March 08, 2004 | Volume 100, Issue 10

Admirable NelsonI saw Jameer Nelson in December when St. Joe's played Cal (Full Nelson, Feb. 16). At first I thought he was the team's mascot. Then I thought he must be the 12th guy on the team, a...

LETTERS•Please e-mail us at letters@si.timeinc.com or fax us at 212-467-4049. Letters should include the writer's full name, address and home telephone number and may be edited for clarity and space.

By the time you realize that a New Jersey Net, retired but still paid more than $14 million a year, stands accused of fatally shooting a chauffeur in one of the eight bedroom suites in his...

How did Colorado's Gary Barnett—once a cornball coach on a slow career track—wind up in the center of a college sports scandal?

Colorado quarterback Joel Klatt feels under siege

A procedural slip could cost Terrell Owens millions. He's not the only one

9Straight 30-win seasons for Devils goalie Martin Brodeur, an NHL record.

ThreatenedWith punishment by the NBA, the 28 referees who protested the suspension of a colleague by wearing their jerseys inside out with his number (62) on their backs. Referee Michael Henderson...

Step right up and play along with sports fans who have been seeing some not-so-subtle changes in girth lately. John Daly is bigger (and maybe better) than ever, Maurice Clarett carried extra...

Padres pitcher and rocket scientist Jason Szuminski, 25, is trying to become the majors' first MIT grad. How is he doing? SI's Szuminskimeter tells all.

Well, I guess this isn't surprising: Steinbrenner just signed Peter Jackson.

The middleweight champ—a.k.a. the Executioner—signed last week to fight Oscar De La Hoya on Sept. 18. Hopkins (43-2-1) has won 23 straight fights.

Now that Billy Bob Thornton is out of the picture, Angelina Jolie is carrying a torch for someone else—Juan Antonio Samaranch. Saying she would "consider it an honor to run with the Olympic torch...

Confirming the suspicions of at least some snarky soccer fans, David Beckham does wear a skirt. Well, he did when filming a new Pepsi commercial, in which he and several top players—such as Raul...

Gatorade is planning to introduce an "ESPN-flavored" drink.

TRACY McGRADYMagic guard, after being fined $10,000 for kicking the ball into the stands twice during a game: "That's a lot of money. I'll have to get me another autograph-signing session to pay...

WHAT TO WATCH AND WATCH FOR

•DIAMOND DREAMSAs the director of 1994's Hoop Dreams, Steve James gave us the stories of William Gates and Arthur Agee, young Chicagoans attempting to raise their fortunes by playing high school...

Drew Neitzel, GRAND RAPIDS, MICH.BasketballDrew, a senior point guard at Wyoming Park High, scored a total of 133 points in three games, including career highs of 45 and 57 on consecutive nights....

Training Days

SPRING ROLL: a. Craig Biggio has reported to the Astros' camp in Kissimmee, Fla., each year since 1989, longer than Larkin (Sarasota, '98), Salmon (Tempe, '93) or Franco (Port St. Lucie, '90).

With sled teams mushing 1,112 miles, the Iditarod celebrates Alaska's history and makes the state even more distinctive

Growing up in Anchorage, the author developed his hot hand in extreme cold

Alaskans weigh in on sports*

To read an SI flashback story about master musher Susan Butcher, dig into more Iditarod trivia or see additional images of Scott Gomez, Tommy Moe and other Alaskan athletes, go to...

Already a polished star, Brooklyn hoops phenom Sebastian Telfair is set to become the first point guard to jump from high school to the NBA

Sebastian Telfair is only the best-known of a crop of potential NBA draftees in an unusually deep class of high 1 school seniors. These top prospects might also make I the leap from high school to...

Hubie Brown's trademark patter and boundless energy have helped turn the sad-sack Grizzlies into a team that's roaring toward the playoffs

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Opening Day is right around the corner, so now is the time to sign up for one of our three baseball fantasy games. Join a league or run your own at si.com/fantasy.

Though he fell short in the Super Bowl, the Panthers' Jake Delhomme played with a passion that captivated fellow Cajuns

Barely recruited out of high school and passed over in the draft, Jake Delhomme isn't your typical NFL quarterback. But in his first year as a starter, he led Carolina to a game-winning score on...

The downtrodden Orioles have a new manager and three free-agent sluggers, but in the star-studded AL East, will anyone notice?

Gate-crasherBode Miller of the U.S. bends a gate pole on his way to winning the World Cup giant slalom in Kranjska Gora, Slovenia, last Saturday and taking first place in the overall World Cup...

A 5'7" dynamo with a big heart, Martin St. Louis has emerged as a prolific scorer and helped make Tampa Bay a Cup contender

If you're a lifer, like the author, in the maniacal rivalry between the Tar Heels and the Blue Devils, this Saturday's game will be another life-altering occasion. There are only two ways it can...

College Basketball

Late rushes have Missouri and Alabama on the brink of Madness

1. Blake Stepp wuz robbed. At week's end Gonzaga's senior point guard was shooting 42.5% from three-point range and was seventh in the nation in assists (6.9 average) for the No. 4 Bulldogs. He...

Thanks to rookie Dwyane Wade, Miami is back in the playoff hunt

On Nuggets center Marcus Camby, who is making $7.3 million in the final year of his contract:

With labor strife in the air, deadline deals are made for different reasons

In one of the best games of the season the Blue Jackets overcame a 2-0 deficit last Saturday to beat the Avalanche for the first time in franchise history, 5-4 in overtime. Columbus right wing...

Two Cincinnati flyweights stood out at the uninspiring U.S. boxing trials

The U.S. men's gymnastics team suffered a potentially crushing blow at the American Cup competition in New York City last Saturday when five-time national all-around champion Blaine Wilson (above)...

You know who you are.