07/18/17: Rocket base up for grabs

Good morning. It’s Tuesday July 18, 2017 and this is your first early morning Sports briefing.

The Houston Rockets are on the block with team CEO Tad Brown telling press that owner Les Alexander was hunting for a potential buyer. “It’s been my great joy and honor to own the Houston Rockets for the past 24 years,” Alexander said in a release. “I’ve had the incredible opportunity to witness true greatness through the players and coaches who have won championships for the city, been named to All-Star and All-NBA teams, enshrined in the Basketball Hall of Fame, and done so much for our franchise and our fans. And the Houston community has been home to me; I will continue to support the charities I have made commitments to throughout the years.” The Rockets are valued at nearly $1.65 billion, according to Forbes.

Meanwhile, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver released his own statement on the announcement: “Leslie Alexander is a true competitor who always searched for the right move to make his teams better. Under his ownership, he created a culture of excellence with strong management that attracted Hall of Famers, All-Stars and coaching giants and brought two NBA championships and four WNBA titles to Houston. Well-respected around the league, he has been an active and influential owner whose vision helped to grow the game globally, especially in China. Moreover, his philanthropy speaks just as powerfully as his ownership, with local libraries, women’s centers and homeless shelters all benefiting from his generosity.”

ON THE AIR

The end game is in sight for Mike & Mike on ESPN, as the company announced that the long running show will wrap up its 18-year run on Nov. 17. Meanwhile, ESPN Radio’s new morning drive series, Golic & Wingo, will debut on Nov. 27, running from 6-10a, with an initial simulcast on ESPN2 before moving in early January to its simulcast home on ESPNU. Mike Golic, Jr. will join Golic & Wingo from 6-7a daily, and continue to host ESPN Radio’s First & Last from 4-6a every weekday before contributing to the new morning show.

ESPN also reports that its total live audience for coverage of the Wimbledon Gentlemen’s Championship on Sunday saw an uptick of 6% over last year, hitting 2,362,400. According to Nielsen, the TV portion of the audience was up 6%, to 2,316,000 with both years earning a 1.5 rating, according to Nielsen.

Speaking of tennis, Mylan World TeamTennis’ 42nd season will see action on both ESPN platforms as well as Tennis Channel, which announced plans to showcase every match over the next three weeks, including the championship in early August. In all, the network will devote more than 40 hours of coverage to the league this summer, with 15 of them dedicated to five live competitions with the first live match taking place in July 18 at 7p with Philadelphia/New York.

Around the dial, ESPN2 will showcase the Mylan World TeamTennis season starting on July 18 at 7p on ESPN3. This year will see ESPN team up with Mylan WTT to introduce Quantum5X QT-5100 PlayerMics, on-player wireless microphones that capture on-court action. For the first time in professional tennis competition, players will wear wireless microphone transmitters, bringing audio sounds and effects to the league’s live broadcasts.

Univision Deportes reports that its broadcast of the first 12 matches of the Gold Cup averaged 625,000 live Adults 18-49, according to Nielsen. The Gold Cup Mexico/Jamaica match on Thursday at 10p averaged 1.5 million among live Adults 18-49.

ESPN unveiled two more matchups for its Sunday Night Baseball franchise, selecting Dodgers/mets on Aug. 6 and Red Sox/Yankees on Aug. 13. Dan Shulman will have the call of both games with analysts Jessica Mendoza and Aaron Boone and reporter Buster Olney at 8p on ESPN.

RIP to Hall of Fame sportscaster Bob Wolff, who died at the age of 96 on Saturday and boasted a career that included calling Don Larsen’s perfect game in the 1956 World Series and the 1958 NFL championship game between the Giants and Colts.

A CYNOPSIS MESSAGE

Do you have what “It” Takes?

Cynopsis Digital “It List” NOW accepting nominations

We’re looking for executives in digital media who excel in content, marketing, advertising and social media. In addition to receiving this prestigious award, finalists will join their industry peers for an awards reception on Friday, November 10^th at ThreeSixty in NYC.

Companies represented last year included Tivo, MTV, Octagon, BET Networks, Horizon Media, NBCUniversal, E! News, Games for Change, Yahoo!, Crackle and many more.

Nominate before August 1^st

SPONSORSHIP & PROMOTION

WWE is tapping the services of Lagardere Sports to serve as its international sponsorship sales agency. The deal will see the global sports marketing agency leverage its sponsorship expertise and worldwide sales network to develop the partnership portfolio for the global media and entertainment company in all international regions, except China. “WWE is a premier entertainment property that connects with a massive global fan base through exciting live events, and a variety of interactive and engaging content,” said Andrew N. Pierce, Lagardère Sports President & CEO, Americas. “This is an exciting opportunity for us to work collaboratively with a leading property, tap into our extensive network, and create robust brand partnerships to further their global business.”

DIGITAL & STREAMING

The Big Sky Conference is partnering with Pluto TV to carry all of its live streamed sports events on Pluto TV for free including up to 700 football, men’s and women’s basketball, volleyball and selected soccer, softball and track and field events. “We’re extremely excited to announce our new partnership with Pluto TV,” said Big Sky Conference commissioner Andrea Williams. “With the changing media landscape and the rise of cord-cutting, it’s important that the Big Sky adapt in order to allow our fans to stay connected to us.”

ESPORTS

ESL revealed details for its pair of original television series that will air on D|XP, part of the new gaming block on Disney XD. The new shows will include ESL Brawlers and ESL Speedrunners, set to debut on July 20 and in August respectively. ESL Brawlers “tests the limits of some of the most skilled Street Fighter V players to determine the best player over the course of six action-packed episodes.” Meanwhile, ESL Speedrunners serves up a race against the clock to complete each game in the shortest amount of time.

EVO Japan has its game lineup locked in, with the action taking place in Tokyo from Jan 26-28. At play will be seven titles, including: Arms, BlazBlue, Central Fiction, Guilty Gear Xrd, King of Fighters XIV, Tekken 7, Super Smash Bros. 4 and Street Fighter V.

THE MAIN EVENT

Yankees/Twins on ESPN at 8p.

A CYNOPSIS MESSAGE

SAVE THE DATE for the

3^rd Annual Rising Star Awards

September 15 | Midtown Lofts | NYC

These young professionals’ experience spans research, sports, digital, content and marketing and their work over the past year will be celebrated this fall at our annual awards reception. You don’t want to miss it.

Tickets will go on sale soon, but contact Cathy Pearson with any questions!

ON THIS DAY in 1970: Willie Mays records the 3000th hit of his career.

In the Know: Willie Mays played in the World Series as a member of which two teams? (Email [email protected] with your answer and be sure to include your name, company and city.)

Answer to Our Last Sports Trivia Question: Bo Jackson was originally drafted by which NFL team? Answer: Buccaneers. Kudos: Andrew Feingold-Fox News/NY; Hector Calix-MEC/NY; Bruce Jackson-Disney and ESPN Media Networks/NY; Mike Polvere-Optimum Sports/NY; Christian Matthews-Washington Redskins/DC; Tom Lopez-UPS/Atlanta; Mike May-PHIT America/Wellington; Mark J. Crepeau-Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame/Springfield; Matt Fumagalli-Levy/Chicago; Tom Doherty-Starcom Media/Chicago; Lance Davis-ESPN/Milwaukee; Kevin Micklo-Pinnacle Marketing Group/Chicago; Greg Moloznik-GLM Media/Scottsdale; Tom Moore-Kalt Productions/LA; David Westberg-SAG-AFTRA Federal Credit Union/Burbank

Later — Chris

Chris Pursell @VegasandVine
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