Tag: superstar

  • Pro wrestling legend Booker T sets expectations for next great superstar ahead of ‘WWE LFG’

    Pro wrestling legend Booker T sets expectations for next great superstar ahead of ‘WWE LFG’

    Legendary professional wrestler Booker T will be one of the four coaches tasked to find the next top competitor on the upcoming A&E series “WWE Legends and Future Greats.”

    The show, also known as “WWE LFG,” takes 16 budding professional wrestlers and lets them learn under the guided eyes of Booker T, Mickie James, Undertaker and Bubba Ray Dudley. While each coach has their own styles and backgrounds, Booker T has experience as a coach.

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    A fan, right, takes a picture with WWE wrestler Booker T before the Houston Dynamo play the Seattle Sounders in the first leg of the MLS Western Conference Championship at BBVA Compass Stadium in Houston on Nov. 21, 2017. (Thomas B. Shea-USA TODAY Sports)

    Booker T is the founder of the independent promotion Reality of Wrestling (ROW), which became an independent wrestling school for WWE’s latest developmental program, WWE ID. Much like his fellow coaches, he has been through the ups and downs that pro wrestling has to offer. He has been a world champion with WWE, World Championship Wrestling (WCW) and Total Nonstop Action (TNA) Wrestling, and he has been on the independent and international scenes.

    He explained to Fox News Digital in a recent interview what he is looking for in a pro wrestler.

    “How much heart they have, how much they really, really want it, and how far they’re willing to go because with professional wrestling, I tell my students, it’s not going to come to you,” he said. “You got to go to it as far as the studying side of it.

    “Do you really want to be a professional wrestler or do you want to just play wrestling? It’s so many different elements that goes into it. But I’m looking for the guy that wants it. It’s hard to judge a book by its cover because you might see the one guy, he may have everything on the outside you’re looking for, but it may have zero on the inside that you’re looking for. On the other hand, it could be totally the opposite.”

    Aside from being a prolific singles competitor with multiple world championship reigns, Booker T broke into WCW as a tag-team wrestler with his brother, Stevie Ray. The two were known as the Harlem Heat and took the tag-team scene by storm.

    Booker T talk to reporters

    Former WWE Superstar Booker T cuts a promo for the upcoming 2020 Royal Rumble to be held at Minute Maid Park, on Sept. 18, 2019 in Houston. (Bob Levey/Getty Images)

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    The Harlem Heat were 10-time tag-team champions in WCW. Booker T also won tag titles with Rob Van Dam, Goldust and Test.

    He told Fox News Digital he was not looking for one person to have a certain specialty, rather a person who is ready for any type of challenge.

    “I’m looking for someone who can find themselves in situations, and no matter what the situation is, they know how to figure it out,” he said. “A lot of these guys are dealing with this competition from just about every aspect we possibly can put them in – from a tag-team perspective, from a singles perspective, from a surprise perspective.

    “There’s going to be so many different elements that we’re going to put them through. They’re going to, like I say, run the gambit as far as that goes. But I’m looking for someone who’s prepared for those situations because, just like I’ve been talking to my students since day one, preparation is the only luck you’re going to have in making it in this business.”

    A promo poster for 'WWE LFG'

    “WWE Legends and Future Greats” features four coaches trying to develop the next great superstar. (A&E)

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    “WWE Legends and Future Greats” is on A&E at 8 p.m. ET starting Sunday.

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  • Fever make number of moves to give Caitlin Clark help, including superstar she had playoff spat with

    Fever make number of moves to give Caitlin Clark help, including superstar she had playoff spat with

    The Indiana Fever needed to make some upgrades to the roster in order to vie for a WNBA championship and give Caitlin Clark extra firepower on both sides of the ball.

    The team has done just that.

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    Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark, #22, brings the ball up court against the Chicago Sky during the first half at Wintrust Arena in Chicago on Aug. 30, 2024. (Kamil Krzaczynski-USA TODAY Sports)

    The Fever re-signed Kelsey Mitchell, acquired Sophie Cunningham from the Phoenix Mercury and added Natasha Howard, DeWanna Bonner and Sydney Colson. In an offseason that saw the Las Vegas Aces trade Kelsey Plum to the Los Angeles Sparks, the Fever may have made some of the shrewdest moves that have gone under the radar.

    “I got to work out with DB. As some offseason leagues and overseas stuff kinda wraps up, a lot of them will start getting back and I think it will be a lot of fun to get in the gym and be with my teammates and just starting putting the pieces together and see what works or what doesn’t,” Clark said at Bonner’s introductory press conference, via CBS Sports. “But I think we’re going to have a lot of different options to do a lot of different things. I think that’s what’s super exciting.”

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    DeWanna Bonner drives

    Connecticut Sun forward DeWanna Bonner, #24, works toward the basket as Minnesota Lynx guard Natisha Hiedeman, #2, defends during the first half of Game 5 of a WNBA basketball semifinals on Oct. 8, 2024 in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr, File)

    Clark, Mitchell and Aliyah Boston shined bright in the 2024 season. Clark won the Rookie of the Year award and received some MVP votes. Mitchell was an All-Star for the second straight season. Boston was also an All-Star for the second time and built momentum after her rookie year.

    Add players with playoff experience and a coach in Stephanie White, who coached the Connecticut Sun the last two seasons to at least 27 wins, and the Fever have turned into formidable contenders for the WNBA title in 2025.

    Bonner is a six-time All-Star and two-time WNBA champion in her own right. She is also not one to be intimidated or messed around with, as she has proven to back up her teammates no matter which team she is playing for. She proved that in the playoffs last season when she and Clark had an in-game spat.

    “I think it’s just two competitive players that want to win and push their team to get over the finish line. It was the playoffs, so emotions are high, tensions are high,” she recalled, via the Indy Star.

    Bonner added she and Clark had a good workout to build chemistry with Clark.

    Caitlin Clark drives on DeWanna Bonner

    Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark, #22, drives the ball against Connecticut Sun forward DeWanna Bonner, #24, in the first quarter at Mohegan Sun Arena on May 14, 2024 in Uncasville, Connecticut. (David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports)

    “I’m just here to hopefully give my leadership advice,” Bonner added. “I don’t think I need to push her to be any type of player that she isn’t already is, and I’m just happy to be here, and I hope I can give her some knowledge to bring her game to a different level.”

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    Expectations will be high for Clark and the Fever in her second WNBA season.

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  • Mavericks GM discusses ‘tough decision’ to trade young superstar Luka Dončić

    Mavericks GM discusses ‘tough decision’ to trade young superstar Luka Dončić

    The Dallas Mavericks did the unthinkable overnight by trading Luka Dončić.

    It’s perhaps the most stunning trade in NBA, and maybe sports, history – there had been no rumors about this at all, and Dončić is still just 25 years old and a perennial MVP candidate.

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    So, why would the Mavs move on from him? Especially after an NBA Finals appearance.

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    Luka Dončić of the Dallas Mavericks reacts against the Thunder during the Western Conference playoffs at Paycom Center on May 9, 2024, in Oklahoma City. (Joshua Gateley/Getty Images)

    Well, general manager Nico Harrison admitted shortly after making the trade that he was concerned about the team’s defense, a bugaboo of Dončić’s. Trading for Anthony Davis surely helps in that area.

    But Dončić is – well, was – a franchise cornerstone. 

    “I understand why [fans] would be shocked, initially,” Harrison told the Dallas Morning News. 

    “But I do believe that we positioned ourselves to win now and also win in the future. And that’s ultimately the goal and why we’re here. It’s one of those things where it’s my job to make the tough decisions that put our goals first and foremost.”

    Aside from the defense though, Dončić would have been in quite a contract battle with the Mavs. His $207 million extension is set to expire this year, and he was due for a supermax that was worth over $340 million. Plus, he was soon able to opt out of any other deals. So, Harrison wanted security.

    Luka Doncic and Anthony Davis

    Luka Dončić of the Mavericks handles the ball against Anthony Davis of the Los Angeles Lakers at American Airlines Center on Feb. 26, 2023, in Dallas. (Ron Jenkins/Getty Images)

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    “We really feel like we got ahead of what was going to be a tumultuous summer, him being eligible for the supermax and also a year away from him being able to opt out of any contract,” Harrison said. “And so we really felt like we got out in front of that. We know teams, they’ve had it out there, teams have been loading up to try to sign him once that comes available.”

    And with the speculation that the Mavs were upset with Doncic’s conditioning, it appears the stars aligned for Dallas to move on from him.

    The Lakers received Dončić, Maxi Kleber and Markieff Morris, while the Mavericks took on Davis, Max Christie and Los Angeles’ 2029 first-round pick. To settle it all out, the Utah Jazz acquired Jalen Hood-Schifino and two second-round picks.

    Luka Doncic plays against Orlando

    Luka Dončić of the Mavericks smiles before the game against the Orlando Magic at American Airlines Center on Jan. 29, 2024, in Dallas. (Tim Heitman/Getty Images)

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    The Slovenian led the NBA with 33.4 points per game last season and won’t turn 26 until later this month. In his career, he averages 28.6 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 8.3 assists, putting himself in the MVP conversation every year of his young career.

    Meanwhile, Davis finished in fourth place in the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year voting last year, and is averaging over 25 points and 12 rebounds this season.

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