Drafty in here
Hey, I love the draft. You know this.
But has there ever been a bigger dunk in the history of drafts than Clark going 1?
And to go a step further, is Clark the most valuable team sports player in the U.S.?
We shared late last week that I wanted to get tickets for Clark and the Fever coming to Atlanta so my middle-school daughter could see her in person.
The tickets for a Fever game at Atlanta were three and four times more expensive than the rest of the Atlanta schedule.
Coincidence? Not hardly. Also of note: The WNBA has announced plans to expand.
I think the only certain No. 1 picks that rival Clark were Ewing in 1985, LeBron to Cleveland and Andrew Luck to the Colts.
But I do not think any of those — including LeBron — bring the value and money that Clark does, and that's amazing to me.
Whether this is a springboard for women's basketball or a whiffed chance like the 1999 women's soccer World Cup moment is up to the people in charge.
But, if we are being true to the words on the award, Clark should win at least the next five Most Valuable Player awards in the WNBA, because that's the definition of the award.
Braves new world
So, here we are.
Yes, Jay's Plays loves the Braves' bats. Who doesn't? Heck, now that Marcell Ozuna is headed for a Silver Slugger as a DH, we can almost forget his past transgressions.
Almost.
But this Braves team is built with one goal in mind. World Series or bust, and with the real and hard truth that Spencer Strider is not going to be on that wall Colonel Jessup, this bunch is destined to win 95-plus games and flame out in the playoffs when pitching matters more.
Look at the arms the Braves currently have.
Max Fried looks fried. Charlie Morton's debut was against the Maris-Mantle Yankees (allegedly). The rest of those dudes make most of Braves Country long for the days of Huascar Ynoa. (And yes, I had to look up the spelling of that one.)
So Alex Anthopoulos, what say you?
The Braves have arguably the best lineup in baseball since the Big Red Machine got rusty.
Is Trevor Bauer a possibility? Are you waiting for the Phillies to fold to steal Zach Wheeler?
This is a championship collection without an ace, and we have talked multiple times how when you don't have a 1, it makes the rest of your rotation — especially in the -er months — even worse.
Now is the time. This is the team.
UT football
You know the rules. Here's Paschall with a Vols football update.
But this one caught my eye more than a regular this and that entry.
Not only does Nico Iamaleava have arguably the most perplexing name since Tua was in Tuscaloosa, I think the balance of NIL moving forward could very well hinge on Nico's near future.
Think of him as the Curt Flood of the modern era of major college football.
Flood, as most of us old folks recall, took MLB to court and sued for free agency.
Nico, according to most accounts, was the $8 million NIL man that picked Tennessee with several caveats.
His alleged NIL deal was linked to duration stayed and commitment to the program.
And if we are to have two key takeaways from the Vols' bowl beatdown of Iowa in Nico's postseason start, they would be this:
— Iowa's offense is offensive and gross.
— Nico looks the part.
It's a grand spot for the rising sophomore. Josh Heupel is a former QB who has had great success molding future QBs.
UT's offense is fun and electric.
But is Nico him, and whether he is or he is not could factor into the shaping of the unknowns of NIL landscape going forward, no?
This and that
— More on the mass exodus from Lexington after John Calipari left for Arkansas. Hey, Mark Pope gave a great pep rally. He needs to find a way to retain some of his talent.
— I have gotten to know and really like several coaches in my two decades in Chattanooga, and this is a tip of the visor to one of them. And yes, the headline is accurate and still somewhat misleading because longtime Lookout Valley boss David Dinger being a "first-year coach" at Heritage is, well, exactly that.
— Yikes, the reports of the next version of USA basketball team are scary. Here's more on a team that will include LeBron and Steph and KD and AD and several other rising and current stars.
Today's questions
True or false, it's Tuesday.
True or false, Nico Whosehispads will lead UT into the college football playoff.
True or false, you will watch Caitlin Clark in the WNBA.
True or false, the original Dream Team with Bird, Magic and MJ would be favored by 12 over this version of the USA offering.
True or false, Arkansas will win more games than Kentucky next year in college hoops.
As for today, April 16, let's review.
On this day in 1929, the New York Yankees became the first team to permanently feature numbers on the backs of their uniforms.
They started it with numbers on where you batted in the lineup — Ruth 3, Gehrig 4, etc. — and went from there.
Rushmore of the most famous uniform numbers in MLB history (and yes, 42 is far left)? Go.