Robert Traylor dies at 34 Ex-NBA, Michigan player

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Robert Traylor dies at 34 Ex-NBA, Michigan player. SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico Former NBA and University of Michigan player Robert "Tractor" Traylor has died. He was 34.

Police in San Juan, Puerto Rico, said in a statement he was found dead Wednesday on the bedroom floor of his oceanfront apartment. Police and Traylor's team, the Bayamon Cowboys, said he had been missing for a few days and apparently died from a heart attack.

The Cowboys said Traylor was injured and had not been playing. They suspended their game Wednesday night because of his death.

The 6-foot-8, 300-pound Traylor was drafted by the Dallas Mavericks with the sixth pick in 1998, but played for the Milwaukee Bucks his first two seasons. He spent seven years in the NBA, also playing for Cleveland, Charlotte and New Orleans.

Traylor, who got his nickname because of his size, had surgery on his aorta in 2005, the Bayamon Cowboys said.

Team manager Jose Carlos Perez told The Associated Press that Traylor had been talking by phone to his wife in Chicago on Wednesday when the connection was suddenly cut off. She called team officials and they checked on him, Perez said.

"He was a leader of the team," he said. "He was very, very friendly. He got along very well with everyone. The fans loved him, idolized him."

Traylor had been playing with a team in Veracruz, Mexico, before he moved to Puerto Rico in mid-March, Perez said.

"His game was one of a lot of strength, a lot of defense," he said.

Tom Crean, a former assistant at Michigan, echoed those sentiments in post on Twitter.

"At Michigan State we battled against him and he might have been the most time-consuming and mind-challenging matchup we ever faced and we as coaches weren't even playing. He had great feet and hands and a very soft touch...You really had to have a plan to stop him."

In 2009, Traylor was sentenced to jail after violating conditions of supervised release related to an income tax case in which he acknowledged preparing a false tax return that hid assets of a convicted drug dealer.

A judge had delayed the sentence so Traylor could play for an Italian team.

Perez said Traylor's survivors include his wife and two sons.

Lingerie Pictures Nearly Melt My Nordstroms Catalog Maryna Linchuk

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Lingerie Pictures Nearly Melt My Nordstroms Catalog Maryna Linchuk. When I get word from my Nordstroms insider (my klepto cousin, Ronnie, who works in the docks at their warehouse facility) that the retail giant is bringing in the big guns of international supermodel Maryna Linchuk to model their lingerie for catalog season, well, my first thought is, damn, I thought Ronnie was still in jail.

But, my second thought is, damn, this is going to be awesome. Maryna Linchuk is all kinds of Russian hot and you've probably seen her face on major magazine covers around Europe for years but maybe not seen her spectacular body on full display, as in these sexy lingerie pictures that have me questioning my loyalty to Victoria's Secret.

I mean, a man needs to spend his lingerie money wisely, even if you be a man with a secret closet full of impulse buy silky things that you hope your bi-polar apartment manager doesn't discover on one of his unannounced visits into your place. Maryna Linchuk, consider yourself officially on the Egotastic! radar for any and all sheer delights. Enjoy.

Using Her Boobs to Save Nads Rhian Sugden Photos

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Using Her Boobs to Save Nads Rhian Sugden Photos.I mean, you know the affect she's had upon them for the past six months since she hit the glamour celeb scene, and, now, bless her boobtastic covered heart, she's working hard to save male nads.

Rhian Sugden has launched a charitable effort, Rhian's Got Balls, to raise money for research and treatment of testicular cancer, and, well, I can't think of a better pairing of anatomical twin concerns. Boobs to save balls. It's absolutely brilliant. To boot, Rhian is going to be taking on all kinds of action adventures to help bring attention to her cause.

...[Rhian] is flying off to South Africa to take part in 12 eye popping challenges which include swimming with sharks, zip wiring from mountain tops and parachute jumps.

-- Page 3, U.K. Sun

Could Rhian Sugden possibly get any hotter?

(Please give to support Rhian's campaign if you are able. Tell the good folks at JustGiving that Egotastic! sent you and see if we can't raise even more awareness.)

Biopic Of Late Actor Val Lauren As Sal Mineo In New James Franco

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Biopic Of Late Actor Val Lauren As Sal Mineo In New James Franco. A young James Franco's first mainstream success came with his hauntingly real, Golden Globe-winning portrayal of worldwide icon James Dean. Now, a bonafide superstar intent on making his mark as a director, he's turning his gaze back toward the Rebel Without A Cause for his newest project.

Franco, who will direct an upcoming biopic about actor Sal Mineo, has cast actor Val Lauren in the role, according to The Hollywood Reporter; in December, Franco optioned the rights to a 2001 biography of Mineo, best known as Dean's troubled sidekick in "Rebel Without A Cause."

Mineo, who was murdered in 1976, broke ground as one of Hollywood's first openly gay actors. A two time Oscar nominee, his frantic, vulnerable Plato won him vast praise and drove his career until he was too old to play the teen role.

The project is just one of many that Franco is taking on as he transitions to a career behind the camera; he'll also be helming a big screen adaptation of William Faulkner's "As I Lay Dying," directing and starring in Cormac McCarthy book-to-film "Blood Meridian," and taking on the same responsibilities for "The Night Stalker," a film about Richard Ramirez, the 80's Bay Area serial killer.

This will be by far the biggest role for Lauren, who has largely participated in indie films and theater.