Jason Kidd, Texas Tech and more: Fort Worth’s best sports commentary this week
Star-Telegram columnist Mac Engel covered a packed week of North Texas sports and entertainment news, from stadium spending to a coaching shake-up. Here’s a roundup of his standout commentary from the past several days.
Here are key takeaways:
— Arlington approved $273 million in spending on improvements to AT&T Stadium and its surrounding area without voter approval, with the city paying out of future tax revenues and the Cowboys fronting the money. Mayor Jim Ross said planned upgrades include “Las Vegas-style” pedestrian crossovers with escalators, decorative barriers to prevent vehicle attacks and enhanced screening technology.
— Ross also said security — not hotel occupancy — is his top concern ahead of the nine World Cup matches at AT&T Stadium, with the first match between Japan and the Netherlands on June 14. Hotel bookings in host cities are well below forecasts, but Ross said, “I really honestly am not worried about this.”
— The Dallas Mavericks fired head coach Jason Kidd after new president of basketball operations Masai Ujiri took over, ending Kidd’s five-year tenure that included two Western Conference finals and one NBA Finals appearance. Ujiri publicly denied the firing was tied to the Luka Doncic trade to the Lakers, but Kidd’s strained relationship with Doncic and his role as a “speed bump” who didn’t object to the trade made a “clean slate” impossible with Kidd on the bench.
— Texas Tech quarterback Brendan Sorsby was ruled ineligible by the NCAA over extensive gambling violations, including betting on Indiana football games while he was a member of the team, prompting a lawsuit against the NCAA with a ruling requested by June 15. Texas Tech is better off without him there as a distraction.
— Fort Worth restaurateur Jon Bonnell estimates it costs $7,500 per month to carry games at one Buffalo Bros. location, calling the fragmented streaming landscape — with NBA games now on Amazon Prime and Peacock — “highway robbery” for bar owners.
— The Eagles played what they say is their final North Texas show at Globe Life Field in Arlington last Saturday night, performing 20 songs in just under two hours as part of “The Long Goodbye Act III”. Engel’s 17-year-old daughter, Vivian, gave her take on the show. The setlist ran from “Hotel California” to “Heartache Tonight” and included solo tracks from Don Henley and Joe Walsh, with Henley telling the Arlington crowd, “It’s good to be home”.
The summary points above were compiled with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists. The source reporting referenced above was written and edited entirely by journalists.