Seven people were shot, one fatally, since 5 p.m. May 7, 2021. | Sun-Times file photo
A 31-year-old man was fatally shot Friday in the first block of North Menard Avenue.
A person was killed and at least six others were wounded in shootings across Chicago so far this weekend.
A 31-year-old man was fatally shot Friday night in Austin on the West Side.
About 10:15 p.m., the man was standing in a gangway between two buildings in the first block of North Menard Avenue when someone fired shots at him, Chicago police said.
He suffered multiple gunshot wounds to the body and head and was pronounced dead at the scene, police said.
In nonfatal attacks, a 25-year-old man was shot Friday night in Gage Park on the Southwest Side.
About 8:55 p.m., he was outside in the 5700 block of South Kedzie Avenue when two males approached him and one fired several shots, police said.
The man was struck once in the groin and transported to Mount Sinai Hospital in good condition, police said.
A 27-year-old man was critically wounded in a shooting Friday night in Bridgeport on the South Side.
About 10 p.m, he was in the parking lot of a gas station in the 600 block of West 31st Street when a male approached and fired shots into his vehicle, police said.
He suffered gunshot wounds to the face and neck and was taken to Stroger Hospital in critical condition, police said. The shooter fled the scene in a dark colored sedan, according to police.
Also Friday night, a 33-year-old man was seriously hurt in a shooting in Englewood on the South Side.
He was standing on the sidewalk about 11:45 p.m. in the 7400 block of South Racine Avenue when a male suspect got out of a vehicle and began firing shots, police said.
He was shot in the leg and groin and was taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center, where his condition was serious, police said.
On Saturday, a 17-year-old boy was wounded in a shooting.
Just after midnight, the teen boy was dropped off at Norwegian Hospital with a gunshot wound in the leg, police said. He was in good condition.
He would not give details of the incident or the location of the shooting, according to police.
A man was shot early Saturday in West Englewood on the South Side.
The 43-year-old was walking about 1:45 a.m. in the 5600 block of South Hermitage Avenue when he heard shots and felt pain, Chicago police said.
He was struck in the torso and was taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center in good condition, police said.
Eisbaren Berlin forward Lukas Reichel tops the Blackhawks’ prospect rankings. | Courtesy of Chicago Blackhawks
Lukas Reichel and Henrik Borgstrom headline a list that experienced much turnover this season as prospects graduated to the NHL.
The Blackhawks’ end-of-season prospect rankings look tremendously different than they did entering the season.
Four of the 10 players listed in the November edition of this list — Ian Mitchell (then No. 1), Philipp Kurashev (No. 3), Brandon Hagel (No. 4) and Wyatt Kalynuk (No. 6) — became regular NHL players for the Hawks this season, and Lucas Carlsson (No. 8) was traded.
All told, six of the 10 players on this list are being ranked for the first time. But most may stay for a while — the Hawks will be more focused on developing their preexisting young players than integrating new ones next season — and a few may be bumped out by the Hawks’ 2021 draft class.
As always, the order of these rankings is determined partially by NHL readiness and partially by upside. Players in Rockford have five games left, so their stat lines aren’t quite complete.
No. 1. Lukas Reichel, wing/center, age 18
Previous Ranking: No. 2
Stat line: 27 points in 38 games with Berlin (Germany)
Reichel, the 2020 17th overall selection, is the clear top prospect in the Hawks’ system right now.
The young German forward greatly impressed Hawks general manager Stan Bowman this year, ranking fifth on Eisbaren Berlin in scoring as an 18-year-old facing adults.
Berlin’s season ended Friday, when they won the league championship. The Hawks would like to sign Reichel this summer and bring him to North America next season. He was originally projected as an NHL wing, but he played a lot of center this season and now looks even more versatile.
No. 2. Henrik Borgstrom, center, age 23
Previous Ranking: N/A (acquired from Panthers)
Stat line: 21 points in 30 games with HIFK (Finland)
After Borgstrom scored 18 points in 50 NHL games with the Panthers in 2018-19, it would’ve been difficult to justify classifying him as a prospect. But after falling out of favor in Florida and playing this season overseas, he’s a prospect again.
Borgstrom is overflowing with natural offensive talent — Bowman described the University of Denver product as the best college player he’s ever seen — and could be a difference-making center in the NHL if he can finally put it all together. The Hawks hope to sign him this summer, too.
No. 3. Nicolas Beaudin, defenseman, age 21
Previous Ranking: No. 7
Stat line: Six points in 17 games with Blackhawks; 10 points in nine games with Rockford (AHL)
Eleven of Beaudin’s 17 Hawks appearances this year came before Feb. 20. The 2018 first-round pick possesses a high hockey IQ and strong offensive instincts but needs to improve defensively. His 40.1% on-ice scoring-chance ratio is the worst on the team.
“When he’s at his best, he’s moving the puck, he’s skating the puck, he’s getting us out of the ‘D’-zone, he can give us something on the offensive blue line,” Hawks coach Jeremy Colliton said recently.
No. 4. Evan Barratt, center, age 22
Previous Ranking: No. 5
Stat line: 14 points in 26 games with Rockford (AHL)
Barratt is the top prospect scorer on the IceHogs this season. He has enjoyed a beneficial first pro season, gaining maturity and becoming more comfortable with the puck.
He should see some NHL time next season, although Rockford coach Derek King said this week he doesn’t think Barratt is quite ready yet.
“The big thing [he must improve] is his first two strides,” King said. “But…he’s getting a full boat of everything. It’s nice to see a prospect like that just get better every day.”
No. 5. Wyatt Kaiser, defenseman, age 18
Previous Ranking: Unranked
Stat line: 10 points in 28 games with Minnesota-Duluth (NCAA)
Kaiser’s stock skyrocketed during his freshman year. The Hawks’ 2020 third-round pick was one of the top defensemen on a Frozen Four team, as evidenced by his now-famous 59:39 ice time in a quintuple-overtime win over North Dakota.
No. 6. Alec Regula, defenseman, age 20
Previous Ranking: No. 10
Stat line: Four points in 16 games with Rockford (AHL)
Regula, an ex-Red Wings prospect obtained in the Brendan Perlini trade, made his Hawks debut Thursday. He’s a big body (6-4, 208 pounds) with surprising patience and poise with the puck. He projects as a third-pairing defensive defenseman at the NHL level.
No. 7. MacKenzie Entwistle, wing, age 21
Previous Ranking: Others to watch
Stat line: 12 points in 22 games with Rockford (AHL)
Entwistle has also played three games so far with the Hawks, recording his first NHL point Tuesday. His upside is relatively low, but his likelihood of establishing himself as a reliable bottom-six grinder is very high.
No. 8. Isaak Phillips, defenseman, age 19
Previous Ranking: Unranked
Stat line: Seven points in 23 games with Rockford (AHL)
Phillips, seeking to become the first Jamaican hockey team alum to reach the NHL, has more than held his own as one of the youngest defensemen in the AHL this season. He was skating, confidence and defensive instincts were already solid, and his development has only accelerated.
No. 9. Landon Slaggert, center, age 18
Previous Ranking: Unranked
Stat line: 22 points in 25 games with Notre Dame (NCAA)
The Hawks picked Slaggert in the third round last October and he rewarded them with a very good freshman year at Notre Dame. He ranked third on the team in points, trailing only two juniors: his older brother Graham Slaggert and Maple Leafs signing Alex Steeves. He’s a good defensive center, too.
No. 10. Alex Vlasic, defenseman, age 19
Previous Ranking: Others to watch
Stat line: Eight points in 16 games with Boston University (NCAA)
Vlasic took a huge step from his freshman to sophomore years of college, doubling his point total in half as many games and adding strength to his huge 6-6 frame. The Hawks drafted him 43rd overall in 2019 because of his raw tools, knowing he’d take a while to develop, and their patience may eventually pay off.
Honorable mention: Artur Kayumov, wing, age 23
Stat line: 29 points in 57 games with Lokomotiv Yaroslavl (Russia)
Kayumov would not only appear but fall in the upper echelon of these rankings if it was more certain he’d one day come over from Russia and join the Hawks’ organization. He’s already a dynamic skater, shooter and playmaker in the world’s second-best league. But he has at least one year left with Lokomotiv.
Other prospects to watch: Drew Commesso (G, 18), Michal Teply (W, 19), Andrei Altybarmakyan (W, 22), Josiah Slavin (W, 22), Jakub Galvas (D, 21), Cam Morrison (W, 22), Antti Saarela (C, 19)
Mark Giangreco poses inside his South Loop home on May 4. | Ashlee Rezin Garcia/Sun-Times
The longtime Chicagosports anchor has rubbed some people the wrong way, but he has delighted, informed and supported countless more.
Chicago was tugging at Mark Giangreco’s sleeve long before he called it home.
When he was 8, he’d lie in bed at night — when the signal reached his home outside of Buffalo, New York, the clearest — and listen to the city’s radio stations on his transistor. He was obsessed with the music stations. He’d rock to WCFL and WLS and dream of becoming a disc jockey like Dr. Brock, John Records Landecker and Larry Lujack.
Even though he was more than 500 miles away, Giangreco felt connected to Chicago, which to him was a much larger Buffalo. The cities have the same Great Lakes accent, the same blue-collar mentality and relatively the same weather. They share an ethnic mix of mostly Irish, Italian and Polish, which he identified with, having grandparents in an Italian neighborhood where no one spoke English.
Giangreco’s attraction to Chicago grew stronger while he was at the University of Dayton, where he had a roommate from Northfield, a suburb north of Chicago. They would hitchhike into the city on weekends to party on Rush Street. If they had access to a car, they’d make the five-hour, 300-mile trip, party, then drive back. They felt invincible.
When he began his broadcasting career, Giangreco knew where he wanted to end up. But when he finally arrived in Chicago in 1982, he learned quickly that partying there and competing there were mutually exclusive.
He had no idea the city was about to enter the greatest sports era in its history, in which every major team would win at least one championship, and he’d become its top TV sports anchor. In Chicago, a provincial town despite its major-market status, that equates to celebrity.
“Chicago doesn’t have movie stars — they’ve got sports stars,” said longtime TV news anchor and journalist Carol Marin, who worked with Giangreco. “Without any Hollywood [types], you’re stuck with the news people.”
Chicago became enamored of Giangreco. His authenticity came through the TV screen as clearly as the radio signal that reached his childhood bedroom. It’s hard to act your way through a newscast. At some point, the façade will crack and viewers will see through you. Giangreco was himself, script and all.
“To Mark Giangreco, they were never just words on a page,” said former news anchor Ron Magers, who also worked with him. “They were words he created; they were words he wrote. They were the essence of him. That’s why in what seemed to be an even ordinary story, you still got him.”
But being him had its drawbacks. During his school days, he was often blunt and outspoken — traits he picked up from his mother, Joanne — and found himself in trouble for it. Once he became comfortable in Chicago, he pushed the boundaries and inevitably crossed them a few times.
Whether his last transgression merited his ouster is at least questionable, if not outright wrong, to many. During what became his last newscast Jan. 28 at ABC 7, Giangreco jokingly said news anchor Cheryl Burton “can play the ditzy, combative interior decorator” on a fictional DIY Network show he concocted. Burton complained to station management, which took Giangreco off the air. He and the station reached a separation agreement March 12 for the remaining 18 months on his contract.
But labeling Giangreco a “bad boy” would be a misnomer. Another element of his authenticity is his generosity — a trait he picked up from his father, Joseph. Those he has touched have reciprocated with an unyielding show of support for which he is grateful.
Another reason for his success — and that of his stations’ newscasts in the ratings wars — was his unique style. He was paid to live on the edge, and handsomely. While others in town kept their sportscasts straightforward, Giangreco kept viewers coming back to see what he’d do next.
“I have some regrets. That’s what happens when you shoot from the hip,” said Giangreco, 69. “But that was just me. I’m lucky that the fans in this town were a lot like the people I grew up with. I never wanted to be a celebrity. I just wanted to be creative and have fun with the subject matter, which is sports. I was lucky that just being myself worked.”
ProvidedGiangreco at WLKY in Louisville, where he worked for four years before coming to Chicago in 1982.
Giangreco’s first job was in Dayton at WING radio, where he was a news and sports sidekick. He cut his teeth in TV at WLKY in Louisville, Kentucky. Though the station rated a distant third in the market, it was producing strong work with young, talented people. It couldn’t gain traction because those same people moved on to bigger markets.
“But we were the only station that had a helicopter,” Giangreco said. “We promoted the hell out of that.”
Giangreco spent four years in Louisville, but he was pushing to move on more than halfway through. At the time, he was dating his ex-wife, Cindi Lyles, who was an investigative reporter and weekend anchor at the station. She was pushing for him, too, and sent out his tapes.
NBC 5 in Chicago received one and hired Giangreco to be the weekend sports anchor and work with Chet Coppock. Giangreco, in his late 20s, arrived for work at the Merchandise Mart with equal parts fear and awe.
“I get in the elevator, and all the other floors had numbers on them except WMAQ. It had a peacock,” he said. “And I’m like, ‘Wow, this is really cool.’ ”
Giangreco learned the ropes from the late Coppock like a rookie backup quarterback watching a veteran starter. Coppock was protective and supportive of Giangreco, all while battling rival anchors Johnny Morris at CBS 2 and the late Tim Weigel at ABC 7. They would vie for scoops and volley assaults at each other through newspaper TV critics, who would fan the flames. Giangreco stood back and watched.
Less than a year after Giangreco arrived, the station fired Coppock and threw Giangreco into the top spot. Management had had enough of Coppock’s ad-libbed, rambling sportscasts slamming into Johnny Carson’s monologue on “The Tonight Show,” among other indiscretions. One such lapse in time judgment led to executive producer Phyllis Schwartz coming into the studio and screaming at Coppock.
“It was no-holds-barred craziness,” Giangreco said of those times.
Not only had Giangreco become the station’s No. 1 sports anchor, but the Chicago sports scene was taking off. The White Sox won their division in 1983, the Cubs followed suit in ’84, the Bears won the Super Bowl after the ’85 season, and Michael Jordan was turning into a national phenomenon with the Bulls. It all put sports front and center, and the competition between stations became even more fierce.
“There was no greater satisfaction than beating the competition,” Giangreco said, “and there was no greater humiliation than getting beat.”
Back then, station management expected a scoop every week. Sometimes, during competitors’ live shots, power cords magically came unplugged. There was always lots of jostling for position in scrums around players, and tensions would rise. Giangreco and ABC 7’s Jim Rose almost came to blows once in the Bears’ locker room, to the players’ amusement. Cooler heads prevailed.
At the Bears’ peak in the 80s, TV crews couldn’t miss a minute at Halas Hall, and it had nothing to do with football. They needed video of quarterback Jim McMahon wearing goofy glasses and shoulder pads on backward while riding a scooter, or whatever hijinks the players were up to.
Giangreco missed one iconic moment, though it’s hard to fault him. Morris delivered lots of exclusives because he was coach Mike Ditka’s teammate with the Bears in the 1960s. Media weren’t allowed upstairs at the old Halas Hall in Lake Forest — the pressroom was downstairs — but Morris would go up there and sneak his cameraman with him.
Ahead of a 1987 game against the Vikings in Minneapolis, Ditka disgustedly called the old Metrodome a “Rollerdome” and said the cheerleaders should wear roller skates. Vikings general manager Mike Lynn responded by sending a pair of skates to Ditka, who put them on and wheeled around the floor. Morris and cameraman Chuck Davidson were on hand for the scoop.
“I remember when they showed that video, I’m like, ‘Goddamnit,’ ” Giangreco said. “We rebounded when Ditka put gum on our camera lens.”
That was emblematic of a contentious relationship with Ditka. Unlike other media types, Giangreco refused to fawn over Ditka and didn’t fear him. In fact, he would go out of his way to make fun of him on his sportscasts. Ditka resented it, and to this day he has no fondness for Giangreco.
But that wasn’t the case with athletes. Giangreco had a great relationship with Jordan. They would challenge each other in interviews, and it was Giangreco who asked the first few questions at Jordan’s first retirement news conference. It appeared to be turning into a one-on-one interview before Bulls chairman Jerry Reinsdorf — another Giangreco detractor — quietly told Jordan to call on someone else.
Giangreco had his share of scoops, too. In Jordan’s early years, when the kid didn’t know any better, Giangreco would grab him and pull him into a broom closet for an interview. Competitors complained about the access, but they did it, too.
He once overheard Bears linebacker Wilbur Marshall in the locker room complaining that teammate Mike Singletary received a new contract and Marshall hadn’t yet. After practice, Giangreco congratulated Singletary, who wondered how Giangreco found out. The bit of eavesdropping led to an exclusive on-camera interview.
His favorite scoop was riding in a limo with Scottie Pippen en route to the Bulls star’s appearance on “The Arsenio Hall Show” in Los Angeles during the 1991 NBA Finals. CBS 2 reporter Jay Levine was waiting at the back door of the studio for what he thought would be an exclusive interview. When the limo pulled up and Giangreco and his crew popped out, Levine realized that was no longer the case.
The competition extended to the sports recap shows on Sunday nights, especially during football season. CBS 2 had Ditka on its show, of course, and ABC 7 had running back Walter Payton and McMahon. Giangreco and NBC 5 took a different approach, hiring Steve “Mongo” McMichael.
Their “Sports Sunday” show was lewd, crude and sometimes revolting. McMichael brought movie props to abuse Giangreco: a chainsaw, a shaving-cream pie, a knife, water balloons. He’d put Giangreco in a chokehold or headlock, cut off his tie or immobilize him with duct tape. After Giangreco mocked McMichael’s wife for her makeup, Mongo painted his face with lipstick and mascara.
“Thirty seconds of that show could never air today,” Giangreco said. “Not even 20 seconds.”
It was perhaps inevitable how McMichael’s run ended after two years in 1991. He brought a giant, cartoonish hypodermic needle that collapsed to make it appear as though it was injected in someone. He told Giangreco, “You and I have been working together too much — I gotta give you an AIDS test,” and he put the needle to his neck.
That night, the lead story of the newscast was about a woman who died of AIDS after contracting HIV from her dentist. The station fired McMichael immediately.
ProvidedGiangreco had a friendly relationship with Michael Jordan throughout the Bulls’ dynasty years, much to the annoyance of competing sportscasters.
By late 1994, Giangreco had become a star on the Chicago sports scene. But he didn’t have a contract with NBC 5 beyond that year, and the station was stringing him along in negotiations. He also was at odds with general manager Pat Wallace.
“In the 12 years I was at Channel 5, I loved everyone I worked with, but not everyone I worked for,” Giangreco said.
Meanwhile, ABC 7 was running out of patience with Weigel, who had owned the market. He could rub some people the wrong way on the air, but the station still had a slight lead over NBC 5 in the ratings.
ABC 7 general manager Joe Ahern saw an opportunity. He met Giangreco for lunch and made him an offer he couldn’t refuse.
Giangreco didn’t want to break up his family with Magers and Marin. He essentially was the snotty little brother to big brother Ron and big sister Carol. He also didn’t want to join his longtime enemies.
He consulted with Magers.
“You gotta get outta here,” Magers said. “We’ll still be friends. Just go. This is ridiculous. You gotta take it.”
NBC 5 had the right of first refusal, and it refused to match the offer.
“[Wallace] and the news director, Mike Ward, made me sit in the outer office with the door open while they talked,” Giangreco said. “They called me in, and Wallace said, ‘There’s no way I’m gonna match this offer. I don’t think you’re worth what we’re stuck paying you here.’ I said, ‘Fine. [Expletive] you.’ And I walked out.”
Ahern had chosen Giangreco over Weigel, cementing the former’s status as the top sportscaster in town — not to mention as a millionaire. It was front-page news in the Sun-Times and Tribune. It also set off a round of musical chairs that saw Weigel leave ABC 7 for CBS 2, Corey McPherrin leave CBS 2 for Fox-32 and Darrin Horton leave the market.
Giangreco didn’t want anyone to see him pack, so he planned to sneak into his NBC 5 office at night. But Marin uncovered the plot, as she always was apt to do, and stayed late to wait for him.
“I hated to see him go, but I understood,” she said. “What do you do when you love somebody? You help them pack.”
ProvidedGiangreco and close friend Bob Vorwald, who experienced Giangreco’s generosity first-hand when he left sports media to go back to school in the 1990s.
One of Giangreco’s all-time best friends is WGN-TV director of production Bob Vorwald. From 1990 to ’93, Vorwald was Giangreco’s producer at NBC 5.
“He’s one of the smartest guys I know,” Giangreco said. “He made my career. He really did.”
After establishing the sports department for the new Fox-32 newscasts in 1987, Vorwald would sit by Giangreco in press boxes, and the two became friendly. Eventually, Giangreco let Vorwald know of a possible job opening that came to fruition.
They talked sports and broadcasting all day, through meals and on walks. Giangreco’s joke was that Vorwald made his living by telling management he could handle him. Vorwald might have been a good buffer, but Giangreco didn’t need handling. He had a way of aspiring to excellence without being a jerk.
Vorwald saw the sports-media landscape changing with ESPN coming into its own and sports marketing becoming an industry. He thought it best to prepare himself by enrolling at Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management to receive his MBA. But that meant he had to leave Giangreco.
They met for lunch before school started, and as they finished, Giangreco handed Vorwald an envelope. Without looking inside, Vorwald shook Giangreco’s hand, and they parted. When he returned home, Vorwald opened the envelope and couldn’t believe what he saw: a check to cover his first year of tuition.
Vorwald called Giangreco to say he couldn’t accept it, but Giangreco was insistent. “You earned it,” he said.
That’s one example of many — though likely the most expensive — of Giangreco going above and beyond for others. He was a mentor, with a veritable coaching tree of media figures who interned for him.
Marc Silverman, who co-hosts ESPN 1000’s afternoon show with former Bears wide receiver Tom Waddle, interned for Giangreco at NBC 5. They met when Silverman was in seventh grade, and Giangreco spoke at his high school, Niles North. Mark Shapiro, the former ESPN executive who produced the incredible “SportsCentury” documentary series, also was an intern.
Giangreco always made time for his interns. He taught them the skills to put a show together and helped them make audition tapes on the set.
He also has emceed countless events for the Ronald McDonald House and other institutions. It all stems from advice his father gave him.
“My dad always said, ‘Don’t ever think you’re so great, don’t ever get full of yourself,’ and ‘You’ve been so lucky, you’d better share that,’ ” Giangreco said. “People helped me, and I’ve never forgotten. That makes you want to help others, because look what it did for you.”
Giangreco never would be confused for Howard Stern, but they had some similarities. For one, people always wanted to see what they would do next.
“I got that a lot, and that was my goal,” Giangreco said. “When someone would say that to me, it was so appreciated. But it was just me trying to be me. I was trying to come up with something funny or quirky or controversial.”
To Giangreco, the most important part of his sports segment wasn’t the lead story. It was the last story, the spot where he’d show that out-of-the-ordinary video. It might have been only 15 seconds, but he drove his producers crazy looking for a perfect shot or coming up with a funny line.
He did not lack creativity. The scripts and graphics were his, and his puns could match those of any newspaper headline writer.
But standards have evolved. He used to have a section of his sportscast called “Sports Briefs,” and among other sports items in the graphic above his shoulder was a pair of underwear.
“They were like, ‘You’re gonna have to take the shorts off [the graphic],’ ” he said. “I’m like, ‘Oh, God, really?’ ”
The undies had nothing on some of his questionable, if not objectionable, on-air remarks. Before a Bulls-Lakers game during the 1991 NBA Finals, he half-jokingly accused the league of trying to extend the series by assigning alleged Bulls hater Hue Hollins to officiate. NBC had the NBA’s broadcast rights, and neither appreciated the insinuation. He was suspended and forced to apologize.
When his newscast included a story about boxing promoter Don King ripping off local fighters, Giangreco chimed in with, “What do you expect from a murderer?” King had been convicted of voluntary manslaughter in 1967, so when his lawyers heard “murderer,” Giangreco had to apologize.
“But I didn’t really read the apology the way it was written,” he said. “I said, ‘I apologize for calling him a murderer. Technically, it was manslaughter.’ And I had to apologize for that.”
When Aretha Franklin performed one night at the Chicago Theatre, the newscast aired a clip. Said Magers: “There she is, the Queen of Soul.” Said Giangreco: “She looks more like the Dairy Queen of Soul.”
“I shouldn’t have made fun of an overweight person,” Giangreco said. “But I was never trying to be malicious. I just said whatever blurted out of my mouth.”
After the Pistons won the NBA title in 2004, he showed video — taken from a Godzilla flick — of a city being ravaged by fires and called it a “typical night in Detroit.” It earned him a suspension.
“That was perceived as being racist, and I’m like, ‘What?’ ” he said. “Detroit was our archrival in every way.”
Giangreco suffered his biggest indignity in 1999 when he said Payton looked like Gandhi, not knowing he had a liver disease that would kill him that year. Payton had told Giangreco’s ABC 7 colleague Brad Palmer that he had overtrained for a marathon. Giangreco thought the quip was safe.
He apologized profusely and tried to reach Payton a number of times. Payton eventually called Giangreco to forgive him, admitting he had misled him. Nevertheless, the episode has stuck with Giangreco to this day.
ProvidedMark Giangreco, Ron Magers, Carol Marin and Jerry Taft.
Giangreco always told colleagues he never wanted a goodbye party. He certainly made sure he didn’t get one.
But the public perception of his ouster at ABC 7 has abated his initial fears about how he’ll be remembered. He has been surprised and overwhelmed by all of those who have rallied around him, though he earned their support long ago.
“Chicago doesn’t put their arms around you right away,” Marin said. “They want to see if you’re going to stick around and if you mean it. And if you mean it, then they’re loyal to you.”
Giangreco developed another audience and grew his popularity by joining former ABC 7 colleague Janet Davies for the station’s New Year’s Eve countdown show. Their on-screen partnership was a ratings hit and lasted 20 years.
Marin, Davies and plenty more female colleagues have expressed their support.
“Every female anchor I ever worked with reached out and lined up behind me, backed me during all this, which I will never, ever forget,” Giangreco said. “Because my relationship with them was genuine.”
He isn’t sure what he’ll do next. He has received several inquiries and offers, and he’s mulling it all.
Part of him says he isn’t finished in broadcasting and still has a lot of juice left. The night Carlos Rodon threw a no-hitter for the White Sox, Giangreco was contemplating how he would package the highlights and sound bites in his segment, if he still had one. The other part of him says he’s 69 and it’s time to enjoy himself, maybe reinvent himself.
For now, he’s enjoying being a civilian and a casual sports fan. He’s watching documentaries, riding his bike and getting back in the gym. He’s visiting his three sons and three grandchildren. He’s hanging out with his college buddies and siblings.
“It’s all good right now,” he said. “It’s really a weight off my shoulders.”
While the end to his 39-year run in Chicago was unglamorous, it might have been, in some warped way, appropriate. And in retrospect, it might have been predictable.
“I said to him, there probably was never going to be another way,” Marin said. “You were going to be shot out of a rocket out of there.
“It’s fitting for his personality, for his history. And what’s really good about all this is he’s at peace with it.”
Jim Curtin looks on during the second half of a CONCACAF Champions League soccer match against Deportivo Saprissa. | AP Photos
A former defender in Chicago, Curtin has helped execute a plan that looks similar to what the Fire are trying.
Philadelphia Union coach Jim Curtin doesn’t throw words around. So when he said he’s sure that the plan put in place by owner Joe Mansueto, sporting director Georg Heitz and coach Raphael Wicky will bring success to the Fire, it wasn’t something he said simply because of his long playing career in Chicago.
“It’s not a question anymore,” Curtin said. “[The Fire fans] would have my word that this is going to work with this group of coaches and leaders.”
Curtin, who spent seven seasons and won three trophies as a defender with the Fire, has coached the Union since 2014. Philadelphia, which visits the Fire on Saturday, has methodically climbed to the top of MLS thanks to an investment in youth paired with shrewd but mostly unflashy signings.
The Union (0-1-2, 1 point) won the Supporters’ Shield last year and already have advanced to the semifinals of the CONCACAF Champions League. They also have sold young stars Brenden Aaronson to Austria’s Red Bull Salzburg and Mark
McKenzie to Belgian club Genk in transactions that could net the team $15 million to $20 million if certain bonuses are met.
There were some hiccups along the way, but Curtin and the Union’s technical staff benefitted from a patient ownership group.
“I’m fortunate that in Philadelphia, we had a plan and a vision,” Curtin said, “which actually I do see right now in Chicago, which is awesome to see, too.”
The Fire’s plan looks similar to the Union’s blueprint.
The Fire (0-1-2, 1 point) have made investments in youth. They also have eschewed big-name signings and have spoken about building something sustainable while
producing talent that eventually could move to Europe.
Whether it will work is unclear — the Fire’s start and 2-0 loss last week to the Red Bulls did nothing to instill faith that the program is on the right track — but Curtin had nothing but praise for Mansueto, Heitz and Wicky.
Curtin said he chatted with Mansueto and Heitz before their teams met in the preseason and came away excited for the Fire. He even noted that Mansueto thanked him for his contributions to the Fire.
“You talk to these two guys, and there’s a clear vision, there’s a clear identity for what they want to be,” Curtin said. ‘‘They want to respect the past but also blaze a new path.”
Curtin was Wicky’s teammate with Chivas USA and visited him when he was leading FC Basel. Curtain was impressed with his methods and likes that Wicky respects and has knowledge of MLS, unlike some coaches whose experience is mostly in other leagues.
It’s clear that Curtin thinks the Fire have the right people in place to wake up a franchise he said “seems like a real sleeping giant.”
“Joe Mansueto is going to win, Georg Heitz is going to win and Rapha Wicky is a winner,” Curtin said. “That’s the best endorsement I can give.”
Bears fans would be more than happy to see Aaron Rodgers leave the NFC North. | Stacy Revere/Getty Images
Vegas sportsbooks join Bears fans in speculating whether the quarterback will play for a different team
LAS VEGAS — Jay Kornegay paused when he first heard Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers might land in Denver to play for his beloved Broncos.
“It’s almost like your heart starts beating faster,” said the vice president of the Westgate SuperBook. “Aaron Rodgers a Bronco? He’d change the whole organization. The Broncos go from a below-average NFL team to a contender.
“It’s exciting, as a fan.”
That first seed dropped about 10 days ago. But with each passing hour, Kornegay knows the likelihood of Rodgers donning a No. 12 Broncos jersey diminishes.
Broncos backers did respond at the Westgate, driving 60-1 Super Bowl LVI odds down to 20-1. On Monday, Kornegay bumped that to 30-1.
As the levelheaded boss of a prominent Las Vegas sportsbook, Kornegay can’t currently envision Rodgers anywhere but Green Bay, if he does play, in September.
For a moment, though,
Kornegay weighs a hypothetical inquiry. If Rodgers were to be dealt to Denver, which group would be happier, Broncos supporters or Bears fans, who’d say good riddance to their twice-a-season rival?
Kornegay laughs. “Certainly both would be happy, but I think Bears fans would buy Broncos fans drinks.”
CUE DON DRAPER
Rio de Janeiro-like Carnival might erupt in Chicago should Rodgers depart the Black and Blue Division.
He is 21-5 lifetime against the Bears. The apex triumph occurred on Jan. 23, 2011, when he led the Packers to a 21-14 victory at Soldier Field to reach Super Bowl XLV, in which Green Bay beat Pittsburgh.
He has thrown 55 touchdown passes against the Bears, who have picked off 12 of his 822 career attempts against them.
The Packers drafting Utah State quarterback Jordan Love last season was one source of Rodgers’s alleged irritations.
Another, supposedly, was coach Matt LaFleur opting for a field goal near the end of the Jan. 24 NFC title game against the Bucs.
The prima-donna quarterback and aspiring game-show host conveniently overlooks his failure to run it in on third-and-goal. Moreover, he has grossed $241 million and, for another $74M, is signed through 2023.
His persistent petulance brings to mind Don Draper’s famous “Mad Men” line: ‘‘That’s what the money is for!’’
NOT ON MURPHY’S WATCH?
During the draft on April 29, Denver’s Super Bowl odds were sliced to around 16-1 to 18-1 at various books as the “disgruntled Rodgers” theme gained steam. Golden Nugget sportsbook director Tony Miller cut his figure to 20-1.
Denver’s odds of getting Rodgers had been whittled to -150 (bet $150 to win $100) at FoxBet, Las Vegas was +250 and New Orleans +500.
On Monday at DraftKings, the number on Rodgers remaining with the Packers was -125, +200 on the Broncos, +500 Raiders, +900 Saints. At some shops, by midweek, Rodgers staying in Green Bay was -150.
Kornegay, a former Air Force brat who went to Colorado State and considers the Centennial State home, will not post a Rodgers-destination proposition.
“Those are difficult to book sometimes,” he said, “knowing that there is certain information out there.”
South Point book director Chris Andrews is staying away, too. On Wednesday, Andrews opened Green Bay at -150 to win the NFC North, Chicago at +400 and Denver +600 to take the AFC West.
Michael Lombardi, The Athletic’s NFL writer, said Monday on the Vegas Stats & Information Network (VSiN) that he believed Rodgers had finally had enough and planned to retire.
Tuesday on VSiN, William Hill U.S. director of trading Nick Bogdanovich tapped Green Bay’s projected win total in the upcoming 17-game season at about 11. Without Rodgers, he’d set that at 6½ victories.
Ultimately, Bogdanovich didn’t foresee team president Mark Murphy trading Rodgers. “You don’t want to do that on your watch.”
At DraftKings, the Packers’ season victory total is 10½. Johnny Avello, its sportsbook chief, projected it at 7½ without the 37-year-old Rodgers, who won league MVP honors last season.
“Aaron Rodgers wins you three games in a season with his heroics,” Avello told VSiN on Tuesday. “It would be a dramatic difference if he’s not the Packers’ quarterback. A big loss. He’ll be 38, but I think he still has some good fight in him.”
SENSES TAKE OVER
As draft day ekes farther back in his rear-view mirror, Kornegay becomes more convinced that Rodgers playing for Denver is more fantasy than fact.
The Broncos have quarterback Drew Lock, inspiring Kornegay to recall a favorite line from the 1983 movie “Risky Business,” when it dawns on Tom Cruise that the Ivy League will not be needing him.
Wearing a pair of dark Ray-Bans and grinning goofily, Cruise’s Joel Goodson says, ‘‘Looks like University of Illinois!’’
Kornegay says, ‘‘Looks like Drew Lock!’’
Teddy Bridgewater is also on Denver’s roster.
“I was very excited, a little giddy there for a little while, thinking [Rodgers to Denver] was going to happen. But time passed, the senses took over; shoot, this is probably not going to happen. Even though nothing has been totally confirmed yet, it doesn’t look like it’s going to become reality.”
We tangent to a hypothetical — and diabolical — Bears scenario, in which they fashion a fantastic season and advance in the playoffs only to lose to . . . the Broncos and No. 12 in Super Bowl LVI in California.
Kornegay relishes his Broncos winning titles. In that series of events, however, no Broncos supporter could expect a single gratis beverage from any Bears fan.
Oklahoma State forward Natasha Mack(4) shoots over Wake Forest forward Christina Morra(23) during the second half of a college basketball game in the first round of the women’s NCAA tournament at the Greehey Arena in San Antonio, Texas, Sunday, March 21, 2021. | Ronald Cortes/AP
Ahead of the 2021 WNBA draft, commissioner Cathy Engelbert said when it comes to expansion it’s not a matter of if but rather when.
When asked if there have been any specific lineups that impressed him through the first two weeks of training camp, Sky coach and general manager James Wade gave a concise response.
“No,” he said.
The Sky are still without many of their guards, making it impossible for Wade to see what his true starting lineup will look like. That doesn’t mean there aren’t any position battles.
At point guard specifically, competition is fierce. With 11-roster spots available, 20 training-camp players and five guards on training-camp contracts, it’s easy to see why.
“Everyone on a training-camp contract is fighting to make the team,” Jessica January said. “You have a tryout every day.”
This is January’s third training camp, and she said the mental toll of working through camp only to be cut is tough. That every-day tryout she referred to is what gets added to a player’s resume. If there are injuries or Wade talks to other coaches in the WNBA or overseas, that resume is what he draws from.
January and Brittany Boyd, who is also on a training-camp contract, have been going head-to-head a lot throughout camp. January described the competition level as fun. The goal when they aren’t playing with the starting five is to make them better.
Wade has five days before he has to trim the roster to 12, and while league expansion is not something he is overly concerned with, it’s not lost on him that playing in the WNBA is the dream.
“This is my least favorite time of the year,” Wade said. “I feel heavy when I have to take that dream away from someone. Even if more than likely it’s temporary.”
With multiple Sky players expected to leave during the regular season due to national-team commitments, it’s possible some of these training-camp players could sign replacement contracts over the course of the season.
Still, a temporary contract is not the answer to the overload of talent coming out of college and looking for opportunities.
Ahead of the 2021 WNBA Draft, commissioner Cathy Engelbert said when it comes to expansion, it’s not a matter of if but rather when. The problem with that is while the league figures out the right time to expand, players are losing valuable opportunities.
Rookie Natasha Mack, for example, is a player Wade has raved about. She has intangibles that can’t be taught, Wade said, and her length has been disrupting players throughout camp. On draft night, Wade said there is always a place for players like Mack in the WNBA.
After the team put Gabby Williams on the full-season suspended list, it opened up a spot for a player like Mack or guard Lexie Brown on the Sky’s final roster.
The league is going on 11 seasons with 12 teams, and for it to continue its upward trajectory, it needs to be home to more than 144 players.
“I think if we have a very successful season this year, this time next year, we can certainly start talking about what expansion would look like, how many, and the time frame over which that would occur,” Engelbert said.
Scott Parkinson came to America in 2009 and 12 years later had his oath ceremony on a rainy Chicago morning. | Daniel Bartel/isiphotos.com
Parkinson, a new U.S. citizen, is working his way up women’s coaching ranks
Red Stars assistant coach Scott Parkinson walked into Pleasant House Pub, a bar he frequents in his Chicago neighborhood, and ordered bangers and mash and a beer.
Analyzing Parkinson’s order and location, nothing appeared out of the ordinary, but this rainy afternoon was not like others.
He looked down at his meal, then up at his surroundings and thought maybe he should have gone to get a hot dog. He had just completed his oath ceremony surrounded by strangers from different countries who were all becoming American citizens.
“They had us all sat outside under a huge American flag,” Parkinson said. “The judge came out and said he was in our seat 30 years ago in Miami. At the end, he said, ‘Welcome home,’ and gave us a certificate like we were at a soccer camp.”
Parkinson didn’t start playing soccer until he was nearly 10, which is late for a boy growing up in Liverpool, England. His uncle coached soccer camps over the summer, and Parkinson picked the game up there. He eventually began playing with Everton FC’s youth team.
After the team released him at 17, he said he really fell in love with the game because the pressure was off.
Parkinson spent his early 20s balancing school, working as an engineer and playing semi-professional soccer. By day, he worked in a manufacturing plant for Jaguar Land rover as part of an apprenticeship, but by night he was on the pitch.
The whole time, his closest friends and family were telling him his future was in -soccer.
He ended up in Oklahoma City visiting a friend he grew up playing soccer with who had opted to pursue a scholarship at an NAIA college. Parkinson couldn’t believe the luxuries he was seeing.
Everything from the way the program fed its players to the facilities was more professional than that of most pro teams in England, Parkinson said.
“The minute I saw [that environment], I thought, ‘This is it. I can do this,’ ” Parkinson said.
Parkinson’s 12-year journey to becoming an American citizen started at that moment.
At 24, he sold his house in Liverpool and his car and gave up on his -engineering career to move to Chickasha, Oklahoma.
He accepted a scholarship to play soccer at the University of Science and Arts of -Oklahoma and began his pursuit of becoming a coach.
After graduating, Parkinson spent the next few years working his way up the coaching ranks, starting at the youth level. He became the coach of the Rogers State women’s soccer program in 2016.
His jump from the NCAA to the National Women’s Soccer League happened under similar circumstances as his move from -Liverpool to Chickasha. Parkinson was once again on a trip. This time, it was a coaching seminar in Arizona, where he met the United States women’s national under-20 team coach, Laura Harvey.
At the time, Harvey was coaching OL Reign, and after meeting Parkinson, she -offered him a job.
“It didn’t quite work out [with OL Reign],” Parkinson said. “But we stayed in contact. When she took the job in Utah, she called me again.”
Parkinson made the jump from Division II collegiate soccer to the professional level in 2018. He left his position in Utah to become Rory Dames’ lead assistant in 2020.
It was another career move that happened with divine timing.
Parkinson’s wife was the first person he met on campus at the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma. The two were married in 2014, which allowed Parkinson to remain in the United States on a two-year green card that transitioned to a 10-year green card.
He began the process of pursuing full -citizenship last May.
His goal is to represent the U.S. women’s national team, but he isn’t -distracted by that dream. Parkinson’s career has been all about being in the right place at the right time.
He’s confident what’s for him won’t miss him.
“I wanted to feel like I wasn’t just representing the best team in the world, but I was representing my country,” Parkinson said. “That would make [the dream] feel even more special. If and when that day comes.”
Zach Davies had his best outing in a Chicago Cubs uniform on Friday, but the numbers behind his start were strange, to say the least. In the first of a three-game set against the Pittsburgh Pirates, Zach Davies gave the Chicago Cubs seven strong innings and danced out of a bases-loaded, nobody-out situation to end […]
SUNRISE, FL – FEBRUARY 29: Kirby Dach #77 of the Chicago Blackhawks looks down as Goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky #72 of the Florida Panthers stops the shot by Alex DeBrincat #12 at the BB&T Center on February 29, 2020 in Sunrise, Florida. The Blackhawks defeated the Panthers 3-2 in a shootout. (Photo by Joel Auerbach/Getty Images)
The Chicago Blackhawks have some very nice young players. There isn’t enough there yet where you can be excited about the future as there is still a long way to go but there are some positives. As far as the future, it is led by Alex DeBrincat and Kirby Dach. They are both very good and can be leaders on a very good team. However, you cannot say that they are Patrick Kane or Jonathan Toews. Those guys are the first-ballot Hall of Fame type players that are a tick above everyone else in team history.
The ChicagoBlackhawks have been lucky to have great players over the years.
DeBrincat is a 23 year old winger that is becoming a stud. When he played with Connor McDavid and Dylan Strome as a member of the Erie Otters, it was clear that he was going to make a great winger in the NHL if he had good playmaking around him. Well, he is actually looking even better than we originally thought because he can be a bit more than just a sniper. However, he isn’t at Patrick Kane’s level and likely never will be.
As for Kirby Dach, he was the third overall pick in the 2019 NHL Draft. He had a solid rookie season and missed most of his sophomore season due to a wrist injury. The talent is there to be a dominant number one center. With all of that said, saying he is the next Jonathan Toews is just flat out wrong. Toews was everything you need in a centerman and more. That guy was next-level in terms of his competitive drive, leadership, and pure hockey talent.
Let’s be clear about something, that doesn’t mean that these two can’t lead the way on a championship-caliber team. They can be great if things develop that way. Saying they are the next Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane, however, is just flat out wrong. Players as impactful as them don’t come around often. Generations can go by without seeing kids like that come through.
88 and 19 were so good that they led their team to three Stanley Cup championships. Kane has a Hart Trophy, a scoring title, and a Calder Trophy. Jonathan Toews also has those same three Stanley Cup championships along with a Selke Trophy and a Messier award. Each of them has one Conn Smythe Trophy as the MVP of the playoffs as well.
Putting together a duo like that is amazing and something that shouldn’t be taken for granted. We are all rooting for Dach and DeBrincat to be the next great leaders but saying that they are the next Toews and Kane is both wrong and unfair.
ChicagoBears (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)
The dust has settled, but Chicago Bears fans are still hyped about the job their team did in the 2021 NFL Draft.
General manager Ryan Pace addressed several needs and obtained some incredible value throughout the entirety of draft weekend. It all began with the Bears throwing caution to the wind and trading up with the New York Giants to pick 11 — where they landed Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields.
The excitement won’t dim for a very long time, especially if Fields impresses right away and snatches the starting job from Andy Dalton in training camp. This kid, along with the rest of his fellow Draft mates, have completely changed the tune in the city of Chicago.
Although the draft provided plenty of talent for the Bears, the job is not yet done. There is still a few months left of the offseason before things start getting real serious. But, the Bears can’t be quite done forming this roster.
The Chicago Bears, along with the rest of the NFL, are beginning to explore the remaining free agents.
Following the draft, teams are now looking at a large pool of free agents still looking for homes. Because of the league’s salary cap going down this year, there are more free agents waiting to be signed than normal. Teams have had to be very careful with their spending, and also more aggressive with cuts.
But, now that the draft is over and teams know where they stand with roster needs, there will be another wave of signings. For the Bears, there are a few spots where they could use some additional help.
Not only would some depth be a good idea at a few positions, but more than anything, adding players they could label as “all-in” moves would be a good idea.
Let’s be real: Fields has to win the starting job in camp, right? If he does, then this team is ready to win now. Which players could help the Bears make a run, that aren’t necessarily talked about as much as the bigger remaining names? Let’s look at four in particular.
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