SYRACUSE MEN'S BASKETBALL LEGEND BASKETBALL LEGEND FOUND DEAD IN WASHINGTON D.C. HOME

Lawrence Moten was Syracuse University's all-time leading scorer in men's basketball with over 2,300-hundred career points.(AP/Cliff Schiappa)

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Syracuse University men’s basketball legend Lawrence Moten was found dead in his Washington, D.C., home on Tuesday, according to multiple reports.

The 6-foot-5 Moten, who was affectionately known as “Poetry in Moten,” was 53.

Moten, who played guard for the Orange between 1991-95, finished as Syracuse’s all-time leading scorer with 2,334 career points.

“This is a tragic day for the Syracuse basketball family,” former long-time Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim said in a statement via the school. “Lawrence’s passing is such a sudden thing — it’s very hard to take. He was one of the most underrated college basketball players of all time. I believe some people took his ability for granted because he made it look so easy. Lawrence was one of our greatest players and one of the best in the history of the Big East Conference.”

Moten, who earned All-American status at Syracuse, averaged 19.3 points per game over the course of his four-year career. He helped the Orange reach the NCAA men’s basketball tourney three times during his four-year career.

He was drafted by the Vancouver Grizzlies in 1995 and played three seasons in the NBA, including a stint with the Washington Wizards. He averaged 6.3 ppg. during his time in the NBA.

Syracuse retired his No. 21 during the 2017-18 campaign.

Prior to his collegiate days, he starred at Archbishop Carroll in Washington, D.C.

- Charlie De Biase

TRUMP ANNOUNCES WASHINGTON D.C. TO HOST 2027 NFL DRAFT

Reuters 

WASHINGTON - The National Football League will host its 2027 draft in Washington, D.C., U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Monday at the White House, bringing the league's biggest off-season event to the nation's capital for the first time since 1940.

The three-day event that regularly attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors is expected to take place on the National Mall, a stone's throw from the White House

"The draft is a celebration of one of our country's most cherished cultural institutions," said Trump, speaking from inside the Oval Office.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell told reporters he expects more than one million visitors at the 2027 draft, far more than the estimated record 775,000 who attended the 2024 edition in Detroit.

The announcement comes days after the Washington Commanders struck a deal with the District of Columbia to return to the site of the club's former RFK Stadium, where Washington played from 1961-1996 and enjoyed the most successful era in franchise history.

The new stadium is expected to open in the nation's capital in 2030.

Commanders owner Josh Harris, who agreed to buy the team in 2023 after a turbulent period under previous owners Dan and Tanya Snyder, was in attendance to present the U.S. president with a team jersey with "Trump" emblazoned on the back.

"You are the ultimate commander, so it is a Commanders jersey," said Harris.

The draft has rotated through multiple cities since the NFL ended New York's five-decade-long reign as host in 2015. The three-day 2025 draft was held last month at Lambeau Field, in Green Bay, Wisconsin, home of the Green Bay Packers, with next year's selection of college players joining the NFL to be held in Pittsburgh.

Reuters 

Trump became the first sitting U.S. president to attend a Super Bowl in February, where the crowd at the Superdome in New Orleans greeted him with a mix of cheers and boos, but he has a long and complicated history with the league.

Trump bought into the doomed upstart United States Football League in the 1980s and sought to have it compete directly with the NFL.

In 2017, during his first term in the White House, he spent weeks attacking the NFL over players who knelt during the pre-game playing of the national anthem in protest over police brutality and racial inequality.

Goodell, who stood next to Trump as the president addressed the media, in February had defied Trump's calls for private companies to dismantle diversity, equity and inclusion programs, saying the league would continue its DEI efforts.

Trump's current term will overlap with several major international sporting events in the United States, with the Club World Cup set to take place in 11 U.S. cities from June 14-July 13.

The United States will co-host the 2026 World Cup with Mexico and Canada, while the 2028 Summer Olympics are set for Los Angeles.

Reporting by Gram Slattery in Washington, D.C., writing by Amy Tennery in New York, Editing by Bill Berkrot

- Reuters 

UFC'S CONOR MCGREGOR TAKES SELFIE WITH LIGAN & JAKE PAUL ON BUS TO TRUMP INAUGURATION

UFC superstar Conor McGregor linked up with the Paul brothers, Logan and Jake, while in D.C for Donald Trump's inauguration.

Jake Paul

Conor McGregor and the Paul brothers can get along, after all.

The always-busy UFC superstar was bound to run into Logan or Jake Paul at some point, whether in the boxing ring or outside of it, and that's how it happened on a bus ride to President Donald Trump's inauguration in Washington, D.C.

Jake Paul fights Mike Tyson. / Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

McGregor Meets The Paul Brothers At Long Last

An influencer-turned-boxer, Jake Paul has called out McGregor more times than we can count. Logan Paul is also looking to square off with the Irishman sometime this year, but everything aside, the brothers kept it cordial with McGregor, who was seated next to their mother, all having a laugh.

"Inauguration going great," Jake Paul posted on Monday, McGregor posing for a couple of photos.

Jake Paul 

Paul tagged his company Most Valuable Promotions along with WWE (which shares a parent company with the UFC) and BKFC, which McGregor has part ownership in, possibly alluding to a potential fight in the future. The 28-year-old has taken quite a lot of shots at McGregor over the years but today, it's a ceasefire - not for Dillon Danis though, a teammate and friend of McGregor's.

"The worst day of Dillon Danis's life," Paul's promotion posted on their social media.

Jake Paul 

McGregor and the Paul brothers weren't the only stars en route to Donald Trump's inauguration, with comedian Theo Von jokingly telling McGregor to keep his hands off their mom.

"A couple of best friends?" Kyle Forgeard said, posting a video of McGregor taking a selfie with the Paul brothers.

- Christopher De Santiago

JOE BIDEN OFFICIALLY SIGNS BILL TO ALLOW COMMANDERS TO OFFICIALLY RELOCATE

CREDIT: WASHINGTON COMMANDERS

The Washington Commanders got a big legislative win today, as President Joe Biden has officially signed the "D.C. Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium Campus Revitalization Act." This new bill will allow the District of Columbia to rebuild the campus where the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium sits.

The bill allows for stadium development, residential and commercial development, and other specified purposes.

The bill was unanimously passed in the Senate on Dec. 21, after legislators reportedly stayed up all night to iron out the details of the new bill. Now, the Commanders can return back to their home stadium in Washington, D.C.

Following the unanimous passing of the "D.C. Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium Campus Revitalization Act" in the Senate on Dec. 21, President Biden has made the act official with his signature.

The Commanders began in the NFL as the Boston Braves in 1932. They would eventually relocate to Washington D.C., the team would change to the Washington Redskins in 1937.

The then-Redskins made their home at RFK Stadium from 1961-96, before relocating again to FedEx Field in Landover, Maryland. The Commanders remain at FedEx Field, but the lease for the team will end in 2027.

The new couple of years and the bill being passed gives the Commanders and the District of Columbia time to plan their renovation of the RFK Stadium Campus. It will be interesting to see if the Commanders will have to play at a neutral site while their new stadium is being built.

DC Mayor Muriel Bowser released a statement about the bill being passed by President Biden. The statement reads:

"It is a good day for DC when we finally have control of our own destiny at the RFK campus. We are ready and optimistic about unlocking the full potential of this space, and with more than 170 acres of land we can do it all – deliver housing, economic opportunity, green space, recreation, sports, and more.

This moment is the result of years of tireless and strategic advocacy, extraordinary collaboration, and bipartisan leadership. We extend our gratitude to President Biden, Representative James Comer, and Representative Eleanor Holmes Norton for their crucial support in ensuring this bill's success."

The Commanders have been building something special, especially this season. With a new head coach in Dan Quinn and the makings of a franchise quarterback in Jayden Daniels, things are looking up for the Washington team.

Daniels could win Rookie of the Year, and the Commanders are in the playoffs. Now, they will likely move back to their home stadium in the near future.

For more on the Commanders, head to Newsweek Sports.

- James Brizuela Newsweek