data-mm-id=”_ero1qhzd5″>Several reports have surfaced over the past few days claiming USC was not interested in hiring Urban Meyer to become its next football coach. The reports have typically claimed new USC president Carol Folt was against hiring Meyer and therefore the school's pursuit of him was done. I'm going to shock you here, but the real story is nowhere near that simple, and Meyer is very much still in play for the Trojans. The truth is there are people at USC who don't want Meyer anywhere near campus. In some cases, their concerns are valid and relate to his handling of the Zach Smith affair at Ohio State. I say their concerns are valid because, from their view, Meyer knew Smith was a repeated domestic abuser and lied about it. That's a tough pill for man…
data-mm-id=”_p70fga2z2″>The Lakers staved off the Thunder on Tuesday night to make it to 12-2, as they and the Celtics at 11-2 have the best records in the NBA thus far. LeBron James had a triple double and Anthony Davis had 34 points while this win came potentially at a long-term cost: They both had to play 37 minutes to make sure they beat a team against whom they were favored by 11, at home.LeBron and AD are tied for 11th in the NBA with 34.9 minutes per game. Davis has missed a game with shoulder issues, while LeBron has played in all 14 of the Lakers' contests. It seems pretty clear that their strategy (at least for now) is to feast on the league as the rest of the teams ease into the season, build a buffer, and solidify a playoff spot in case something goes awry with their b…
data-mm-id=”_8skau829h”>Giannis Antetonkounmpo can become an unrestricted free agent in about 16 months. Or he can sign a massive five-year extension with the Bucks this summer. Which path he chooses will probably have a lot to do with how far Milwaukee gets during the playoffs this spring. Language from Giannis in favor of staying in Milwaukee has been mostly positive, but during a recent interview, he said something that will at least make Bucks' fans groan.Giannis was recently asked about the thought of playing on the same team as both of his brothers, Kostas and Thanasis. Giannis said that it would be cool for them all to play together in Milwaukee or Los Angeles. Giannis was asked if he thought about teaming up with his brothers: “If we could team up in a team..Milwaukee, L…
data-mm-id=”_ne85b9wxp”>It was as dirty as dirty gets, a cheap shot by every definition, and it ultimately ruined Cam Neely's promising NHL career prematurely. It was Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals, on this day in 1991. The Bruins were playing the Penguins. Neely was the Bruins leading goal scorer. Ulf Samuelsson was a thug dressed as a hockey player. He was sent on the ice to do one thing, and he accomplished it, issuing a cheap shot on Neely's knee that ultimately ruined the popular player's career. The Penguins won the series and the Stanley Cup that year. Neely developed a degenerative knee condition, played in 22 games total the next two seasons and was ultimately held to 162 total games the rest of his career. He was only 25 when Samuelsson hit him. Neely …
data-mm-id=”_k1ohxfnz9″>A few weeks back, Adam Silver said he hoped to have a concrete return plan to deliver to teams by the first week in June. Well, June has (somehow) already arrived, and Adrian Wojnarowski hopped on Get Up today to report that the league is expecting its Board of Govenors to approve a plan to resume play that would include 22 teams. "There's a lot of focus right now on a 22-team model of bringing teams back to Orlando in a play-in situation. … Thursday will be the day of the vote and it's expected to overwhelmingly pass."@wojespn on the NBA's return to play. pic.twitter.com/7JRfLaOf2Q— Get Up (@GetUpESPN) June 1, 2020How many teams would be included in a restart was the hottest topic of debate in NBA discourse as the likelihood of bask…
data-mm-id=”_hn4uv71o1″>The Los Angeles Angels have headed off a cliff once again. A season that began with such promise is all but over before it really got going. The Angels are almost certain to miss the postseason for the sixth year in a row. How had it gotten this bad? Why can't Mike Trout and his franchise find success? The answer is actually pretty simple: they can't pitch. Since Trout's full rookie season in 2012, the Angels have reached the playoffs once (2014) and have yet to actually win a postseason game. During his career, the team is 666-662 (.502) through Tuesday night's action. That comes despite huge contracts handed out to the likes of Albert Pujols, Josh Hamilton, Anthony Rendon and the big-money acquisitions of Justin Upton and Andrelton Simmons.…
data-mm-id=”_szy4vdyia”>There are countless reasons to vote in this year's elections. Some see it as a civic duty. Others as a sacred right. Many are pleased with the direction this country is headed in and long for current leadership to continue. Many others have seen enough and desperately want change. And still others are hoping to use Election Day as way to catch a glimpse of Jim Gantner or Brad Lohaus or an intern in an 8-foot sausage costume. Sadly, those in that final group must grapple with some tough news as the Republican Party of Wisconsin has decided to put their foot down and eliminate any possibility of such a meeting occurring. “Andrew Hitt, chairman of the state Republican Party, has sent a letter to Milwaukee officials saying it would be illegal to have any mascot…
data-mm-id=”_en290zj9g”>Lamar Jackson got his first playoff win, which is a good learning experience for the third-year quarterback as he continues his development as a professional football player. Another lesson he and the Ravens need to learn? How to win with class. After the Ravens wrapped up their 20-13 win over the Titans in the Wild Card round on Sunday, Jackson ran off the field and into the tunnel toward the Ravens locker without shaking hands with his vanquished foes. Simultaneously, he waved for his teammates to join him, which many did, leaving the Titans players on the field to shake hands with the few Ravens stragglers who remained to graciously wish their fallen opponents farewell. If we're going to call out Tom Brady for doing these things, we have to call out Jack…
data-mm-id=”_jkfyqfdy1″>The Dallas Cowboys are America's team…to hate. Unless you're a Cowboys fan, you really can't stand the Cowboys can you? From their instance that they remain the most important NFL team in existence to a fan group that acts like they're relevant in the Super Bowl conversation despite being irrelevant in that convo for over two decades, the Cowboys are a team so many love to hate, including myself. Today, we got another reason. To keep their butts warm, the Cowboys shipped in their own benches for their game against Washington today. They are the only team to do so. As if the #Cowboys couldn’t be any more contemptible, they flew in their own sideline benches for the game … first time and only team that’s ever done that at FedEx … wild…
data-mm-id=”_gcbnm8d9o”>The Skip Bayless-Charles Barkley feud was in the spotlight again this week after Paul Finebaum applauded Barkley for calling Bayless an "idiot" during the NBA Finals in June. With Undisputed still on hiatus for nearly another two months, Bayless' only choice was to respond via his eponymous podcast. And boy, did he ever. The Twitter account for The Skip Bayless Show dropped a video on Thursday of Bayless straight-up begging Barkley to replace Shannon Sharpe on Undisputed so he could destroy him in debates every single day. It starts off with a light tone but quickly changes into a reflection of how low Bayless' opinion of Barkley is in the sports knowledge arena. At one point Bayless says outright that Barkley coming on Undisputed would be li…