07/19/17: Nike shows off new NBA jerseys

Good morning. It’s Wednesday July 19, 2017 and this is your first early morning Sports briefing.

Nike offered a first look at its new NBA jerseys, each of which are partially made out of approximately 20 recycled plastic bottles. Nike, which is replacing Adidas as the NBA’s official apparel provider starting next season, said the new uniforms weigh less, fit better and remove sweat 30 percent faster than those currently used.

Nike employed 3D-body maps of players, including heat and sweat maps, in designing the jerseys, early versions of which were tested by NBA players on last year’s gold medal-winning USA Basketball team. “The fact that Nike listened to all of our feedback while developing the new NBA uniforms speaks volumes,” said Cleveland Cavaliers guard Kyrie Irving. “I’m excited for the new fit and feel.”

Coinciding with the introduction of the new uniforms, the NBA has eliminated its “home” and “road” uniform designations, allowing home teams to pick which of their uniforms will be worn at home games. Nike and the NBA have worked together to create four core uniforms for each team, including two traditional versions, one inspired by NBA players and a final one inspired by fans or the team’s community.

ON THE AIR

ESPN’s Outside the Lines will air a 90-minute special on Thursday (1 p) that features live coverage of O.J. Simpson’s parole hearing in Carson City, Nevada. Simpson has been imprisoned in Nevada since 2008 after a bungled robbery and a decision from the parole board is expected on the day of the hearing. “The fascination with the life of this former football star, famous actor, and felon – has not waned in half a century,” said Craig Bengtson, ESPN’s Vice President and Director of News. “We need to see how the final chapters in the story of O.J. Simpson play out.”

NBC Sports coverage of the 104^th Tour de France culminates this weekend with the final stages on NBC, NBCSN and NBC Sports Gold. The network will feature more than 280 hours of live, primetime and encore cycling coverage by the time the riders complete the 21^st and final stage – from Montgeron to Paris Champs-Elysees – on Sunday, July 23.

The day after the Tour de France ends, NBCSN on Monday, July 24, will begin five straight days of live swimming semifinal and final coverage from the FINA World Aquatics Championships in Budapest, Hungary. Katie Ledecky, whose five medals at the 2016 Rio Olympics included four golds, highlights the field for Team USA, while fellow medalists Simone Manuel, Lilly King, Nathan Adrian and Caeleb Dressel are also in action. NBCSN’s early coverage from the championships includes the women’s 10-meter platform diving final today.

NBA TV had a 7 percent year-over-year increase in ratings for its coverage of NBA Summer League, which this year featured 54 live game telecasts from Orlando, Utah and Las Vegas. Viewership for the games in Las Vegas, where rookie and No. 2 NBA draft pick Lonzo Ball starred for the Los Angeles Lakers, was up 7 percent alone.

There currently appear to be no interested buyers for MSG Networks, the New York-based regional sports network that owns television rights for the Knicks, Rangers, Devils and Islanders, the New York Post reports. The paper reported in April that James Dolan had started looking to sell MSG Networks, which has seen its shares rise 42 percent over the past year.

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Eight national amateur youth soccer teams have been invited to compete in Univision’s inaugural Prospects Cup, which will be held Dec. 18-22 in Kissimmee, Florida. Among the initial clubs invited by UCI Live, the in-house marketing unit for Univision Communications, are three academy teams from Major League Soccer clubs FC Dallas, LA Galaxy and Orlando City Soccer. Inspired by the Little League World Series model, Prospects Cup is a global event that will bring 16 amateur youth soccer teams from around the world to compete for the sport’s first youth soccer world championship.

The Miller Lite Taproom is coming to Ford Field as part of a multiyear partnership between the NFL’s Detroit Lions and MillerCoors. Miller Lite landed naming rights to the exclusive fan experience that’s being built as part of the stadium renovation project. The Miller Lite Taproom was designed in the feel of a classic Detroit neighborhood bar and can accommodate 200 fans for each Lions home game.

Also in Detroit, the Red Wings will have the largest scoreboard in the National Hockey League at more than 5,100 feet when the new centerhung system opens in September at Little Caesars Arena, according to MLIVE.com. Daktronics is designing, manufacturing and installing the state-of-the-art wrap around video display (28 feet tall and 43 ½ feet wide) that will create a 360-degree viewing experience for fans.

In the wake of Bryson DeChambeau winning his first PGA Tour title this past weekend, RedBull released a “Tin Cup Challenge” video of the cerebral 23-year-old playing a full round of golf using only his 7-iron. DeChambeau comes close to shooting even par in the video, which is homage to Kevin Costner’s character, Roy McAvoy, who in one scene in the movie Tin Cup breaks every club in his bag except a 7-iron.

DIGITAL & STREAMING

Poker fans will be able to access PokerGO’s digital video subscription service on any device at any time through a new partnership with NeuLion, a service provider that specializes in digital video broadcasting, distribution and monetization of live and on-demand content. NeuLion’s digital platform powers over 100 live days of poker per year, including the Super High Roller Bowl and the World Series of Poker (WSOP). PokerGO, which was launched in May by Poker Central, is available in more than 150 countries and also offers fans on-demand access to original shows and programming.

ESPORTS

The Overwatch League could face legal trouble over the likeness of its new logo, which bears some similarities to that of Major League Baseball. MLB has requested an extension from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to file an opposition to the logo, which was approved in March, according to law firm Morrison Lee.

TBS will televise a new four-episode series – ELEAGUE | Road To The International Dota 2 Championships – that premieres Friday, Aug. 4. The feature-length series produced by ELEAGUE follows professional players and teams vying for esports’ largest prize pool (more than $21 million) in one of its most prestigious events.

ROSTER MOVES

Award-winning sportswriter Pete Thamel is joining the Yahoo Sports team as a senior writer after covering college football and basketball for Sports Illustrated since 2012. He also spent nine years at the New York Times as a national college sports writer.

Brandon Igdalsky has joined NASCAR as managing director of event marketing and promotion after previously serving as president and CEO of Pocono Raceway. Igdalsky will lead the NASCAR-Track Council and oversee the team dedicated to working with track partners on a myriad of event-related initiatives.

Laura Hazlett is the new Chief Financial Officer for the Pac-12, which also elevated Erik Hardenbergh to Chief of Staff and named Andrew Walker to VP of public affairs and head of communications. Hazlett, who has four Pac-12 degrees in mathematics, economics and a Ph.D. in management, has valuable experience as a former university and athletics CFO. In addition to stints within the Pac-12 at Oregon and the California-Berkeley, she’s been a professor at Purdue University.

THE MAIN EVENT

Washington Nationals at Los Angeles Angels, at 10 p on ESPN.

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ON THIS DAY in 1933: For the first time in Major League Baseball history, two brothers on opposing teams hit home runs in the same game – Rick Ferrell (Boston Red Sox) and Wes Ferrell (Cleveland Indians).

In the Know: Before the Claret Jug, what item was awarded to the winner of the British Open from 1860-70? (Email [email protected] with your answer and be sure to include your name, company and city.)

Answer to Our Last Sports Trivia Question: Willie Mays played in the World Series as a member of which two teams? Answer: Giants and Mets. Kudos: Phyllis McQuillan-MSG Media/New York; Pete Gautieri-A&E Networks/New York; Michael Ritz-BucStar Consulting/New York; Rick Rosenfelt-NY Red Bulls/Harrison; Joe Schreiber, 3 Penny Films/Bethesda; Austin Kromminga-Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame/Springfield; Michael Goodman-Radio One/Atlanta; Randy Ingram-WISH TV/Indianapolis; John Ward-Tennis Channel/Chicago; John Kukla-KDFW FOX 4/Dallas; Andy Pittman-TAMU/College Station; David Hauptman/Denver; Judie Henninger-Valentine Productions/ Santa Monica; Rick Pike-InterMedia Advertising; Woodland Hills; Nick Monroe-Monroe Photography/San Diego; Tom Moore-Kalt Productions/Los Angeles; John Ferlazzo/London

Later — Chris

Chris Pursell @VegasandVine
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