Did Drew Brees Have To Apologize For Having An Opinion?

By Tony Mangia

The notorious one-two punch of cancel culture and social media has once again shamed and bullied another prominent public figure onto the canvas by dismissing his first amendment rights and, at the same time, bring a good man to both knees for speaking his mind.

These technological beatdowns are all too common in our country these days and always seem to be in retaliation for anyone whom the Twitter social justice warriors deem to be in denial of one of their causes or gripes.

This time it’s family man and all-around good guy Drew Brees who has been cyber-bullied into an apology for voicing an opinion which didn’t jive with the Issue du Jour during an interview with Yahoo Finance — namely kneeling during the national anthem.

Submit or be condemned seems to be the norm nowadays.

Kneeling protests — started by former NFL player Colin Kaepernick four years ago — are once again a controversial sports talking point after the tragic, unnecessary police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis —even though no pro athletes are even suited up and may not be for a long time due to the COVID-19 lockdown.

On Wednesday, Brees, the perennially liked and respected quarterback for the New Orleans Saints — that’s until he voiced his opinion — was overwhelmed with criticism for having the audacity to say he doesn't agree with anyone kneeling during the pre-game playing of “The Star-Spangled Banner” out of respect for the servicemen and women who have sacrificed their lives for our country.

Brees said:

“I will never agree with anybody disrespecting the flag of the United States of America or our country. Let me just tell what I see or what I feel when the national anthem is played and when I look at the flag of the United States. I envision my two grandfathers, who fought for this country during World War II, one in the Army and one in the Marine Corps.

"Not just those in the military, but for that matter, those throughout the civil rights movements of the ‘60s, and all that has been endured by so many people up until this point. And is everything right with our country right now? No, it is not.

"But I think what you do by standing there and showing respect to the flag with your hand over your heart, is it shows unity. It shows that we are all in this together, we can all do better and that we are all part of the solution.”

Brees cited the military — a general reference to the men and women who have sacrificed their lives for our rights, including freedom of speech, during the Revolutionary War which our country was borne, the Civil War which helped abolish slavery, the World Wars ending genocide and every battle under our flag up until this day. He mentioned his grandfathers who served and praised the protestors of the civil rights movements who fought their own struggles as Americans as well.

The line, “I will never agree with anybody disrespecting the flag of the United States of America” from the interview is what seems to hit a sore spot with his critics. It suggests Brees considers anyone who kneels disrespectful of the flag and our country. It's hard to think a person like Brees meant it to be anything like that but, on the other side, it’s just as easy to  assume angry players are kneeling just to show contempt of all police — most of whom don’t deserve it — too.

Later, Brees apologized for his remarks by saying, "I will do better."

But how could all of the offended groups and individuals — including some teammates and fellow athletes who know Brees and played alongside him for years — twist Brees viewpoint into an anti-black sentiment and then spread it like a pandemic all over social media?

It’s easy with the power of mob mentality and a far-reaching social media following like LeBron James has.

WOW MAN!! 🤦🏾‍♂️. Is it still surprising at this point. Sure isn’t! You literally still don’t understand why Kap was kneeling on one knee?? Has absolute nothing to do with the disrespect of 🇺🇸 and our soldiers(men and women) who keep our land free. My father-in-law was one of those https://t.co/pvUWPmh4s8

— LeBron James (@KingJames) June 3, 2020

That's the same LeBron who, among numerous NBA players, threw his support behind China and tossed the freedom-fighting protestors in Hong Kong under the corporate bus.

Brees is a family man, the father of four children who was front and center helping victims of Hurricane Katrina and is a long-time and well-known charitable member of the mostly black New Orleans community. Brees has probably done more for the city than any other player on the team and deserved to be given a chance to explain his thoughts —  if they weren't  clear enough in the interview — prior to being publicly chastised and before the same people who probably accepted his charity in the past started chanting, “F—k Drew Brees“ during a protest in NOLA the other night.

Malcom Jenkins, Brees’ teammate of five years before joining the Eagles and re-signing with the Saints in March, gave an emotional and honest rebuke of Brees first amendment rights by comparing playing football to a war and battle field. 

“The same brothers you break the huddle down with every single game,” he said on a Twitter video. “Guys you bleed with, go into battle with have to go home to communities that have been decimated…”

I recorded a few videos when thinking of how to respond to Drew Brees, I don’t take any of it back-I meant what I said-I removed the 1st video because I knew it be more about the headlines. I want people to understand how those of us struggling with what’s going on feel pic.twitter.com/T054qt0YEz

— Malcolm Jenkins (@MalcolmJenkins) June 3, 2020

While Brees was recognizing the sacrifices of real service men and women as his motive to not kneel and salute the flag during the national anthem, Jenkins was using that tired, old sports war cliche comparing playing a game where 22 grown men line up to push a ball across a field to actual combat and how it seems he might not want Brees back in those million dollar pigskin trenches. Maybe there’s some deep rooted animosity there? I doubt it and haven’t heard anything to the contrary but, I have definitely never heard a word about Brees being racist before all this.

Brees’ philanthropic efforts go far beyond the ordinary man, or most NFL players for that fact.  His passion for giving back to the fans includes all races and Brees has nothing to prove otherwise. The NFL star's extracurricular actions have already spoken louder than a few misconstrued words. Being strong-armed to apologize — especially by teammates — was basically an insult to the man's character as a whole.

But a couple of black Saints players did come to Brees’ defense.

Former Saints wide receiver Joe Horn, who told The Athletic’s Jeff Duncan that Brees “has done a lot to help black families and the black community in New Orleans” but still said he needs “a chance to think about what he said and come back and make this right.”

And current Saints defensive end Marcus Davenport tweeted that although people don’t have to entirely agree with Brees, he wasn’t talking about the “current protest, the riots or anything besides HIS feelings on kneeling.”

Joe Horn: People like LeBron James criticizing Drew Brees don't know him https://t.co/CQ4GrHmnXh

— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) June 4, 2020

It’s a topsy-turvy world we live in these days where only a week ago law-abiding citizens were arrested for opening up their gyms or cutting people’s hair to pay their bills while law-breaking punks ran free looting, rioting and running amok in our streets. And when a couple of Ivy League lawyers only get charged with causing damage by fire and explosives after handing out molotov cocktails to rioters and tossing a lit one into an occupied police cruiser, you know perspectives are askew.

Kneeling prompts a brittle and fine line between what is considered a symbol of anti-police brutality or just plain police hatred that we sadly must decipher in these times.

So, down the road, will standing with your hand over your heart during the national anthem be considered racist? Does kneeling mean you are disrespecting the police, the military or the flag? 

What about what you say or tweet?  It’s hard to tell what passes for a political “dog whistle” these days. 

There are many players and personnel who have been rightfully cut or fired for outright racist or threatening tweets or remarks but when Sacramento Kings broadcaster, Grant Napear, is canned for tweeting “all lives matter” when asked by NBA player, DeMarcus Cousins, about his opinion on the Black Lives Matter movement, it leaves you wondering where that signal starts and ends. Napear was fired after a controversy-free, 32-year career.  

Drew Brees should not be the scapegoat for all that angers many of us. He didn't condemn anyone for kneeling during the national anthem in addressing that hot button question. Brees plainly said he will stand during "The Star-Bangled Banner" to honor our military. And he deserved better than getting caught up in this whirlwind of protests, agitation and symbolistic politics.

We all do.

If you want to kneel during the national anthem, kneel. If you want to stand during the national anthem, stand.

But don't apologize for it.

Working MLB Spring Training Security In Times Of Coronavirus

Story and photos by Tony Mangia

I have been working security detail during spring training for a Major League Baseball team in Florida —usually about five or six weeks every winter—over the past three years. It’s temporary position that allows a person like myself to have a part-time job, chat with people and earn a little extra income on the side — all while in a sunny, outdoor baseball setting. Along with about 50 other men and women — many retired with law enforcement, military and even some jail guard experience — we are the front line of protection at each minor league stadium at every game during the months of February and March before the regular season starts.

The security team incorporates three different steps at the ticket holder entrances to make sure the players and patrons are safe on the practice fields, locker rooms and while sitting in the stands or enjoying the concourses filled concession stands and facilities, respectively. 

Game day entrants must first pass through a physical inspection where our guests are asked to empty their pockets into a small bin while their bags are hand-checked for for banned items like alcohol, knives, mace, explosives and firearms (Well, it is Florida and many individuals have legal conceal and carry permits) along with have-to-be-checked in items like beach chairs and umbrellas. Next, patrons pass through a metal-detecting magnetometer — which we call The Mag — and if you set that baby off, you have the pleasure of being wanded by our third line of protection with an hand-held metal detector.

Pretty much standard procedure at any stadium or public gathering these days and the results prove that security details like ours are universally successful as both a result and a deterrent. 

Every year Floridians like to sneer that we have to withstand the influx of snowbirds who bring down their colds and flus from up north. But this year there is a new threat coming from wherever which could possibly appear at our gates and stealthily affect the well being of everyone inside. It is called COVID-19 —  otherwise going by the less scientific name of coronavirus.

While it’s easy to find an errant knife or bourbon-filled flask within our three-step physical and technological screenings at the stadium entrances, the invisible menace of this viral infection is impossible to detect at any gate without specialized medical testing kits.

Now, with the heavy national media coverage of the coronavirus hitting close to home —  a couple of deaths in Florida attributed to the serious respiratory illness — MLB’s spring-training sports venues like where I work are taking steps to limit the possibility of contracting the virus.  While discussions about contamination have been a summarily hot topic while working at the security gates, there’s still way more friendly chatter because we try to make the extra wait in line as pleasant and innocuous as possible for the patrons as well as me and my fellow workers.

So when someone in line coughs and then tells you they just got off a cruise, you wince with concern before pulling that bottle of hand sanitizer from your pocket after they pass. And there are lots of cruise ships docking in Florida.

Florida is also filled with the most susceptible victims of the airborne Coronavirus  — which has killed over 4,000 people worldwide — namely senior citizens and retirees. Some of my co-workers might go by that label as well and a good portion of our game patrons are of advanced age with health concerns. Although, at least outwardly, most of them seem more concerned with the dip of the stock market than a rise in coronavirus. 

But our stadium team’s concerns and safety of the fans aren’t taken lightly.  At every game we screen through all-sized bags filled with crumpled tissues, hairbrushes, diapers, used sippy cups and other personal items which have touched who-knows-what before they got to the stadium. Even without the threat of coronavirus, the task of a security person can be slightly intrusive and let’s say a little yucky.

So with three entrance gates containing 10 security checks welcoming an average of about 4,000 people for each of 16 exhibition games, I figure I will physically come in contact with at least 6,400 unfamiliar individuals at the gate this month not to mention touching their personal nicknacks and the various face-to-face chit-chats and numerous hand-to-hand fist-bumps  — which have replaced the more exposed high-five — fans expect me to respond to. 

That’s a lot of person-to-person interaction.

Our management has taken exceptional steps to help prevent the contamination of public facilities by coronavirus including providing more hand sanitizer dispensers around the stadium. The cleaning crews spray down bathrooms, disinfect the doors, handles, railings and even the stadium seats are wiped down before each game. It also minimizes the spread of the common flu too. 

As for the gate watchers, we have rubber gloves, disinfectant wipes and use sticks to probe through bags while looking for contraband. We even joke that the magnetic rays of the Mags might help kill off the virus. They don’t.

The lighthearted puns help hide a subliminal concern among me and my co-workers and, although nobody has quit and I have yet to see a face mask on a patron or a worker, you don’t have to be germaphobe to use common sense and take simple precautions like washing your hands more often and avoid touching your face. And the occasional “thank you” from an attendee makes us feel appreciated for doing the dirty work so the Grapefruit League games can thrive here in Florida during this unpredictable coronavirus scare.

While the new, extended foul line netting at stadiums makes it more difficult for fans to make contact with the players, that longtime ritual of getting up close with them in a more relaxed, small town atmosphere at spring training has been curtailed. MLB recently sent a memo to all 30 teams (15 which train and play in southern Florida) telling players avoid taking balls and pens from from fans because of coronavirus. Most players will still sign a few things — albeit wearing their batting gloves — but some teams have barred them from direct signings and distribute pre-signed items instead. 

MLB and local stadium crews are taking the coronavirus seriously, but the games are still fun and exciting while we do our best to make it a safe place to come out and enjoy a beer and a hot dog in-between the strikes and home runs.

Just say thanks to the event staff while you’re there.

UPDATE

MLB is delaying the start of the 2020 regular season by at least two weeks in response to the coronavirus pandemic, the league announced Thursday.

The league also said in a statement that spring training games have been suspended, starting at 4 p.m. ET Thursday.

Commissioner Rob Manfred and the league's owners held a conference call Thursday afternoon to formalize the plan.

"MLB will announce the effects on the schedule at an appropriate time and will remain flexible as events warrant, with the hope of resuming normal operations as soon as possible," MLB said in its statement.

The announcement came while some spring training games in Florida were still in progress. MLB followed the NBA, NHL, MLS and college basketball tournaments in altering schedules because of the pandemic.

MLB had been scheduled to open its season March 26, with all 30 teams in action. Manfred left open whether each team still would play 162 games.

NBA rears its true hypocritical head by kowtowing to China over Hong Kong

By Tony Mangia


The NBA is used to putting out troublesome posting brushfires set by careless players on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and just about any social media outlet these days, but who knew a single tweet by an respected team general manager would create an international firestorm that could reveal the league in its true hypocritical colors and bring its most prominent figures to the forefront — many groveling on their knees — trying to blow out the fire.

Last weekend, Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey sent, then later deleted, what may be the most truthful — and at the same time divisive — tweet in NBA history. A few words supporting the pro-democracy protestors in Hong Kong which could potentially lead to an NBA corporate breakdown in the burgeoning China market and pull the rug out on its perceived Liberal political activism .

"Fight for freedom, stand with Hong Kong," said the deleted tweet, but not before the pissed off Chinese got wind of it.

Not only did the tweet cause angry Chinese bureaucrats and authorities to threaten pulling out of all business dealings with the NBA (The Chinese-state run network has already pulled broadcasts of both Nets vs. Lakers games this week), it is showing the so-called woke NBA as the hypocritical business-first conglomerate it really is. 

The Chinese market is estimated to be about 10% of the league's total current revenue and expected to reach 20% by the year 2030. The NBA has a $1.5 billion streaming deal with the Chinese media Tencent at this moment.

The beholden to China hypocrisy starts with such usually outspoken socially-conscious NBA figureheads as the commissioner Adam Silver, and trickles down to the league's  most successful head coaches Steve Kerr and Greg Popovich.  Sure Silver and the NBA promote social justice for causes like Black Lives Matters, cancels an All-Star Game in North Carolina because of a transgender bathroom controversy and allows its fraternity to rail at President Trump's policies, but when it comes to China — their authoritarian business partners in arms  — and foreign human rights violations they are quiet as sheep.

The never at a loss for words Kerr (his own father, an international studies academic, was assassinated by Muslim terrorists in Lebanon) when it comes to mashing Trump is suddenly Sergeant "I know nothing" Shultz about the violence in Hong Kong.  And Popovich, who never met an interviewer he gave more than five words to unless it was criticizing the President sits on the fence regarding such an outrage as the Hong Kong protests.

These three can't even hold a blank-strap to Trump when it comes to playing tough with China and its sinister business dealings.  It seems all those human rights offenses that have been documented by the media for years proves that the league only cares about money.

Silver defended Morey's right to send the "regrettable" tweet and claims he won't put profits over principles.

"The NBA will not put itself in a position of regulating what players, employees and team owners say or will not say," Silver said in a statement. "We simply could not operate that way."

Chinese sponsors and sporting goods manufacturers are already bailing on the NBA, not to mention the cancellation of special events .

Kerr was even more wishy-washy. 

"A lot of us don't know what to make of it," he said after the Chinese decided not to broadcast this week's games. "It's something I'm reading about, but I'm not going to comment."

Popovich, meanwhile, passed the buck back to Silver — with some sort of pathetically misdirected analogy.

"Adam is a very progressive leader," he said. "We all remember how he handled the situation with the Clippers. It made everyone proud and was the right thing to do. A couple of years ago, I was walking down the street in New York City during the gay pride parade. I turned around and here comes a float, and Adam is standing on a float with a big sign in support of LGBTQ. And I felt great again, just like I did with the Clipper deal."

How's that for a bold political stance.

It's sort of funny that the same coaches who to use their NBA platforms to discredit Trump — who has taken the strongest stand of any president against China's corrupt and unethical business and trade practices — at any chance they get turn to milquetoast when it comes to criticizing NBA's kowtowing to the Chinese Communist Party business power play. 

The NBA's answer to all this?  Bringing in the NBA's newest owner to the into the middle as peacemaker.

Joe Tsai, a Taiwan-born, American-educated businessman who only last month had his purchase of the Brooklyn Nets approved, is hoping to resolve the business aspect of the problem, if not the political.

"When the topic of any separatist movement comes up, Chinese people feel a strong sense of shame and anger because of this history of foreign occupation," Tsai said in a Facebook post explaining why Morey's tweet upset the Chinese.

You have to wonder where Tsai's loyalty lies, considering he owns online retailer Alibaba, China's most valuable company.

On Monday, Rockets star James Harden offered an awkward apology that was basically an early Valentine's card after the news of Morey's tweet hit Japan where the Rockets were practicing for a preseason game.

"We apologize. You know we love China," Harden gushed about Morey's pro-Hong Kong tweet. "For both of us individually, we go there once or twice a year. They show us the most important love."

Expect to see a few other heavyweights in the coming days to step on the scale — willingly or not.
It'll be interesting to know how far Yao Ming and LeBron James' power really extends .

And if you thought the protestors in Hong Kong were the only ones being silenced, think again. On Tuesday night, pair of fans attending at a preseason game at the Wells Fargo Center between the Philadelphia 76ers against a Chinese team the Guangzhou Loong Lions were escorted out of the stands in the second quarter after yelling "Free Hong Kong" and holding up a couple of small protest signs that said the same.

Silver banned the word "owner" from the NBA vernacular for having racially insensitive connotations, but regarding this China conundrum, the commissioner owns it.

Here are the controversial signs. I know, earth shattering right? Obvious why the NBA would have a problem with this. Thanks to @Christie_Ileto for sending me this photo: pic.twitter.com/Y1GydtGked

— Sam Wachs (@gogowachs) October 9, 2019

Tennis star Eugenie Bouchard fulfills Super Bowl bet with fan after Falcons blew game

Canadian tennis star Eugenie Bouchard was seen on a date with an unfamiliar young man at a New York Nets game Wednesday night — the result of a bet she made with the lucky fan on Twitter during the Super Bowl.

Lucky... if you consider watching the Nets anything but torture.

With the Falcons leading the Patriots by 25 points during the game, John Goehrke, a 20-year-old Pats fan, tweeted at Bouchard “If patriots win we go on date?”

Bouchard, who has been trolled by bigger names like the Mets' Matt Harvey in the past, responded to the tweet with a confident, “sure” on a bold wager that Goehrke really had nothing to lose.

Anyway, by now we all now know the Patriots came back to win and we also get to find out that Bouchard is a woman of her word.

Just met my 'Super Bowl Twitter Date' John 😊 On our way to the @BrooklynNets game! @punslayintwoods pic.twitter.com/DHRgY46smd

— Genie Bouchard (@geniebouchard) February 16, 2017

The couple were seated courtside and even go to throw t-shirts into the stands during an intermission.

It must have been a night to remember for Goehrke who can go now back to staring at the Sports Illustrated swimsuit model's photos and troll more celebrities.

OMG 😳😳😳 so honored to be in @SiSwim pic.twitter.com/9HgivK45Rq

— Genie Bouchard (@geniebouchard) February 15, 2017

At least one sure bet was the Nets. They lost 129-125 to the Bucks.

Former Knick Charles Oakley arrested after fighting, getting tossed out of Madison Square Garden

On Wednesday night, Charles Oakley showed everyone the same bruising style that he displayed for decades on the basketball court while the New York Knicks met the Los Angeles Clippers — only this time the retired NBA star did it in street clothes and in the stands at Madison Square Garden.

The former New York Knick forward, known for his physical type of play that made him an all-star and helped the Knicks reach the NBA Finals in 1994, adding another bizarre chapter to what has already been an ugly Knicks season after getting physically removed from his MSG seats and arrested — reportedly on the orders of Knicks owner James Dolan.

Soooooo Charles Oakley just got into a fight at he Knicks game. pic.twitter.com/klZBD89VI7

— Ian Schafer (@ischafer) February 9, 2017

Moments after being arrested and released from Midtown South police station at around midnight, Oakley said that the Garden security asked him to leave because Dolan, who was seated just a few feet away, did not want him there.

“I was there for four minutes,” Oakley said late Wednesday night. “I didn’t say anything to him. I swear on my mother. They came over and wanted to know why I was sitting there. I bought the ticket. I said why do you guys keep staring at me. Then they asked me to leave. And I said I’m not leaving”

Sources at the Garden and NYPD dispute Oakley’s account of the altercation, saying the scuffle was provoked by the former Knick yelling at his longtime nemesis Dolan.

Oakley was asked by several members of Garden security to leave, and then was seen shoving the phalanx of security guards and appeared to take a swipe at one. He even handed his watch to someone seated next to him before being escorted out. 

The white-haired Oakley was charged with three counts of misdemeanor assault by the NYPD, including criminal trespass. A source said that Oakley declined legal representation because he was only hit with a desk appearance ticket. He was released from the Midtown South precinct at around midnight by police and snuck out the back door and into a black SUV, avoiding the waiting press outside.

Still a fan favorite, Oakley has a contentious history with Dolan and has been excluded from invitations and tributes reserved for former players. Oakley claims the owner doesn't like his outspoken criticism of the team and that the team’s slogan — “Once a Knick, Always a Knick” — hasn’t applied to the former All-Star under Dolan's reign.

The Knicks probably could have used old Oak out on the floor. They lost again, 119-115.

Derrick Rose could bring rape case PR nightmare to Knicks

The newest member of the New York Knicks, Derrick Rose, is bringing more than just his talent to the NBA team and, if the former MVP's sexual battery case goes to trial Oct. 4, the first day of preseason and Rose is liable, the Knicks organization could start the season with a PR nightmare.

Outside of suffering numerous injuries with the Chicago Bulls, the star point guard has been accused in a lawsuit of drugging and gang raping a woman along with two of his close friends.

The woman, identified as "Jane Doe" in the suit which was filed in 2015, claims that Rose and two of his friends entered her California apartment and gang raped her in August of 2013.

The 27-year-old Rose denied the allegations but did acknowledge that he had a consensual sexual relationship with the woman. 

In court documents, the woman claims that she became involved, both romantically and sexually, with Rose at a party he was hosting in Los Angeles in October of 2011. The woman, who is suing for $21.5 million in damages, says that she was attracted to Rose because he was "quiet, shy and reserved."

However, she says in the lawsuit that the former Chicago Bulls player's sexual demands made her uncomfortable.

The woman says the 2008 first round NBA draft pick reportedly asked her to have sex with him and one of his friends named Randall Hampton in 2013. 

Hampton along with the point guard's childhood friend, Ryan Allen, are also named in her lawsuit as defendant and was first filed in Los Angeles Superior Court before being transferred to federal court.

  

The trial was scheduled for October 4 by U.S. District Court Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald. That is also the same day that the NBA preseason tips off.

  

The Knicks have yet to comment about the lawsuit against Rose. 

Man with 'Trump Sucks' painted on chest crashes court during Game 4 of NBA Finals (VIDEO)

Television viewers saw Game 4 of the NBA Finals get pretty physical with LeBron James mixing it up with some rough play and verbal scraps with both Draymond Green and Stephen Curry. But what they didn't see was see was what happened in the fourth quarter when a shirtless fan with "Trump Sucks" painted on his chest made a mad dash across the court during a stoppage in play.

Security quickly tackled the knucklehead fan — who ABC refused to show — before escorting him off the floor. Mark Jackson, the former NBA star and Warriors coach praised security for the speed in which they removed the idiot.

#NBAFinals streaker taken down in a cracking chasedown tackle pic.twitter.com/JXCr7eQFwP

— Jon Healy (@JonHealy) June 11, 2016

Golden State won Game 4 in Cleveland and looks to clinch its second straight NBA title Monday at home.

Knicks' Cleanthony Early shot, robbed outside of NYC strip club: Report

Knicks forward Cleanthony Early was reportedly shot and robbed by a gang after leaving a Queens, N.Y. strip club on Wednesday morning.

Anthony was hit with a bullet in the leg after being "surrounded by four to six people wearing ski masks and robbed of his items and jewelry," including a gold necklace and the gold caps on his teeth, according to a report from the NY Daily News.

Early was shot once in the knee blocks away from CityScapes gentlemen's club in Maspeth while he was in an Uber cab. Three cars reportedly pulled up and boxed in the taxi he was sitting in. It is being described it as "a hold up" by police. 

He was taken to Elmhurst Hospital in stable condition. There was no further word on his condition as of 7:30 a.m. Wednesday. 

This early morning incident comes on the heels of Early's teammate, Derrick Williams, getting robbed of expensive jewelry by a couple of women he met in a Manhattan nightclub just weeks ago.

Early, a 24-year-old Middletown native, is in his second season with the Knicks. He was drafted in 2014 after attending Wichita State.

He has played in 10 games this season, averaging less than four minutes and 1 point per game.

LeBron James catches fan calling him crybaby during game (VIDEO)

LeBron James caught a fan mocking him and making a crybaby gesture toward him during Friday’s Christmas Day matchup against the Warriors.

But before the female fan could finish rubbing away her phony tears, she came under the not-so-fake glare of the NBA star himself.

The embarrassed woman might want to keep her own eyes hand-free while sitting courtside. Jason Day's wife knows all about that:

Gregg Popovich gives ex-Spur George Hill's dyed-blond hair a stroke of approval (VIDEO)

During Monday's game with the Indiana Pacers at the AT&T Center, San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich had a little fun with Pacers point guard George Hill.

Pop hadn't had the chance to see Hill's new ultra-blond hairdo in person prior to this game, so he offered his opinion of it to his former player during a break in the action:

Since Popovich is widely known for his sharp sense of humor, we can only guess it came with a pointed quip.

i love the nba hahahahah pic.twitter.com/Np6TGxiPPD

— James Herbert (@outsidethenba) December 22, 2015

But he did compliment the Sisqo look after the game:

After the game, Gregg Popovich was asked about G. Hill’s hair. “I love it. I wish I had the guts he has. That could really turn some heads."

— Candace Buckner (@CandaceDBuckner) December 22, 2015

Knicks' Derrick Williams robbed of $750G worth of bling by two women

It seems like a weekend doesn't go by without some poor wealthy schlub getting fleeced by some women they met partying in one of Manhattan's hotspots.

Now you can add New York Knicks forward Derrick Williams to that list of rubes after he was reportedly robbed of $750,000 in jewelry at his Tribeca apartment early Saturday.

And the NBA player is blaming two women he took home from a Meatpacking District club earlier in the evening, according to the New York Post.

Williams told police that the women knicked a Louis Vuitton jewelry case holding a small fortune of his bling.

“I don’t want to talk about it,” Williams said after the Knicks’ game at Madison Square Garden Saturday night. “It’s still up in the air.”

Williams, who was chosen by the Minnesota Timberwolves as the second overall pick in the 2011 NBA draft, is known for posting pictures of his prized possessions on Instagram including this heavy gold chain with a large medallion bearing an image of the crucified head of Jesus Christ.

“All praise to the most high,” Williams wrote about the “Jesus piece.”

all praise to the most high.

A photo posted by Derrick Williams (@dwxxiii) on May 21, 2015 at 2:50pm PDT

The 24-year-old Williams had been celebrating Friday night’s 107-97 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers with a group of friends at the Up & Down club when he met the women.

Afterward, they headed back to Williams’ Broadway apartment — along with two women whom they had just met and who may have been using false names, the sources said.

After more partying at Williams’ bachelor pad, everyone went home.

But not before the two party girls found the Louis Vuitton case stuffed with three-quarters of a million dollars worth of jewelry in one of Williams’ closets.

The slick females grabbed the contents, and took off, the sources said.

Williams realized his booty was gone at about 4 p.m. Saturday and called the cops.

Toast to life. Special occasions became daily occurrences. And the work won't stop cause goals gotta get met. #GBE

A photo posted by Derrick Williams (@dwxxiii) on Dec 7, 2014 at 2:31pm PST

Police are probing whether the Williams’ theft is part of a pattern of robberies committed by young women who prey upon wealthy, bling-flashing men at clubs and hotel bars, the sources said.

In one case earlier this month, a $590,000 Swiss timepiece was robbed from a Beverly Hills watch dealer by two women he met at a Midtown strip club.

LeBron James crushes golfer Jason Day's wife during sideline collision (VIDEO)

NBA superstar LeBron James collided with the wife of Australian golfer Jason Day in a scary sideline incident at a Cleveland Cavaliers home game on Thursday night.

Ellie Day, sitting courtside with her husband, was stretchered off and taken to hospital after James, chasing a loose ball, crashed into her seat, sending both of them sprawling backwards to the floor.

LeBron James crashes into Jason’s Day wife, Ellie Day https://t.co/YHdgJZ2cU7

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) December 18, 2015

The game was halted for several minutes as medical personnel attended to Day, with James and his Cavaliers teammates looking on. She just gave birth to the couple's second child, a daughter, in November.

Day and his wife, who have a home in Columbus, Ohio, were sitting a few feet from the sideline when the incident occurred late in the fourth quarter of the Cavaliers' 104-100 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder.

"It wasn't anything out of the usual besides the injury," James said of the incident. "But to me, obviously her health is very important and hopefully she's doing well."

"The guys told me she's doing great," James added, although there was no official word from the Cavaliers on Ellie Day's condition at the time.

"I was going for a loose ball. Just trying to keep a possession going and I hate that was the end result of it."

Day was reported to be alert and talking as her husband accompanied her to an ambulance, but was hospitalized overnight for observation before being released early Friday morning.

The 28-year-old Day won his first major title at the PGA Championship in August, twice ascended to number one in the world rankings this year and won Australian sport's prestigious Don Award in October.

Cavaliers coach David Blatt said he had long been concerned about the danger of players like James, six-foot-eight and 266 pounds, colliding with courtside spectators.

After the game, James tweeted his best wishes and apology to the couple.

Ellie Day I hope you're doing okay! My apologies! Hope u guys come back to another game soon. Love LJ!

— LeBron James (@KingJames) December 18, 2015

Sounds like someone's getting free Cavs' tickets for Christmas.

Roy Hibbert posts idiotic tweet about San Bernardino victims

When it comes to the tragedy of the San Bernardino shooting on Wednesday, Roy Hibbert's  heart might have been in the right place, but his fingers surely weren't.

In a prime example of "think before you tweet," the Lakers center shared his thoughts of the tragedy on social media, but it sure came out sounding bad — really bad.

Hibbert tweeted: "Despite losing games left and right my heart hurts more for those affected in the #SanBernardino shooting."

Despite losing games left and right my heart hurts more for those affected in the #SanBernardino shooting.

— Roy Hibbert (@Roy_Meets_World) December 2, 2015

It didn't take long for Twitter users to pounce, with one tweet saying "I'd f---ing hope so Roy, c'mon man" and another adding "Jesus I would hope so. basketball games aren't human lives."

One user responded: "this tweet will be deleted soon. Comparing a mass shooting to losing basketball games.. What a big moron"

Hibbert hasn't deleted the tweet as yet, and I'm sure it was just a case of not expressing himself carefully, but you can bet he'll think first before posting the next time.