Tax filings say tennis stars paid Dad as their Manager

From today’s Palm Beach Post

Lawyers suing tennis superstars Venus and Serena Williams have uncovered details in their father’s income tax filings that they say demonstrate “extensive inconsistencies” in the Williamses’ testimony about their financial relationship with their father.

The records show Serena and Venus Williams paid their father, Richard Williams, nearly $2 million in “management fees” from 1998 to 2000. The famous sisters have said in previous sworn statements that he was only a coach and mentor who did not manage them professionally.

The attorneys, who represent two tennis promoters suing the sisters for allegedly backing out of an exhibition tournament, shocked the Williamses’ defense team when they dug up the tax records in Richard Williams’ own divorce file in Palm Beach County court. Caught off guard, Richard Williams’ attorney tried unsuccessfully this week to have the tax filings sealed from public viewing.

The records offer a glimpse into the financial dealings of the man who raised the most successful siblings in tennis history, both of whom are Palm Beach Gardens residents. His attorney blasted the placement of the records into the case file as a violation of his privacy and an empty legal ploy, dismissing the “management fees” as a mischaracterization by the Williamses’ accountant.

But the promoters’ attorneys say the records undermine the Williamses’ claim that they did not breach a contract by backing out of the 2001 tournament because their father was not their manager and thus did not have authority to commit to the event.

Venus and Serena Williams have testified that their father was only a coach and mentor. Their actual manager, they said, was the sports marketing giant IMG.

And Richard Williams has testified that his daughters have paid him only for tennis instructions since the early 1990s.

Two promoters, Carol Clarke and Keith Rhodes, are suing the Williams sisters and their father because they say the sisters backed out of a contract to participate in an exhibition tournament called “Battle of the Sexes II — The Wow Event,” which was to be a reprise of the legendary 1973 match between women’s tennis great Billy Jean King and male player Bobby Riggs.

Richard Williams signed a letter in March 2001 committing them to play later that year. However, the sisters’ attorneys say because their father was not their manager he did not have the authority to make the deal.

What is dumber, lying to the IRS or lying in court? I can imagine Venus and Serena’s taxes are quite complicated, but that doesn’t excuse them from their testimony. Richard on the other hand looks like he committed perjury.

I do tax preperation work for a living. It never fails to amaze me how some famous people get tripped up by mistakes on their taxes or their faliure to disclose their income. They make enough money to hire professional help but seem not to want to use it properly. I would advise the Williamses to quietly settle this lawsuit. Their legal and tax problems may be just starting.

NBA Player Lonny Baxter Arrested Near White House

An NBA player was arrested overnight for firing gunshots near the White House.

Lonny Baxter, a forward on the NBA Charlotte Bobcats and a former University of Maryland standout, was arrested on weapons charges early this morning by uniformed Secret Service agents after they received reports of shots being fired a few blocks from the White House. Secret Service Spokesman Eric Zahren said that a civilian flagged down an officer about 2.30 a.m. to report the sound of gunfire in the vicinity of 18th and H Streets, NW. A few minutes later, officers pulled over an SUV at 17th and I Streets, NW and found in plain view spent shell casings.

It’ll be interesting to learn the story behind this. While 18th and H is indeed quite close to the White House, it’s even closer to the IMF and World Bank.

Now, anti-trade protestors often target these buildings, especially during international conferences. Sometimes, for reasons I’ve never figured out, they wear turtle suits. Baxter is a former Maryland Terrapin. Their mascot? A turtle. Their motto? “Fear the turtle.”

Could there be a connection?

Well, almost certainly not. Still, if it turns out that Baxter is an anti-trade zealot, you read it here first.

OTB

Matt Leinart Signs with Cardinals

Matt Leinart has signed with the Arizona Cardinals, the last first round pick in the 2006 draft to do so.

Matt Leinart ended his two-week holdout and signed with the Arizona Cardinals. The team announced the signing late Monday night and Leinart was expected to begin training camp Tuesday.

The six-year deal can bring the rookie up to $51 million, agent Tom Condon said. Leinart will be guaranteed $14 million, according to Condon. Earlier Monday, Arizona Cardinals coach Dennis Green criticized Leinart and his representatives for rejecting “a more than generous” offer from the team. Leinart was the last first-round pick to reach a contract agreement. ESPN first reported the agreement on “Monday Night Football.”

The agreement came three days before the Cardinals will end their camp at Northern Arizona University. They play at New England on Saturday.

After winning the Heisman Trophy, Leinart might have been the No. 1 pick in the draft a year ago, but decided to remain at USC for his senior season. This year, he unexpectedly fell to the Cardinals at the No. 10 spot, a tumble that cost him millions. He was the first quarterback chosen in the opening round by the Cardinals in 19 years. Leinart was the second quarterback chosen in the draft, behind Vince Young of Texas, who went to Tennessee with the No. 3 pick overall, and one spot ahead of Jay Cutler of Vanderbilt, who went to Denver. Young signed a six-year contract worth up to $58 million, with $25.7 million guaranteed. Cutler signed a six-year deal worth as much as $48 million, with $11 million guaranteed.

It looks to me like Leinart essentially got the slotted deal his draft position entitled him to under the NFL’s rookie system. Why a holdout was necessary to get to that point, I don’t know.

It is rather amusing, however, when players try to negotiate on the basis of where they think they should have been drafted. Both Reggie Bush and Leinart tried and failed to do that this year.

Did the NFL Ban the Spike?

Scout.com’s article on new NFL rule changes has to be wrong. According to their interpretation the league banned the post-touchdown spike [emphasis mine]:

Individual players are prohibited from using foreign objects or the football while celebrating. They are also prohibited from engaging in any celebrations while on the ground. A celebration shall be deemed excessive or prolonged if a player continues to celebrate after a warning from an official. Previously, players were not prohibited from using props or celebrating on the ground.
Reason for the change: Promotes sportsmanship.

Taking the football and slamming it into ground looks like a violation of the rule to me.

A Hampton Roads (Virginia) Daily Press story puts the rule change this way [again emphasis mine]:

Another rules change will prohibit an individual player, not just two or more, from engaging in prolonged, excessive or “premeditated” celebrations. Players also cannot use a prop, such as the ball, to celebrate – a point illustrated in the video shown Thursday at Redskins Park by Washington running back Clinton Portis’ resuscitation of the pigskin last season.

As a response to Chad Johnson’s hijinks this is quite extreme. What next, banning the Lambeau Leap?

“NFL Rule Changes for 2006″

[Cross-posted to The American Mind.]

Cowboys Safety Justin Beriault to Retire; Never Played

Dallas Cowboys safety Justin Beriault will retire from football after two seasons of being unable to stay healthy through training camp.

Parcells said 24-year-old safety Justin Beriault will retire because of ongoing problems with his right knee. The Cowboys’ sixth-round pick in 2005 spent all of last season on injured reserve following risky dual surgery to repair torn medial and lateral meniscus in his right knee. No known NFL player has returned from Beriault’s osteotomy surgery, including former Cowboys linebacker Kalen Thornton, who had the procedure performed the same day as Beriault’s last year. “Both of those kids had the same exact surgery and it’s a very serious surgery,” Parcells said. “It’s not just a repair. They did some structural things to both of them. “There’s really not much more that we can do for (Beriault) at this moment. There’s nothing else that we could do. In fact, I told him very strongly, ‘I don’t think you should ever play again.’”

That’s truly a shame. Not only did the Cowboys have high hopes for Beriault, who apparently looked like a starting candidate during his first preseason, but the young man obviously worked hard for a lot of years to get a shot at playing in the NFL. Being good enough but not healthy enough is sad, indeed.

Junior Seau to Retire

Junior Seau has gone back to San Diego to announce his retirement from professional football after being released by the Miami Dolphins after two injury plagued seasons.

Junior Seau, a 12-time Pro Bowl linebacker who played with the San Diego Chargers and the Miami Dolphins during a 16-year NFL career, will announce his retirement Monday. Seau will make the announcement at a news conference scheduled for 7:55 ET Monday evening at Chargers Park.

The 37-year-old Seau spent the past three seasons with Miami after being acquired from San Diego. He was released by the Dolphins in March after missing 17 games the past two years due to injury. He finished both seasons on injured reserve, and an Achilles tendon injury limited him to seven games in 2005. Seau ended the 2004 season on injured reserve because of a torn pectoral muscle.

In spring 2003 the Chargers, feeling that Seau’s best years were behind him, allowed his agent to shop for a trade. Seau then was sent to Miami.

ESPN is running a poll question: Is Junior Seau a Hall of Famer. I would certainly think so. Granted, he only went to one Super Bowl and his team was blown out in it. Still, twelve Pro Bowls should make the man a Hall of Famer. At the moment, 79% of those taking part in this totally meaningless, unscientific poll concur.

Bettis Thinks Cowher Is Done After This Year

Various Pittsburgh media outlets are reporting that the Bus has found somewhere he ISN’T greeted with roses in the streets – Cincinnati, where fans still feel bitter over losing Palmer to a Steeler hit in the playoffs last year, and then going on to win a Super Bowl. He just made his first appearance as an analyst on NBC’s football coverage.

Oh, yeah, I almost forgot. Bettis doesn’t think Cowher is returning next year. Via WPXI:

He wasted no time making a prediction about coach Bill Cowher and Cowher’s future with the Steelers.

“I really think this is the last year for Coach Cowher in Pittsburgh. I talked with him after the season was over and he was really a different coach, a different guy,” Bettis said.

I suspected as such. Cowher has done just about everything an NFL coach can do – he’s won at every level. The only thing left is winning back to back Super Bowls: other accomplishments after that point are either icing on the cake, or so unattainable that it isn’t worth staying around just to see if you are the guy to do them unless the circumstances are JUST right.

NC State may soon have a be-jawed atheletic director, if the rumors are correct.

Gene Wojciechowski has more, if you are interested in reading more speculation.

Stephen Jones, Cowboys Multi-tasker

Todd Archer has an interesting profile of 42-year-old Stephen Jones. While he started with the Cowboys as a 24-year-old with little experience other than having been a star quarterback in high school and a decent linebacker at Arkansas, he has emerged from his father’s shadow and earned the respect of his peers across the league.

Stephen Jones’ title is a sign of just how much he does for the team: executive vice president/chief operating officer/director of player personnel/president of Texas Stadium. His day begins at 6 a.m. and ends whenever it ends. His cellphone goes off hundreds of times a day. E-mails overload his computer. Those face-to-face meetings are now conference calls while he is in Oxnard. “Stephen has the ability to multitask,” said Jerry Jones, his father and owner and general manager of the Cowboys. “It’s one of his biggest skills. He can cover a lot of ground. He was educated as a chemical engineer (Arkansas, Class of 1988), and when I was in college, not only was I never in the chemical engineer building, I’d walk blocks around it to make sure I’d never stumble in it.”

Sure, he got the job because his dad owned the team. But he’s smart, works hard, and has slowly learned the business.

“He’s very calm under pressure, and we were in situations that were tense,” said Dick Cass, president of the Baltimore Ravens and former Jones family attorney. “I think he makes Jerry’s life a lot easier by having someone there with the critical decisions that he can trust, whether you’re talking the signing of Deion Sanders or challenging the NFL’s business practices.” In recent years, he has helped get the Cowboys out of salary-cap trouble left over from the Super Bowl run and put them in a position where they can pay megamillion-dollar bonuses to free agents such as Anthony Henry and Terrell Owens while re-signing Pro Bowlers such as Jason Witten and Roy Williams before they became free agents.

“I hate to say it like this, but I don’t think he takes himself too seriously,” said agent Jimmy Sexton, who represents six Cowboys players and Parcells. “He always says to me, ‘Jimmy, this isn’t too hard. We should be able to figure this out.’ He tries to find solutions to make a deal.”

While he can walk with agents and players and personnel men, Jones also can keep pace with politicians and billionaire owners, something New England Patriots president Jonathan Kraft, one of Stephen’s best friends in the league, said is rare in the NFL. “Stephen is so full of life, so charismatic,” Kraft said. “Clearly, he’s a Jones. People enjoy being around him. He’s not a negative person. He doesn’t speak ill. He’s very smart, and he doesn’t have to let you know he’s very smart. He’s down to earth.”

Considering that he stands to inherit the whole shooting match when his dad steps away, it’s good to know that the team will be in good hands.

Hall of Fame Wide Receivers a Dying Breed?

Hall of Fame sportswriter Rick Gosselin argues a lot of great wide receivers are being left out of Canton for no good reason.

As a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame selection committee, we seem to collectively have decided no wide receiver is worthy of Canton until Jerry Rice becomes eligible. We’ve lost sight of what greatness is. The Pro Football Hall of Fame needs to define what a Hall of Fame wide receiver is for us. Is it the statistics? Is it the championships? Is it big plays in big games? Is it longevity? Is it consistency? Is it sizzle? What? The selection committee needs some guidance here.

If it’s statistics, Monk would be in. He set NFL records for most catches in a season (106) and career (940) before retiring after the 1995 season. He also played on three Super Bowl championship teams. He’s been a finalist for the Hall of Fame each of the last six years but has been voted down by the committee every time.

If it’s championships, Irvin would be in. He won three Super Bowls with the Cowboys in the 1990s as Troy Aikman’s go-to guy. He also has the stats. Despite a career shortened by a neck injury after 12 seasons, Irvin still ranks 13th on the all-time receiving list with 750 receptions. Irvin has been a finalist for the Hall the last two years but has been voted down both times.

If it’s big plays in big games, Pearson belongs. Remember the Hail Mary? Yet he’s never been a finalist.

If it’s longevity, Irving Fryar with 851 catches in 17 seasons ought to be in. He’s another guy who can’t get to the finals.

If it’s consistency, Reed belongs in. He played for the Buffalo Bills for 15 years and caught at least 50 passes in 13 of those seasons. He went to four Super Bowls and ranks fourth on the all-time receiving list with 951. But he’s another guy who has never been to the finals.

If it’s sizzle, Bob Hayes belongs. The nickname says it all – Bullet. But Hayes was voted down by the committee in his only appearance as a finalist in 2004.

The committee elected Lynn Swann in 2001, John Stallworth in 2002 and James Lofton in 2003. Now, for whatever reason, the tap has been turned off. I’m not sure any of those three would be re-elected if they returned to the 2007 ballot. If 1990s inductees Tommy McDonald, Charlie Joiner and Steve Largent had to repeat the process in today’s climate, I doubt any of them would get in, either.

It’s a fair point. Indeed, aside from being spectacular in two Super Bowls against my Cowboys, it’s not at all clear that Swann was one of the great wide receivers of all time. But, certainly, Monk, Hayes, and Irvin belong. Probably Reed and Pearson, too. They were all great players for teams that went to multiple Super Bowls. That should be enough.