August 12, 2024
The Olympics wrapped up yesterday in Paris, and what a spectacular 2 weeks it was. I think it’s very safe to say the Olympics have their buzz back. We are in an era where ratings are very tough to get, but the Olympics averaged 30 million viewers a night. NBC has to be ecstatic, and their coverage between Peacock and Primetime NBC in Paris was phenomenal. Now that Paris had an amazing run, LA is up next, and really cool to see the buzz that is building up already after last night.
As for the games themselves, it’s safe to say this was a very successful games for the US. They had far and away the most medals, including tying China for the most gold. They can thank Steph Curry, Lebron James, and Kevin Durant for that, after they all came up big in both the semi-finals and finals of the Olympic Tournament. Those 3 were like the three branches of US Government. Meanwhile, Jayson Tatum was like a White House intern. We had been waiting for Steph to detonate, and he finally did at the right time. Not to be forgotten is Anthony Davis, who was a defensive monster throughout, and in the biggest moments as well. I also have a new found respect for Devin Booker, who very quietly played a nice role for Team USA, knocking down open shots and playing some solid defense, something I had no idea he could do. I’m sure Nike and Klutch Sports will have that footage of Lebron getting dunked on deleted immediately. This team could have a lot of turnover come 2028 and a lot of younger players in the mix, but this just goes to show you that we need our best players to play, and to be elite to get the job done. Even the women had their own problems yesterday with France, but they were able to get it done. The gap between the world and the USA women has narrowed significantly as well.
You have to consider this a phenomenal track and field games for the USA. The women completely crushed it in both relays, and the men came through nicely in the 4×400. Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone is the absolute GOAT in the hurdles, and the US Men had their share of medals too in hurdles, shot put, sprints, and some of the distance events. I really live for these guys scratching and clawing for the silver and bronze medals with these last second leans at the finish line. I cannot understand however, why the US Men cannot get it right in the 4×100 relay. 24 years since they’ve won a medal, which is bizarre for a country that routinely has 4 of the fastest men in the world. The handoffs are so poor, it always looks like they are putting a group together that may be fast, but has no chemistry together. I also can’t understand that hate toward Noah Lyles. The man won the 100 meters and then managed to get a bronze while he had COVID in the 200 meters. Apparently, NBA Twitter hates him just because he said something that’s true: the NBA Champion cannot really be considered the world champion. He’s elite, and I hope he’s back for the games in LA.
Break Dancing? Look I respect the fact these guys have talent, and it’s impressive, but I just can’t look at this as an Olympic sport. It’s way too subjective in terms of scoring. That probably also explains why it won’t stick moving forward. I can’t believe Jordan Chiles had to return her bronze medal in the gymnastics floor exercise. This sets a very bad precedent that after the fact you can challenge the ruling? I don’t think this is fair at all. What a mistake by US High Jumper Shelby McEwen to not agree to share the gold medal with New Zealand’s Hamish Kerr. Kerr ended up beating him in a jump off, and we really could have used that medal to go one-up on China! USA women’s soccer? Boy they really lucked out in that game, because it looked like Brazil had them on the ropes. Nevertheless, still a much more likable team than in the past. Even the men deserve credit for how far they made it. Disappointing finish, but hard to call making it out of the group stage a failure.
To baseball, where the Dodgers have found themselves in a battle for the NL West. To be honest though, it’s funny how many people are really freaking out over the NL West being competitive, but it’s really not a bad thing at all. For years, the Dodgers haven’t played meaningful games going into the playoffs, so when October came, it hurt them in ratcheting up the intensity to win those more important games. Plus, the Dodgers are only in this position because they have had a mountain of injuries to key position players, as well as in their starting rotation. The Boys in Blue are now tied with the Phillies for the best record in the NL, and one game behind the Orioles for the best record in baseball. However, you deranged psychopaths are more focused on the fact they are “only” in the playoffs by 6.5 games, have a 3.5 game lead in the NL West, and could completely fall out of it. It’s called competition people. Get used to it, and it’s a good thing. In the next week, the Dodgers will get back Mookie Betts, Walker Buehler, Max Muncy, and Tommy Edmen. They look like they will get Yoshinobu Yamamoto back in the next week after that as well. That should give them enough time to ramp up for October, while also playing meaningful baseball games.
I have to say, for a franchise that has given you almost nothing to feel good about you, you all are very excited about the Angels 4 young player. Those are 1st baseman Nolan Schanuel, Shortstop Zack Neto, Catcher Logan O’Hoppe, and 2nd baseman Christian Moore. Moore is progressing quickly through the minor leagues, but the other three are quietly having very productive stretches in the majors. The question for me is whether or not this kind of development curve is sustainable without the infrastructure in place to make it successful. I have also yet to see anything on the pitching side of the organization that you should be feeling good about, other than a slew of names that have been drafted recently.
I’m really happy to hear that Inside The NBA is going to be sticking around after next year, even though the NBA is leaving TNT. The show is simply too good to let go. Let’s be honest, it’s even a lot better than the games themselves. There’s some talk that we might even hear Shaq, Kenny, Chuck, and Ernie cover more sports than just the NBA. I don’t know, I’ve seen these guys try to cover college basketball and it’s simply not the same. They don’t know the college game like they know the NBA, and they are simply too stiff, compared to how they usually do things. In any case, this is great news for NBA fans!
I know you’re all excited about football and all, but I just can’t get excited about watching Rams and Charger preseason games with a bunch of guys who will be delivering your Door Dash next week. Plus, if i had to pay regular season prices to watch these guys play, I would lose it. In any case, for the Rams, hopefully Puca Nakua’s knee injury isn’t serious. It will be very interesting to see what the combination of a healthy Nakua and Cooper Kupp look like. As for the Chargers, they could really use JuJu Smith Schuster, as they are running pretty thin on guys who can catch the ball. He was just released. However, it’s probably a little more important they get Justin Herbert healthy, who is dealing with a foot injury. He’s supposed to be ready for the opener, but the fact he’s in a walking boot is nothing to feel good about.
