Pics Of Venus & Serena Williams Home Addition & Blue Tennis Courts

Seems like Florida is a very popular place for wealthy athletes to call home. Maybe that has something to do with the lack of personal income tax in the state but that's neither here nor there (learn something new everyday, don't you?)

Thanks to the good people over at Jeff Realty here are pics and a video of the BallenIsles Country Club home of tennis star sisters Venus and Serena Williams, which has recently been upgraded to include a 4000-sq. foot, state-of-the-art training facility. Here some info and pics of the Williams BallenIsles home, as listed on the Jeff Realty:

The Williams sisters built their massive estate a decade ago. Besides the unique 2 master wings, the property grounds are triple guarded. BallenIsles Country Club is a manned, gated community of 1562 homes. Grand Key, where they reside, also has its own private gate. In addition, the Williams’ own home in Grand Key Estates has its own gate as well. Not even Buckingham Palace has this many gates! The addition still leaves the property with loads of parking, as the aerial shows a plethora of Range Rovers to roam about.

The interior architecture of the Williams home while quite complex in design, is simply stunning looking. Their architect, using a circular theme thru-out, repeated that detail in unique ways in the foyer, breakfast, dining, library and 2 story glass enclosed sitting rooms off each master bedroom. Each sister has massive double walk-in closets with literally miles of hanging space and built-ins. Both Venus and Serena have separate wings and galleries for trophies and mementos. Their master baths are all marble and granite, with beautiful cabinetry.

As you can see in the second picture, the Williams sisters have "2 Blue Williams Courts", with the blue color being used to mimic conditions the sisters are accustomed to competing on (the blue courts were first used during the Australian Open several years ago and players found it easier to pick up the yellow ball on the blue background, as opposed to green).

Here is video also provided by Jeff Realty detailing the Williams property:



Must be nice to be rich. Once I have a son and he becomes a super three-sport athlete I too may own a campus such as the Williams home. (We can all dream, right?)

You can see the property and more details on BallenIsles here. Credit goes to Jeff Lichtenstein for the info and links.

-ALR

"Pimpin' Your Son" Euro Edition: Father Says Enes Kanter Will Stay At Kentucky If Suspension Sticks

We previously blogged here that Kentucky freshman center Enes Kanter was ruled ineligible by the NCAA for illegal benefits he received while playing professionally overseas. Per this report over at The Sporting News Kanter's father says he will guarantee that Enes not declare for the NBA draft and will return to play at Kentucky next season if he is eligible:

“Enes would do anything to play and help UK, his teammates and fans,” Mehmet Kanter wrote. “In the last two years, one thing me and Enes never discussed was him being pro. He didn’t mention to me about NBA or draft and I guarantee you as a father – if that’s the NCAA's decision Enes will be a sophomore next year in UK.”

Mehmet Kanter (the father) also goes on to say that his son was unaware of any monetary exchanges and all were conducted between the team and himself:

“I been saying from beginning of the review there has never been any monetary exchange between Enes and Fenerbahce,” Mehmet Kanter said. “Enes was 16 years old, never had any knowledge about any accounts and everything has been between me and Fenerbahce.”

Maybe this is a noble effort on the father's part to defend his son's chances of receiving a college education. Maybe it's a cover up to protect his son's credibility to future NBA suitors. Who knows. One thing I do know is that overseas it is 100% legal for a minor to play professional ball and also 100% legal for parent of said minor to profit off their kid's abilities. Why Cecil Newton didn't think of this is beyond me. He could have pimped Cam out to a Euro league and been scott free.

Mehmet Kanter even says he will repay the $30k that has kept young Enes off the court this season. Sure he will. And if he does, it only makes me wonder exactly how much the Kanters have stacked up from hoops. I'm going to take a guess that it's a lot more than $30k.

Either way, I hope Enes Kanter gets a chance to play at least one year of college ball and doesn't end up riding the pine or on a D-League roster next season. Oh, and that he also gets a bit of a college education, which it the important thing in all of this, right? Sure it is.

-ALR

Pics of Michael Jordan's New Mansion

News Flash: Michael Jordan has more money than you. Arguably the world's greatest basketball player Jordan now also owns arguable one of the US's greatest homes. Browsing the internet I stumbled upon pics  at Admirals Cove homes of his Airness' new home is Jupiter, Florida that was built at The Bear's Club, which is owned by golfing great Jack Nicklaus. Here's a look at the property:

Jordan reportedly paid $4.8 mil for the land and $7.6 mil for development. It's also reported that with furnishings, Jordan's commitment to the property will be over $20 mil. Sheezus. Here's a little more on the property:

Jordan’s house has 11 bedrooms, 6 on the 2nd floor alone, a 2-story guard house, an athletic wing together with basketball court and lavish workout facility. It’s rumored his huge media room with state-of-the-art electronics is ‘cigar friendly’.

Must me nice (no Lyfe Jennings). Jordan has always been an avid golfer (and even more avid gambler, but we won't talk about that) so it's only fitting for him to have a "home" on a world class golf course. Jordan is also currently majority owner of the NBA's Charlotte Bobcats (this song should play whenever his doorbell rings). You can see more info on The Bears Club as well as a slide show of Jordan's home here.

Kinda makes you want to increase your grind and get your $$ up, right?

-ALR

Money Mayweather Responds...

Floyd "Money" Mayweather takes to UStream to talk about Manny Pacquiao, fighting him and otherwise. It's Floyd being Floyd, so if you watch be prepared for that explicit real... Yea buddy

- @lostherod

Where The Cash At?!?

The high-profile holdout of Darrelle Revis has reached its 11th day. According to the various reports and media posturing, it doesn't seem to be nowhere near a conclusion. I can understand Revis' point of view. According to USATODAY.com, Revis's 2009 base salary wasn't even in the top 50 for DBs, and he only ranked 14th in overall salary (including performance bonuses, signing bonuses, etc). The other DBs on the total salary list above Revis are good, but not on the level of Revis. You can't convince me Chris Gamble or Dunta Robinson are better than him. Look at the tape. So in a nutshell, Darrelle Revis is vastly underpaid.

After just 3 seasons in the NFL, Revis has proven himself to be arguably the best cornerback int he NFL (the Raiders Nnamdi Asomugha and veteran Charles Woodson also gets some votes). Many will say that he should play out his rookie contract since that's the one he signed initially. But from a business point of view, you have every right to renegotiate an agreement, especially if both sides agree you have clearly outperformed your current deal. In lay person's terms that's called seeking a raise. But at the same time, there are better ways to go about seeking that raise...

Holdouts are common in today's NFL. They usually play out quietly but sometimes they can drag out into the regular season (see Michael Crabtree). But rarely are holdouts this publicly exploited. Maybe it's due to the Jets being on HBO's Hard Knocks? Who knows. But I can't remember the last time I heard a GM or Owner publicly stating that the chances of a player that is holding out and being with the team as "very slim". Personally I think it was a tasteless negotiation tactic. But that's just my opinion. Reportedly the Jets have offered 10 yrs/$120 mil overall. Revis' camp is reportedly seeking somewhere in the range of $16 mil per season, which would make him the highest paid corner, above Asomugha. My take is (as usual) "Get ya' money!"... but I think his camp should soften his stance a little. Take a small raise this season, go out and prove that you're worth the big bucks again, then re-negotiate in the off-season (just as Chris Johnson did this summer). That way everyone wins, right?

And for the people that complain that athletes make to much money these days; imagine how much money the owners are raking in from those same players performances. Someone has to sign the players'checks, and I'm damn sure the checks the owners are cashing more than dwarf any player's salary.

Now take that to the bank.

-ALR

The Best Team Money Can Buy

Watching baseball early this AM, I had an epiphany... The Yankees have a boat load of money.

Amazing what a few billion dollars can buy you. Like the best team (on paper) in Major League Baseball. As yesterday's trade deadline passed, the "Evil Empire" NY Yankees again flexed their formidable financial muscles by acquiring 1B Lance Berkman, who in his prime was a perennial all-star and one of the top hitters in the league, reliever Kerry Wood & OF Austin Kearns, who at one time was considered a top prospect before injuries slowed his career.

How do the Yankees continue to stockpile such high-profile players, you ask? Could be the ire of playing for the storied NY Yankee franchise who have amassed more championships than any team in history, in any sport. Could be that the Yankees can offer top dollar to free agents with no regard for the dreaded MLB luxury tax. Rarely are they outbid. Smaller market franchises just can't compete with NY's buying power. Just 2 off-seasons ago, the Yanks added the best pitcher (CC Sabathia), top free agent bat (Mark Teixeira) and another top-tier pitcher in AJ Burnett. Those signings alone equaled a whopping $423 million combined. Put this into perspective: just the salaries of these 3 players is more than seven teams total payroll! Add in A-Rod, "Mr. Yankee" Derek Jeter, closer extraordinaire Mariano Rivera, Robinson Cano, and a circus monkey just for kicks, and you have the favorites to win the world series almost every year.

I can't fault the Steinbrenners for abandoning the traditional strategy of building your team through the farm system. They go out & repeated get players that have already established themselves as top players and worry about chemistry later. Sometimes it pays off, sometimes its a failed experiment (see Gary Sheffield). It definitely makes them mighty easy to root against.

Time will tell if this season's trade acquisitions will be enough to vault the Yankees to their second championship in as many years. Tampa Bay has been strong this season and will continue to present a challenge in the loaded AL East. But one thing is for sure; Money Talks.

-ALR

Give Someone An Inch...

... And they'll take a 100 mil and run with it.

Can't say that I'm surprised by this story one bit. What did you expect to happen when you give someone $41 mil guaranteed in the first 13 months of a 7 year/$100 million dollar deal? Of course Albert Haynesworth is going to take the money, play half-assed for the first year, collect on his roster bonus and then skip mini-camp because he doesn't like his role in the new coaching staff's defense (which he has yet to play in). What's next; showing up to training camp out of shape? Wait, that just happened. I'm sure he's been eating real well with $41 mil he's pocketed so far.

Just another example of rewarding a player before they prove their value to your franchise. Yes, Haynesworth was a BEAST for Tennessee in 2008; that's because he playing for a new contract! History has proven that players with "potential" to be great have a tendency to step it up in contract years, get a huge deal, then lay an egg once they cash in. Haven't we learned from players like Jerome James (currently collecting multi millions from NY for no production whatsoever) or Super Bowl XXX Larry Brown (Al davis at his finest!). The smart GM's are the ones who offer these types of players incentive-laiden deals where the player can only cash in by reaching performance escalators.

But in Albert Haynesworth's defense, all you can say is "Don't hate the playa, hate the game." Getcha money Fat Al!

-ALR