March 11, 2020 will go down as one of the most important days in the history of America. And of all aspects of American life to serve as an announcement of the arrival of the coronavirus to American shores, it was sports that took center stage. In the early evening hours, news broke that Utah … Continue reading 10 Burning Questions for the sports New Year
When I was in middle and high school, I’d typically go to one NBA regular season and watch another on TV. I’d follow the league for sure, but I didn’t set aside time to watch NBA basketball. College has been an entirely different experience, whether because of my friends’ devotion to the league, my fantasy … Continue reading Remote Drop Guide to the 2020-21 NBA Season
This fall I have been working on a variety of projects, from the Read Option column to film reviews for The Daily Northwestern. Today, I wanted to share the most recent episode of Coast 2 Coast, a weekly sports commentary show that I host with John Volk for 8 in the Box Productions. 8ITB is … Continue reading Coast 2 Coast Episode IV
Confetti. Newspapers. Tears, kisses and raised fists. The sight of a sports championship victory is one of the sweetest sights that sports have to offer (one sadly robbed from us by COVID-19 the past couple of months). Year after year, the crowning of a champion also marks the culmination of a season-long narrative. These teams … Continue reading The 10 Greatest, Most Hollywood-Worthy Sports Stories of the 21st Century
When the NBA suspended its 2019-20 season in March due to the coronavirus pandemic, the prospects of finishing a season looked slim. Fast-forward to present day, and we’re a couple days away from the return of the NBA and its playoff bracket thanks to the NBA turning the Disney World complex in Orlando, Florida into … Continue reading All Eyes on the Bubble: Talking NBA with Daniel Olinger
In his 2007 book Fantasyland, Wall Street Journal sportswriter Sam Walker sets out to join and win the most prestigious fantasy baseball league in the world. While he is up against the foremost fantasy baseball experts, Walker believes he has an edge — his access to players and managers as a journalist. Though his quest … Continue reading Fantasy Godfather: The Ascension of The Morey The Merrier
The following is my final paper for my 398 Video Game Studies class, which explores the extent that mainstream sports-themed video games such as NBA 2K employ realism. “If it’s in the game, it’s in the game!” For years this phrase was the slogan of EA Sports’ video game franchises, an assurance that everything that … Continue reading Missing the Mark: Realism and the Modern Sports Video Game
I wasn’t a Kobe Bryant fan. Not at all. In the first-ever NBA game I watched in 2008, he was the villain leading the Lakers against my Boston Celtics in the NBA Finals, and the Celtics won. The next year, he handily defeated my new favorite team (and the one I have called my team … Continue reading Kobe: Loss of a Legend
I've seen a lot of great games as a sports fan. I picked my top ten favorites earlier this week in a column, and choosing those brought many smiles to my face. Today's ranking wasn't so cheerful of a chore. Today, I'm selecting the ten greatest games that I never saw. The catch -- they … Continue reading The Ten Greatest Games I Wish I Had Seen
A couple of Saturdays ago, I tuned in to one of the greatest rivalries in sports, the Iron Bowl, an annual battle between Auburn and Alabama (often for SEC supremacy). The game didn’t let me down, as each quarter was packed to the brim with exciting moments and breathtaking plays I’d never seen before … Continue reading The Ten Greatest Sports Games I’ve Ever Seen
