Philly Rapper Freeway Pitches LeBron James on His City
*By Max Godnick*
The Philadelphia rapper and die-hard 76ers fan Freeway wants LeBron James to take his talents to the City of Brotherly Love.
"I don't know what it's going to take, but we need to make it happen," Freeway said Tuesday in an interview with Cheddar.
Though his [prediction](https://revolt.tv/stories/2018/05/03/freeway-rejoices-meek-mills-release-predicts-championship-76ers-070043767d) that his hometown team would win the NBA championship failed to come true, and James's Cleveland Cavaliers fell to the Golden State Warriors in the finals, Freeway said the future could be bright for player and team if they joined forces.
"It would be amazing for the city," said Freeway. "We have so much young talent on the team and I think LeBron could really come over there and shape it and make it happen."
James can become a free agent at the end of the month if he chooses to opt out of his current contract with Cleveland. According to the odds-making site [Bovada] (https://www.si.com/nba/2018/06/11/lebron-james-free-agency-odds-lakers-76ers-rockets-cavs-knicks), the Los Angeles Lakers have the best shot at landing James, with the Sixers close behind.
Freeway has been vocal proponent of all sorts of causes dear to his city. He supported fellow Philadelphia rapper Meek Mill's release from prison in April after almost five months of a two-to-four year sentence for violating his probation. Freeway said he hopes his friend's ordeal can help in reforming the criminal justice system.
"You see what Meek went through and he's a millionaire and you see how long it took him to get some justice and get out," said Freeway. "So imagine a person that doesn't have anything."
For full interview [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/freeway-returns-to-roc-nation-for-new-album).
Alex Silverman, senior reporter covering the business of sports at Morning Consult, joins Cheddar News to discuss why the number of those betting on sports doubled in 2021 and what's next for the industry in 2022.
If you have not placed your buffalo wings order yet, hurry up. The biggest weekend in NFL playoff history kicks off in just under 48 hours with six games being played over three days. Sports Analyst at Yahoo Sports Pamela Maldonado joined Cheddar to give us a preview ahead of the Super Wild Card Weekend.
With the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing rapidly approaching, clouds of controversy continue to swirl around China's treatment of the Uyghur Muslim minority population, its surveillance state, and security for visiting athletes. Phelim Kine, China correspondent for Politico, joined Cheddar to break down the big storylines surrounding the Beijing Games and highlight what he saw as the complete disregard by top corporate sponsors like P&G, Airbnb, Intel, Visa, and Coca-Cola, for the controversies. "They spend $100 million for every Olympics that they sponsor, and they have frankly shown absolute willful indifference to any type of entreaty to essentially be more vocal about their concerns about human rights in China," he said. Kine also touched on the data privacy fears for athletes as visiting contingents are being told to carry burner phones to avoid security risks.
NFL games continue to be among some of the highest-rated programs on television. In 2021, viewership jumped 10 percent from the previous year to an average of 17.1 million as the league debuted its first 18-week season after running on a 16-week schedule since 1978. Fans — and team owners — welcomed the change with open arms, but a vocal percentage of players were not as ecstatic (despite the union signing off). Those who were against adding games cited health and safety concerns as their main reason. While the extended season means fatter pockets for the league, the opposition asks: is it worth the risk? Cheddar's JD Durkin breaks it all down.
With the Australian Open set to begin on Monday, Novak Djokovic is once again being threatened with deportation from Australia after his visa was briefly reinstated and revoked again over alleged discrepancies. Djokovic’s team will sit for an Immigration hearing on Saturday.
Decorated skier Lindsey Vonn did not hold back when touching on mental health in "Rise," her new memoir. "My mental health is definitely part of my story," she said. "Now I'm just thankful that this conversation is so much more talked about — Simone Biles, Naomi Osaka, Kevin Love, Michael Phelps, all have been outspoken about it." She noted that she felt happy that readers, particularly kids, get to see a vulnerable side to her in the book. The gold medalist also went on to note what she's most looking forward to watching in the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing.
It was 'game on' for sports bettors in the state of New York, as mobile betting kicked off on four major betting operating platforms Saturday. This comes at an exciting time for sports fans with some of the biggest NFL games of the season right around the corner. Cam Rogers - Host of Lock It In with Cam Rogers, Betting Analyst at the Bleav Podcast Network joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss.
Former wide receiver for the New York Giants, Victor Cruz has partnered with Krystal Restaurants, a popular burger chain in the South, to bring the franchise to his home state of New Jersey. Cruz and Alice Crowder, CMO of Krystal Restaurants, joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss the venture. The five new locations will be known as "Victor Cruz's Krystal," decked out with memorabilia from his football career, with the former player explaining how "hands-on" he plans on being. "You never know, OK? You might walk in and Victor Cruz will be flipping a burger back there, and you might be getting it directly from the source," he said.
Max Bichsel, vice president at Gambling.com Group joins Cheddar News to talk about the growing sports betting industry, New York legalizing mobile betting, and 2022 predictions for the sector.