A Familiar NBA Final Four. Monty Williams Jobbed. Ja Morant Not Again! A Ho-Hum NHL Conf Finals On Deck? MLB Weekend Of Comebacks, Sweeps & Near Brawls. An Unfavorable NFL Schedule
Playoff fever in the NBA & NHL continues to rise as baseball, the NFL schedule and the Preakness will follow as another jam packed podcast has arrived. On deck:
(3:04) We're down to a familiar final four in the NBA as the conference finals are set. Jayson Tatum & the Celtics were able to overcome a 3-2 series deficit as they defeated the Sixers to move on and play the Miami Heat for the third time in four years for an Eastern Conference Championship. The Nuggets and Lakers advance to the Western Conference Finals which sets the stage as these four teams were also the last ones standing the year of the bubble in 2020. I'll recap the recent events for these said teams, as well as, the aftermath for the Sixers (including another James Harden meltdown), Knicks, Suns (Coach Monty Williams got a raw deal as he was fired) and Warriors (the end of a dynasty? Was this really a dynasty?) I'll preview both series with predictions. I'll talk about Ja Morant's indefensible behavior as another video surfaces of him holding a gun on a social media feed which drew a team suspension. And the NBA Draft Lottery which'll take place tomorrow night to see who will have the #1 overall pick with potential generational player, Victor Wembanyama on the horizon.
(44:19) As for the NHL, the conference finals won't have the same sex appeal that the NBA has. We're still awaiting the winner of an upstart Seattle Kraken team vs. Dallas Stars as they have a Game 7 to play tonight. Whomever comes out victorious there will face the Vegas Golden Knights in the West. In the East, you have division rivals squaring off, but it's Carolina vs. Florida. Not the sexiest matchup, to say the least. Will this generate any interest to the casual sports fan?
(51:43) MLB had a very interesting weekend as you had comebacks (Yankees rally from 6-0 deficit to beat the Rays on Saturday) a near miss comeback (Aaron Judge missed a game tying HR by thismuch) a couple of surprising sweeps (Blue Jays over Braves, Cardinals over Red Sox) and benches emptying in Colorado between the Phillies-Rockies.
(58:10) I share my displeasure on a few dates of the upcoming 2023 NFL schedule. THREE Monday night doubleheaders? You know I'll go off on this, the Thanksgiving & Christmas Day slates, opening night in KC and why the Packers are on primetime aplenty?
(1:06:40) In a bit of a surprise, Kentucky Derby winner Mage will run in the Preakness this coming Saturday. Is it possible that this horse is primed for a Triple Crown run?
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Intro/outro music by Cyklonus.