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Daily Newspaper and Travel Guide
for Pecos Country of West Texas
Sports
Friday, January 15, 1999
Eagles eye 2-4A wins in Fabens
PECOS, Jan. 15 -- The Pecos Eagles and Fabens Wildcats
battled for the District 2-4A title during volleyball
season. Now that district girls basketball play has rolled
around, the two teams will be battling to get out of the
cellar tonight, when they meet for a 7 p.m. game in Fabens.
Pecos' boys also will be in Fabens tonight for their 2-4A
opener, and they'll be trying to post their first district
win in two years, when they face the Wildcats in an 8:30
p.m. start.
After a 3-14 start, the Eagles' 0-2 record in district is
less surprising than that of the Wildcats, who dropped their
opener in overtime to San Elizario, 40-39, before losing to
pre-district favorite Clint on Tuesday, 40-32. It left
Fabens with a 10-9 season record.
Pecos fell behind last Friday at Mountain View, 11-0 and
lost by a 57-36 final score in their first district game.
This past Tuesday, the Eagles got into trouble after their
only tall post, sophomore Philonicus Fobbs, got into foul
trouble in the second period. That allowed Canutillo's front
line to control the middle part of the game, turning a tie
score into a 20-point lead on the way to a 50-37 victory.
The Eagles cut the margin late with a series of baskets off
steals, and coach Brian Williams said, "We're going to have
to use our defense to win. We've got to get some east
baskets off steals and take some of the pressure off our
offense."
Pecos' boys will be looking for any kind of basket after
their last game a week ago, a 37-25 loss at home to Fort
Stockton in which the Panthers scored the final 12 points of
the game.
Fernando Navarette was the only Eagle in double figures
that night with 12, as Pecos missed a series of lay-ups,
including several fast breaks in the second period after
they had fought back from an early 15-5 deficit. The loss
left the Eagles with an 8-11 season record.
Despite that, the Eagles still have a good shot at reaching
the playoffs for the first time since winning the District
4-4A title back in 1990. Unlike the girls' district race,
where Clint came in as the favorite, no District 2-4A team
has looked strong in the early-going, and Pecos' record is
actually among the better ones in the 2-4A.
No team finished their pre-district schedule with a winning
record, and only San Elizario, which beat a shorthanded
Pecos team in Monahans last month, is within a game of .500
right now.
Irked Pippen may join Rockets
By CHRIS SHERIDAN
AP Basketball Writer
CHICAGO, Jan. 15 -- After years of hating each other,
Scottie Pippen and Jerry Krause now suddenly need each
other. Pippen can't get top dollar without Krause's help,
and Krause can't get anything back in a trade without
Pippen's help.
At least the Chicago Bulls are giving us one last soap opera
before the breakup hits full throttle.
NBA teams learned Thursday that the expected starting date
for the opening of training camps -- as well as the go-ahead
for trades and free agent signings -- will be next Tuesday
instead of Monday.
Under new collective bargaining rules, the Bulls can offer
Pippen more than any other team, with a limit of $14
million. Since Pippen doesn't have the leverage to command
that amount, the Bulls are trying to sign him for $10
million to $11 million and immediately trade him to another
team.
But Pippen, a free agent, could choose to sign with Houston,
taking the Rockets' $9.5 million in salary cap space and
leaving the Bulls with nothing in return.
If Houston gave him a four-year deal, Pippen would make
$44.2 million. If the Bulls gave him a four-year deal
starting at $10 million, he would make $58.2 million.
Therein lies the price, at least $14 million, that Pippen
must pay to mess up the plans of Krause, the Bulls general
manager with whom he has feuded.
``That would be my impression right now. I don't think
you'll see Scottie back in a Bulls uniform again,'' said
Bill Wennington, another one of the Bulls' free agents.
Pippen's best other option would be to sign with Denver if
the Nuggets would give him their entire $13 million in
salary cap space, but Pippen wants to win another
championship.
Two of the strongest Pippen sign-and-trade rumors involved
the Los Angeles Lakers and Orlando Magic, with the Seattle
SuperSonics a longshot, the Associated Press learned
Thursday.
As for a Latrell Sprewell trade, the top contenders appear
to be the Miami Heat and New York Knicks.
According to numerous league sources who spoke on condition
of anonymity, these were some of the scenarios regarding
some of the most sought after players:
-- Antonio McDyess was trying to decide between signing with
the Rockets, the Bulls, the Denver Nuggets and his old team,
the Phoenix Suns.
Although the Suns could offer McDyess the largest contract
for seven years, McDyess could receive an opt-out clause
making him a free agent again after five years. And since
the difference between what Phoenix could offer for five
years versus what the other teams could offer would be only
$2 million to $3 million, the Suns do not have a huge
advantage.
The Bulls scheduled a meeting with McDyess for Monday in
Chicago. The Rockets are believed to prefer McDyess over
Pippen, and the possibility of McDyess rejoining the Nuggets
was realistic because of his friendship with Denver point
guard Nick Van Exel.
-- Tom Gugliotta was said to be leaning to re-signing with
the Timberwolves for seven years, since Minnesota can pay
him more than any other team. The Lakers were believed to
have inquired about making a sign-and-trade deal involving
Gugliotta, Eddie Jones and Elden Campbell, but the league's
complicated base-year compensation rules would prevent such
a Barry and Voshon Lenard or Dan Majerle, but again the
base-year compensation rules appeared to be a major
hindrance.
That could leave the Knicks as the best contender for
Sprewell, although New York was believed to be offering a
package of Chris Mills and Chris Childs, while the Warriors
were asking for John Starks and-or Charlie Ward. The fine
print of the sign-and-trade rules, however, would prevent
Ward from being packaged with another player.
All around the league, general managers and agents continued
to be confused by the complexities of the new collective
bargaining agreement relating to trades.
Lawyers from the league and union have been working the past
several days to put the agreement in writing, and the
lockout will remain in effect until the deal is finalized.
In the meantime, every team was trying to gauge every other
team's probable moves, and everyone was expecting a frenzy
of activity to commence immediately after the lockout is
lifted.
Pecos Enterprise
York M. "Smokey" Briggs, Publisher
Division of Buckner News Alliance, Inc.
324 S. Cedar St., Pecos, TX 79772
Phone 915-445-5475, FAX 915-445-4321
e-mail news@pecos.net
Associated Press text, photo, graphic, audio and/or video material shall not be published, broadcast, rewritten for broadcast or publication or redistributed directly or indirectly in any medium.
Copyright 1999 by Pecos Enterprise
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