Thursday Sports Notes

I had a couple quick-ish sports thoughts to share today. And then last night’s game four of the NBA Finals required over 1000 words…

NBA Finals

HOLY SHIT!!!!! ☠️☠️☠️

The Spurs did everything they were supposed to do to even the series before heading home for game five. They weathered a big Knicks comeback in game three to grab their first win of the series. Last night in game four, they were crushing the Knicks. New York looked lifeless and completely beaten. Madison Square Garden was a morgue as the Spurs extended their lead to 29 just before halftime. It was turning into one of the most dramatic shifts of momentum in postseason history.

San Antonio was up 27 at halftime. This game was ovah, in every possible way. The brash young Spurs were going home with the series tied and having snatched the souls of the Knicks in the process.

The Knicks chopped 12 points off the lead in the third quarter which, honestly, was totally expected. I still felt good about the Spurs chances.

Then San Antonio spent the entire fourth quarter crapping all over themselves. They somehow lost the lead with around a minute to play. I knew the Knicks, especially at home, were capable of making this a game. But this??? Hell no. No way. Like 15 steps beyond unbelievable.

Stephon Castle hit two free throws to put the Spurs up one with 30 seconds left. Jalen Brunson missed a shot that produced a long rebound that was tipped out for De’Aron Fox to grab as he raced up court. All he had to do was keep dribbling and kill clock before he got fouled, and he’d have a chance to extend the lead from the line and leave the Knicks only a couple of seconds to tie it.

However, his trajectory was taking him towards the basket. Fox is very fast. I get why he decided to attempt a layup. But he should have seen OG Anunoby a half step behind him and understood the best move was to either pull the ball out to the corner to burn some clock before the Knicks fouled him, or keep dribbling through the lane and then either hit a cutter behind Anunoby or keep the ball as long as he could to burn those precious seconds off.

But no. Fox decided, while playing on a bad ankle, to challenge Anunoby, one of the best one-on-one defenders in the league. A man who has blocked Victor Wembanyama multiple times this series.

It went about as you would expect: Anunoby swallowed up Fox’s shot.

But the Knicks still needed at least one point.

After an inbounds pass, Brunson took what I thought was a terrible shot, pulling up from 40 feet with over three seconds left. The Spurs had doubled him with Wembanyama, but Wemby was a step back and got bumped by a teammate so couldn’t get real pressure on the shot.

What happened next was beyond what you would expect from a movie ending. Brunson did not hit the shot, which is what happens in the movie since he is Knicks Hero Boy #1. But he did catch a lot of the front of the rim. And with Wemby 40 feet from the basket there were no Spurs to control the rebound. Anunoby came racing in from the sideline and got enough of a hand on the carom to tip it home.[1]

Un-BLEEPING-believable. Knicks up one with 1.7 left.

The Spurs are young and brash and anchored by a three of the most irrationally confident young players I’ve ever seen. But they had no chance on the final play. The inbounds pass was tipped, Castle grabbed the loose ball and couldn’t get a shot up or draw a foul before the final buzzer.

To paraphrase Jack Buck, I couldn’t believe what I just saw.

That might be the most insane comeback I have ever watched. KU coming back from 15 in the national championship game? Nah, KU erased all that lead in about 10 minutes and the final 10 minutes were just a normal, tight game. The Colts comeback against the Chiefs in the playoffs? Well, I famously didn’t watch that. While there are some common elements there – Andy Reid’s horrific coaching was akin to the Spurs coaches making some awful choices – an NFL Wild Card round game does not have the same gravity as an NBA Finals game. Neither the Colts nor the Chiefs were going to make the Super Bowl, anyway. And this seems beyond even the Falcons choking away a 28–3 lead in the Super Bowl. There was a flukey quality to that Atlanta lead where last night San Antonio was demonstrably the far better team in the first 24 minutes.

Nope, this is the absolute pinnacle for unfathomable comebacks, for most epic of chokejobs, as an example that coaches will use forever when telling their teams the game isn’t over because the score is lopsided at halftime.

The Spurs just handed the Knicks the NBA title with a freaking game for the ages that we’re going to have to listen to Knicks fans brag about forever.

A lot of us have given Chet Holmgren a ton of shit about how he basically disappeared in the western conference finals. Does the entire Spurs team deserve that treatment after game four? Fair question.

There is a belief in sports that you should not deviate from how you built a big lead. Even if you cool off – no way could the Spurs keep shoot 60% for the entire game – you keep running your stuff. Even with a regression to the norm, you continue with what worked and figure if you lead by 30, even a cold second half gets you the win.

But, man, the Spurs played like the team trailing by double figures in the second half. Soooooo many super early, super rushed 3’s. So much dribbling into triple teams and losing the ball, or throwing wild passes out of double teams to no one. Wemby looking gassed in the last five minutes and missing not only bad 3’s, but two massive free throws.

Here’s a thought: if you are head coach Mitch Johnson, maybe suggest the team slow it down a little. Make a few passes before launching a 3. If you get an offensive rebound off a 3 you don’t have to immediately chuck another 3. I would be a terrible owner because I would have fired Johnson before he got out of MSG last night.

These Spurs are different, so I expect them to win game five and then the Knicks will close them out at home in MSG. But I’m kind of hoping they do come out shellshocked Saturday and New York walks off the court as champs. Not because I’m mad at the Spurs or have switched allegiances, but because I will be at a concert Saturday night and won’t be able to watch. Hell, I might not watch game six if the Spurs extend the series because I don’t want to witness the Knicks finally getting the banner they’ve been chasing nearly my entire life.

That Gambling Life And The Death Of College Sports

A judge in Texas ruled that Texas Tech quarterback Brendan Sorsby will be eligible to play this coming season. This after he had been declared ineligible for violating NCAA gambling rules. Sorsby admitted to betting on IU more than 40 times during his two years in Bloomington, amongst many other bets on college football. The NCAA has concrete rules about this, and losing his privilege to play seemed like a clear and appropriate response. For once I’m on the NCAA’s side.

The overturning of the Sorsby ban is just the latest sign that the organization has zero power anymore. Worse, it is a clear indication that college sports are irrevocably broken. On a broader scale, his case is yet another example of how if you find the right attorneys and judge, you no longer have to face consequences for your actions in this country. Just say the rules are unfair and are denying you an opportunity to make money, and some judge who thinks any restrictions on free will (at least for white men) are illegal will rule in your favor.

Sorsby says he has a gambling addiction and has sought treatment. Fair and good on him if true. But he still broke rules that he was aware of, and that student athletes are informed of when they arrive on campus. He does not have a right to play college sports. His career should be over.

By allowing Sorsby to play, this judge sent a message to every college athlete that they are free to gamble as much as they want, as often as they want, even on games in which they participate. Don’t worry if the NCAA says you are putting your eligibility in question; we’ll provide an injunction that keeps you on the court/field if you get caught.

Call me old fashioned but this seems bad. Really, really bad.

One more indicator of doom: this shows how runaway big money is changing college sports. If this was a no-name player at a MAC school, the story would be much different. But this was the #1 player in the transfer portal, going to a school that was in the CFP last year, at a program that is bankrolled by a ridiculous group of oil billionaires who are spending like drunken idiots to turn Tech into a power. Ironically, all while Tech is at the forefront of the movement to “save” college sports through reining in how much NIL players can collect. I had no real dog in the fight but I was openly rooting for Texas in the women’s college world series vs Tech just because the Red Raiders as a whole embody all that is wrong with college sports. And I never root for Texas. I feel dirty.

I may have to reluctantly agree with all the head-in-the-sanders at the old NCAA who insisted for years that college athletes should not be paid. Ever since NIL was introduced it has made college sports progressively worse, often in completely unintended ways. Broadly, it is good that players are getting paid. But nothing else about the experience is broadly good for the industry.

There’s no putting the genie back in the bottle at this point. Maybe limits will be placed on transfers, so you can keep at least some players from year-to-year. Maybe there will be some restrictions placed on NIL so that it isn’t naked pay-for-play and there’s some a baseline all schools can operate from. But there won’t be any comprehensive plan that addresses all issues.

And, as the Sorsby case has shown, if you don’t like the rules, you just ask the billionaires funding your program to find a sympathetic judge and you can be given clearance to ignore anything that might keep your best player out of games.

USWNT vs Brazil

Somehow the third most shocking thing of the week was the insane US-Brazil women’s soccer game Tuesday night. I only turned it on because there was severe weather here and after the tornadoes passed I saw this game as an option to watch.

I turned the game on midway through the second half, just before the US took a 1–0 lead. That was when the fun started.

Moments later two of the Brazil coaches were ejected by the referee. The head coach threw a tantrum and took several minutes to leave the field, dismissively and disrespectfully taking his jacket off and throwing it over the shoulder of a female referee’s assistant as he finally exited. The Brazilians were already bitching about every call, but these red cards sent them to another level. Every call, or non-call, was protested with gusto. Hands were waved. Fingers were shook. Voices were raised. They were taking hard fouls on the US players and getting away with them. Until another red card came, this time for a Brazilian who had been warned previously. There was a flop by the US player the embellish, but the Brazilian clearly had it coming.

More histrionics and refusing to leave and general jack-assery.

A few minutes later a Brazilian player intentionally elbowed an American in the face. WHILE SHE HAD THE BALL, so there was no missing it. Another red card. More utter nonsense from the Brazilians.

C was watching with me and cackling in disbelief at what was happening.

Brazilian legend Marta came on as a late substitute and got away with just a yellow after a brutal foul. Given how things were going she was lucky not to get a red.

Finally the game ended with a 1–0 US win, three days after losing to the Brazilians 2–1. The US should have won 3–0 or 4–0, but were both unlucky and the Brazilian goalie played out of her mind.

Oh, I said the game was over? Well, the final whistle had blown but the Brazilians were not done. And the Spanish referee had had enough. Two Brazilian players approached her shouting. When they were pushed back they both sarcastically applauded the ref with both arms up in the air. Two more red cards! More arguing and yelling. Two more Brazilian coaches were shown red cards.

(BTW, I love that refs can still hand out red cards after the game is over. Need to bring that to US sports. Bitch when the game is over? You’re starting the next game with a foul, penalty, etc.)

In all there were eight red cards, EIGHT. Along with plenty of yellow cards.

Props to the one Brazilian player who was trying her best to get her teammates off the damn field before more damage was done, and then with some clear embarrassment on her face, did the obligatory shaking of the referee’s and assistants’ hands.

This game was hilarious to watch, but also terrible. The Brazilians collectively lost their minds and were playing dangerous soccer. Actually they weren’t even playing soccer. They were just complaining about everything then occasionally tee-ing off on American players. The US was lucky not to pick up a major injury. With five minutes left in the game I told C if this had been a summer league basketball game, the ref would have blown the whistle, said they were done with this nonsense, and sent everyone home.

These two games were previews for next year’s World Cup in Brazil. If every game is like this, it might set TV viewing records!