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Yahoo
22-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
How the NFL Draft Screws Over Players
Matias J. Ocner/TNS/Newscom Good morning and welcome to another edition of Free Agent! I hope your team's "arm barn" is holding up alright. It's NFL Draft week, and if you're heavily invested in this, it's probably a sign your team sucks and needs the help. We'll talk about how NFL Draft picks are getting screwed, and you'll view those images of draftees smiling next to Commissioner Roger Goodell in a weird new light. Then we'll move on to a possible new NFL stadium, a marathon record, and an awesome TV show. Locker Room Links The Pick Is In Screwed When Cam Ward (almost certainly) gets drafted first overall by the Tennessee Titans on Thursday night, he'll earn a contract worth $43 million over four years. Must be nice! But that value is dramatically lower than top draft picks were getting 15 years ago. Advertisement In 2009, Matt Stafford agreed to contract terms with the Detroit Lions the day before the draft—he went first overall and then signed a deal with a total value of $78 million. The next year, Sam Bradford went first overall to the then–St. Louis Rams and inked a deal worth a maximum of $86 million (or about $117 million in today's dollars, thanks to inflation). Those deals had $42 million guaranteed for Stafford and $50 million guaranteed for Bradford. But then draft pick salaries fell off a cliff. The following year's top pick, Cam Newton, got just $22 million for four years (fully guaranteed). The 2011 collective bargaining agreement stripped away almost all the negotiating power draftees had with teams. From then on through at least the end of the current labor agreement, rookies could either agree to the preset salary system or they could skip a year—and then have to get drafted again and get stuck with a preset salary again. The money went from drafted players to older players. Who do you think negotiated the 2011 collective bargaining agreement for the players union? Future players like Ward, who was 9 years old at the time, obviously didn't get a say. The other major professional sports leagues do versions of this too. Whoever gets to pick Cooper Flagg first in the NBA Draft gets to keep his rookie salary down to just $13.8 million. When NHL draft picks get to the show, they sign entry-level contracts with a maximum salary under $1,000,000 (length varies from one to three years depending on their age). MLB rules are a mysterious fog that lead to "service time" manipulation to keep players from reaching free agency too quickly. Advertisement With little negotiation power, it's no surprise some NFL draft picks, like Caleb Williams last year, don't have an agent (this would ruin the Cush plotline in Jerry Maguire). Since the average NFL career is between three and four seasons, many players never get to negotiate for their worth in a contract. The system works out well for the league's owners, who get to keep a below-market ceiling on a large portion of their player contracts. It works well for veteran players, who get to soak up a bigger portion of the salary-capped pie. It doesn't work out for young draft picks—and it's a surprise more of them don't speak out about it. Who's Taking Your Money This Week? The Washington, D.C., government and the Washington Commanders are closing in on a deal for a new stadium and an accompanying development. When the entire project is estimated to cost $3 billion, with $2.5 billion coming from the team, the deal sounds downright benevolent. The city government's $850 million cost seems small in comparison. Advertisement But $850 million is still a lot of money—$1,250 per resident, if you estimate D.C.'s population at 680,000. The city is full of die-hard Redskins Commanders fans, but I bet most residents would rather see their $1,250 share spent on something else. (Frankly, being forced by government to pay that much for a stadium and not even getting a free ticket out of it is offensive.) Even if the Commanders come to an agreement with Mayor Muriel Bowser, other political challenges lie ahead. "It's unclear how DC has the money to do this," as stadium financing expert J.C. Bradbury posted. The city already has $515 million committed to Capital One Arena. Congress also has to approve the city's budget and might balk at the spending. Amazingly, D.C. Council Chairman Phil Mendelson is one of the few local politicians in the country who has the right line on taxpayer dollars and sports: "I have said many times that I support a stadium and welcome the return of our football team, but without the investment of public dollars," he told NBC News4. (But he still voted to "invest" public dollars in Capital One Arena.) The team's current stadium, Northwest Stadium (formerly FedExField, and yes, it apparently was all one word) is in terrible physical condition and was horribly managed by former team owner Dan Snyder. Perhaps upgrades by the new ownership group have changed things since my last game, but the sorry state of affairs doesn't mean the D.C. government should subsidize a new stadium—sports are just entertainment, not an industry that should or must be supported by government spending. Boo Commanders. Boo owner Josh Harris. Boo Washington, D.C., government. A Record for Humanity I get mixed feelings about a lot of record-breaking achievements in sports, but new records in running always bring a smile to my face. They feel like achievements for all humanity, not just the individual. Advertisement When records fall in other sports, we get arguments about different playing eras, offensive styles, and quality of opponents. Running records are more about beating the clock than beating your opponent—and records are falling more and more often. They show how much humanity has figured out about health, nutrition, physics, and athletics, each lesson building on top of another. Even technological improvements in running shoes have played a part. With that in mind, congratulations to Sharon Lokedi for crushing the Boston Marathon's course record for women by more than two minutes. She spent hours learning and training and it all came together in the race—I, personally, had nothing to do with it, nor did most people. But she couldn't have done it without all the lessons we've learned about how to run 26.2 miles faster and faster without dying. It's a small example of another barrier that humanity can break down when people have the drive, resources, and freedom to pursue their dreams. Never Lose Again I get it. It's playoff time, but your NHL team is dusting off their golf clubs instead of sharpening their skates. You wish you wanted to watch but putting the playoffs on makes you sigh. Advertisement Thankfully, Shoresy is here to help you. It's the best TV show about hockey you'll ever see. It's what Brockmire was for baseball except the fourth season doesn't suck and it's still going strong. It's Letterkenny but with a plot. Anyone who's ever felt a sports-induced emotion will love it. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll start quoting it every single day, you'll see the best TV romance you've seen in years. Just don't let any kids watch it, or they'll start telling you to give your balls a tug. Replay of the Week Sean Casey's not the only one to get thrown out at first base from left field anymore. That's all for this week. Enjoy watching the real game of the weekend, Arsenal against Olympique Lyonnais in the Women's Champions League. The post How the NFL Draft Screws Over Players appeared first on
Forbes
16-04-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Malaysia's 50 Richest 2025: Tycoons Get A Wealth Boost Despite Market Mayhem. Robert Kuok Remains Country's Richest.
No. 1, Robert Kuok. Zhu Wei/Xinhua News Agency/Newscom This story is part of Forbes' coverage of Malaysia's Richest 2025. See the full list here. Despite Malaysia's buoyant IPO market with 55 listings in 2024, the benchmark stock index remained sluggish and was pushed further down after the U.S. tariff shock. But a stronger ringgit, up more than 5% in the past 12 months, helped to lift collective wealth to $90 billion. The ranks of the three richest Malaysians were unchanged from a year ago. Business legend Robert Kuok remained unshakable at the top at age 101, though his fortune was a tad lower at $11.4 billion from last year. The agribusiness-to-hotels empire under his Kuok Group has plans for an ambitious data center buildout in Malaysia's Johor state. Hong Leong group patriarch Quek Leng Chan strengthened his position as the second-richest person with a $1 billion jump in his net worth to $9.8 billion, buoyed by robust sales at his family's finance-to-food conglomerate. The wealth shared by the Teh siblings, heirs to the Public Bank fortune, rose 9% to $5.9 billion. Aluminium magnates Koon Poh Keong & siblings moved up one spot to No. 4 after a modest boost took their net worth to $5.4 billion. Overall, 30 people were better off from a year ago. Another gainer was Jeffrey Cheah, who added $600 million to take his net worth tally to $3 billion on rising shares of his property conglomerate Sunway, which is planning to list its healthcare unit next year. There are three new entrants to the ranks. Debuting at No. 8 with a fortune of $3.5 billion is Lee Thiam Wah, the founder of 99 Speed Mart Retail Holdings, the country's largest minimart chain by number of stores. Lee became a billionaire after taking his company public in September, raising $532 million in what was the country's biggest IPO in seven years. Another fresh face is that of former police officer Tan Boon Hock, whose portfolio includes a chain of laser eye surgery clinics and a company specializing in AI-powered traffic management systems. Also new to the list and appearing at No. 5: the Krishnan family, heirs of a telecom-to-energy empire built by reclusive billionaire Ananda Krishnan, who died in November at age 86. The sole returnee this year is mall magnate Desmond Lim Siew Choon, whose Pavilion Reit has benefited from higher rentals. Three from last year dropped off, including property developer Lim Kang Hoo as shares of his Iskandar Waterfront City fell amid a delay in filing its long-awaited financial restructuring plan. The minimum net worth rose slightly to $335 million from $320 million. Full Coverage of Malaysia's Richest 2025: Reporting by Jonathan Burgos, Gloria Haraito, Anis Shakirah Mohd Muslimin, Phisanu Phromchanya and Jessica Tan. Methodology: This list was compiled using shareholding and financial information obtained from the families and individuals, stock exchanges, annual reports, analysts, government agencies and other sources. Net worths were based on stock prices and exchange rates as of the close of markets on April 7, 2025, and private companies were valued based on similar companies that are publicly traded. Real-time net worths on may reflect different valuations. The ranking lists both individual and family fortunes, including those shared among relatives and may differ from the World's Billionaires List, which includes individual fortunes with net worths as of March 7. The list can also include foreign citizens with business, residential or other ties to the country, or citizens who don't reside in the country but have significant business or other ties to the country. The editors reserve the right to amend any information or remove any listees in light of new information.
Yahoo
01-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
March Madness Isn't Dead
MIKE ZARRILLI/UPI/Newscom Good morning and welcome to another edition of Free Agent! No April Fools' jokes today, the Yankees' new bats are enough of a joke on their own. But if you can hit 84 mph on the odometer today, do it. Advertisement I've got more March Madness for you today, including some NIT thoughts. I also want to talk about NFL kickoffs and, separately, tattoos? But first, another update on the Reason Friends and Family Bracket Contest. There were 12 games in the men's basketball tournament since our last newsletter. Some guy named Jimmy Kline predicted all 12 correctly, launching himself to the top of the leaderboard. There were also 12 games on the women's side, which were all correctly predicted by me, your humble newsletter writer—but Jimmy Kline got 11 of those 12 right and is tied for the lead with two others. Each contest is coming down to the wire. Good luck! Locker Room Links RIP March Madness? I am reliably informed that March Madness is dead. The time of death was apparently Sunday, March 23, when people were grumpy about all the high-seeded chalk making it to the Sweet 16. The coroners have some thoughts about the cause of death. Advertisement Was it name, image, and likeness (NIL) payments to players? Conn Carroll argues as much at the Washington Examiner, my former employer: "As soon as a mid-major finds and develops a good player, that player then immediately leaves for a bigger school." Or is a unanimous Supreme Court decision to blame? National Review contributor Christian Schneider says so, writing, "In the 2021 case NCAA v. Alston, the court unanimously determined that college sports did not enjoy antitrust exemptions allowing them to deny benefits to student-athletes in the name of 'amateurism.'" Soon after came NIL payments, an expanded transfer portal, and, next year, direct payments from schools to players. Sky-high TV ratings beg to differ with the death certificate. Roughly 9.4 million viewers per game in the first two rounds would argue March Madness is alive and well. That's the highest viewership for the men's tournament in three decades. (Viewership was down from those numbers on the first night of the Sweet 16, but still 3 percent higher than last year. We're still waiting on more TV data from the rest of the weekend's games.) The women's side is usually chalky, and this year is no different with three No. 1 seeds in the Final Four. But TV ratings are still higher than usual—not as high as last year's Caitlin Clark–fueled popularity, but up 43 percent from 2023 (at least in the early rounds). Star power is a big help on the women's side, and there were arguably more stars in the women's bracket (JuJu Watkins, Hailey Van Lith, Paige Bueckers) than the men's (Cooper Flagg). Advertisement One year of chalk need not be the end of March Madness. It certainly wasn't in 2008 when every No. 1 seed made the Final Four. Soon after we had Butler and VCU in the same Final Four, followed by Wichita State (not to mention Florida Gulf Coast's "Dunk City" run into the Sweet 16 as a No. 15 seed). I covered the uncertainty last week, but I think March Madness will still be fun no matter what direction it goes in. I'm sorry some people aren't having fun with March Madness this year. Fans of mid-major Cinderellas are welcome to tune into the NIT instead. NCAA NITwits You know what's not getting millions of viewers per game? The National Invitation Tournament, which you know as the NIT, or The NCAA Tournament's Leftovers. The NIT might just be dead because of NCAA neglect. Advertisement Even the best NIT games have only gotten TV viewership in the 300,000s (thank you to Programming Insider for the data). I've hardly seen anything online about the NIT this year. The semifinals apparently feature basketball powerhouses like North Texas, UC Irvine, Loyola Chicago, and Chattanooga. Even with the first three rounds played on campuses, attendance has been pretty sparse, ranging from a paltry 672 attendees for UC Riverside vs. Santa Clara to almost 5,000 for Chattanooga against Bradley in the quarterfinals (still less than half capacity). Part of the NIT's problem is that it's got fresh new competition from the College Basketball Crown (CBC), a 16-team tournament that tipped off on Monday, including Georgetown and Villanova, plus five sub-.500 teams like Arizona State, Butler, and USC. The CBC's existence partially explains why there are no Big East, Big Ten, or SEC schools in the NIT. (Though several big schools, including Indiana, Ohio State, and Penn State, decided neither tournament was worth it.) The competition combines the glitz of hosting every game in Las Vegas with all the glamor of FS1 (with the semifinals onward on FOX). How can the NIT compete with that? The solution is easy: Give the NIT teams something to play for. The NCAA should give the NIT champion a guaranteed spot in the following year's NCAA tournament. Attendance, viewership, and intensity would go through the roof. The winner would have less to play for in the regular season, sure, but they'll still be playing for seeding—they won't want to end up as a No. 16 seed. The same prize would fix the women's equivalent, the Women's Basketball Invitation Tournament. It's a good idea that would make the NIT more fun at a time of year when people are obsessed with everything basketball-related. Make it happen, NCAA. Save Kickoffs Should kickoffs be fun and exciting, or a throwaway play that you can skip if you need to go to the bathroom? Probably the first one. Advertisement NFL owners are meeting this week to consider several proposed rule changes, including doubling down on last season's "dynamic" kickoffs. Under the traditional kickoffs, only 22 percent of kicks were being returned. This rose to 33 percent last season under the dynamic kickoff rules, which changed several things, including moving touchbacks forward to the 30-yard line—but those rules were only approved for one season. The NFL's competition committee proposes to keep the dynamic rules and move touchbacks to the 35-yard line, so kicking teams will have even more reason to avoid a touchback. The committee projects that 60 percent to 70 percent(!) of kickoffs will get returns if enacted. Traditionalists (including President Donald Trump, for what it's worth) hate dynamic kickoffs. But when kickers can easily hit the end zone, a dwindling return rate is only going to lead to the possibility of skipping kickoffs altogether for possessions that start at some predetermined yard line. Dynamic kickoffs (for which the premerger XFL deserves credit!) can save the kickoff. The Tattoos Aren't That Bad I'm not really a fan of tattoos or Michael Jordan jerseys, but I don't think you should get deported for having one. Advertisement Alas, that may be what happened to Jerce Reyes Barrios, a Venezuelan man who was seeking asylum in the United States. His attorney claims immigration officials used his tattoo of a soccer ball, a crown, and the word dios as part of their justification for deportation. Soccer fans might notice a resemblance to the crest of Real Madrid. The attorney says Reyes Barrios has a clean criminal record and a declaration from the tattoo artist verifying its meaning. Worse, apparently a Michael Jordan jersey or sneakers could also put someone at risk of being classified as a Venezuelan gang member subject to deportation. The White House claims this isn't true, but government documents seem to say otherwise. "No one should end up in an El Salvadorian prison because a cop misunderstood a tattoo," as Reason's Eric Boehm says. Replay of the Week The MLB post speaks for itself. The runner went on to score on the next ball in play, and that was enough for a 1–0 Padres victory. That's all for this week. Enjoy watching the real game of the week, Incarnate Word vs. Houston Christian in softball. The post March Madness Isn't Dead appeared first on
