SportsWatcherss New Look: Comming Soon

            We are excited to announce that our website is going under construction. While we are disappointed that we cannot continue to execute the website the way we were at this very moment, we are designing a website to give you the safest, easiest, and smoothest  website on the web. Our concepts and values will remain the same. Therefore, there will be no complete surprises when it comes to who we are and what we do for our returning customers as well as our new customers. While we are in the process of creating our website, we will have a launch page up and running within the next few days. On the launch page,  a registration form will be available. If you register before the official launch,  you will have access to the website a week prior to public release, and will be eligible to win many cool prizes that we will announce within the near future. Thank you for your love and support as we continue to improve what we do for you!

Ben Simmons Signs with Nike

Before stepping onto an NBA court, Ben Simmons already has a locked up a deal with Nike. Simmons and Nike agreed on a five year,  7.5 million dollar shoe deal. For Simmons , it came down to either Adidas or Nike. According to reports , Simmons had the choice to sign with either Nike or Adidas. While Adidas did offer more incentives and more money, Simmons chose to stick with Nike. If Simmons lives up to the hype during his first five seasons, Simmons will be expected to have a much larger contract. At the same time, that will allow for other companies to go pursue Simmons. But for now, he's the newest member of Nike.

Photo via clutchpoints.com

So What is SportsWatcherss?

My company, SportsWatcherss, has a brand new site. It looks completely looks different from the one that we had in the past. Well, there is a reason for that. With our new website, we have finally, finally, finally made a site that people can BUY, SELL, and TRADE sports items on! This has been a goal of ours for a while, so we are proud to now allow any and everyone to be able to do these things amongst each other. 

SportsWatcherss is an online marketplace. When you think of SportsWatcherss, think of a site very similar to Amazon or eBay. On those sites, users can do three things: buy products, sell products, and trade products. The difference between us and them is that we cater to a particular market. We cater to the sports and fitness industry.  Our site makes it easier and better to find anything that people want when it pertains to finding sports items. In a marketplace , people can get a variety of items, even if the items are similar. This gives users many different choices to pick from. The beauty of the market is that it's run by: you, the people. The people are the ones who can purchase items if they like, sell items if they like, and trade items with others if they like.  

Just as our website allows users to sell goods on the site, we also allow businesses to sell their respected items. This can benefit a business in many ways. Selling goods on our marketplace allows for businesses to sell on more than just their site. In addition, our transaction rate of just 8% on all items is lower than most of our competitors. 

While our main focus is the marketplace, we do also have additional features. If you click on our menu bar, we do have a blog in which we write articles about technology, health, and business within the sports industry. Our newest feature is the creation of our snapchat filters. We now create snapchat filters for sports events. This would serve as an excellent marketing tool for organizations since many teens and young adults use Snapchat. This would be cool for participants as well, as this would let them show the world how cool the event they are at truly is!

Here at SportsWatcherss, we strive to make our website a  community. As a company, we promise to do the best that we can to cater to the needs of you, members of the SportsWatcherss family.  You can register as a user on www.sportswatcherss.com. 

App Review: Sport On

Being in the sports technology world, I have always found interest in finding out about how technology would be impacting sports. While there are a plethora of new applications to choose from, one that caught my eye was an app by the name of Sport On. Sport On is a sports app that allows it's users to a number of different things in order for them to follow their favorite teams and truly be a sports team. Let's view a few of the different features that Sport On has to offer. 

Chats

Upon opening the app and creating an account, the leftmost section within the app is the "Chats" section. Within this section, you and your friends can hide their own chats. This is especially fun during games and events in which people aren't together. This is beneficial because it's not like everyone has to have an iPhone in order to have a clean and fast group chat, especially when it pertains to sports. In addition, it being a sports app allows for other things. For example, if two people want to argue about who has more points during the Warriors - Cavs game, they don't have to leave the app to do so. This is definitely a feature that users should take advantage of with their friends. 

Sports 

The Sports app currently contains four different sports: basketball, football, soccer, and cricket. In this section, users can select one sports are view all of the events that have taken place from the three past days all the way up to the end of the season. This feature is an easy way to view all of the things that are happening during that particular season. 

Arena

This is my favorite part of the app. This feature allows for the user to customize what they want to see. For example, in my Arena, I have the Miami Heat, Barcelona, and the Arizona Cardinals. Each of these teams are from different sports, but I have them all in this one particular section. This section allows me to keep up with both teams at the exact same time if I were to be out and about during a particular game. I can also check previous game stats to see how my favorite teams have performed. This section is great for fans that only want to check up on their favorite teams and not an entire league. 

Overall , I think that this is the kind of app that sports fans need. It's a really well designed app, from the detailed sports icons, to the maneuvering between sections. It's focus is good , and will only get better as they continue to grow. If you want to see more , either go on www.sporton.com or to the App Store and download it for yourself!

Real Collegieate Money: College Football Playoffs

As the College Football Playoffs come to an end this Saturday, fans all over the land will be forced to wait until August before we see college football again. While this time of the year is a bitter/sweet time for most fans, this is the absolute sweetest time for the NCAA. According to collegefootballplayoff.com, schools earn money during bowl season in different ways. Here are a couple of ways teams make money:

- Each conference is given a base amount.
-$300,000 if a team reaches a certain attendance in the bowl game.
-$300,000 for each team in a conference that reaches the attendance requirement.
- Notre Dame receives $2.58 million for receiving the attendance amount
- A conference receives $6 million for each team that represents them in the CFP semi-finals
- Particular conferences in NCAA Subdivision (D2, D3) also receives $2.34 million in aggregation alone.

The NCAA does a nice job of trying to distribute a particular amount of money to different conferences, especially the power conferences (top 5 conferences). With that being said, the power conferences alone brought in a total revenue of $2.8 billion dollars in 2014. With expenses being low since they don't have to play college players, the NCAA earned around $1.4 billion. With the college football playoff system in place, at least two more games will be played to determine the champion. In addition to the ticket sales, the NCAA will also benefit from television contracts. According to CNN.com, ESPN and the NCAA has come to an agreement in which ESPN is paying a total of $7.3 billion dollars for the first 12 years of the college football playoffs.

With this year's revenue totals yet to be determined, the college football playoff system will sure increase revenue for the NCAA. Between the college football playoffs and March Madness. So while many universities pride and joy sport is coming to an end, the NCAA's is just beginning.

LeBron earns a life time deal with Nike

Yesterday, multiple reports have indicated that LeBron James and Nike has agreed to a "life time" contract, similar to what Nike has with Michael Jordan but more exclusive. The amount of money that LeBron has made off of this contract has yet to be announcement, but we are sure it will be revealed in due time.

LeBron is coming off of a 90 million dollar contract back in 2003 right before being drafted. Back then, a lot of people questioned Nike for making just a hasty decision. Now, LeBron is worth an estimated over $300 million dollars.

Nike has a plan to make LeBron relevant way past his basketball years, just like Jordan has been able to do. It remains to be seen if LeBron will be able to hold such an influence on the culture after basketball, but Nike has fully invested into LeBron to make that a reality. With Kobe retiring , and KD still trying to get back to his fully dominant ways, LeBron will be a life-long staple to the Nike brand.

How Hard is it to Actually Get a Ticket to this year's Super Bowl L?

In American , this annual sports event is by far the largest one of it's kind. More than over 100 million people around the globe tune-in to watch the superbowl. This event would be a dream come true to many. But how exactly does that happen? If you have the money, is that enough? No way.

According to NFL.com, a number of tickets are given to the two teams. In addition to those tickets, certain businesses are given sports tickets.  After those tickets are given out, you (the public) must enter a raffle in order for a chance to win 2 tickets to the SuperBowl. Registration for those tickets are from February to June. So if you are looking to purchase tickets for this year's SuperBowl, it is unfortunately too late to enter the raffle. With that being said, some of the lucky winners do resell their tickets. The most secure website to search for this is the NFL Ticket Exchange.

Besides the NFL Ticket Exchange, one may get lucky by someone selling their tickets on Stub Hub, Ticket Master, etc. Besides those sites, connections are everything. Good luck with the ticket hunt!

Fitness in the Technological Field

Introduction

Technological advances can be seen across the world. Just over twenty years ago, PC’s were not even in homes. With technology’s advancements, cellular phones, tablets, laptops, and even watches are considered small computers. When it pertains to health, technology has affected the industry in ways that seemed unimaginable, especially in fitness. Using Aristotle’s virtue claim, we will discuss how technology has positively impacted fitness in three sub topics:  exercise, protection, and recovery.

Exercise

Technology has drastically changed the landscape when it pertains to exercising the body. Before we had software trackers on mobile devices, people would rely on different things to track exactly how much they have worked out such as stopwatches.  Even some of the stopwatches weren’t as precise as the devices today. For example, if someone were to run laps around a park, they would more than likely rely on signs that display the distance of a lap. But if one were to run 5 3/43 miles, it would be really difficult for one to exactly know how much they ran at that moment. As time progressed, machines such as the treadmill were developed. Nowadays, programmers have come together with fitness experts in order to create applications that can easily track exactly how much exercise the user is performing. With today’s technology, the exact amount of miles that people run can be tracked through cellular phones, wristbands, and even watches.

With the ability to find out exactly how much people can move around and exercise, it’s important to do so while making sure that the programmers of these companies use good morals. Parallel to many companies around the world, then number 1 goal is to make as much money as possible.  To accomplish this goal, some companies are willing to do whatever it takes, even if that includes harming the customers. In the fitness industry, there are many “contraptions” that supposedly make you nearly instantly lose weight if you use this brand’s machine. This and other negatively used tactics go against the virtue claim that Aristotle explains. The two main characteristics within his claim include character and community. In order to make the community better, we must try to make sure that we are not we are not gaining material items at the expense of damaging other people, which damages the community overall.

Positive advancements are trying to be made when it pertains to the United States.  According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 33% of adults are considered obese. “The estimated annual medical cost of obesity in the U.S was $147 billion in the US dollars”. What is being done to reduce this number? In addition to lower priced gyms, efforts from the Food and Drug Administration, and companies raising awareness about health diseases, technology is being created to encourage more activity targeting people who are overweight. One technology is commonly used is called the gastric bypass surgery. In this surgery, a  portion of the top part of the stomach is sectioned off. As food moves outside of the top par of the stomach, it “bypasses ” the bottom part, and connects to the lower part of the small intestine. The after effects of the surgery do work. However, if exercise is not implemented into the person’s daily activities, they will only re-gain that weight.  Being overweight tends to be more than just a physical issue amongst people. Sometimes, getting lack of exercise can stem from mental blocks as well. A lot of the times, people say that they are too busy in their daily lives, or that they’ve tried to do it before, but they failed. For these reasons, people in the US fail to exercise as much as they should. Developers and sports psychologist have recognized this problem. Programmers have since created apps that allow interaction between people and trainers that can motivate them daily. One example of such an app is Fitmo. Fitmo is an app that connects you with a trainer sets up a schedule, suggest meal plans, and checks up on you through texts and calls. In order to keep people from lying to their trainers, the app connects to wearable fitness technology to track how much one exercises. Applications such as these allow people stay motivated, making them feel like they are not alone in their struggle of exercising consistently.

Around the world, people use different regiments in order to keep people exercising. In Brazil, the exercise of Capoeira is used.  This is an exercise with a mix of martial arts and dance. In Japan, there are warm up stretches that schools, companies, and even capable elderly do called Radio Tasio.  This stretch is done through radio airwaves and it is performed at a set time each workday. This activity is used to unite people and promote good health. Even in China, people are walking backwards in order to improve their posture and use muscles that aren’t used on the regular. The treadmill is one of the main machines that the Chinese use to perform this activity.

Protection

Protection of the body is so important when it comes to fitness. Every year, there are stories of athletes passing away for various reasons. Whether the cause is dehydration,  or a serious unknown internal injury, protection will never be perfected, but it must continue to be improved. According to Stanford Children’s Health, approximately 3.5 million injuries occur each year. There are always stories about people getting injured due to violent physical sports such as football or rugby. What can technology do about it? Well, much technology is being developed to prevent injuries from happening.   

Companies that aid in following Aristotle’s virtue reasoning tend to benefit in multiple ways. Companies are being innovative and producing items that can really aid in the prevention of injury. This benefits all of us as a society.  

In the United States, American football is the most popular sport. With football being such a physical activity, concussions reduction is taking precedence as the main focus for football athletes. More protective headwear is a theme that is constantly looked at in world of football.  A company by the name of Riddell creates football helmets. With the ever-growing concern of concussions, Riddell has added both an attachment system and extra protection for the sides of the helmet in order  for impact to be reduced when a player is hit in the head.  In addition to football, other companies are innovating headwear that can be worn in multiple sports. For soccer, basketball, and any other sport in which athletes wear headbands, there is a company called force field. Force Field has created headbands. A little larger than the average headband, these headbands contain a polymeric layer that wraps around the head to increase protection in crucial areas of the head that headbands can cover.  The best way to prevent a concussion is simply wear sports equipment properly, and make sure that the equipment fits and is worn correctly.

Concussions are not the only injuries that occur. The three most common injuries are the ankle sprain, the groin pull, and the hamstring strain. The best natural way to prevent these injuries from occurring is by stretching before and after activity. While technology is not quite there yet when it pertains to complete prevention of these specific injuries, there are technologies that are used to help prevent serious injury. Ankle braces nowadays use polymeric layers to absorb energy between the joints and the braces. This absorption allows for less wear and tear on the ankle in the long run.  In addition to ankle braces,

Around the globe, sports groups are using technology that can trace if players are overworking themselves. One example of  such is a company by the name of Catapult. This Australian company works with over 350 professional and collegiate players. They have created a gadget half the size of a cellular that can measure heart rates, distance traveled, player load, and acceleration. Their goal is to have the ability to measure a player’s fatigue so that injury can be prevented. Prevention is something that if improved upon technologically wise, a lot less injuries can be prevented in the future.

Recovery

Once an injury occurs to anyone, the next step in fully healing is recovery. The two main important things that the health industry must be great at is prevention and recovery.  Recovery is extremely vital because if it is not done properly, the body may not heal the way it’s supposed to, or may not even completely heal at all.

Technology being used as a recovery can have an effect ethically in both a positive and negative light. In some instances, it is abused. For example, steroids are drugs that most people take in order to gain a competitive advantage. While it does make a person stronger, faster, and a better overall performer in the short run, it violates the virtue rule. Taking steroids is wrong because it puts all of the other people that naturally strengthen their body (through use of weights and dieting) at a disadvantage. In addition to the disadvantage, it is also wrong because it is banned from most sports.  This is when the right vs. wrong judgment is violated. While athletes do have the choice of whether or not to take steroids, companies that give it to people that are knowingly misusing the drug are also in the wrong. Pills can be addicting and bodily damaging if misused, therefore selling those pills to unethical people just to gain profit violates the virtue reasoning as well. With that being said, there are also positives in using technology for recovery. This will be explained in the next paragraph.

Recovery in the US has drastically improved over the past 30 years. Before , recovery was done mostly done by icing joints, taking pain pills and resting. In today’s world, through x-ray and ultra sound, an exact diagnosis of an injury can be spotted within minutes. Right after the diagnosis, recovery treatment can begin. Through therapy, many tools used right here in the US ensure that people are healed properly and to the fullest extent. For sprains, knee aches, or tennis elbow, one emerging treatment by the name of theralase is used to make a faster recovery. Theralase is a laser and infrared treatment in which the body absorbs the laser light, and transforms it into chemical therapy. This treatment helps because the chemical energy received is used to jump-start the healing of tissue in the wounded area. This treatment also decreases the amount of inflammation because of the extra cells given through infrared. For more serious injuries, such as a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL), stem cell research is being done to reduce recovery time by months. While this specific process is still in it’s final stages before being released to the public, MRI’s are being constantly done to ensure this process heals ligaments completely.

Around the world, recovery is similar to the ones of the past for most people. With that being said, there is still technology that is emerging that will benefit people around the world. In Europe, a professional soccer team by the name Manchester City uses GPS monitors during practices and training sessions. This device measures performance levels, and heart rate. This helps the team customize workouts that can benefit their athletes the most without over working them. In the United Kingdom,  company named BAE Systems has teamed up with the Paralympic Games. In addition to giving athletes training and recovery tips, BAE also created wheels for wheelchair competitors that improve the acceleration of the wheelchair by 20%. Technology is even being implemented for non-athletes. Heart –rate monitors are being sold globally to aid with people that have irregular heartbeats. During exercise, it’s easy to get caught up and be less aware of one’s heart rate. With heart-rate monitor’s, a small alarm is sent out warning the person when they are beginning to exercise too hard. This invention prevents overuse of the body, and aids with the recovery after exercise.  This and other inventions have helped the people of the world recover in a quick and effective manner.

Conclusion

In conclusion, technology has positively affected health in three categories: exercise, prevention, and recovery. Through the advancement and development in technology, more and more technology is being used in sports. With many innovations being added to the market, we as a society will learn more and more about how our bodies work. With the new technology, we will be able to make sports as safe and clean as we can without truly interfering with the sport. As long as people invent products keeping Aristotle’s point of reasoning in mind, the world will be a better place.

Business: How large is the Sporting Goods industry? (topic preview)

How large is the sports industry? A couple million of dollars? A hundred million dollars? Guess again. Now, it's in the billions. And not barely in the billions either. According to statista.com, the sporting goods industry made 63 billion dollars in revenue in US dollars in the year 2014.

Most Purchased Items

1) Shoes
Nike
 $16 billion came from Nike shoes alone! Shoes were originally the last thing they were worried about. Now, it is the number one thing they sell. In addition to the equipment and clothing, Nike definitely has made a huge impact on the shoes industry.

Jordans
Jordan to many people are not just shoes. In fact, they are moreso apart of the culture for many. While being sold at anywhere from $60-300 dollars, exclusive Jordans are bought, and then sold for nearly $1,000. In the past year with Nike combined, had 95.5% of the basketball shoe industry.

2) Clothing

Along with shoes, Nike has a handle with clothing, earning $11.2 billion dollars in 2014. With that being said , UnderArmor and  Adidas both made over $1.5 billion dollars in 2014. With the trend of exercising declining in the US, these companies have moved their targeting more towards adults and have made clothes more casual. Each of the companies are in the billions when it pertains to clothes.

World's Highest Net-Worth Team

In the United States, sports such as football and basketball are most popular. However, the international sport is futbol (soccer). This statement is proven by three of the top five highest Net-Worth Teams being soccer teams. So Who's number 1?

The number one team is none other than the team led by the most popular futbol player in the world: Real Madrid C.F.  Real Madrid is worth a whopping $3.26 billion dollars! How does a team even become worth that much? Let's take a brief look at the history of the team.

http://aalcatraz.deviantart.com/art/Real-Madrid-Start-Orb-195603636

History 
Founded in March of 1902, Real Madrid is one of the teams that began originally by people doing it for fun. Originally named Madrid FC, the "Real" (which stands for Royal) part was added with the permission of King Alonso XIII. The 1940's and 50's were great for Madrid under President Santiago Yeste. In the 50's the team began to have a youth program that allowed them to discover up and coming talent. The first superstar that came out of this program was Alfredo Di Stefano. Between 1956-1960, Real Madrid won five consecutive UEFA Champions League Titles. Success would only continue through the 70's and 80's as Madrid won a total of five league championships, four Spanish cups , and three Spanish Super Cups. Since then, they have seen the likes of David Beckham, Robinho, Sergio Ramos, and Cristiano Ronaldo. Madrid has been and will be one of the powerhouse organizations in the world.

Revenues 
Like any sports organization, there are core supports. Well, Real Madrid has MANY of them. Real Madrid has an average of approximately 68,000 season ticket holders. While being within the top five ranked world richest teams, their revenues to wages put them at the number one spot. And they have yet to move since.

Will Larger Universities Follow Suit?

In an earlier report via USA today, East Carolina University has decided to pay players. Yes, pay players.

In January, the NCAA passed a policy that allows universities to increase the value of an athletic scholarship. This means that not only books, room and board would be covered, but also things such as transportation to and from school, and academic-related items would be covered with the stipend. The following conferences aided in the passing of the policy: AAC, BIG 12, BIG 10, PAC-12 , SEC, and the ACC.

With this policy being passed, it does NOT mean that universities have to do this. Each school has the flexibility to manage how they would follow the policy at their respected schools if they choose to do so.


With East Carolina taking a huge step, will larger universities follow suit?
Follow us on Twitter @SportsWatcherss and let us know what you think.

Nike Reigns as the #1 Sports Stock to Purchase

In the sports industry, few have been able to compete, let alone be near the level of globalization that Nike has reached. From the players such as Michael Jordan to Tiger Woods to Cristiano Ronaldo, Nike has been been to able to transcend their brand name through many kinds of sports. Their formula seems to be simple: cater to many different sports, many different customers appear (with the proper resources).  Now , through constant upgrade and effort, players such as LeBron James and Kobe Bryant have gear that can be purchased by little John who aspires to be like Kobe.

This time five years ago, a company by the name of Nike was valued on the market for $36.37. Fast forward , and Nike is now valued at nearly $113 dollars per share.Since it's IPO,  Nike has increased at least 30% annually. Compared to others, only Under Armor and Adidas are improving swiftly. Under Armor nearly added Kevin Durant to their team in 2014, but Nike was able to match that offer, giving Kevin Durant nearly $300 million in his latest contract. With that and many other megastars signed to Nike, they basically have the perfect formula to continue their rise of success. If you are looking to invest in sports companies, make sure that Nike is at the top of your list.

NFL Free Agency- Defensive Edition

DE Ndamukong Suh - Lions to Dolphins
This is by far the largest signing in free agency. One of the most talked about players in the league, Ndamukong Suh is headed to South Beach to joing the Dolphins on a six-year , 114 million dollar deal. While Suh does do alot of things and is known by many as a nasty player, his production still puts him as arguably the best DT in the league. Add him to an already solid defensive line, and look for the Dolphins to be that much better.

Ndamukong Suh

LB Brian Orapako
The Titans are getting a huge help  by signing Orapako to a four-year , 27.5 million dollar deal. With the scheme that the Titans run , look for Orapako to move around a bit. Orapako in the 3-4 defense can be used to blitz and cover. Look for this fit to benefit both sides very well.

DB Darelle Revis Patriots to Jets
This was the 2nd biggest defensive signing of the NFL free agency. Fresh off an NFL championship, Revis decided to leave the Patriots in order to return to the team that he began with on a five-year , 70 millon dollar deal. This will drastically improve the Jets defense by virtually having one great side in the secondary. In addition to adding Revis, they have drafted Leonard Williams to plug the middle.  Look for the Jets defense to be improved this season.

Windy City's Real $$$ Team

Fresh off of the wave of the NBA Finals in which ABC had it's highest ratings of viewers about 50 years. While the madness of the NBA finals occurred, another finals was taking place: the NHL finals. For the Chicago Blackhawks , this was their third finals appearance in the last five seasons. What is the first team that most fans think of when you say the city Chicago? The Bulls? Cubs? Bears? Those are some amazing organizations, but the major team in this millennium is none other than the Chicago Blackhawks.

Tail End of the Wind.

Even though the Blackhawks are tied for 2nd in the city for most championships, they are second to last on the net worth chart. Granted, the value of a team tends to be determined in more ways than simply winning. Popularity, age, and contribution to their respected sports all play a part. However, it's hard for one to imagine that championship doesn't necessarily equate  to being the top of your city.

List of Chicago Teams:

Chicago Blackhawks Championships (2010, 2013,2015)

Chicago Bulls   Championships(1991, 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 1998)

Chicago White Sox Championships( 1906, 1917, 2005)

Chicago Bears Championships(1985)

Chicago Cubs Championships(1907, 1908)

History

While the Blackhaws aren't the most money making in the city, there are a few reasons as to why this is the case. For one, hockey is not as popular sport. According ESPN, hockey lies behind baseball, football, and basketball. Chicago has tradition in all three.

Baseball
Both the Chicago Cubs and the Whitesox have been around forever. The White Sox were founded in 1901, and the Cubs followed suit in 1903.  These two clubs have provided baseball for many generations of familes throughout the Chi. The most recent superstar to date for either team was slugger Sammy Sosa. In addition to the team, Chicago's very famous Wrigly field is one of the oldest ball parks in Major League Baseball.

Football

The Bears are and always will be a topic of discussion when pertaining to football. One of the oldest teams in the NFL, the Bears have made themselves a staple in the NFL as one of the most traditional teams. The Bears have allowed names such as Walter Payton , Gale Sayers, and Mike Ditka thrive and flourish in football. The 1985 Bears are considered by some as the greatest NFL team ever.

Basketball

This section shall be short and straight to the point. Michael Jordan. Greatest player ever. Chicago Bulls. Six championships in the same decade.

Climbing Up Willis Tower 

Although the Blackhawks are not the most popular team in the city, they are surely on the rise. According to statisa.com, the Blackhawks' value has risen from $168 million to $825 million in a short span of eigth years. Look for this value to increase , as they are the 2015  Stanley Cup Champions. As long as the Blackhawks stay competitive , they will stay relevant within the city. Both the WhiteSox and Cubs are fighting to make their ways back to the playoffs, the Bears are on the verge of blowing up the team, and the Bulls are still just short of true contention. If this pattern continues, by 2025 the city of Chicago will claim the Blackhawks as the real money team.

Getting the Sports Expierence from your Phone: Venue Next

Look out for the new app that's taking over the game and concert world. After receiving funding from Twitter and a number of other companies, the app Venue Next is on the rise.

Last season, the app Venue Next was tested at Levi Stadium during the San Fransico 49ers season. To say the least, the app was so successful,  nearly half of the NFL is expected to implement the app within the next few years.

What is the purpose of the app?
The purpose of the app is to add an easier way to do many things within one stadium. Within the app, a few features have been added to enhance the stadium experience.

Ordering Food
Craving food , but don't feel like leaving your seat? What if you're really thirsty but the water guy just left your section? Well, using VenueNext  you can place an order and have it delivered to you.

Replays
While all stadiums have jumbo screens that show replays from time to time, with the VenueNext app, you can pick and choose which replay you want to see. Perfect idea for when leaving your seat and and heading to the bathroom.

Ticket Scanning
At Levi Stadium, the VenueNext application has the ability
food can be ordered , replay's can be watched , your ticket can be scanned, and "a point-of-access" for merchandise throughout the stadium. VenueNext hopes to eventually incorporate their apps in every stadium across the nation.

Apps such as these are pushing the technological culture forward within sports, making life easier for every fan.

Role of a NBA General Manager

Jobs in the sports industry are few and far in between to come by, especially in a professional league. Although most people are unaware of the many different positions,  many fans know about three management positions: the coach , the general manager, and the owner. Whenever our favorite team is not performing up to our standards, we tend to call for the heads of one those people. The position we will be highlighting is the General Manager.

What does a general manager do??
Being a general manager in the NBA contains one major requirement: be well-rounded. Depending on a team's situation, the general manager is the account, the play personnel , the counselor , the scout, and the negotiator.

Accounting
For most NBA managers, this is their main focus. The general manager must make sure that the team is financially in good shape. In doing so , the balance between spending money now on current players and saving money for future potential players is something that a general manager must constantly be thinking about.   Based on the money, the general manager is forced to make contract decisions for both staff and the players.

Sign, Release,  & Trade
Everyone wants the best players on their team, and everyone are almost willing to do whatever it takes in order for them to get those players. Example: A team that may be nowhere near a position to content for a championship in the near future may for a strategy to get rid of the higher paid older players and trade them for draft picks. If this is not possible, another strategy is able to simply try to get better each year and build through the NBA Draft. In recent time, teams such as the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Golden State Warriors used this strategy to become as successful as they currently are. Then there are cases such as the Boston Celtics in 2007 and what the Miami Heat did in 2010. These teams performed trades that got three great players to join together in order to contend immediately.

Psychology
This category has to be one of the most underrated in sports. It's one thing to get a group of good players together , and it's another to get a group of players that WORK TOGETHER WELL. Earlier this year, the Dallas Mavericks traded for Rajon Rondo. On paper, this is a really good fit for the Mavericks. Rondo brings solid defense and a great ability to make plays for people, and with scorers such as Monte Ellis and Dirk, one would thing that he can take the Mavs to another level. However, this season did not go as planned for the Mavs. Rondo and the Mavs management were bumping heads, in which Rondo was just not happy playing in Dallas. The unhappiness was clear, and his performance on the court was proof of that. This is one example displaying that chemistry is something that GM's must think about before adding/removing a player from a team. How will they fit with the other guys in the locker room? Do they represent what the organization stands for?

As we can see, general managers have to deal with a number of things. Would you be able to handle the pressure?

USC Fans should be Upset with Pat Haden

The NCAA came down hard on USC with sanctions, and Pat Haden stood around to watch it. He wanted to play the good guy and follow everything the NCAA said to do in order to “do things the right way”. Now that 500 pages worth of e-mails have been released, all the suspicions of the Trojan Faithful that the NCAA had completely done them wrong have been confirmed.

Pat Haden knew the NCAA had done them wrong the whole time, and did nothing about it. Other programs such as Penn State and Miami had threatened to sue the NCAA, and it worked out perfectly for them as they ended up with minimal penalties and little punishment for infractions that seemed to be much larger than USC’s. Now however, it is too late to make up for all the punishments that the NCAA handed down.  But still, Pat Haden is still hesitant to act upon the NCAA. Still contemplating whether to take legal action or not even with these new documents founded.

(Getty Images)

Pat Haden is currently refusing to attend a conference in Indiana, boycotting a law against gays. He is the father of a gay son. I have no problem with this, but would it have hurt to stick up for your Trojan Family like you are doing your son Mr. Haden? Haden should be held accountable for the penalties that USC was thrashed with because he stood and did nothing about it. He let the NCAA step all over USC, and the Trojan Faithful should be as angry with him as they are with the NCAA. 

NBA Twitter List

With social media at an all time high, it's important for organizations to be able to keep up with the trends in order to grow and maintain a happy fanbase. Social Media allows for fans to communicate with organizations and vice-versa. Media such as Twitter allow people to say clear and concise things (with a maximum of 140 characters). As a gift to the fans, here is a list of every NBA Team's Twitter Account:

Atlanta Hawks	@ATLHawks
Boston Celtics	@celtics
Brooklyn Nets	@BrooklynNets
Charlotte Hornets	@hornets
Chicago Bulls	@chicagobulls
Cleveland Cavaliers	@cavs
Dallas Mavericks	@dallasmavs
Denver Nuggets	@denvernuggets
Detroit Pistons	@DetriotPistons
Golden State Warriors	@warriors
Houston Rockets	@HoustonRockets
Indiana Pacers	@Pacers
L.A. Clippers	@LAClippers
L.A. Lakers	@Lakers
Memphis Grizzlies	@memgrizz
Miami Heat	@MiamiHEAT
Milwaukee Bucks	@Bucks
Minnesota Timberwolves	@MNTimberwolves
New Orleans Pelicans	@PelicansNBA
New York Knicks	@nyknicks
Oklahoma City Thunder	@okcthunder
Orlando Magic	@OrlandoMagic
Philadelphia 76ers	@Sixers
Phoenix Suns	@Suns
Portland Trail Blazers	@trailblazers
Sacramento Kings	@SacarmentoKings
San Antonio Spurs	@spurs
Toronto Raptors	@Raptors
Utah Jazz	@utahjazz
Washington Wizards	@WashWizards

Adam Silver, Time to Act

Adam Silver, as the new NBA commissioner, it's time to face another difficult task in the NBA. This time, it's fixing the discrepancy between the West and the East. It's no secret that a load of Eastern Conference teams are tanking and trying to get high draft picks. Look at the Boston Celtics, who basically gave away Rajon Rondo to the Dallas Mavericks, the Detroit Pistons getting rid of Josh Smith (although that actually might help them basketball-wise), the Brooklyn Nets cleaning house, and the 76ers... well I don't think I really need to explain that situation. Either way, one thing we can be grateful for is Chris Bosh not going to Houston or Carmelo Anthony going to Los Angeles, because the discrepancy would have been even worse. The Eastern Conference has such weak talent compared to the West that there are at least 12 Western Conference teams that could easily make the playoffs in the East.

That being said, Commissioner Silver, you must do something to punish these teams that are purposely losing and getting rid of their best players. This has to be done by changing the draft method. I suggest making it so that Conferences alternate between draft picks (1st pick being worst pick in one conference (East with the worst record), 2nd being worst pick in the other (West), 3rd going back to the East, 4th going to the West etc...). This would make there some incentive for the Eastern Conference teams to start playing real basketball and stop putting their players on the bench for "precautionary reasons" (76ers) and trading all their star players away for mediocre draft picks. Is it really fair that the Western Conference team has to play 3 rounds in the playoffs before going to the finals and the Eastern Conference team having basically a BYE (possibly two) before heading in? The Commissioners last response was that he doesn't believe any team is tanking, but don't kid yourself, Mr. Silver, there is plenty of tanking going on, and it could get worse if nothing is done about it.

Lastly, how are ticket sales going to do if the league keeps tanking? Fans can only be patient for so long. After a while they are going to get fed up with the losing, especially if ticket prices don't go down. This is poor marketing for the NBA and although it doesn't show much yet, it will in the future. These teams have no exciting players to watch or any hope for competitiveness on a night in and night out basis. NBA fans all have one thing on their Christmas wish-list, a competitive NBA, where all teams compete and a new draft system.

What the Addition of Rondo Does for the Mavs

On December 18th , The Mavs acquired Rajon Rondo from the Boston Celtics. In return, the Celtics received Branden Wright , Jae Crowder, Jameer Nelson, a 2015 first round, and a 2016 second round draft pick.

Rondo's Defense and Passing Will Be Key
Let's take a look at the new starting lineup for the Dallas Mavericks average points per game:

1)Rajon Rondo: 8.3ppg
2)Monta Ellis: 20.6ppg
3)Chandler Parsons: 16.7ppg
4)Dirk Nowitski: 18.8ppg                        

5)Tyson Chandler: 10.8ppg

Combined the starting lineup ALONE averages 75.2 ppg. Add the league leader in assist to the mix, and you have a very dangerous team. As long as Rondo can work together with his new teammates, his role will mainly consist of two things: playing defense and moving the ball around.

Having a defensive rating of 22nd out of 30, the addition of Rondo will make them an overall better defensive team. Rondo has a career average of 1.9 steals per game, averaging 1.7 this year. This will greatly improve a perimeter defense  that consist of decent but not great defenders in Chandler Parsons and Monta Ellis. The Mavericks are already #1 in points per game, so improving on the defensive side make the Mavericks extremely tough to beat come playoff time. In addition, each player on the starting lineup has a respectable amount of playoff experience. Three of the five starters  have at least one championship ring. This will be very important as they are looking to make a deep playoff push.

Whether you are a Mavs fan , or just a NBA fan, this trade will make a crazy Western Conference even more intriguing to watch.