Sports thoughts from Chris Jones to LeBron James

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A pack of 4 mini columns:

Number 1: Maybe it’s karma punishing Chris Jones for letting the Saskatchewan Roughriders down.

As head coach and general manager of the winless Edmonton Elks, Jones’ job security is dwindling in the face of the struggling CFL franchise. The municipally owned Elks are in the process of being bought out by a private owner; this impending transaction may be the only reason Jones is still employed, as a new owner should be the person (or people) who decide his fate.

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Things haven’t been going particularly well for Jones since January 2019, when the Roughriders announced he had signed a contract extension as Saskatchewan’s head coach/general manager/vice president of football operations. He arrived in Saskatchewan just days after leading Edmonton to the 2015 Grey Cup and rebuilt the Roughriders, who went 5-13 in his first season and 12-6 in his third.

A week after his new contract with the Riders was formalized, Jones left the team to take a job as an assistant coach with the Cleveland Browns of the NFL, a job he held for one season before being relegated to a sideline position.

Jones returned to his hometown in Tennessee to coach his old high school team, but left the team after just one game in 2021 to work as a consultant with the Toronto Argonauts. Edmonton signed him as coach/GM for 2022 and since then the Elks have won eight times in 40 games.

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Number 2: NBA fans are excited because Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James may play next season with his son Bronny, who was just drafted 55th by the team. In two years, the next son, Bryce James, will also be eligible for the draft. Dad could become a free agent on July 1, but the Lakers are reportedly looking to extend his contract by three years at $54 million per year.

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LeBron turns 40 next season. He has said he wants to play with his son for at least a year, which is considered an unprecedented feat in the basketball world.

Basketball fans apparently don’t remember Gordie, Mark and Marty Howe

Remember when Gordie Howe’s teammates on the World Hockey Association’s Houston Aeros were his sons Mark and Marty? They also played together on the WHA’s New England Whalers and part of the 1979-80 season on the NHL’s Hartford Whalers when Gordie was 52.

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Number 3: In an apparent attempt to stay relevant and jumpstart the offseason, the NHL concluded its Stanley Cup Final the same week it opened free agency, handed out awards and began the annual draft.

Former Regina Pats center Connor Bedard, selected first in last year’s draft by the Chicago Blackhawks, was named the NHL’s top rookie. Nathan McKinnon of the Colorado Avalanche was named MVP and Connor Hellebuyck of the Winnipeg Jets was named top goalie – in case anyone missed Thursday’s lackluster awards ceremony.

To avoid clashing with the draft, which ends Saturday, the Florida Panthers have moved their Stanley Cup victory parade to Sunday. Panthers players have carried the Cup throughout South Florida, so the official celebration can’t wait much longer.

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It’s been six days since Florida defeated the Edmonton Oilers 2-1 in Game 7 of the championship series. In the aftermath, there’s been a lot of discussion about the contracts and health of Oilers superstars Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. The team’s general manager, Ken Holland, has resigned. Big moves are coming. It’s just too much! Get off the stage quietly for a few days, NHL, so everyone can catch up.

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Number 4: Honesty is still a bad thing in the CFL.

Four footballers, including Sasatchewan’s Brett Lauther, were fined for refusing to have computer microchips in their footballs, telling reporters and on social media that the devices injured their feet and affected ball flight.

The league relented and quickly allowed kickers to use unchipped balls again. CFL Commissioner Randy Ambrosie was unhappy with the criticism, saying the change was made not because of the public complaints, but because of confidential letters he received from the players’ association and at least two teams, including one from Craig Reynolds, president/CEO of the Roughriders.

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Ambrosie will surely be angered again by recent comments made by Edmonton quarterback McLeod Bethel-Thompson. In the same week he was praised as a top performer, Bethel-Thompson criticized CFL schedule makers for giving teams only five days between games.

The Elks have three “short” weeks this season, including one they just finished with games five days apart in Toronto and Vancouver. The Elks lost both. The quarterback is right: A nine-team league with mandatory byes that claims to care about player safety should never give its players such dangerously short rests.

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