Category: Sports

Opinion: Nine aspects of NFL drafts that amplify the fun factor and make for must-watch entertainment

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Nestled between the intensity of the NHL and NBA playoffs and the optimism of the opening stretch of Major League Baseball, the NFL Draft somehow holds its own every year — despite having no games, scoreboard or on-the-field action. On my morning and afternoon commutes, debate over which offensive skill position player the Broncos should … Continue reading Opinion: Nine aspects of NFL drafts that amplify the fun factor and make for must-watch entertainment

Opinion: The 2025 NBA playoffs could usher in the league’s dynasty of the 2020s

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Repeating a championship victory is difficult for any pro sports team, but NBA teams in the past half-decade are finding the feat especially elusive. In the past six seasons, six different NBA teams have won the NBA Finals. I noted the upside of this trend in a column last year, but the league is now … Continue reading Opinion: The 2025 NBA playoffs could usher in the league’s dynasty of the 2020s

Opinion: During NBA’s dramatic 2024-25 regular season, no superstar or head coach seems safe. One common thread can explain why.

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NBA regular seasons rarely have an overarching lesson, but the 2024-25 season has had a pretty clear one: winning doesn’t guarantee anything. Taylor Jenkins coached the Memphis Grizzlies to a 56-26 record in 2021-22, tied for the franchise’s best regular season record, and followed it up with another 50-win season the following year. While guiding … Continue reading Opinion: During NBA’s dramatic 2024-25 regular season, no superstar or head coach seems safe. One common thread can explain why.

Opinion: April Madness? NCAA tourney saves best for final weekend in shocking and satisfying Final Four

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With 46 seconds left in the NCAA tournament championship game, top seeds Florida and Houston lined up along the key of the Final Four court, deadlocked at 64 points each. The fact that two top seeds survived until the last day of the tournament wasn’t a major surprise. But the path each team took to … Continue reading Opinion: April Madness? NCAA tourney saves best for final weekend in shocking and satisfying Final Four

Opinion: Dwight Howard’s first-ballot induction gives Basketball Hall of Fame its first Magic superstar

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At last, a Hall of Fame player the Orlando Magic can claim as its own. Earlier this weekend, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame announced its 2025 Hall of Fame class, enshrining two male players, three female players, one referee, one head coach, one team executive and one Olympic team. Longtime Magic center Dwight … Continue reading Opinion: Dwight Howard’s first-ballot induction gives Basketball Hall of Fame its first Magic superstar

Opinion: As tush push lives to see another day with postponed vote, the debate is becoming more entertaining than the play itself

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NFL teams failed to stop the 2024 Philadelphia Eagles on the football field. So now, they appear to be playing defense in another way — an attempt to legislate the Eagles’ trademark play, the tush push, out of the rulebook ahead of the upcoming season. The Green Bay Packers proposed a rule change that would … Continue reading Opinion: As tush push lives to see another day with postponed vote, the debate is becoming more entertaining than the play itself

Opinion: ESPN’s pivot away from MLB media rights is a staggering setback for sport’s growth efforts

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The baseball season opened with a glorious slate of Opening Day games on Thursday, and the MLB offered fans premier matchups that added a further level of intrigue to sweeten the return of baseball. The very best of the best was saved for the national stage, as ESPN featured a compelling doubleheader of interleague games. … Continue reading Opinion: ESPN’s pivot away from MLB media rights is a staggering setback for sport’s growth efforts

Opinion: Forget the Dodgers. The National League East division race demands your attention.

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Was the Los Angeles Dodgers' 2024 World Series win ever in doubt? The Dodgers’ run to the World Series had every setback the sport could throw at the club, yet the Dodgers made their second title of the 2020s feel inevitable in retrospect. The Dodgers’ offseason signing of the sport’s best player, hybrid designated hitter/pitching … Continue reading Opinion: Forget the Dodgers. The National League East division race demands your attention.

Opinion: The first weekend of men’s March Madness game eliminated the Cinderella stories. Is NIL the reason?

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For a moment on Sunday evening, the Colorado State Rams reveled in the greatest sensation March Madness has to offer: a clutch three-pointer to take the lead in the final seconds of regulation.  Rams star guard Nique Clifford backed down a Maryland defender, then fired a daring pass across the court to wide-open guard Jalen … Continue reading Opinion: The first weekend of men’s March Madness game eliminated the Cinderella stories. Is NIL the reason?

Riker Report: Quarterback changes, trade requests highlight busy start to NFL offseason

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One month removed from Super Bowl LIX, the NFL is still providing plenty of entertainment value. The NFL landscape has been littered with trade requests from All-Pros, cryptic social media posts, quarterback trades and overpriced signings, all against the backdrop of the excitement of the NFL combine and upcoming draft. Even the defending Super Bowl … Continue reading Riker Report: Quarterback changes, trade requests highlight busy start to NFL offseason