steph Page 12 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

Stephen A. Smith reaches new low with Joe Rogan-level conspiracy theories
Just because you’re rich and famous, doesn’t mean you’re smart. That’s never been clearer in society (hi Elon, never been a fan). Pretty sure that’s what Good Charlotte was singing about. In today’s edition of showing your celebrity ass, mostly figurative, sometimes literal, welcome to the party Ste...

The stars and emcees who crossed the line between hip-hop and the NBA
This story is part of our new Hip-Hop: ’73 Till Infinity series, a celebration of the genre’s 50th anniversary....

Vince McMahon served federal grand-jury subpoena
After more than a year entangled with an alleged hush-payment scandal, WWE executive chairman Vince McMahon had a federal grand jury subpoena executed on him through federal law enforcement agents and a search warrant last month, according to a company disclosure. The filing made through the Securit...
![Disney-sponsored Orlando Magic say $50k donation to Ron DeSantis' PAC came before presidential bid [Update]](https://images.deadspin.com/tr:w-900/b3603fb90aecd1832bb1a38e66b05618.jpg)
Disney-sponsored Orlando Magic say $50k donation to Ron DeSantis' PAC came before presidential bid [Update]
Disney and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis have been engaged in a blood feud for more than a year. On Tuesday DeSantis’ self-appointed governing board of the Walt Disney World district in Orlando dismantled all of the diversity, equity, and inclusion programs in it. In February, Disney decided to canc...

The Colts need to trade Jonathan Taylor or race him towards a mutually assured destruction
Amid the NFL’s arms race, NFL running backs have gotten lost in the shuffle while teams look for ways to amplify their passing attacks at the expense of their backfield allies. This summer the war being waged on the ground game has neared nuclear heat levels. The stakes aren’t as high, but they’re c...

World Cup Day 12: Speed kills, and so does a lack of it
We had our clash of teams that have looked most dominant so far, and we can pare that list down to “one team that’s looked dominant so far.” And in something of a surprise, Canada got their leaden asses booted back to the Great White North. Let’s get in. ...

World Cup Day 1: It’s their party and they’ll win if they want to
And we’re off. World Cup 2023 finally kicked into gear, and while it’s a bit disorienting to watch an event on a cold winter night from a summer morning locale as the sun comes up, we here tend to do our best work when we’re disoriented. Both hosts started the tournament, and both exited the day wit...

History has its eyes on Carlos Alcaraz and his early quest to become tennis’ GOAT
Tennis is undergoing its Steph Curry moment. The way Carlos Alcaraz controls the country club sport through his racket is unlike anything we’ve seen before. Nearly a decade after Curry’s rise to superstardom, every high school sophomore thinks swishing a 40-footer is routine. It’s not, and every air...

NCAA treating violations with the leniency of a Boulder beat cop on 4/20
The University of Tennessee was hit with an $8 million fine, among other penalties, on Friday for “hundreds” of NCAA violations. Former coach Jeremy Pruitt and his staff committed north of 200 infractions, and while pretty much all of them weren’t a huge deal individually, when you rattle them off i...

Skip and Rich are Undisputed, it could work
If Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez can share a set together then why not Richard Sherman and Skip Bayless? That was a one-time viral social media beef 10 years ago. Bayless is several controversies removed from that one. That A-Rod and Jeter beef stewed for decades, much of it with them next to each ...

Bob Huggins says resignation void because it was penned on invalid stationery
Thank the lord for Bob Huggins. This week — MLB All-Star week — is usually bereft of general sports storylines, and also a warning shot that we’re about to enter Little League World Series territory, aka the most mind-numbing stretch on the sports calendar. So, that’s why I say thank god for Huggins...

World Cup Group B Preview: It’s time for Sam Kerr to take this itty bitty world by storm
We spilled some ink in these parts about Mallory Swanson by herself making the USWNT a threat to win the World Cup, before her unfortunate injury. But the US isn’t the only team with a player who is capable of grabbing a short tournament by the haunches, and the co-hosts Australia may have the bigge...

Cooper Flagg was playing in the wrong summer league
Victor Wembanyama’s NBA summer league debut was a mixed bag that had quick-take artists calling him Raef “LaFrench” after a 3-for-14 shooting performance. Nevermind that he rejected several shots and affected a slew of others. On Sunday night, Wembanyama had to respond to the best player in a summer...

The 15 Most Valuable Professional Sports Franchises
This story was corrected and revised on July 6, 2023. ...

Dan Le Batard was right — ‘Embrace Debate’ has destroyed sports television
Too much of anything is bad for you. Excessive amounts can be catastrophic. Dan Le Batard hinted at this a few months ago. And after the reported cancellation of Bomani Jones’ Game Theory on HBO, it’s become quite clear — “embrace debate” killed sports television shows. ...

Joey Chestnut’s dominance over the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest isn’t as staggering as you think
Is there a surer bet in sports than Joey Chestnut inhaling wieners, sliding those all-beef dogs down his throat faster than anyone else on America’s Independence Day? Well, I guess that it happens on Coney Island on the southern coast of Brooklyn, or than Nathan’s will supply the buns, weins, severa...

If schadenfreude is Damian Lillard’s last gift to Trail Blazer fans, so be it
Seemingly the entire world of sports media is screaming at Damian Lillard to pick up his basketball and go to a contender. It’s demand-a-trade season, we do it every summer, and Dame is off galavanting with Veronica Corningstone, while a bevy of Champ Kinds pine for his musk. Brian Windhorst, Stephe...

There’s less shame in porn than on the set of <i>First Take</i>
The easiest way to get clicks for the past week or so hasn’t been Victor Wembanyama content, or Damian Lillard trade destinations. No, if you really wanted to gin up page views and subscribers, put Zion Williamson and Moriah Mills in a headline. It’s the reason why Stephen A. Smith has repeatedly go...

Chris Paul brings stability to the Warriors' dreadful reserves
Title-chasing leads to strange bedfellows. Steph Curry has now been tasked with accomplishing what Kevin Durant failed — dragging Chris Paul’s withering body to an NBA title. He’s no longer an All-Star caliber player, but there’s still something left. Now, the future Hall of Famer will be imported i...

NBA contenders might have to start holding onto those first- and second-round picks
The Golden State Warriors have been the model franchise for how to keep a core group together. Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green were able to stay united for a decade for a few different reasons — salary cap increase, luck, well-timed contracts — but No. 1 on that list is they spent mon...