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NEW YORK -- WNBA President Lisa Borders applauds the leagues players for taking a stance on social issues. She just wishes the activism was kept off the court.The New York, Phoenix and Indiana teams and players were fined this week for wearing black warmup shirts that addressed the recent shooting by and against police. WNBA rules state that uniforms may not be altered in any way.Borders spent the past two weeks talking with the union and its executive council, trying to come up with ways that both the league and its players could constructively address the Black Lives Matters movement. Nothing concrete was decided.We were making every effort to engage our players, she told The Associated Press by phone Friday night. We made an effort to support them and we were trying to get them to come to the table to have a conversation. The players have an open invitation with the league.Our players are important to us. We believe in them. We want them to be the people they are and were proud of them. We want to make sure they play well on the court and they are happy off the court.Right now, the players arent happy.On social media and in postgame interviews, players are showing their solidarity after the league fined the Liberty, Mercury and Fever players $500 each this week for wearing plain black warmup shirts that violated the leagues uniform policy. The normal fine for a uniform violation is $200. Each team also was fined $5,000.The Rev. Al Sharpton said Saturday his organization, the National Action Network, will pay the $500 fines. He called the penalty unacceptable.Washington Mystics players had shirts saying Black Lives Matters in the locker room after their game Friday night. Seattle Storm and Minnesota Lynx players tweeted out pictures of their teams wearing black shirts featuring a Martin Luther King Jr. quote before their game. They didnt wear those shirts on the court to avoid getting fined.Were sick and tired of waking up every morning and seeing something like this (shootings) happen, Mystics player Ivory Latta said after her team played its final game before the Olympic break. We need change and we have a platform to speak. Dont tell us we have a platform and then you penalize us for our platform for speaking and showing our actions. Thats not right.Borders, on the job for four months, disagreed with the notion that the league was suppressing its players voices.We want the players to know that we have supported them in the past, support them today and will continue to support them in the future, she said. Were not trying to stop them from expressing themselves.The league just doesnt want them to do it on the court if it violates the WNBA uniform rules. The shirts that the players were fined for wearing were the Adidas brand -- the official outfitter of the league.The Adidas black shirts are not regulation, Borders said. They are sponsor appropriate, but the Adidas plain black shirt would not be a regulation-issued shirt.The union felt it was unnecessary for the league to issue a memo this week reminding the players of the uniform policy. Because of that memo, the players and union werent surprised by the fine. They were just disappointed.This isnt about a shirt, but that was the starting point, Terri Jackson, the new operations director of the WNBA Players Association, told the AP. The players want to blog about (Black Lives Matter), tweet about it, do videos. They want to raise visibility and keep the conversation going. They dont want this to die out.Jackson said the unions legal team is looking into what it can do about the fines, which she called excessive. She said the union proposed letting the players have a limited time to express their opinions on the court.We talked about doing it pregame at the 10-minute mark or the 15-minute mark and theyd go back and put on their regulation warmup. Wear the regulation warmups for the national anthem and life goes on. That was declined by the league.While the league begins its monthlong break Saturday, its top players will be playing in Rio at the Olympics. U.S. coach Geno Auriemma said he was proud of their social activism.I respect Tina (Charles) and the players in the WNBA for their concern and their voices and the passion that they have and for their beliefs. I really do, he said, citing the former UConn player and Liberty star for wearing her warmup shirt inside-out before Thursdays game. Im really proud of some of my former players and the way theyve stepped forward and spoken their conscience and express their feelings.The league was still undecided on whether Charles would be fined.Auriemma said if players take actions at the Olympics it would be a difficult balancing act.As far as USA Basketball is concerned, you know, thats a very delicate subject, he said. Obviously each player has an opportunity to be who they want and say what they feel, but at the same time, you are representing the United States of America, and you are part of the Olympic team. ... Im sure itll come up, and well have to deal with it.He said the matter would largely fall to U.S. Olympic and basketball authorities.Both the league and the union hope for constructive conversations during the break. Borders said shell be in Rio for two weeks and will participate in the monthly conference call between the two groups on Aug. 1. She missed the call on July 11 when the shirts initially were discussed.I love this league and its players. Id never do anything to harm the league, franchises or players, Borders said. I want them to understand were here to support them. Weve hit a bump in a road. This too shall pass. Dennis Byrd Jersey .Y. - Free agent outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury, fresh off winning the World Series with Boston, reached agreement with the rival New York Yankees on a seven-year contract worth about $153 million, a person familiar with the negotiations said Tuesday night. Mark Gastineau Youth Jersey . The recently retired Stern was elected Friday to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and will be enshrined with the class of 2014 on Aug. http://www.authenticnyjetspro.com/Dennis-byrd-jets-jersey/ . There are surprises among the Vezina candidates, but most of the others are standard top-tier performers, even if the two Hart Trophy runners-ups have never been quite as good as they have been through the first half of the season. Joe Klecko Youth Jersey . Dusautoir, the former World Player of the Year, sustained a torn bicep playing for Toulouse in the Heineken Cup on Saturday. The flanker, who has played 65 times for France, is expected to be out for up to four months. Wesley Walker Womens Jersey . The visitors took a deserved lead in the 16th minute with midfielder Yohan Cabaye curling the ball beyond Adrian from inside the penalty area.Bayern Munich midfielder Xabi Alonso thinks Pep Guardiola is ahead of his time, but might take a while to implement his style at Manchester City. Guardiola will leave the Allianz Arena this summer and replace Manuel Pellegrini at City.While his possession-based style has proved effective at both Barcelona and Bayern, Spanish midfielder Alonso says the initial transformation is not easy. Pep is ahead of his time, he told Sky Sports News HQ. He is very demanding of himself and his players, but once you get to know it [the style], then it is the way we like to play.He likes the team to be in control of the game because he thinks that is the best way to win games. During his time here he has built something, a style of play, I think many players will have learnt a lot and improved and for sure those fundamentals will be very useful in the future as well. Alonso (left) says Guardiola is very demanding of his players Guardiola joined Bayern in 2013 and looks to be on course for a third straight Bundesliga title, with his side five points clear with seven games left to play.ddddddddddddHe will be replaced at the club by Carlo Ancelotti, but Alonso says: Nobody is thinking about next season, we are just thinking about the challenges we have right now.At the end we will have enough time to give him a proper farewell that he deserves. He will leave in the best manner, no doubt about it, and his time here will be a good one to remember. Also See: Right project key for Pellegrini Sterling faces eight weeks out WATCH: Pep clear out at City? Man City fixtures ' ' '