smith Page 46 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights
Ja Morant’s mom won't attend Game 5 in Salt Lake City after harassment from racist fans
I know the overwhelming majority of NBA fans haven’t been throwing water bottles, or running onto the court, or spitting on players, ect. But the actions of a few Utah “fans” have caused Ja Morant’s mom to opt out of a complimentary offer to watch her son play on the road. For her, it’s just not wor...
This Memorial Day, let’s honor the real Pat Tillman
It’s Memorial Day, which means it’s time for the NFL and the right to start co-opting the life and death of Pat Tillman, a former safety for the Arizona Cardinals who passed on a $3.6 million deal to enlist in the Army after 9/11. Rarely mentioned is Tillman’s brother, Kevin, who left the Cleveland ...
Matt Nagy being on the hot seat in Chicago makes zero sense (to non-Bears fans)
When the Chicago Bears shocked the NFL world by trading up nine spots to select Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields with the 11th overall pick, the entire football world applauded Chicago for such a great move. The lack of a consistent starting quarterback had been the biggest elephant on the Bears...
The Penguins tried to game the system and lost big
One of the many catchphrases that Eddie Olczyk has been trying to “fetch” for more than a decade is “Goaltending: If you don’t have it, you got no chance.” Like most of the things Eddie O says, it probably sounds way cooler and more clever in his head. It’s not a play on words, it doesn’t rhyme, it’...
NFL salary cap jacked up to over $208M per team — and here comes the spending blitz
The salary cap, like it or not, is not going anywhere. With the intention of giving all teams a level playing field in free agency, roster construction, and the ability to retain/acquire talent, it has become an ideology synonymous with American professional sports. I mean, it’s kinda bullshit, but ...
People are yelling about the Cowboys letting another player wear Tony Romo’s No. 9, because everything’s louder in Texas
Retiring jerseys is kinda a weird thing. Across all sports, each team has their own process. Some retire numbers liberally (ahem, ex-New York Yankees Nos. 1 through 10), and others have retired the numbers of seemingly unworthy players, like the Oklahoma City Thunder retiring… Nick Collison’s No. 4....
Maybe it’s about Connor Hellebuyck, not Connor McDavid
The reflex is to point and laugh at the Edmonton Oilers once again. It’s combined with frustration that the game’s best player is leashed to such a clown car of an organization, one of the most brilliant individual seasons going completely to waste. And if you’re a long-term hockey writer or analyst...
Blazers-Nuggets briefly bumped to ESPN2, still a far cry from tape-delayed 1981 Finals
The start of Trail Blazers-Nuggets was bumped to ESPN2 as Jose Ramírez and Josh Taylor fought for the undisputed junior welterweight title on ESPN, which is barely fathomable in 2021. Taylor won by unanimous decision, and ESPN switched over to the action in Denver with 6:40 left in the first quarter...
Position player pitching alert gone awry: Wilmer Difo ignominiously and historically lit up
Wilmer Difo has played second base, shortstop, third base, and all three outfield positions during his career with the Nationals and Pirates, and now he can add pitching to his resume....
Baseball America’s Top 50 names in college baseball is missing some Sharts and a Hug
Baseball America has ranked this year’s top 50 names in college baseball, and it’s a good list....
Stephen A. Smith and baseball, always an incredible combination
Just over a quarter of the way into the MLB season, it’s pretty safe to say that Shohei Ohtani has been insane. Ohtani currently leads Major League Baseball in home runs. He’s 3rd in slugging percentage, 15th in OPS, 18th in wOBA, and a partridge in a pear tree. Oh, he’s also been pretty damn good a...
Leave Kwame Brown alone
When you poke the bear, you best be ready for the consequences. And Kwame Brown is a 6-foot-11, 290-pound bear that was in hibernation until his rest was disturbed by two of his former teammates....
Who’s got the best odds to walk away with NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year?
Let me start by saying that I am no betting wizard. However, when it comes to NFL rookies, I like to think that I know my shit. I have studied these players endlessly, have spent entirely too much time thinking about their landing spots and their potential impacts on the field, and have daydreamed a...
Breaking Down the Beef: Three old NBA guys go at it like drunk uncles
Kwame Brown had time this week....
Kyrie Irving is the NBA’s MVP – Most Valuable Person
When Weldon Irvine wrote “To Be Young, Gifted, and Black” for Nina Simone in the late ‘60s, he was talking about folks like Kyrie Irving....
Albert Pujols is the latest Hall of Famer you’ll forget played for the Dodgers
The possibility of Albert Pujols returning to St. Louis to finish his career where he started it, this time as a bench bat for a Cardinals team that has title aspirations and Paul Goldschmidt at first base, was too good to be true....
Happy 38th birthday to the indestructible Frank Gore, who deserves a Hall of Fame bust with a bow on it
Today, Frank Gore is another year older. At a spry (by NFL standards) 38 years old, he’s at the age when he’s outlasting quarterbacks, which is just not something running backs get to do....
Hey Chicago Bears, could you not screw up Justin Fields?
The Chicago Bears have their quarterback of the future in Justin Fields. Nobody really questions that. I certainly don’t. However, the question remains — how long before he takes over, and are the Bears even capable of effectively developing a quarterback?...
Patrick Mazeika rewrites MLB history books (no, really) with walk-off fielder’s choice
Patrick Mazeika has had an incredible first week in the major leagues. It’s one thing to make history, but quite another to rewrite it entirely....