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The Cowboys and the Eagles losing is the gift that just keeps giving if you spend any time on sports social media. Which I really shouldn't but sometimes I simply can't resist.
Almost as thrilling as that is the Leafs losing another game last night. They are slowly working their back to the fringes of the playoff standings. Another half a season for them to blow it and it they don't, we can count on them pulling a Cowboys in the first round of the playoffs.
Quiet night in the NBA last night with only 3 games but they were all good ones with high quality teams. I am really enjoying the fact that teams like the TWolves, Thunder, Kings, Pacers and Magic are highly competitive this year. It is nice to see some variety in the playoff standings. Can we do something about the flopping trend though? It isn't as bad as soccer but it is getting progressively worse. Flopping should be 2 shots and the ball. Protect the integrity of the game and not turn it into a clown show of guys falling everywhere to try and draw fouls. Less fouls/free throws is a better game anyways.
UFC 297 (live from Toronto- nice to see UFC back in Canada- considered going but ticket prices were insane) is this Saturday night. We seemed to have a fairly good response to the UFC pick 'em I ran last month, so let's run it back. Should be posted in a bit. Doesn't look like the strongest card but the main event should be good. Du Plessis has been training at Primal, which is an mma gym in Toronto that a buddy of mine has been going to for years. I did some work for them a few years back when I was still in the city and had my business. So that's was kind of a neat connection. Hopefully it is a good event Saturday.
Sats for all, GR
NFC LEAST looking like a true joke shop.
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Commanders have a GM now. Peters was a late round savant with the 49ers. He will be missed.
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I thought Slick Rick Spielman would take it. He was hired in as an advisor in the search. But honestly I liked him when he was our GM.
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I think they want to really rebuild, which is why they went with Peters. You can't deny the success the 49ers have had in finding and developing pro bowl caliber players in the later rounds. Supposedly, Peters had a lot to do with that. I know the 49ers were high on him to replace Lynch if and when Lynch wanted to step away and go back to broadcasting.
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Purdy in the 7th anyone 😜 can't deny the draft success and development of players the 9ers have done at all... They seem like a real class organisation.
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A bit of luck there. Obviously if they knew he was going to be this good, they would have picked him way before the 7th. But I also give the 49ers a lot of credit in developing him. It also didn't hurt that he was playing the scout team QB for 12 weeks last season going up against the number one ranked D in the league. I think that made him a lot better and gave him a lot of confidence when his number was called.
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That being said. Trey lance had all the talent in the world, and all the opportunity. But couldn't make it work. So I'm curious if it could be shanahans system wasn't fit for him. A square peg in a round hole sorta thing. Whereas purdy is a round peg and is succeeding, and sure scout team reps absolutely are going to help.
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I think the system was part of it.
"I hate the eagles, no one hates the eagles more than me." - any random eagles fan. 🤣🤣
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I say throw the kitchen sink at the flopping problem:
  • In-game technical foul + possession (and a fine from the league)
  • Between game tech + fine for flops missed in-game
  • Shaming campaign on social media for flopping
I'd go as far as immediate ejection/suspension. It's making some of these games just awful to watch.
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Flops have no place in sports. (Looking at you soccer/football) it's just stupid, no self respecting referee is going to take it seriously, get up, get on with it. If you're truly hurt then fine stay down. But if you're acting up to try and pull a penalty. Get off the field, go away, hand your jersey in and never show your face in the world of sports again.
And another thing! You shall address the referee as SIR and you shall be respectful to them at all times. Running up and screaming in their face to bully them into making a call go your way... This is what you want to be teaching the young audiences?
Pathetic.
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Running up and screaming in their face to bully them
I've never understood why that's tolerated. I'm all for a really quick whistle. Plenty of retired players have talked about how to have a good relationship with officials and it's to politely talk to them during stoppages in play.
This is another thing that needs a shaming campaign. There should be a nightly highlight reel of all the baskets scored on a team while one of their players is whining to the refs (or yelling at them).
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Take a look at how rugby is played, sure you got emotions in play and usually they're kept in check. But the respect the players show the refs and the refs do what they can to call a fair game. It's not really seen in a lot of other sports.
Nigel Owens as an example of a rugby ref who is incredibly well respected. https://youtu.be/GQBreC7YdTc?si=MWHQr_hpgWS6FtMo the #1 ranked was him telling off Stuart Hogg for diving by saying "dive like that again and come back in two weeks and play" two weeks later from that game, was a soccer game.
I couldn't find the video but there's one of him telling Martin Johnson off and Martin was all, yes sirs and no sirs about it. Don't argue with the ref, it just irritates them.
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I do get that there are emotional and pivotal moments in a game where a blatant missed call can change the game so there are times I understand the frustration and outburst but when it is happening on almost every play. I think Nurse is a really good coach but one thing I didn't like about him and I think it created a culture on the team as well, is he would whine to and yell at the refs on almost every play. Pick your battles.
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Guys can usually reign it in though. There have been lots of specific forms of frustration venting that have been prohibited and players adapt quickly.
I just think running up and screaming in a ref's face should be a quick T, especially since calls are reviewable in the NBA. If your right to be so upset, then you will win the challenge.
Challenge reviews would be a great place to allow the refs to penalize flops, if they aren't already allowed to.
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Shaming campaign is the best one. Endless memes of 6'10 230lb guy dropping to the ground like he was shot after another dude's shoulder brushes him.
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It's why I really struggle with soccer/football. The premier league, champions league etc etc... it's a nightmare for it.
Disgustingly I've actively seen coaches teaching it and encouraging it at grass roots level in kids. It's rediculous.
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If other players pile on, I think it could work better than the other methods.
There was a neat history of flopping video that I watched recently.
One of the points in it was that there wasn't much flopping in the Magic/Bird/Jordan era because guys cared about looking weak, so there's a basis for thinking a culture shift could fix it.
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I had it explained to me by a friend who played semi pro soccer.
Effectively, if there's even a chance you can make it look like a foul and gain a slight advantage, you gotta go for it because there is that much money riding on winning. Game checks, bonuses... Etc etc.
Personally I think it's unsportsmanlike and has no place in real sports. But I do understand why players do it.
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Outcomes follow incentives. Players and coaches can't really be blamed for doing what they can to win.
John Madden, speaking as the Raiders coach, once said something like "It's not our job to follow the rules. It's the league's job to stop us from breaking them."
As soon as the penalty outweighs the benefit, the behavior will stop.
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Really couldn't have worded it better. John Madden nailed that one.
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The Raptors are just killing the Heat tonight. Good riddance, Pascal!
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Yes, the Raptors can now go undefeated for the remainder of the season and playoffs now that they got rid of Pascal. I already have my spot picked out for the parade. Stacker Sports will be onsite.
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That was an unbelievable shooting display they put on tonight. Gary Trent is so good every time I watch the Raptors.
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That's Trent for you. One game he looks all world and the next he is going 1/8 shooting and playing swiss cheese D
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