12 Page 8 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

NIL is paying players scraps while the Power 5 just pulled in over $3 billion in revenue
At a time in which some (fans, coaches, athletic directors, media members, school presidents, and politicians) are upset with the way that NIL has changed college sports, it’s rather hypocritical how that same crowd often falls silent when USA Today Sports releases their annual findings — and discov...

In star-studded matchup, it was Lonnie Walker IV who led the way late for Lakers
Lonnie Walker IV had found himself going from the Los Angeles Lakers’ starting five to the bench, as he missed 14 games earlier this season due to knee tendinitis, and L.A. overhauled its roster during the trade deadline. Having lost his spot in the rotation in February, he made a post on his Instag...

The 'steal' of the 2023 NFL Draft
I remember a lot from my time in journalism school. It set the foundation for my career with tons of great professors who were happy to pass along their knowledge. Guess I was sick or had a head-splitting hangover the day the “steal from the people you’re covering” lesson took place. What are they t...

Death, taxes, and James Harden disappearing during the playoffs
James Harden’s sunsetting in the playoffs is a reliable annual trend. Similar to Punxsutawney Phil emerging as a sign spring has sprung, but with darker clouds in the forecast. For what feels like a decade, Harden has disappeared into his shell once the best-of-seven portion of the schedule begins. ...

Half of the road teams took 1-0 leads in the First Round of the NBA Playoffs — welcome to April Madness
Just weeks after March Madness gave us an NCAA Tournament that provided multiple historic upsets during its first weekend, it looks like the pros in the NBA took that personally. Four of the eight matchups from this past weekend’s Game Ones were won by the road team. And one of them was the Miami He...

The Lakers need to get their stuff together if they wanna advance any further
Once again the Los Angeles Lakers found themselves in a game that they desperately needed to win, clutching victory with one hand hoping that the opposing team would fall off of the cliff first. That is certainly a path to a 108-102 overtime victory against the Minnesota Timberwolves who were missin...

LeBron leading Lakers' late playoff surge — with a first-round exit likely
The Los Angeles Lakers are riding high late in the season as they attempt to sneak into the top six of the Western Conference avoiding the play-in tournament. After beating Utah Tuesday night, L.A. sits a half-game back of the fifth-place Golden State Warriors and tied with the Clippers (both 41-38)...
![Pac-12 media rights deal not close despite soft deadline [Updated]](https://images.deadspin.com/tr:w-900/870ee44f6c7e1ab97fc212559e5f9270.jpg)
Pac-12 media rights deal not close despite soft deadline [Updated]
Updated March 30: CBS Sports is reporting that the Pac-12's media rights deal is still up in the air....

Damian Lillard sounds like he’s threatening to Barry Sanders his career
Damian Lillard was in the news Wednesday for sounding like an old head during an appearance on J.J. Redick’s The Old Man and the Three podcast. From saying young players were entitled, to worrying about the direction of the league, and all the championship tropes that have followed him in between, i...

If Roy Williams and John Calipari accepted NIT bids, so can Hubert Davis
When college basketball’s postseason officially begins on Tuesday evening — on the men’s side — a familiar face will be missing from the fields as the NIT and the NCAA Tournament will tip off. North Carolina’s season is over. And it’s not just because they weren’t good enough to make the field of 68...

The best NBA action you missed last night
Mavs v. Pelicans: The Mavericks mounted a furious comeback against the Pelicans, to try and overcome a 25-point fourth-quarter comeback but fell just short. They went 10-18 from the 3-point line but still ended up losing the game 113-106. The Mavericks’ performance behind the arc explains how they g...

Josh Gordon bouncing back (again) in the XFL
Josh Gordon is thriving again, and this time it’s for the XFL. The league created by Vincent Kennedy McMahon, now run by The Rock, is back, providing an alternative for fans and another opportunity for NFL hopefuls and former players to grab a check for playing the game they love. While some XFLers ...

If you think Klay Thompson is washed, think again
While the West Coast has been experiencing a cold front like never before, Klay Thompson has been as hot as fish grease the last two months. He began to heat up around the holidays and hasn’t slowed down despite all talk about him being “washed.” If this version of Thompson is washed, throw me in th...

Darvin Ham says Lakers' goal is playoffs — but the team faces a post-All-Star break gaunlet
The Los Angeles Lakers are entering a critical time in their schedule after the All-Star break. With just 23 games remaining in the regular season, the Lakers are five games under .500 (27-32) and have a seven-game stretch where they’ll play all Western Conference foes, starting with the Golden Stat...

The SEC gaining Texas and Oklahoma a year early only makes it stronger
The 14-team Southeastern Conference has one more year on the open circuit. The baker’s dozen plus one number of full-time members lasted 12 years, when Texas A&M and Missouri departed the Big 12 for the SEC. Old habits are hard to break and instead of poaching schools that already felt like outsider...

Kyrie trade losers are the real winners
Kyrie Irving is a basketball monkey paw. His hardwood alchemy can grant your ephemeral wishes on the court, but with dire side effects on your long-term team chemistry. Stick with him long enough and he’ll deliver a plague to your franchise and refuse to get vaccinated afterward. If basketball were ...

Tom Brady's not the only star who couldn't quit the spotlight
For the second straight Feb. 1, Tom Brady retired from the National Football League. His first retirement lasted all of 40 days, coming back to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers minutes after the NCAA Tournament field was chosen on Selection Sunday. He’s now retired “for good” and the entire sports world kno...

Should Brian Kelly have to give $1 million back to LSU over a clerical mistake?
Louisiana State University (LSU) reset the college football coaching market in 2021 when they signed former Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly to a 10-year, $95 million contract. Kelly responded by winning 10 games in his first season in Baton Rouge highlighted by a home win over Alabama and an appea...

The NFC Championship is actually Jalen Hurts vs. Brock Purdy II
I doubt a college football game from 2019 will be used as scouting tape for an NFC Championship Game, especially when Brock Purdy was only a sophomore and that was the sole season that Jalen Hurts played in Lincoln Riley’s offense at Oklahoma. ...

Wrestle Kingdom puts NJPW back on track, maybe on some new ones too
The biggest event for weirdos and insomniacs, other than maybe the Australian Open, got back to normal service last night. And that’s New Japan Pro Wrestling’s biggest event of the year, Wrestle Kingdom (bell time, 3 a.m. EST). Not only did it mark the return of actually cheering crowds for NJPW sho...