I hope that everyone had a fantastic and fun July 4th full of smiles and fireworks. I, for one, did not even stay awake throughout the entire New York show on TV. A day full of sun can be quite exhausting. Jay-Z has a new rap album out with shout outs to Robinson Cano and Kevin Durant. He also has a quick diss of baseball agent Scott Boras. The long-time baseball agent responded publicly that he is a fan of Jazz music. Welcome to the deranged world of athlete representation. This week on FORBES: (1) Anthony Bennett, Cody Zeller And C.J. McCollum Help Excel Sports Dominate 1st Round Of NBA Draft; (2) San Francisco Giants Enhance Reputation As Digital Leader With Creation Of Social Media Café; (3) Aleksander Barkov, Jonathan Drouin And Elias Lindholm Power Octagon Hockey’s NHL Draft Performance; (4) NHL Draft Used As A Vehicle To Make New Jersey Stronger; and (5) NBA Rookies Will Earn Millions, But Will They Keep It? And as always, the weekly wrap-up:
Football
- Strong doesn’t want agents to contact his players until the end of the year [Louisville’s Charlie Strong warns agents to stay away from his Cardinals’ players].
- It’s Jay’s world.. [Jay-Z raps about NFLPA investigation on new record].
- She apparently told Strong he needed to get agents away from her [Teddy Bridgewater’s mom asks Louisville football coach Charlie Strong for help shooing away agents].
Basketball
- The King is back to earning big time money in endorsements [LeBron rules NBA in endorsements too].
- Durant addresses the comments he purportedly stated regarding Jay-Z being his idol [Oklahoma City Thunder: Kevin Durant says Jay-Z partnership doesn’t mean he’ll be leaving town].
Tennis
- Will work with a law firm to provide advise to tennis players seeking representation [ITF launches legal advisory service for junior tennis players].
Sports Law
- Founded by Miami, Florida-based Jill Pilgrim [CPAR RE-LAUNCHES, PROVIDES FREE LEGAL SERVICES TO AMATEUR ATHLETES].
Sports Business
- IMG College may be the sexiest division of the company [More Than Gisele: The Mega-Money Behind IMG].