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Portis Cleared to Play

Washington Redskins RB Clinton Portis says that local doctors have cleared him to play but he will wait until Monday's exam by a specialist in Pittsburgh before stepping back on the field. Portis has already been declared "out" for this Sunday's game against the Saints. He had been suffering from blurry vision when he moved his head quickly, which is a symptom of the concussion he suffered three weeks ago. Portis says that if he's healthy he will be back on the field with his teammates as soon as possible. "I would love to be on the field trying to get out there and finish out the season," he said. "At the same time, I have to do what's safe and what's best. If I'm cleared and can get back out there for the last few games, I'm definitely going to try and get back out there. If I can't, I'll go into the offseason healthy and starting off fresh next year."



Nets Arena Project Moves Forward

According to the NY Times, developer Bruce C. Ratner won a court challenge to his $1 Billion basketball arena project in Brooklyn, NY. The court of appeals declined to hear an appeal from property owners who claimed that by condemning their land the state was hurting the general public and benefitting a private developer which would be a violation of New York's state constitution. The court disagreed by a vote of 6-1 allowing the project to move forward with their plan to build the 18,282 seat arena at the corner of Flatbush Ave and Atlantic Ave. The project is not out of the woods yet, however. They still need to sell $500 million of tax-exempt bonds along with $146 million in subordinated debt.



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Memphis Appeals NCAA Sanctions

The Memphis Commercial Appeal reports that the University of Memphis has appealed the NCAA's sanctions and if they win, the NCAA Committee on Infractions would "take a second look" at the penalties Memphis has received. The Committee orgininally ruled that Memphis forfeit all 38 wins from the 2007-08 season and return any revenue made from the Final Four Tournament that season. The investigation was initiated after it was revealed that Derrick Rose, the star point guard for that 2007-08 team, had falsified his SAT score and was ineligible to play. Rose's brother, Roger Rose, was also allowed to travel with the team incurring over $2,000 worth of travel fees which he was never charged for. The committe says they considered a playoff ban or a loss of scholarships along with the vacated wins and revenue, but thought the current punishment was "justified."