simmons Page 2 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights
Zion Williamson is the NBA’s most polarizing talent
Zion Williamson is a series of contradictions. He’s a near-300-pound space mover who elevates like he’s in zero gravity. He’s both the mythic John Henry racing a machine and the steam-powered drill he beat in a race because it continuously broke down. Williamson has the build of a defensive end, but...
Trade talk is the nadir of sports journalism
Imagine being a Chicago Bears fan — I know empathy is hard, but just try — and going through what they did Thursday only to open ESPN on Friday and see a bunch of misguided, braindead analysts talking about trading Justin Fields. Over his past two starts, the Chicago QB is 43-for-64 for 627 yards wi...
The Beard's ego has him stuck between a Rock(et) and a Harden place
James Harden is in limbo. Last season, he was all in on taking a pay cut in an effort to give the Philadelphia 76ers cap flexibility to sign glue guys who would put them over the edge come playoff time. A year later, he’s the acetone on their franchise continuity. His constant bellyaching stemming f...
Here are all the 200+ hit seasons, by franchise, in MLB history
Immaculate Grid has been a hit with baseball stat geeks since its launch in April. While the stats puzzle has since expanded to basketball, football, and hockey, it’s still baseball that makes the game what it is. So if you need help filling out your daily grid, give these stats a look....
The NBA script is already rolling as the writers’ strike ends
Ding-dong, the strike is dead. The Deadspin staff’s WGA brethren have come to an agreement with the AMPTP that financially acknowledges the importance of the brains and fingertips that are part of the foundation of entertainment. ...
Ever wonder what the worst team of NFL starters would look like? Here it is
On an individual level, NFL Top 100 Player Lists are what get people excited. We get it. Patrick Mahomes is number one and the most competitive race is the scrum for number two. However, half of NFL fandom is groaning about the weak links on each unit. There’s enough glowing coverage of the NFL out ...
Ben Simmons is dreaming of taking his street clothes back to Philly
It’s that time of year when we get these Ben Simmons workout videos where he’s in the gym shooting baskets, lifting weights, knocking down three-point shots, and performing like an actual NBA star. But once the regular season rolls around (if he even plays), he morphs back into the guy who can’t see...
The James Harden domino effect could be epic in Philly
Philadelphia is a sad basketball city at the moment. Another season has passed where the 76ers can’t get over the hump, and their two stars are unhappy with how the team is being run. Surely, this isn’t the summer anyone in the organization envisioned after Joel Embiid finally broke through to becom...
The Sixers don’t have time for another prolonged James Harden trade saga
The staring contest is underway between James Harden and Daryl Morey as the Philadelphia 76ers announced they have ended talks to trade the former MVP. Unhappy with his role and contract offer, Harden requested a trade earlier this offseason, but his desired destination, the LA Clippers, couldn’t co...
USWNT’s treatment is the latest example of right-wing hatred for ‘nasty women’
Indigenous Americans were almost eradicated. Black people were enslaved. Asians are mistreated. Millions still want to “build a wall.” People of color have been oppressed for centuries, and each group has its own plight. But misogyny has stood the test of time. The overturning of Roe v. Wade, the re...
NBA doing everything it can to marginally disrupt player empowerment
The NBA league office prolonged the current stalemate between the Portland Trail Blazers and Miami Heat over a deal for Damian Lillard. A memo was circulated to all 30 franchises Friday saying that any player, or agent, who makes public comments about an unwillingness to “fully perform the services ...
Jaylen Brown and the volatility of a $304 million contract
It’s difficult to contextualize what just happened with Jaylen Brown and the Boston Celtics. The team’s second-best player, who’s got the handles of a wing with two left hands, landed the largest contract in NBA history, signing a five-year, $304 million supermax extension. That’s a lot of money, an...
This might be Trey’s last dance in San Francisco
Trey Lance is entering year three in San Francisco and has suited up for eight games and started just half of them. Multiple injuries coupled with the emergence of Brock Purdy during the second half of last season has built some doubt around the former No. 3 overall pick. With Purdy’s status up in t...
NFLPA prez implies franchised running backs should fake injuries for leverage
Apparently all the striking and picketing going on at various writer and actor guilds has seeped into the professional sports. The New York Giants and running back Saquon Barkley are at an impasse over the team giving him an ultimatum of a shitty contract, or the franchise tag, and now he’s mulling ...
Trade James Harden for Grade-A role players, you coward!
When Daryl Morey says he’s not going to be irrational with a James Harden trade, he is to be trusted. We saw what happened with Ben Simmons, and the plain-clothes staring contest that resulted in Harden becoming a Philadelphia 76er. It was an arduous ordeal that festered until mid-February 2022, and...
Where should expectations be set for Victor Wembanyama’s summer league dress rehearsal?
Victor Wembanyama’s career prologue is almost as long as he is. It already feels like Wembanyama’s in his second NBA season doesn’t it? It feels like just yesterday, when he was in the (French) Finals at the exact same time as Nikola Jokic. According to Marc Stein, Wembanyama’s scheduled NBA debut h...
The Leafs sign Ryan Reaves, solving a problem they don't have
At least the Toronto Maple Leafs never disappoint. At least anyone who isn’t a Maple Leafs fan, that is....
Victor Wembanyama won't be NBA Rookie of the Year
Every betting site has Victor Wembanyama installed as the runaway favorite to earn Rookie of the Year. In case you want to start engraving Victor Wembanyama’s name on the award already, take a moment to consider this. Rookie of the Year hasn’t always gone to the incandescent talent from every draft ...
Nikola Jokić made a mockery of Heat culture
Imagine being Pat Riley, Jimmy Butler, and the Miami Heat’s training staff right now. They spent two decades preaching the advantages of elite fitness, conditioning, and mining for diamonds in the rough. Every season, Miami mandates that its players maintain a body fat percentage low enough to go wa...
Boston Celtics blew it and didn’t even give fans their money’s worth
After a dramatic finish to Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals, Game 7 didn’t nearly live up to the hype. But that only matters to the city of Boston. The Miami Heat stormed into Beantown, took care of business early, and completely silenced the crowd inside TD Garden by halftime. The Celtics mi...