Players

It was billed as a "shocking tell-all" and a "world exclusive," but the National Enquirer's March 26 cover story landed with a thud. TMZ, Page Six and other major players in celebrity gossip ignored the article in which a masseur claimed John Travolta offered money for sex. FOR THE RECORD: An earlier version of this article used the term "masseuse"; it should have said "masseur. " Five weeks after the issue left the checkout aisle, a DUI attorney from Pasadena put the anonymous masseur's tawdry tale in a lawsuit and it became an overnight pop culture sensation, topping Google News, trending on Twitter and meriting a segment on "Good Morning America.

The NFL Players Assn. is accusing league owners of secretly -- and illegally -- agreeing to put a salary cap in place in the uncapped 2010 season. The union filed a complaint in federal court Wednesday, alleging the owners colluded to impose a $123-million salary cap on teams, when they did not have the authority to do so. The league has since penalized Washington and Dallas for overspending in 2010, reducing the future salary caps of the Redskins and Cowboys by a combined $46 million over the next two seasons.

PHOENIX — Andre Ethier said Tuesday he does not plan to impose a deadline on negotiations on the contract extension that could keep him out of free agency. Dodgers General Manager Ned Colletti has said he would like to re-sign Ethier and has discussed the idea with Dodgers President Stan Kasten , who took office three weeks ago. Ethier said Tuesday he and his agent have not received a formal contract proposal from the Dodgers. Ethier also said he did not anticipate a point where free agency could be so close that he would put any contract talks on hold before he could test the market.

The NFL Players Assn. has accused the NFL of putting a secret salary cap in place in the uncapped 2010 season — a violation of antitrust laws — and is seeking monetary damages that could climb into the billions. The union filed suit against the league Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Minnesota, accusing the NFL of collusion for conspiring to set a $123-million cap for 2010, when owners would have required the consent of players to do so. The NFL flatly denied the claim.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of using the supplement nitric oxide? Richard Sunland Nitric oxide is a gas naturally found in the body; its function is conveying information between cells. One of its main jobs is increasing blood flow by dilating blood vessels, and that's why it's sometimes given in supplement form to heart patients, orally and intravenously. In at least one study it's been shown to be effective for lowering blood pressure.

USC's new players Name; Pos.; Ht.; Wt.; Previous school; Comment Strahinja Gavrilovic; F; 6-8; 220; San Diego Rock Academy; Member of Serbian youth national teams can provide an inside presence. *Ari Stewart; F; 6-7; 205; Wake Forest; Averaged 8.5 points and 4.4 rebounds as freshman in Atlantic Coast Conference. Brendyn Taylor; G; 6-2; 170; Fairfax High; Only high school player in class averaged 18 points, 3.5 assists and five rebounds last season. J.T. Terrell; G; 6-3; 180; Peninsula College; Could provide much-needed outside threat.

The NFL Players Assn. is continuing its fight on behalf of two current and two former New Orleans Saints players suspended by the league, challenging NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell's authority to sanction them. The suspensions are for the players' involvement in the Saints' bounty scandal. Linebacker and team captain Jonathan Vilma has been suspended for the entire 2012 season, defensive lineman Anthony Hargrove for eight games, defensive end Will Smith for four, and linebacker Scott Fujita three.

People who smile a lot are usually happier, have more stable personalities, more stable marriages, better cognitive skills and better interpersonal skills, according to research. Science has just uncovered another benefit of a happy face. People who have big smiles live longer. Researchers at Wayne State University used information from the Baseball Register to look at photos of 230 players who began their careers in professional baseball before 1950. The players' photos were enlarged, and a rating of their smile intensity was made (big smile, no smile, partial smile)

Another shoe drop, another shock wave. The NFL dropped the hammer on the New Orleans Saints again Wednesday, punishing four players for their role in the bounty scandal, including a full-season suspension of linebacker and defensive captain Jonathan Vilma. Defensive linemen Anthony Hargrove and Will Smith got eight- and four-game suspensions, respectively, and linebacker Scott Fujita was suspended for three games. Hargrove now plays for Green Bay and Fujita for Cleveland.

So, if a pass is dropped in the forest and nobody sees it … UCLA has tightened security, closing its "Pro Day" to the public and media. Unlike in previous years, only NFL scouts will be allowed to see Bruins players work out. This could explain the Bruins' woeful 4-8 season in 2011 -- too many fans and media at games. As to when this event takes place, that is being handled as need-to-know information. UCLA has had nine players picked in the last three NFL drafts. USC had nine players drafted in 2011 alone.

Here's a look at what the Lakers should do with their agents as well as players who hold either team or player options. Andrew Bynum, center Status: Lakers hold $16.1-million team option Verdict: Lakers General Manager Mitch Kupchak told The Times' Mike Bresnahan that the Lakers will exercise the team option before the June 30 deadline. But Bynum expressed indifference to reporters after the Lakers' Game 5 loss Monday to Oklahoma City on where he plays.

NFL players will be required to wear knee and thigh pads, beginning in 2013, in accordance with a rules change adopted Tuesday at league meetings. Team owners voted in favor of the change, although input from the NFL Players Assn. is still required. The league dropped the idea of requiring players to wear hip pads as well. Many players are resistant to wearing extra padding, feeling it slows them and doesn't look as sleek and fashionable. "By the time you get to the league, you do whatever you can that's going to make you comfortable but you're still keeping within the integrity of the rules," said Roman Oben, a longtime NFL offensive lineman, told The Times in 2008.

By the 2013 season, all NFL players will be required to wear knee and thigh pads. Or will they? NFL owners voted Tuesday to make those pads mandatory, but the NFL Players Assn. quickly responded that changes such as those need to be collectively negotiated, opening another of several battlefronts between the league and the union. "While the NFL is focused on one element and health and safety today, the NFLPA believes that health and safety requires a comprehensive approach and commitment," the union said in a written statement.

Guard Derek Fisher, grand old man of the Oklahoma City Thunder, is the emotional rock of an otherwise young team. "He's the best I've played with or seen in terms of being able to address a team, talk to a team, communicate with guys in a way that's really effective," forward Nick Collison said of Fisher, 37. "It's like having another coach, but he still has the respect of the players. It doesn't feel like he's preaching at you, he just makes a lot of sense. " In that way, the Lakers can only hope that passing the rock doesn't come back to haunt them.

John Grisham is to literature what Cheerios are to a rushed breakfast, something you buy in bulk and consume without too much thought. Honestly, I'm relieved when a new Grisham book doesn't weigh more than I do. Yet his newest work, "Calico Joe," is as slender as a Dodgers shortstop. Coming in at under 200 pages, it is a breezy little baseball novel that will probably appeal to many men the way Nicholas Sparks' stories appeal to that other sex. Strangely, considering the subject matter, it is amazingly unevocative of the game itself.

As he sat at the podium, Coach Mike Brown's infectious smile and enthusiasm suddenly evaporated. It had nothing to do with the Lakers' 2-0 deficit to the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference semifinals. It had nothing to do with basketball.

The NFL Players Assn. is continuing its fight on behalf of four current and former New Orleans Saints players suspended by the league, challenging NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell's authority to sanction them. The suspensions are for the players' involvement in the Saints' bounty scandal. Linebacker and team captain Jonathan Vilma has been suspended for the entire 2012 season, defensive lineman Anthony Hargrove for eight games, defensive end Will Smith for four, and linebacker Scott Fujita three.

The North American Soccer League should have been entering its prime when it expired after 17 years, its life support mercifully unplugged after the 1984 season. An autopsy was never performed, but the suspected cause of death was greed, which fueled unchecked expansion and led to rosters chock-full of imports. Major League Soccer kicked off its 17th season this weekend appearing to be in the pink of good health. But the lessons of the past are never far from mind. "I don't think the ghosts of the NASL ever leave the offices of Major League Soccer," MLS Commissioner Don Garber said last week.

WASHINGTON - Brian McNamee, the chief accuser of former pitching star Roger Clemens, was left with his credibility hanging in the balance Friday after the latest of four grueling sessions of cross-examination by the defense at Clemens' perjury trial. McNamee, a former trainer, claims he repeatedly injected Clemens with steroids and human growth hormone between 1998 and 2001. In testimony to Congress in 2008 Clemens denied using the drugs, which prosecutors argue was a lie. Clemens lawyer Rusty Hardin worked carefully through the physical evidence of Clemens' alleged drug use that McNamee provided.

SAN ANTONIO - They said all the right things, all the cliches, all the things losing teams say. The Spurs protected their home court, the Clippers said after San Antonio had beaten them, 105-88, Thursday night in Game 2 of the Western Conference semifinals at the AT&T Center. They did what they were supposed to do, the Clippers said after the Spurs opened a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series. They held serve and now it's up to us to hold serve on our home court, the Clippers said.