ric Page 145 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

Kyler Murray’s career is trending in the wrong direction
Kyler Murray was considered one of the most promising young NFL quarterbacks not too long ago, and now he’s viewed in a much less favorable light around the league. After a messy contract dispute with the Arizona Cardinals, Murray got his money, and now some think they may have overpaid the former R...

Stephen A. Smith’s political takes are beyond concerning — they’re dangerous
Another day, another bad take from Stephen A. Smith. But, this isn’t about how he hilariously thought the Miami Heat would lose to the New York Knicks in the playoffs, wrongly implied that the late Dwayne Haskins was “more of a runner than a thrower,” or falsely assumed that Alabama State University...

Jimmy Butler was good enough in Game 2
There was a little too much fouling of 3-point shooters for my taste on Sunday night, but other than that, the Miami Heat and Denver Nuggets played quite the thrilling Game 2. The Nuggets threw run after run at the Heat, who ate every blow and kept countering. Eventually the Heat put the Nuggets on ...

We still can’t have normal conversations about Nikola Jokić
SBNation writer Mat Issa tweeted out an observation following Game 1 of the NBA Finals. He noticed that the Denver Nuggets were able to get a defensive stop because of something that Nikola Jokić did at the free-throw line....

Horse racing needs a stoppage, not a change of scenery
One of the rebuttals to Churchill Downs’ suspension of horse racing after this weekend was that officials couldn’t find proof of the venue’s role in the dozen horses who’ve died there this year. While that logic comes off like an amusement park owner saying “Nothing to see here” as kids get launched...

LSU star Angel Reese’s glow-up continues with cameo in Latto, Cardi B’s new music video
LSU women’s basketball phenomenon Angel Reese’s glow-up continued this week, as she made a cameo appearance in Latto & Cardi B’s “Put It On Da Floor Again” music video. Even for a split-second appearance in a grocery store for a rap video, it’s a big deal. It’s a mainstream level of acceptance where...

It’s Tom Brady’s fault nobody believes he’ll stay retired
Tom Brady wants all you skeptics craning your neck hoping he reverses his retirement announcement to know that you’re wasting your time. Go pick up a hobby. Make some more of that pandemic lockdown sourdough bread. The only way you’re seeing Brady in uniform next season is in Aaron Rodgers’ ayahuasc...

Heat can't get past Nuggets on guts alone
For once a Miami Heat 2023 playoff game played out the way that was expected. The Denver Nuggets are bigger, more talented, and won Game 1 of the NBA Finals by a double-digit margin — 104-93....

Sometimes basketball is as simple as having taller guys everywhere
I wouldn’t pretend to be a basketball expert. My colleague Stephen will be around later to do that stuff. I do know there are myriad ways of designing an offense and defense and how to guard pick-and-rolls and rotations and a bunch of other things that coaches play with throughout a playoff series. ...

Jeff Van Gundy wages war on NBA halftime and free throws
ESPN NBA color analyst Jeff Van Gundy has never been shy when it comes to speaking his mind and voicing his opinions on the game of basketball. As a former head coach in the association and broadcaster for over a decade, he knows the game’s ins, and outs better than most. However, his latest comment...

Antonio Brown wants to catch a TD from Cam Newton, so he's offering $150k
The Albany Empire already lost eight players — including its lone quarterback Sam Castronova — after new owner Antonio Brown was allegedly behind on payroll and otherwise a dick....

Don Callis shows everyone what wrestling heat really looks like
Pro wrestling is America’s most enduring art form. Which might tell you a lot about us as a country, but whatever it tells you you probably already knew. It predates movies, rock music, jazz, baseball, and even the cheeseburger. Wrestling is the only thing we do well that keeps going. And occasional...

IDIOT OF THE MONTH: Legends of stupidity return to May leaderboards
Welcome to Deadspin’s IDIOT OF THE MONTH. Please enjoy our latest offering to the pageview gods, presented thusly in a convenient slideshow format....

Sage Steele’s beef with ESPN is legit, but you can’t play the victim after being the villain
Despite how she may identify, Sage Steele is a Black woman. That needs to be addressed because, within the sports media landscape, you’d be hard-pressed to find many, or even a few, women — especially Black ones — and Black people who’ll advocate for her. What also needs to be addressed is that Stee...

The past, present and future of Ted Lasso
The landing was stuck. Many storylines came to a close in the Ted Lasso season-three finale, with the main timeline of the show likely over based on the perfection that was the closing montage. There’s no way we’ve seen the last of all of these characters, whether a spinoff called “AFC Richmond” or ...

Add special teams ace Matthew Slater to growing list of NFL players against new kickoff rule
For those curious about the temperature in the room among the NFL players, Matthew Slater gave a good indication of where it is during New England Patriots OTAs on Wednesday. He discussed the league’s new kickoff rule — which Kansas City Chiefs TE Travis Kelce has called “absolutely stupid” — that w...

Barfstool rips off Sidetalk and spreads extra mayonnaise on it
I have no stake in the Boston vs New York rivalry. I think both lobster and chopped cheese sandwiches are delicious. I listen to both the Notorious B.I.G. and New Edition. I also find both places to be unnecessarily loud and obnoxious but I get it, neither one has enough space. All of that being sai...

Student-athletes getting paid is not ruining college athletics
The way NIL deals are covered, you’d think they’re illegal. The go-to analogy for every college football pundit over 50 is it’s the Wild West, a time period of American history readily associated with outlaws, bank robberies, train heists, gunslingers, genocide, and general lawlessness. Also rampant...
