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Friday, October 18, 2019

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Rockets signing Thon Maker’s younger brother

October 18, 2019
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Brook and Robin Lopez may have some new competition for the best brother duo in the NBA.

Alykhan Bijani of The Athletic reported Thursday that the Houston Rockets are signing Matur Maker, the younger brother of Detroit Pistons big man Thon Maker, to an Exhibit 10 contract.

The 21-year-old Matur, previously an undrafted free agent, spent the last two seasons playing professionally overseas in Switzerland and Slovenia. Like his older brother, Matur was a mixtape phenom in high school, but at 6-foot-10, is a bit shorter than the 7-foot-1 Thon.

While Matur’s averages of 12.9 points, 9.6 rebounds, and 1.1 blocks per game last season in Europe prove that he has potential, it remains to be seen if he can get up like his brother does.

Vancouver crowd chants for Grizzlies during preseason game

October 18, 2019
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Memphis Grizzlies

The Grizzlies left Vancouver, Canada nearly two decades ago, but the local fans still have not forgotten about them.

The city played host to an NBA preseason game on Thursday between the LA Clippers and the Dallas Mavericks. Dwain Price of Mavs.com relayed that the sellout crowd was chanting “We want the Grizzlies” during the fourth quarter.

Vancouver was the original home of the Grizzlies, who joined the NBA as an expansion team in the 1995-96 season before moving to Memphis after the 2000-01 campaign. During those six seasons, they went a miserable 101-359 (.281) but rostered such fan favorites as Mike Bibby, Shareef Abdur-Rahim, and Bryant “Big Country” Reeves.

If it’s any consolation though, the Grizzlies will be bringing back their popular Vancouver jerseys for select games to celebrate their 25th anniversary this season, and it’s safe to say those were pretty interesting-looking uniforms.

Tennessee players do not see Alabama as championship team

October 17, 2019
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Tennessee Vols logo

Alabama may be ranked No. 1 in the country, but that does not mean the Tennessee Volunteers think the Tide is all that.

During ESPN’s coverage of the UCLA-Stanford game on Thursday night, the network’s team previewed Saturday’s game between Bama and Tennessee that will also be televised by ESPN. Molly McGrath shared a nugget of interest while previewing the game.

“I talked to a couple of Tennessee’s players. They’re very confident,” McGrath said. “They said this doesn’t look like an Alabama team that can win a national championship.”

I’m not sure I would run out to call this trash talk from Tennessee. One, they may have told these things to McGrath in confidence, believing she would not share it on national television. Two, shouldn’t this be Tennessee’s attitude entering the game? If they go into it thinking Bama is going to smash them, they’re already beaten. They should be confident ahead of the matchup.

Bama has won two of the last four national championships and beat Tennessee both years. They actually have made the championship game in the other two years, so even if they didn’t win it all. They were pretty close to being at that level. Bama has won 12 straight games against Tennessee.

H/T Stewart Mandel

Patrick Mahomes tweets positive message after knee injury

October 17, 2019
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Patrick Mahomes

Patrick Mahomes tweeted a positive message on Thursday night to allay the concerns of NFL and Kansas City Chiefs fans.

Mahomes, who exited the Chiefs’ 30-6 win over the Denver Broncos in the second quarter with a right knee injury, congratulated his teammates, thanked fans for their support, and said everything looks “good so far!” in a tweet sent after the game.

That’s excellent news.

Mahomes is believed to have dislocated his right kneecap. He reportedly will miss at least three weeks, though the team won’t know more about his status until he undergoes an MRI.

CC Sabathia leaves Game 4 with injury in potential last career appearance

October 17, 2019
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CC Sabathia

CC Sabathia’s final career appearance may have come in Game 4 of the ALCS on Thursday night and ended in injury.

Sabathia made a relief appearance in Game 4 with his team down 7-3 to the Houston Astros. He got two outs, hit a batter, and had George Springer 2-1 before getting hurt. Team trainer Steve Donahue came out for a mound visit and the lefty tried to make one throw. The throw did not go well, so Sabathia left the mound.

Game 5 on Friday is scheduled to be the Yankees’ last home game of the series, making this potentially Sabathia’s last home appearance of his career and possibly the last pitching appearance of his career. This was his second appearance of the postseason.

Sabathia was 5-8 with a 4.95 ERA this season but is one of the most accomplished pitchers of the past two decades.

Report: Patrick Mahomes to miss at least three weeks with knee injury

October 17, 2019
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Patrick Mahomes knee

Patrick Mahomes suffered a right knee injury during the Kansas City Chiefs’ 30-6 romp over the Denver Broncos on Thursday night and is expected to miss at least a few weeks.

Unconfirmed reports have said Mahomes dislocated his right kneecap. The Chiefs will not know the extent of the quarterback’s injury until he undergoes an MRI. For now, ESPN’s Adam Schefter says Mahomes is expected to miss at least three weeks.

Mahomes was 10/11 for 76 yards and a touchdown prior to his injury. The 24-year-old was NFL MVP last season after throwing for 5,097 yards and 50 touchdowns. He had thrown for 14 touchdowns and just one interception through six games this season.

Matt Moore is the team’s backup quarterback and went 10/19 for 117 yards and a touchdown while maintaining the lead over the Broncos. KC is now 5-2 and faces the Packers, Vikings and Titans over its next three games. They don’t have a bye until late November.

Umpire Jeff Nelson released from hospital after suffering concussion in Game 3

October 17, 2019
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Jeff Nelson umpire

Veteran umpire Jeff Nelson was released from a New York hospital after suffering a concussion during Game 3 of this year’s ALCS.

On Tuesday, Nelson was hit in the facemask and on the left shoulder by foul balls. He later left the game and was replaced behind home plate by Kerwin Danley.

Two days later, Nelson is out of the hospital and on his way home to Minnesota according to USA Today’s Bob Nightengale.

Nelson was ruled out for the remainder of the ALCS and has been replaced by Mike Everitt. Although Nelson’s postseason is over, the good news is he will soon be home resting comfortably.

Troy Aikman rips horrific Denver Broncos’ offense

October 17, 2019
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Troy Aikman Jay Z

The Denver Broncos’ offense was horrific against the Kansas City Chiefs on Thursday night, and Troy Aikman called it like he saw it.

After the Broncos barely gained a yard on a 3rd-and-16 in the fourth quarter, Aikman laid into Denver.

“This is about as bad of an offense as I’ve seen. I’m shocked there’s as many people still here at the game!” Aikman said.

Shortly after he said that, the Broncos punted down 27-6. And guess what? Plenty of fans felt similarly to Aikman and realized there was no point to sticking around.

Denver had 190 total yards and was 1/12 on third downs to that point. The Broncos had also lost a fumble.

Denver’s defense is pretty good, but their offense is one of the worst in the league. Quarterback remains a weakness for the club and has been that way since Peyton Manning’s final season.

Astros C Robinson Chirinos has nails painted orange

October 17, 2019
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Robinson Chirinos orange nails

Houston Astros catcher Robinson Chirinos did what he needed to to ensure his pitchers could see his signs on Thursday night during Game 4 of the ALCS at Yankee Stadium.

Chirinos had his finger nails painted in Astros orange, making them visible when he flashed signs. Viewers got a close glimpse of Chirinos’ nails when FS1 showed a replay of the catcher dropping to block a pitch in the dirt.

This is nothing new for Chirinos, who has been doing this for years. Last year he was doing red/pink when with the Texas Rangers.

Many catcher opt for colored tape around their fingers, but some like Chirinos prefer to paint their nails instead. To each their own.

Doctors: Patrick Mahomes suffered dislocated right kneecap

October 17, 2019
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Patrick Mahomes knee

Patrick Mahomes left Thursday night’s Kansas City Chiefs game against the Denver Broncos after suffering a knee injury in the second quarter of the game. The early word from every sports medicine expert who was watching was that Mahomes dislocated his right kneecap.

Trainers could be seen straightening Mahomes’ right leg on the field to pop the kneecap back into place. Medical experts said Mahomes had a right patella dislocation. How much time Mahomes misses will depend on what the MRI on his knee shows.

Mahomes was 10/11 for 76 yards and a touchdown prior to his injury. The 24-year-old was NFL MVP last season after throwing for 5,097 yards and 50 touchdowns. He had thrown for 14 touchdowns and just one interception through six games this season.