You Can't Win 'Em All 😩
Monsters, Inc. came out in 2001.
The Golden State Warriors set the record for most NBA regular season wins in 2015-2016.
What do those events have in common?
Well, we’re talking about both of them in today’s post!
That… plus a bunch of highlights from the last few days are coming your way!
Let’s get rolling with the…
NBA 🏀
Best game: On Friday night, the Houston Rockets played the Phoenix Suns.
For Rockets star Kevin Durant, it was a chance for his new team to beat the team that traded him earlier this year.
And that’s exactly what the Rockets did, winning 117-98.
Oh, and KD?
🎥 Nailed this shot to become the eighth player in NBA history with 31,000 points!
Durant’s been scoring for so long… he used to play against the guy who’s now his coach on the Rockets, Ime Udoka!
🧠 Think you can name one of the other seven players with at least 31,000 career points? Drop your guess in the comments! 💬
Pretty cool, but not our best game.
No, that was last night’s Suns-Timberwolves game in Minnesota.
🎥 Want to see how Phoenix did without Durant against Anthony Edwards?
Despite Edwards’ 40 points, the Suns won, 108-105. It was a true team effort, with the five Phoenix starters scoring 11, 12, 18, 19, and 22 points.
And that brings us to…
Biggest news: On Sunday, Oklahoma City beat Utah, 131-101.
Want to hear something impressive? The Thunder won without their best player, SGA, who sat out with a minor elbow injury.
Now want to hear something really impressive? OKC has won 15 games in a row and is 23-1 so far this season.
Check this out:
Yep, the Thunder are just the second team ever to win 23 of their first 24 games.
And only the 2015-2016 Warriors won all 24.
That team, led by Steph Curry, finished the season with 73 wins and only 9 losses. The best regular season ever.
But guess what? The Warriors lost in the 2016 NBA Finals to the Cleveland Cavaliers and… LeBron James.
🎥 Want to see the best plays from the epic Steph vs. LeBron Game 7?
Oh, and after the Game 7 loss? Kevin Durant joined the Warriors. And they won the Finals against LeBron and Cleveland the next year!
It’s all connected!
Which brings us to…
Wildest play: LeBron’s now on the Lakers. His streak of 1,297 straight games with 10+ points just ended.
So what do you think he did on Sunday against Philadelphia?
🎥 See for yourself!
After the game, Luka Dončić said, “That was amazing. That was vintage Bron. We’re happy he was there to save us.”
And we’re happy we get to watch all of this magic (especially with the NBA Cup quarterfinals tonight and tomorrow)!
Now, on to…
College Football 🎓🏈
Best game: Let’s congratulate…
Indiana for beating Ohio State in the Big Ten Championship, 13-10.
Georgia for beating Alabama in the SEC Championship, 28-7.
Texas Tech for beating BYU in the Big 12 Championship, 34-7.
Oh, and… You! For correctly predicting the Indiana-Ohio State game would be the closest of those three games.
🎥 Want to see how Indiana did it?
Ouch! Rough for the Buckeyes to miss a 27-yard field goal that would have tied the game and likely sent it to overtime.
That brings us to…
Biggest news: The good news for Ohio State?
They only dropped one spot in the final College Football Playoff rankings.
Most fans expected Georgia at #2 and Ohio State at #3. But that’s not too crazy.
The GIANT controversy?
Look what happened with Notre Dame and Miami! Neither team played last week, but Miami jumped up two spots to pass Notre Dame and finish at #10.
That’s a HUGE deal!
Because Miami’s in the final spot and Notre Dame missed the playoff. (Remember, the 12 playoff spots go to the five highest-ranked conference champions, which includes #20 Tulane and #24 James Madison, plus the seven other highest-ranked teams.)
So, what’s the big deal? Both Miami and Notre Dame are 10-2. And they happened to play earlier this year: Miami won, 27-24.
I like how ESPN writer David Hale described it:
So while both sat home on their couches on championship weekend, Miami somehow did enough to push its way into the playoff instead of Notre Dame.
Is it a reasonable conclusion? Yes!
Is it a ridiculous process that got us here? A thousand yeses!
While no result will make everyone happy, the least this sport owes [the players, coaches, and fans] is a process they can understand.
But now, it is what it is.
At least there are some great matchups coming:
And at least we still have our…
Wildest play: Neither team made the playoff.
🎥 But check out this wild ending in the ACC Championship!
Duke, known more for its basketball team, just won its first conference championship since 1962!
Hey, didn’t you say something about Monsters, Inc.?
We better move on to…
NFL Week 14 👔🏈
Best game: Two of the best quarterbacks in the world faced off in the snow on Sunday.
So, how could we not choose Joe Burrow and the Bengals vs. Josh Allen and the Bills?
Click here to watch the highlights on NFL.com!
Buffalo trailed 28–18 in the fourth quarter before coming back to win, 39–34.
What does it mean for the playoff picture?
Let’s go to…
Biggest news: There are only four more weeks in the regular season.
Here’s who would be in if the playoffs started today:
NFC: Rams, Packers, Eagles, Buccaneers, Seahawks, 49ers, and Bears
AFC: Broncos, Patriots, Jaguars, Steelers, Chargers, Bills, and Texans
Still fighting for a spot? (Left is AFC, right is NFC)
The first team out in the AFC is Indianapolis. And while on paper they have a 32% chance… they just lost QB Daniel Jones to a season-ending Achilles injury.
A few spots down?
The 6-7 Chiefs and Patrick Mahomes. They lost to the Texans on Sunday night, 20-10. And now, they might miss the playoffs for the first time in Mahomes’ career.
What’s the mindset in Kansas City? Here’s what coach Andy Reid said:
Listen, it’s never over. You keep battling. I’ve been doing this a long time and seen some things, so you keep going.
Speaking of that…
Wildest play: The Ravens are also outside of the playoff picture because they lost to the Steelers, 27-22.
But some fans think they should have beaten the Steelers.
🎥 Check out this “touchdown” with just over two minutes left!
NFL rules say three things have to be true for a successful catch:
The receiver has to secure the ball in his hands or arms.
He has to get both feet (or another body part besides his hands) in bounds.
After 1 and 2, he must “perform any act common to the game,” like taking another step or tucking the ball.
After review, the referees said #3 wasn’t true for Ravens tight end Isaiah Likely. No catch. No touchdown. No win for Baltimore.
You can’t win ‘em all.
Sometimes when you lose, it’s a mistake you or your teammates make.
Other times, it’s a decision you don’t think is fair by the referees (or the College Football Playoff Committee).
But no matter what happens, you keep playing, and you never give up!
Don’t take it from me.
🎥 Take it from the GOAT, Michael Jordan!
Oh, and remember: sports are supposed to be fun!
That’s why ESPN turned last night’s Monday Night Football game between the Eagles and Chargers (which the Chargers won, 22-19) into a Monsters, Inc. party!
Hope you had fun reading this…
Have a great week, Smallballers!
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Michael Jordan is my guess for the points question!!