7/8 Tuesday World Cup Semi Quickie

*Brazil-Germany (4 ET today) should be phenomenal. Brazil (playing without Neymar) is in "win-or-fail" territory; the Germans aren't too far off.

Put simply: Losing to Brazil in Brazil wouldn't be as bad for Germany as losing to Germany in Brazil would be for Brazil. But Germany should rightfully be considered the favorite.

*NBA Free Agency: Really enjoyed this piece on the NBA's Trade Rumor Era from Grantland's Bryan Curtis. He downplays two things I think about a lot:

(1) The commodification of the actual news scoop itself (which is why the rumor and the post-scoop analysis is so valuable), and (2) the overarching power of Twitter in all this -- Woj, Stein, Broussard, Amick and the rest are all really working for Twitter, not Yahoo or ESPN or USA TODAY Sports.

(Now, the commodification of the scoop means that putting it on Twitter is OK, as long as you have some sort of native context ready to go; everyone else will, off the scoop. But be clear that the news outlet reaping the most benefit here is Twitter -- more power to 'em.)

Otherwise, I'd like to see Chris Bosh take the power back and make the first move here, signing with the Rockets. (Don't know why he wasn't the Rockets' first move anyway.)

That would force LeBron to seriously reconsider any notion of wanting to re-sign with Miami, instead heading to, say, Cleveland. Dwyane Wade is left with Josh McRoberts and Danny Granger.

(The other option, as has been speculated, is that if Chris Bosh leaves Miami for Houston, then Carmelo vaults from "NY or LA?" to joining LeBron in Miami.)

*Missed this yesterday: Love DirecTV's idea of creating a "Fantasy Football Red Zone." I had always considered Red Zone pretty fantasy-football-oriented as it was, but it has a lot of potential.

(It'll be interesting to see if the NFL's cable version of Red Zone Channel -- hosted by the incomparable Scott Hanson and my preferred Red Zone -- ups its fantasy quotient.)

7/7 Monday 4th Hangover Quickie

*The whole "LeBron back to Cleveland" thing is enticing/amusing only because it represents the ideal ending to his free-agency situation.

*It would also trigger the dissolution of the Big Three -- Chris Bosh would realistically relocate to another contender, like Houston.

*Carmelo to LA is just sort of... well, OK. (It's more intriguing than him staying in New York.) A team with Kobe and Carmelo would be fun to watch, at least.

*MLB All-Stars: It's hard to fathom that Chris Sale wasn't picked and must rely on the "Final Vote" (a gimmick I have always loved, btw) -- he'll win the AL slot easily.

Otherwise, it's really hard to begrudge the fans their picks. (The reserves? OK, folks seem to have a quibble or few, but as long as Jose Abreu is on the roster, I'm fine.)

*World Cup: Germany-Brazil-Netherlands-Argentina might represent a dream final foursome, but it would have been more fun had Costa Rica crashed the semifinals. As it stands, no fan base (aside from the champ's) will be more satisfied with how the tournament played out than Costa Rica fans.

*Not much to say about the NBA's Orlando Summer League, except Nerlens Noel's debut was awesome enough for me to go back to lamenting m Wiz passing him up to draft Otto Porter.

*Josh Gordon is your new No. 1-ranked "best athlete to really screw things up." Hope he gets help.

-- D.S.

7/2 Wednesday USMNT Hangover Quickie

*It was fun while it lasted. I think most people are bummed more because the ride is over, not because we actually lost. And that's totally OK. In fact, that was the inevitable feeling.

*Can't say enough about Tim Howard. (And can't lament enough that missed shot by Wondo with just minutes to play in regulation.)

*The big question: What changes? I think our expectations for 2018 change -- we're now in the "quarterfinals or bust" tier, which is not necessarily ideal (see Spain, Italy, England).

*I'm not sure we see a surge in popularity of soccer in the US -- more people caring about MLS, more people caring about Premiership. Maybe more interest in USMNT games like the Gold Cup.

*This wasn't about soccer, per se. This was about socialization. Not in a "social media" sense -- in the sense that this had so many unique conditions that made this work as an "Everyone Cares" event:

(1) Total dominance of the sport -- no other sports on the radar... (2) uber coverage/access from ESPN... (3) it lent itself to social viewing: midday games... (4) soccer is super-easy to comprehend.

*The thing that made it so amazing -- the Togetherness -- is also what makes it unlikely to be either sustainable or something that advances the sport, itself, by a step function in the U.S.

*That doesn't diminish how amazing the past few weeks have been. Soccer snobs ("real" fans) might not like to hear it, but the non-fan Bandwagon is precisely why this was as huge as it was.

*The nation of bandwagoneers are the team to be celebrated, even if they don't pay attention for another four years.

-- D.S.

6/30 Monday Quickie

*I'm a huge fan and avid consumer of email newsletters. For most of this year, I've been thinking around the idea of starting one, largely to replace writing here (I'd republish everything here anyway).

*The reason it's on my mind is because the NYT's David Carr is a similar newsletter fan and wrote about it today. If you aren't familiar, you should give it a read.

*FWIW, here are a few on my list:

Daily
*Jason Hirschhorn's MediaREDEF (media + tech + pop culture)
*Quartz (media, technology, business)
*NiemanLab (media and news)
*Alexis Madrigal's "5 Things" (serendipity)
*SB Nation's "Good Morning, Let's Basketball" (NBA)
*The Wire (news-feature discovery)
*Product Hunt (start-up discovery)
*American Press Institute (media and news)
*StrictlyVC (venture capital deals)
*Dan Primack's Term Sheet (VC news)
*The Skimm (clever news digest)
*Skift (Not even for its news on the travel-industry but as a model for how email newsletters can work.)

The ones I open most frequently/reliably are the ones where I'm not already getting their links on Twitter. For example, I love REDEF and NiemanLab, but some days, I don't need to open them because they are two of the Twitter feeds I pay most close attention to. Madrigal's "5 Things" probably gets my most reliable daily open, because he doesn't necessarily tweet out those links.

Weekly
*Benedict Evans (mobile industry)
*Monday Note (media)
*TheWirecutter and TheSweetHome

Paid
*Joe Sheehan's Baseball Newsletter

(That last one should be interesting to anyone who aspires to turn an email newsletter into a paid-subscriber-based business, as Jason Hirschhorn does.)

*I wish very much that 10 years ago I had focused more on turning the Daily Quickie into a daily newsletter -- to be honest, the technology to do it has been less-than-easy. That includes MailChimp, which I looked into when Quickish launched. TinyLetter feels like the closest thing to frictionless.(It's worth noting that TinyLetter is a product of MailChimp -- a very smart little productization.)

*I know Hirschhorn's basic business model is to develop a couple of high-audience vertical newsletters, then sell subscriptions to get them, but I think his ultimate upside is opening REDEF's platform to let anyone create a paid-subscriber newsletter, then taking a percentage of that revenue.

*I know it'll seem derivative and herd-following, but don't be surprised if I spark up a daily email newsletter in the weeks after the July 4th weekend.

-- D.S.

6/29 Sunday Quickie

*Impossible not to feel for fans of Chile. That was as loaded of a sports event as you'll ever watch.

*If Jason Kidd is a fool (and he is), then what does that make the Bucks for wanting to hire him?

*Guess Miami's Big Three is sticking together at a discount. More power to 'em.

-- D.S.

6/27 Friday Draft Hangover Quickie

*It doesn't matter how the US advanced at the World Cup -- only that it advanced, period. There is no such thing as "backing in" or "too close for comfort." Just ask Spain or Italy or England.

*NBA Draft picks I liked:
- Nurkic and Harris to the Nuggets
- Embiid to the Sixers
- Vonleh and Hairston to the Hornets
- McGary to the Thunder
- Kyle Anderson to the Spurs
- McDermott to the Bulls

*NBA Draft picks I didn't like:
- Gordon to the Magic
- LaVine to the T'wolves
- Caboclo to the Raptors
- The Wizards selling their pick
- That no one drafted Patric Young

Fun weekend of World Cup knock-out games ahead.

-- D.S.

Thursday 6/26 USA! Draft Day! Quickie

*Typically, NBA Draft day would be one of my favorite days of the year. This year, it's eclipsed by today's US-Germany game, which will obliterate all known viewing records (especially streaming).

*Prediction: The US advances to the next round. That's all that matters, really. The "how" is kind of incidental -- would you really be THAT bummed if the US lost to Germany but still advanced?

*Personally, I think that the "collusion draw" is going to be the result -- even if no one ever admits to the "collusion" part. If you want a binary pick, I think we are more likely to lose than win.

*However! The conditions necessary for Portugal or Ghana to advance ahead of us if we don't win or draw are fairly severe -- it would take Portugal lighting up a Ghana in disarray... wait, what?

*Anyway, keep in mind the upshot: All that matters is advancing, full stop.

*Meanwhile, the NBA Draft! And every indication is that it could get kind of wild -- the Cavs could trade the top pick?! Where does Joel Embiid go?! Who do my Wizards draft at 46?!

*Restating from a few days ago: I'm very bullish on Dante Exum and not bullish at all about Jabari Parker.

*Yesterday's trade action was an appetizer -- Tyson Chandler back to Dallas prob'ly means the Mavs are making a serious run at Melo... and the Knicks are hitting the re-set button.

(Here's my Knicks theory: They are going to sign Pau Gasol, then use Pau to entice brother Marc to sign next summer.)

*And then the Rockets -- trying to clear cap space of their own for a run at Carmelo (or, less likely to work, LeBron) -- traded Asik to New Orleans. Houston gets more flexible; NOLA gets better.

*All that doesn't even consider Tim Lincecum's no-hitter, the second of his career. Hard to argue that Lincecum isn't the most fascinating pitcher of the post-Maddux/Clemens/Big Unit era.

6/24 Mexico Uruguay Italy Quickie

*Mexico's coach is so totally going to win the World Cup's "One Shining Moment" montage.

*Italy-Uruguay is going to be a phenomenal match today at noon.

*US hangover: My colleague Mike Foss thinks the US will beat Germany. I think that if they don't broker a draw, Germany wins 1-0, Portugal wins 4-2 and the US advances anyway, on goal differential.

*In every other year, I'm obsessed with the NBA Draft. This year, between the World Cup and the fact that my Wizards aren't in the first round, I'm slightly more passive.

But only slightly. I'm very high on Dante Exum, fairly high on Noah Vonleh and Gary Harris, still high on Joel Embiid, modestly bullish on Andrew Wiggins and not bullish at all on Jabari Parker.

*Carmelo will end up in... Chicago. (And if the Bulls can grab Afflalo from Orlando for a draft pick...whew.)

-- D.S.

Monday 6/23 USMNT Gut-Punch Quickie

*It is a measure of how much soccer matters now in the U.S. that we all were so battered by last night's finish/result.

*It is OK -- even preferable -- to feel dejected (the last second!) or dissatisfied (Bradley!), as opposed to feeling nothing. (Obviously, it would have felt infinitely better to have won.)

*Rationally, I get the whole "If we were the team to tie it up 2-2 in the last second, this would be the greatest moment in US soccer history." I get that 4 points through 2 games is pretty good.

*But it's hard to get over the fact that the game and its impact -- the three points, the guaranteed spot in the knockout round -- were ours, right there.

*Looking ahead to the game with Germany, we have plenty of pathways to get through: Beat Germany, draw with Germany, if Ghana and Portugal tie, if we lose closely but Ghana only wins by a goal, if we lose closely but Portugal only wins by less than 3 goals.

*It does befuddle me a little why the US wouldn't collude with Germany to tie the game, guaranteeing that both teams go through.

*The goal of the group stage -- at least for the US -- is to get out of the group stage. Not to maximize our points. Not to win stylishly. To survive and advance.

*Teams take different approaches to games with the bigger picture in mind all the time -- they rest starters, they try less aggressive tactics.

*In short: They do things that decrease their chances of winning in the short term in order to maximize their chances of winning the larger prize. (Shorthand: You don't play to win the game; you play to win the title.)

*In that respect, it's not unreasonable to evaluate that "Golden Draw" option -- in the same way that yesterday's 2-2 was felt as a sort of loss, a draw on Thursday would be the sweetest of victories.

*It all comes back to this: That we can even feel this way at all -- the dejection, the hope, the bracket-bending scenarios -- is the best sign yet of the ascendance of the sport in the U.S.

-- D.S.

6/20 Friday/Weekend Quickie

*Uruguay-England was everything you could want a World Cup match to be: Epic stakes for both teams, huge moments for the biggest stars, dramatic victory (and equally dramatic defeat). Bravo.

*Today's Best: Italy-Costa Rica, with the winner advancing to the knockout round... Switzerland-France for supremacy of Group E... Honduras-Ecuador in a loser-is-out match.

*Joel Embiid's foot injury: I would still take him first overall, and sit him for the entire year, getting his body prepared for the rigors of a long, healthy NBA career.

Maybe the Cavs prioritize being 8th in the East in 2015 over having the center with the most potential since Tim Duncan for the 10-15 years after that, but I wouldn't.

(Now, it's possible that the Bucks and Sixers don't think they NEED him -- that John Henson or Nerlens Noel are their bets on the future in the post and Wiggins/Parker are more needed. Fine. But not Cleveland.)

*Kevin Love to Golden State for Klay Thompson et al? I get Thompson's star potential, but he goes from wide-open shots courtesy of Stephen Curry to being the focus of defenses.

(I'd take Boston's bevy of first-round picks -- hell, Minnesota could end up with Embiid at No. 6, which would be a franchise-changer -- plus Olynyk or Sullinger or both.)

*Mark Emmert vs. Ed O'Bannon: Needless to say, Emmert's argument fell so flat, it's time to start thinking about what NCAA 2.0 looks like.

-- D.S.

6/19 Thursday No-No Quickie

*Clayton Kershaw throws 15K no-no: As good of a game as has ever been pitched (technically, by Game Score, the 2nd-best ever, but that's quibbling) for one of the few pitchers right now where you are watching and saying "Future Hall of Famer."



*Spain ousted from World Cup: THE headline so far -- the defending World Cup champs KO'ed earlier than any defending champ in WC history. (Meanwhile: Great scene-setting in Chile from Wright Thompson.) Oh, and Mexico-Croatia is pretty much a knockout-round play-in game.

*Today's Best: Uruguay-England at 3 ET is a knock-out game for the loser. Colombia-Ivory Coast at noon is a great way to start the day, between the two teams sitting atop Group C. (The other Group C game -- Japan-Greece -- is a knock-out game for the loser, also. Not quite as pressure-packed as Uruguay-England, of course, but still. Knock-out is knock-out.)

*Redskins lose trademark protection: At this point, the name-change is an inevitability, even if the timeline is in years, not months. The ruling is more symbolic than anything else, but yet another signal (perhaps the biggest yet) that the name can't stand.

-- D.S.

6/18 Wednesday Quickie

*Memo Ochoa is the MVP of the World Cup so far.

*Today's must-see game: Spain (in a must-win) vs. Chile at 3 ET.

*Should LeBron stay in Miami or leave? The answer is that he should stay in Miami if he had near-complete confidence the team can be constructed to remain a title contender. (Given that Wade is only going to decline further, he should not have that confidence and, thus, shouldn't stay. The problem: Where, exactly, could he go to satisfy that condition?)

*The Royals in 1st is the most delightful development of the MLB season.

*So many wonderful remembrances of Tony Gwynn. This one from his former bat boy, via Deadspin, is really amazing.

*The "Bitcoin Bowl" is absurd, even for bowl names and even for the bitcoin frenzy.

*So sad to hear of the passing of ESPN Dallas' Richard Durrett. He was only 38. Terrible.

-- D.S.

Tuesday 6/17 USA! USA! Quickie

What an ending. This video does it justice:


-- D.S.

6/16 Duncan Dynasty Quickie

*"Spurs in 5" is my best prediction in a decade -- and almost makes up for picking "Lakers in 4" on Around The Horn 10 years ago.

*It is hard to argue that any franchise has had a better run since the 1960s Celtics than the Spurs from 1999-2014 (yes, that includes the Bulls from 91-98 or the mid-80s Lakers).

*It wasn't merely that the Spurs won their 5th title of the Duncan Era -- it was HOW they did it. They obliterated the Heat, as if Miami was a Lottery team. That is astonishing.

*Is there any reason to not install the Spurs as the favorite to win next year's title? (Better question: Talent aside, why doesn't EVERY coach study Pop's system for ways to adopt it?)

*Best thing I've read last night/this morning on the Spurs: ESPN.com's Kevin Arnovitz on how the Spurs' system works.

*Go go USA. (Prediction: Draw.)



-- D.S.

Thinking of Ralph Wiley Today

Just tweeted this out, but collected them here:

*10 years ago today, the all-time great Ralph Wiley passed away. In the decade since, his voice and his brilliance have been so missed.

*I was lucky enough to hit in the early-00s Page 2 lineup where RW "bat cleanup" - being his colleague remains a personal/career high point.

*This is what I wrote in the wake of his passing.

*And if you haven't read Wiley's "Why Black People Tend to Shout" or "Serenity" yet, here's an Amazon link.

*In the meantime, enjoy Wiley's Page 2 archive. Here is a page of memories from colleagues.

*When I first launched the Quickie, I asked Ralph for any critiques. The last bit of his reply remains printed out and carried in my wallet:

"Feedback matters, but in the end, it's you against your standards ... if you hit that mark, you can live with what everybody else thinks."

*His final column carried this lead: "All a man's got is the integrity of his work." Ralph, you are so missed.

-- D.S.

Here is the full text of the first few items of that Daily Quickie column:

Two Words For You:
BATS.  CLEANUP.

"Bats cleanup ... for Page 2."
 
That's the tagline phrase at the bottom of Ralph Wiley's Page 2 columns, and it was always the last thing I read after engulfing whatever his latest column was. It's his baseball metaphor, so I'll run with it:

The cleanup hitter is the heart of the order. Ralph brought the heart of Page 2. And its soul. Its brains and its brawn. Its conscience and consciousness.

The cleanup hitter brings the players in front of him home and sets the table for the ones behind him. With his unmatched combination of voice and insight, clarity and style, and -- most of all -- his passion, Ralph made Page 2, its contributors and its readers better.

(II.) HIS PAGE 2 WORK
When young writers ask me for advice about how to get better, I send them the link to Ralph Wiley's Page 2 archive.

When budding bar pundits want to talk ESPN.com or Page 2 with me, my litmus test is Ralph; similar to how my editor Kevin Jackson feels, if people don't see the genius, I have no interest or reason to keep talking with them.

See "Q It Up" for a link to his Page 2 Archive, which is worth book-marking and re-reading any time you want to read the best sports columnist -- online or off -- of the last four years.

(III.) HEAD TO HEAD
Ralph and I went head-to-head for Page 2 only once -- "head-to-head" is overstatement, actually:

He wrote a column on why the NBA is better than college hoops:

I came up with the bright idea to take him on with why college hoops is better than the NBA.

I guess I thought I was pretty smart ... maybe even knew my stuff ... R-Dub proceeded to file a "last-word" column, taking each of my arguments -- point by point -- and just crushing them.

It was, to say the least, an education. No, more like a K.O. But a badge of butt-kicking I continue to wear with pride.

(IV.) FROM COLLEAGUES
 Passion ... generosity of spirit ... big-hearted... tried to make everything smarter... a giant in our industry... important.

From Bill Simmons to Mike Lupica, the way Ralph's colleagues described him is really just an inkling of the admiration and respect for a writer and man who was confident and passionate enough to return those feelings to all of us.

6/13 Father's Day Weekend Quickie

*"Spurs in 5" might turn out to be my best prediction in years. It almost makes up for my "Lakers in 4" that I spouted on Around The Horn the day the 2004 Finals started.

*The past two games should end any discussion that the NBA's post-Jordan time period since 1999 should be known as anything but the "Spurs dynasty" or the "Duncan dynasty."

*Brazil's tepid start: That iffy call by the ref in the box is a nice foreshadowing for the rest of the tourney.

*Today's must-see: Spain vs. Netherlands at 3 pm ET. Quality you would see in a World Cup semifinal. Both will likely advance, but the battle for "B1" likely pivots on the result of today's game.

*Happy Father's Day to all the dads -- including my own dad. I'll stick with what I said last year: I'm not close to being the dad that I aspire to be, but I'll keep working at it.

-- D.S.

6/12 World Cup Quickie

*I definitely classify as someone who isn't as much of a soccer buff as I should be, but someone who really gets into the World Cup. Really looking forward to the next month of daily games to watch.

*I'm going Occam's Razor here and picking Brazil to win it all, over Uruguay in the finals -- which would, partly, exorcise the ghosts of 1950.

*Other semifinalists: Germany (which will lose to Brazil after some highly suspicious refereeing) and Argentina (which will lose to Uruguay in an epic semifinal battle).

*Other quarterfinalists: Spain (which will lose to Uruguay), Colombia (which will notably beat England in the knockout round), Switzerland (the Swiss!) and Belgium (bandwagon!)

*Eight other teams making it to the knockout round: Croatia (A), Netherlands (B), Greece (C), England (D), Ecuador (E), Bosnia (F), Portugal (G), Russia (H).

*Of course, that means I am predicting that the US will NOT make it out of the group stage -- if they were in another group, very possible.

*But I'll certainly be rooting for the Yanks to beat Ghana and somehow tie Portugal (before the inevitable loss to Germany), sneaking into 2nd place in the group.

Enjoy the tournament!

-- D.S.

6/11 Spurs Quickie

*That Spurs 1st quarter was among the most effective quarters of basketball you'll ever see.

*This Cespedes throw from the deep outfield (after bobbling away the ball!) to home plate is one of the greatest throws you will ever see.


*This Deadspin piece by Greg Howard about my one-time Page 2 colleague Jason Whitlock is one of the greatest pieces of media reporting and analysis you will ever see.

*World Cup: This piece by Grantland's Brian Phillips -- "The Soul of Brazilian Soccer" -- is one of the best pieces of soccer writing you'll get this month -- or any.

Can't wait for the World Cup to start tomorrow.

-- D.S.

Must-See: The John Oliver Video About FIFA

This segment from John Oliver about FIFA is as good as everyone is saying today:



And then there's this one -- sort of affirming Oliver's final point -- from Nike:



-- D.S.

6/9 Monday LeBron Quickie

*OK, so maybe "Spurs in 5" was misguided. Game 2 was the difference between "no LeBron in the final 2 minutes" of Game 1 and "Yes, lots of LeBron in the final 2 minutes."

(And that pass into the corner to Bosh for the game-winning 3? Go figure: The same "right basketball play" he was pilloried for when Bosh missed the shot against Indy.)

*California Chrome denied: It's easy to feel for Chrome's owner, but he managed to rip/steal the storyline from his horse, with his griping.

*Rafael Nadal: Best ever? It's hard to imagine we could so swiftly be moving from "Federer: Best ever" to someone that would replace him. But isn't it amazing that we can have that discussion?

*I'm not a fan of "why doesn't he/she play the game 'the right way?'" scolds -- but I also think that acts of retribution (or whatever it was) like the one by Manny Machado are dumb, because he could have injured the player and his (likely) suspension will hurt his team.

-- D.S.

6/6 Friday The Cramp Game Quickie

*It is absurd to ding LeBron in the least for cramping up last night. (But it is shocking that it happened.)

*It was absolutely compelling to watch him sit on the sidelines. There was zero schadenfreude (maybe from others, but not from me).

*Unlike LeBron, the conditions in the arena were pathetic and worthy of our mockery. The Spurs should be embarrassed.

*With a full-strength LeBron -- which I'm sure we'll see in Games 2-Whatever -- I'm not sure the Spurs win that game. Nevertheless: 1-0.

*Will California Chrome win the Triple Crown? Prediction: Yes.

-- D.S.

6/5 Thursday NBA Finals Quickie

*Spurs in 5.

*Lots of great World Cup ads already released, and this one by Beats might be the best yet:


*OK, maybe Rangers in 7 wasn't the best pick -- but I stand by it!

-- D.S.

6/4-5 "50" Quickie

*Super Bowl "50": Bigger "50" issue this week: 50 Cent's first pitch... or the NFL ditching Roman numerals for Super Bowl "50" (presumably because "L" directly correlates to vividly to "loser").

*Colin Kaepernick: Worth the record-breaking (guaranteed) price tag? Sure! (Just makes you wonder what Russell Wilson is going to get -- let alone Andrew Luck. And why Marcus Mariota would push off by a year the ability to cash in like Kap just did.)

*All-NBA: Forget the usual suspects like LeBron, KD and CP3 -- the breakthrough is Joakim Noah making 1st-team all-NBA. What a spectacular talent.

(OK: How many 1st-team all-NBA players also won a college hoops national title? If you go back 40 years, the list is VERY short: Noah, Jordan, Grant Hill, Ewing, Magic, Isiah, Walton, Kareem.)

*World Cup lead-up: The more I read about Jurgen Klinsmann (in the NYT here and WSJ here), the more I like his style.

*Rangers in 7.

-- D.S.

5/30 Weekend Quickie

*That Spelling Bee finish was amazing. I stand by my tweet from mid-event: After all that, to not let the two competitors keep going to find a winner feels like short-changing them; they might as well give trophies to all three finalists before they run through the 25 "championship" words. All that said, I'm thrilled for both of them and their families/friends. Best Bee ever!

*Ballmer buys Clippers? For starters, "Anyone But Sterling" was always going to be superior to Sterling. That it's one billionaire vs. another? Eh. That $2B pricetag? I don't see it as absurd -- not given escalating franchise values and the motherlode of TV rights coming up for NBA teams, including the Clippers.

Will it be the same ROI as it would be for an owner who bought a team for a mere $250M-400M? (Here's why that question is moot: Ballmer isn't buying it as an investment or to flip it; this is a "forever house." That his heirs will one day be able to sell the team for 2x or 5x or 10x that $2B number is largely inconsequential, although the reality is that they will.)

*"Peak Duncan." We've been talking about "peak" performances all week in the NBA Playoffs -- "peak LeBron," "peak Westbrook." Then there's "peak Duncan," which began in 1997 and hasn't really ended since, including last night's dominance -- what a great series.

*Rangers back in Stanley Cup Finals. I love the post-series handshake and the playoff beards as sports traditions -- they are both in the Top 10, across all sports -- but I really love the tradition where the conference champ doesn't touch the conference-champ trophy. Cup or bust -- gotta love that.

-- D.S.

5/29 What The LeBron Quickie

*Lance Stephenson blowing into LeBron's ear pretty much captured LeBron's not-so-quite-peak night, what with the grand total of 7 points (mostly because of the atypically volumnious fouls).

*One thing that is not in question: LeBron made exactly the right play at the end of the game, finding a wide-open Chris Bosh for what would have been a lead-taking 3. That it didn't go in is unfortunate for the Heat, but has nothing to do with whether it was the right play.

*Meanwhile, Paul George -- from that last shot of the 3rd quarter through his dominant 4th -- was as impressive a 12-minute-1-second display as we have seen this year.

*2OT playoff hockey is the best kind of playoff hockey.

*Spelling Bee finals tonight! One of the best sports events of the year -- I'll continue to insist that these 8-to-12-year-olds display more cool under pressure (not to mention dedication to preparation) than any "adult" pro athlete.

-- D.S.

5/28 Westbrook Quickie

*"Peak Westbrook": Yesterday, we were talking about "peak LeBron" -- today, it's "peak Westbrook."



*"Johnny Middleseat": Doesn't it say more about his character than anything else that he sucked it up and stuck with the middle seat, rather than try to bribe the window-seat passenger to switch?

*Serena and Venus both KO'ed from French Open: There goes any reason to watch.

-- D.S.

Tuesday 5/27 LeBron Quickie

*Last night was "peak LeBron" on display. The only thing that can stop the Heat is the Spurs.



*An injury to Yordano Ventura would eclipse the residual feel-goods from Josh Beckett's no-hitter.

*I suppose the fan world divides into two camps: The tiny vocal minority that thinks it's an issue that Johnny Manziel was in Las Vegas, and the massive majority whose universal reaction is "And?"

*Best moment of the weekend, arguably: The announcers for Queens Park Rangers going bananas when the team scored in the 90th minute to put QPR back in the Premiership.

*On the other side: You've got to feel for fans of Atletico Madrid -- that's way (way) worse than the 2003 moment when the Yankees blew the 3-0 ALCS lead to the Red Sox.

*I don't watch enough auto racing -- both the F1 race in Monaco and the Indy 500 were awesome.

-- D.S.

5/23 Memorial Day Weekend Quickie

*Landon Donovan left off USMNT World Cup squad: Jurgen Klinsmann knew exactly what he was doing -- leaving off Donovan was deliberate, tactical, remorseless. The message is "'18, not '14."

Bill Barnwell had an immediate reaction that felt right: If the US falls short (and they will), the entire discussion will be "What if Landon was playing?"

*NBA Playoffs: By the time we get to Tuesday, it'll be Heat 3-1 and Spurs 3-0. (Hate the lull with no games last night and tonight -- after the nightly pace, it was a sudden withdrawal.)

*Prince Fielder: Bad contract or the worst contract? (Can't be worse than Ryan Howard, but up there.) Fielder had been durable throughout his career; reminder about the dominant role of chance.

*Phrase to know: "Let the games began" (V. Stiviano, via the LA Times)

*Weekend read: "Bedtime Stories for Catherine," from ESPN's Wright Thompson

*Congrats to my pals at FTW for winning "Best Mobile Site" from Digiday at their awards show last night.

-- D.S.

5/22 Spurs Dynasty Quickie

This feels like the moment when everyone finally gets on board with how amazing these Spurs are -- and have been since the dawn of Duncan.

It is Tim Duncan -- not Shaq or Kobe or LeBron -- who deserves to have an entire era named after him. The NBA from 1999-2014... "The Duncan Dynasty."

It's not just the titles, although that is typically how we ultimately measure success. The Spurs should have had another last year and seem hell-bent on rolling to one this year.

They are dispatching the Thunder in this series like OKC was a nuisance; what's going to happen in two weeks when they play a team they actually feel viscerally angry about?

It feels like only now that the vast majority of fans are finally recognizing that the Spurs are iconic. This "Big Three" trumps Miami's version, and it's not even close.

Gregg Popovich trumps Phil Jackson -- and possibly/probably any other coach in NBA history (although as with Phil, it's hard to know how much is the coach and how much is the all-time talent).

Sure, the roster is anchored by one of the Top 10 players of all time and bolstered by two of the greatest draft steals ever (three, if you count Kawhi Leonard).

But it's hard to think of a team in NBA history as well-oiled as these Spurs are -- and have been, for a generation. Maybe since Showtime -- the Spurs are on track to match those 5 titles.

The Spurs don't clamor for your attention, recognition or respect -- that has simply become a byproduct of staggering success.

-- D.S.

PS: Thanks to Tony Reali, Aaron Solomon, Erik Rydholm and the folks at the Around the Horn/PTI/Highly Questionable HQ for hosting me yesterday on the 10th anniversary of my ATH debut.

5/21 Lottery Hangover Quickie

*Ten years ago today, I made my debut on "Around the Horn." That's surreal on several levels.

*The Cavs winning the NBA Lottery is the lamest outcome. I'm sure they will take Wiggins, but they should take Embiid, even with the injury risk; let him sit out all next year to get better.

*After last night, any lingering doubts about whether the Heat will roll over the Pacers?

-- D.S.

5/20 Lottery Quickie

*I have become so conditioned -- institutionalized -- to get excited for the NBA Draft Lottery (aka "our playoffs" for Wizards fans) that it's weird to not be involved tonight.

This year's edition has at least three (but I'd argue five) potential franchise-changers: Andrew Wiggins, Jabari Parker and Joel Embiid (plus Dante Exum and Noah Vonleh), and a slew of players with potential to be playoff rotation contributors down the line, if not starters on playoff teams.

(Thought experiment: Five years from now, how many games would a team whose starting five was Exum, Wiggins, Parker, Vonleh and Embiid win? I'll say at least 50.)

Anyway, it's a big night for bottom-feeders -- but, for once, not for Wizards fans.

*After watching the Spurs hammer the Thunder last night, "Spurs in 5" still sounds right.

*California Chrome/Triple Crown Watch: The nasal strip was approved, for obvious (commercial) reasons. Now the Belmont resumes being a must-see event.

*Name to Know: Lucy Li, the 11-year-old who qualified for the LPGA's US Women's Open. Lucy rules! (And maybe I'm just saying that because my own daughter is named Lucy!)

*Prediction: Kevin Ollie will be in the NBA before his 5-year extension at UConn runs out.

*NFL Draft moved from NYC to another city, rotating annually? Yes, please.

-- D.S.

5/19 Monday Quickie

*For my money, Twitch is the most fascinating sports-media deal of the year. It's the closest thing we've seen to a "next ESPN" by a start-up since... ESPN.

(Stat to know: In March, Consumption of Twitch represented 1.35% of all -- ALL -- downstream bandwidth. That's more than HBO Go. Background on the rumored YouTube acquisition here; required background reading on Twitch here.)

*Pacers beat Heat in Game 1: Is it wrong that my entire lens for this series is a combination of "Well, at least the Wizards played Indy tougher than Miami did" and "At this rate, the Wizards could have beaten the Heat, too."

*California Chrome nasal-strip controversy: This shouldn't be a controversy! The New York Racing Association would be insane not to give the horse an exemption to wear the breathing aid.

*Spurs over Thunder in 5.

-- D.S.

5/16 Happy Birthday Gabe Quickie

*Happy 8th birthday, Gabe. It nearly gives me vertigo to consider how much has happened since May 16, 2006.

*Gabe was thrilled that his favorite NBA team -- the Thunder -- delivered him a post-midnight birthday present of a close-out in the Western conference semis over the Clippers.

*Between LeBron and Durant, it sure looks like Chris Paul is destined to be this generation's Barkley-Ewing-Stockton-Malone superstar who never wins a ring. Happy to be proven wrong, but....

*Miami is going to throttle Indiana. San Antonio is going to throttle OKC. The Playoffs are so much fun, but the end-pairing has been predictable since November. The Finals result, on the other hand....

*Predictions for my Wiz in their offseason: Grunfeld stays (obviously). Wittman extended (I appreciate his work this postseason, but I respectfully disagree). Gortat re-signs. They try to re-sign Ariza, but he gets a more lucrative offer elsewhere -- he is a great piece for a would-be contender. The upside of that is that they invested so much in the Otto Porter pick, gotta let him play next year. The team is in the mix early for Greg Monroe, but he goes elsewhere.

*If you like media wonkery, the leaked NY Times innovation memo is fascinating -- Nieman Lab did a great job of digesting it for you.

-- D.S.

5/15 Wizards Denouement Quickie

You have to understand that long before Florida and before Northwestern, I was a Bullets/Wizards fan -- it is my oldest and longest-standing fan allegiance, going back roughly 30 years.

For almost all of those 30 years, the team has been somewhere between mediocre and terrible. There were brief glints in '87/88 and '97. Up until this season, my three favorite Wizards moments didn't even come on the court -- it was the day of the trade for Chris Webber, the night we won the NBA Lottery to secure us John Wall and the moment the Bobcats passed on Bradley Beal, ensuring he'd come to DC. (I enjoyed the Arenas years a lot -- who didn't? -- but can't help but remember them as tarnished for the way it all ended.)

Three years ago, when I relocated back to DC, I became even more engaged with the team -- I watched a lot (a LOT) of Wizards games, most of them in the range of atrocious. Slowly, we got rid of the knuckleheads. We got Nene. We got Beal. We got Gortat.

This season, I would say that I watched all (and certainly part) of at least 75 or more of the 82-game regular season, subjecting Mrs. Quickie to Wizards basketball throughout the winter.

Like the rest of the fan base, I was rewarded with a pretty good season! And pretty good is pretty great, when you consider that almost all of the previous 30 years were pretty lousy.

Then this playoff run started, and we dispatched the Bulls, which was as thrilling of an on-court result as I have ever experienced. The city cared about the team again, in a way it hadn't in a long time. Is this what it is like in the cities with perennially good NBA teams?

You cannot underestimate the idea of feeling relevant -- of feeling ANYTHING positive about this team, even feeling frustration over bad plays or losses. Because those bad plays and losses were happening in the playoffs, not in December against the Bucks en route to a 20-win season.

Then we beat the Pacers in Game 1. Then we lost three straight, and I figured it was all over -- good job, good effort. Then, in Game 5, we destroyed them -- a new "favorite moment" for me. It re-sparked that, yes, this team was good enough to beat the Pacers in a 7-game series.

My feeling going into Game 6 tonight was "We SHOULD win. We probably won't. But we SHOULD." I can't tell you how amazing -- exotic, really -- that feeling is for a Wizards fan.

And guess what: They should have won this game. They should have. They should have taken this to Game 7 on Sunday and, then, won the damn series.

I can simultaneously be disappointed about tonight -- to have that many miscues and still be in a position to win is inexcusable for a team that is as good as this one -- but so satisfied about getting this far and putting up this much of a fight.

That I finally get to feel that mixture of elation and disappointment -- what so many other teams' fans take for granted -- is a newly minted priceless sports memory for me.

I hope for nothing but this being the start of sustained success where I begin to EXPECT success, rather than merely appreciate it as a novelty. Despite having the best young backcourt in the league, I actually worry -- like any good lifelong Bullets/Wizards fan -- that we will look back in 10 years and this will end up turning out to be "peak Wiz."

But I'll always remember this team and this run for the new emotions it allowed me to feel.

-- D.S.

5/14 Wizards Thunder Quickie

*The Wiz fan in me must overlook the insane ending to the Thunder-Clippers game to note that was the best effort -- at the most critical moment -- I have ever seen the team offer.

*I don't know if the Wiz can win Game 6 back in DC -- if they play like they did last night, they clearly can -- but if this was it, it's nice to feel like they put it all together when it mattered most.

*OK, so back to Thunder-Clippers, round 5: Terrible choices by the Clippers, terrible calls by the refs, but a hell of a comeback by OKC in the final 4 minutes/1 minute.

*Henrik Lundqvist: There are a handful of athletes we can all feel like "Watching them in their prime is Peak Fandom, even if you don't care about their team." That's him in Game 7s.

*Last word to Doc Rivers: "We were robbed." But also: "We did a lot ourselves to not win the game."

-- D.S.

5/13 Wiz-blivion Quickie

*The most remarkable thing about Donald Sterling's interview last night is that the universal presumption was that he couldn't get more loathsome than two weeks ago -- and yet!

*I obviously want the Wizards to win tonight to retain the glimmer of hope they can win the series, but -- at the very least -- I want an extra game in this atypically satisfying season.

*LeBron's career-playoff-high-tying 49 was closer to typical -- and I kind of loved that he seemed so annoyed afterwards. That he didn't get 50, because of that missed FT at the end? Good for him.

*The injury to Marlins ace Jose Fernandez is the most depressing bit of sports-injury news of 2014, whether you like the Marlins or baseball or not.

-- D.S.

5/9 Draft Hangover Quickie

*The story of the night, of course, is Johnny Manziel dropping to Cleveland. The story within the story is that the owner was apparently swayed by the recommendation of a homeless guy.

*The Browns had the best 1st round -- Johnny Football, a lockdown corner to play opposite the sublime Joe Haden and an extra 1st-round pick from Buffalo in 2015 (top 10?)

*Five not-Clowney/Manziel picks I particularly liked: Mike Evans to Bucs, CJ Mosley to Ravens, Brandin Cooks to Saints, Dominique Easley to Pats, Teddy Bridgewater to Vikings.

*As exciting as the first round of the NBA playoffs were, the Spurs and Heat series are duds. On the other hand! It's a must-win for my Wiz tonight in Game 3 at home in DC.

-- D.S.

5/7 Durant MVP Quickie

*One of the best award speeches you'll see, from Kevin Durant -- great for the week of Mother's Day, too:



*Meanwhile, back in the playoffs, the Heat and Spurs rolled to Game 1 wins, and their series both seem over already.

*Not so in Indiana -- as a Wizards fan, it is incumbent on me to think of tonight's game as a must-win, just as I thought Game 1 was must-win.

*Mark Jackson's ouster in Golden State: Did anyone not see this coming the day they hired him?

*One day until the NFL Draft, and "Who's going to take Johnny Manziel?" remains -- by far -- the No. 1 storyline.

-- D.S.

5/3 Lillard Quickie

*Shot of the Year in the NBA? Shot of the Year in the NBA.




*Kentucky Derby: My pal Joe Drape picks Wicked Strong. California Chrome is the popular pick. I'm going to go with Commanding Curve, as usual without much good reason.

*Weekend reads: This behind-the-scenes reporting of how things went down inside the Clippers last weekend and Spencer Hall on the Istanbul Derby - the world's fiercest soccer rivalry.

*It's May 3 and my Wizards are still playing basketball -- waiting around, even! So many Game 7s today and the rest of the weekend.

-- D.S.

4/30 Silver Reigns Supreme Quickie

*As I said yesterday, that was the most impressive display of leadership by a sports commissioner -- NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, NCAA, FIFA, Olympics, whatever -- in modern sports history.

*There is a parallel universe where Silver possibly stumbles and the players go through with that reported boycott of last night's games, which would have been seismic.

*But, of course, Silver avoided that, while establishing his leadership bonafides -- his statement and press conference were an instant-classic example of how to communicate in a crisis.

*It helps that this issue is one that virtually everyone agrees on -- there was zero contention (beyond the inevitable Sterling lawsuit against the NBA, which vastly fewer people will care about).

*Even if he hasn't sold the team yet, the NBA is in its "post-Sterling era" -- we can return to a fascinating, thrilling playoffs season.

*Speaking of which: My Wiz! First of all, no fan in the NBA appreciates a trip to the 2nd round of the playoffs like a Wizards fan. I'm giddy.

*I can now finally allow myself to think about the options between having home-court advantage against the 8-seed Hawks or playing an exhausted Pacers team that needed 7 games to beat them.

*I actually think that Hawks are the tougher match-up for the Wizards -- that seems unfathomable, but it's true. That said: I have never seen the Wiz play this well, certainly not at this level of pressure.

*Speaking of which (again): I cannot imagine an NBA Playoffs season where a full-strength Thunder doesn't make it out of the first round. But that's where we are. It's stunning.

*I still think OKC wins the next two games, but I feel no certainty about that -- doubting the Grizzlies is exactly where they want you.

*Last point, reiterated: As quickly as the Sterling story emerged (was it really only 5 days ago?), Adam Silver has basically put it behind the league. Sterling is purged. Everyone is agreed it was the right thing.

Unlike most two-sided sports debates, there's really nothing left to talk about -- that alone makes it one of the most unique stories we have seen in sports in a long time.

-- D.S.

4/29 Sterling Versus Silver Quickie

*What will Adam Silver do today? More to the point, what CAN he do?

Will it be enough -- today? For the long-term?

What does "enough" even mean, in a world where there is a consensus that the result has to include Donald Sterling no longer owning an NBA team -- and an equal consensus that they'll have to pry it from his cold, extraordinarily litigious hands.

What happens tonight when the Clippers play at home? What happens when their season is over and Doc Rivers decides if he wants to be a part of the team -- let alone stars like CP3 or Blake Griffin.

The certainty is that the story doesn't end today at 2.

*The Sterling story has eclipsed basically everything else. That doesn't mean I don't still have my eye nervously on the Wizards-Bulls Game 5 in Chicago. Those of us Wiz fans who know better (or are scarred by the past 30 years) recognize that a loss tonight puts us in the most precarious "up 3-2" situation ever. But a win -- oh, a win -- would be beyond jubilation.

*What the heck happened to the Pacers?

*My fantasy baseball season is ruined more by my regret passing on Jose Abreu than the actuality of losing Bryce Harper for the next two months.

-- D.S.

04/28 Sterling Revolt Quickie

*That the Donald Sterling Era in the NBA has reached a tipping point is obvious; that it is an end-game is not as clear. A few thoughts:

- I thought the players did as much as they could, given the timing -- I wouldn't discount the symbolic power of the shooting shirts left in a pile at midcourt, nor the inside-out tops. The name is shamed.

- It will be very interesting to see what happens back in L.A. for Game 5. Given that the players hold virtually all of the power on game night, there are a breadth of options available to them.

- I also think that as early as tonight, you will see every player in the league wearing black socks in solidarity.

- The power of the voices speaking out here is immensely important: LeBron. Magic. Jordan. That last one is very important: A fellow owner. Other owners will need to condemn Sterling, too.

- It's unclear what the league can do -- can they force Sterling to sell? The best new commissioner Adam Silver might be able to do (in what immediately became the only referendum on his leadership) is to suspend Sterling indefinitely, then work behind the scenes to pressure him to sell.

- In the absence of that, the outcome here for the Clippers is entirely unclear: Did Doc Rivers really imply that he could walk away from coaching the team over this?

- Would Chris Paul or Blake Griffin (or both... or every player on the roster) demand a trade? How on earth would any free agent choose the Clippers, given the existing ownership?

- Last point: Agree with many smart folks out there reminding us all that it's not on the players to force a change -- it's on the NBA owners.

*That was a hell of a win by my Wiz yesterday, in the absence of Nene and in a de facto "must-win" position. Not discounting chances of them losing 3 straight, but the Bulls also have to win 3 straight.

-- D.S.

4/27 Sunday Quickie

*"There is no room for Donald Sterling in the NBA." -- LeBron James, with not the first nor the last word on the Clippers' owner, but by far the galvanizing statement of the entire story.

*No Nene for my Wiz in Game 4 today. Ugh.

*If Memphis can't beat OKC the night Kevin Durant has arguably his worst shooting game ever (or ever will), this series gets "o-v-e-r" designation, even if it's "only" 2-2

*Last word: Vinsanity!

Friday 4/25 Wizards! Quickie

*Let's! Go! Wiz! Only the most-anticipated Wizards game I can remember in 30 years of fan consciousness. (And, by the way, I see it as must-win. Do NOT want to be in a position of playing Sunday with the series in the balance.)

*Wrote two things today -- kind of unexpectedly.

(1) Why Mitch McGary was screwed financially by not going pro last year, when his NBA draft stock was in the middle of the Top 10, rather than now, when it is back of the 1st round.

(2) Why Kentucky's Harrison twins didn't "return" to UK -- they were rejected by the NBA. And why John Calipari sold them a bill of goods. (Keep an eye on the formatting.)

Big night tonight. Have a great weekend.

-- D.S.

Thursday 4/24 NFL Schedule Release Mania Quickie

*I do not get the cynical griping about the event-ification of the release of the NFL schedule. It is massively popular. It is a near-perfect mid-week offseason thing. It embodies everything about that most precious of fan ideas -- possibility. That, and the "cross-flex."

*The most interesting thing I read about it was this deep-dive from Peter King, who went behind the scenes with the crew that creates the schedule -- it's fascinating.

*LaMarcus Aldridge is the king of the first five days of the NBA Playoffs. I liked this from SB Nation's Paul Flannery -- it's a great thing for the NBA when the non-superduperstars emerge with the kinds of performances that resonate with fans across the country (see Bradley Beal).

*As it relates to the NFL this season, I didn't think there was anything I'd want to see more than Tim Tebow making a roster, but the idea of a team bringing 50-year-old Herschel Walker into training camp and watching him play (which he says he still can) is pretty close to toppling it.

*At least Pineda owned it.

-- D.S.

4/23 Wizards! Wrigley! Pujols! Quickie

*Is this what other NBA fans have gotten to experience? The ridiculous thrill ride of a close playoff win on the road, taking the most improbable 2-0 series lead in NBA Playoffs history?

It's surreal for me to process -- my Wiz winning that game last night, my Wiz going up 2-0 after 2 games in Chicago, my Wiz earning national cred -- but wow, do I appreciate it.

Funny: I'm so conditioned for #SoWizards that I still think this is some kind of cruel cosmic joke -- that Chicago will win 4 of the next 5 games and stomp on my soul.

It doesn't matter -- I'll still have the feeling this morning.

*Speaking of feelings, today's 100th anniversary of Wrigley Field has me feeling so nostalgic. When I graduated college, I moved into a classic Wrigleyville apartment with two buddies -- just two blocks from the stadium -- and had one of the great years of my life.

Imagine this: Living so close that when one roommate would come home with freebie game tickets from the office, we would just wander over whenever, take in a few innings, then head home. Or we would sit out on our front porch, offering friendly strangers a beer from a cooler -- sometimes they would give us their extra tickets in return.

In reality, that time for me was a million years ago, but it remains more vivid than anything 20 years ago should be.

*500 HR for Albert Pujols is an awesome milestone, when milestones seem to have lost a little oomph. 26 members of the club, and by the end of the season, he should be passing Ted Williams and be well into the Top 20 all-time.

I always like looking down the list and seeing who -- if anyone -- can join him. Among active players, Adam Dunn is next at 444 (no chance), then Giambi (438) and Ortiz (435) and Konerko (434) and Soriano (410)... no chance for those guys, either, although let's not sniff at the "400 Club." How about Adrian Beltre at 376? Let's keep in mind: That's 25 HR a year for the next 5 years.

The most likely candidates are Ryan Braun, sitting at a distant 217, and Robinson Cano, at 205. They aren't even halfway there, with plenty to get in their way; both are over 30. Maybe Evan Longoria at 164 before he hits age 29?

I'm going to predict that we won't see another addition to the 500 HR Club, full stop -- it will go the way of the "300 Club" in pitching wins, which has a weirdly similar 24 players making the cut.

The one guy with a chance to crack 500 seems to be Giancarlo Stanton (123 HR at age 24).

But if the choice is "anyone" vs. "no one," I'll bet on "no one."

-- D.S.

4/22 Aereo Durant Moyes Quickie

*Is the most important sports story today the Aereo case in front of the Supreme Court? (Good context of the stakes from Re/code's Peter Kafka and from the NYT's David Carr.)

*I don't care that the Thunder ultimately lost, this Kevin Durant shot is ridiculous -- shot of the year in the NBA:



*It was inevitable: Manchester United fired overmatched first-year manager/replacement-for-legend David Moyes. I know it's a tough gig and probably the hardest seat in sports to fill over the past few years, but still.

-- D.S.

4/21 Back from Vacation Quickie

*Meb Keflezighi. What a result at the Marathon.

*Got back last night just in time to listen to/watch the second half of the first Wizards playoff win in a Game 1 since 1986 -- ponder that for a second. A remarkable win on so many levels.

*The NBA Playoffs are off to a fantastic start, aren't they?

*I don't quite mind the extra few weeks between the old NFL Draft date and the new one -- I can wait. Sure seems like it's Clowney at the top, with the QBs sliding.

*Joakim Noah: NBA Defensive Player of the Year. And should be 1st-team all-NBA this season, too. One of my very favorite NBA players.

*This was fun: While we were in Gainesville, the kids and I huddled over an iPhone watching Florida's women's gymastics team tie for a national title.

*Filed under "It's Early Yet, But So What?" My fantasy baseball team just went over .500 -- it's rare enough that individual weeks where I am over .500 can be counted on two hands. That's over 10 years of playing, by the way, not in a single season.

-- D.S.

4/8 UConn Dynasty Quickie

*Decent argument to be made that UConn's 4 titles in the past 15 years makes them a quasi-dynasty.

*Even better argument to be made that Shabazz Napier belongs in the top tier of all-time college hoops players, because of three very important qualifiers:

(1) He played a meaningful role on TWO national-title teams (putting him in the rare air of Hurley-Laettner-Hill and Noah-Horford-Brewer).

(2) In the second one, he wore the "carry-the-load superstar champ" role of Carmelo, Kemba, Danny Manning, Glen Rice and Anthony Davis.

(3) This one was most interesting to me: He joined an extremely exclusive fraternity of players who played meaningful roles on two NON-CONSECUTIVE national-title teams.

The sport is defined by its championship tournament, individual brilliance within that tournament and the exclusivity of winning multiple titles.

Because of that, I'd argue that Napier ends his career in the top tier of all-time ("all-time" meaning: 64-team era since 1985) talents:

The 10 I'd pick: Manning, Larry Johnson, Laettner, Hurley, Hill, Carmelo, Noah, Davis, Napier, with one spot open for your particular favorite snubbee.

*Looking ahead to next year: By far the most intriguing team is SMU, snubbed by the Tournament committee, but whose two wins over UConn sure do look good this morning.

-- D.S.

4/7 One Shining Moment Quickie

*John Calipari wins, regardless of whether or not Kentucky wins the national title tonight. The mere fact his squad has made it this far (even with preseason No. 1 expectations) is affirmation enough.

*I remain bludgeoned by Florida's loss to UConn: I was "title or bust" for this squad; wow, I will miss these seniors; the game wasn't even close.

*It's an open question whether you'd rather have "thoroughly beaten" or, like Wisconsin, "you coulda/shoulda/woulda won." I guess the latter would be harder to take.

*It's one thing for UK's frosh to come in and go "one-and-title" -- that's amazing. It's another for UConn's seniors to get the rare TWO titles over four years. Napier & Co. join an exclusive group.

In the past 20 years: '92 Duke players on '91 team (Hurley, Laettner, G Hill, T Hill, B Davis, Antonio Lang), two players on '98 Kentucky's team who were also on '96 team (Jeff Sheppard and Allen Edwards), '07 Florida on '06 team (Noah, Horford, Brewer, Humphrey, Green, Richard, Hodge, various bench-warmers).

Kentucky has three bench-warmers who were on the 2012 title-team roster: Long, Malone, Polson.

*I am genuinely baffled over who to pick to win. Both teams are on such a roll. UConn gets the edge defensively; UK gets the edge inside. It's honestly hard to fathom one of these teams will be "national champ."

-- D.S.

4/4 Final Four Quickie

*Let's go back two weeks: My expectations for Florida are nothing short of "championship or bust." That makes Saturday's semi against UConn a must-win.

*Count me among the folks who think that Florida has an advantage having already played UConn -- and lost, short-handed, at the buzzer, in Storrs. This team doesn't quite resemble that one.

*Wisconsin-Kentucky is fascinating: Wisconsin is playing at as high of a level as that program has EVER played; Kentucky is on a remarkable roll. My head says Wisco; my gut says UK.

*Thunder snap Spurs' winning streak: The NBA Playoffs are going to be phenomenal.

*Who wants Chris Johnson? (A much easier analysis: Pete Carroll has more than earned his contract extension -- hard to displace Belichick and I guess you can make a case for Harbaugh, but it's arguable he has ascended to Best Coach in the NFL status. Which is remarkable.)

Enjoy your weekend!

-- D.S.

4/3 Playoffs? Playoffs! Quickie

*My Wizards are back in the NBA Playoffs for the first time since 2008. I'm beyond excited.

This is not to be understated: In the past 25 years, they have been to the playoffs a grand total of 5 times, including 4 first-round exits (including the amazing '97 Bullets team featuring Webber and Howard that was cursedly broken up). No one appreciates the mere notion of "playoff eligibility" than a Wizards fan.

*MLB: Mark Buehrle had the best game of the day yesterday, but give me the suddenly ageless Tim Hudson, who pitched into the 8th, allowed only 3 hits and K'ed 7. He turns 39 in July.

*Big day in DC: Kain Colter is meeting the media.

*If I had the No. 1 pick of the NFL Draft, Jadeveon Clowney is the most can't-miss defensive prospect. (Sammy Watkins is the most can't-miss on offense, but hard to take a WR with No. 1 pick.)

3/29 Elite Eight Quickie

*This Kentucky team reminds me of the 1992 Michigan team where the "Fab Five" earned a 6-seed and zipped all the way to the title game. UK now claims the top TWO best games of the tournament.

*I clearly should have picked my Elite Eight by including the two teams that beat Florida this season (Wisconsin, UConn) and the one that came closest (Kentucky in SEC tourney title game).

*So Mike Trout will be entering free agency at age 29? His deal will make Miguel Cabrera's look modest. Unlike Cabrera, he'll still be worth it.

-- D.S.

3/24 Sweet 16 Quickie

*"The Best Round of 32 Game Ever" -- college basketball immortality, frankly -- was worth the (presumably) premature dispatch of Wichita State, against (a clearly underseeded) Kentucky.

*I celebrate the outcome: I am mostly a "process over outcome" person, but in this exceptional case: If Wichita State was going to get bounced in the Round of 32, isn't it amazing that they did it in an insanely hard-fought game against an insanely talented team that finally put it all together?

*Compare that to the brutal ending for Creighton, which was never in their game and got annihilated by 30. For all of Doug McDermott's brilliance, it makes the ending all the more ignominious.

*Stanford's upset was remarkable: They made zero 3s and played with no true point guard. In that case, YOUR team (in the Tournament or not) has no excuse not to make it to the Sweet 16.

*Let's reset for the Sweet 16:

- Louisville vs. Kentucky is great but UL will throttle UK.

- The best match-up is Dayton-Stanford. One of these teams will be one win from the Final Four.

- The most dangerous team is Tennessee; it's an open question whether four days off is going to cool them off.

- Things are lining up for a Final Four of Florida, Michigan State, Arizona and Louisville -- just like... well, most of the country predicted.

-- D.S.

3/22 Mercer Mania Quickie

*Mercer over Duke is a quintessential NCAA Tournament result.

*I tweeted this right after the game: There is nothing quite like the "Duke first-round NCAA Tournament loss." It's a national celebration of schadenfreude, transcending basically everything.

*If I had to rank my most desired outcomes every year in the NCAA Tournament, they rank "My team wins the national title," then -- a close second -- "Whenever Duke loses (ideally right away)."

*My 5-year-old son Jonah, who was watching the game with me, appreciated my enthusiasm over the upset-in-progress and the ending, but really didn't like when I said that I "hate" Duke.

And he's right. "Hate" is not just a bad word to flaunt in front of a kid (who can't grasp the nuances of the word) but inelegant. The reality is that I love seeing them lose.

(Post-script: Astutely, he asked what I would do if HE played for Duke. Would I "hate" them/him? I sheepishly said I would be rooting like crazy for him to win.)

*The glorious Mercer win eclipsed everything else that happened over the First Thursday and Friday. Let's give SF Austin a shout-out for knocking off a VCU team that -- if we're being honest -- choked.

*Looking ahead to today:

(1) Florida BETTER win (FWIW: Pitt has had a LOT of trouble with elite defenses this season)...

(2) Your Everyone-Should-Be-Rooting-For-Them team is North Dakota State, in a very winnable game vs. San Diego State...

(3) My Upset Special (it's on my bracket, so it MUST be right) is UConn over Villanova.

I went 27-5 in the first two days, which is OK (I'm in the 92nd percentile nationally) but certainly not spectacular. More importantly, I lost two Sweet 16 teams: Duke (like almost everyone else) and VCU.

-- D.S.

3/21 Tournament Friday Quickie

*What an entertaining First Thursday -- from Dayton at the very start to Harvard's upset (or "upset") to the slew of terrific endings/chokes last night, a great day.

*Luke Winn nailed it: It's not just enough to have an elite defense -- you have got to be able to score efficiently, too.

So here are the teams that are Top 10 in adjusted D and Top 20 in adjusted O: Florida, Louisville, Wichita State. (UVA is on the cusp, and Arizona, Kansas and Michigan State are Top 40 at least.)

*I was 12 out of 16 yesterday -- same as my 5-year-old, for what it's worth. I missed Harvard, Texas, Saint Louis and Dayton. My 7-year-old was 14/16.

*My favorite stat: 80% of billion-dollar brackets were busted after the very first game of the tournament. (I kind of love that people are focused on the billion-dollar bracket, despite its absurdity.)

*Today's best games: Duke-Mercer right at the top of the day, Oklahoma State-Gonzaga at 4:40, SF Austin vs. VCU in the early-evening and Kansas State-Kentucky in the late-evening set.

Enjoy it.

-- D.S.

3/17 Selection Monday Quickie

A few thoughts about the bracket:

*"Championship or bust" for Florida: It's one of the greatest things in sports -- "title or fail." Those are the stakes for Florida this year. I'm all-in on the Gators winning it all.

*I have never seen a bandwagon as strong as the one carrying Michigan State from the 4-seed (underseeded, to be sure) to the Final Four (and, in the case of ESPN's experts, all the way).

*OK, I'll bite: I have Michigan State upending UVA en route to the Final Four. (However, I am NOT on the Louisville bandwagon -- if they didn't have to play Wichita, I'd be more bullish.)

*Match-ups giving me the most pause: Wisconsin-Creighton and the VCU-UCLA sub-region. And tons of teams that are seemingly clear favorites scare me as probable underperformers.

I think the guts of the bracket -- 64 to 8 -- are as murky to predict as any in recent memory. That's a good thing (if not so great for my chances at picking a bracket successfully).

-- D.S.

3/13 Thursday Quickie

*Thanks to the University of Maryland's Merrill College Povich Center for Sports Journalism for having me out last night to talk about Entrepreneurial Journalism.

*I'll be back on campus tonight to watch my alma mater Whitman HS play in the boys' basketball state semifinals against Annapolis HS. Go Vikes!

*Yesterday, I also got to sit in on an Aspen Institute "Project Play" session with a bunch of really smart people talking about redefining youth sports. I'm super-intrigued by Dick's Sporting Goods' #SportsMatter concept that created a crowd-funding platform to help youth teams that need it.

*My favorite deal of NFL Free Agency week wasn't even a free-agency move -- it's the Eagles trading for Darren Sproles. Chip Kelly is going to do ridiculous things with him.

*Four days until Selection Sunday -- today is annually one of the best college hoops days of the year, with a slew of conference tournaments going all day and bubble teams in must-win positions.

-- D.S.

3/11 SXSW Hangover Quickie

*Huge thanks to SXSW for having us as part of their inaugural "SX Sports" event. And thanks to Texas Tech coach Kliff Kingsbury for being such a good sport for our session with him.

*Joel Embiid's back problems: He should never play another minute for Kansas again. I don't care if he is medically "cleared" for the back half of the NCAA Tournament -- everyone should be focused on his long-term future as a basketball player and caution should prevail.

*Phil Jackson to the Knicks: Posting and Toasting's Seth Rosenthal has the best take on this. I could try to pull out my favorite points, but just take the 3 minutes to read his argument.

-- D.S.

3/4 LeBron Quickie

This was LeBron at the height of his mastery over basketball -- and the height of efficiency:

Making threes at a ridiculous rate, and when he did shoot 2s, they were high-percentage (if also high-effort) shots near the rim.

Unstoppable. Just watch: -- D.S.

3/1 2nd Birthday Quickie

*Happy 2nd birthday to my swee' pea, Lucy. (Whew: The first two years of the third kid go MUCH faster than the first two years of either of the older kids.)

*Bummed to be missing the fabulous Sloan Sports Analytics Conference this year (here's my take on it from 2010), but thanks to GW's Sports Management program for letting me host a 1:1 conversation with Geoff Reiss, head of Sports for Twitter.

*Steph Curry remains in the Top 3 most must-see players in the NBA (LeBron, Durant). FWIW, Kevin Love is No. 4. I'm ready to put John Wall in the Top 5. (Anthony Davis is his main comp.)

*My father-in-law is in town from Gainesville today for Lucy's birthday, which means we'll get to watch the Gator basketball game together -- he's a die-hard fan, and that's always a treat.

-- D.S.

2/25 Trout Dirk Kansas Quickie

*Mike Trout is a bargain at $30M a year. And Trout is loving life to be hitting free agency at age 28. (Expect the Nats to pay Bryce Harper something similar -- without the free agency at his peak. If they have to pay a premium to tack on a few extra years, so be it.)

*That Dirk shot was awesome.

*Do you buy Kansas as a Final Four contender? Absolutely. There are 7 teams in the KenPom Top 30 for both adjusted offense and defense: Louisville (17/7), Florida (9/10), Kansas (5/27), Wichita St (16/13), Villanova (8/20), Syracuse (22/9), Pitt (25/22). (Arizona is JUST on the outside: 32nd on offense, but No. 1 on D.)

If I had to pick 8 teams with the best shot at the Final Four, Kansas is among them -- along with Florida, Wichita St, Syracuse, Arizona, Louisville, Michigan State (13/34) and either Wisconsin (6/40) or Virginia (43/4).

UVA feels too nouveau riche this season and will eventually run into a superior defense that they can't score on. Still: Would a Hoos fan really turn down a trip to the Sweet 16?

March starts in just a few days....

-- D.S.

2/24 Monday Quickie

*Jason Collins' return to the NBA -- this time as the first openly gay player in the history of major pro sports leagues -- is the biggest sports milestone of the year (and one of the biggest ever).

*Jadeveon Clowney running a 4.4-whatever in the 40 is so ridiculous that for all the talent at QB (and Sammy Watkins might be the most talented WR to see the draft since Calvin Johnson) that you have to put him in the mix at No. 1 -- whether or not he fits the Texans' needs, he is the most talented player in the draft.

*The Jim Harbaugh/Browns thing is fascinating. Bill Barnwell has the best analysis.

*So long, Sochi. Perhaps more than any other sports event, the Winter Olympics are a fun little quadrennial blip. It was enjoyable in individual moments, with the US hockey failures completing things on a down note.

-- D.S.

2/16 Birthday Quickie

Wait, so you're saying that on the night before my birthday that:

*Florida basketball would secure their best win since the 2007 national-title game...

*Bradley Beal would produce the most exciting moment of NBA All-Star Saturday Night...

*And John Wall would "win" the "dunk contest?"

All that and my kids behaved at the fancy-ish restaurant we took them to last night.

Not a bad way to end one year and herald the next!

-- D.S.

2/14 Valentine's Day Quickie

An annual ritual -- a few things I love in sports right now.

*I love these Washington Wizards. They drive me batty, but at least they're competitive. I cannot remember the last Wizards team I liked this much -- probably the Webber/Howard mid-90s Bullets.

*I love this Florida Gators basketball team. The past few years have been very good teams (I thought last year's team was good enough to win the title). This year's team is better than all of them.

*I love this short film from Grantland about Steve Nash in his career twilight. Nash just turned 40. I'm exiting 40 this weekend. So much of what he says resonates with me.

*I love the state of sports-writing right now -- at the top, better than it has ever been.

*I love that my kids' burgeoning interest in sports lets me (re-)experience what it's like to fall in love with sports as a kid.

-- D.S.

2/13 Jeter LeBron Etc Quickie

*You can not root for Derek Jeter yet still appreciate his phenomenal career. He jumps to the top of my list of "Have to get to the ballpark to see him in person" in 2014.

*College football has had many dumb moments. This may be the dumbest: "Offenses that snap the ball before 29 seconds remain on the play clock would receive a 5-yard delay-of-game penalty."

*LeBron. Whew.

*Just when I think my Wizards can't find new ways to lose games, they do. Pretty amazing phenomenon, actually.

(This clip of Harden's game-winning layup doesn't include the controversial dead-ball foul that preceded it. Ariza grabbed him, but Harden is the league's craftiest at drawing fouls.)

-- D.S.

2/12 Rushmore Quickie

Because everyone is doing it....

NBA Rushmore: Jordan, Russell, Magic, LeBron.

College hoops Rushmore: Alcindor, Robertson, Ewing, Carmelo.

NFL Rushmore: Jim Brown, Payton, Montana, Peyton.

College football Rushmore: Grange, Herschel, Tebow, Manziel.

MLB Rushmore: Ruth, Ted Williams, Walter Johnson, Bonds.

-- D.S.

2/10 Michael Sam Quickie

*The Michael Sam story has me awestruck. (via SB Nation's OutSports, here is the fascinating backstory.) Needless to say, I wish him only the best.

A few things: Sam is a hero... the anonymous detractors were appalling... I know it was pushed a bit, but the timing before the combine feels totally appropriate... I agree with the theory that he will get drafted by a team with a strong owner-GM-coach troika and team culture (Seattle, SF, Philly).

*Marcus Smart's shove merited the suspension he got -- a bright line of big-time sports is that you can't push a fan, no matter how vile, and they couldn't NOT suspend him (that it was only three games is telling) -- but the fan's behavior was just as inappropriate, if not more.

(No, it won't have any bearing on Smart's NBA future. If it isn't clear by now, it should be: He should've gone pro a year ago. I appreciate his reasons for coming back, but if he wanted to be a great pro, he was better off getting pro coaching and focus as early in his career as possible; OSU doesn't prioritize his pro career.)

*The Olympics have been a ton of fun to watch with my kids. My 5-year-old plays hockey and is fascinated by the speedskating (as he should be -- it's pretty amazing to watch).

-- D.S.

2/7 Opening Ceremonies Quickie

Happy 40th birthday, Steve Nash -- one of my all-time favorite athletes (and not just because we're close to the same age)...

*Everyone ready for the Olympics to start?

*I have a very (very) hard time believing that Jameis Winston -- a lock as the No. 1 overall pick of the 2015 NFL Draft (as he would be a lock as the No. 1 overall pick of the 2014 NFL Draft) -- would put off the NFL any longer than he is required to.

*I'm not sold on the new Dunk Contest format, but I like that John Wall is participating. I don't think he'll win, but I do think he'll win All-Star Game MVP. (And I am certain Bradley Beal will win the 3-point contest. Although Damian Lillard playing in every event is the most fascinating participant of the weekend.)

*Arizona basketball just isn't that impressive anymore. It's not like I was picking them to win the national title anyway, but still.

*Most fascinating thing I read yesterday: "Databall," on the breakthroughs in statistical analysis in the NBA, by Grantland's Kirk Goldsberry. Worth the time to work your way through it.

*Condolences to family and friends of Ralph Kiner.

*I founded and ran the first (and only) monthly reading series dedicated to sportswriting, and it was one of my favorite things I have ever done. Last night, I went to a reading that reminded me how fascinating they can be -- if you are interested in parenting stuff, don't miss "All Joy and No Fun" by Jennifer Senior.

2/4 Great Super Bowl Day-After Reads Quickie

Filing this 8 hours ahead of the actual 2/4...

Grantland's Bill Barnwell: "Seattle's Best"

SB Nation's Matt Ufford: "Deserve has nothing to do with it."


Grantland's Brian Phillips: "Are we having fun yet?"

Yahoo's Dan Wetzel, on Peyton Manning's moment of failure.

SB Nation's Jon Bois with a hilarious cut of the data of the "whooping."

Deadspin's Drew Magary: On the Super Bowl party boat

The MMQB's Peter King: On the game. (God, I vividly remember editing the morning-after Super Bowl MMQB column 15 years ago.)

Big sports moments always produce really terrific day-after observations.

-- D.S.

2/3 Super Bowl Hangover Quickie

*Right about the Seahawks winning, wrong about the margin (but at least I wasn't one of those folks who picked the Broncos!) Should have been spot-on about Percy Harvin winning MVP.

*The Seahawks' defense is exceptional -- to do that to one of the best offenses in NFL history puts this performance among the greatest by a defensive unit in Super Bowl history.

*None of this changes Peyton Manning's place in history, except to the extent that in remembering his greatness, we'll always remember the way his team got shellacked in the Super Bowl.

*My personal favorite ads: Tim Tebow's two spots for T-Mobile, obviously. (As many folks bemusedly observed, he had a way better night than Peyton Manning, which fits with "Tebow ultimately wins" theory.)

*Looking ahead to next year: No reason not to install the Seahawks as favorites to win the Super Bowl again. (The AFC is less clear -- way less clear.)

-- D.S.

2/2 Super Bowl Day Quickie

*Repeating myself from Friday: Seattle wins by 5. Percy Harvin as MVP.

*Speaking of MVPs, Peyton was a lock. And this is by far the most impressive MVP season of his career. (Or any other player's career.)

*"Syracuse-Duke is the best!" is the new "Realignment ruined college hoops rivalries!"

*Go figure: Arizona was overrated. (Meanwhile, this Florida team is better than any I have watched since the back-to-back title teams. The offense doesn't necessarily come easy, but the D is ridiculous.)

*I can't explain why my Wizards play so well against the Thunder, but I'm sure glad they do.

Enjoy the game.

-- D.S.

Friday 1/31 Super Bowl Quickie

Seahawks win by 5, with Percy Harvin as the game MVP...

*Two of my favorites at their best for the biggest game of the season: Bill Barnwell with an exhaustive game preview and Chris Brown with an exhaustive look at Peyton Manning's offense.

*Fun, clever Slate piece by Joshua Keating where he describes the Super Bowl as if US sportswriters were describing a big sports event elsewhere around the globe.

*The NYT Sunday Magazine leads with a big read on the world of NFL gambling in Las Vegas.

*Finally, in a brilliant piece of Super Bowl journalism/entertainment I guarantee you won't see anywhere else, this video from SB Nation's Jon Bois is phenomenally fun.

*If you love Super Bowl ads, be sure to register to be on USA TODAY's "Ad Meter" panel to rate each ad and be part of the group that picks the game's top ad. Sign up here today.

Enjoy the game and your weekend. Tomorrow is the season opener for the 2nd-grade boys' basketball juggernaut that I am coaching -- currently, I am thinking about which song is our layup-line music.

-- D.S.

1/26 Super Bowl Week Eve Quickie

*Your beat-you-over-the-head Super Bowl storylines, in order of beat-ness: (1) Weather, (2) Peyton, (3) Richard Sherman, (4) Russell Wilson, (5) Pete Carroll.

*Pro Bowl haters have it wrong: It will get more viewers than the World Series or NBA Finals. At some point, critical bleating just doesn't match up with what fans clearly want to see.

*Regular-season wins don't mean much in college hoops (particularly between two teams guaranteed to make the Tournament), but Michigan's win at Michigan State was a solid one.

*Terrence Ross scores 51: Pretty amazing stat -- he is the first player in NBA history to average single-digit scoring then score more than 50 in a single game.

*Career-defining win for Stan Wawrinka in Australia in beating back/down Rafa Nadal.

-- D.S.

1/23 Thursday Still Cold Quickie

Last night was the most deflating Wizards loss I can remember -- and that's saying something...

*More inspired Richard Sherman writing: Rembert Browne with one of the best takes yet.

*Olympics: My HS newspaper protege gets the exclusive on the US Opening Ceremonies outfits, and they're terrible.

*College hoops: Understand why Arizona is a resurgent super-power (via Sports On Earth's Matt Norlander)

*Future of sports media: Ted Leonsis totally gets it.

*Good week for Denver continues: My old boss Luke Beatty -- die-hard Broncos fan -- makes a big acquisition and gets a new role.

-- D.S.

Wednesday 1/22 Snowy Quickie

*Must-see: Kevin Durant going off last night...



*No chance: The Warren Buffet $1B NCAA bracket challenge (via WSJ's Ben Cohen).

*Snow: 538 hits its weather wheelhouse.

*Don't call it the "Grantland Model": Ezra Klein & team leaving the Washington Post

*Richard Sherman parody: Equinox gym trash-talk (via Kate Hahn/NewYorker.com)

-- D.S.

Tuesday 1/21 Sherman Quickie

Five things I like today:

*Richard Sherman on... well, Richard Sherman.

*Christina Kahrl on Grantland's Dr. V debacle.

*NBA rumors: Specifically, my Wizards eyeing Greg Monroe.

*Tom Ziller's new daily NBA email: "Good Morning, It's Basketball"

*Early reviews for Beats Music: Editing > algorithms.

-- D.S.

12/31 End-of-Year Quickie

Having just published the annual Quickish year-end best-sportswriting list, here is a listicle of 10 notable personal milestones from 2013, excluding standard ones about my marriage and kids:

*Turned 40!
*Moved into a new house!
*Helped launch an awesome new news product!
*Solo-coached my first youth sports team!
*Highest finish ever in fantasy football! (5th!)
*Finally got a night-guard for teeth-grinding!
*Bought not one but TWO pairs of neon sneakers!
*Bylined a Tebow column in USA TODAY print edition!
*Cut my hair shorter than ever - and realized it didn't work!
*Secured the elusive Bradley Beal t-shirt jersey!

Left on the table for 2014:
*Tebow book!
*Losing the 20 pounds I need to!
*Assorted projects!

Happy new year, everyone -- here's to your Best. Year. Ever. ahead.

-- D.S.

12/23 ThinkPiece Quickie

Wrote this for NiemanLab's year-in-review package, about "stars" vs. "starters." Finding stars who also possess the ability or track record to be starters -- Swisher and Silver, to name two 2013 notables -- is very rare.

More often, stars are more like David Pogue -- that's not to knock him; he is simply about his individual brand, not creating something bigger than himself. And, as I argue, starters are both more prevalent and easier to cultivate.

It's gotten a good reaction -- whether folks agree with it or not. Please give it a read and share it around if you think it's worthy.

-- D.S.

12/15 Very Quickie

*Not unlike Johnny Manziel, Jameis Winston has the chance to finish his college career next year ranked as one of the best players in the sport's history -- a short list that includes Cam Newton, Herschel Walker and, of course, Tim Tebow.

Of course, Winston should skip next year and get ready for the 2015 NFL Draft, for which he is the clear No. 1 pick. (He'd be the clear No. 1 pick of the 2014 draft -- for which he isn't eligible, for some inane reason -- but that's another story.)

*Texas is the best job in college football. But they can't just take their pick of college coaches -- among the top tier, Nick Saban is out. Kevin Sumlin is out. Jim Harbaugh presumably wouldn't take it (although if he WAS going to go back to college, this feels like the only job worth doing that for).

If the model is late-90s Mack Brown -- successful as a head coach at a atypically successful program, with the political acumen to navigate both UT's internal politics and external recruiting trail -- then Vandy's James Franklin has to be a serious candidate, even if his success feels a little faddish.

(I will say that the benefit of Northwestern's awful 5-win season is that if it had been the 10- or 11-win Rose Bowl year that a lot of us were hoping for, Texas would have clearly made Pat Fitzgerald an offer he would have had a very hard time turning down.)

Enjoy your NFL Sunday and for those of you with fantasy stakes on the line, good luck.

-- D.S.