USC Releases Top Recruit

By Justin Worsley

Last February, the University of Southern California struck gold when tackle Seantrel Henderson made a late commitment to the school.

Henderson, however, will never wear a Trojan uniform.

USC has announced today that Henderson, who is widely considered as the nation's top recruit this year, has been released from his letter of intent. Henderson, who was also considering Miami, Ohio State and Minnesota, will be eligible to play this season.

Henderson's decision comes in the wake of a two-year postseason ban brought to USC by the NCAA. Along with the ban, USC has also been given severe restrictions on recruiting for the next two years. The punishment comes as a result of former Heisman-winning tailback Reggie Bush receiving improper benefits from a booster.

Miami has been widely considered the second choice for the 6-foot-8 337-pound mammoth from Cretin-Derham Hall High School in Minnesota. USC is hoping that Henderson will still consider USC despite their recent punishments. The university could have forced Henderson to either show up to the football team or be forced to pay his own way through his first year of college or even limit what schools Henderson could look at.

Last year, Henderson was named the Offensive Player of the Year by USA Today. He is the first offensive lineman in the 28-year history of the award to win.

Magic Sign Duhon To Four-Year Deal

By Justin Worsley

Point guard Chris Duhon has agreed to a four-year, $15 million deal with the Orlando Magic, according to the Associated Press. The team is unable to officially sign players until Thursday due to league rules.

Duhon was courted by Orlando when he was a free agent two years ago, however, he was not attracted to the idea of playing in Orlando as a backup to Jameer Nelson, and instead chose to go to New York where he replaced Stephon marbury.

A former Duke star, Duhon, 27, averaged 7.4 points and 5.6 assists per game in New York last season as a starter. Duhon will most likely come off the bench for Nelson, and may see starting time if Nelson is injured or if the team decides to give him time off.

Orlando continues to reload, hoping to bring the Dwight Howard-led team back into the NBA Finals, where they lost to the Los Angeles Lakers in 2009. Orlando's season ended this year in the Eastern Conference Finals, where the Boston Celtics beat them in six games.

First-Round Bust Russell Arrested For Drug Possession

By Justin Worsley

The Summer of 2010 will be a memorable one for JaMarcus Russell and for all of the wrong reasons.

Russell, the 2007 first-overall draft pick, was never able to be the savior of a downtrodden Oakland Raider franchise that went 7-18 during his tenure as the team's starting quarterback. The team released Russell in May, two weeks after acquiring Jason Campbell in a draft-day trade with the Washington Redskins.

His professional career, however, has hit a new low. Russell, 24, was arrested at his Mobile, Alabama home for possession of a controlled substance, codeine syrup. Authorities searched his home with a warrant, which was obtained as part of an undercover narcotics investigation. According to authorities, Russell has not been prescribed for codeine.

Codeine, a opiate, is commonly found in hydrocodone or oxycodone. In liquid form, it is popular in a "Purple drank," a mixture of codeine syrup, soda and Jolly Rancher candy. Authorities did not release the amount of codeine in Russell's possession or whether or not he intended to distribute the controlled substance. Russell was released from jail via $2,500 bond and is scheduled for a court hearing on July 20.

Russell has been trying to re-enter the league, presumably as a backup. Several teams have taken interest in the strong-armed, former LSU star, however, it is most likely that he will be without offers following this arrest. Oakland filed a grievance after cutting the quarterback, seeking between $9.5 million of the nearly $37 million paid to the player.

Knicks Bring In Stoudemire

By Justin Worsley

For once this offseason in the NBA, a person who's name doesn't start with the letter L or D has made the headlines.

The New York Knicks offered power forward Amar'e Stoudemire a five-year, $100 million contract on Independence Day, and the 27-year-old didn't make the Big Apple wait long as he announced on Monday that he agreed in principal to the deal. Stoudemire is unable to sign the contract until Thursday.

The move for New York is the first big change for a team in the NBA this offseason. Many of the big name free agents, including Dirk Nowitzki, Paul Pierce and Joe Johnson all stayed home, re-signing contracts with their former teams. The Knicks were expected to be one of the biggest shoppers this offseason after going 61-103 in the last two seasons. New York entered the free agent signing period with the most money under the salary cap, giving them the ability to not only sign one big free agent, but two.

Stoudemire, a five-time NBA All-Star, has spent his entire year in Phoenix, who selected him with the ninth-overall pick of the 2002 NBA Draft. Last season, however, rumors began circulating that Stoudemire would be traded, seeming to signify the end of his career as a Sun. Stoudemire was never traded, and help lead the Suns to the NBA Western Conference Finals. The 6-foot-10 player opted out of the final year of his contract.

The signing of Stoudemire can also help New York obtain another marquee free agent, including the much coveted LeBron James, who has stolen the spotlight since taking his jersey off after walking off the court in a season-ending loss to the Boston Celtics. The two-time NBA MVP has yet to announce his intentions for next season.

Stoudemire averaged 23.1 points and 8.9 rebounds last season in Phoenix. Since injuring his knee in 2005, Stoudemire has missed only 32 games including starting every game for Phoenix last season.

Jackson, Still Hungry, Returns To Los Angeles

By Justin Worsley

Apparently, 11 NBA titles aren't enough for Los Angeles Lakers head coach Phil Jackson. After two weeks of unsureness in Los Angeles, order has been restored on Thursday after the future Hall of Fame coach announced that he will return to Los Angeles for at least one more season, according to ESPNLosAngeles.com's Dave McMenamin.

Jackson, who will be entering his 11th season on the Lakers bench and 20th overall as a coach, will be vying for his fourth three-peat as NBA champions. In the 90's, Jackson coached Michael Jackson and the Chicago Bulls to six NBA titles. This past decade, Jackson won five NBA titles with the NBA's new poster-boy, Kobe Bryant.

Several things came into play as to whether or not Jackson would return to Los Angeles this season, including his health as well as a potential pay cut. Jackson made his decision after visiting his doctor this week, who gave him a clean bill of health. As for his salary, which is reported to be $12 million this season, that is yet to be seen, however, numerous reports have come out stating that Jackson will allow a pay cut.

Jackson, who will turn 65 in September, has also won two NBA titles as a basketball player for the New York Knicks. In his 19 seasons as a coach, his team has never missed the playoffs and have gone 1098-460 in the regular season. Los Angeles is 122-42 in the past two seasons and has played in the last three NBA Finals.

Utley Expected To Miss 5-6 Weeks

By Justin Worsley

Unfortunately for Philadelphia, the 15-day disabled list isn't long enough for Chase Utley.

The Phillies star second baseman will have surgery to repair a torn ligament in his right thumb, according to a source. Utley, 31, injured the thumb while sliding into second base last Monday during a 7-3 loss. The injury, which occurred in the fourth-inning, didn't stop Utley from continuing playing until the ninth-inning, when he was no longer able to grip a baseball bat. Utley went 1-for-3 in the game.

Utley, who elected surgery after receiving a second opinion, is expected to miss between 5-6 weeks. The loss of Utley is the latest blow to the defending National League champions, who have also lost shortstop Jimmy Rollins, starting pitcher J.A. Happ and catcher Carlos Ruiz for a portion of the season. Philadelphia also placed third baseman Placido Polanco on the 15-day disabled list with Utley due to elbow inflammation.

Utley, who has made the last four All-Star teams, has recovered from several injuries in the past, including a broken hand in 2007 and off-season hip surgery in 2008.

Starting in Utley's place has been Wilson Valdez. Valdez is batting .259 with three home runs and 19 RBIs in 45 games this season.

Ottawa Strikes First In Free Agency

By Justin Worsley

The Ottawa Senators have made the first big move in free agency, signing defenseman Sergei Gonchar to a three-year, $16.5 million deal.

Gonchar, 36, is considered one of the best offensive weapons as a defenseman, scoring 50 points in 62 games last season with Pittsburgh. He helped the Penguins win the 2009 Stanley Cup.

Ottawa will be the fifth destination for the veteran player, who has also played for Washington and Boston. Gonchar was the 14th overall draft pick by Washington in 1992.

Ottawa finished 44-32-6 last season, however, the were bounced out of the playoffs by defending Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh in six games.

Despite missing 20 games last season, Gonchar still led defenseman in points scored. On March 2, he became he first Russian-born player to score 200 goals in the NHL.