Wisconsin Sports Headlines – 6/4/2020

The Latest Sports Headlines: 

>>Russell Wilson Focused on Police Brutality, Not Football

(Los Angeles, CA) — Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson did not want to talk about football during a video conference call Wednesday. The former Wisconsin Badger told reporters, “none of that matters compared to life and what the black community is going through right now.” Wilson said,”the reality is that me as a black person, people are getting murdered on the street, people are getting shot down, and the understanding that it’s not like that for every other race.” Wilson’s voice at times quivered in his first comments since George Floyd’s death while in police custody last week and the protests against police brutality it has sparked throughout the country. He said his great-great grandparents were slaves and that he has always understood “that racism is real.”

 

 >>Packers QB Rodgers Speaks Out For Social Justice

(Green Bay, WI) — Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers is calling for social justice as protests spread across the country after the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis police custody. On Instagram, Rodgers recalled in 2017 when other NFL players were kneeling during the anthem to protest racial injustice, Packers players were ripped for a show of solidarity standing with their arms linked together. Rodgers wrote, “A few years ago we were criticized for locking arms in solidarity before the game. It has NEVER been about the anthem or a flag. Not then. Not now. Listen with an open heart, let’s educate ourselves, and then turn words and thought into action.” Rodgers doesn’t mention Drew Brees in his post, but it comes after the New Orleans Saints quarterback’s comments that he would never kneel for social activism.

 

>>Former Packers Executive Peter Platten Dies at Age 80

(Green Bay, WI) — The Green Bay Packers are mourning the loss of former executive Peter Platten. The longtime member of the Packers Board of Directors died Tuesday at age 80. President and CEO Mark Murphy said “I will be forever grateful to Pete. He took a big chance in hiring me, someone without Green Bay ties.” Murphy says he loved working with Platten and he had a brilliant business mind and nobody knew the history of the Packers better than him. He sent condolences to his wife Bonnie and the Platten family. Former Packers president/CEO Bob Harlan credited Platten’s longtime financial experience as crucial in charting the organization’s course in the late 1990s.

 

>>UW Forward Roque Named USA Today Women’s Player of the Year

(Madison, WI) — Another big honor for Wisconsin women’s hockey player Abby Roque. The senior forward was honored by U-S-A Today as the 2020 Bob Allen Player of the Year. This award comes after Roque was named the U-S-C-H-O Player of the Year, the W-C-H-A Player of the Year, a first team All-American and a top three finalist for the 2020 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award. She led the Badgers to a 28-win season while also making her debut with the U-S Women’s National Team. Roque said, “It was a big surprise, obviously, a great one.” The Badgers were looking to defend their NCAA title when the COVID-19 pandemic ended the season.

 

>>NBA Board of Governors Expected to Approve 22-Team Orlando Proposal

(New York, NY) — The N-B-A Board of Governors is expected to approve a league proposal today for a 22-team restart of the season in Orlando, Florida (Thursday 11:30 a-m). The plan calls for 13 Western Conference and nine Eastern Conference teams to begin an eight-game schedule to determine playoff seeds. When the NBA suspended its season on March 11 because of the coronavirus, the Milwaukee Bucks held the best record in the league. In the West, Memphis, New Orleans, Portland, San Antonio, Sacramento and Phoenix would still have a mathematical chance of earning a spot in a play-in series. In the East, Washington would have to close within four games of Orlando or Brooklyn to trigger a play-in series on that side of the bracket.

 

>>Milwaukee Brewer President Stearns Still Optimistic About 2020 Season

(Milwaukee, WI) — Milwaukee Brewers team president David Stearns remains optimistic that there will be baseball this year and a postseason. Reports Wednesday indicated MLB rejected the recent proposal of the players’ union for a 114-game season with no salary cuts. Stearns told reporters on a Zoom call “I firmly believe we are going to have baseball this season.” He also talked about the death of George Floyd in police custody and the demonstrations across the nation. He said the Brewers are “committed to taking every action we can to fight racism and to fight the silence that can surround it.” Stearns believes that baseball as an industry, as a social institution, ” can in some small way be a part of the healing process here.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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