Tony Bates

@McmorrisJimmy @SamSimonp @esidery You do realize I'm not the NBA commissioner, don't you? I don't have a say, and am just voicing an opinion. And I do support the Pelicans, which used to be the original Charlotte Hornets. Both the Pelicans and Memphis Grizzlies struggle financially.

@TonyBates_ @SamSimonp @esidery Why don't you relocate the team you support. Close your mouth and keep it closed about our team!

NBA owners will officially vote in July over approving Las Vegas and Seattle as expansion teams. All indications are this will pass unanimously during Las Vegas Summer League. An expansion draft would take place in summer 2028 where teams can protect a max amount of players.

@PlayDraftLabs @esidery The NBA does not auction expansion fees (i.e., accepts bids). An expansion fee of $7-$10 billion would be on par with the highest valued NBA franchises.

@TonyBates_ @esidery Bids expected to be in $7-10 billion from what I’ve seen.

You cannot sue yourself, settle with yourself, and then write yourself a check from the Treasury. Donald Trump is trying to do exactly that.    Welcome to Episode 15 of the Corruption Chronicles.    Trump is expected to drop his lawsuit against his own IRS for $10 billion over the leak of his tax returns. In exchange, he wants a $1.7 billion slush fund to compensate people who claim the Biden Administration wrongfully targeted them — run by a commission he controls, operating entirely in secret, funded by your tax dollars.    Who’s in line to collect? Trump’s allies, the nearly 1,600 people charged in connection with January 6th, and entities tied to Trump and his family.    This is corruption, and it has to stop.

George H.W. Bush kept his assets in a blind trust, as did Bill Clinton. Neither Obama nor Biden traded stocks or bonds while in office. 3,700 trades is probably more than all the trades of all the presidents until now. And he is trading stocks that are affected by his decisions. A walking conflict of interest, at the least, and perhaps insider trading. Just as members of Congress should not be able to trade stocks, so too the president. bloomberg.com/news/articles/…

Holy shit. A clip of Trump fast asleep and about to fall out of his chair when he was among world leaders is going viral. This is absolutely humiliating on the world stage. Trump does not have the stamina to remain president.

I feel compelled to post this banger of a clip showing Barbara Walters humiliate trump to his face, as a reminder to reporters: YOU DON'T HAVE TO ACCEPT HIM CALLING YOU "DUMMY." This is outstanding. 👏👏👏

@PlayDraftLabs @esidery How did you come up with that figure? Even if the NBA's expansion fee was $5 billion, for a total of $10 billion for the two teams, that would equate to each of the existing 30 owners receiving $333 million.

@esidery Every owner is about to get a ~$500M check, I assume this is already a done deal. Expansion draft will be fascinating and will be interesting to see how teams with lots of stars and young talent (OKC, etc) position themselves in advance.

@CryptoTice_ Then please explain why the cost of gas for American consumers has risen from an average of $2.98/gallon to $4.53/gallon?

BREAKING: China just abandoned Iran's oil. And started buying from Alaska. The country that armed Iran. That defied U.S. sanctions on Iranian oil. Is now buying American oil instead. Why? Alaska is closer. Hormuz is closed. Iran is unreliable. Trump didn't just close the Strait. He redirected Chinese oil demand to American soil. Iran loses its biggest customer. America gains it. The financial blockade didn't just hurt Iran. It forced China to buy American. This is not luck. This is chess. And Trump just took the queen.

76 days ago - This motherfucker started a war with Iran. 75 days ago - He said the war “Was Over…. Complete Victory” 68 days ago - He begged NATO for assistance with the war in Iran. 68 days ago - NATO told him to fuck off. 65 days ago - 13 US Military personnel were needlessly killed in Iran…. Hundreds more have been wounded. 2 days ago - Trump asked China for help with Iran to open the Strait of Hormuz…. China said no. In the last 76 days - This piece of shit has said dozens of times that he has beaten Iran…. And the war was over. In the last 76 days - Gas has gone from $2.59 to $4.79 a 110% increase. Groceries are at the highest ever in U.S. History. The cost of living is at the highest ever in U.S. History. All because this motherfucker was elected president, And started a bullshit war…. To distract from the fact - He’s all over the Epstein Files. He’s a Pedophile.

@_InfoGram_ It's disingenuous for you to portray Trump as saying, "We started war to help Israel." Trump mentioned several other countries (Saudi Arabia, Qatar, UAE, Kuwait, etc.) besides Israel.

🇺🇸 Obama YESTERDAY : “Bibi wanted war with Iran. I blocked it. I called him a war criminal and kicked him out of my office. He sold it to Trump. Rest is history.” 🇺🇸 Trump TODAY: "We started war to help Israel." Obama was absolutely right about him. 🔥

Steve Harness: “When is a reporter gonna snap back and say don’t you fucking talk to me that way? I’m a goddamned adult. I’m here working. You work for us, asshole. Go fuck yourself. Somebody, for the love of God, I will buy the Pulitzer for you if you will just tell this man how fucking dare you, do not talk to me that way”

@AEllison000888 @InsideCarolina Since you mentioned "the real world," how many times has Duke been the prohibitive favorite to be the national champion over the last 15 years, only to come up short time and time again?

@TonyBates_ @InsideCarolina Meanwhile in the real world

UNC has decided to part ways with five-star point guard Dylan Mingo, according to a source close to the program. Details: on3.com/teams/north-ca…

@Scooter_x_x_x_ @harryjsisson And though Trump denied ever having met Caroll, and claimed she was "not (his) type," upon being shown a photograph of them together he actually misidentified Caroll as his ex-wife, Marla Maples.

@TonyBates_ @harryjsisson Obviously it's you who never saw the deposition. Trump never admitted to anything. E. Jean Carroll couldn't even remember the date or even the year this supposed traumatic event happened. Oh, and she thinks rape is sexy.

Trump is having a mental health episode right now. He’s been posting on social media all night. He posted at: 9:49pm (Ai Jesus photo) 9:50pm (Trump tower on moon) 10:10pm (dumb meme) 10:32pm (news clip) 10:53pm (news clip) 12:43am (announcing Hormuz blockade) 2:35am (article about Biden) 2:36am (article on naval blockade) 2:37am (article on Rep. Swalwell) 2:37am (posted the same article about Biden again) 2:38am (article on his ballroom) 4:10am (article on Iran) He’s not sleeping, he’s pretending to be Jesus, and he’s posting all night. He’s not well.

@Scooter_x_x_x_ @harryjsisson When asked about the 2005 Access Hollywood tape, where Trump bragged of being able to "grab (women) by the pussy," he said that was historically true in the case of powerful men, normalizing such behavior.

@Scooter_x_x_x_ @harryjsisson E. Jean Carroll said, "I think most people think of rape as being sexy… They think of the fantasies" -- how society often misconceives rape as something sexual or tied to fantasies. She contrasted that with her experience, which she described as violent, painful, and not sexual.

Trump: “Drugs coming by sea, meaning coming by water, by ocean. A lot of people don’t know what I mean by sea. They think I mean vision. I’m talking about sea like the sea.” The dumbest president in history

Trump on Joe Biden (2024): “He has an ability to fall asleep while on camera…in minutes, he’s stone-cold out, and he’s got cameras because he’s the president…You’ll never see me sleeping in front of a camera.”

Trump appears to have called ABC reporter Rachel Scott a “bitch” as he walked away from the press. On camera. The same man who had the FCC open an investigation into ABC over a Jimmy Kimmel joke. The same man whose press secretary lectured America about violent rhetoric after the WHCA shooting.