IN ONE MORE MONTH, OUR SEASON BEGINS!

Running the National Basketball Association is like

fulfilling that famous curse "May you live in interesting

times." Since becoming commissioner on Feb.1, 2014,

Adam Silver's interesting times have included

Donald Sterling's racist rant, Bruce Levenson's 

drug related suspensions of players, salary-cap

debates and player lockout rumors. He has always handled

all of this with fairness and integrity. Just as important for

him in giving us great games is to give us also some

great role models. Achieving that goal would be his

greatest legacy.

U.S. Olympic committee  selects L.A. as its bid city for

the Summer Games just hours after City Council gives

its O.K.  The 2024 Summer Olympics, despite numerous 

questions over event costs and the logistics of housing

thousands of international athletes, is still vying for the

games to be here in Los Angeles. Against the backdrop of

a Santa Monica beach, U.S. Olympic Committee CEO

Scott Blackman announced the selection of the nation's

second-largest city for the 2024 Games.

The sprawling Olympic Village, which would be built

near downtown with mostly private funding, is tethered

to a series of financial assumptions and question marks.

The city does not own the land that is now used as rail yard

nor do they know how much that property might cost. So

these details are still very much up in the air for discussion.

Regardless  of how the Lakers or the Clippers finished

our last season, the events since created plenty of intrigue

for early-season match-ups in L.A. on the 2015-16 NBA

Schedule released just recently.

The Lakers season opener against the Timberwolves

features the two top picks in the last NBA draft. The

Lakers will be on national TV 28 times, including a

Christmas Day home game on ESPN against the other

L.A. team ( Clippers).

The Lakers and the Clippers'  four match-ups include 

back to back games on April 5th. and 6th., (part of a 

difficult stretch to end the Lakers' regular season.)

One scheduling concession for us is the absence of the

annual Grammy Awards road trip. Staples Center will 

host the event during the All-Star break on Feb. 11-18.

In Obit.column we noted that Darryl Dawkins,

age 58. (former star in NBA) has died.  He died  having

earned the moniker "Chocolate Thunder"  and was

evidently beloved around the entire league.

Also, noted, Lou Tsioropoulos, age 84, has died. He 

was a Kentucky basketball standout at 6'.5" and was

in the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame. His size + dual

talent drew the attention of then-Kentucky coach Paul

Bryant. We bid these two former players goodbye.R.I.P.

BABS WELLS