Vitali Klitschko will make the third defense of his WBC heavyweight title against unbeaten Kevin Johnson, according to Klitschko's manager.
"It looks like he's going to fight Kevin Johnson on Dec. 12 in Switzerland [at the PostFinance Arena] in Bern," said Tom Loeffler of the Klitschko brothers' K2 promotions.
Loeffler also said that it looks as if Vitali's younger brother, 33-year-old Wladimir Kiltschko (53-3, 47 knockouts), will defend his IBF and WBO titles "sometime in March" against Philadelphia's Eddie Chambers (35-1, 18 KOs).
The chaotic scene outside of Veltins Arena resembles that of a big, rock festival.
Inside the jam-packed, 61,462-seat capacity stadium in Gelsenkirchen, Nordrhein-Westfalen -- one of the largest sports complexes in Germany -- the wait is over.
The larger-than-life, world champion Klitschko brothers emerge from separate sides of the ring and climb through the ropes to finally determine who is the king of the ring.
Today the NBA announced the judges for the 2009 NBA Slam Dunk Contest. Since All-Star weekend is in Phoenix this season, the league decided to select a panel of former Suns to judge the contest. The judges are Cedric Ceballos, Larry Nance, Kevin Johnson, Dan Majerle, and Tom Chambers. Of course, all of them were known for their dunking ability at some point during their career. Ceballos and Nance are both former Slam Dunk Contest champions, while KJ, Majerle and Chambers served up a few facials in their day.
So which of this year's judges was the best dunker? Watch some videos of all the judges throwing it down after the jump.
Barack Obama, the free world's new leader and apparently an advocate of this "change" thing, has gained notoriety for his ability to play basketball. Saying hoops was a platform for his campaign may be a stretch, but it was certainly emphasized. However, despite his on-court talents, Kevin Johnson, mayor of Sacramento, and a decent basketball player in his own right, isn't that impressed with the new President. In fact, he called him out recently in a CBS interview, saying he would "skunk" Obama and that the Prez' "first mistake" in office would be to challenge him.
Phoenix Suns great Kevin Johnson has been running to be elected mayor of Sacramento forever, seemingly. Battling a twice-elected incumbent (Heather Fargo), KJ couldn't manage 50% of the vote in the June primary, requiring Tuesday's run-off election. KJ did pull this one off, taking a 57%-42% with most ballots counted.
While KJ's a favorite son, a family-oriented guy who came back once his basketball career ended to help fix local schools, it's going to be a bumper season for investigative journalism around the KJ administration. The number of scandals Candidate KJ has faced already is staggering. It's hard to describe how disliked Fargo; these results don't quite do the sentiment justice. KJ has been accused of covering up sexual harassment charges levied against him by a student when he was principal of Sacramento High School, is under federal investigation for missteps with his educational foundation, has been accused of being a slumlord, and just last week was found to be inside City Hall after hours without reason ... sitting in the mayor's chair. And he still won by 15%. That's how badly the locals wanted KJ elected.
Charles Barkley campaigned locally for KJ a good deal, and Shaquille O'Neal made a trip as well. The city isn't likely to be terribly involved in the ongoing arena issue for the Kings, but KJ certainly can't hurt in his capacity. He's a good friend of the Maloof brothers. Heck, maybe he can suit up for the upcoming homestands? The team could use him.
Word former Suns point guard Kevin Johnson would run for mayor of Sacramento (his hometown) has percolated since January. Yesterday, KJ made it official. (And of course, today the mud is already flying.)
Back then, we addressed the impacts on Sacramento's arena efforts. It helps to look at the situation in Seattle for further perspective. Would a mayor with ties professional and personal to the NBA have helped matters? Yes. I don't think the mess would have gotten this far if the city leaders in Seattle had as keen a relationship to the league as a fellow like KJ does.
Remember, the city of Seattle was seen as a foe, part of the problem for quite a while. It was only when civic leaders bristled at the idea of Clay Bennett skipping out on his lease two years early that the City Council stood up. Even then, it seemed nothing more than a show. And even still, I'd gather the Save Our Sonics contingent reserves caution when relying on the city to stand strong against relocation.
This isn't to say Mayor Slick Watts would have ceded taxpayer dollars to Bennett for a new arena, or Councilman Detlef Schrempf would have been able to consolidate sufficient pushback. But I imagine the Maloofs won't be pulling off something like this with Mayor KJ. One more advocate in a powerful place cannot hurt... and this is why KJ for mayor is important to Sacramento's Kings fans.
Charles Barkley, folks, is white hot these days. We've already been over his Playboy appearance and his interview with Wolf Blitzer where he promised to run for governor of Alabama in 2014. Oh yeah, and he attacked the right wing Christian movement in that same breath, too (and the left wing, to be fair). Well, more to the point of the actual NBA, Barkley was at it again, getting very candid on the subject of the Phoenix Suns in an All Star Weekend interview that was published last night.
• On jealousies: "I don't like the whining that goes on with the Suns. It bothered me that there's this jealousy of Steve that goes around in the locker room. Steve is a terrific player. As I've told Amaré and Shawn, 'You both make the maximum. You both make the All-Star team. What respect are you not getting? And you're winning. What else could there be?' It's very disappointing that it all came into play."
Forgive my relative giddiness, but this is almost too good to be true for folks like me: Sacramento has struggled for years to get cooperation at the local level for help with a new arena for the Kings. Deals have come and been crushed time after time; Mayor Heather Fargo has taken many (rightful) lumps for her inability to bring all sides to the table. (We should note she's done some good things for the city; this is a single-issue analysis.) She expected to walk through this June's election without a challenge.
It is of great interest, then, that retired basketball star Kevin Johnson looks like he'll join the race. KJ, a longtime Sun who was born and raised in Sactown, has been a very popular figure in the city (despite some recent disputes over blighted land his foundation owns). The Sacramento News & Review, which broke this story, quotes an adviser who says recent phone polls have been very favorable for KJ.
I've talked to a half-dozen folks who'd know in the last few hours, and all agree KJ would be a formidable opponent for any incumbent mayor, let alone one such as Fargo who has made some voters angry over the years. But you don't care about local politics; what's this mean for the Kings' local arena hopes?
Since Kevin Johnson returned to Sacramento with promises of rebuilding the neighborhood of Oak Park and fighting for his charter school initiative, most of the community was smitten. KJ's always been seen as a good guy -- in Phoenix and at Cal, as well as in his hometown. And he stuck his neck where many men (let alone multimillionaire 40-year-old retirees) wouldn't.
But, as relayed in a Sacramento Bee feature, some in Oak Park are unhappy with KJ's work to this point. His organization purchased several parcels and buildings with the intention of redeveloping the poor and blighted neighborhood... but the market has halted and KJ hasn't told anyone what's going on.
A Bee story on Sunday noted that half of the 37 Oak Park parcels owned by Johnson or companies and organizations he founded have been cited by the city in the past decade, some multiple times. The 73 violations resulted in 42 fines or fees totaling at least $32,080.
About two-thirds of the properties, The Bee reported, remain vacant or empty even though the organizations have owned a large majority of them for more than five years.
Essentially, folks want KJ to develop the property soon or sell the parcels to someone who will. A frequent comment about KJ's efforts -- going back to his controversial charter proceedings -- is he has trouble delegating power. Perhaps I'm outside the lines, but I think it reflects on his point guard heritage: He's used to having control. Of course, he was a fantastic facilitator in the pros, something he seems to be missing in these endeavors.
Vitali Klitschko will make the third defense of his WBC heavyweight title against unbeaten Kevin Johnson, according to Klitschko's manager.
The chaotic scene outside of Veltins Arena resembles that of a big, rock festival. 
Today the NBA 
Phoenix Suns great 
Word former Suns point guard 
Charles Barkley
Forgive my relative giddiness, but this is almost too good to be true for folks like me: Sacramento has struggled for years to get cooperation at the local level for help with a new arena for the Kings. Deals have come and been crushed time after time; Mayor Heather Fargo has taken many (rightful) lumps for her inability to bring all sides to the table. (We should note she's done some good things for the city; this is a single-issue analysis.) She expected to walk through this June's election without a challenge.
Since 
