…

The NBA playoffs are underway, and if all goes well, there will be upwards of 90 games before the finals begin on June 3. This should be hoop heaven for NBA fans, but for me, this wall-to-wall basketball coverage keeps pointing out how television is failing the sport that it helped make into an international…

Every great rapper has a style. Guru, who passed away this week at the age of 47 from causes relating to cancer, had a sound, too. His flow and delivery spoke volumes about his street smarts, savvy and attitude on life. Although he was central to two key projects, the vocal half of Gang Starr…