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Oklahoma softball: America’s most dominant and terrifying team, explained

Photo by C. Morgan Engel/NCAA Photos via Getty Images

This team is historically good and making everyone look foolish.

The Sooners won’t just beat you, they will destroy you. In the span of a Thanos snap Oklahoma softball will turn your team to dust, make you question not only why you stepped on the field against them, but why you contemplated taking up competitive sports all together.

Normally that kind of overwrought hyperbole deserves to be laughed at, but when it comes to the Sooners it’s deserved. We are witnessing one of the most dominant teams in the history of any sport, and they’re making a mockery of the entire competitive process. On Thursday Oklahoma entered the College World Series against No. 9 Northwestern, and the Wildcats couldn’t even make it an entire game. They were saved from the Sooners’ wrath after five innings by the NCAA’s “mercy rule.” They were losing 13-2 at the time.

You have a *much* greater chance of getting embarrassed by Oklahoma than ever hoping to beat them

As it stands the Sooners have an unfathomable record of 55-2. Their only two losses came on short rest against ranked teams Texas and Oklahoma State. The Sooners’ .965 win percentage is the greatest in NCAA softball history, passing the legendary 1997 Arizona Wildcats, who finished the season 61-5 and National Champions.

If Oklahoma continues on its tear (and there’s no reason to expect they won’t) they will have cemented themselves in the record books with one of the most unbeatable records of all time.

So, on any given day you walk on the field with roughly a 3 percent chance of winning. Remember when I said you’re more likely to be embarrassed by them? This is quantifiable. A total of 35 of Oklahoma’s wins have ended due to the mercy rule. This is triggered when a team is up by eight runs after five innings. This means that when you see Oklahoma on your schedule and you decide to put on the uniform, there’s a 61.4 percent chance you’re going to lose to the mercy rule.

The Sooners don’t just squeak over this line either. It’s not like they’re hitting 8-0 and getting an early break. Even the most staunch opponents of the idea of “mercy” in team sports have to admit that some of these games were ludicrously out of hand.

February 10 vs. UC Santa Barbara: 14-0 after five

February 18 vs. McNeese State: 15-1 after five

April 10 vs. Texas Tech: 21-0 after five

April 30 vs. Kansas: 19-0 after five

May 22 vs. Texas A&M: 20-0 after five

There are just the most dominant wins. The Sooners schedule is littered with huge mercy rule wins in games that were never close from the opening pitch.

What makes Oklahoma so dominant?

Simply put, everything. The Sooners lead the NCAA in team batting average with .369. Three members of their lineup are batting better than .400. Three players are in the Top 15 in the country in home runs.

Oklahoma’s batting is so dominant that they’ve scored an NCAA-leading 515 runs, a full hundred more than second place Wichita State — and remember, 35 of their games ended early. As ridiculous as those batting figures are, they pale in comparison to the team’s pitching.

As a team Oklahoma has an ERA of 0.80. The Sooners have only given up 37 earned runs all year. Ranked by ERA this team has THREE pitchers in the Top 5.

It’s that first name, Hope Trautwein that deserves special discussion. Trautwein already holds an NCAA record with a 21 strikeout perfect game that she pitched for North Texas in 2021, and following the season she transferred to Oklahoma.

Trautwein moving to the Sooners took this team from great, to absolutely unfair. She’s more or less unhittable, allowing just 39 hits this season in 104 innings pitched — and she’s one of three aces the Sooners have.

Then, you have fielding, which ... you guessed it, the Sooners are incredible at as well. Their .977 fielding percentage is 13th in the NCAA, and only five teams have committed fewer errors.

This all combines into a scenario that’s pretty easy to understand: Oklahoma will smack you all over the park, you won’t score against them, and if you’re lucky enough to get a hit — they won’t grace you with a mistake.

5 stats that exemplify Oklahoma’s dominance

Oklahoma has scored 515 runs while allowing 48 runs for a +467 run differential

Their on base percentage is .476

The Sooners have shut out 32 teams

They’re 113th in stolen bases — because they don’t need to steal bases

Oklahoma’s steam slugging percentage is .731

What’s next for the Sooners?

Oklahoma plays Texas in their next game in the college world series on Saturday, June 4 at 2 p.m. on ABC.

The teams met three times in 2022, with the Sooners holding a 2-1 advantage, with one of their only losses coming against the Longhorns. It should be noted, however, they Texas also suffered a mercy rule loss to Oklahoma in a 9-1 beatdown.

Should the Sooners win, they would then face UCLA for the first time, or Texas or Northwestern again, due to the CWS’ double elimination format before heading to the best of three.

Oklahoma is unquestionably the favorite to win the National Championship this year, and cement themselves as not just the best college softball team of all time, but one of the most dominant teams in sporting history.

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The Warriors’ all-time collapse in the NBA Finals was about more than Celtics’ hot shooting

Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images

The Warriors were ran out of the gym by Boston in the fourth quarter of Game 1 — and it wasn’t just because the Celtics made shots.

Everything we thought we knew about the 2022 NBA Finals was blown to pieces in Game 1.

The Boston Celtics were supposed to be the more physically exhausted team after surviving two intense seven-game series against the Miami Heat and Milwaukee Bucks to win the Eastern Conference. The Golden State Warriors were supposed to be aided by the championship experience that came with their three rings, and six NBA Finals appearances in eight years. When push came to shove, great offense was supposed to beat great defense, which was another edge for Golden State.

The Warriors looked like they were well on their way to victory through three quarters in Game 1. Stephen Curry hit six three-pointers in the first period alone. Jayson Tatum couldn’t make a shot all night. Golden State was pounding the Celtics on the offensive glass throughout the game, and had a role player step up with a big-time performance as Otto Porter Jr. shot 4-of-5 from three-point range.

All of that helped the Warriors amass a 12-point lead heading into the fourth quarter. What happened from there was at once one of the great collapses and great comebacks in NBA Finals history.

The Celtics stormed back to beat Golden State, 120-108, to take a 1-0 lead in the NBA Finals. Boston did it by outscoring the Warriors 40-16 in the fourth quarter. The +24 margin in the final frame tied an all-time NBA Finals record.

The Celtics got ridiculously hot from three-point range in the fourth quarter

It’s easy to point to Boston’s hot shooting from behind the arc as the biggest reason they were able to steal Game 1. The Celtics hit 9-of-12 three-pointers in the fourth quarter. They finished 21-of-41 from three-point range — good for 51.2 percent — on the night.

On a night when Tatum shot 3-of-17 overall, Boston’s role players stepped up. Al Horford went 6-of-8 from three. Derrick White went 5-of-8 from three. Marcus Smart went 4-of-7 from three. Jaylen Brown also scored 10 of his 24 points on the night in the fourth quarter.

Warriors coach Steve Kerr immediately brought up Boston’s shooting after the game.

Steve Kerr on the Warriors' fourth-quarter collapse: "It's going to be tough to beat Boston if they're making 21 3s... those guys, give them credit, they knocked down every big shot in the fourth quarter, they came in and got the win."

— Madeline Kenney (@madkenney) June 3, 2022

Of course, he wasn’t wrong. But if the Warriors are reducing this collapse to simply hot shooting variance from the other team, they could be in big trouble.

The Celtics’ defense completely shut off the Warriors in the fourth quarter

The Celtics opened the fourth quarter on a 9-0 run to immediately put a big dent in the deficit with Curry on the bench to begin the frame. Curry helped his team get going shortly after checking back in, first assisting on a Klay Thompson three-pointer, then hitting a mid-range shot and a floater himself.

The floater gave the Warriors a 103-100 lead with 6:05 left. Golden State didn’t make another field goal until the 1:09 mark of the fourth quarter.

Boston went on a 17-0 run over that five minute stretch to complete their steal of the game.

The Warriors went 0-for-5 over that stretch. They also had two turnovers, a bizarre offensive foul call on Curry, and an 0-for-2 mark from the foul line. Boston blitzed them on the other end by making some tough shots, but the bigger issue for the Warriors is how flustered their offense looked.

Just look at Boston’s swarming defense on this possession:

The Warriors ran the type of off-ball actions that have defined their offense since their dynasty began, but the Celtics were all over it. Derrick White checks Curry, Thompson, and Poole on that possession. Horford checks Wiggins, doubles Curry, and then sprints to the corner to defend Thompson. All five Celtics defenders are just completely locked in, and the possession ultimately ends with Wiggins missing a contested three.

That’s just one example of how good the Celtics’ defense was during that stretch. Horford had the length to pressure Green out on the perimeter to force a turnover. Brown locked up Thompson on one possession, and allowed Tatum to knock the ball away on a hard dig into the paint. Even Curry couldn’t shake Payton Pritchard on an iso.

Great offense only beats great defense if the offense is actually great. The Warriors’ offense wasn’t. The Celtics defense certainly was.

The Warriors gave up some wide open Celtics looks from three

Of course, the Celtics aren’t going to shoot 51 percent from three on a high volume of attempts every game. But it also must be noted that Golden State was giving up some wide open looks.

Here are a few triples from Boston in the fourth quarter. None of these are contested.

The Golden State defense finished No. 2 in the NBA in the regular season behind the Celtics, but they did give up a lot of looks from three. Warriors opponents took nearly 38 percent of their field goal attempts from three on the season, which ranked No. 21 in the league.

Boston has four or five shooting threats on the floor in every lineup they play. Even if Boston doesn’t have great shooters after Tatum and Brown, they’re competent enough to hit shots, and have been hot throughout the playoffs.

The Warriors can’t just hope the Celtics start missing

This felt like a bizarre quote from Green after Game 1.

Warriors' Draymond Green after Finals Game 1 loss to Celtics: "We pretty much dominated the game for the first 41, 42 minutes. We'll be fine."

— Ben Golliver (@BenGolliver) June 3, 2022

The Warriors lost because their offense couldn’t crack Boston’s defense late in the fourth quarter when it mattered. The Warriors lost because their defense yielded way too many wide open looks from three. Poole in particular was an eyesore defensively throughout the night. Porter was somehow -18 despite hitting 80 percent of his threes.

The Warriors had Game 1 in the bag, and they let it slip away. That it happened on a night when Tatum shot 3-of-17 should only make them feel worse. If there’s an area will the Warriors’ championship experience will show up, it would be in their ability to not get too down after that loss — because any other team should be devastated blowing a lead like that so late in the game on your home floor.

The Warriors have real things to address moving forward even beyond hoping Boston misses shots.

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Ryan Fitzpatrick made a career out of being the smartest dude in the NFL

Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images

Fitzpatrick played the entire NFL and won.

After 16 years and nine different teams, Ryan Fitzpatrick is calling it a career. The 39-year-old quarterback is hanging it up, sending messages to his former teammates and thanking them for being a part of his professional life — and that list of teammates is extraordinarily long.

Fitzpatrick was never the biggest player, he wasn’t the most athletic, and certainly didn’t have a cannon for an arm, but he made a living being one of the smartest players to ever take to an NFL field. That’s not a reference to his time at Harvard, or the fact he posted the highest wonderlic score of all time at the NFL combine — but a testament to how Fitzpatrick didn’t just play the game of football, but the game of the NFL itself.

In a league that so often uses up players and tosses them away, Fitzpatrick took the league for all it was worth. Here was a guy who turned being a 7th round draft pick into becoming the NFL’s most coveted backup quarterback, a player who always found a way to get paid along the way by tantalizing teams with the promise he could be something bigger than warming the bench.

It didn’t matter that Fitzpatrick couldn’t be a good starting quarterback for more than one season before falling apart. He built a brand on coming out of nowhere, winning games, and making fans fall in love with him. This was the ethos behind “FitzMagic,” but the real trick was always finding an NFL executive willing to write a big check.

All in all, Fitzpatrick earned an astonishing $82,118,420 across his 17 seasons in the NFL. On the surface that might not seem like a lot in a world where $100M contracts are becoming the norm, but when you compare what Fitzpatrick made to NFL greats of his era, the man was a king.

Fitzpatrick earned $11M more than Troy Polamalu

LaDainian Tomlinson made $26M less than Fitzpatrick

Andre Johnson earned just $24M more

Three players, two in the Hall of Fame, one on his way — all made less, or slightly more than a guy who, relatively speaking, needed to take far fewer hits, sacrifice his body less, and sit on the bench more than the other three combined.

It’s flip to try and make this all about dollar and cents, but it’s remarkable just how brilliant Fitz was at weaving his magic off the field. On it, he was pretty damn good as well. Don’t get me wrong, he never really won games — hell, he was 59-87-1 as a starter, but you’re shocked he lost that much because the mystique around Fitzpatrick made him feel like a winner, even if he wasn’t one.

In 2009 he took over for Trent Edwards and Brian Brohm in Buffalo, where they combined for a 2-6 record, before Fitzpatrick took over, went 4-4 and became a hero. The next year he went 4-9 as a starter and was still rewarded with a 6 year, $59 million contact based on the perception he was a winner.

The same thing happened in New York. One good season in 2014 with the Texans caused the Jets to forget about his other middling seasons, giving Fitzpatrick a $10M signing bonus and believing he could be their future at age 33.

Miami, Washington — two more stops, many millions along the way. Always carrying the promise he could be “the guy,” with his time with the Dolphins being so pronounced fans wanted him to get reps over Tua Tagovailoa. There was no worse fate for a young quarterback than playing for a team that signed Fitzpatrick, because you knew people would want to wait for the magic to appear.

That’s why I love Ryan Fitzpatrick. His career made no sense, and all the sense in the world at the same time. He pulled the wool over the eyes of a huge chunk of the NFL’s most powerful executives, millions of fans along the way, and was paid like a king — all while playing like a pauper. It impossible to imagine another player coming along and working this scheme again, as the NFL leans more and more towards drafting young players to ride the pine and not towards aging veterans.

Still, we’ll always have Ryan Fitzpatrick, the man who out-smarted the NFL and turned himself into an icon, all while losing over 50 percent of his games.

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LeBron James becomes first active NBA player to become a billionaire

Photo by Adam Pantozzi/NBAE via Getty Images

It’s good to be the king.

Hitting milestones is nothing new for LeBron James, but the Lakers star just reached one off it. On Thursday LeBron became the first active NBA player to become a billionaire, according to Forbes, after he was given the remainder of his 2021-22 salary from the Lakers.

James is one of three all-time NBA players to hit the billionaire mark, along with Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant — both of whom reached the figure following their retirement. While a large portion of James’ wealth came from actually playing ($387M) the majority of his wealth came off the court, through his various endorsement and business deals.

The lifetime deal with Nike he signed in 2015 pays LeBron $32M annually, and will be worth over $1B on its own by the time everything is said and done. In addition “SpringHill Entertainment,” which he owns with Maverick Carter is worth $300M. Significant investments in both the Fenway Sports Group and Blaze Pizza round out the total net worth of the NBA star.

While LeBron stands alone in the NBA, he’s by no means the first active athlete to reach a net worth of $1B regardless of sport. Cristiano Ronaldo, Tiger Woods and Floyd Mayweather are among athletes to become billionaires while playing — and we can add one surprising name to the list. Anna Kasprzak, a decorated Danish dressage competitor who has appeared in multiple olympics is considered one of the wealthiest athletes in the world, however her fortune came from being one of the owners of the footwear and apparel brand ECCO.

It’s unclear if any other active NBA players could hit the billionaire mark. The two with the greatest potential right now are Stephen Curry and Giannis Antetokounmpo due to their contracts and business dealings away from the court.

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NBA Finals Preview Guide: How Warriors, Celtics built NBA Finals teams after losing Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving in free agency

The Warriors and Celtics have a lot in common — including losing a superstar in free agency to the Nets.

The Golden State Warriors and Boston Celtics have quite a bit in common if you can get past the three championship rings currently on the fingers of Stephen Curry, Draymond Green, Klay Thompson, and Steve Kerr.

Both teams drafted and developed the biggest stars on their roster. Both teams added one key starter via a trade that was doubted at the time. Both teams hit on late first round draft picks in the 20s to augment their cores with critical young talent. Both teams are used to making deep playoff runs. The Celtics haven’t raised a title banner since 2008, but they do deserve credit for making four trips in the Eastern Conference Finals in the last six seasons.

The Warriors and Celtics have one other big thing in common. Both of them lost a superstar in free agency but still rebounded to reach the NBA Finals.

In the summer of 2019, Kevin Durant left the Warriors and Kyrie Irving left the Celtics to team up together on the Brooklyn Nets. Their departures threatened to close the championship window for both teams. Three seasons later, there’s no doubt Boston got even better without Irving. The Warriors certainly aren’t as dominant as they were at their peak with Durant, but they were still good enough to win the West with relative ease.

Here’s how the Warriors and Celtics survived the loss of a superstar to reach the Finals.

The Warriors didn’t need Kevin Durant to make the NBA Finals

Golden State never needed Durant to win a championship. The Warriors won it all in 2015 behind the Curry-Thompson-Green core that they drafted and developed. The next year they finished with the best regular season record ever at 73-9 overall, but famously lost in the NBA Finals to LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers in seven games.

Durant signed with the Warriors the following summer when the NBA salary cap experienced a rare spike. The Warriors won consecutive NBA championships in 2017 and 2018, and then lost to the Toronto Raptors in the 2019 Finals after Thompson and Durant each suffered injuries that would keep them out for more than a year. Durant entered free agency shortly after the injury, and confirmed the worst kept secret in sports when he left the Warriors for New York to team with Irving.

Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images

How the Warriors used Kevin Durant’s departure to add Andrew Wiggins

Find the full story of why Durant left the Warriors here. The main thing you need to know about the post-KD reboot is that the superstar forward didn’t leave Golden State for nothing.

When Durant agreed to join the Nets, Golden State was able to turn it into a sign-and-trade, with D’Angelo Russell as the main piece coming back. The Warriors had to give Russell a four-year, $117 million deal, include a first round pick in the transaction (that ultimately turned into a second rounder), and salary dump Andre Iguodala to pull it off. There were serious questions about Russell’s fit with the Warriors at the time, as well as extreme skepticism on if he could live up to the money, but the Warriors made the move for one big reason: they wanted to maintain a high salary slot so they could potentially add another big piece to the team via a trade with the existing roster already way over the salary cap.

Russell played 33 games with the Warriors before they found a trade they liked, moving him to the Minnesota Timberwolves for Andrew Wiggins and a 2022 first round pick.

While the pick alone made the deal seem worth it at the time, most people were ready to write off Wiggins. He had a reputation as an inefficient scorer with a hot-and-cold motor who couldn’t live up to his max contract or his former No. 1 overall draft status.

It took some time for Wiggins to get comfortable with a new role in Golden State, but he broke out in a big way this year. He was named an All-Star starter (even if he didn’t deserve it), and has blossomed into a go-to wing stopper during this postseason. The same physical gifts that once made Wiggins a can’t-miss prospect in the draft — his speed, his length, his ridiculous explosiveness as a leaper — have been channeled on the defensive end in a masterful way. Wiggins’ 17.2 points per game is his lowest scoring average since his rookie year in 2015, but it feels like this is the best basketball he’s ever played.

Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images

The Warriors’ 3 lottery picks have been a mixed bag, but they found a young star late in the first round

The year after Durant left in free agency, the Warriors went 15-50 overall as Thompson recovered from his torn ACL and Curry was limited to only five games because of a broken hand. The Warriors drew the No. 2 overall pick in the 2020 draft, and selected James Wiseman over LaMelo Ball. Wiseman has not played this season as he recovers from a knee injury, but could still be a big part of the Warriors’ future.

The Warriors went 39-33 in 2020-2021 season but missed the playoffs when they lost to the Memphis Grizzlies in the play-in tournament. That left Golden State with two lottery picks: their own at No. 14, and the Timberwolves’ selection from the Wiggins-Russell swap at No. 7 overall. The Warriors selected Jonathan Kuminga with the seventh pick, and Moses Moody with pick No. 14. Neither rookie made a huge impact this season — save for some solid Moody minutes off the bench in the conference finals — but both project as rotation contributors at minimum moving forward.

The Warriors’ three lottery picks post-Durant have yet to yield a star, but they found one at the end of the draft in 2019 after their Finals loss to the Raptors. The Warriors selected Jordan Poole out of Michigan at No. 28 overall. After developing in the G League and being buried deep on the Golden State bench for his first few years, Poole emerged as an offensive supernova this season. His ability to create his own shot off the bounce has been a major boon for Golden State, giving the team another three-level scorer with a sorely needed injection of speed and explosiveness attacking the basket.

The Warriors also found another gem late in the first round when they selected UCLA big man Kevon Looney with the No. 15 overall pick in 2015. It took Looney a few years to become a contributor, but he’s been incredibly valuable on this postseason run. His screening ability makes him a natural fit on offense with the old championship core. He’s also been the Warriors’ best rebounder, an efficient interior scorer, and a surprisingly switchable defender in this postseason when Golden State has needed him.

Ask the Mavericks about how good Looney is. He felt as important as any player during the Warriors’ win the Western Conference Finals.

Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports

The Warriors also nailed their minimum free agent signings

The Warriors were way over the salary cap entering free agency in the summer of 2021. The team decided to let go of wing Kelly Oubre, who often lacked the processing speed to be ideal fit for the roster, and then went to work with minimum signings. They picked up three key players on those minimum deals:

Otto Porter Jr.

Andre Iguodala

Nemanja Bjelica

Porter has been a great fit with the Warriors in particular as a 6’10 wing who can space the floor, play help defense, and even create a midrange bucket in the pinch. He’s been a key part of the playoff rotation since the postseason began. Iguodala and Bjelica were also valuable additions at the end of the roster even while the former has been sidelined for the playoffs with injury.

The other big piece the Warriors added on the margins was already on the roster. Golden State was expected to keep Avery Bradley with the 15th and final spot on the roster, but instead opted for Gary Payton II. GPII eventually worked his way into the rotation and then the starting lineup for the playoffs with his tenacious on-ball defense and infusion of athleticism. Payton was injured in the Warriors’ second round series against the Grizzlies, but could return for the Finals. His excellent point of attack defense would be a major factor in this series if he’s healthy.

Photo by Kathryn Riley/Getty Images

Why Kyrie Irving left the Boston Celtics

The Celtics were coming off a conference finals appearance in 2017 when they embarked on an offseason that would change the franchise.

The Celtics won the draft lottery with Brooklyn’s pick from the old Kevin Garnett-Paul Pierce trade, but they decided to trade back from No. 1 to No. 3 with the Philadelphia 76ers. The Sixers took Washington point guard Markelle Fultz. The Celtics drafted Jayson Tatum.

The next big move the trade for Irving. The Celtics sent out All-Star guard Isaiah Thomas, Jae Crowder, and Brooklyn’s unprotected 2018 pick for Irving, who had become dissatisfied as LeBron James’ sidekick in Cleveland.

The Celtics were damn good in two seasons with Irving, but couldn’t break through to the Finals. In his first year with the team, Irving put up sparkling numbers, but eventually needed knee surgery and missed the playoffs. The young Celtics went to the conference finals without him. The 2019 team couldn’t live up to sky-high preseason expectations, and Irving appeared to be discontented most of the year. He put up terrible numbers as the Celtics lost to the Bucks in the second round. Then he skipped town to join forces with Durant in Brooklyn. Here’s a longer explanation of why Kyrie left Boston.

Irving wasn’t the only major free agent the Celtics lost in 2019. Al Horford also left Boston to sign a big money deal with the Philadelphia 76ers. The Celtics signed Kemba Walker to a $141 million max contract to replace them.

Photo by Matthew J. Lee/The Boston Globe via Getty Images

The Celtics were patient with their core of Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and Marcus Smart

The biggest reason for the Celtics’ success has been their ability to draft, develop, and be patient with their core.

The Celtics have missed the playoffs exactly once in the last 15 years, and the one time they did the franchise selected Marcus Smart with the No. 7 overall pick in the 2014 draft. Smart was never really a traditional point guard, but he carved out a niche as one of the league’s best perimeter defenders while steadily impriving as a shooter. Smart is a three-time First Team All-Defense selection and was named Defensive Player of the year this season.

Jaylen Brown was drafted No. 3 overall in the 2016 draft with the Nets’ pick. Tatum was taken No. 3 overall the following year, again thanks to cashing in the pick that originally belonged to Brooklyn.

Tatum eventually developed into the superstar and primary offensive option. Brown slotted in as the No. 2 option as a big, athletic wing who consistently improved as a three-point shooter. Smart was the lockdown defender, occasional playmaker, and streaky shooter who connected Boston’s other stars.

The Celtics went to the conference finals again in the bubble in 2020 with Walker and Gordon Hayward starring alongside the young core, but they were dropped by the Heat in six games. Last year, the Celtics were steamrolled by Irving and Durant’s Nets as Walker was rendered ineffective with a knee injury. Still, the Tatum-Brown-Smart trio remained, and felt poised for a bright future.

Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images

The Celtics rescued Al Horford from OKC and watched him resurrect his career

Horford’s decision to sign in Philadelphia didn’t work out for himself or the team. He was never a natural fit with Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons, and ultimately was traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder for Danny Green. The Thunder had no intentions of using Horford to help them win as they continued their rebuild, and ultimately shut him down after only 28 games last season.

The Celtics traded the No. 16 overall pick and Walker to get Horford at the start of the offseason. Few thought Horford could still be a dependable contributor on a contender at age-35, but he’s apparently found the fountain of youth this season. He has been excellent on both ends of the court throughout this run, shooting 43.2 percent from three in the playoffs while providing fantastic defense all over the floor. He feels like Boston’s essential glue guy: the heady veteran who can be a hub on both ends with the versatility to space the floor and defend smaller players.

Photo by David Dow/NBAE via Getty Images

The Celtics nailed two late first round draft picks

It’s hard to remember now, but Robert Williams was once considered a lottery talent in the 2017 draft before making a surprising decision to return to Texas A&M. His draft stock fell a bit the next year, falling to the No. 27 overall pick where the Celtics were happy to take him.

The Celtics nailed a late first rounder again the next year by taking Grant Williams with the No. 22 overall pick in the 2019 draft. Robert Williams has added a 7’6 wingspan, elite athleticism, and skilled rim protection to the Celtics. Grant Williams has added switchable defense and surprising long range shooting (41 percent form three this year) to the front court, as well.

Those two hits in the draft have been enough to cover up the Celtics making some serious draft blunders. They whiffed on Romeo Langford and Aaron Nesmith with the No. 14 overall pick in 2019 and 2020 respectively. They traded the picks that became Desmond Bane and Matisse Thybulle. Payton Pritchard, drafted No. 26 overall in 2020, has also given the Celtics some deep bench minutes on this playoff run, but it’s tempting to think of how perfectly Bane would have fit with Boston’s core.

Photo by Elsa/Getty Images

The Celtics added two more in-season reinforcements

On Feb. 10, with the Celtics riding a six-game winning streak to dig themselves out of a slow start, Boston made two moves to beef up the rotation for the playoffs. First, they acquired Derrick White from the San Antonio Spurs for Josh Richardson, Romeo Langford, a 2022 first-round draft pick, and a top-1 protected 2028 first-round pick swap. Then the Celtics landed another former player in Daniel Theis from the Houston Rockets in exchange for Dennis Schroder, Bruno Fernando and Enes Freedom.

White’s incredible ability to dart around screens has made the Celtics’ defense even scarier. Theis has added more depth to the front court, and has seen minutes when Robert Williams missed time with a knee injury. Boston was already trending up before the trade deadline, but the moves to bolster their roster in-season were key to this NBA Finals push.

The Warriors and Celtics both made the NBA Finals by sticking to their system

Last season, players like Kelly Oubre and a rookie center in James Wiseman didn’t feel like good fits for the Warriors’ read-and-react offense based around constant ball movement and screening. They were replaced by a players you fit the system better in Kevon Looney, Otto Porter Jr., and Gary Payton II.

The Celtics eventually figured out a system that fit their talent after a slow start under first year head coach Ime Udoka. Boston sat at No. 9 in the Eastern Conference on Feb. 1 but quickly turned things around behind a historically strong defense. The Celtics smothered opponents for the rest of the season with their huge and skilled defensive lineups that switched almost everything while mixing in different coverages at times to keep teams confused.

The Warriors already had a championship-caliber system that orbited around Curry, Green, and Thompson. The found players who could fit it. The Celtics had a success young core with Tatum, Brown, and Smart, and eventually figured out the right scheme and right role players to complement them.

It sure feels like the two best teams in the league are still standing. It’s going to be a great NBA Finals.

[junker-town]

This Yadiel Hernandez catch attempt is sad on so many levels

Oh my.

I’m not going to say that it’s easy to make a catch in the outfield, but it’s easy not to dive for a ball 10 feet too early like you have the depth perception of Hans Moleman — so congrats Yadiel Hernandez, for this ...

HAVE A DAY, TOMÁS! A FOUR-HIT GAME! pic.twitter.com/lmcRjnJo6x

— SNY (@SNYtv) June 1, 2022

There’s so much to appreciate about this moment. The catch is so astoundingly awful that it made Hernandez pretty much just quit baseball entirely. Dude got up, saw the ball on the warning track, and didn’t even want to try and go grab it. He was so resigned to just allow this to be an inside the parker than he chilled while Dee Strange-Gordon had to sprint from center field to cover him.

You know a play is exceptionally bad, monumentally bad when the opposing team can’t even take joy in the moment. Instead of showing the awful attempted catch, the Mets just decided to show the hit and never single out poor Yadiel Hernandez.

✌️ more RBI for @tnido24. #LGM pic.twitter.com/82sRmpX3Hz

— New York Mets (@Mets) June 1, 2022

The Mets went on to win 5-0. We’ll need to wait to find out if that’s also Hernandez’s vision, rather than 20-20.

[junker-town]

Everything you need to know about the 2022 Scripps Spelling Bee

Josh Morgan-USA TODAY

Spelling time!

The 2022 Scripps National Spelling Bee began on Tuesday, with over 200 spellers gathering in Washington D.C to compete for glory. The opening round thinned the group to 162, and there was plenty of drama.

This year marked the first time in three years the bee returned in earnest due to the pandemic, and with a leaner field designed to mitigate risks, the words were absolutely brutal. Typically the opening rounds pitch a few softballs, but not in 2022 with spellers getting eliminated on words like “piloncillo,” “outré” and “tsukupin.”

Here’s what you need to know if you’re picking up on the bee starting now.

Where is the spelling bee up to?

We have reached the semi finals, which will take place at 8 p.m. ET on Wednesday night. The event began with 234 spellers on Tuesday, with the majority eliminated in the opening two rounds.

Wednesday started with the quarter finals, wrapping up early this afternoon. This set the stage for where we’re at now. One of the remaining 42 spellers will take home the prize.

What is the prize this year?

The champion will win $50,000 from Scripps, $2,500 from Merriam-Webster as well as a reference library. In addition Encyclopedia Britannica is giving the champion a $400 set of books.

However, even if you’re not the grand champion, there’s plenty to spell for. Everyone who makes the final on Thursday night will earn at least $2,000 with the runner-up winning $25,000.

What are some of the most difficult words given so far?

Of course this is subjective, but here are some examples of the words from the quarter finals that even seasoned spellers struggled with the most.

euryhaline — The ability for an aquatic organism to tolerate salinity.

tyroglyphid — A tick or mite from the Tyroglyphidae family.

langlaufer — One who takes part in cross country skiing.

argillaceous — Rocks or sediment containing clay.

In short: These kids are way smarter than most of us when it comes to words.

How do I watch?

Unlike past years, the bee is not being aired on ESPN. Instead the event will be airing on ION, with the following times. It also airs via live stream at SpellingBee.com.

Semi-finals: Wednesday, June 1 — 8 p.m. ET

Grand finals: Thursday, June 2 — 8 p.m. ET

[junker-town]

This minor league announcer turned Stephen Strasburg’s rehab start into his personal Super Bowl

Announcer of the year.

The life of a minor league announcer is often thankless, without much opportunity to be noticed. Only the most hardcore of fans go to the effort of tuning in to hear a MiLB game — except when it comes to Joey Zanaboni.

Zanaboni has become the a viral sensation for his calls that go beyond cliche and into a realm of glorious madness. This was on full display as Stephen Strasburg made a rehab start for Single-A Fredericksburg over the weekend.

Stephen Strasburg is back and he was freezin em like pay raises at a poorly run cryogenics laboratory #LCRR pic.twitter.com/hgiNzzu4OW

— Joey Zanaboni (@joey_zana) May 30, 2022

Now, since we have this amazing collection of calls — let’s rank them.

No. 1: “Sneak a live cat through a TSA precheck, boy ..... HISSSSS”

No. 2: “Freezin ‘em like pay raises at a poorly run cryogenics laboratory”

No. 3: “Ghosted him like an O.K. Cupid Halloween party”

No. 4: “Stephen Strasburg, ask for his credit card info in a spam email message ... let’s go phishing”

No. 5: “John Stamos, Full House get him out of there baby!”

We need Joey Zanaboni on every call because the man is an utter delight.

[junker-town]

John Madden returns as ‘Madden 23’ cover

This is the perfect choice.

EA Sports released the cover of Madden NFL 23 and for the first time in forever it’s a choice everyone agrees with. Legendary coach, figure, and namesake of the brand John Madden will be featured.

The #Madden23 cover… Coach‼️ Full reveal June 2nd: https://t.co/M3Il0XW40c pic.twitter.com/DTI9FqA5bL

— Madden NFL 23 (@EAMaddenNFL) June 1, 2022

Madden passed away on December 28, 2021 at the age of 85. The legendary Raiders’ coach helped revolutionize the game and his .759 win record remains one of the best of all time for an NFL coach. Madden was Sean McVay before Sean McVay, a 30-something wunderkind who took the league by storm during his 10 year coaching career, who then retired due to health concerns, before becoming one of the most legendary and iconic broadcasters of all time.

Madden NFL 23 marks the first time since 2000 that Madden himself has been on the cover. Starting with Madden NFL 2001 the series moved to the cover athlete system which has been in place for over 20 years. The full reveal is set to be announced on Thursday, however there are purported leaked images of the regular edition cover, which have been circulating for some time.

Regular edition Madden 23 cover officially leaked. It is John Madden. #Madden23Leaks #Madden #EA pic.twitter.com/LJMWxT2EWl

— MADDEN23LEAKS (@Madden23Leaks) June 1, 2022

Should this be accurate, the iconic image from the 2023 cover comes from the Raiders’ 1977 win in the Super Bowl over the Minnesota Vikings. In addition to the photo comes a simple phrase “Thanks, coach” in memory of a man who gave so much to the game.

Bravo EA Sports for making the correct decision on the cover this year. Nobody else would have been right.

[junker-town]

NBA Finals Preview Guide: Golden State Warriors vs. Boston Celtics: Ranking Finals MVP candidates

Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports

Ranking the top-8 Finals MVP candidates in Warriors vs. Celtics.

The 2022 NBA Finals are here, and despite this year’s playoffs being marred by injuries from the very start, there’s a convincing case to be made that the two best teams in the league are still standing.

The Golden State Warriors won the Western Conference to make their sixth trip to the Finals in the last eight years. The Celtics haven’t been to the championship round since 2010 when they lost to the Lakers in seven games, but the franchise has made the conference finals in four of the last six years. With a dramatic Game 7 victory over the Miami Heat, Boston finally has the breakthrough it has been waiting for.

While it isn’t particularly surprising to see these teams in the NBA Finals, both of them definitely had to earn it. The Warriors missed the playoffs in each of the last two years after dealing with the departure of Kevin Durant and consecutive season-ending injuries to Klay Thompson. The Celtics were sitting at No. 9 in the East on Feb. 1 before riding a historically dominant defensive stretch to near the top of the standings.

There are so many great players on both sides in this series. Before it starts, we ranked the eight most likely NBA Finals MVP candidates.

8. Marcus Smart, G, Boston Celtics

David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports

The Defensive Player of the Year will likely get the assignment against Stephen Curry for long stretches. His long-shot Finals MVP case would start with somehow winning that matchup more often than he loses it. Aside from his outstanding defense, he’s also shooting well enough right now to swing a game or two. Whatever happens in the NBA Finals, Smart will probably be in the center of the action. It was between Smart and Draymond Green for the last spot on this list. While Green is certainly the better overall player, his contributions don’t always show up in the box score, which makes him an unlikely MVP winner.

7. Andrew Wiggins, F, Golden State Warriors

Photo by Joe Murphy/NBAE via Getty Images

Andre Iguodala once earned Finals MVP honors for the Warriors for his elite defense on LeBron James back in 2015. Could Wiggins follow a similar path to the award this year? Wiggins is likely going to draw the Jayson Tatum assignment for the majority of the series after thriving against Luka Doncic defensively in the Western Conference Finals. The traits that made Wiggins the No. 1 overall pick in the 2014 NBA Draft — length, speed, tremendous explosiveness around the rim — forms the bedrock for his defensive talent now that he’s not expected to be a primary scoring option anymore. Wiggins had an iconic dunk in the Western Conference Finals, and sure seems to be playing the best ball of his career right now. He’s going to have to be a major factor in the series if the Warriors win.

6. Al Horford, F, Boston Celtics

Photo by Brian Babineau/NBAE via Getty Images

Horford has two championships to name already, but of course both came when he was in college with the Florida Gators. Now in his 15th NBA season, Horford is making the first NBA Finals appearance of his career, and has been a driving force behind Boston’s midseason surge. Horford looks like he’s found the fountain of youth this season, emerging as an indispensable and versatile defender and a plus rebounder while also shooting a ridiculous 43.2 percent from three in the playoffs. Horford is typically the type of player whose impact goes well beyond the box score, but he could be a sentimental MVP candidate at the end of the series if he has a few hot shooting games and the Celtics’ young stars struggle with their offensive consistency.

5. Klay Thompson, G, Golden State Warriors

Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports

Thompson has understandably lost some athletic juice coming a torn ACL and torn Achilles the last two years, and he’s no longer the lockdown defender he profiled as at the start of the dynasty. None of that should overshadow how remarkable his comeback this season has been. He remains a flamethrower as a deep shooter, entering the Finals 57-of-143 from three-point range in the playoffs — good for exactly 40 percent. Thompson showed he can still takeover games by popping off for 32 points on 8-of-16 shooting from three in Golden State’s series-clinching Game 5 win over Dallas in the conference finals. The narrative pull of his return from injury could be strong enough to earn him some MVP consideration if he catches fire a few times during the series.

4. Jaylen Brown, F, Boston Celtics

Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images

It wasn’t long ago that there was an audible discourse about whether the Celtics should break up Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. Not anymore. As Tatum has fully ascended to Boston’s primary option, Brown has grown into an excellent sidekick. Brown has always won with strength and athleticism, but in this postseason he’s added an extra layer of shot-making touch that has taken his impact to another level. Brown is scoring more efficiently than ever during these playoffs, including a three-point shot that has been falling at about a 40 percent clip. His Finals MVP case starts with the fact that he’s likely to have an easier defensive matchup than Tatum in this series, and he seems locked in as a shooter right now. As long as he can avoid live dribble turnovers, Brown figures to be a problem for the Warriors defense.

3. Jordan Poole, G, Golden State Warriors

Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images

Poole’s ability to stay on the floor might be the biggest swing factor in the series. The Celtics relentlessly hunted Miami’s weakest defenders in the Eastern Conference Finals, and there’s no doubt Poole is Golden State’s biggest liability on that end. If the Warriors can pull off show-and-recover schemes to limit the targeting, Poole’s offense will have a chance to be a deciding factor on the other end. The 28 overall pick in the 2019 draft has blossomed in his third season, turning into an electric off-the-dribble scorer with deep shooting range and elite quickness. He is at once both an excellent fit for Golden State’s system of constant motion and ball movement while also being able to break the system to get the team a bucket in a pinch. The latter could be especially critical against an elite Boston defense in this series.

Poole erupted for 20 or more points seven times in these playoffs on Golden State’s run to the Finals. He feels like he can break any game wide open with his microwave scoring. Poole isn’t the third best player in the series, but his scoring punch feels essential to the Warriors winning the series — as long as he can survive defensively.

2. Jayson Tatum, F, Boston Celtics

Photo by Elsa/Getty Images

Tatum has every attribute the NBA demands out of a superstar wing: a big 6’8 frame, a quick first step, deep shooting range, defensive switchability, and the bounce to finish plays above the rim. If there’s been a missing piece for Tatum, it’s his playmaking, but in these playoffs he’s been making the right read almost every time down the floor. Even if he’s been flustered into some poor shooting nights at times during this run, Tatum has consistently met the moment when his team really needs it. The Celtics’ clearest path to winning the championship starts with Tatum playing like the best player in the series. Expect him to hunt Curry and Poole on the spaced floor when Boston has the ball. His role will be equally essential defensively, where he’s likely to switch onto Steph Curry in ball screens if he defends Draymond Green as his primary matchup. It won’t be easy to outplay Curry, but the truth is Tatum’s life has been building toward this opportunity since his teenage years. He’ll be ready for it.

1. Stephen Curry, G, Golden State Warriors

Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images

It’s hard to go too far with hyperbole when describing Stephen Curry’s greatness. He’s obviously the best shooter ever, but reducing him to only that is selling him way short. There’s a case to be made that he’s the top point guard in NBA history. There’s an argument that Michael Jordan is the only guard above him on the NBA’s historic mountaintop. As he prepares for his sixth trip to the NBA Finals, there’s only one thing missing on Curry’s resume: Finals MVP. He should be considered the favorite to win the award heading into the series.

Curry’s shooting has slipped some this year — he hit only 38 percent of his threes both in the regular season and during the first 16 playoff games, down from his career average of near 43 percent — but his gravity remains as immense as ever. Curry demands the upmost attention whenever and wherever he is on the floor, bending the defense with his mere presence like no player before or after him. He feels like one of the league’s best conditioned superstars, and those around the team believe this is the best he’s ever been defensively. There are plenty of reasons why the Warriors are back in the NBA Finals once again even without Durant, but Curry’s ability to maintain his greatness is the biggest one. He feels poised to finally grab the Finals MVP award that’s always eluded him.

[junker-town]

MJF, ‘the work,’ and the complicated messy nature of pro wrestling journalism

Who suffers when fiction and reality are blurred like this?

All Elite Wrestling held one of its biggest shows of the year Sunday night with their Double or Nothing pay per view taking place in Las Vegas. But as the first match approached, there was way more interest in what was happening outside of the ring rather than between the ropes.

A firestorm of rumors and controversy started on Saturday when one of the company’s brightest young stars, Maxwell Jacob Friedman no-showed a scheduled meet and greet with fans — an appearance which cost up to $100 for those wanting to meet the wrestler. The absence led to speculation that MJF would not show up to the PPV on Sunday, skipping his match all together, ruining part of the show, and demanding his release from the company. Still, others claimed this was all a “work,” old wrestling terminology for making the public believe what the wrestler and promoter wanted them too.

Was this an athlete wanting out amidst a contract dispute, or part of a conceived plan to make the audience believe in backstage drama where there was none? The events that unfolded highlighted the complicated nature of covering professional wrestling, and raised questions whether it’s right to treat wrestling like a traditional combat sport, especially in a medium where fiction and reality are so often blurred.

It’s important to understand just how good MJF is, because he’s central to all of this. Friedman is one of the most exciting professional wrestlers of the last 20 years. Hell, there’s a compelling argument that nobody since the WWE Attitude Era in the late 90s has captured crowds with their promo skills quite like MJF. An AEW original, Friedman was one of the first performers to sign with the burgeoning promotion in February 2019, following a wildly successful start to his career that saw him move from independent bookings, to mid-sized promotions — completing a breakout run with Major League Wrestling that saw MJF evolve into one of the most hated heels (bad guys) in the business.

MJF is an iconoclast in modern wrestling, a throwback to a past era. Never dropping character, he portrays himself as a mixture between Mr. Perfect and the “Million Dollar Man” Ted DiBiase. That’s a reductive way to sum up his character, because there are times he’s shown vulnerability too, discussing antisemitism he endured in high school and blending old school character sensibility with a modern edge. Nobody, and I mean nobody his age is better at holding a crowd in the palm of his hand during a wrestling program, and that’s shined through as he’s gone toe-to-toe on the microphone with the likes of Chris Jericho and C.M. Punk — never getting overwhelmed by the moment against wrestlers who have more experience than years MJF has been alive.

When MJF joined AEW in 2019 on a five-year contract, he was a very different performer. Now he’s a bonafide superstar, and with that comes the desire for a bigger spot, a larger contract and more opportunity. It’s here reports emerged that he was growing unhappy with AEW, particularly in light of a swelling roster that he was starting to feel lost in. As a result he began teasing potentially jumping to WWE when his contract was up, and talking up wrestlers on their roster.

What makes this trickier is that displeasure with AEW has been a fundamental part of MJF’s character since the beginning of 2022. The motivation behind his character has been to portray himself as put upon, or overlooked by AEW owner Tony Khan — while other wrestlers got opportunities he felt he deserved.

This means that as we entered the weekend of Double or Nothing we had a performer who never broke character, who made being upset with AEW a fundamental part of his persona, and a perfect scenario where MJF and AEW could play this up to maximum effect, should they choose to pull the trigger. No-showing a fan event and leaving Las Vegas before the PPV was even complete could be the ultimate “work” to rile up fans, blurring the line between fiction and reality that wrestling so often strives for, but rarely reaches.

In the end, the match took place. MJF was on the card, finished his program against Wardlow — where he got powerbombed into next week, getting stretchered out of the ring, and essentially writing him off TV for a while. We still don’t know whether this is part of a story, or covering for issues behind the scenes.

How should the media react to this? There’s no perfect answer. Wrestling wants to get the attention of journalists, wants to be written about — but doesn’t want to reciprocate when something big occurs. Tony Khan refused to address questions about MJF following Double or Nothing and wrestlers were instructed not to talk about it. This closed system caught the attention of veteran hockey reporter Greg Wyshynski.

Surprised there wasn't more probing after his "no comment" on MJF situation. In other sports pressers, I think the question gets asked again/rephrased: "Has he wrestled the last match of his contract?" perhaps. TK shut it down. Unless I missed it, the issue wasn't hit again. 2/3

— Greg Wyshynski (@wyshynski) May 30, 2022

There is an inherent desire to maintain some of the mystique of wrestling. To allow the medium to fool fans and keep them guessing like any good TV show — but where is the line? Do we draw it when an athlete is presented as a malcontent? How about when fans pay good money to meet a star, only to have the opportunity taken away from them? What about when fans are invested in a product, spending their time and energy to support a wrestler and not know whether they’re going to be out of the company or not?

These are the questions that are swirling following AEW’s weekend in Vegas. Now there’s a decision to be made by everyone involved. We can either continue the process of treating wrestling like a pseudo-sport, allowing promotions to control the narrative without media challenge — or we can push further, dig deeper, and demand that when it comes to issues that extend beyond storylines on a show, and into the lives of fans. Those folks who paid to meet MJF deserve to know whether it was an honest falling out, or a planned “work,” turning their investment into an angle.

We are living in a golden age of wrestling. It has never been better to be a wrestling fan who can pick or choose the performers, promotions or styles they like to watch. There is no homogenized product anymore, and it’s incredible to see — but along with this comes a responsibility from those in powerful positions. To respect the fans and not cross a line where “the work” is more important than their investment. We, the media, also need to be strong enough to change the paradigm, so we can serve the people wanting to know the truth — rather than participate in the complicity of letting “the work” exist when it suits a company.

If wrestling wants to be treated like a sport, let’s do it — and that means ruffling feathers along the way.

[junker-town]

A man is bungee jumping non-stop for 24 hours to attempt a sickening world record

NOPE!

A French man is currently in Scotland attempting one of the most stomach-churning extreme sports world records ever. Francois-Marie Dibon will be bungee jumping for over 24 hours in an attempt to break the record for most consecutive bungee jumps.

Dibon, 44, told BBC that he used to be afraid of heights until he took up bungee as a hobby, which he called a “good cure” for his fear. Over time his love of jumping progressed, and now we’ve reached this point. Dibon is jumping off Garry Bridge in Perthshire, Scotland as we speak, beginning early morning Tuesday and will need to jump roughly once every 300 seconds over the next 24 hours to break the current record of 430, which was stood since 2017

On the #Garrybridge watching the world record attempt for #bungee jumping over 24 hour. @bungeescotland pic.twitter.com/keK7SA6jg1

— Michael Williamson (@drumnagowan2) May 31, 2022

On the surface this might seem relatively simple. After all, how difficult could jumping off a bridge and falling be? However, the truth is that attempting this many successive jumps puts a colossal strain on the human body. Not only does a jumper need to battle motion sickness from the consistent up-and-down motion without adequate rest, paired with incredible core strength required to take the G-forces of bungeeing that many times without injury.

The only chance for any rest: Equipment adjustments. Should the cords or harnesses need to be adjusted there can be up to a 10 minute break while technicians work. If that happens Dibon plans to lay down for a bit and take “micro naps” before getting back to the work of flinging himself off the bridge again, and again, and again.

While the attempt at the world record isn’t being streamed (at least not yet) we should know by Wednesday morning whether Dibon was able to set a new record for consecutive bungee jumps.

[junker-town]

Max Strus’ three-pointer was controversially wiped away by refs in Celtics-Heat Game 7

The refs said Max Strus stepped out of bounds before he hit this three-pointer.

A three-pointer by Max Strus was retroactively wiped off the board by the referees during the third quarter of Game 7 of the 2022 Eastern Conference Finals between the Boston Celtics and Miami Heat. The shot was originally ruled as good before the refs reviewed it several minutes later and took three points off the board for Miami. It was a devastating blow for the Heat who had cut Boston’s lead to two on the shot.

Here’s a look at the shot.

pic.twitter.com/U9PZY2znJL

— HoopyHoops (@HoopyHoops) May 30, 2022

Did Strus’ heel touch out of bounds? It looks like it could be hovering over the line before he releases the shot.

Either way, this is an extremely close play. It’s shocking to see the refs wipe three points off the scoreboard for Miami several minutes of game time later on a play this close.

Strus made his shot at the 11:04 mark of the third quarter. The refs took the points off the board while Boston big man Robert Williams was shooting free throws at the 8:28 mark of the third. It looks extremely odd to see points taken away from Miami in the game log:

Would Miami have been allowed to challenge this several minutes later?

Can you challenge a retroactive replay overturn? Asking for a friend.

— John Hollinger (@johnhollinger) May 30, 2022

The winner of Game 7 plays the Golden State Warriors in the 2022 NBA Finals. Find the full schedule for the NBA Finals here.

[junker-town]

The Heat bench tried to intimidate Celtics shooters from the sidelines in NBA Playoffs

The NBA needs to get “bench closeouts” under control.

The Miami Heat were down to their last chance as they traveled to face the Boston Celtics in Game 6 of the 2022 Eastern Conference Finals. Miami had dropped the last two games of the series in decisive fashion, and their next loss would end their season. The Heat had to try to gain every edge possible to win in Boston and force a Game 7, and apparently that went so far as to include having their bench play defense.

Miami beat the Celtics, 111-103, in Game 6 mostly thanks to a masterful performance from Jimmy Butler. Butler had been hobbled by knee pain since Game 3, but after a few dud performances because of the injury, he roared back to finish with 47 points, nine rebounds, and eight assists to power his team to the win.

Three-point shooting variance was also a swing factor in Game 6. The Heat went 15-of-35 (43 percent) from deep while Boston went 11-of-33 (33.3 percent) on the night. Maybe that’s because on several occasions the Heat had players on their bench stepping onto the court to harass Boston shooters in the corner.

The Heat were up 104-99 with 1:30 left when Marcus Smart attempted this three in front of the Miami bench. Heat guard Kyle Lowry had already fouled out, but he still found a way to defend this shot:

nba tracking data will show kyle lowry was the primary defender of al horford on this shot pic.twitter.com/X8YYQpb46R

— Dan Favale (@danfavale) May 28, 2022

Here’s another example from earlier in the game. Smart somehow made this shot for the four-point play opportunity, but the Heat pretty clearly had multiple bench players standing inbounds on the catch as a way to try to intimidate the shooter.

Markieff Morris had both feet on the court on this corner pass. pic.twitter.com/axoF3hCeiy

— Steph Noh (@StephNoh) May 28, 2022

The bench close out is of course nothing new, but it’s easier to notice in a huge playoff game. The NBA has rules against bench players standing too close to the floor. The Dallas Mavericks were hit with multiple fines totaling $175K during these playoffs for violating “bench decorum.”

Apparently shooting in front of the opposing bench doesn’t lead to a meaningful difference in shooting percentage, but still! The NBA needs to get the “bench closeout” under control.

FWIW, when I’ve looked at it, have found no detectable difference in 3-point shooting in front of the opposition bench compared to other spots. That said, I hate the bench closeout too.

— Anchorage Man (@SethPartnow) May 28, 2022

Game 7 is Sunday night in Miami. Don’t be surprised if either team resorts to more shenanigans with a spot in the 2022 NBA Finals on the line.

[junker-town]

Indy 500 driver unharmed after terrifying airborne crash

It’s remarkable the driver was okay.

Colton Herta is lucky to be able to walk away from the horrifying crash during practice for the Indy 500. Herta attempted to make an adjustment when he lost the back end of his Honda, cashing into the wall and becoming airborne.

Colton Herta AIRBORNE! Herta winds up upside down in this crash during #CarbDay practice for the #Indy500. He has been medically cleared. pic.twitter.com/SPHC735E7F

— #Indy500 on NBC (@IndyCaronNBC) May 27, 2022

Somehow, there was no serious issue following the wreck. Herta told Indy Star that not only was he fine immediately following the wreck, but will still drive on Sunday in his team’s backup car.

“It happened really fast. I’m fine,” Herta said. “I’d be fine going right back out there, but the car is destroyed.”

The fact he was able to walk away from the accident unscathed is a testament to safety innovations added to race cars in recent years. The advent of the “halo” device in Formula 1 has saved lives in recent years, and these kind of changes have allowed drivers to walk away from accidents that otherwise would have been disastrous.

As for Herta, he remarked at these improvements.

“Very impressive,” Herta said of the safety built into Indy cars. “It was 60 or 70 gs of a hit, very impressive when you can hit that and still be standing and fine and no major injuries. (The safety workers) were there very fast to roll me back over; that’s the worst feeling as a driver is hanging there upside down.

This is truly remarkable.

[junker-town]

How the Carolina Hurricanes grew into the NHL Playoffs’s preeminent home team

Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images

Home is where the heart is.

Another night in Raleigh, another win for the Carolina Hurricanes — and another chapter in one of the most remarkable subplots of the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs. The Hurricanes are now up 3-2 in their series with the Rangers, which, much like their opening round clash with the Boston Bruins, has been mired in one reality: The Canes can’t win anywhere but home.

Across 12 playoff games the Hurricanes are 7-5, with all seven wins coming at home, and all five losses away. Carolina remains the only team left who haven’t won a single playoff game away from home, while also being the only team not to lose at home. Perhaps the most remarkable element to this dichotomy is that home wasn’t always a happy place for this team.

For much of the Hurricanes’ existence, the franchise has been influenced by external forces. Each year they’re forced to vacate PNC Arena to go on an expansive road trip so the North Carolina State Fair can use its parking lot. The team has constantly had to contend with waxing and waning fan interest, propped up by a transplant local community, who largely migrated from other parts of the country to work in the Raleigh-Durham area’s lucrative pharmaceutical or tech sectors. These traditional hockey fans would sooner don an away team’s jersey to see their childhood team than switch to the red and black.

It wasn’t just normal to see so many away fans at a Hurricanes game, it was fated. However, as with all things in sports, winning cures everything. Things began to change after the team’s remarkable Stanley Cup run in 2005-06. The area started taking more pride in their local hockey team. Those 20-something fans who’d wear anything but a Canes jersey to a game — they had kids, and these new locals, now becoming young adults themselves weren’t just hockey fans, they were Hurricanes fans.

With that demographic shift came growth. The team, often mocked for poor attendance and pegged for eventual relocation by fans of legacy franchises, began to see everything change. In 2014-15 the Hurricanes were 29th in the NHL in attendance, attracting just over 12,000 fans a night and filling only 67 percent of their arena. Now, the team is 13th in the league, besting hockey strongholds like Detroit, New York and even Toronto in attendance.

We’ve seen this happen in Nashville and Tampa Bay, but the Canes’ rise to prominence came a little differently: it started by becoming a bunch of jerks. That one line from curtain-clad loudmouth announcer Don Cherry in 2019 changed everything for the Carolina Hurricanes. In one moment he gave the Canes something they lacked in the community for decades prior: an identity.

“I know what I’m talking about. You never do anything like that. They’re still not drawing. They’re a bunch of jerks as far as I’m concerned.”

This came following a discussion of the Canes’ now signature “Storm Surge,” creative post-game celebrations devised to engender goodwill between the players and their local fans. When Cherry called the players jerks, and followed by chiding the lack of attendance — that was all the team needed. Call it defiance, call it southern pride, that might all be a little labored — but the end result was the same: Fans in the area weren’t going to let this fly.

Suddenly the team took on a new tone. On social media the organization embraced being jerks. Their mission wasn’t just to support a hockey team, but challenge convention, tear apart hockey’s “unwritten rules” and forge their own. Fans began to show up in droves, taking on the mantle of jerks themselves.

If you attended a game a decade ago, then this season, the difference was staggering. Carolina jerseys overwhelmed visiting fans. The nosebleed seats were no longer safe-haven for visitors, but full of raucous Canes fans wanting their voices to be heard. The Storm Surge celebrations remain, but the tone is entirely different now — there’s pride that comes from being a jerk, from being a Carolina Hurricanes fan. That’s what’s fueled not just a remarkable season, but a new era.

Now that hometown pride has created a fascinating new problem for this team: They need the fans in Raleigh. At least, that’s how it seems. The reality of whether there’s an emotional effect on the Hurricanes can only be answered by the players themselves, but the dramatic disparity in play is showing that something is happening at home and on the road.

In these playoffs, the Canes have thrived in front of their own fans, feeding off them and rebounding from adversity, but seeming lost away from home ice. The saving grace for this all: The Hurricanes are in a great spot, if this could continue. With the Panthers out of the playoffs Carolina are destined to have home ice advantage all the way to the Stanley Cup Finals — but nobody really thinks this ludicrous home stand can continue, while the ability for the Canes to win on the road seems less certain.

Regardless of what happens for the remainder of this season the real story underpinning it all is that of a franchise who found a purpose. In a lot of way they earned a home, and they did it all by being a bunch of jerks.

[junker-town]

Where do MLB’s postseason contenders stand right now?

Photo by Daniel Shirey/MLB Photos via Getty Images

Folks, it’s officially time to start seriously looking at the baseball standings.

When it comes to the marathon that is the Major League Baseball regular season, one of the traditional sign posts on that path is Memorial Day. That’s usually when the people who tell you not to look at the standings at the start of the season actually start looking at the standings. Many view roughly 25 percent of the season completed as enough to start figuring out who’s actually got a decent shot of making some noise this year.

While it’s still fairly early on and the past two full-season World Series champions really took their sweet time before getting going, this is still a good time to take stock of what’s going on. It might be far too early to pick out a World Series favorite but at the very least, we can start trying to figure out who’s most likely to keep this going all the way through the Summer.

Tier A: The “Been There, Done That” Crew

Astros, Brewers, Dodgers, Rays, Yankees

There are some familiar faces who have already raced to the top of the standings in their respective divisions. It really shouldn’t be shocking to see these teams storming right out of the gate and playing good baseball. These are four teams that we’re all used to seeing in October in recent years and no one would be surprised if all of them kept up the pace and returned to the newly-expanded postseason once again.

The Yankees in particular have gotten off to a great start in what figured to be the toughest division in all of baseball this year. The basic explanation is that they’ve been mashing the ball like crazy so far — unsurprisingly, Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton have both been leading the way when it comes to crushing and Judge in particular has gotten off to one of the hottest starts of his career.

While the Rays are already a few games behind the Yankees in the standings and haven’t exactly been spectacular themselves, it still wouldn’t be a huge shock to see them in the mix for a postseason spot as the season progresses. Their starting pitching has been very good so far, with Shane McClanahan on track to blow his rookie season out of the water. Wander Franco is also having no problems with his first full season in the bigs, as the dynamic young shortstop has been just as exciting as advertised.

Out West in Chavez Ravine, the Dodgers have been operating as everybody expected them to. It’s pretty hard to stumble when you have four former MVPs in your lineup and two of them have been living up to their lofty expectations. Freddie Freeman has hit the ground running in his first run of games with his new club and Mookie Betts appears to have put a serious power charge into his bat as of late — one that has seen Betts surge to the top of the National League home run leaderboards.

While offensive production can be exciting to watch, some of these teams are getting the job done with their pitching. Milwaukee’s pitching staff has been excellent, as it is once again incredibly difficult to push runs across the plate against any pitcher that Craig Counsell puts out there — whether it’s the reigning NL Cy Young award winner Corbin Burnes or the shutdown closer Josh Hader. Meanwhile, Justin Verlander continues to defy father time with his performance this season, and he’s set the tone for fellow Astros pitchers like Framber Valdez to follow suit. These five teams are all well-rounded and they’ve got tons of postseason experience, so it’s tough to see them falling off any time soon.

Tier B: The Ones Who Knock

Angels, Cardinals, Giants, Mets, Padres, Twins

This tier consists of a few teams who you’d expect to see and a couple of surprises. Among expected contenders, it shouldn’t really be a major shock to see the Padres and the Cardinals right here. While both of these teams would be hard-pressed to topple their current divisional leaders, it’s still something that’s not out of the realm of possibility. St. Louis can lay claim to having one of the best team wRC+ numbers in the entire NL, and that’s due to Nolan Arenado, Paul Goldschmidt, and Tommy Edman helping to power the Cardinals to a pretty good record so far.

I know that the Mets are, well, the Mets but this season feels different so far. Yeah, they’ve dealt with injuries to Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer, but Carlos Carrasco has been doing his level best to pick up the slack. Plus it sure helps to have guys like Francisco Lindor, Jeff McNeil and Brandon Nimmo firing on all cylinders at the plate. If they can avoid a major injury crisis, then they’ve already made a serious push for representing the NL East in the postseason.

Over in Southern California, Manny Machado is making waves as the early favorite to win NL MVP this season. Additionally, San Diego’s rotation has been living up to their lofty expectations. Yu Darvish, Joe Musgrove and MacKenzie Gore have been giving opposing hitters fits this season and if that continues then they could go toe-to-toe with LA all season.

While it shouldn’t be a shock to see the team that has both of the consensus best players in baseball, it’s still nice to see that Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout are finally getting actual help. Anthony Rendon has been leading the way for the non-Ohtani/Trout crew and to be honest, it would be very nice to see the Angels keep this up so that us fans could see those two superstars getting a taste of postseason baseball.

The clear mission for the Giants this season is to prove that 2021 wasn’t a fluke. So far, the Giants have shown that they still deserve to be in the conversation. Carlos Rodon has fit in quite nicely on the mound at Oracle Park, and meanwhile Joc Pederson has been swinging his way into the hearts of San Francisco fans as he slugs side-by-side with Mike Yastrzemski. Over in the AL Central, the Twins have actually surprised the baseball world by getting this deep into the season as the divisional leaders. While Byron Buxton’s specter always looms large over this team, it helps when you have guys like Max Kepler and Carlos Correa to pick up the slack sure helps.

Tier C: Lurking In The Cut

Blue Jays, White Sox, Braves

How is a lineup as powerful as Toronto’s lineup struggling to find a way to consistently put runs on the board? Why are the White Sox constantly getting out-slugged themselves? Why can’t the defending World Series win three games in a row? These are the teams that have all the tools to be good and could very well be in the conversation with the contenders soon, but it’s not coming together for them right now and it appears to be for similar reasons.

It’s safe to say that the Braves don’t want to wait until August to kick their season into high gear — especially now that it seems that the Mets may be for real here in 2022. Simply put, their talented lineup needs to get it together if they’re going to have a chance to catch New York again. Dansby Swanson has recovered nicely from his season-opening slump, but they’re going to need more from guys like Matt Olson, Ozzie Albies, and Austin Riley. Having a healthy Ronald Acuña Jr. would help.

The Blue Jays appear to be in the same boat. Vlad Guerrero Jr., George Springer and Santiago Espinal have been doing well, but Matt Chapman and Bo Bichette have been struggling mightily at the plate. If Toronto’s going to have any hope, then the entire lineup has to get clicking and it has to happen soon in the ultra-competitive AL East.

Over on the south side of Chicago, the White Sox seemed like the prohibitive favorites in the AL Central. It hasn’t worked out for them so far, as they’ve compounded the offensive woes with the fact that they can’t seem to get consistently good pitching. Dylan Cease, Michael Kopech, and Lucas Giolito could be the backbone of a solid rotation, but they’re going to need some more help in order to keep things afloat before Lance Lynn returns from injury in a month or so.