Sonstiges » financial troubles of their own.The Caucasus region o

LOS ANGELES -- Paul Pierce decided to return for his 19th and last season in the NBA, convinced the Los Angeles Clippers can make a successful run to their first league title.The 10-time All-Star first disclosed his decision Monday in a posting on The Players Tribune and later expanded on it at the teams media day. He turns 39 on Oct. 13, the same birthdate as coach Doc Rivers.The reason for me coming back is this group, he said. This group is talented enough to win a championship. I want to come back and give it one more try and help them get over the top.Pierce said early in the summer he wasnt motivated to work out, but his hunger had returned by August. He averaged 6.1 points and 2.7 rebounds in 18.1 minutes over 68 games last season.Last season left a bad taste in my mouth, how the season went and how I played, he said. Why not give it one more shot? To win a championship here for the Los Angeles Clippers would be monumental.Pierce grew up in nearby Inglewood and enjoys playing in front of his mother, brothers and cousins after stints on the East Coast with Boston, Brooklyn and Washington.With Kevin Garnetts retirement last week, Pierce is the lone active player with over 25,000 points, 7,500 rebounds and 4,500 assists.He spent his first 15 seasons with the Celtics, winning the 2008 NBA championship with them under Rivers.Paul has meant a lot to me, Rivers said. When you win a title with someone youre connected with those people the rest of your life. More kids should watch Paul more than some of the other guys, how he did it without athleticism.He is 16th on the NBAs career scoring list.Air Force 1 White Cheap . -- Whether Jeremy Hill deserves a prominent role in LSUs offence this early in the season is a matter for debate. Cheap Air Force 1 Mens . "It was nerve-wracking, but we pulled through," said Collaros, who threw four touchdown passes to lead the Toronto Argonauts (8-4) to a 33-27 win over the Calgary Stampeders (9-3) in front of 28,781 fans at McMahon Stadium. http://www.airforce1storesale.com/fake-air-force-1-black-outlet.html . -- Three close looks at the bucket, three misses. Air Force 1 Black Store . With his new coach and six-time Grand Slam singles champion Boris Becker watching him during an official match for the first time, Djokovic appeared tentative early against the Slovakian player, who often appeared content to keep the ball in play. Air Force 1 Clearance . From filmmaker Nanette Burstein (On the Ropes), The Price of Gold revisits the saga that rocked the figure skating world ahead of the 1994 Lillehammer Olympic Winter Games: the assault on Nancy Kerrigan, and the plot that led its way back to her rival Tonya Harding.MOSCOW -- Luxury cars, apartments, even a racehorse -- being an Olympic medalist in Russia can come with great material rewards but also controversy.Under President Vladimir Putin, its become a tradition for Russias Olympic heroes to be showered with large cash sums and sometimes unwanted gifts.On Friday, less than 24 hours after dozens of medalists were presented with BMW cars at the Kremlin by Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, an advertisement appeared online offering one of them for sale, with photographs showing the car still covered in stickers celebrating Russias medal haul in Rio.The advertisement offering the BMW X6 for 4.67 million rubles ($72,000) was anonymous and quickly withdrawn. It couldnt be independently verified by The Associated Press, though Russian agency R-Sport claimed the seller was a Russian medalist who thought the car was too big and unwieldy.Figure skater Maxim Trankov, who received a Mercedes-Benz SUV for his gold medal in 2014, said few Olympians could afford to own such cars.Has no one thought that these gift cars are not only liable for the tax on luxury items, but also arent cheap to run and earnings cant cover it? he wrote on Twitter. Id sell mine too if it came to it ... Or does everyone think all sports pay as well as soccer, hockey or tennis?Gymnast Seda Tutkhalyan said she wouldnt be able to drive her new BMW because at 17 years of age she was too young to have a license.While online commenters mostly supported an athletes right to sell expensive Olympic gifts, many were critical of the government for a display of conspicuous consumption at the Kremlin at a time when Russias pension and healthcare systems are under financial strain.ddddddddddddIts not fully clear how much the prizes have cost the Russian government.State TV channel Rossiya 24 reported that the fleet of BMWs was provided by the Olympians Support Fund, which is backed by a group of Russias richest men, but that the accompanying cash prizes of tens of thousands of dollars per medalist came in part from the federal budget.More awards are on offer from regional governments, many of which made public displays of generosity despite financial troubles of their own.The Caucasus region of North Ossetia last month promised a free apartment for any medalists from the area, though it isnt clear if this has happened yet. In another grand gesture, the head of the restive Dagestan region gave Olympic wrestling champion Abdulrashid Sadulaev 6 million rubles ($93,000) in cash and a racehorse at a lavish welcoming ceremony featured on local TV.Still, all may not be well for Sadulaev, whos nicknamed the Russian Tank for his habit of crushing opponents on the wrestling mat. Hes already facing an allegation from a Moscow radio presenter of reckless driving in his eye-catching BMW. ' ' '