Never has a name been more fitting. I mean, what else would you call the person that put the entire state of women's basketball on her back? That shot was simply willed in by Destiny, in more ways than one. That prayer did something that 100 straight University of Connecticut victories never could and that is make me question whether or not the women are actually capable of competing against the men. It took me about a half second to definitively answer that question, but that's a half second of thought that I never put into it before. Either the women's ball is made of the same material as NERF footballs, or Destiny Slocum undoubtedly has the strength to potentially surprise a presumptuous dude that was lackadaisical in guarding her off the dribble. I haven't attempted a throw-in since grade school soccer, but I can guarantee my last one would have fallen about 60 feet short of the one effortlessly tossed in from three quarters court by a Lady Terp. At 5'7 she obviously wouldn't stand a chance trying to her to get her shot off against her male counterparts, but she could probably back my ass down in the post with ease considering she's got the low center of gravity necessary to throw a basketball a mile from behind her head without a running start.
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Rutgers Did Its Best To Remind People They Actually Are In The Big Ten Conference With This Tweet3/20/2017
Far more than the vast majority of people that see this tweet will shake their heads in disbelief. Honestly, I don't blame them. It's completely disingenuous to publicly take pride in the accomplishments of your conference foes when all your team did was drag down their strength of schedule. I can definitely see why people would find it strange that a school that was easily the worst amongst their peers would celebrate those largely mediocre peers when they defied the entirety of their average seasons by somehow dominating college basketball's biggest stage. There is, however, one thing that can also be said about all those people that thought this was a tone deaf act of social media outreach... They now remember that Rutgers is in the Big Ten. It an egregious example of self worth by association, but at least it came when that association was at it's apex. It may be thee most immoral of moral victories. That said, the entire ACC only had one more actual tournament win than Rutgers throughout Saturday and Sunday, and that's the type of close loss that the Scarlet Knights have no problem hanging their hat on! ----- I guess my main question here is what makes an entity a villain? Is it merely the fact that they are easy to despise, or do they have to actually have an evil, malicious quality to them? If it's the former then the Golden State Warriors are actually the best villains because the fact that they suck so goddamn bad at playing the villain makes them exponentially more unlikable. Imagine if the Joker's role in 'Batman' wasn't to be a psychopath who embraced anarchy, but instead to be an upstanding, church-going citizen that was a strong adversary to vigilante justice and considered having three beers at dinner to be an unforgivable act of rebellion. That's what the preeminent "superteam" is to the dramatic action movie that is this NBA season. A bunch of morality police sitting atop their high horses acting like they didn't bring this backlash upon themselves. Perhaps it's easier for me to say this as someone that thinks organized religion is a crock of shit, but being holier than thou without justification is easily just as infuriating as having no conscience whatsoever and I think the Warriors are somehow both. What are we even talking about here? Furious? Bewildered? I suppose those emotions fall in line with what I would expect from a team that asked us to say hello to the bad guy by throwing a children's party for themselves, but that doesn't make it any less ridiculous. Imagine unexpectedly breaking up with someone and then being offended that said person didn't dedicate an Instagram collage to all your good times together while they were still trying to recover and you were already happily engaged. That's basically what the Warriors are asking of the Thunder. The Oklahoma City fanbase is a scorned lover, and the initial face-to-face interactions that scorned lovers have with those that scorned them have never been - and will never be - welcoming. A professional basketball team that has gone to back-to-back finals was upset about walking into a hostile environment? Guess they have never had to stare at an ex from across their favorite bar, because if they did then they would know that a loud chorus of boos and tens of thousands of cupcake references are on the low end of unsettling. One day the Thunder fans will appreciate Kevin Durant for what he brought to their team and their city, but that day is not the first, second, third, fourth, or tenth time they run into each other in a competitive, emotional environment. His credit will eventually be due, but it won't be because his new team bitched and moaned for him to get it. Penalty Shot- No Penalty Shot- I can't say I expected to have to do this. With Cory Schneider's ability to use his gift as a curse and keep the New Jersey Devils out of prime drafting position the last few years, I haven't had to actively root for the team to lose games down the stretch. It's unfamiliar territory that you would think would have me appreciative of the obvious collusion that's taking place between NHL officials. With that #2 pick in the draft potentially up for grabs, I should be happy that the referees have started handing out complimentary breakaways to the Devils' opponents. I should be thankful for the completely inconsistent whistle blowing that sent two of the best teams in the league to center ice three different times and refused one of the worst teams in the league that same leniency. I should be pleased that the Penguins and the Blue Jackets were gifted penalty shots like they were JV teams scrimmaging against their own varsity team and the coaches were actively trying to keep it close. Unfortunately, as a man of principle I have a hard time accepting the handouts. I don't want to sound ungrateful here, but if the Devils' are going to plummet in the standings then I want them to cliff dive on their own accord. If they are going to beat the Arizona Coyotes in a race to rock bottom - considering Colorado is sub-terranian at this point - then I would prefer they do so on their own merit. What I am trying to say is that the New Jersey Devils don't want - nor need - the help of bullshit, one-sided officiating to lose game after game after game. I think I speak for the entire fanbase when I say that I want to look at the uber talented, foreign teenager they get in exchange for their complete and total incompetence and feel confident that they "earned" his services. I know NHL referees are doing their best to expedite the rebuilding process of a once proud franchise, and on behalf of the New Jersey Devils I would like to say thanks, but no thanks. Do us a favor by not doing us any favors. If Taylor Hall is going to draw a penalty on a breakaway then he should be privy to the same over-exaggerated hand signal that sent his opposition in on an undeserved one-on-one just seconds prior. I don't even care if the result is inevitably self depreciating come the draft lottery, because if the Devils are going to lose their way to winning a high profile prospect then I prefer they do so legitimately. This team has forever been criminally underrated, and for the first time - maybe since the early-90's - I want the futility of their efforts to be recognized free of third party interference on what should simply be two minute minors for interference.
Flagrant foul:
Explanation:
“The referees have to officiate the play for its own merits. And that makes a really difficult situation. The rule is … contact that is not an attempt to play the ball or player, specifically designed to stop or keep the clock from running. And when a player puts two hands in the back and doesn’t make any attempt to play the ball or the player in front of him, it’s an F1 foul.” - J.D. Collins
Before we dig too deep here, I want to say that I completely understand how disingenuous it is of me to start picking apart the intricacies of the college basketball rulebook just a day and a half after I truly acknowledged that it's college basketball season. That's not at all lost on me. Fortunately, I don't think I really need to be all that well read/watched to suggest that the difference between an intentional foul and a flagrant foul should probably be something slightly more significant than a player's effort level and acting ability. If a judgment call can cost a team an important possession late in a close game then maybe the assessment criteria shouldn't solely be how well a player can fake it to satisfy some silly, unnecessary amendment to a rule. Conservatively speaking, I would say the intent of 100% of intentional fouls is to blatantly (and specifically) stop the clock, so why should it matter if the point of impact is the arm or the ass? My 2nd grade vocabulary tests were a lonnnng time ago, but - the way I remember it - the word "flagrant" had a very clear definition that couldn't be called upon in innocently making contact with someone during a physical sport. Why not just condemn the phrase "intentional foul" in college basketball? If you are genuinely making an honest play on the ball or the man then the ensuing penalty can't possibly be on purpose. Extending the game is a strategy that's older than Adolph Rupp's racism, but you're not allowed to legally call upon it unless you hide it really, really well? I guess the referees technically made the "right" decision considering the ever-so-careful wording above, but that doesn't mean that you'd need anything more than common sense and the ability to read a situation to know that it was inherently wrong. If you're going to go "by the book" then don't decide to blow the dust off and get started on Chapter 1 during the waning seconds of a nail biter that's inevitably going to end someone's season.
I don't even need to look at the NBA schedule to know that we are getting pretty close to the end of the season. The sudden polarization of opinions regarding a guy that's well on his way to a historical accomplishment is enough of an indication that some people have grown so tired of one man's continued excellence that their view of it eventually changed. In essence, Russell Westbrook's heroic efforts have lived long enough to see themselves become the villain. His triple-doubles so frequent that some have brushed them off as merely attempts to stuff the ballet box (score) in his favor. Now, I won't sit here and tell you that the heart, soul, and attitude of the Oklahoma City Thunder isn't more than occasionally selfish. Arguing that would be as silly as trying to argue that he's also extremely efficient. I will say that if the pass that Russell Westbrook threaded through the legs of a guy on the other side of the court while running at full speed was simply an effort to boost his assist numbers then I am totally fine with giving the MVP award to a stat-padding son of a bitch. Seriously, I can't even begin to understand how Russell Westbrook knew where to throw that ball, never mind understand how he was able to throw it there. When he released that bullet of a pass the legs that it eventually bounced through were a full stride and half away from being in the perfect position to get nutmegged. As if the precise anticipation wasn't enough to make me wonder whether or not I exist in the same space/time continuum as Russell Westbrook, the execution necessary to put it in the smallest of windows while moving like a goddamn gazelle would put most mobile quarterbacks to shame. You don't even have to believe me when I say that dish was saucy, because the person whose hands it hit wasn't even ready for it. I'm pretty Victor Oladipo was as confused during his finish as I was the first time I watched the highlight, and he's a teammate that gets to witness the extraordinary literally every single day. I can't definitive say that Russell Westbrook has had the best season and deserves the MVP because James Harden has been just as freakish, but I do declare that the former has had a more entertaining season, and - as a fan - that means just as much to me.
That should have been it. That seemingly inevitable one-timer into the wide open side of the net turned untimely stick break should have resulted in no more than an extremely symbolic failed opportunity. Against literally any other other team in the NHL, 'Retro Night' would have been a harrowing call back to the Devils' teams of the early 80's. That's not even hyperbole. Before last night the Devils' had lost TEN(!) straight games which included fruitless efforts against the Colorado Avalanche and the Arizona Coyotes. For those of you paying attention to the bottom of the standings (i.e. the draft lottery) at home, those are the only two teams in the entire league with worse records than New Jersey, and New Jersey just got done out-sucking both of them in back-to-back games. So when I say that sequence of events wouldn't take place against a franchise other than the Flyers I am speaking as someone with a strong command of recent history. If Philadelphia wasn't Philadelphia I would almost feel bad for Philadelphia because what the New Jersey Devils did to the Flyers last night was complete and total emasculation, and that goal was just the microcosm of it. The 'Broad Street Bullies' didn't just get taken for their lunch money, they hardly even put up a fight. They didn't just play down to their competition they somehow soared past a team that was already in free-fall. How do you suffer a 6-2 bludgeoning at the hands of a team that - prior to last night - had the same amount of goals in the month of March as Brad Marchand? I can't even wrap my head around the fact that this already truly unbelievable stat became even more unbelievable...
As if getting totally outplayed by a team whose interest in winning is fleeting at best wasn't painful enough, Taylor Hall summoned the skillset of Peter Forsberg to literally and figuratively add insult to injury. Stiff-arming Shayne Gostisbehere through the ice before dancing Steve Mason's groin into another zip code while casually sliding the puck past him with one hand? Providing the insurance of a two goal lead while also putting a rival's health insurance to use? If that doesn't prove that the Flyers are immune to the dire state of the Devils' - no matter how many AHL players and waiver wire pickups they are rostering - then this hilarious little tidbit right here will...
FOX- A high profile NFL player has agreed to go to the prom with a Waukesha West High School student. But school rules may stop him from attending. The teen is now hoping the district will make an exception.
Smiling from ear to ear, 17-year-old Ava Tarantino explains how she asked 25-year-old Pittsburgh Steelers running back Le'Veon Bell to be her prom date over Twitter. "I tweeted '500 tweets and you'll go to prom with me?' and He re-tweeted '600 and it's a deal,'" said Taratino."His girlfriend is also coming and she's doing my makeup and his family is also coming," Tarantino said. "I seem to recall my first reaction was, 'No.' And then when I heard he was bringing his family I thought he was approaching this the right way," said James Tarantino. But Bell's attendance may be sidelined. District officials say Bell does not meet their age policy. The district also has a policy to bar guests with a criminal background from attending. In August of 2014, Bell was charged for DUI and marijuana possession. An incident the Tarantino family feels can be a learning opportunity for students. ---- Personally? I think celebrity appearances at proms should be limited to the charitable variety. I wouldn't say it's wrong that Le'Veon Bell accepted a healthy, fully functioning 17 year old fan's invitation in exchange for no more than 600 retweets, but it sets a dangerous precedent with how many obsessive teenagers are out there. The last thing social media crazed kids need is the belief that they are one semi-viral tweet away from dancing with the star of their choice. That being said, Waukesha High School and the losers that are trying to prematurely bounce their oh-so-prestigious event are making a classic mistake. You see, by treating an affable NFL running back as nothing more than a pothead in his mid-20's they are the ones making it weird. I wouldn't say it's normal for Ava Tarantino to be showing up to a school dance with a professional athlete, but it's far less strange than doing a background check on a guy that's - quite clearly - just graciously making a public appearance. These "district officials" may think they are simply upholding the rules. In reality, they are viewing thee most obvious of kind-hearted gestures as if it would be some sort of statutory situation, and that's nearly as dumb and oblivious as viewing your high school gymnasium as a place that's completely free of recreational drug users. This story only makes one party look bad, and that party is not a young, optimistic Steelers' diehard or her weed enthusiast of a favorite player.
Annnnd that's why they call it March Madness folks! Well - in fairness - I don't think a lackadaisical intentional foul that gave the trailing team a free opportunity to take the lead on their final possession was the "one shining moment" the people who came up with that moniker had in mind. Generally, we are reminded of the unpredictability of college basketball by seeing just enough jaw dropping buzzer beaters and unlikely comebacks to make watching the overabundance of panic induced turnovers totally worth it. Still, if the spirit of the first extended weekend of the NCAA tournament is young kids being situationally blinded by the brightness of the stage that they are on then Matthew Fisher-Davis' out-of-body idiocy falls right in line with what makes this time of year so great. Granted, this particular instance undoubtedly elicited more WTF's than OMG's and was responsible for more confusion than jubilation, but it still showed that impossible is literally nothing - no matter nonsensical - when a trip to the Sweet Sixteen is on the line. Sucks that a bench player that put up 22 points and had a hell of game otherwise had to be the first person to call our attention to that fact in such embarrassing, underwhelming fashion, but someone was inevitably going to end up standing at center court with their hands on their knees wondering what the fuck happened. It might as well have been someone that has such an impeccable way with words...
I think we can all agree that if you can't corral a fly ball without it rendering you impotent then you probably shouldn't be sitting in home run territory, but boy am I glad that this little Asian dude had to learn that lesson first hand. Far be it from me to tell someone how to handle a 350-400 foot nut check, but that response was so hilarious that I skipped right over the second hand testicular trauma normally associated with viewing most low blows. I almost felt bad about how much I enjoyed watching him try to 'Kangaroo Song' the pain away as it slowly rose from the bottom of his scrotum to the back of his throat, but then I saw that the guy that was trying to see if he was okay couldn't help but laugh right in his face. If your reaction to getting hit in the dick is so ridiculous that it turns a good samaritan into the "point and laugh" type then it's safe to say your pain management needs work. h/t FoxSports
Welp, I suppose that's one way to tame 'Press Virginia'. If nothing else, Bucknell could just keep trying to break their nose with the ball until they back the fuck off. Probably more likely to succeed that way than by depending on college kids not to pee directly down their leg when they are forced to work for every inch on the floor. Objectively speaking, this is a fucked up move. I simply can't condone spiking a basketball off a dude's forehead from literally two inches away when there's no possible way he could have seen it coming. I'm good with a little gamesmanship, but excessive shenanigans like this is what got dodgeball banned from every middle school in America. Elijah Macon had no shortage of exposed body parts that Avi Toomer could have used as a backboard to avoid a turnover, and basically punching him in the face with the ball should have been the last resort. Also objectively speaking, this is an absolutely hilarious clip. I know it's because Elijah Macon was giving full effort on the defensive end, but his expression as he got smashed in the mug by the "pass" he was trying to deny is irrefutably funny. The determined eyes? The wide open mouth? The way he starts to 'Matrix' backwards as a goddamn basketball gets pegged off both of them? I don't support trying to reconfigure your opponent's sensory system just to save a single possession, but that doesn't mean I can't laugh at this one shiner moment.
Hmm, this is a tough one to gauge. In theory this is a hell of a time for a college basketball news dump, but can the same be said for the execution? Obviously people are more concerned with the games being played than the employment of the coaches that didn't do a good enough job to be a part of them, but I still think that two minutes after the initial tip-off was a tad bit premature. Most people that would care about Tom Crean getting canned can very easily voice the entirety of their opinion on the matter while also mindlessly watching Princeton versus Notre Dame. If they really wanted it to fly under the radar couldn't they have just set it free on Friday at 5PM like normal. It definitely wouldn't have hurt to wait until there were at least multiple games simultaneously clouding our brains and busting our brackets. The termination of a long tenured, high profile head coach of a historic basketball program isn't exactly noteworthy when you have four different television screens to worry about, but it is when you're barely paying attention to the first half of a game that features an Ivy League school. I understand wanting a polarizing decision to get mixed up in the Madness of March, which is what makes me wonder why they released it during the calm before the storm. If a news dump is so noticeable that it becomes news then isn't the purpose more defeated than Indiana in Big Ten play?
MiamiHerald- Miami Marlins pitcher Jose Fernandez, drunk and speeding, was behind the wheel and to blame when his boat plowed into a jetty off South Beach, killing two others, police concluded in a report released Thursday.
Had Fernandez lived, he would likely have been charged with a host of crimes including manslaughter, according to the final report by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission. Investigators made the conclusion because the physical damage to Fernandez’s body matched the damage on the boat’s center console. His DNA was also found on the throttle and steering wheel. The boat, investigators concluded, was traveling at more than 65 miles per hour, the top speed of the vessel. “Fernandez operated [the boat] with his normal faculties impaired, in a reckless manner, at an extreme high rate of speed, in the darkness of the night, in an area with known navigational hazards such as rock jetties and channel markers,” the report concluded. ---- Does anyone have an estimate for what crime scene investigators in South Florida make per year, because if it's enough for me to cover rent then I think I might have to consider a career change. Seriously, imagine how much paid down time there is when you get SIX FULL MONTHS to come to a conclusion that was made clear no more than 48 hours after the tragic death of one of the brightest young stars in baseball. Having half a year to figure out something that would have been common knowledge by the first commercial break on an episode of 'CSI: Miami' would really open up a lot of extra-cirricular options. I guess I should give them some credit for being thorough though. It's not like this text exchange was all that telling of the situation at hand....
With such a vague explanation of his mindset at the time plus a 5 month old toxicology report that showed he was both drunk and high, it would be pretty difficult to determine that Jose Fernandez was the most guilty deckhand. It definitely - at the very least - required months on end of post-mortem research. I mean, what would we have done without knowing which dead person would have been charged with a felony if they were still alive? Some things are just more important than letting someone's glowing reputation rest in peace, and getting to the bottom of a 3AM boat accident that left so much evidence that the ghost of Johnnie Cochran wouldn't even take the case in the afterlife is absolutely one of them. Credit to all parties involved for dragging this this news out as long as possible, and valuing the obvious, unspoken truth over the endless fond memories of Jose Fernandez that his family, friends, and fans are still trying to embrace. Ahh, that unenviable feeling that you simply can't do anything right. Been there Manu, been there. You have the best of intentions, your execution in following through on them isn't half bad, and it instantly all goes to shit with one proverbial (or in this case literal) bounce of the ball. I know it's hilarious that he missed the one he was supposed to make and made the one he was supposed to miss, but - as far as unintentional points are concerned - that was one of best attempts I have ever seen at not collecting them. That Anthony Mason-esque rocket off the low glass had no business finding the bottom of the net. In fact, I've run the numbers in my head and 95 out of 100 times it doesn't find the bottom of the net. This is one of the few that did manage to defy physics and geometry, and it undoubtedly left Manu Ginobili throwing his head back and muttering "you gotta be fucking kidding me" like every other average asshole who has had one of those days that felt like it was taking place in the backdrop of an Alanis Morissette video. I hope - for his sake - he has an extremely punchable steering wheel, because violence against inanimate objects is really the only way to feel better about that level of continual misfortune.
CNN- After serving seven years in prison for killing his ex-girlfriend and feeding her to dogs, Brazilian goalkeeper Bruno Fernandes de Souza is controversially back in the game, signed by Boa Esporte for two years.
In a lengthy post on its Facebook page, Boa Esporte's president, Rone Moraes da Costa, says the team isn't committing any crimes by signing the 32-year-old who formerly played for one of Brazil's most famous clubs -- Flamengo -- and was tipped to line up for the national team at the 2014 World Cup on home soil. He could be back in action within a month and a half. "Esporte Clube was not responsible for the release and freedom of the athlete Bruno," da Costa said, adding that the club was "giving work to those who intend to recover." Bruno "deserves a new opportunity as a professional," the team said in a separate post. "The club has no relation with Bruno's personal actions, nor with his past, having hired only the professional." --- Well then. Were you wondering how soccer hooligans could possibly consider a sport where the athletes "fall" over freshly cut landscaping more cutthroat than American football? If so, then Bruno Fernandes de Souza is here to provide you with the level of shock, disgust, and general discomfort that is more commonly elicited by violent crimes caught on casino cameras. Tough to argue that we here in the states are truly football crazed when homicidal futbol players in South America come out the clink with a multi-year contract in hand. Forget about the clear cultural differences in sentencing that had a 25 year old murderer roaming free at an age in which he's still considered an spry eligible bachelor, because the fact that he's already professionally employed just made Roger Goodell channel his inner Denzel... I'm not trying to play "which felony is worse?", but if I absolutely had to choose then domestic feedings have the upper hand on domestic abuse. Shit, if launching your girlfriend's slain corpse into a den of rottweilers only costs you seven years of your soccer career then the inexcusable actions of Tyreek Hill and Joe Mixon would probably only be punishable by a pat on the ass and a "try to do better next time". If only they had taken their talents to the pitch then their reputations would hardly have a dent. After all, when they boxed a couple broads it didn't result in actual carnage. Just imagine, all Greg Hardy had to do was get into footy at a young age and he'd still be competing at a high level to this day. It's not like acting like the human equivalent of a bloodhound is anywhere near as bad as legitimately having your hounds dine on human blood. Don't get me wrong. If anything, football players should be more harshly disciplined for assaulting the fairer sex. However, next time you say to yourself "no one cares about soccer" remember that it took Michael Vick longer to get a new gig after his stint in prison than it took Bruno Fernandes de Souza, and the former was merely an accomplice in the killing of the types of dogs that the latter used to dispose of his ex-girlfriend. I don't mean to compare and contrast the reprehensible, but with how quickly Boa Esporte compromised their morals in hopes of upping their save percentage they basically shamed the shady business practices of the NFL into looking like the upstanding ethics of the PGA Tour.
PFT- The Saints traded receiver Brandin Cooks to the Patriots. In his first media availability as a member of the Patriots, Cooks was asked whether he asked to be traded.
“I didn’t,” Cooks told reporters on Wednesday. “It was a long process. So if we can set this straight, I think a lot of that and what was going on got taken out of context and a little exaggerated, and throughout the process I felt like I had to take the blows and keep my mouth shut, which is fine. It just happened to be a great opportunity for both sides. To be able to build what they want to build and to be sent off to a good team for me I think is a win-win situation. Like I said, the rumors out there and what’s been going on and what’s been told, I don’t let it bother me. I’m just here to play football and that’s what it’s all about.” --- I am going to do something relatively dangerous. I am going to speak on behalf of all Saints fans and say that no one thinks that Brandin Cooks literally "asked" to get traded. As his always the case, there's surely a couple radical outliers that have some vision of him kicking open Sean Payton's door and knocking all the pictures off the wall in his home office before spitting on the ground and saying "I'll never play for you again". Quite obviously, that didn't happen. Unfortunately for the disgruntled wideout that fancied himself a business man when he whined about having no targets during a 28-point rout of the Los Angeles Rams, you can ask to be traded without phrasing it in the form of a question.
I don't know if the Saints had their sights set on moving a game-breaking playmaker - who quickly became a secondary target (shoutout to Michael Thomas #shhhh) - that was soon to be due a huge pay raise. I do know the perception that Brandin Cooks was unhappy came from Brandin Cooks himself, and that's more than likely what had Mickey Loomis' phone ringing off the hook. The subtweeting may have been "out-of-context", but his agent having clients that start at quarterback for the two other teams that ended up losing the bidding war is very much contextually relevant. Simply put, he didn't have to demand a trade to make it very clear that he was looking for one. We will probably never know whether or not his desire to be a number one option mirrored the Saints' plans or if it forced their hand. However, he's the one that publicly said "closed mouthes don't get fed" so he's the one that should open wide and eat his humble pie in an offense that spreads the ball around just as much as the one responsible for helping him achieve back-to-back 1,100 yard seasons. New Orleans - and more specifically Drew Brees - doesn't need Brandin Cooks just like they didn't need Jimmy Graham or the handful of other skill position players that came before him. He's more than likely telling the truth when he says he didn't ask to be traded, but that doesn't mean his actions didn't inevitably lead to that becoming a more and more realistic option. P.S. On to more pressing matters...
Bardown- During the Minnesota Class A state hockey championship this past Saturday, with the score tied 3-3 between the Hermantown Hawks and the Monticello/Annandale/Maple Lake Moose in double overtime, Hermantown junior forward Tyler Watkins found the back of the net and the team went absolutely crazy. Gloves and sticks flew into the air, and helmets sat scattered around the ice, as they piled on each other in the corner to celebrate the victory.
That's when the public address announcer came over the speaker to let the teams know the goal was under review. The players immediately stopped celebrating, and were stuck in hockey purgatory. Sure enough, the goal was overturned. The Hawks had to find their gear, get suited back up, and refocus as double overtime would continue. Unfortunately for the Moose, they wouldn't be able to take advantage of the momentum swing, and the Hawks would win the game and get the opportunity to celebrate for real. --- How about Minnesota high school hockey having goddamn goal reviews that include slo-mo overhead video? I know technology has advanced, but I'm pretty sure the rest of the country is still relying upon the initial eyesight of overweight, under-compensated officials to decide games between teenagers. That's why you really have to hand it to these refs. I don't know if high school coaches can challenge the call on the ice, but if they can't then there's no way I would have upheld my duty to the integrity of the game and made a team full of kids going absolutely apeshit gather up their equipment and line up for the ensuing face-off. No. fucking. thanks. I honestly can't think of one thing I would want to do less than voluntarily make myself the target of a stadium full of crazed hockey parents and their hormonal children by overturning a goal after it had already been celebrated. I don't care if the overtime "hero" booted the goalie in the junk with one foot and used the other foot to blatantly kick the puck in the net. As soon one single kid jumped the bench in ecstasy I would have already been blasting my seat warmers in relief. Officials catch a hell of a lot of flack for their judgement calls, but the dudes that would likely wouldn't hesitate to tell you "I don't get paid enough for this shit" deserve a medal of honor for overturning theirs and making things awkward as fuck in the spirit of fair competition. I don't think you have to ask them twice if they think the right team won...twice. I think what we just learned here is that staring deadpan right through the group of people whose heart you just broke is thee perfect celebration. I don't know if there is a better feeling than silencing a home crowd only to provoke them just seconds later, but if I were a professional athlete I would waste no time in finding out. A kneel and fist pump might be more aesthetically pleasing, but I imagine nothing puts you in a playoff mindset faster than fanning the flames and feeding off the ensuing heat. Other than fact, we got the sobering reminder that there is - indeed - always one. Anyone that has ever been to a sporting event knows exactly who I am talking about. That's right, it's the guy that bitches about everything. I don't even fault the cast of characters that are flipping off the rabble-rousing son of a bitch that went out of his way to add insult to injury during a closely contested playoff game, because that's the type of emotion is relatively acceptable in a 'win or go home' situation. Instinctually trying to get the ref's attention because the big bad hockey player looked at you wrong - on the other hand - is the type of whiney behavior that should be saved for viral videos of children wailing "it's not fair!" when their favorite player skips town. If I were to put words in his mouth I would say he probably blurted out the Russian translation of "you're not gonna call that?!?" which is the most preposterous question that's been asked at a hockey game since my high school girlfriend was applying her makeup at one. If there was some unwritten rule that was broken here it's that this overgrown baby likely didn't rock a belt while wearing some clearly bunched up panties... h/t BarDown
Yahoo- The U.S. women’s national hockey team, which is constantly sparring with Canada for the title of world’s best, will sit out this year’s IIHF World Championship in Plymouth, Michigan, on March 31. The team announced the decision Wednesday, citing stalled negotiations over fair wages.
The team is seeking a contract with USA Hockey that includes fair pay, as well as support for “youth team development, equipment, travel expenses, hotel accommodations, meals, staffing, transportation, marketing, and publicity.” According to ESPN, USA Hockey has traditionally paid women $1,000 a month during the six-month Olympic residency period, and “virtually nothing” during the rest of the four-year period — even though players are expected to play and compete full-time. That means women on the team have to choose between playing for the team and earning a living wage. “Sadly it becomes a decision between chasing your dream or giving in to the reality of the financial burden,” player Jocelyne Lamoureux-Davidson said. “That is the conversation my husband and I are having right now.” ---- You don't have to like this decision (though I don't know why you wouldn't), but you damn sure have to respect it. Obviously the more important storyline is that the proud members of the United States women's hockey team are putting themselves at risk of getting an answer they don't like and having to decide between competing for a pocket change paycheck or missing out on an opportunity to represent their country. I think most hockey players would tell you that nothing sucks more than turning down a chance to play hockey, and these women are potentially doing just that on the most local, inviting, and prestigious of stages. I don't throw the term "courageous" around too often, but standing up for a great cause - possibly at the expense of their passion - is definitely a gutsy move. All that being said, I'm much more interested in the fact that they are using their leverage to their advantage during one of the few instances in which they have it. Let's just face the facts here, womens' sports and hockey isn't the most profitable of combinations so there isn't exactly a perfect time to demand a well deserved raise. The best possible one, however, would be mere weeks before an international competition that is taking place on their home soil. I have to imagine that Hilary Knight and Co. were anxiously awaiting the day in which they could put USA Hockey between a rock and hard place, and those frugal fucks probably feel like they just got stoned on the doorstep. Either they get strong armed into devoting more money into a program of lesser popularity (but far more success), or completely embarrass themselves by lacking representation on home ice in one of the few cities that would embrace it. I'm not saying that this boycott wasn't inevitable with the one of the most decorated womens' teams in the entire world making less money than the people flipping their burgers, but you can bet your ass that it's being taken more seriously because the upcoming tournament is in Michigan and not Tokyo. They participate in what some may consider "a man's sport", but that doesn't mean these women don't possess lady-like qualities like the ability to recognize when they have the upper hand and exploiting the ever-lovin' shit out of it. I'm usually against men getting used for meals, but I appreciate these Patriotic women channeling the American way and exhausting the little leverage at their disposal in an effort to let the big girls eat.
SFGate- Russell Westbrook was puzzled, wondering why the Brooklyn fans roared for a missed shot by the Nets.
“I thought something happened,” Westbrook said. “I was really wondering why they were screaming so loud. I thought that maybe they were giving something out in the crowd or something.” Westbrook had 25 points, 19 assists and 12 rebounds in his 33rd triple-double of the season, and the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Nets ---- As a former New Jersey Nets fan turned Brooklyn Nets fans turned basketball fan that can't bear to invest time or energy into a team who's rebuilding "process" is exponentially less trustworthy than the one that became a league-wide punchline, I can sympathize. Yes, it's pathetic to give a resounding, non-sarcastic cheer for the competition when your team is still in the game. No, I personally wouldn't be getting so loud on behalf of a visiting player that it actually made him think that something more impressive than his own triple-double was simultaneously taking place. Still, I can see why people that shelled out a couple bucks to head to BK looked elsewhere in search of literally anything to root for. I'd love to say that those in attendance were just showing their appreciation for the greatness that is the inevitable completion of a historic feat, but - in reality - it's just a sign of how the Barclay's Center has basically become has a barren wasteland of hopelessness. It doesn't even matter what colors you are wearing anymore. Just do something that gives the fans reason to get on their feet before they develop bed sores and you too can get a standing 'O' in a once proud basketball city. Hell, I bet if a few fans were close enough to having their ass fall asleep then even Bruce Ratner's appearance courtside could elicit a couple claps, and any Nets fan worth his/her salt HATES that fucking snake. It's pitiful to start first quarter MVP chants for a member of the road team, but - factually speaking - it's not as pitiful as the current state of the home team...
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