joe Page 34 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

IDIOT OF THE YEAR No. 3: Kyrie Irving
Do you know how easy it is to say “I’m sorry!” or that you’re not antisemitic? Apparently, it was a tremendous challenge for Brooklyn Nets star Kyrie Irving. Everyone’s allowed to make mistakes, but hot damn, you’re not allowed to be that negligent with a public spotlight and not face consequences. ...

Sports world mourns the death of Pelé
After a long bout with colon cancer, Brazilian football legend Pelé died on Thursday at the age of 82. As one of the most prolific talents in the history of the “beautiful game,” Pelé is still referred to as the “king of football.” Pelé’s transcendent talent transcended the globe and generations lat...

Who do you trust less: The Nets or the 76ers?
Can I interest you in a non-sexual game of “would you rather?” I know watching people ponder is not as fun as watching them squirm, but this is a sports site, not the living room of your college slum. So, who would you rather trust: The Brooklyn Nets or the Philadelphia 76ers?...

One of these things is not like the others
The downfall of Zach Wilson in 2022 coincided with the rise of Justin Fields. For every errant throw from Wilson, there is an impressive Fields pass or explosive run, and that disparity has many people looking back to the 2021 draft and wondering “How in the world did Fields go from the consensus No...

What were the best and worst sports trends in 2022?
As 2023 approaches, it gives media outlets opportunities to do wrap-ups, year-end lists, and rank anything else in the timeframe of the past 12 months. It’s really the only upside of time being arbitrary and a construct of people in power to make sure the plebeians arrive at the salt mines at 9 a.m....

The James Harden and Houston Rockets reunion is a pie-in-the-sky dream
James Harden is a deeply unserious franchise cornerstone. However, in the midst of a pivotal, legacy-defining season for his career, Harden may be eyeing a return in free agency to the Rockets franchise he forced his way out of two years ago, according to a report from ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. ...

One and done: NFL head coaches who only lasted a season or less at the helm
Not surprisingly, the Denver Broncos fired head coach Nathaniel Hackett after the team was embarrassed — AGAIN — in primetime. The Los Angeles Rams beat them 51-14, and Russell Wilson was once again dog shit. ...

Two Nicks, two trophies
Christmas Eve saw most of the NFL’s slate played on Saturday and it was freezing at most stadiums. Recovering from frostbite while opening presents as a family apparently was a necessary evil to some. In two of the three stadiums where fans weren’t shivering, two of the NFL’s major awards were decid...

The NBA’s poverty franchises
The competitive lifespan of an NBA franchise is delicate. A team’s championship relevance depends on many factors, including the front office’s competence, coaching staff, and the totality of star power on the court. “Poverty” in the NBA sense can be defined by the corrosion of the team’s ethics and...

It’s hard to be the smartest guy in the room without the GOAT
The debate about who was more responsible for the Patriots’ dominance — Brady or Belichick — ended pretty quickly when Brady won a Super Bowl in his first season with Tampa Bay. Since Brady left New England, Belichick’s record is an even 24-24, and 0-1 in the playoffs, with that lone postseason game...

Who is the NBA’s most clutch player of the season?
The first-ever Jerry West Clutch Player of the Year will be awarded this season. Arguing over clutch players has become a staple of sports shout-talk TV, so it was probably only a matter of time until the NBA introduced an official award hoop heads could scream about. This wasn’t a thing we wanted, ...

It’s only right that Jeff Saturday has failed miserably
On Saturday, of all days, Jeff Saturday suffered the most embarrassing and pitiful loss in NFL history. His Indianapolis Colts blew a 33-point lead, the largest lead ever given up in an NFL game....

The NBA’s war on load management is pointless
Load management is going to happen in the NBA regardless of the league’s best efforts. Organizations have been taught to value the postseason over everything because of ringzzzzz culture, and that mindset only gets reinforced by teams like the Phoenix Suns busting their asses to win 64 games a year ...

Naming Pat McAfee Sports Media Person of the Year is an indictment of us all
This is not (totally) a hit piece on Pat McAfee. It’s more about how we should categorize what McAfee does, because The Athletic — you know that sports site owned by The New York Times — named him its Sports Media Person of the Year, and that implies that he’s a journalist....

The Big Lead’s ‘2022 Sports Media Awards’ were given to a bunch of white dudes
The same people keep picking the same people because they only surround themselves with the same people....

If Joel Embiid thinks Philly fans want him traded, he’s on the wrong Reddit threads
I don’t know who incepted Joel Embiid, but someone got him to question Philly fans’ faith in him. The All-NBA center has been strangely disconnected this season. The team is lifeless, and you wouldn’t suspect that Embiid leads the league in scoring if he didn’t pop up on the ticker with a 40- or 50-...

The San Francisco move has been Golden for the Warriors
This Golden State Warriors in San Francisco thing will never sit right with me. ...

The New England Patriots won, but their problems remain the same
It’s easy to laugh when your team is up by two touchdowns. Jokes and giggles are plentiful when the Colt McCoy-led Arizona Cardinals — Kyler Murray left the game after suffering a non-contact injury — turn the ball over on consecutive possessions, the first of which was converted for a touchdown....
