It started almost two decades ago with a $20 hockey stick once wielded by a forgotten player for a string of mediocre teams.
Andy Enfield hasn't passed up a whole lot of shots in his life, whether they've come on the basketball court, on the sideline as a coach or on Wall Street as a businessman. And he has enjoyed his fair share of success along the way, making millions of dollars as an entrepreneur, marrying a supermodel and most recently leading FGCU to the Sweet 16.
Magic Johnson considered himself to be the adopted son of Los Angeles Lakers owner Jerry Buss. Shaquille O'Neal hailed Buss for his foresight, while Kobe Bryant cited Buss' ability to convince people to believe in him. Jerry West remembered a party-loving Buss who never went to bed, making it easy to be the first one at work in the morning.
Lee Westwood still doesn't know why his father took him to the golf course.
The headaches are gone. Finally. So are the doubts, the ones Sidney Crosby couldn't outrun as he rehabilitated from concussion-like symptoms that robbed hockey's best player from two years in the middle of his prime.
From south Florida to Vancouver, Montreal to Anaheim, a wide array of businesses located in the NHL's 30 markets have taken a significant hit because of the lockout, which is now in its fourth month and has wiped away 625 games.
Most everywhere Lou Billittier turns these days, the Buffalo restaurateur is reminded of the NHL lockout, and its impact on his blue-collar, sports-mad town where Dominik Hasek became a star and the French Connection is still revered.
Former All-Star outfielder Lenny Dykstra was sentenced Monday to 6 1/2 months in prison for hiding baseball gloves and other heirlooms from his playing days that were supposed to be part of his bankruptcy filing, capping a tumultuous year of legal woes.
