Tommy Morrisons career reached its pinnacle on a hot June night in Las Vegas, when he stepped into the ring and beat George Foreman to become heavyweight champion. Kellen Winslow Jersey . It reached its nadir when he tested positive for HIV three years later. The last 20 years of the brash boxers life would be defined by extensive legal troubles, erratic behaviour and mounting health problems. Morrison would later claim that he never tested positive for the virus that causes AIDs, even as he was hospitalized during the last days of his life. Morrison died Sunday night at a Nebraska hospital. He was 44. His longtime promoter and close friend, Tony Holden, confirmed that "the Duke" had died, but his family would not disclose the cause of death. Morrison and his wife, Trisha, continued to deny that the former champion ever had HIV during the final years of his life. "Tommys a very stubborn person and he views things the way he wants to view things. Thats his right and privilege," Holden said. "All through his career, him and I would come not to physical blows but disagreements on certain things. We always ended up friends. That was Tommy. "Thats the way Tommy took off after he was told he was HIV-positive," Holden added. "When he first was told, I was taking him to seek treatment and to different doctors around the country. And then he started research on the Internet and started saying it was a conspiracy. He went in that direction and never looked back." The controversy, along with Morrisons rapid decline, overshadowed a stellar career. Morrison was a prodigious puncher whose bid to fight in the 1988 Seoul Olympics ended at the hands of Ray Mercer, who later dealt him his first professional loss. Along the way, Morrison became such a recognizable face that he was cast in "Rocky V" alongside Sylvester Stallone. Morrison won his first 28 professional fights, beating faded champions such as Pinklon Thomas along the way. He hit it big at the Thomas & Mack Center in the summer of 1993 — a unanimous decision over Foreman, then in the midst of his comeback — to claim a vacant world title. As with so many things in Morrisons life, the good was quickly followed by the bad. Morrison was in line for a high-profile bout with Lennox Lewis when he was upset by unheralded fighter Michael Bentt in Tulsa, Okla., not far from where Morrison was raised. He was knocked down three times and the fight was called before the first round ended. The loss meant a potential $7.5 million payday for a title unification fight simply vanished. "I zigged when I should have zagged," Morrison said afterward. "Its one of those situations you have to live with and learn from it. Ill be back." Morrison indeed came back, but he was never the same feared fighter. He beat a bunch of long shots and faded stars over the next couple of years before getting knocked out by Lewis in the sixth round. That fight happened in October 1995. By February, Morrison had tested positive for HIV. Hed been preparing for another fight that winter when his blood test came back positive for the virus that causes AIDs. Morrisons license was quickly suspended by Nevada, and the ban was, in effect, upheld by every other sanctioning body. Morrison said at a news conference in 1996 that hed never fight again, blaming his plight on a "permissive, fast and reckless lifestyle." His lifestyle never changed, though, even when he stepped away from the ring. He had already run afoul of the law in 1993, when he pleaded guilty to assaulting a college student. He also dealt with weapons charges and multiple DUI incidents over the years. Morrison was finally sentenced to two years in prison in 2000, and another year was added to his sentence in 2002 for violating parole. When he was released, Morrison said his HIV tests were in fact false positives, and he wanted to resume his career. He passed medical tests in Arizona — even as Nevada stood by its decision to suspend his license — and returned to the ring. Morrison fought twice more in his career, winning once in West Virginia and for the final time in Mexico. He finished with a record of 48-3-1 with 42 knockouts. Morrison started to fade from the public eye in the final years of his life. He tried to stay connected to the sport by opening a gym in Wichita, Kan., but the enterprise was short-lived. "If Tommy was fighting today, he no doubt would be a world champion," Holden said. "You have to look at who he was fighting in the 90s, the guys in that division were Tyson, Lennox Lewis, Riddick Bowe, Ray Mercer, George Foreman. Theres no one with that talent today. Tommy would absolutely dominate if he were in his prime boxing today." Max Tuerk Jersey . He managed to save par, and went on to put together his best opening round of the year. Calcavecchia and Wes Short Jr. Dexter McCoil Jersey . Still, Encarnacion felt a sense of relief. He felt a pop just before crumpling to the ground after running out a groundball in the first inning of Saturdays game. It could have been worse. “Its going to take maybe two weeks,” said Encarnacion. “It depends how Im going to be and how Im going to be day after day, feeling better or not. http://www.chargersprofansshop.com/Black-Jason-Verrett-Chargers-Jersey.html?cat=869 . -- The Los Angeles Dodgers signed Cuban shortstop Erisbel Arruebarrena to a $25 million, five-year contract Saturday.TORONTO - Amir Johnson has never been one to sulk over playing time. Whether starting or coming off the bench, Johnson has always accepted his role in stride, part of whats made him the Raptors unsung hero for the better part of the last three seasons. His body language spoke louder than words on Sunday, both before and after his teams 112-98 loss to the Nuggets, their third straight defeat at home. An hour before tip-off a subdued Johnson sat alone in front of his locker. Playing a racing game on his phone - with the volume turned up - he knew what everyone else would find out 50 minutes later. For the first time since Mar. 23, a span of 27 games, Johnson would come off the bench with Tyler Hansbrough replacing him in the Raptors starting five. Dwane Casey had hinted a lineup change could be on its way after practice the day prior but the Raptors coach kept his cards close to his vest during his pre-game availability, with the Nuggets withholding the status of starter Kenneth Faried. Following a couple slow starts in back-to-back defeats at home, the shakeup was not a surprise. "Weve been talking about it, a few days back," Johnson said, despondent after the game. A man of few words. While Johnson was held scoreless in 14 uninspiring minutes as a reserve - an uncharacteristic minus-16 on the afternoon - the change seemed to spark his team out of the gate. Along with Jonas Valanciunas, Hansbrough set the tone for the Raptors, who took an early 15-point lead thanks in large part to Torontos energy and physical work on the boards. However, that lead shrunk in a hurry as both teams went to their second units. The Nuggets - a team assembled, at least in part by Raptors GM Masai Ujiri - dominated the final 36 minutes with their superior depth, exploiting the deficiencies in Torontos shallow roster. "Masai did too good of a job of putting that group together," Casey joked before the game. The Nuggets and their new coach Brian Shaw went 10 players deep, six of them scoring in double figures, including four off the bench. "Our bench has got to give us something," Casey maintained after Denvers subs scored 72 points, an opponent record against the Raptors. "Our (starters) cant play for 48 (minutes), so weve got to get production from the bench." "The guys coming in have got to develop a toughness, a resilience of getting stops and it starts on the defensive end. Thats where our problems started in the second half. They shot well but we didnt make them feel us and thats the difference." As a team, the Nuggets shot 65 per cent in the second half and their bench went 17-for-23 from the field. Johnson - now a member of the Raptors second unit that managed just 16 points on Sunday - has not been himself this season, to his own admission. "No, Ive been on and off," he responded, asked if his early-season play has met his standards. "I mean thats why we made the change in the lineup," Casey said in agreement. "Just to give us some energy, give (Johnson) a chance to recharge a little bit, refresh a little bit, refocus a little bit." Even afteer Sundays game, Johnson is a plus-20 this season - the teams second best mark - shooting 54 per cent from the field, tops on the Raptors. Tre Boston Jersey. Still, his effort and consequently his impact has been inconsistent following a career season last year. At times Casey has questioned the forwards focus. "Everybodys been through some rough times," said Rudy Gay, who had a team-high 23 points on 10-of-23 shooting in the loss. "Ive been through it… and hes going through it now." "Everybodys going to go through it at some point in their career and this is the time hes been going through it. But I have all confidence in Amir. Hes going to be great, hes going to be the same Amir we know he can be." Frustration boiling over The Raptors have now dropped three straight and five of their last six games at home, prompting a sensible question; is frustration beginning to get the best of them? "It should hurt," Casey insisted. "But the teams that we played against, if you looked at the schedule before the season started, how many of them would we have been favoured (in)? But thats no excuse because we put ourselves in a position (to win) in each of these games and even in this one in the first half. I dont see frustration." DeMar DeRozan didnt mince words, expressing his frustration after the loss. "Me personally, Im frustrated period," he exclaimed after scoring 17 points in defeat. "Just losing, I mean I hate it, I hate it with a passion." "I mean were right there. Were the ones doing it. Nobodys making us miss our coverages or nothing like that. Its on us. We show it in spurts, weve just got to be more consistent with it." Rare third-quarter touches for Valanciunas Coming into Sundays contest, Jonas Valanciunas had scored 71 points on 57 shots in first quarters this season, tallying just 60 points on 58 shots in the other three quarters combined. The sophomore was utilized more consistently against a smaller Denver team and he responded with one of his better performances of the campaign. "I thought he had a (good) matchup with those guys so we made it a focal point of getting him the ball in the paint," Casey said of Valanciunas, who had a double-double of 18 points and 11 rebounds in 36 minutes of action. "He did an excellent job of getting to where he wanted to go." Valanciunas had four points on seven shots in the first frame, a quarter the Raptors won, also taking seven shots and scoring eight in the third, their next best quarter. As Toronto got steamrolled in the fourth, Valanciunas attempted just one field goal in over nine minutes. If the Raptors hope to diversify their offence, which has largely been centred on Gay and DeRozan, they must find ways to incorporate their centre more consistently, a task thats easier said than done given the teams personnel and the sophomores continued development on both ends of the floor. Up next After winning one of four games during their season-long home stand, the Raptors travel west next week. 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