Exit Polls Projecting New Name Is a Loser

When the Vancouver Grizzlies moved to Memphis two years ago, an effort was made to name the team the Memphis Express. The hope was the name would seal a $100-million sponsorship deal with FedEx, the Memphis-based company formerly known as Federal Express.

But the NBA nixed that idea. “We don’t permit teams to be named after commercial entities,” NBA spokesman Mike Bass said at the time.

Politics and team names apparently don’t jell either. This week, the owner of a new double-A minor league baseball team in Manchester, N.H., decided against naming his team the New Hampshire Primaries after 85% of the fans in an Internet poll opposed the name.

Trivia time: Pau Gasol, the Grizzlies’ leading scorer in their victory over the Lakers on Monday night with 22 points, was also the team’s leading scorer last season with a 17.6 average. How did the Grizzlies acquire Gasol?

Chess enthusiast: ESPN televised a Scrabble tournament on Sunday, and ESPN2 is televising all four games of a chess match between former world champion Garry Kasparov and the computer program X3D Fritz.

The first game, played Tuesday, ended in a draw. The other games are today, Sunday and Tuesday, with coverage beginning at 10 a.m. each day.

Reader Eddie Hurt e-mailed to say, “I for one am not only watching all four games, I am taping them for further review.”

Other possibilities: What other events are out there for ESPN to televise? One might be the fast-growing sport of Ultimate Frisbee. Then there is the Southern California-based APT Tour. APT stands for Association of Professional Tossers. The sport involves pitching quarters.

No need to set alarm: A quote from the late boxing promoter Dan Duva in Wednesday’s Morning Briefing about Mike Tyson brings to mind this quote from Dan’s father, longtime trainer Lou Duva, about Andrew Golota: “He’s a guy who gets up at 6 o’clock in the morning regardless of what time it is.”

Whatever works: A number of jockeys have begun emblazoning their last names on the legs of their white pants.

The nation’s leading apprentice last year, riding at Hollywood Park for the first time, chose to go with his nickname, “Lil Jock.”

“Fogelsonger is a little too long,” Ryan Fogelsonger said.

Consolation prize: From Jim Rome, on his ESPN TV show, “Rome Is Burning,” about Pete Rose becoming a horse owner: “What, he couldn’t get a job as a blackjack dealer?”

Trivia answer: Gasol played in Barcelona for three season before being drafted in the first round in 2001 by the Atlanta Hawks, who traded his draft rights to the Grizzlies.

And finally: Larry Morgan of the San Gabriel Valley Tribune sent along his favorite quote. It comes from former Raider cornerback Lester Hayes, when he was suffering from an injured toe and was asked about his status. “Right now, I couldn’t cover Andre the Giant,” Hayes said.

*

Larry Stewart can be reached at larry.stewart@latimes.com.