the nail in the coffin | A Cleveland sports podcast

The Nail guys are back to talk about the Cavs-Knicks series, taking in the atmosphere at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse for the NBA playoffs, and the state of sports on TV.

The episode covers the Cavs' bounce-back win on Tuesday night to even the series, the emergence of Darius Garland and Caris LeVert after both had a rough Game 1, and expectations for the weekend as the series shifts to New York. Plus: The Cavs and Guardians are still on Bally Sports, but for how much longer? The landscape of sports on TV is changing quickly, both locally and at the national level.

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Guy Cipriano, editor-in-chief of Golf Course Industry Magazine, joins The Nail to talk about the launch of the LIV Tour, a Saudi-backed golf league that is promising big bucks to steal some of the game’s big names (and ruffling the PGA Tour’s feathers in the process). The guys discuss the new league’s paradigm-shattering financial model, the backlash being faced by defecting PGA Tour stars like Phil Mickelson and Dustin Johnson, and how the PGA Tour is responding to the most high-profile, direct threat a major U.S. sports league has faced in more than a generation.

Plus, Cipriano dives into the recreational golf scene, including how the game is diversifying, what casual golfers are looking for from their local courses now, and where the industry is headed in the coming years.

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Too many injuries—and in the end, too much Trae Young—ultimately proved to be the Cavs’ undoing, as their season ended on Friday night with a dispiriting loss to the Hawks. Friend of the Nail and Cavs superfan Mark Meszoros joins the show for a look back at a memorable year in which the Cavs fought through one setback after another—Injuries! COVID! More injuries!—to win 44 games and establish a dynamic nucleus led by Darius Garland, Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley.

It’s a cathartic conversation that goes from lamenting what went wrong Friday against Atlanta to getting excited about the summer and beyond for a revitalized Cavaliers franchise.

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A deal for Deshaun Watson appears to be dead, but the Browns still seem bound for a breakup with Baker Mayfield. The guys discuss Mayfield’s tenure and eventual unraveling in Cleveland, as well as the Browns’ remaining options at quarterback for 2022 and beyond.

Plus: QBs aren’t the only big names on the move in the NFL. The No. 1 broadcasting teams for nearly all of the league’s TV partners are getting an overhaul as top play-by-play announcers and analysts are making big-money moves. … Finally, the guys pay tribute to wrestling legend Scott Hall, aka Razor Ramon, who died this week at the age of 63.

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After a 5-month hiatus, the Nail guys are back with a lot to catch up on, from misguided narratives about OBJ’s exit from Cleveland hanging over Super Bowl Sunday to the arrival of a new era for the Cavaliers franchise starring Darius Garland, Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley. Plus: NBA All-Star Weekend is here, the Winter Olympics are on, and pro wrestling has had a drama-filled week behind the scenes with Cody Rhodes walking away from AEW to possibly set up a once-unthinkable return to WWE.

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Bill Bender of the Sporting News is back on The Nail to talk about the new college football season, Texas and Oklahoma eying a jump to the SEC, and the implications of an alliance between the Big Ten, Pac-12 and ACC. Plus: Will anybody challenge Ohio State in the Big Ten? (Probably not.) Can anyone other than the perennial playoff programs finally break through and get a berth this year? (Also not likely!)

Later, the guys discuss how the Bishop Sycamore story quickly went from an amusing tale of an unqualified prep team scheming its way into a game on ESPN to something much, much worse.

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The long, highly publicized search for a new host of Jeopardy was over…and now it’s not. On Friday, news broke that Mike Richards, the show’s embattled executive producer who had taken the job as Alex Trebek’s successor, was backing away from the podium amid heavy backlash. Before Richards announced his resignation as host, the guys discussed the highly dubious process the resulted in him getting the spot and the issues that we now know ultimately led to his undoing.

Plus: MLB’s Field of Dreams game was a home run for everyone involved, and with WWE’s SummerSlam on Saturday night in Las Vegas and AEW rumored to be debuting a certain famous Chicago-made star on Friday, it’s shaping up to be a huge weekend for wrestling.

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The Cleveland Indians on Friday announced that they will take the field as the Guardians starting in 2022. Even if the name changing process formally began seven months ago, it was a decision years in the making. But did the Indians get it right with their new identity? The guys discuss the new moniker, as well as whether it was a good idea to create a new visual identity that, while no longer controversial, certainly looks similar to the old one in a lot of ways.

Plus: The Browns have unveiled a 75th anniversary throwback uniform, and college football is being turned on its head this summer.

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Ahead of WWE SmackDown coming to Cleveland on Friday, superstar Otis joins The Nail to discuss the company’s return to live touring after spending the better part of 16 months performing in closed venues. The Alpha Academy’s “No. 1 Guy” talks about the challenges of wrestling in front of empty arenas and virtual fans, the difference getting back to having a live crowd in attendance has made, and what he and tag team partner Chad Gable will be up to this Friday at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.

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Read more about WWE returning to the road and its stop in Cleveland for SmackDown on News-Herald.com.

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Strikeouts are at a record high, batting averages are at a record low, and MLB is at a crossroads as teams continue to swing for the fences even as the ball has been tweaked to cut down on home runs. Three teams—yes, including the Indians—have been no-hit twice this season, and it’s still only mid-May. The guys discuss how teams’ analytics-driven pursuit of success is at odds with putting on an entertaining product for fans, and how it’s not just a problem for baseball.

Plus: The NBA’s play-in games are a literal overnight success, the NFL schedule makers believe in the Browns, and the Columbus Crew does a fast U-turn on an ill-fated rebrand.

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