Sports
Too-Late Suggestions To Save San Francisco’s NBA All-Star Game
Jun 2, 2024; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark (22) at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports A lot of planning goes into an NBA All-Star Game. That doesn’t mean a lot of thought goes into it.
When San Francisco’s trademark fog acts as a closing curtain on the festivities Sunday night, the All-Star Game will be remembered for three things.
The sad part is: two of the three didn’t even take place.
Let’s examine what could have been:
The Clark struck midnight
No doubt, the highlight of All-Star weekend would have been national icon Caitlin Clark vs. hometown hero Stephen Curry in a made-for-TV shootout that could have taken 3-point brilliance to heights never previously seen.
Alas, Clark wants to host the event next summer in Indianapolis. Maybe she’ll invite Curry.
But losing the star attraction doesn’t cancel the main event. For crying out loud, the Super Bowl had a national anthem even after Taylor Swift elected to sit it out.
No doubt, the NBA tried to come up with SOMETHING. You don’t get many (any?) opportunities like this: A Curry-hosted game in the NBA hometown of Klay Thompson, with two other A-list logo-launching options in Bay Area natives Sabrina Ionescu and Damian Lillard.
The possibilities were endless. The creativity wasn’t. Heck, they made the dunk event all about Vince Carter when the Bay Area is home to an even greater dunk trendsetter, J.R. Rider.
What could they have done? They could have asked me …
Curry and Ionescu, shooting rapid-fire 3-pointers from designated spots well beyond the arc with a time limit, vs. LeBron James and Angel Reese from marks uptown rather than downtown. The old Good vs. Evil duel of historic 49ers fame.
Ah, but there’s more. Curry and Ionescu are teamed with Brock Purdy and the face of the new Golden State Valkyries, Kate Martin. James and Reese get Aaron Rodgers and Tonya Harding. The sidekicks are standing on the baseline, armed with miniature rubber ‘Kyrie basketballs, taking unlimited aim at the shooters in a dodgeball-style frenzy.
It could have blown the roof off the place.
Or you can have Winston Garland’s son on center stage. Take your pick.
Sometimes TNT fizzles
May 28, 2024; Dallas, Texas, USA; Shaquille O’Neal watches the game between the Dallas Mavericks and the Minnesota Timberwolves in game four of the western conference finals for the 2024 NBA playoffs at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images Such is the nature of sports that the bosses get accused of outlandish things. Like paying off Super Bowl refs. And emailing broadcasters Jayson Tatum promotional scripts.
Here’s another…
Is there any doubt the All-Star Game roster selection wasn’t rigged?
Shaq gets all the old-timers. Charles a foreign contingent. And Kenny a bunch of up-and-comers. It couldn’t have been scripted more Bachelor-esque.
Then—wink, wink—Shaq’s collection of Old Format MVPs draws the NBA’s farm club (aka the Rising Stars winners) in an effort to light on fire the sneakers of LeBron, Curry, Kevin Durant and a bunch of 30-somethings with no interest in working up a sweat while on vacation.
Meanwhile, led by Luka Doncic and more interested in stuffing themselves at the pregame spread, Charles’ across-the-pond, see-food eaters get matched up with a bunch of USA 2028 Olympic wannabes.
All in the interest of ratcheting up the energy level in a fan-unfriendly effort to prove that defense wins All-Star championships.
Coincidence? We’ll know for sure if Tim Donaghy tosses the opening tip.
Getting Mullie, Timmy … but not Iggy with it
Mar 7, 2023; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Golden State Warriors forward Andre Iguodala (9) reacts after a play against the Oklahoma City Thunder during the second half at Paycom Center. Oklahoma City won 137-128. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images OK, so you have a desperately contrived All-Star Game. Or worse, All-Star Games. You know this going in.
Wouldn’t it be wise to have a safety net?
The Warriors have announced they plan on retiring Andre Iguodala’s number next week. Great guy. Well deserved. No doubt, the entire league will take a moment and applaud.
So why not do it when everyone can witness it—immediately following the All-Star Game?
Remember, Iguodala wasn’t just Golden State’s star performer. He also had successful stints with the 76ers, Nuggets and Heat, a four-time champ, one-time All-Star and Finals MVP and perennial Defensive Player of the Year candidate who multiple times earned Sixth Man votes for his unselfishness.
It’s hard not to like the guy, both on and off the court.
So after the winning target number is lowered due to time constraints, you have an exhausted Nikola Jokic, with pizza sauce on his jersey, missing the potential game-winning shot, leading to a Jalen Williams (not sure which one) layup—not even a dunk—as the half-filled arena joins the half-asleep national audience in collective boos.
Back to you, Ernie.
Instead, you could have Iguodala come out, bring the crowd to its feet, and cap a great weekend—one that the Warriors have expertly interjected with franchise legends Curry, Chris Mullin, Mitch Richmond, Tim Hardaway and Baron Davis—with a lasting uplifting impression.
A goodbye kiss, if you will.
Even Tonya Harding would skate off a winner. Imagine that.
Sports
A'ja Wilson has no shortage of motivation after Aces' early exit in '24
Oct 1, 2024; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Las Vegas Aces center A’ja Wilson (22) and New York Liberty forward Breanna Stewart (30) during game two of the 2024 WNBA Semi-finals at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images LAS VEGAS — Entering her eighth season in the WNBA, Las Vegas Aces superstar A’ja Wilson is poised to build on what was arguably the most dominant individual campaign in league history.
Wilson joined Cynthia Cooper (1997) as the second player in league history to win a unanimous MVP award and joined an exclusive club as the fourth player to win the award three times. She averaged 26.9 points and 11.9 rebounds per game last season and set the all-time single-season mark for points (1,021) and rebounds (451).
Unfortunately for Las Vegas, injuries and fatigue from their two previous championship runs mounted and resulted in the team’s worst regular-season record (27-13) since 2019. The Aces’ three-peat hopes ended with a 76-62 home loss to the New York Liberty to drop their semifinal series 3-1.
It’s that loss on her home floor that served as Wilson’s motivation this offseason.
“Losing sucks, especially on your home court,” Wilson said “It still kind of burns a little bit, but I’ve used that as fuel to help my teammates understand how hard it is to win in this league. Yes, we can celebrate the two championships. They were great. But for us to move forward, we have to understand how hard this league is and value the basketball and the little things. I think that’s what we lacked last season, so we’re going to make sure that we can show up better than we did.”
While the Aces appeared to be on top of the world heading into their potential three-peat campaign in 2024, the reality inside the locker room was that both the internal and external pressure to win another championship had become suffocating. A common theme across media day was the fact that the team feels less pressure entering the 2025 season, a sentiment Wilson shared as the unquestioned leader of the team.
“(Three-peat talks) obviously impacted us, because it’s like, y’all think we don’t want to win? We’re trying as well,” Wilson said.
“I would definitely say it’s refreshing this year. I feel like this is one of my only years where it feels like there’s no weight. There’s a lot of weight to be defending champs. It’s a lot of weight to be trying to win one. We don’t have that. We actually have a clean slate to really dial into getting back to who we are culturally, like, in our system and everything.”
Leading the Aces back to the top of the mountain for a third time in four years is one of a few historically significant achievements Wilson can collect this upcoming season. Wilson could also become the first four-time MVP in league history, though the meaning of that is something she hasn’t quite allowed herself to ponder yet.
“I haven’t given it much thought, but it would be a blessing to have my name in that conversation,” Wilson said. “Every year, I try to be better than I was the year before just to give myself a chance in this league. Because the league is getting better. We’re growing. At this point, you just want to maintain your stamina. You want to maintain your mental, all of that, because the season gets hard. I can’t think too much about that just yet, but I’m definitely going to try to be better than I was last year.”
As Aces coach Becky Hammon put it, fans can expect to see an even better version of Wilson this season.
“What I see is, she went and got better,” Hammon said. “Which is hard to do when you’re already the best, but it speaks to her work ethic, her desire and her mindset this whole offseason. We talked a lot this offseason. She’s a busy lady, but I can tell you what she always does is her workouts. She’s always getting her workouts in. That comes first and foremost, she never gets her priorities jumbled up.”
When Hammon was asked what a player like Wilson would possibly need to improve after last season’s campaign, the coach did not feel like revealing too much.
“There was (something for Wilson to improve), and she did,” Hammon said. “I’m not going to tell you what it was. Actually, there were two things.”
–Will Despart, Field Level Media
Sports
Jacob Wilson joins Aaron Judge in spotlight for Yankees-A's series
May 5, 2025; West Sacramento, California, USA; Athletics shortstop Jacob Wilson (5) throws to first for an out against the Seattle Mariners during the seventh inning at Sutter Health Park. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Lee-Imagn Images The top two hitters in the majors square off Friday night when the New York Yankees face the Athletics in the opener of a three-game series in Sacramento, Calif.
It’s no surprise to see Yankees star Aaron Judge off to a superb start after winning American League MVP honors last season. He has a major league-best .400 batting average and entered Thursday’s play tied for the big-league lead with 12 homers and 34 RBIs.
But who had Athletics rookie Jacob Wilson ranking second in the majors at .357 as the season nears the quarter pole? Wilson has played in just 64 career games and quickly has solidified himself as a future All-Star, perhaps even this season.
Sharing the marquee board with Judge seems quite surreal for the 23-year-old shortstop who was the No. 6 overall pick of the 2023 draft.
“It’s a great feeling, for sure,” Wilson said of his name being mentioned with Judge. “Obviously, everybody has seen what he is doing. It’s pretty incredible watching him do his thing on a daily basis. To be up there with him is pretty cool for me.
“I’m excited to play against him this week and see what it looks like in person.”
Wilson had his first career four-hit game during Wednesday’s 6-5 home loss against the Seattle Mariners and has six multi-hit outings in the past eight games. He went 8-for-14 with one game-winning hit in the three-game series against the Mariners and is 16-for-34 (.471) with four walks during the eight-game stretch.
The hot hitting led to Athletics manager Mark Kotsay moving Wilson to the leadoff spot on Wednesday. Kotsay indicated Wilson may be sticking at the top of the lineup.
“I think you’ll see Jacob up there now,” Kotsay said. “Jacob’s earned it. … Jacob has shown enough over the last week. He’s walking and taking pitches, and, obviously, swinging the bat really well.”
Judge arrives in Sacramento in the midst of a four-game funk in which he is 2-for-15.
The two-time MVP just went 1-for-10 in a three-game home series against the San Diego Padres, but the one hit was a homer.
Judge grew up 50 miles south of Sacramento in Linden and starred for Linden High but wasn’t highly sought by major league teams. The then-Oakland Athletics selected him in the 31st round in 2010.
Judge instead went the college route and starred for Fresno State. He was chosen in the first round (32nd overall) by the Yankees in the 2013 draft.
Trent Grisham was one of the heroes of Wednesday’s 4-3, 10-inning win over the Padres. He hit a tying two-run pinch-hit homer in the eighth inning.
Grisham had two homers and five RBIs in the series against the Padres — one of his former teams — and already has 10 long balls in just 89 at-bats. He hit just nine last season in 179 at-bats.
“I’m having fun with the guys, I would say that more than anything,” Grisham said. “The clubhouse is really good in here, led by Cap (Judge). So, I would say the guys have been the most enjoyable part.”
New York is starting right-hander Will Warren (1-2, 5.65 ERA) in Friday’s series opener. Right-hander Osvaldo Bido (2-2, 4.71) will be on the mound for the Athletics.
Warren, 25, struck out a career-high eight in 4 2/3 innings while losing to the Tampa Bay Rays on Sunday. He gave up five runs (three earned) and seven hits. Warren hasn’t previously faced the Athletics.
Bido, 29, received a no-decision against the Miami Marlins last Saturday when he gave up four runs on three hits over five innings. He is winless (0-1) over his last three starts. Bido hasn’t faced the Yankees.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Report: Boxing legend Manny Pacquiao coming out of retirement
Aug 21, 2021; Las Vegas, Nevada; Manny Pacquiao (right) fights Yordenis Ugas in a world welterweight championship bout at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images Boxing legend Manny Pacquiao plans to end his retirement and return to the ring on July 19 against Mario Barrios in Las Vegas, ESPN reported Thursday.
Pacquiao, 46, will be fighting for the first time since losing a unanimous decision to Yordenis Ugas in 2021.
The fight will be for Barrios’ WBC welterweight championship belt. Barrios turns 30 on May 18.
Pacquiao is an eight-division champion who is slated to be inducted into the boxing Hall of Fame in June. He reportedly will formally announce his return to boxing next week. The report stated that Pacquiao has been cleared to compete by the Nevada State Athletic Commission.
In recent years, Pacquiao has been focusing on his political career in the Philippines.
The boxer nicknamed “PacMan” has a 62-8-2 record with 39 knockouts during his career. He won his first major title — the WBC flyweight crown — at age 19 in 1998.
Pacquiao was 54-3-2 prior to turning 33 and 8-5 afterward. One of those losses was to Floyd Mayweather Jr. via unanimous decision in 2015, a bout that reportedly drew nearly $400 million in pay-per-view sales.
Barrios (29-2-1, 18 knockouts) fought to a 12-round, split-decision draw against Abel Ramos last November. This will be his third defense since winning the title by beating Ugas in 2023.
–Field Level Media
A'ja Wilson has no shortage of motivation after Aces' early exit in '24
Best Mothers Day gifts: Show mom some love
