Views From The Press Box

Klay Thompson is one of most underrated superstars in the history of the National Basketball Association. But before he can truly cement his legacy, both of his legs have begun betraying him in consecutive years. First, the future Hall of Fame shooting guard suffered a severe left-knee injury during the 2019 NBA Finals. After rehabbing from that ACL tear for more than a year, he suffered a right Achilles injury on Wednesday during a scrimmage in Los Angeles with an unidentified group of NBA players.

Just hours before the 2020 NBA Draft, an event where the Warriors were expected to add a top-prospect to help aid the franchise’s return to contention following an absurd 2019 campaign plagued by injuries, and a national landscape-altering pandemic, ESPN Insider Adrian Wojnarowski reported that Thompson suffered the injury during a workout and would eventually undergo testing to determine its severity. Almost immediately, Twitter was buzzing with outcries of prayers, love, and support for the Warriors star.

Despite the risk of losing Thompson for a lengthy period of time, Golden State GM Bob Meyer made the decision to draft rim-running big man James Wiseman with the second-overall pick on draft night. Still, in need of another wing, Wojnarowski reported Thursday evening that the Warriors are in the midst of finalizing a trade to acquire Kelly Oubre Jr. for a protected 2021 first-round draft pick from the Oklahoma City Thunder.

#KlayThompson #GoldenState #Warriors #Dubs #DubNation #Injury #Out #Achilles #BayArea #ChaseCenter #OracleArena #JoeLaCob #BobMeyers #sports #basketball #podcast #nba

Early Wednesday afternoon, Major League Baseball announced that New York Mets second baseman Robinson Cano will be suspended for the entirety of the 2021 season after a second violation of the league’s Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program. He previously tested positive for using a diuretic and missed 80 games as a member of the Seattle Mariners in 2018. This suspension is considered a second offense, and the ban automatically kicks in for a full 162-game slate, per an agreement by MLB and the players union

The substance Cano tested positive for is Stanzolol; a hardcore steroid. Back in 2018, the Mets star stated the diuretic he took was prescribed by a doctor in his native Dominican Republic and was unaware the substance was on Major League Baseball’s banned substance list.

“We were extremely disappointed to be informed about Robinson's suspension for violating Major League Baseball's Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program," Mets president Sandy Alderson said in a statement released by the Mets. "The violation is very unfortunate for him, the organization, our fans, and the sport. The Mets fully support MLB's efforts toward eliminating performance-enhancing substances from the game.”

After being caught for the second time in as many years, Cano will now be forced to forfeit his entire $24 Million salary this season. However, his current deal doesn’t expire until 2024 and the Mets remain on the hook for $40.5 Million the team still owes to the 38-year-old slugger.

Joel Sherman, a columnist from the New York Post writes, “Cano’s whole career is now in question,” and that “Cano’s Hall of Fame chances drop to approximately zero. He was going to have a tough time already with an 80-game suspension in 2018 on his record. But he could argue that ban was for a diuretic and not a performance enhancer — the diuretic is verboten because it could be used as a PED masking agent.”

#New #York #Mets #Yankees #RobinsonCano #Cano #PEDs #Steroids #MLB #MLBnews #MLBTwitter #MLBTwitterLive #Cohen #Suspension #Suspended

After breaking curses and World Series droughts in both Boston and Chicago, longtime baseball executive Theo Epstein is stepping away from professional baseball. The Chicago Cubs President of Baseball Operations resigned from his post yesterday, paving the way for longtime understudy and current Cubs general manager Jed Hoyer to assume the day-to-day responsibilities of directing the Cubs franchise.

In a long, heartfelt letter published in the Athletic yesterday, Epstein suggested that he will not seek another position in baseball immediately. Instead, the three-time World Series championship exec intends to spend more time with family and contributing to the various charities he’s involved with. “As for what I will do next, I’m not precisely sure, though I have a few things in mind. Next summer will be my first in 30 years not clocking into work every day at a major league ballpark,” said Epstein in the letter penned to the Cubs organization, obtained and published by The Athletic.

The analytics-based ideology or “Moneyball” embraced by Epstein was a vital reason that the former Ivy-Leaguer became the youngest GM in major league history back in 2002. Last winter, the Cubs organization was forced to implement massive layoffs to its baseball operations and business staff due to the impact of losses due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Washington Post suggests he may have wanted to leave his position prior, but that he didn’t want to leave the daunting task for his successor Hoyer. (Also, he resigned one-year early in 2011 from the Red Sox so that incoming Red Sox GM Ben Cherington could get off on the right foot by hiring his own candidate for the team’s vacant managerial position).

#Chicago #Cubs #Boston #RedSox #TheoEpstein #MLBnews #MLBTwitter #MLBTwitterLive #MLB #ViewsFromThePressBox #sports #baseball #podcast 

Monday evening, Houston Rockets perimeter guard James Harden missed his latest shot. That specific shot was becoming the NBA’s first $50M per year player. The former league MVP entrenched his position, or desire to be traded to the Brooklyn Nets when declining a two-year, $103M extension extended by the Rockets. The offer was the maximum allowable amount possible and would have been tacked on to the three years, and $133M that remains on his current contract.

Houston and Brooklyn have engaged in discussions centered around Harden, but so far haven't established any meaningful dialogue, sources said. The talks have been casual. The Rockets are expecting a massive return of assets for Harden and are willing to be patient to find that in the marketplace. It’s also been rumored that he’s intrigued by the idea of landing in Philadelphia to play with Doc Rivers and the 76ers.

“Harden believes his window to chase championships in Houston has ended, and constructing a super team with the Nets represents his best pathway to a title”, ESPN sources said.

According to Chris Broussard, appearing on FS1’s The Herd on Tuesday, it's now rumored that people around the league are saying Kyrie does NOT want James Harden on the team next season.

#Houston #Rockets #JamesHarden #NBADraft2020 #NBAnews #NBATwitterLive #NBATwitter #NBArumors

Oklahoma Thunder point guard Chris Paul is ditching tornado alley in favor of the valley. Early Monday afternoon, the All-Star point guard was traded to the Phoenix Suns in a swap that included six players. Along with Paul, Abdel Nader was also acquired by the Phoenix Suns in exchange for Kelly Oubre Jr., Ricky Rubio, Ty Jerome, Jalen Lecque, and a 2022 first-round pick.

Paul's arrival puts the Suns in a position to make the playoffs for the first time since 2010. The trade was the first in a week that’s expected to be full of them leading up to Wednesday night’s NBA Draft. The guard’s arrival keeps the Suns' core intact, which went a perfect 8-0 in the Orlando Bubble. According to SportsLine, a sports scientific data outfit, the Suns' chances of making the playoffs jumped up from 36.8 percent to 73.8 percent with the move.

"He is the kind of guy that changes organizations," Suns head coach Monty Williams said in January, before the Suns-Thunder game. "Everywhere he has gone, he has made everybody better. That is just who Chris is."

According to The Ringer, “After reestablishing himself with the Thunder, the Hall of Fame point guard will now be tasked with leveling up Devin Booker and a young Suns core in what will likely be the last best run of his career”

#Phoenix #Suns #TheValley #NBADraft2020 #NBAnews #NBATwitter #NBATwitterLive #OKC #Thunder

Early Monday evening, the Miami Herald reported that polarizing Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver was involved in another disturbance at his home in Hollywood, Florida. When asked to come down to the gate of his community, a homeowners association, Brown allegedly rode down on a bike and expressed his displeasure with the guard. As a result, the former All-Pro destroyed a security camera, threw his bike at the arm of the gate, and began shouting expletives at the guard including, “Why are you wasting my f—ing time, you need to let my guest through the f—ing gate”.

The police were called and had enough evidence to charge Brown with a crime. However, the HOA felt it wasn’t necessary to pursue legal action against the receiver, who’s since apologized and settled the matter with the community by paying to have the camera and equipment fixed. 

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers said in a statement that they were aware of the incident before signing Brown while he neared the end of an eight-week suspension for violating the NFL’s personal conduct policy. In a statement released by the team, the Bucs said, “When Antonio joined us, we were clear about what we expected and required of him. Thus far, he has met all the expectations we have in place.”

The president of the Hollywood Oaks homeowners association has gone on record as saying that she didn’t press charges out of fear that Brown would retaliate, but later downplayed the incident when interviewed by a newspaper. Sylvia Berman said the board thought of the incident as minor, and that Brown’s “emotional” reaction can be attributed to previously paying undisclosed rules violations in the community. She went on to call him a “hero” for his performance in Sunday’s win over Carolina.

#Tampa #Bay #Buccaneers #AntonioBrown #NFLnews #NFLTwitter #NFLTwitterLive #BucsNation

The New Orleans Saints quarterback suffered two broken ribs on the right side of his chest during the first half of Sunday’s win over the San Francisco 49ers. It’s uncertain how much time Brees will miss. However, medical experts are predicting at least two to three weeks, and the worst-case scenario is they are hoping he returns by the playoffs.

Additionally, Brees has a collapsed lung on the right side and three broken ribs on the left side of his chest (those are believed to be from the previous week in the game against Tampa Bay).

New Orleans Saints Coach Sean Payton joined Bobby Hebert and Zach Strief on the Saints Radio Network on Monday night to discuss his plan at quarterback and said, “The plan we'll have up and in place for our team this week, obviously to include Jameis (Winston) and Taysom (Hill), will be the best plan we feel like helps us win," Payton said Monday. "And those guys, man, they've been fantastic. They'll be all-in."

#DrewBrees #NewOrleans #Saints #WhoDatNation #NFL #NFLnews #NFLTwitter #NFLTwitterLive

Join digital sports journalist Michael Scott, and listen as he discusses the latest trending topics in sports that the NFL, NBA, MLB, and NCAA have to offer. Subscribe to the podcast for notifications when each new episode drops!

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