We begin our special edition of Odds & Ends with whispers that the Sacramento Kings are willing to part ways with center DeMarcus Cousins.

Ailene Voisin of The Sacramento Bee reported that “the sense within the organization is (general manager Vlade) Divac is tempted by the prospect of pairing his center with his personally selected coach but that he has become increasingly frustrated by his center’s ongoing issues and, for the first time, is willing to test the market for the two-time All-Star.”

She adds, “Apart from Rondo, Cousins has few friends among his teammates. Several players privately have complained to management about his mood swings and disrespect for those around him…”

Possible landing spots for Cousins include,but not limited to,the L.A. Lakers,Boston,Houston,Miami,and Chicago.

As I wrote last month, it wouldn’t be all so bad if the Kings were to move him. I think he is very talented and a great player,but his attitude and demeanor is hurting this team and was,in my personal view, part of why they missed the playoffs for the 10th straight season. I feel like if you’ve got someone who’s holding you back from any sort of progress and success that it’s time for them,and you,to have a change of scenery. If Divac and the Kings can get a great return on Cousins, it will be the best thing for both the team and Cousins himself.

Dee Gordon of the Miami Marlins was suspended for 80 games by Major League Baseball early Friday morning for violating the league’s substance abuse policy. Gordon,the league’s reigning batting champion, was found to have taken exogenous Testosterone and Clostebol, a modified form of testosterone, according to Yahoo!

Gordon maintains that he is unaware of how the substances entered his system.

It’s pretty sad to see such a talented player like Gordon thinking he had to resort to using substances like this when his natural abilities as an athlete could’ve sufficed as they were. I mean the guy is the son of a former major league pitcher,that’s a pretty good pedigree right there. I hope tales of Gordon and other major leaguers who have been recently nailed for steroid use serve as a wake-up call that if you use this kind of stuff,you,too,will get caught.

I made a prediction before the year that the Oakland A’s would finish dead last in attendance for the season. While we’re only a month into the season,my prediction is pretty close to being right. As of press time, the A’s are 28th in Major League Baseball in home attendance (ahead of only Cleveland and Tampa Bay,respectively).

In contrast,their neighbors to the west,the San Francisco Giants are third overall in attendance and have had the most people come through the gates thus far in the 2016 season.

I get it,the A’s aren’t the sexiest option as far as baseball goes in the Bay Area and I know it’s not worth it to see a game featuring players you aren’t sure will be there in a season or two or even by the end of July when the trade deadline rolls around and the even the venue they currently play in sucks and sometimes has septic issues. All that is understandable, but when there are more than enough fans out there to go to a game and they don’t,it’s kinda sad and makes your franchise look bad. No wonder they have a better road record,they play better in front of bigger crowds.

Are the Oakland Raiders to moving to Las Vegas? If owner of the team and owner of a bad bowl cut Mark Davis has his way,they just might.

Davis has pledged $500 million toward the building of a proposed $1.4 billion domed stadium near the Las Vegas Strip if the team gets to move from Oakland to Las Vegas.

Davis said he hopes to turn Nevada, “the Silver State, into the silver and black state.”

The Raiders were one of three teams earlier this year who hoped to move to Los Angeles. The Rams were approved to move and the Chargers have the option to join them as early as the 2017 season. If the Chargers decide to stay in San Diego,the Raiders then get the option to move to Southern California where they played from 1982-1994 before moving back to Oakland.

There is also still hope that Davis,the Raiders,and Oakland could still strike a deal for a stadium there so the team can stay.
Commissioner Roger Goodell has stated in the past that he would leave it up to the owners to approve any team moving to Las Vegas. I honestly don’t know if the league would ever approve a move to Las Vegas,especially for the Raiders, but if they ever did,it would be a game changer for the league and for Las Vegas. I think it would make it a serious destination for other teams in other sports to move to. There’s still high consideration for the city to get an expansion NHL franchise and a possiblity for MLS soccer to come there as well. An NFL franchise moving there would for sure make it a sexy sports destination in the years to come.

Is anyone else sick of hearing about Johnny Manziel?

I’m pretty sure I’ve asked this question before,but I have to ask it again because it seems like the media cares way too much about this guy than they should.

The former Browns quarterback and complete embarrassment of a human being apparently was at a bar in Ohio watching the draft and calling a reporter a “pussy” and my Facebook news feed apparently thought it was important enough for me to know about.

Here’s my question,who the fuck cares?

I’m done hearing about the newest edition of Ryan Leaf and I’m done hearing about how much he’s not going to change.

Honestly,that’s fine by me as long as I never have to hear this guy’s name again or see him in an NFL uniform. Judging by his actions and his stance on who he is, it’s a safe bet that you and I never will.

Thanks for playing, Johnny Alcohol!