NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell speaks with the media. Photo Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
One unwanted subplot of Super Bowl LVII involved the quality of the turf at State Farm Stadium. While there is no conclusive answer regarding what the issue was, the NFL apparently is trying to use one excuse to downplay the issue.
Owners have asked the league about the field, and the response has been to blame players for not wearing the right shoes, according to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. That excuse comes despite the fact that a number of players on both teams tried different shoes during the game, and none of it seemed to make much of a difference.
Whether anyone believes the NFL’s explanation is a question of its own. Reports at the time suggested the already-slick painted turf got worse after the halftime show. The field also got scathing reviews from Chiefs and Eagles players alike.
The amount of slipping during the game was highly unusual, and players obviously noticed. The shoes almost certainly had nothing to do with any of it.
BYU was very excited to show off its new football field as the school prepares for its first season as a member of the Big 12. Unfortunately for them, they made one little mistake that quickly got roasted on social media.
The Cougars shared an overhead photo of their newly-painted football field on Twitter Friday, making note of the “new conference” aspect. Sure enough, the Big 12 logo featured prominently near the hashmarks. There was just one problem: one of the logos was painted at the 25-yard line, while the opposite one was on the 15-yard line, making things very asymmetrical.
The school actually confirmed in the replies that this was a mistake, not some sort of intentional design choice.
Naturally, BYU’s mistake quickly became social media fodder.
Presumably, BYU will get this fixed before their Sept. 2 home opener. It could have been worse, too: at least it wasn’t the midfield logo. That would have been much sillier.
Nov 30, 2022; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers coach Darvin Ham at a press conference during the game against the Portland Trail Blazers at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
The Los Angeles Lakers added a nice piece in free agency by agreeing to a deal with Gabe Vincent. They also retained D’Angelo Russell and Austin Reaves, though they lost Dennis Schroder to the Toronto Raptors and Lonnie Walker to the Brooklyn Nets.
The Lakers will be bringing back some quality players in Russell and Reaves, but that doesn’t mean Vincent will necessarily be coming off the bench.
The Athletic’s Jovan Buha published a piece where he analyzed the Lakers’ roster in response to the first few days of free agency. Though he reported that Russell is the favorite to start at point guard for the Lakers, Buha noted that Vincent would have a chance to earn the starting job.
Vincent got a three-year, $33 million deal with the Lakers. Though that’s not huge money, it shows the Lakers see Vincent as an important rotation player at minimum.
The 27-year-old guard started 34 games last season for the Miami Heat while appearing in 68 contests overall. He averaged 9.4 points and 2.5 assists per game. Vincent picked up his game during the Heat’s NBA Finals run, averaging 12.7 points and 3.5 assists per game. At minimum, Vincent gives the Lakers some nice flexibility.
Apr 5, 2022; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Austin Reaves (15) against the Phoenix Suns at Footprint Center. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Austin Reaves got his payday from the Los Angeles Lakers, and now the Lakers will be trying to get their money’s worth out of that payday.
Jovan Buha of The Athletic wrote Monday that the Lakers plan to run more of their offense through Reaves next year. Buha adds that the Lakers would like to unlock more of the point guard skills that the 6-foot-5 Reaves has displayed during his first two seasons in the NBA.
Reaves just returned to the Lakers on a four-year, $56 million deal, which was the maximum that the team could offer straight up (without having to match an outside offer sheet for Reaves). But it might actually be below market value for a player like Reaves, a versatile 25-year-old who has few weaknesses in his game and is coming off a strong postseason showing.
When it comes to the Lakers’ vision, Reaves is indeed a talented ball-handler who can beat defenders off the bounce with his craftiness and make the right pass to the open man (often in very tight windows). Increased playmaking duties for Reaves would alleviate the burden on LeBron James and Anthony Davis in the halfcourt. The Lakers also brought in another guy in free agency who can help in that regard.
Dec 15, 2018; Denver, CO, USA; Former Denver Broncos player Peyton Manning before the game against the Cleveland Browns at Broncos Stadium at Mile High. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports
Peyton Manning’s former teams like to seek his counsel on big football decisions, so it is no surprise he had a bit of advance notice of the Denver Broncos’ pursuit and hire of Sean Payton as head coach.
Manning spoke to the media Friday at the Manning Academy’s media day and admitted that he was well aware that Payton was going to land with the Broncos before the hire was announced. The former quarterback added he had been “all in” on the coach when the Broncos sought his opinion.
“The Walton family and George Paton (Denver general manager) and I have a good relationship,” Manning said, via Glenn Guilbeau of OutKick. “So, yeah, I certainly was all in on Sean.”
“I could tell he wanted to get back in it. I could tell he was looking for a committed organization and ownership that gave him the great support that he got here in New Orleans from the Benson family. I think he definitely found that with the Broncos’ new ownership. They’re going to give him what he needs and what he wants. The thing about Sean is that he knows exactly what he wants and needs.”
Reports at the time of Payton’s hiring suggested he was not necessarily Denver’s first choice. Perhaps that was never true in the mind of Manning, and his endorsement probably did not hurt Payton’s candidacy at all.
Feb 25, 2022; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Philadelphia 76ers guard James Harden (1) brings the ball up court against the Minnesota Timberwolves in the first quarter at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Bruce Kluckhohn-USA TODAY Sports
James Harden opted into his contract with the Philadelphia 76ers only to demand a trade, but the team has reportedly not quite given up on bringing the former MVP back for at least another season.
On the latest episode of his “Brian Windhorst & The Hoop Collective” podcast, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said the 76ers can envision a scenario where Harden remains with the team. There is apparently a belief among some that the two sides may have simply been frustrated with one another over contract negotiations.
“One, the Sixers are not afraid to let it be known that they don’t think necessarily it’s over with James Harden, that maybe everybody was just a little bit in their feelings,” Windhorst said, as transcribed by HoopsHype. “And a little bit fired up about the state of the negotiations on Thursday, and Harden very angrily picked up his option, that it may not be over that.”
It is possible, of course, that the Sixers want interested teams to believe Philadelphia would be content to keep Harden. Daryl Morey handled the Ben Simmons trade talks similarly, and we all saw how long those dragged out.
The 76ers almost certainly wanted to re-sign Harden at a discounted price. They likely believed Harden would not receive max offers if he hit free agency, and the 33-year-old must have agreed. Only teams with sufficient salary cap space would have been able to add Harden if he became a free agent. He now needs the Sixers to cooperate with a trade, however, and there have been reports that they are taking a hard stance.
Superstars in today’s NBA typically get their way when they want to be traded. That does not mean it would be impossible for Harden and the 76ers to smooth things over.
Mar 30, 2016; Milwaukee, WI, USA; The Milwaukee Bucks logo on the floor prior to the game against the Phoenix Suns at BMO Harris Bradley Center. Milwaukee won 105-94. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports
Milwaukee is trying its very best to dethrone Philadelphia as the City of Brotherly Love.
Shams Charania of The Athletic reports Monday that the Bucks are signing veteran big Robin Lopez in free agency. The news comes after Robin’s twin brother Brook Lopez returned to Milwaukee on a two-year, $48 million contract just days ago.
The Lopez twins already played together on the Bucks during the 2019-20 season. Brook has stayed on the team since then while Robin went on to play for the Washington Wizards, Orlando Magic, and Cleveland Cavaliers after the one season in Milwaukee with his brother.
Though Brook is the Bucks’ starting center (as well as an All-Defensive First Teamer last season), Robin is a seldom-used depth piece at this point (3.0 points in 8.1 minutes per game for Cleveland in 2022-23). Nevertheless, with how hilarious these two siblings are together, Milwaukee’s signing definitely passes the vibe check.
Mar 28, 2019; Kansas City, MO, United States; Kentucky Wildcats head coach John Calipari speaks during a press conference for the midwest regional of the 2019 NCAA Tournament at Sprint Center. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports
John Calipari’s son Brad will be coaching against his father in the SEC next season.
Brad Calipari is joining Jerry Stackhouse’s Vanderbilt staff in a player development role, according to Kyle Tucker of The Athletic.
Brad spent time as an assistant at LIU Brooklyn, and got his start in coaching as a graduate assistant on his father’s staff two years ago.
Brad also played under his dad at Kentucky from 2017-2019 before transferring to play two seasons at Detroit.
John Calipari probably won’t love his son being on a rival’s sideline, but he was pretty relaxed about his decision to transfer as a player. Of course, if Vandy manages to upend Kentucky in one of their meetings this season, dad might never hear the end of it.
Dec 23, 2022; Sacramento, California, USA; Sacramento Kings power forward Domantas Sabonis (10) smiles after a play against the Washington Wizards during the second quarter at Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports
The Sacramento Kings will be sporting a new look during the upcoming NBA season.
On Friday, the Kings dropped a promo video in which Domantas Sabonis and De’Aaron Fox unveiled the team’s new uniforms.
Kings President of Business Operations John Rinehart said the goal was to design “a new collection of uniforms that salutes the team’s origins while celebrating the organization’s future.” You can see some more photos below:
Sacramento’s previous uniforms featured more block-style lettering that looked modern. The Kings also wanted to return to black as their primary color with purple as an accent.
The Kings are hoping the new uniforms will help change their luck. They took a step in the right direction last season when they snapped a 16-year playoff drought, but they lost to the Golden State Warriors in the first round. Perhaps the new threads will signal the start of a new, more successful era.
May 18, 2022; San Francisco, California, USA; Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green (23) before game one of the 2022 western conference finals against the Dallas Mavericks at Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-USA TODAY Sports
Now that Draymond Green has agreed to return to the Golden State Warriors, he can look forward to playing with new addition Chris Paul.
Green is bullish about what Paul will bring to the Warriors, particularly in terms of what the point guard can do to unlock other players. In an appearance on Paul George’s “Podcast P,” Green predicted that Paul’s arrival would mean great things for Jonathan Kuminga.
“Our team last year didn’t have a variety of ways that we could score, and I think CP adds another thing to the menu,” Green said. “But I’ll tell you one more thing that I think it unlocks, and I actually look forward to learning this from him. I think Chris Paul will completely unlock Jonathan Kuminga and his growth. CP is great with young guys. Deandre Ayton looked like a bust before CP came to Phoenix. No disrespect to Ayton, but moreso a nod to CP. What he will do for Jonathan Kuminga and unlocking Kuminga is huge.”
The Warriors made Kuminga the No. 7 pick in the 2021 NBA Draft, though he has held a fairly limited role for the team in his first two seasons. There had even been talk in the offseason that he might be a trade candidate, though that may be less likely now.
Paul is more of a true point guard than Stephen Curry is, and Green is obviously looking forward to this dynamic. He clearly wants to see a step forward from Kuminga, too.
