AL HAMNIK: Gary athletics need to regroup for 2013-14 school year

The athletic programs in Gary have become a joke, like the hapless victim who unknowingly has a "KICK ME!" sign taped to his back at the workplace.

AL HAMNIK: Pacers heating up their series with Miami

Name calling and organized sports go together like buttered popcorn.

AL HAMNIK: In the case of LeBron and MJ, the ring's the thing

You have the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft and money to burn.

AL HAMNIK COLUMN: Bulls bracing for the end and probably know it

CHICAGO | What do you do, what do you say, when the end is inevitable?

AL HAMNIK: Bulls' checklist holds the key in Game 4 with Heat

CHICAGO | You can't stop Sasquatch with spitballs.

AL HAMNIK: Shorthanded Bulls haven't lost the chip on their shoulder

CHICAGO | Coach Tom Thibodeau says we're missing the real story.

AL HAMNIK: Forget what's his name and focus on active Bulls

Quit dumping your vitriol on Derrick Rose, OK?

AL HAMNIK: Nate Robinson's epic quarter not of this world

CHICAGO | Nate Robinson isn't human.

AL HAMNIK: Noah doubt whatsoever who Bulls' MVP has been this season

CHICAGO | Free spirit Joakim Noah has undergone an amazing transformation from clown to All-Star since joining the Bulls.

AL HAMNIK: Urlacher's golf game should get plenty of work

Besides growing up together in cozy Lovington, New Mexico and being best friends, the bond between Brian Urlacher and Brandon Ridenour is as basic as milk.

AL HAMNIK: Sidelined Derrick Rose facing damage control as well

Fans will turn on a professional athlete faster than a rabid dog. It's their nature as paying customers.

AL HAMNIK: Splash party planned for Hammond Civic Center on Saturday

Batiste Haywood has a plan, a pretty good one at that.

AL HAMNIK: Gary's Mary McGee picks her time to be 'merciless'

Mary "Merciless" McGee has literally been a fighter all her life.

AL HAMNIK: Boston Marathon bombing called 'outside the box'

You could sense the shock and deep sadness in Carey Pinkowski's voice as if he were sitting next you at a Starbucks, baring his soul.

AL HAMNIK: U-M's McGary, GR3 need to stay put another year

An open letter to Michigan's Glenn Robinson III, Mitch McGary and Spike Albrecht:

AL HAMNIK: Derrick Rose soap opera running out of gas

CHICAGO | Cover your children's ears. Don't touch the Derrick Rose poster in their bedroom, though purple bunting taped across it might be appropriate.

AL HAMNIK: Little Jack Hoffman's story warms up all of America

Feel-good stories are as rare as a Cubs winning streak.

AL HAMNIK: EC's Tim Stoddard shared NCAA spotlight in 1974

Next to the Super Bowl, the NCAA men's basketball championship is the most popular sporting event in this country.

AL HAMNIK: Jerome Harmon now operating on auto pilot

It was once believed Jerome Harmon could fly.

AL HAMNIK: East Chicago's Moore making a point in Orlando

CHICAGO | Now at power forward for the Orlando Magic, No. 55, E'Twaun Moore.

AL HAMNIK: McDonald's All-American Game should focus on the complete player

CHICAGO | How sad that a high school player's future can be summed up with flashy one-liners and comparisons to an NBA star.

AL HAMNIK: Kevin Ware injury handled with class on social media

Occasionally, social media gets it right.

AL HAMNIK: Gary's Campbell following Marc Trestman's lead

If Erik Campbell was an assistant for Marc Trestman last season, he might be on the Bears payroll in 2013-14.

AL HAMNIK: Miami vise tightens on postseason hopes

CHICAGO | I took the bait. I feel so dumb.

AL HAMNIK: Miami win streak in jeopardy tonight vs. Bulls

What were you doing on Feb. 3?

AL HAMNIK: Kawann Short bandwagon destined to tip over

WEST LAFAYETTE | Kawann Short wants so badly to play pro football, he's given up pizza and ribs and chocolate sundaes.

AL HAMNIK: Hapless Bulls testing Thibodeau's acting ability

CHICAGO | Covering Tom Thibodeau's press conferences is like having an ill friend at the hospital and watching them slowly slip away.

AL HAMNIK: Bryce Drew's heart with the VU Crusaders for now

AUBURN HILLS, MICH.| And now the questioning, the second-guessing, begins.

AL HAMNIK: Spartans' Izzo willing to 'steal' success legally

AUBURN HILLS, MICH. | Tom Izzo loves wearing a bull's-eye on his back and dodging hand grenades.

AL HAMNIK: Bad money becoming a common practice in NBA

People are losing their jobs each day.

AL HAMNIK: Bowman haters make no sense at all

GARY | Why are so many people jealous of Bowman Academy and its wildly successful basketball program?

AL HAMNIK: A night like no other for Hall of Famer Barry Quigg

HAMMOND | Barry and Jason Quigg are a father-son TV movie with a hanky ready next to the remote.

AL HAMNIK: Teddy bear days are over for Purdue's Kawann Short

We called Kawann Short a teddy bear as a basketball-football standout at East Chicago Central.

AL HAMNIK: Hammond's Haywood hopes to make a splash in PBL-IBA

Batiste Haywood loves basketball.

AL HAMNIK: Hawks' success carries a hefty price for fans

The problem with your favorite pro team kicking butt and having a super season is ticket prices.

AL HAMNIK: Andrean grad the 'Wright' fit for MLB career

Angie Wright kept stats for Andrean baseball coach Dave Pishkur as a student, but that was just Step 1 in pursuing a career after college.

AL HAMNIK: Court jesters an increasing concern in hoop hysteria

Imagine running with the bulls in Pamplona Spain and tripping.

AL HAMNIK: Toni Kukoc fame extends beyond 1.8 seconds

One event can define you for life, particularly in sports where the goat lives on forever.

AL HAMNIK: Derrick Rose might be smart to sit this season out

With all apologies to "The Music Man," we got trouble, right here in the Windy City, and it's spelled B-U-L-L-S with a capital B.

AL HAMNIK: Local boxing still carries a punch with Hardesty's HBC

HAMMOND | Something quite special is happening at 250 Ogden St., and it's not a massive yard sale where one person's garbage is another's treasure.

AL HAMNIK: Heat not making a big deal about lack of bigs

CHICAGO | The Miami Heat are running away with the Eastern Conference's No. 1 playoff seed, but no one is handing out cigars and party hats.

AL HAMNIK: IHSAA avoids discrimination in all forms

Gay athletes in professional and amateur sports is a subject that won't go away, nor should it have to.

AL HAMNIK: Johnny Knox must walk away while he still can

Last summer at Bears training camp in Bourbonnais, curious fans wondered who that frail-looking kid was watching practice from the sidelines at Olivet Nazarene University.

AL HAMNIK: Merrillville's Popovich continues doing it his way

CHICAGO | You wouldn't want to play chess with San Antonio Spurs' coach Gregg Popovich.

AL HAMNIK: Gary's Branden Dawson still traveling the comeback trail

WEST LAFAYETTE | Michigan State sophomore Branden Dawson will be playing in the NBA one day. He knows it.

AL HAMNIK: Super Bowl XLVII exposed Bears for what they are

If you were among the 108.4 million fans who watched Super Bowl XLVII on TV and live in the Chicagoland area, you had to be discouraged.

AL HAMNIK: Gary has short memory regarding its many legends

Hank Stram didn't deserve the slap in the face he got from his hometown of Gary, which still hasn't honored the Hall of Fame football coach since his 2003 induction.

AL HAMNIK: Ray Lewis' career has us smiling, shaking our heads

The first time I saw Ray Lewis, in person, was during a Bears home game in 2005. It was pretty spooky.

AL HAMNIK: IHSAA bowling remains a pipe dream for student-athletes

Bobby Cox is one of the more transparent, accessible Indiana High School Athletic Association commissioners in recent years. He'll address any topic or issue you toss his way.