Ex-NBA player Rice shot at Atlanta restaurant
Former NBA player Glen Rice Jr. was shot in the leg during a fight at a restaurant in downtown Atlanta owned by rapper T.I. on Sunday night and was later charged with reckless conduct and possession of marijuana, police said on Monday.
The incident involving Rice, who played parts of two seasons with the NBA’s Washington Wizards, began as a “verbal altercation” inside the Scales 925 restaurant and then continued outside with a fight in the parking lot, where Rice was shot in the leg by a man wearing a red shirt, police said.
Restaurant security cameras showed Rice, 24, running from the parking lot after the shooting and throwing a black revolver onto a stairwell before being picked up in a black Porsche, according to police reports.
Rice was driven to a local hospital, where police found marijuana and a passport belonging to him in a bag left near the Porsche, police said. Rice also was carrying $6,000 in cash when he was shot, police said.
Police did not say what caused the incident and did not identify the shooter.
Cavs’ James to play Tuesday
LeBron James’ aching back is on the mend and the Cleveland superstar says he will play in the Cavaliers’ season-opening contest against the Chicago Bulls on Tuesday.
James missed nearly two weeks of practice after receiving an anti-inflammatory injection in his lower back. He has practiced the past two days and will be on the floor to extend his streak of playing in the season opener to 13 straight seasons.
James said he was never worried about missing the contest despite speculation that he might need to sit out. Now he is just concerned about playing basketball.
“We’re not going to put too much on the first game of the season,” James told reporters. “We’ve put in a lot of work over the last few weeks, and you can only try to get healthy, work your habits, work your rhythm and our last few practices have been very good.”
Cederstrom named World Series crew chief
Gary Cederstrom was named crew chief for the 2015 World Series, which begins Tuesday in Kansas City.
Cederstrom is in his 22nd year as MLB umpire and working his third World Series, his first as crew chief, and will head a crew comprised of Mike Winters, Mark Carlson, Mike Everitt, Alfonso Marquez, Bill Welke and Jim Wolf.
The seven umpires — a group that includes the two rotating replay officials — worked a Division Series together earlier this postseason.
Welke is the home plate umpire in the opener of the 111th World Series, which pits the New York Mets against the Kansas City Royals.
Predators ink Ekholm to six-year deal
The Nashville Predators signed restricted free agent defenseman Mattias Ekholm to a six-year, $22.5 million contract Monday.
The deal carries an average annual value of $3.75 million.
Ekholm, 25, has a goal and two assists in seven games this season, giving him 30 points (nine goals, 21 assists) and 66 penalty minutes in 152 career games since the 2011-12 season.
In his second full NHL season in 2014-15, the Borlange, Sweden, native doubled his rookie point total to 18 points (seven goals, 11 assists), improved the plus/minus rating by 20 points (plus-12 from minus-8) and increased his average ice time by more than two minutes (19:00 from 16:49).
