Three Unrelated Items Today …

Remember that “warm-up game” between the US men’s Olympic team and the South Sudan men’s Olympic team?  The one where the US team needed a basket in the final 20 seconds of play to eke out a 101-100 victory?  Well, the two teams happened to be in the same Group in the Olympic competition meaning that they would necessarily play each other at least one more time – – and that mandatory meeting took place yesterday with the outcome being more in line with “basketball normalcy”.  The US won convincingly 103-86.

Bam Adebayo had himself quite a game for the US side:

• 18 points
• 8 for 10 shooting from the field
• 7 rebounds
• 2 blocked shots
• 1 steal.

Moreover, Adebayo did all that in less than 21 minutes of playing time…

Two other team stats from this game stood out to me relating to how the US team can play together dominantly:

1. The US team made 37 field goals in the game and 29 of those field goals came off an assist.
2. The US team recorded 13 steals and 7 blocked shots in the game; they were playing aggressive defense in addition to efficient offense.

Moving on …  I read a report that I would hope is completely wrong.  According to this report, the NFL – as part of its deal with its “broadcast partners” – will require each team to provide its head coach for an in-game interview with the sideline reporter in every game.  The report said there would be one interview in each half.  What a humongous waste of time, energy and neurological connections those interviews will be!

Sample interview:

• Q:  Coach, what did you tell the team they needed to do at halftime to overcome the 21-point deficit you faced?
• A:  I told them to make plays and score more points.  *grunt*
• Thanks, Coach…

Other than reporting on injuries that occur during a game, sideline reporters generally offer unadulterated banality over the airwaves.  So, now the NFL and the networks have concluded that it would be a good idea to make unadulterated banality a mandatory part of every telecast.  It’s no wonder those folks make the big bucks…

Switching gears …  One of the recurring storylines of this NFL offseason has been about the Cowboys’ needing to deal with Dak Prescott on a contract extension.  Here is a quick reset of the situation:

• Prescott’s contract is up at the end of this season.
• His existing contract has a no-trade clause.
• His existing contract forbids the Cowboys from using the franchise tag or a transition tag on Prescott at the end of this deal.
• Due to several “restructuring actions” on the contract, IF Prescott plays out the deal and becomes a free agent, the Cowboys will have to accommodate a $40M salary cap charge in 2025.

There are three other factors involved in this situation:

1. There is no other QB on the Cowboys’ roster who is a threat to be a starting QB in the NFL.
2. The “market price” for starting QBs has exploded with a half dozen QBs now earning an average of more than $50M per year – – with $60M per year in plain view.
3. The Cowboys also need to reach agreement on contract extensions with two other star players – – WR, CeeDee Lamb and LB, Micah Parsons.

In any situation like this one where two sides are in contentious negotiations, there is always the possibility that one side will overplay the hand dealt to them.  Right now, it sure seems to me to be that Prescott has the upper hand and I think he recognizes that to be the case because he said this to a reporter from ESPN:

“I have an obligation to the NFL, to other quarterbacks and to my teammates when it comes to what I get paid and what I accept. That’s where sometimes I leave it to my agents.”

So, maybe Dak Prescott will be the guy who breaks the $60M per year average salary in his next contract.  And if that is the case, let me say this before the fact:

• In 2020, Patrick Mahomes signed a 10-year contract worth $450M – – an average annual salary of $45M.
• If Dak Prescott is deemed to be worth $60M per year by the Cowboys or any other team in the NFL, Patrick Mahomes deserves at least $70M per year.

Finally, an observation by Albert Einstein:

“If you can’t explain it simply, you don’t understand it well enough.”

But don’t get me wrong, I love sports………