Articles

Caught Off-Guard

Michael Pina

We will always have Steve Nash. Not the Nash that was on the floor at the beginning and end of his career, the first hamstrung by strange use, the latter diminished by age and wear. But the Nash that was Nash—the one that won those two MVP's, the one that powered the most entertaining non-championship teams in recent memory—belongs to history.

The Wages of Win: On Ideas, Numbers and People at the Sloan Sports and Analytics Conference

Robert Silverman

The general mood at the Sloan Sports and Analytics Conference was that of a happy revolution, and a celebration of good, new ideas overtaking and replacing bad, old ones. But how bloodless is this coup, really, and what would the post-revolution landscape look like?

At the World Baseball Classic, Who Cares Wins

W.M. Akers

Team USA was bounced from the World Baseball Classic before the semifinals, again. But given the exuberance and joy of the teams that remain, this doesn't seem like a bad thing. National pride aside, a WBC without Team USA is a happier and more interesting place.

A Talent For Winning

Jack Moore

For as long as Bo Ryan has been coaching at Wisconsin, questions have been raised about his teams' persistent lack of NBA-grade talent. He and the Badgers keep answering those questions by winning. Perhaps a better question is how Ryan and Wisconsin keep beating all these star-studded opponents, one year after another.

Driving To Utopia, Arizona

Holly Wendt

Spring Training baseball, in Arizona and in general, is a long way from the game fans are used to, for better and worse. But if Spring Training isn't quite like regular baseball, neither is it quite like anything else.

Tiny Dancers

Greg Cameron

In the grand scheme of things, and in the NCAA Tournament, the winner of the MAAC Championship does not matter all that much. To the players fighting for the chance to write their own ending, though, it means so much more.

Solving for Bayless

Bryan Joiner

The "argument" between Skip Bayless and Richard Sherman on ESPN's "debate" show First Take was the latest in a long line of highly embarrassing, increasingly frequent moments for the network and their resident curmudgeon. And even though he's starting to finally wear out his welcome at the Worldwide Leader, with the rise of Fox Sports 1, it looks like we may never get rid of him.  

Pud Galvin's Juiced Balls

David Pincus

Deer antler spray included, there's never been a crazier example of animal-based performance enhancing than Hall of Fame pitcher Pud Galvin's experience with a magical elixir created by Charles Brown-Sequard. Let's just put it this way: whether or not it had monkey testerone is the least interesting part of the ingredient list.

Why We Watch: Jack Wilshere, Force of Concord

Scott King

Leaving Arsenal, Gunner star Cesc Fabregas anointed the young Jack Wilshere, saying, “Jack will be the England captain inside the next two or three years, you don't have to be a magician to work that one out.” Wilshere’s talent was never questioned,  but did little to ease pain of Fabregas's departure. His play, on the other hand, has managed that.

Why We Watch: Ray Allen, A Life

Yago Colás

Ray Allen's brilliance is built on what seems like a simple act of repetition: the same perfect shot, taken and made over and over, for years. But while that's at the center of what makes Allen great, it's not just that. It's a lot more than that.