red Page 99 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights
Victor Wembanyama passes first test
If it wasn’t obvious from Victor Wembanyama’s interview on J.J. Redick’s podcast, this young man is ready for NBA life. Las Vegas, the slow July sports news cycle, Britney Spears, all of it crashed down on him in less than 24 hours. However, when it came time to address the scenario, Wembanyama was ...
The Rockets have become the NBA’s most polarizing team
The Houston Rockets have been stuck in zero gravity since their post-Harden rebuild began two years ago. Despite their lottery successes they still have no direction. The Rockets lit the fuse this summer expecting a controlled explosion and witnessed the creation of the NBA’s most opulent sparkler....
Michelle Wie West is retiring and she’s leaving behind a weird legacy
Somehow, Michelle Wie West is only 33. She was a grown adult when I was a kid and now the prodigy is only two years older than me. After a professional golf career of nearly two decades, Wie West is hanging up the clubs after this week’s U.S. Open. Wie West, who didn’t marry Kanye or Adam, but Golde...
The world is a tough place, take a quick break and listen to Jordan Mailata sing
Last week was a rough one in America. Sunday was the 59th anniversary of the passing of the Civil Right Act. It was celebrated by the United States Supreme Court swinging an ax through legislation that helps level the playing field for marginalized people. I can’t do anything about the rolling back ...
Hey, at least the Houston Rockets are trying
We laughed at Dillon Brooks’ unceremonious exit from the Memphis Grizzlies, but it will be him with the cheshire grin plastered to his face every time that a direct deposit hits his account. On Saturday he signed a four-year, $80 million contract with the Houston Rockets. The day before, Fred VanVle...
The $100M questions for the NBA free agents who cashed in
Before anybody evaluates contracts or shouts that Fred VanVleet is overpaid from the mountaintop, let’s take a moment to congratulate all of the free agents who just guaranteed themselves and their families generational wealth. Tyrese Haliburton, Jerami Grant, Desmond Bane, Kyrie Irving, Cam Johnson...
ESPN breaks up its broadcast superteam-in-slacks as Jeff Van Gundy enters NBA free agency
As ESPN reaches the end of its fiscal year today, the Worldwide Leader has commenced its semi-annual purge of top talent. On Wednesday, the pink slip Russian Roulette landed on Jeff Van Gundy, after 16 years with the network....
The Reggie Evans Bad Basketball Basketball Hall of Fame 2023 inductees
Studies have shown that negative news garners more of the public’s attention than positive news, so with that knowledge, I propose an alternative to the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame. The Basketball Hall of Fame has the prestige, but it doesn’t generate as much conversation as Twitter ramblings f...
The Yankees need to smash the panic button for doldrum of storylines reasons
We’re entering Brian Cashman territory with Aaron Boone. The Bronx at one point was the most hostile work environment in MLB. The standards were ridiculously high, and someone would’ve lashed out by now considering how long it’s been since the New York Yankees ran the American League. The head of th...
MLB, NHL vying to see which league can botch Pride representation more
If you put NHL commissioner Gary Bettman and MLB commissioner Rob Manfred in a maze, which one finds the cheese the quickest? In recent weeks, both rat overlords of their sports have taken stances — veiled or otherwise — against Pride in order to “protect their players.”...
First-round NBA Draft grades on a pass/fail system
If you’re like most underachievers and procrastinators, the letter grade doesn’t matter as long as you pass. I’ve lived most of my life by the mantra that “C’s are for degrees” and look where it’s gotten me: Writing about sports for living, and passing judgment upon others without retaliation....
Giving Houston Astro players immunity was Rob Manfred’s ‘best decision ever’
If you’re anti-sign stealing, then you’re not allowed to be pro-AI. The Houston Astros may have been the biggest offender when it came to modernizing cheating, but they also pioneered the advancements, and essentially got away with it before the people who determine what is or isn’t moral deemed the...
It’s getting a little late a little early for the San Diego Padres
One of the many things about the expanded playoffs in MLB is that a team doesn’t have to be good for six months. Or really even three. Put two good months together and a team can probably Forrest Gump their way into the dance. It’s what the Phillies did last year, after all. That’s what the San Dieg...
The USWNT better not have any centerbacks get hurt
We wondered out the USWNT would heading into the World Cup without Becky Sauerbrunn. The starting lineup should be ok, but how would Vlakto Andonovski answer the question of the eroded depth without the captain around? It would appear he’s decided to not answer it at all. ...
Not sure the UK will find MLB any more entertaining than the US
Serious question: If you underwent a bunch of plastic surgery, how eager would you be to show off the new goods? Even though the boob job is lopsided, the calf implants didn’t take, and your face literally can’t smile through the botox, you’d be on the first plane to Europe, too. Well, that’s MLB ri...
The Cincinnati Reds are in first place, but they’re not there yet, and their owner still sucks
Given where the NL Central is, and where their various teams are in their “processes,” it’s not really a huge shock that the first part of the season was the Pittsburgh Pirates burning hot for a bit, fizzling out, and now a new, young, rebuilding team can rise to the top for a while and see what lif...
Rob Manfred perpetuates the stereotype of Rob Manfred
I don’t want to speak for an entire fanbase here, but I’m 99.99999 percent confident when I say Rob Manfred can take his sympathy for Oakland A’s fans and shove it up his (redacted) until his (redacted) are popping out of his (redacted). Go (redacted) yourself, you (redacted) lying heap of (redacted...
Kyrie Irving in Miami would be another disaster
If you love NBA rumors and gossip, we’ve entered your favorite time of year on the league calendar. The Nuggets have only been champions for a few days, and the rumor mill is already working overtime just ahead of the NBA draft. One of this week’s biggest stories involves this year’s runner-up and E...