it Page 487 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights
The baseball is deflated again
I’m cribbing heavily from Joe Sheehan’s newsletter again, but in his latest missive he points out that things keep getting better and better for pitchers. Thanks to technology and greater study, they discover new pitches or tweaks to existing ones as they keep throwing harder and harder. At the same...
Marcus Smart’s move to point guard earned him DPOY
The most surprising aspect of the Boston Celtics in-season turnaround was that the team did it with a position change rather than trading a major asset. Acquiring Derrick White helped with some much-needed guard depth, but really Marcus Smart being allowed to run point solidified his role and gave h...
Nikola Jokić looks flustered and angry
The man who is expected to win one the closest MVP battles in recent memory has supplied fuel to his detractors....
It runs in the family
Say what you will about NIL — you can’t deny it’s giving the world some incredible content. Legendary golfer John Daly’s son, 18-year-old John Daly II, has officially inked a sponsorship deal with Hooters, and gave us the most incredible statement of all time:...
Record-breaking Hobey Baker winning goalie suspended for trillionth of a gram of banned substance
In the age of NIL and PEDs, college athletes must be cautious about every ingredient in any protein shake or supplement is reckless....
The Japanese pitching sensation that refuses to let hitters reach base
One of the biggest stories in Major League Baseball right now is the dominance of 27-year-old Japanese rookie Seiya Suzuki. In 10 games Suzuki is slashing .429/.564/.929 with four home runs and 11 runs batted in. With Suzuki’s early success and Ohtani’s 2021 MVP campaign fresh in everybody’s minds, ...
George Karl has a history of making a punching bag of DeMarcus Cousins and Black players
Behind closed doors, George Karl probably calls successful Black people “uppity.”...
The NWSL has some good Twitter beef
If Drive to Survive on Netflix has taught us anything, it’s that people love the story behind the story, and it can rocket the popularity of a sport if they allow people to see it. But you don’t need a Netflix special to get into some personality and character. Twitter can do that for you, as long a...
Reboot USFL will be remembered for its chicken salad, not the football
The contemporary USFL is the chicken salad of spring professional football leagues. In theory, it may feature the name of two ingredients people love, but it’s a stomach-churning and second-rate mixture in practice. For example, USFL running back De’Veon Smith was cut by his Pittsburgh Maulers team ...
I’m sure you’re shocked to find out Mel Kiper isn’t vaccinated
If I had to put a face to the unvaccinated, it would probably look like Mel Kiper Jr.’s. I can’t really tell you why, because it’s not like he’s been even the most outspoken at ESPN about being a dingus. But there’s something about his mush…the fact that it looks like he’s never smiled, and if he ha...
The Colts were a trendy Super Bowl pick last season, this season they want to be a favorite
The Indianapolis Colts were certainly not thrilled with the way that their 2021 season ended. It started in disappointing fashion by losing their first three games. They improved, but still lost twice to division rival Tennessee Titans, including a heartbreaker at home — 34-31 in overtime. Then the ...
Green Bay has 11 picks in this year’s draft, but replacing Davante Adams won’t be easy
As the 2022 NFL draft approaches, the Green Bay Packers find themselves in retool mode after handing Aaron Rodgers a colossal contract extension and trading away All-Pro wide receiver Davante Adams. The good part of that equation is locking up Rodgers for the next few years and acquiring extra first...
Deebo Samuel, A.J. Brown and Terry McLaurin want, and deserve, new contracts
It is mid-April, which means the NFL Draft is a couple of weeks away, OTAs are around the corner, and Week 1 is a mere five months away. Besides the draft, most teams have made their major offseason moves. Several record-breaking contracts have been signed since this offseason, and a few young stars...
The USMNT is crafty in the middle but dangerous at both ends… to themselves
Being panicky and reactionary about the USMNT is now part of the deal. Perhaps it’s a sign we’re growing up. Fuck, three weeks ago, the US qualified for next fall’s World Cup (and got something of a favorable draw), Christian Pulisic was starting regularly for Chelsea — looking good doing it, too — ...
Is it finally winning time for Philadelphia?
On Saturday, the 76ers began the postseason by breezing past the Toronto Raptors with a ho-hum 131-111 drubbing. The 2022 playoffs is a significant crucible for Philadelphia. The legacy of The Process is at stake. If HBO ever decides to expand its foray into NBA biopics beyond the Showtime Lakers’ W...
Anthony Edwards has arrived as the man in Minnesota
Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards made a lasting impression Saturday in his playoff debut against Memphis. Edwards kicked down the door and dominated the Grizzlies, setting a new Twolves record in scoring for a player in his first playoff game. ...
Ranking the NBA’s first round matchups by how likely we are to see an upset
The NBA’s playoffs are easily the most predictable of the major American sports leagues. Without the variability of baseball or the single playoff game format like football, it’s pretty rare that there are any true upsets in the first round of the NBA playoffs. In most years you look at the bracket ...
Can we please get an LS-U <em>30 for 30</em> already?
It’s hard to quantify what makes a thing charismatic. I recently went to New Orleans for the first time, and before I arrived, I was a little skeptical because often when people can’t shut up about how great something is, the expectation is set so high that anything but perfection is going to be a l...
Unlikely heroes lead way to start NBA playoffs
The stars were out for the first day of the NBA playoffs, with Donovan Mitchelll scoring 32 points to lead the Jazz to a 99-93 win in Dallas, Karl-Anthony Towns putting up 29 points and 13 boards to lead the Timberwolves to a Game 1 upset in Memphis, 130-117, and then Tyrese Maxey scored 38 points f...
USMNT in the knockout round! An Argentina-Brazil semifinal! Oh, Canada! (and more World Cup predictions)
Instead of a World Cup taking place in the summer, we’re waiting until the late fall for the festivities to start to get to a manageable playing temperature in Qatar. The 2022 FIFA World Cup draw took place a few weeks ago, giving a path to the 37 teams still in contention to lift the trophy. Four w...