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#pounditFriday, March 29, 2024

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Video: Florida State hosts recruits minutes after dead period ends

Mike Norvell

Florida State wasted no time with its recruiting the moment they had a chance.

The Seminoles football team opened its doors at midnight on June 1 to recruits. They invited their recruits to the Moore Athletic Center for the first permitted face-to-face contact with recruits since March 2020.

FSU head coach Mike Norvell and his staffers greeted the recruits who showed up to their “Midnight Madness” event:

Much like a typical college basketball “Midnight Madness” event, this one included the coach riding around on a special car.

Norvell went 3-6 last season, which was his first as FSU’s head coach. He and FSU are hoping that this kind of energy on the recruiting trail will translate to a better record.

Opinion: Naomi Osaka suffering from Ronda Rousey Disease

Naomi Osaka

Naomi Osaka announced on Monday that she was withdrawing from the French Open following a controversy over her media boycott. The 23-year-old tennis star sparked a debate last week when she announced on Wednesday that she would not be fulfilling her media obligations at the French Open. She cited her social anxiety and the need to protect her mental health as the reason for her decision, knowing she would be facing fines for her choice.

The grand slam tennis tournaments, including the French Open threatened Osaka with greater discipline beyond an initial fine, such as disqualification. They said they tried to reach out to Osaka to discuss her particular issues, but she did not respond. The matter was resolved when Osaka withdrew prior to her second-round match at Roland Garros.

Osaka shared in her announcement Monday that dealing with the media gives her anxiety.

Withdrawing from the tournament was probably the best outcome given the situation. Osaka should not be excused from her media obligations when every other player is forced to conduct press conferences. And if the press conferences cause her so much anxiety that she was refusing to do them, then it’s probably best for her health to step away from tennis to recover.

I have zero doubts about the legitimacy or seriousness of Osaka’s issues. But it is my opinion that Osaka’s anxiety regarding the media is the manifestation of a different problem, one that she needs to address, and one that is not a media issue.

It is my opinion that Osaka is suffering from an issue that was so visible with recent champion Ronda Rousey that I have called it “Ronda Rousey Disease.”

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Wizards embarrass Ben Simmons with free throw strategy

Ben Simmons

The Washington Wizards picked on Ben Simmons towards the end of Game 4 of their first-round playoff series with the Philadelphia 76ers on Monday night.

Simmons entered Game 4 of the series 0-for-9 from the free throw line. So with the game tied at 108 and under three minutes remaining, the Wizards tried to exploit that Simmons weakness. They sent him to the free throw line four times over the final three minutes of the game. Simmons split his free throws for each trip, going 4-for-8. He was 5-of-11 overall at the line during the game.

The Wizards went from being tied 108-108 with Philly to winning the game 122-114. It’s hard to argue the strategy didn’t pay off, though Doc Rivers felt otherwise.

There is no way Rivers can really feel that way. He’s probably working hard to try and keep Simmons’ confidence intact, because getting the “Hack-a-Shaq” treatment has to be embarrassing for a guard. This also isn’t new for Simmons, who has faced questions about his shooting for a while.

Rich Paul believes Bill Simmons’ criticism of ‘The Decision’ was racist

LeBron James

LeBron James has now gone 11 years, three teams, and four NBA titles since his infamous “The Decision” special in 2010. But Rich Paul still has not forgotten about one particular criticism that James received during that whole saga.

Paul, James’ agent, was featured in a profile for The New Yorker this week. In it, Paul said that he still has not forgiven The Ringer CEO Bill Simmons for the comments that Simmons made about James at the time.

The interview cites a column that Simmons, who was then with ESPN, wrote. The column came in response to “The Decision,” James’ national television spectacle announcing that he was leaving the Cleveland Cavaliers to sign with the Miami Heat.

“I blame the people around him. I blame the lack of a father figure in his life,” Simmons wrote. “I blame us for feeding his narcissism to the point that he referred to himself in the third person five times in forty-five minutes. I blame local and national writers (including myself) for apparently not doing a good enough job explaining to athletes like LeBron what sports mean to us, and how it IS a marriage, for better and worse, and that we’re much more attached to these players and teams than they realize.”

Paul made clear in the interview that he still did not appreciate the remarks.

“That’s why I don’t speak to Bill Simmons,” said Paul. “A lot of that has to do with race too. He wouldn’t have said that about Larry Bird. He wouldn’t have said that about JJ Redick. You get what I am saying? ‘The Decision’ ten years ago is the norm today. It’s what everyone wants to do. Kids won’t even decide where they go to college without it being a big production. And Bill Simmons says some s— like that.”

James himself felt very similarly about another criticism that was levied his way for “The Decision” — Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert’s notorious open letter to the team’s fans. The four-time MVP would later say that he thought Gilbert’s letter had racial undertones.

As for Simmons, he has had plenty of feuds with prominent NBA figures, even as recently as this season. Now we know Paul is on that list as well.

Wizards pressing charges against fan who tried to run onto court

Wizards fan court

The Washington Wizards are pursuing charges against a fan who tried to run onto the court during Game 4 of their playoff series with the Philadelphia 76ers on Monday night.

Monumental Sports & Entertainment, which is the company Wizards owner Ted Leonsis owns and founded, issued a statement on Twitter Sunday about the situation.

“Monumental Sports & Entertainment has a zero tolerance policy when fans violate our code of conduct at Capital One Arena,” the company said. “During this evening’s game, a fan was apprehended by Capital One Arena Special Police after attempting to breach the court. He will be banned from the arena and charges are being pursued with DC MPD.”

Late in the third quarter of Game 4, a fan was tackled by security trying to run onto the court.

The game was in play at the time of the incident. There was a delay in the action as a result of the fan.

This is part of the latest trend of fan incidents at NBA playoff games. On Sunday night, a fan threw a water bottle at Kyrie Irving. Russell Westbrook had to be restrained after a fan dumped popcorn on him in Game 2 in Philadelphia. A Knicks fan spit on Trae Young at Madison Square Garden. The Utah Jazz also banned three fans for alleged racist remarks directed at Ja Morant’s family.

Knicks’ Immanuel Quickley says he was also target of fan incident at MSG

Immanuel Quickley

Unruly fan behavior continues to be a dominant theme of the first round of the NBA playoffs. Now New York Knicks rookie Immanuel Quickley is adding his story to the mix as well.

Quickley told reporters Monday that a beer was thrown at him during Game 2 of his team’s series against the Atlanta Hawks at Madison Square Garden.

“Not sure why, not even sure who did it, but it happened,” said Quickley, per Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News. “I guess that’s part of having fans in the game.”

It is unclear if the beer was thrown by a home fan or an away fan. Quickley did have a subpar Game 2, finishing with four points on 2-for-9 shooting from the field (though the Knicks won the game).

Quickley’s comments come in the aftermath of a Boston Celtics fan throwing a water bottle at Brooklyn Nets guard Kyrie Irving on Sunday. The fan was arrested and is now facing a felony charge for the incident. Game 2 of the Knicks-Hawks series also saw another fan spit on Atlanta guard Trae Young, an offense that the fan was banned indefinitely for.

The NBA has already said that they are enforcing “an enhanced fan code of conduct” in response to the incidents.

Joel Embiid goes to locker room after suffering hard fall

Joel Embiid

The Philadelphia 76ers dealt with a big injury scare Monday night when center Joel Embiid went to the locker room late in the first quarter.

Embiid fell hard on his back after driving to the basket in the first quarter and seemed to be feeling it after the fall. He remained in the game at the time, but then was seen heading to the locker room late in the first quarter.

There didn’t seem to be an enormous amount of concern about Embiid’s status, but anything is scary for Philadelphia at this point. They’re up 3-0 against the Washington Wizards, and they would hate to lose a key player finishing off a series they were likely to win no matter what.

This isn’t the first injury scare Embiid has suffered this season. For the Sixers’ sake, hopefully it’s nothing serious and purely precautionary.

This team is reportedly viewed as the frontrunner for Julio Jones

Julio Jones

It does not appear that things are any closer to a Julio Jones trade, but there does appear to be an emerging frontrunner within NFL circles.

According to Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk, the Tennessee Titans are viewed within the game as the most likely trade destination for Jones. The belief is that the Titans will ultimately be able to part with a second-round pick to land Jones, though the Falcons have been steadfast in demanding a first-round selection. That reflects the reality that the Falcons will likely have to lower their asking price if they expect another team to take on Jones’ entire contract and open up the cap space that Atlanta desperately needs.

Florio does add that the New England Patriots should not be ruled out, as the organization likes to work quietly and could have something being worked on in the background. However, at the moment, it does not appear they are the leading contender.

Jones remains elite when healthy, and if he can stay on the field, he and A.J. Brown could form a lethal combination if he went to Tennessee. Brown would definitely welcome that, which may make it an even better fit.

Photo: Lisa Ferdinando/U.S. Secretary of Defense via CC-BY 2.0

Jameson Taillon shades Yankees for lack of run support

Jameson Taillon

New York Yankees pitcher Jameson Taillon is clearly frustrated with the lack of run support he’s getting from his offense.

The Yankees lost 3-1 to the Tampa Bay Rays on Monday, marking the sixth time in the last seven games the team’s offense has failed to score more than two runs. That’s been a problem all year for New York, as they came into Monday’s game 12th in the AL in runs scored.

Unable to hide his frustration, Taillon admitted after the game that it would be nice to be able to pitch with a lead instead of trying to hold off the opposing offense to allow the Yankees to come from behind.

Taillon has received three runs of support or fewer in six of his ten starts. That said, he’s only gone beyond five innings once this season as he works his way back from arm surgery, so he hasn’t been going deep into games at all. He hasn’t been all that great either, posting a 5.10 ERA so far.

Taillon likely didn’t mean anything by the comment, but it might not go over well among the hitters. It’s not as if they’re not trying to score runs when Taillon is on the mound, and he’s not the only Yankee pitcher who has dealt with the issue. Taillon has had issues with his previous organization as well, so this may just be how he vents.

Frank Vogel hints at expanded role for LeBron James without Anthony Davis

LeBron James

The Los Angeles Lakers are facing the possibility of having to win a pivotal Game 5 on the road without Anthony Davis. That means LeBron James would almost certainly have to step up in a big way.

When asked Monday about the possibility of James taking on a bigger load in Game 5 with the potential of Davis not playing, coach Frank Vogel hinted that James may see his minutes stretched out. He also added, however, that keeping James fresh for crunch time was a major consideration.

The Lakers have been careful about managing James’ minutes in the first four games of the series. He topped out at 39 minutes in Game 2, and he has yet to break the 40-minute barrier this postseason. That might have to change to prevent the Lakers from falling into a 3-2 hole if Davis isn’t good to go in Game 5.

James battled an ankle injury for the latter part of the season, which also has to be taken into account here. That said, he’s downplayed those concerns, and he’d probably want to be on the court as much as possible with the Lakers in the position they’re in.