Author: staff

Sports

Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles sells Kansas home for $685,000

Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles and his wife, Katie, on June 16 sold their five-bedroom, 3,182-square-foot house in Overland Park, Kansas, for its $685,000 asking price.In January, the Bears hired Poles, 36, to be the team’s general manager after Ryan Pace was fired. Poles had been with the Kansas City Chiefs from 2009 until 2021, rising to become executive director of player personnel.AdvertisementIn Overland Park, which is a large suburb of Kansas City, Poles and his wife bought the nine-room home in 2018 for $575,281, according to public records. Built in 2017, the house has 4½ bathrooms, two fireplaces, a kitchen with a custom island, a great room with built-ins and hardwood flooring, a formal dining room and a primary bedroom suite with a walk-in closet and a makeup vanity.Other features include a screened porch with a floor-to-ceiling stone fireplace and TV area.AdvertisementThe couple listed the house on March 11.Listing agent Erin Peel previously declined to comment in detail on the listing, although she did acknowledge that the house had numerous offers.The house had a $7,822 property tax bill in the 2020 tax year.It’s not known yet where Poles and his wife have settled in the Chicago area.Bob Goldsborough is a freelance writer.Join our Chicago Dream Homes Facebook group for more luxury listings and real estate news.

Sports

UCLA and USC reportedly taking steps to join the Big Ten from the Pac-12

UCLA and Southern California are planning to leave the Pac-12 for the Big Ten Conference in a seismic change that could lead to another major realignment of college sports.A person who has been briefed on the discussions between USC, UCLA and the Big Ten said the schools have taken steps to request an invitation to join the conference. The person spoke to The Associated Press on Thursday on condition of anonymity because the schools’ talks with the Big Ten have not been made public.AdvertisementThe move would come as soon as 2024, after the Pac-12′s current media rights contracts with Fox and ESPN expire, and increase the size of the Big Ten to 16 schools.The decision by the Los Angeles schools — two of the NCAA’s most decorated athletic programs — comes almost a year after Oklahoma and Texas formally accepted invitations to join the Southeastern Conference in July 2025.AdvertisementThe Big Ten would become the first conference to stretch from the Atlantic to the Pacific and would build on previous expansion into the nation’s largest media markets.Big Ten leadership, including the council of presidents and chancellors, would still have to sign off on extending an invitation to the two schools.The Big Ten has expanded twice in recent years, with Nebraska joining in 2011 and Maryland and Rutgers in 2014.USC and UCLA fit the Big Ten’s academic profile. Both schools are among the 65 members of the Association of American Universities, which is made up of top research universities. All Big Ten schools except Nebraska are members.

Sports

NBA superstar Kevin Durant wants out of Brooklyn, asks Nets for trade

The Seven-Eleven Era has come to an end.Superstar forward Kevin Durant has requested a trade from the Brooklyn Nets, the Daily News has confirmed. It means Brooklyn’s championship window has come to a close. The Nets are also continuing to work to trade Kyrie Irving, The News can also confirm, which means the Durant-Irving era will end with one playoff victory and one first-round sweep in their three seasons in Brooklyn.AdvertisementDurant’s official trade request was first reported Thursday by ESPN.The News was first to report of this potential eventuality — Durant requesting a trade from Brooklyn — if the Nets chose not to give his co-star Irving a long-term deal. The Nets were “outright unwilling” to do so, as The News reported in May, and Irving ultimately opted into the final year of his contract extension worth $37 million. Durant requested a trade on Thursday after Irving and the Nets failed to reach an amicable solution.AdvertisementThe Nets will be able to recoup draft assets and young players in deals for Irving and Durant and will be able to re-tool in the coming years. But make no mistake: the Nets being unable to retain the two biggest stars in Brooklyn’s history is a massive failure for team owner Joe Tsai and general manager Sean Marks.Kevin Durant wants out of Brooklyn. (John Minchillo/AP)Developing story, check back for details.