Blake Bashore

[Seth Davis @SethDavisHoops]

So Dusty May's decision to coach the Mavs is a reflection of the state of college basketball but Jon Scheyer's decision to stay at Duke is not?

What about Tom Izzo's decision to turn down the Suns last year?

Dusty made the decision that was right for him. Ditto for Scheyer and Izzo. Todd Golden probably would have crawled to San Francisco for the chance to coach the Warriors. Most college coaches would leave for the NBA if given the chance. It's the greatest basketball league on the planet and presents the ultimate competitive challenge. Plus, it's all ball up there — no NCAA, no academics, no recruiting — and the money is ridiculous. This has been true for decades. It didn't just happen because of the transfer portal, NIL et al.

Narratives are tricky.

[Legion Hoops @LegionHoops]

Duke’s Jon Scheyer declined the Mavericks’ head coaching position offer, per @GoodmanHoops. Wow.

[U.S. Soccer Men's National Team @USMNT]

PUNCHING OUR TICKET. 👊

[Shams Charania @ShamsCharania]

BREAKING: The Chicago Bulls are finalizing the hire of Portland Trail Blazers interim Tiago Splitter as the franchise's new head coach, sources tell ESPN. Splitter succeeds Billy Donovan as the Bulls' coach after stepping into the head job and excelling in Portland last season.

[Topps @Topps]

OG Anunoby reveals he grew up collecting baseball cards and is a big New York Mets fan 🔥

"He listed Carlos Delgado as one of his favorites to watch... He also liked José Reyes, Pedro Martínez and, essentially, the entire Mets roster of the late 2000s."

(via @TheAthletic)

[NBA on ESPN @ESPNNBA]

JMAC MAKES AN IMPACT 😤

Jared McCain dropped a playoff career-high 24 points off the bench in Game 3.

[Rutger Bregman @rcbregman]

This sounds nice, but it's a great way to undermine the welfare state.

The strongest welfare states in the world (the Nordics) tax everyone, including nurses. And they give everyone universal healthcare, childcare, pensions, education in return.

When the middle class has skin in the game, they defend the system. When welfare is 'just for the poor', it becomes a poor program: stigmatized, underfunded, easy to gut.

That's why billionaires keep pushing this idea. The real scandal isn't that this nurse pays $12k.

It's that Jeff Bezos pays $0.

[Centrism Fan Acct 🔹 @Wilson__Valdez]

If this exact clip, but Joe Biden, it would go hyper viral and get millions of views.

And everyone in the media would be taking victory laps.

Instead, everyone ignores it and it's just another day of Trump.

[Andy Demetra @AndyDemetra]

Three @GTMBB legends in one shot.

[New York Mets @Mets]

CARSON BENGE WALKS IT OFF AGAIN!

[SNY Mets @SNY_Mets]

Carson Benge in his last 10 games:

🔹 14-for-36 (.389 AVG)
🔹 1 HR
🔹 7 RBI
🔹 8 R
🔹 2 SB
🔹 .450 OBP

He has raised his season OPS from .498 to .639

[Washington Commanders @Commanders]

For your convenience 😌

@SeatGeek | 🎟️ https://t.co/AY255imOep

[David Adler @_dadler]

Bat tracking - A.J. Ewing's 1st HR

Exit velo: 110.5 mph
Swing length: 6.4 ft (MLB avg. is 7.4 ft)

Since bat tracking started in 2023, only 2 other players have hit a HR that hard w/ a swing that short:

Oneil Cruz, 9/9/24: 113.7 mph/6.4 ft
Corey Seager, 9/4/23: 111.2 mph/6.4 ft

[Steph Noh @StephNoh]

Asked around about Mervis and here's what I heard.

-Extremely smart executive
-Strong in trade negotiations and general strategy
-Well-connected with other execs throughout the league

Seems like a great hire for the Bulls.

[Shams Charania @ShamsCharania]

The Chicago Bulls are finalizing a deal to hire Orlando Magic assistant GM Stephen Mervis as Senior Vice President of Basketball Operations under new EVP Bryson Graham, sources tell ESPN. Bulls will also hire Brooklyn Nets executive Acie Law as Vice President of Player Personnel.

[Legion Hoops @LegionHoops]

Stephen A. Smith:

“We all know the only reason if Wemby doesn’t get suspended is because he’s Victor Wembyanama and everybody wants to see him play. That might save him, but the play itself warrants a suspension for game 5.”

(via @FirstTake, h/t @NBA__Courtside)

[Ed Krassenstein @EdKrassen]

Wow! Every single person should listen to @mtgreenee here.

She outlines exactly what went down with Trump desperately trying to prevent the Epstein files from getting released.

[NBA on Prime @NBAonPrime]

RJ BARRETTTTTTTT 🤯

[Blake Bashore @bbashore]

RT @GoodmanHoops: Boumtje Boumtje, 17, is a talented and skilled lefty stretch 4-man who plays for FC Barcelona and was also pursued by Nor…