Archive for May, 2021

Fans Bad Behavior, Team USA To Try Qualifying For Olympics, Adam Vinatieri Retires

BASKETBALL

Sporting arenas are gradually filling with fans, but a year off of in-person events hasn’t necessarily improved some spectators behavior. On Wednesday night, a 76er fan threw popcorn at Washington Wizards guard Russell Westbrook, who did not take it lightly and had to be held back by security. The Sixers went on to win game 2 and are up 2-0 in the series. And, then in another arena, a New York Knicks fan spit on the Hawks’ Trae Young. Knicks won the matchup to even the series 1-1.

BASEBALL

The Tokyo Olympics will occur during the Major League Baseball season, so Team USA will have to attempt to qualify for the games with a group of former big league and unknown players instead of working with anyone currently on a MLB roster. Only six nations will compete in the Olympics, and four countries have already qualified (Israel, Japan, Mexico, and South Korea).

FOOTBALL

Four-time Super Bowl champion Adam Vinatieri announced his retirement. After 24 seasons, he holds the NFL’s all-time record for most points scored (2,673), most field goals made (599 including 44 consecutive field goals), and most total games played (397).

 

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Clarkson Sixth Man Award, Randle Most Improved Player Award, U.S. State Department Warns No Travel To Japan

BASKETBALL

The NBA Awards are starting to trickle in with Utah Jazz guard Jordan Clarkson winning Sixth Man of the Year and the Knicks’ Julius Randle winning the Most Improved Player award.

For NBA Playoff Updates, click here.

OLYMPICS

The U.S. State Department issued a “Do Not Travel” warning for Japan due to continued high levels of COVID-19. The Olympics are supposed to begin in just 58 days.

HOCKEY

For NHL Playoff Updates, click here.

 

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Mickelson Wins PGA Championship-Oldest Winner, Biles Makes History With Amazing Vault, NBA Playoffs Underway

GOLF

Phil Mickelson shot six-under-par to win the PGA Championship at Kiawah Island and became the oldest winner (at age 50) of a men’s major golf championship. Mickelson entered the tournament ranked 115th with 200-1 odds of winning the $2.16 million prize.

GYMNASTICS

Simone Biles made history as the first woman to land a Yurchnenko double pike (check it out).

BASKETBALL

Now that the play-in games are over, the NBA playoffs began this weekend. For round one recaps, click here.

 

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Wizards #8, Warriors/Grizzlies Compete For #8, NBA Announced Finalists For Awards

BASKETBALL

The Washington Wizards trounced the Indiana Pacers to grab the Eastern Conference’s #8 seed. The Golden State Warriors and Memphis Grizzlies face off tonight for the Western Conference’s 8th seed.

The NBA announced the finalists for top performers this season. In the Most Valuable Player category, Denver Nuggets Nikola Jokic, Philadelphia 76ers Joel Embid, and Golden State Warriors Stephen Curry were the top three vote-getters. For more on the other end-of-season awards, click here. TNT will announce the winners during their coverage of the NBA Playoffs.

 

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LeBron Sees Three Rims And Hits Game-Winner, Kluber’s No-Hitter

BASKETBALL

The LeBron James vs Steph Curry play-in matchup did not disappoint. The Lakers came away with a 103-100 win in a nail-biter of a game that came down to a three-pointer from LeBron. With only minutes left in the game, LeBron got poked in the eye from a Draymond Green foul, so when he shot the game-winner he said, “I was literally seeing three rims out there, so I just shot for the middle one.” With the win, the Lakers earned the #7th seed and will play the #2 seed Phoenix Suns. The Warriors will play the Grizzlies (who beat San Antonio) for a final seed in the playoffs.

BASEBALL

The New York Yankees Corey Kluber threw a no-hitter Wednesday night, Major League Baseball’s sixth no-hitter this season.

 

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Celtics Claim #7 Spot, Sabrina’s Trible-Double Youngest In WNBA History, Tokyo Olympics Canceled?

BASKETBALL

The Boston Celtics beat the Washington Wizards 118-100 in the play-in-round and will claim the #7 spot in the playoffs. The Celtics will play the NJ Nets on Saturday, and the Wizards will play the Indiana Pacers (who cruised past the Hornets) for the #8 spot.

Liberty’s Sabrina Ionescu became the youngest player (at 23) in WNBA history to record a triple-double.

OLYMPICS

The IOC is under tremendous pressure to cancel the Tokyo Olympics due to rising COVID-19 cases in the country.

 

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Kleine Breaks NFL Barriers For Women, Jeter Selling House Brady Renting, NYC Marathon On, Baffert Banned From Belmont

FOOTBALL

Kelly Kleine signed with the Denver Broncos as the team’s Executive Director of Football Operations, becoming the highest-ranking woman in scouting in the history of the NFL.

Tom Brady will have to look for new digs as the home he’s been renting (from Yankees superstar Derek Jeter) has been sold for $22.5 million.

MARATHON

The New York City Marathon returns this year (after canceling in 2020 due to the pandemic) and will be run on November 7th with a smaller field of only 33,000 runners (as compared to 2019 which had over 53,000 runners).  The Race Director stated, “As we stage a safe and memorable race for the 50th running, this year’s marathon will showcase our great city’s strength, inspiration, and determination.”

HORSE RACING

The Belmont racing officials have suspended trainer Bob Baffert from entering any of his horses in the June 5th Stakes race due to allegations of using performance-enhancing drugs on Kentucky Derby winner Medina Spirit.

 

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Rombauer Wins Preakness, NBA, NHL Playoffs, SNL Parody Last Dance, Nadal Wins Italian Open

HORSE RACING

Rombauer, an 11-1 underdog who did not run in the Kentucky Derby, won the Preakness Stakes on Saturday, beating out controversial Medina Spirit and favorite Midnight Bourbon. The third leg of the Triple Crown, the Belmont Stakes, is June 5th.

BASKETBALL

The NBA regular season is complete and the playoffs begin this week with the play-in rounds. Here’s a link to everything you need to know about the teams. In other NBA news, Golden State Warriors’ Stephen Curry became the NBA’s scoring leader for the 2020-21 season.

Check out the hysterical Saturday Night Live parody of Michael Jordan (played by Keegan-Michael Key) losing a quarter’s game against bodyguard John Michael Wozniak from the wildly successful documentary Last Dance.

HOCKEY

The NHL playoffs began over the weekend. Here’s a link to the teams and matchups.

TENNIS

Rafael Nadal won his 10th Italian Open by beating Novak Djokovic.

 

 

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Curry’s Join Goldman’s Black Women Initiative, Timberwolves Deal Back On, McGregor Top Earning Athlete

BASKETBALL

Stephen and Ayesha Curry joined the advisory council for Goldman Sachs’s One Million Black women Initiative which will work to invest more than $10 billion in Black women-led organizations over the next 10 years.

It appears Minnesota Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor has agreed to a deal to sell the team to Alex Rodriguez and Marc Lore for $1.5 billion. According to reports, Taylor has insisted the team remain in Minnesota. The NBA hasn’t approved the pending deal yet, so both sides haven’t made any official statements.

TOP EARNING ATHLETES

Ultimate Fighting Champ Conor McGregor tops the list of highest-earning athletes at $180 million, most of it coming from the sale of his whiskey brand, Proper No.12. Rounding out the top ten is Lionel Messi ($130M), Cristiano Ronaldo ($120M), Dak Prescott ($107.5M), LeBron James ($96.5M), Neymar ($95M), Roger Federer ($90M), Lewis Hamilton ($82M), Tom Brady ($76M), and Kevin Durant ($75M).

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ARod’s Bid For Timberwolves Fails, Medina Spirit Will Race In Preakness, Oakland Athletics May Leave Town

BASKETBALL

Alex Rodriguez and Marc Lore were unable to finalize a deal during their 30-day negotiating window to purchase the Minnesota Timberwolves. The purchase price was set at $1.5 billion, but reports claim that owner Glen Taylor could not agree on a timeline to hand over complete ownership.

HORSE RACING

Medina Spirit’s trainer Bob Baffert claims the Kentucky Derby winner tested positive for a banned anti-inflammatory drug because he was unsuspectingly using an ointment with traces of the drug to treat the horse’s dermatitis. Medina Spirit got permission to run in the second leg of the Triple Crown series, The Preakness Stakes, this Saturday.

BASEBALL

Major League Baseball is urging the city of Oakland to approve a new ballpark for the Athletics. If the city turns them down, MLB suggested the Athletics leave town in search of a better venue. The MLB statement said, “The Oakland Coliseum site is not a viable option for the future vision of baseball. We have instructed the Athletics to begin to explore other markets while they continue to pursue a waterfront ballpark in Oakland. The Athletics need a new ballpark to remain competitive, so it is now in our best interest to also consider other markets.”

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