Philadelphia Waterdogs attackman JAKE CARRAWAY is one of many players in the Premier Lacrosse League who will spend the next few months “balancing life as a pro athlete with a full-time career in finance." Lacrosse’s ties to Wall Street “run deep.” The sport’s popularity at elite high schools “created a pipeline to prestigious colleges and universities" where players “forge connections with influential alumni and eventually trade in their pads and sticks for suits and spreadsheets.” While earlier generations of banker-athletes extended their lacrosse careers by playing in obscure leagues for little pay in their spare time, the PLL, “flush with investor cash and a streaming TV deal, has offered players unprecedented money and visibility.” During the season, players who work traditional finance jobs “often fly to that weekend’s host city on Thursday.” Denver Outlaws MF SAM HANDLEY, an investment banking analyst at Imperial Capital LLC in L.A., said that players then “work on Friday from their hotels, 'try to take a nap at lunch, practice in the evening, play Saturday' and fly home Sunday.” Waterdogs MF RYAN CONRAD said that his team at KKR “allows flexibility on Fridays” during the season (BLOOMBERG NEWS, 6/21).
IN HONOR OF: This year’s Greater Buffalo Sports HOF class will be formally inducted at the annual dinner in November. Inductees includes former NFLer ROB GRONKOWSKI, former NHLer BROOKS ORPIK and sportswriter VIC CARUCCI (BUFFALO NEWS, 6/20)....Arkansas men’s basketball coach JOHN CALIPARI was the keynote speaker for the seventh Baltimore Catholic League HOF class. Inductees include former college basketball player MALCOLM DELANEY and Raptors G IMMANUEL QUICKLEY (BALTIMORE SUN, 6/20).
NAMES: Mavericks majority owner MIRIAM ADELSON donated $1M to the Truth and Courage PAC, a political committee devoted to reelecting U.S. Sen. TED CRUZ (DALLAS MORNING NEWS, 6/20)....During rapper MEGAN THEE STALLION’s concert on Wednesday at Footprint Center, a handful of WNBA Phoenix Mercury players were in attendance including C BRITTNEY GRINER, Gs NATASHA CLOUD, KAHLEAH COPPER, SUG SUTTON and CHARISMA OSBORNE and F SOPHIE CUNNINGHAM. The rapper invited the players to come on stage during the show. Cloud was "handed the mic and yelled, 'Go Mercury!' drawing cheers" (ARIZONA REPUBLIC, 6/20)....Country/rock singer HARDY has been named the grand marshal for the Ally 400 NASCAR Cup Series race at Nashville Superspeedway (Nashville TENNESSEAN, 6/20).
