HoopsHype.com Rumors

While his teammates gathered in a Memphis hotel room to watch the Super Bowl, it seems Ron Artest had his own plans. After Sunday’s practice, he hopped aboard a plane and flew to Dallas for the big game. Photos don’t lie, do they? After the game, the Lakers forward posted this picture and comment on his Twitter. Gotta hop on jet back to Memphis The game was crazy!!!! ! Orange County Register

Los Angeles Lakers, Ron Artest, NFL 

Apparently, quite cheekily, the brain(s) behind Major League Baseball's Twitter feed pounded out a simple Tweet following last night's Super Bowl, one that said, simply, "Baseball." A nice sentiment, considering the fact that the football season, finally (in the first week of February, mind you) has ended. Pitchers and catchers are a few weeks away from reporting, and according to Punxsutawney Phil, the warming season is near. So why not oil up the glove, and prepare for baseball's endless march toward fall? Because there's basketball to be played, you dullard. A game dependent on motion, quick thinking, athleticism, and teamwork. All those wonderful things, as opposed to baseball's pastoral and very Anglo isolationism. The NBA, before chickening out, thought the same thing. It quoted the MLB's Tweet, RT'd the thing, and added "No" before it. And it was quite funny, until the NBA thought "better" of it, and deleted its Tweet. Not before the great Jon Bois saw and saved a screen grab of the reply: Yahoo! Sports

NFL, MLB 

Sports Business Daily has just released a new Harris Poll which indicates that NASCAR is the fourth-most-popular sport in America, ranking ahead of the NBA, the NHL, NCAA basketball, golf and — shocking, I know — the WNBA, among many others. The poll, which surveyed Americans who follow at least one sport, found that 7 percent of respondents named auto racing as their favorite sport. Not bad, considering the competition, but the runaway winner is, of course, the NFL (31 percent), followed by baseball (17 percent) and college football (12 percent). More statistical goodness: the percentage of adults who named NASCAR as their favorite sport in 1985 — you know, the good ol' days — was 5 percent, and it's up 2 percent since then. (Basketball has seen zero growth over that same period, and baseball has seen a decline of 6 percentage points.) Yahoo! Sports

NFL, Owners, NHL, NASCAR 

Watch out Dustin Keller, Ron Artest wants your job. The outlandish Lakers forward said on ESPN’s “Pardon the Interruption” that he wants to play in the NFL and in a “perfect world” he would be tight end for the Jets — a position currently held by Keller. “If I did get the opportunity I would not have a preference for a team because I am not good enough where I can choose, but in a perfect world it would be tight end for the Jets,” Artest, a Queens native, said. New York Post

Los Angeles Lakers, Ron Artest, NFL 

Although some Lakers fans are debating whether that attitude is part of the team's latest struggles, here's some uplifting news. "I definitely want to bring the NFL back to Los Angeles," Johnson said before announcing he's working with AEG's Tim Leiweke. "We're going to come together and bring the NFL back to Los Angeles." Los Angeles Times

Los Angeles Lakers, Magic Johnson, NFL 

The act sent the wrong message to the team, Johnson argued, and it's something he said would've prompted him to "beat his butt or kill him" had someone such as Anderson played on Johnson's Lakers squad, considering Anderson showed more anger in his post-game news conference than in the game itself. And Johnson wasn't laughing one bit when he said that, even if Kimmel and the studio audience expressed amusement. "He would've been cut today," Johnson said of Anderson, something Sports Illustrated NFL writer Peter King reported will be Anderson's fate following the season. "I would've gone to Dr. Buss, Jerry West and Coach Riley and say, 'Get him off our team.'" Los Angeles Times

Los Angeles Lakers, Jerry West, Magic Johnson, Jerry Buss, NFL 

In an interview airing later this week on CBSSports.com, Artest revealed that he intends to try out for an NFL team when his contract with the Lakers is up after the 2013-14 season. Artest, who taped the interview at the Lakers’ practice facility on Saturday, his 31st birthday, already has divulged that he’s been training for a second career as a heavyweight boxer when his basketball days are over. Little did we know that there’s another professional sport Artest wants to try. Then again, knowing him, of course there is. “God willing, after my NBA career, God willing I’m still athletic enough – which I’m trying to take care of my body as best as possible and be prepared for this day, for this tryout of an NFL team,” Artest said. “... It’s a fantasy of mine. It’s an opportunity because I’m athletic. So if that fantasy can be fulfilled, and if it’s something that can really be reached as far as a goal, I’m going for it.” CBSSports.com

Los Angeles Lakers, Ron Artest, NFL 

When asked if he has any interest in bringing an NFL team back to Los Angeles, Johnson laughed long and hard before saying he hasn't have any discussions with the league, but that he "really, really wants the NFL to come back to L.A." "Would I be interested? Of course I would be interested," Johnson said. "Have I talked to anybody about it? No. But I would love ... I would do that in two seconds." Los Angeles Times

Magic Johnson, NFL 

It took the better part of the 2010 calendar year, but the St. Louis Rams' ownership question is finally settled. Stan Kroenke, the Rams' minority owner who also owns the NHL's Colorado Avalanche and the NBA's Denver Nuggets, was approved by a full and unanimous vote of the NFL owners. Kroenke already owned 40 percent of the team; now he's buying the remaining 60 percent of the shares from Chip Rosenbloom and Lucia Rodriguez, the children of deceased former owner Georgia Frontiere. The sale was forced by estate tax issues. "We are delighted with today's vote by NFL owners,'' Kroenke said in a statement released by the Rams. "It is one of the very high points of our long association with the NFL. We look forward to working with our fellow owners and Commissioner (Roger) Goodell as the transaction is finalized and in the years ahead. "Building organizations that win consistently is a challenge that we understand. We are excited about the opportunity as principal owner of the St. Louis Rams.'' FanHouse

Denver Nuggets, Stan Kroenke, NFL 

Dolphins wide receiver Brandon Marshall said Thursday that if NFL teams lock out the players next year, he will try out for the NBA. Marshall said he plans to audition for either the Denver Nuggets or the Miami Heat. "My first team will be the Nuggets and my second team will be the Heat -- I'm serious," Marshall said. ESPN.com

Miami Heat, Brandon Marshall, NFL 

Asked to clarify whether he will pursue a basketball career if there is no NFL season in 2011, Marshall said: "Not pursuing -- I'm going to be on an NBA team. Seriously." Marshall said he was good enough to play shooting guard professionally. The Pro Bowl wideout played basketball at Lake Howell High School in Florida and frequently attended NBA games in Denver. Marshall, who signed a four-year, $47.5 million contract extension after being traded from Denver to Miami in April, didn't expect to be playing football at this time next year. "There's not going to be any football," Marshall predicted. "If there's a lockout, I have to find a job. I figure the Nuggets will be a better choice because of the welcome home cheer I'll get -- a couple of boos at first. I'm gonna get with a basketball coach and get to work, prepare for the lockout." ESPN.com

Miami Heat, Brandon Marshall, NFL