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By Marc Lawrence
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Thursday, Feb 26 |
And Down Goes The Beard
Bringing James Harden in has been a major boost for the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The Cavs are 6-1 since the blockbuster deal that sent Darius Garland and a second-round pick to the Clippers in exchange for the 11-time All-Star. But a recent hand injury is starting to cast some doubt on how the team might finish down the stretch.
Fresh off of a 20-point performance in Tuesday’s night’s 109-94 win over the New York Knicks, Harden reportedly sustained a fracture on his shooting thumb that could put his status in question moving forward.
“Bringing James on has given us a renewed confidence, if that makes sense. We understand we’re a better team,” head coach Kenny Atkinson admitted. “That spirit, that confidence for some strange reason, it makes you play harder, compete harder, compete harder defensively.”
“I felt like we were kind of missing that edge, that belief. I feel like we’re regaining that,” he said. “A lot of it has to do with who we added in the trade.”
The sooner Harden can get back on the court, the better for the Cavs. In his seven games with the team, he’s averaging 18.9 points per game with 8.0 assists and 4.6 rebounds on 49% shooting.
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ON TODAY'S SCORECARD
Back on the Ice
After a 19-day break for the Winter Olympics, the NHL resumed play last night with 8 games on the agenda.
Eastern Conference: Parity, or "competitive balance," as commissioner Gary Bettman calls it, is alive and well this season. That's especially true in the East, where 15 of 16 teams had a points percentage over .500. Get it together, Rangers! You're ruining the whole vibe.
Western Conference: The West is home to the Stanley Cup favorites (Avalanche) and three of the top four Hart Trophy contenders in Colorado's Nathan MacKinnon (-225 at BetMGM), San Jose's Macklin Celebrini (+325) and Edmonton's Connor McDavid (+850). The only other serious contender is Tampa Bay's Nikita Kucherov (+550). |
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GRINDING OUT THE PROFITS
Elevator Up
W KENTUCKY over New Mexico St by 13
A dearth of quality games on tonight’s card forces us into Conference USA for this matchup of 16-11 / 9-7 Hilltoppers hosting the 13-13 / 6-10 Aggies in a battle of two teams headed in opposite directions. Western Kentucky rides a recent four-game win streak. They have virtually no chance of catching CUSA leader 23-4 / 15-1 Liberty, but they sit just two games back of second-place Sam Houston. Revenge from an 80-64 loss in Las Cruces – their worst defeat of the season – sets the tone tonight. A sharp 9-3 ATS mark in games with same-season revenge from a loss of 16 or more points seals the deal. As Nike would tell you … Just Do It.
This preview was extracted from the current issue of the PLAYBOOK Hoops Newsletter. Click here to download a copy now.
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BETCHA DIDN’T KNOW
Starting Over
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The Colts have a decision to make when it comes to the future of former No. 4 pick Anthony Richardson.
In 2023, Richardson was drafted to be the quarterback of the future in Indianapolis, but injuries have derailed his career since then. He’s been the subject of trade rumors this offseason, as many feel he’s in need of a fresh start elsewhere as Indianapolis is expected to roll with Daniel Jones as its quarterback going forward. But general manager Chris Ballard indicated that a Richardson trade isn’t a sure thing when speaking to reporters on Tuesday.
“I’m not gonna say he needs a complete fresh start. Anthony’s still young. He’s still developing. So, we’ll see what the future holds. I still believe in Anthony,” Ballard said at his NFL combine press conference.
In his first three years in the NFL, Richardson has played in just 17 games. His rookie season was cut short after just four games when he sustained a Grade 3 AC joint sprain in his throwing shoulder. In year two, Richardson made 11 starts but dealt with various injuries throughout the year and was also briefly benched in favor of Joe Flacco. Last season, Richardson was the backup behind Jones before a freak accident with a workout band ended his season. Richardson suffered an orbital fracture which required season-ending surgery.
Yet somehow, despite all those setbacks, Ballard still thinks highly of Richardson, and didn’t rule out the possibility of him continuing his career with the Colts.
It sounds a lot like GM speak to us. |
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TRENDING TODAY
Maz Resides on Mount Rushmore |
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In the wake of Pirates legend and Hall of famers Bill Mazeroski's recent passing, it was prudent to honor his iconic World Series walk-off with its rightful place on the Mount Rushmore of MLB home runs.
The top four: Per Sports Yahoo, Maz's World Series clincher sits alongside three other homers that, in our humble opinion, represent the most iconic in the game's 150-year history.
Note: Be sure to click the links to take a trip down memory lane and watch them all, especially No. 5 Kirk Gibson’s “hobbled heroics” ...
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Bill Mazeroski (1960): World Series, Game 7 … The first walk-off homer to win the Fall Classic, and still the only one to come in Game 7, gave the Pirates their first championship in 35 years. The light-hitting second baseman went on to make the Hall of Fame for his glove, but will always be remembered for his blast against Yankees reliever Ralph Terry.
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Bobby Thomson (1951): The Shot Heard 'Round the World … Thomson's Giants trailed the crosstown Dodgers by 13 games on Aug. 11 before finishing the season on a 37-7 run to tie them on the last day, forcing a best-of-three playoff for a spot in the World Series. Thomson's walk-off, three-run shot against Ralph Branca in Game 3 triggered an all-time great call from Russ Hodges: "The Giants win the pennant! The Giants win the pennant!"
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Joe Carter (1993): Touch 'em all, Joe! … The only other World Series-clinching walk-off home run came in Game 6, where Carter turned a 5-3 deficit into a 6-5 victory over the Phillies for Toronto's second straight title. A quick shoutout to this Blue Jays lineup, which featured threefuture Hall of Famers in Rickey Henderson, Paul Molitor and Roberto Alomar.
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Hank Aaron (1974): No. 715 … Babe Ruth's record of 714 home runs stood for nearly four decades before Hammerin' Hank hit No. 715. Naturally, Vin Scully was on the call: What a marvelous moment for baseball. What a marvelous moment for Atlanta and the state of Georgia. What a marvelous moment for the country and the world. A Black man is getting a standing ovation in the Deep South for breaking a record of an all-time baseball idol.
Honorable mentions: Kirk Gibson, 1988 (Hobbled heroics); Carlton Fisk, 1975 (Waves it fair); Barry Bonds, 2007 (No. 755); Mark McGwire, 1998 (No. 62); Babe Ruth, 1932 (Called shot*); Kirby Puckett, 1991 ("We'll see you tomorrow night!"); Aaron Boone, 2003 (ALCS walk-off); Ted Williams, 1960 (final career at-bat)
*The Babe's legendary "called shot" in Game 3 of the 1932 World Series would have probably made it on Mount Rushmore if not for the mystery surrounding its true nature. Accounts differ as to whether the Yankees slugger was calling his shot or simply pointing at the Cubs dugout to remind his opponents, who had been jawing him all game, that he still had one strike left. As they say, "print
the legend." |
STAT OF THE DAY
3 |
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Jack Hughes, the Devils star forward-
turned-hero, scored the ‘golden goal’
in the US 2-1 overtime victory over
Canada to win the gold medal for the
Men’s Olympic Hockey team. Since
then he jumped from 681K Instagram
followers to over 1M to make him just
the 3rd active NHL player to eclipse
that mark with Alexander Ovechkin
(1.7M) and Connor McDavid (1.4M).
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QUOTE OF THE DAY |
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"If there were one word that could
act as a standard
of conduct for one's
entire life, perhaps
it would be 'thoughtfulness’."
- Confucius |
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