alc Page 32 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights
Boston was bad but the Celtics are far from finished
Boston Celtics fans, I saw the looks on some of your faces as you filed out of TD Garden early on Tuesday night. With the series tied at 2-2, there was no way you all expected the Philadelphia 76ers to pulverize your team in the second half on the way to a 115-103 victory....
The A’s keep using the word 'binding' — I do not think it means what they think it means
Geez, if you didn’t know any better, you might get the impression that John Fisher, and Dave Kaval don’t know what they’re doing. ...
Celtics' Joe Mazzulla’s reluctance to call a timeout is a blunder that’s become too common
The use of timeouts in one-possession games is a contentious philosophical debate in NBA circles. Each end-of-game episode presents coaches with an ambiguous multiple-choice equation. Timeouts have an expiration date, but that hasn’t stopped coaches from attempting to carry them into the next game o...
Tell me you want out of Oakland without telling me you want out of Oakland
One city’s trash is Las Vegas’ treasure. The Oakland Coliseum has been a steaming pile of a ballpark for decades. After numerous skirmishes with the city over Byzantine budgets, funding, public subsidies, and potential sites for a new Oakland-area stadium, the Athletics announced the purchase of 49 ...
How’d giving away garbage bags full of draft picks work out for these NFL teams?
The NFL Draft is easily the second-most important event on the league’s annual calendar, with most teams that privately know they won’t be close to winning the Super Bowl prepping for the three-day event. Yet, there are still plenty of teams who don’t take an active role in the draft. In each of the...
Overreacting to Game 1 of each NBA Playoff series
One game into each NBA postseason series feels like a good time to make some premature, bold declarations. The postseason tipped off with a fury of finishes that ranged from exciting to anesthesia. But Game 1 is a starter kit that we’ll try to extrapolate on. It would be wise to tread carefully in t...
The Democratic National Convention is coming to Chicago — what sports anthem should Joe Biden come out to?
CHICAGO — Intro music matters, especially here. ...
UConn did not get the memo about March Madness
After everything this NCAA men’s tournament has had to offer. After all the one seeds fell. After an Ivy League school made the Sweet 16. After a Conference USA team made the Final Four. After 62 other schools lost, we get a blueblood in the title game. The UConn Huskies aren’t just advancing, they’...
Amateur sports at higher education American institutions are dead
On Wednesday, the performative set of elected officials who gather in Washington D.C. to raise money and occasionally draft legislation held a meeting to discuss the future of Name, Image and Likeness....
The NCAA is unfixable — it punished Ferris State’s football program for smoking victory cigars
Some things don’t have redeemable qualities, like the NCAA. In an under-the-radar recent news story, it was revealed that Ferris State’s football program was fined $15,000 for the damages that occurred after winning their second consecutive Division II national championship back in December. The cri...
Which team is the best fit for Lamar Jackson?
There might not be an immediate end in sight to the Lamar Jackson saga, but things are now starting to heat up. The market has been relatively quiet since the news broke that the Baltimore Ravens were placing the non-exclusive franchise tag on the former MVP, and multiple teams made a point of dista...
Is there actually a reason to watch the Pittsburgh Pirates?
The Pittsburgh Pirates have been the prime symbol of everything wrong with MLB. They play in perhaps the league’s best ballpark. They have a passionate fanbase that is just screaming for a team worth their time, assuming they haven’t all been chased off (and they may need the Pirates soon given that...
Stop glorifying NFL Pro Days — they’re just in-person highlight tapes
Before there was Hudl and YouTube, there were VHS cassettes. And before that, film. Studying and watching footage of your opponent, yourself, or a prospect has always been a vital part of sports. There’s nothing like seeing what someone does against live competition and the variables that occur duri...
Stop bitching about the World Baseball Classic
We tend not to appreciate things that don’t matter as much to us as it does others. If there’s anything more American than “I got mine,” I don’t know what that would be. That seems to be the trouble with the World Baseball Classic, even though with every iteration it seems to pick up more steam. The...
Make sure to prioritize your hatred for the Crimson Tide
Alabama is the perfect villain for so many reasons, and I’m not even referring to the Brandon Miller situation. Fans of college athletics would’ve inevitably found a reason to hate this Crimson Tide squad, and if they couldn’t find one, they’d have created one. People are so sick of seeing the footb...
LA Clippers, Matthew McConaughey's plane troubles will keep my ass from flying anytime soon
Do not ask me to go anywhere right now that involves air travel. My fanny is parked right here on the West Coast until further notice. I am going nowhere unless my sedan can get me there, and it had better be before parking fills up on my street. There have been two recent stories of frightening fli...