Weekend winners (Non-Derby division, because we'll get to that in a moment)
Eastern Conference playoffs. Both series are tied at 2. Both series have had each team win on the road. Both of those series are complete coin flips and almost assuredly will go 7. If you had to rank the four teams left in the East, it would feel more like 1, 1A, 1B, and 1C rather than 1-2-3-4. And that kind of unknown and drama - especially in the NBA which is the most predictable postseason in all of sports - is a great attribute for a league that has taken a step back in terms of TV numbers this season and this postseason.
Folks wanting to participate in the "Best player in the game" right now. If you want to back Kevin Durant, fine. If you are a hard Harden supporter or Krazy for Kawhi, you have an argument. Those that Ya-Ya for Giannis or like to imbibe on Embiid or even jolly for Jokic. There are a lot of dudes who have
Clemson. Dabo is doing work on the recruiting trail. The Tigers got a commitment from the No. 1 prospect last month. They got a commitment from the No. 1 running back last week. They got a commitment from the No. 1 pro-style QB over the weekend. In the 247sports.com ratings, Clemson's 14 commitments for the 2020 class have an average grade (100 is perfect) of 95.72.
Chicago Cubs. Winners of seven straight, the Cubs swept the hated Cards and claimed first in the NL Central. Here's betting ol' Harry Carey had a cigar or three and maybe a Budweiser or 12 to celebrate somewhere.
XFL. What? The next soon-to-be-closed non-NFL pro football league? How could they be a winner. Well, feel free to pump the brakes on the phrase "multi-year deal" in the TV deals announced over the weekend. But, the winning piece of the XFL's TV deal is that - yes multi-years - on ESPN. That is so huge. Ask NASCAR. Take less money and get on the four-letter network - as well as ABC occasionally - means the most powerful platform in sports will be talking about and covering your sport.
Golden State Warriors' Stephen Curry is defended by Cleveland Cavaliers' Larry Nance Jr. during the first half of Game 4 of basketball's NBA Finals, Friday, June 8, 2018, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak)
Weekend losers
Every sports fan who is sick and bleeping tired of every sporting event now leading to a discussion about rules and officials and replays and appeals. We got a side question about this below.
Jeff Samardzija. The Giants right-hander allowed home runs on three straight pitches. That's tough to do.
Steph Curry. Yes, he fractured a finger on his left hand. But dude has faded into the background of the most-anticipated series of these playoffs. Forget the flubbed dunk at the end of Saturday's game. Steph is simply in a shooting funk in the biggest moment of the season. Curry right now may not be a top-five player in this series.
All of us. When senseless deaths erase a life of potential - like the death of this elite football teenage talent with a stray bullet - we all lose. Senseless.
Game of Thrones. No, we are not going to violate the no-spoilers Monday rule. We are going to acknowledge that a lot of fans are everything from perplexed to puzzled to downright PO-ed about the uneven and sluggish first four episodes of the final season. Part of this includes a very sloppy editing mistake in which there is a Starbucks cup on the table between Danerys and Jon Snow. Is that a cup of House (of Lannister) Blend?
Luis Saez rides Maximum Security, right, across the finish line first as Flavien Prat on Country House, left, follows in second during Saturday's Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky. Country House was declared the winner after Maximum Security was disqualified for interference after a review by race stewards.Derby Doings
Wow, so much for a Kentucky Derby of big hats, big horses and big high rollers.
By now everyone knows the details.
Maximum Security led wire-to-wire. He was one of the favorites for sure.
He was DQed and technically finished last. (Yes, the strange outcome meant that no one in our Doing the Derby contest turned in an accurate pick on either side. We'll roll that prize package into the PGA in a couple weeks. Deal? Deal.)
That gave the win to Country Home, who payed something like 65-to-1. It was a shocker.
And it has so many layers and ripples.
President Trump weighed in, tweeting: ""The Kentucky Derby decision was not a good one. It was a rough and tumble race on a wet and sloppy track, actually, a beautiful thing to watch. Only in these days of political correctness could such an overturn occur. The best horse did NOT win the Kentucky Derby - not even close!"
Nope. This is not political correctness. This is rules. More on that in a minute.
But, while we are here, the folks who have been adamant about athletes staying out of politics should be just as adamant about politicians staying out of sports, no?
First, I hope Trump and his staff spent way more time trying to figure out how and when we are going to make sure North Korea doesn't fire any more weapons anywhere than whether Maximum Security was wronged.
Second, when did political correctness overlap the equine line?
Third, sports is the last thing we have left that is anything close to a meritocracy. Plain and simple.
And to be the best horse, don't you have to follow the rules?
Now, Trump's notion that this is a social problem has some bigger picture merits, but even as often as I poke fun about over over-PC state, that notion is wrong.
This feels way more like the extended ripples of the self-important, lack of blame, everyone gets a trophy movement.
One of the best lessons I got from playing sports was learning how to win and lose.
Now, every loss comes with "We were screwed by the refs, the rules, the whatever."
If a team is better they must be cheating. If a coach is better, he must be cheating.
Now we have it for the first time in horse racing.
This and that
- Yes, we could have put the Braves on the weekend winners. The did sweep the Marlins over the weekend. Truth be told, the expectation should have been a sweep over a terrible Marlins bunch.
- Yes, Sunday's Game of Thrones episode has a place above. Find out which place when we discuss it more Tuesday.
- Adam Sandler returned to Saturday Night Live - yes, the show is a shell of itself, we know that, but regardless - over the weekend. It was very good. Hey, he has a catalog of movies that are either home runs or complete whiffs, and that's fine. But he is a bona fide A-list big shot and you could see why on SNL. He is a) extremely talented, and b) extremely likable and charismatic. And his tribute to Chris Farley at the show was downright emotional, especially for those of us who sat through Black Sheep and Beverly Hills Ninja because of how funny Farley was on SNL and how we view Tommy Boy as an all-timer.
Today's questions
OK, it's a Monday, so let's discuss weekend winners and losers. We are nothing if not consistent.
Also, here are a couple of issue questions:
First, a true or false on a Monday: True or false, the Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year should be a faceless referee. (Yes, Tiger is the clear front-runner for that honor right now, but with all the controversy from the NFC title game to the NBA playoffs to the talk of replay and expanded technology now to the Derby, that has been the story theme across all sports.)
Second, is this controversy good or bad for horse racing? Because other than the triple crown winners, Country Home will be the most unforgettable Derby winner from this day forward. And when has the Derby carried the day on the sports discussion platform all the way to Monday?
As for today, May 6, well, here's hoping you enjoyed the Star Wars Day - May 4th (be with you) - and Cinco de Mayo without getting over-served.
George Clooney is 58 today. Man, going from the random regular dude on Facts of Life to a billionaire is a crazy path, no?
Jose Altuve is 29 today. Jason Witten is 37 today.
Today is also national beverage day.
Let's do a Rushmore of songs with a beverage in the title.
Go. And 'Dro, if you pick Red, Red Wine, you are in time out.