The Cheat SheetBy Jay Rigdon on

Let’s jump right in, as yesterday featured what I (and many other people actually qualified to comment on such things) consider to be the greatest and least-likely team sports achievement of all time, as well as a wild ending to game 2 of San Antonio/Oklahoma City. Also Messi faced off against a giant robot goalie, and one of the most insane motorcycle saves ever.

 Thunder Hold On, Even Series at One Game Apiece

 

So, this was a very good game that has been essentially reduced to the final 13 seconds. But that’s okay, because those 13 seconds contain more drama than dozens of regular season NBA slogs combined. I’ll let the video speak for itself:

As pictured, Manu Ginobili was crowding Dion Waiters, which is in itself a violation, though not one that you ever see called, and certainly not in the final seconds of a close playoff game. But then Waiters decided he needed a bit more space, which led to this:

Waiters also jumped on the pass, which was another violation. But the Spurs stole the ball anyway, and had a numbers advantage they promptly wasted, with Patty Mills badly missing a three from the corner. This is going to spawn all sorts of debate on whether the rules were interpreted or applied correctly (spoiler: they weren’t, with multiple blatant calls missed on both sides, though how a ref stands there and watches Waiters throw a blatant elbow AS THE INBOUNDER is astonishing to me) and angry Gregg Popovich staring daggers at anything that moves:

And obviously, the craziness of the play inspired discussion:

https://twitter.com/AndyGlockner/status/727355642852175872

Our Harry Lyles Jr. broke it down nicely here, and Deadspin also has the video in crisp, newfangled HD.

Game 3 is Friday at 9:30 PM ET, because the NBA’s playoff scheduling is stupid and terrible.

Leicester City Capture EPL Title as Tottenham Loses

LONDON, ENGLAND – MARCH 19: Leicester City supporters celebrate their team’s win after the Barclays Premier League match between Crystal Palace and Leicester City at Selhurst Park on March 19, 2016 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)

Leicester City won the EPL title on Monday in fairly anticlimactic fashion, as Tottenham drew away to Chelsea. Tottenham needed to win their remaining three games to put any fear into Leicester, and they failed right away, blowing a two goal lead. Listen, I hate hyperbole. (It’s the worst thing in the history of the world.) I also have a strong dislike for our collective need to think that whatever is happening now is the greatest or the worst or the most amazing in all of history. It’s incredibly presumptuous of us to think we’re lucky enough to see something truly historic happen right in front of us.

This is one of those times. There is no equivalent for what Leicester City just did in American sports. None. It wasn’t a fluky playoff run, it wasn’t a March Madness Cinderella story. It’s not even the Warriors winning 73 games. It rises above all of that. They rose up from the two levels below the EPL, narrowly avoiding relegation last season, and absolutely dominated the league this year to win the championship. I’m in awe that it happened. We likely won’t see anything like it again.

Unless they win the Champion’s League next year.

Quick Hits

-The Cavs beat the Hawks, in a game that was closer than many were expecting. The Hawks were up 88-87 with 4:27 remaining in the fourth, but the Cavs finished the game on a 17-5 run to win going away. I’d fully expect the Cavs to win this series in no more than five games. But hey, you never know!

-As pictured above, Lionel Messi visited a Japanese game show, which had prepared a giant, inflatable robot goalkeeper with waving arms. It still wasn’t enough to stop a few freekicks:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mmtYEkxiJm4

A fascinating culture.

-The Cubs and Pirates got into a bit of a beanball war, and the Cubs took the game 7-2. That’s fun and all, but take a look at the current holder of the Best Sports Baby championship belt, Naya Fowler, got to see her daddy Dexter on TV again:

https://twitter.com/DaryaAliya/status/727274563088719872

Also, Dexter really does deserve All-Star consideration. Because in the middle of the NBA and NHL playoffs, what everyone cares about right now is early MLB All-Star voting! I really know my audience.

-A Texas high school softball team lost a district title game in excruciating fashion, as they didn’t realize the final play was still live. Yikes.

-Hey, The Comeback explored the newly created idea of grading NFL draft classes! Thanks for the innovation, Ty Schalter! (Also, the Bears clearly deserved an A++++, Ty. Obvious miss there.)

-The Copa America Centanario tournament is coming up quickly, and it’s going to be a pretty big deal. Who will make the final 23-man roster for the USMNT? We took a shot at predicting just that. Go ahead, read it, then impress your soccer fan friends.

-Donald Trump picked up the coveted Lou Holtz and Gene Keady endorsement. This comes on the heels of receiving Bob Knight’s support. All of this is ahead of Tuesday’s Indiana primary. Having spent essentially 28 years in Indiana, I feel pretty confident saying that whatever small percentage of people in the state who still care what Lou Holtz, Gene Keady, or Bob Knight have to say about politics (i.e., old white people with a misguided idea of the sort of person best suited for leadership) were likely going to vote for Trump anyway. (*biting figurative tongue*)

–Space Jam 2 with LeBron? Sign me up. I don’t even care that it’ll likely be terrible. Though Bill Murray better be involved.

-Excited for the new Captain America movie this weekend? (I was, until I explored purchasing tickets and saw I’d be charged $17 apiece. I can wait.) The good folks at io9 have a nice rundown of where we last left our heroes. And villains. And Hawkeye, whatever he is.

-This happened Sunday, but I don’t think it can be overstated: Dale Earnhardt, Jr.’s freaking steering wheel came off in the middle of the dang race. At Talladega! Under caution, sure, but still! Take a look at this:

He grabs the exposed column to steer one-handed for a bit, while putting the wheel back on with the other hand. I can barely hit next to change songs.

-This guy has met Seth Rogen three years running, and he now has the perfect portrait to show it off. Via Reddit:

View post on imgur.com

One last breath of gratuitous procrastination

I once caused the end of my high school’s traditional freshman PE triathlon by crashing my bike into a parked car, apparently revealing the inherent liability involved with having kids ride bikes through a parking lot course. If you dropped me into the below gif, we wouldn’t be having this one-sided conversation right now. Again via Reddit:

“That’s a bold strategy Cotton, let’s see if it pays off for him”

It’s the round of applause that makes it for me. Those folks are understandably delighted.

About Jay Rigdon

Jay is a columnist at Awful Announcing. He is not a strong swimmer. He is probably talking to a dog in a silly voice at this very moment.

View all posts by Jay Rigdon

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