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The campaign to reverse the trend of cuts to youth sports funding is going green.The Sports Matter program run by the DICKS Sporting Goods Foundation has launched a green shoelaces movement. Under the latest all-sports initiative, DICKS will donate $2 from every shoelace sale to Sports Matter. The green shoelaces can be purchased at DICKS stores or online at dicks.com.As I travel around the country, I see more and more young athletes who dont have the means to play, and it breaks my heart, says Super Bowl-winning coach Jon Gruden, now an analyst for ESPN and an ambassador for Sports Matter. The green laces represent more than your average shoelaces. They are a tangible way to raise awareness and start conversation around this crisis, all while raising money for kids who really need it the most.Projections show that 27% of U.S. public high schools might not have any sports programs by 2020, according to Up2Us Sports, a New York-based non-profit. With billions of dollars slashed from youth sports budgets in recent years, DICKS and its foundation have pledged more than $50 million to support teams and raise awareness of the issue. To date, the Sports Matter program has helped nearly 2,000 youth sports teams.Sports helped me get through some tough times in life, and taught me a lot about how to be a man on and off the field, says Texans receiver DeAndre Hopkins. Kids need more chances in life, and I hate to imagine a world where sports arent around to help kids stay out of trouble and succeed.Green shoelace users can show their support as well by taking a picture of their casual or athletic shoes or cleats laced up with green shoelaces and use (hash)SaveYouthSports. You can be sure Vikings receiver Stefon Diggs will make such a fashion statement.Seeing what kids are exposed to nowadays makes the positive influences of coaches and teams more important than ever, Diggs says. The opportunity to play sports is huge in a kids life in so many ways, and not being able to afford joining a team is tragic.Thats why Ill be standing with others who purchase green laces in support of Sports Matter, and proud to wear them during Week 13 on `Thursday Night Football. `DICKS foundation also will use money donated to help raise awareness for and support underfunded youth sports programs.Other athletes involved in the program include Justise Winslow of the Miami Heat, Dexter Fowler of the Chicago Cubs (now a free agent), Isaiah Thomas of the Boston Celtics, and Kemba Walker of the Charlotte Hornets.The initiative also includes a short film profile of the Fifth Ward Saints football organization outside of Houston. It shows the importance of football in the lives of generations of Houston-area kids. At the end of the film, DICKS Foundation donates a $100,000 grant, including new equipment, as a gift.---For more NFL coverage: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-NFLSportsMatter.com/greenlaces Asics Schweiz . Marincin has played in two NHL games so far this season with two penalty minutes. The 21-year-old has three goals, four assists and a plus-5 rating in 24 games with the American Hockey Leagues Oklahoma City Barons this season. Asics Schuhe Günstig . But now that hes in the NHL, the Calgary Flames centre showed big improvement in that department by scoring the winner in the eighth round of a 5-4 shootout victory over the Winnipeg Jets on Monday. http://www.asicsschweizonline.com/ . Nine days before the opening ceremony, organizing committee chief Dmitry Chernyshenko said Wednesday that Sochi is "fully ready" and will deliver safe, friendly and well-run games that defy the grim reports that have overshadowed preparations. Asics Outlet Schweiz . Wilson hit Schenn from behind during Tuesday nights game in Philadelphia, earning a five-minute major for charging and a game misconduct. He has a phone hearing with the department of player safety, which limits any potential suspension to five or fewer games. Asics Schuhe Größentabelle .S. Open champion Justin Rose birdied the first hole with a blind shot he hit to a foot of the pin, and he stayed in front Tuesday until he completed a 4-under 67 for a two-shot lead over Jason Dufner in PGA Grand Slam of Golf. This story is part of ESPN The Magazines Oct. 31 NBA Preview Issue. Subscribe today!Atlanta HawksOverall: 30 Title track: 102 Ownership: 71 Coaching: 30 Players: 60 Fan relations: 49 Affordability: 17 Stadium experience: 69 Bang for the buck: 16 Change from last year:?-1Coach Mike Budenholzer, a Gregg Popovich disciple, has remade Atlanta on the court. Now the Hawks new ownership group, led by Anthony Ressler and including Grant Hill, is attempting to rebrand the franchise off the floor. Poor attendance and organizational unrest have been staples, but with an arena renovation set in the center of the citys downtown renaissance, the Hawks are hoping to maintain all-around excellence. You know, just like the Spurs.Whats goodSay what you want about Atlantas laissez-faire fan base, but Philips Arena remains an affordable place to enjoy some good basketball. The Hawks have made the playoffs in each of the past nine seasons, and the average ticket price ($36.82) is still nearly $20 less than the NBA average. Thats a steal, and it has helped the teams rankings in affordability (17th) and bang for the buck (16th). Atlanta has been ranked no worse than 37th in the former and 56th in the latter since 2012. In fact, the Hawks average nearly $1,000 less than the NBA average in cost per season. But with Budenholzer landing Atlanta as close as it has been to an NBA title since 1970, expect prices to rise relative to expectations.Whats badThe Spurs East model will now have to account for dysfunctional Dwight Howard, who effectiveely replaces Al Horford, a two-way star and locker room leader.dddddddddddd. On the court, Howard does not resemble the three-time Defensive Player of the Year that he was in Orlando. He was unable to get along with Kobe Bryant in Los Angeles or James Harden in Houston, and now the Atlanta native is joining his third team in five seasons, a team that won 12 fewer games in 2015-16, after 60 wins and a conference finals appearance two seasons ago. With the questions surrounding Howard -- and the losses of Horford and point guard Jeff Teague, which contributed to Atlantas 60th-place ranking in players, down 42 spots from last year -- the Hawks are further from capturing what Popovichs Spurs have achieved so many times: a title.Whats newFor all the good Budenholzer has done, his coaching rank dropped 18 spots as the wins decreased last season. Of course, the 2014-15 Coach of the Year also assumed president of basketball operations duties prior to last season, so hes also responsible for the drop-off in players. But in reality, most of Atlantas roster carried over from the previous campaign. The real change will come this season, with Dennis Schroder, who takes over for Teague, an All-Star, and Howard, who wont be able to replicate Horfords outside shooting (1.1 3PM per game). As such, that free-flowing, Spurs-style offense will likely be more pedestrian.Next: Detroit Pistons?| Full rankings ' ' '