Pay for Play: In a game changer for college sports, The Supreme Court ruled that universities cannot limit educational benefits to athletes in the name of amateurism. The decision promises to blow open the façade of amateurism while the colleges and universities the athletes play for rake in billions in ticket sales and television rights. The president of the NCAA makes $4 million and a lot of coaches make more.

  The decision says the schools may not limit educational benefits, things like computers and post-graduate scholarships. Cash payments for now are capped at $5,980 a year, but the decision could lead to salaries. 

  Writing for the unanimous court, Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote,  “Put simply, this suit involves admitted horizontal price fixing in a market where the defendants exercise monopoly control.”  He says, “Nowhere else in America can businesses get away with agreeing not to pay their workers a fair market rate on the theory that their product is defined by not paying their workers a fair market rate,” adding, “The NCAA is not above the law.”

   The NCAA appeared to be calling the loss a win, issuing a statement saying the ruling “reaffirms the NCAA’s authority to adopt reasonable rules and repeatedly notes that the NCAA remains free to articulate what are and are not truly educational benefits.”

  But the NCAA rules are crumbling. Next week, student-athletes in six states where legislators became tired of the amateurism charade will be able to make money on endorsements and social media.  

Nu Yawk, Nu Yawk: New York City Democrats and Republicans hold their primary for mayor today and the Democratic winner is the one almost guaranteed to become mayor.

  The evident leader among eight candidates is Eric Adams, President of the Borough of Brooklyn, a former state senator, and police captain who for seven years was a registered Republican. He says he’d be tough on crime and once even said he’d forgo a mayoral security detail and just carry a gun.

  Feeding his anti-crime theme, one of Adams’ campaign volunteers was stabbed over the weekend while canvassing in the Bronx. 

  The NY Times has endorsed Kathryn Garcia, a former sanitation commissioner. The paper says she “best understands how to get New York back on its feet and has the temperament and the experience to do so.”

  The most recognizable name in the race is Andrew Yang, the nerdy millionaire businessman who wore a pin that said, “Math” during his failed run for president. Yang is proposing for New Yorkers something akin to his 2020 push for a guaranteed national income.

  This is the first New York primary with ranked-choice voting, leading to last -minute squabbling over an alliance formed between Yang and Garcia. Alliances can help in ranked-choice voting. Garcia performed Yoga in times Square as a campaign stunt Sunday before going to Zabar’s delicatessen where wealthy Democrats shop.

  Filling out the ballot are Scott Stringer, a six-term progressive state assemblyman from the upper West Side; Dianna Morales, CEO of a social services nonprofit; Maya Wiley, a lawyer and political activist; Shaun Donovan, who ran Housing and Urban development and the Office of Management and Budget for President Obama; and Ray Maguire, a former vice president at Citigroup financial.

  On the Republican side are two candidates without a prayer; Curtis Sliwa, founder of the Guardian Angeles, and Fernando Mateo, President of the New York State Federation of Taxi Drivers. 

The Lumber Rack: After peaking to frightening levels during the pandemic, lumber prices are dropping. Prices on the futures market are down more than 45 percent from their peak. They are still more than double what they were in 2019, but less than half the board-foot price in May.

  The lumber market had been lagging since the Great Recession of 2008, but the pandemic brought demand for new housing even while the mills slowed down. After high demand and low production during the pandemic, the nation’s 3,000 lumber mills are reported to be running at capacity. 

The Spin Rack: A California man who worked for a trucking contractor has been charged with stealing 42,000 pounds of pistachio nuts. — Donald Trump has sued New York City for ending his contact to run a golf course in the Bronx, charging that it was a political decision made after the January 6^th insurrection. — A federal judge dismissed most claims filed by the American Civil Liberties Union, Black Lives Matter and others in lawsuits that accused the Trump administration of authorizing an unprovoked attack on demonstrators in Lafayette Square on June 1^st last year. That was the day Trump stood in front of a church holding up the Bible like he had never seen one before.

Sports Page: Las Vegas Raiders defensive lineman Carl Nassib announced on Instagram that he’s gay, becoming the first active NFL player to come out. He’s a five-year veteran of the league.

  “I just want to take a quick moment to say that I’m gay,” Nassib said in a video post. “I just think that representation and visibility are so important. I actually hope that like one day videos like this and the whole coming-out process are just not necessary, but until then I’m going to do my best and my part to cultivate a culture that’s accepting, that’s compassionate.” 

  The NFL was quick to put out a supportive message. Nassib said in his post, “Sadly, I have agonized over this moment for the last 15 years.” 

Exodus: The pandemic has changed work and the way workers feel about their jobs. In the retail industry, workers are quitting in record numbers to look for work doing something else.  About 649,000 retail employees gave notice in April, the  largest one-month exodus since the Labor Department began tracking 20 years ago.

  They are going to insurance agencies, marijuana dispensaries, banks, and local governments where they can make more money and get better benefits.  

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