Indians trade Ramsey, Walters to Dodgers for cash considerations
April 10, 2016LeBron James wanted to shoot potential game-winner over Matthew Dellavedova
April 11, 2016Happy Monday, you crazy kids. Here’s hoping you had an enjoyable weekend of watching the Indians lose to the Chicago weather and Jordan Spieth lose to that pesky par-3 12th hole tucked in the middle of Amen Corner at Augusta National. For 65 holes, Speith looked unstoppable; he looked like he was going to runaway with his second green jacket in as many years—CBS even ran the montage of the company he’d be joining. But then he turned into me, splashing multiple approach shots before finally getting a ball over the creek—and into a bunker.
It was an epic meltdown and made for incredible theater (coupled with his comeback attempt) in a sport that drastically needs such following the Tiger Woods era. Kudos to Danny Willett for winning after an incredible run in the final round, but the headlines will be as much about Spieth’s collapse as they will be about Willett’s win.
If I recommend any piece from the weekend, it’s this tick-tock from ESPN’s Kevin Van Valkenburg. KVV was on location all week, pumping out #ActualSportswriting throughout the event, but this one was the hammer. Enjoy.
♦♦♦
Some very cool reporting here from The Vertical’s Nick DePaula on LeBron James, Nike, and the future of the four-time MVP’s signature line. James has made roughly $300 million in shoe and apparel-related revenue since entering the league. To put this in perspective, Ben Simmons, a projected top two pick in the upcoming NBA Draft, is likely looking at a deal close to $15 million spread over several years. This story takes a look at the journey of not just James, but his signature shoes—the higher top following More Than a Game, the brighter colors following his move to Miami, the addition of “330” branding upon his return back to Cleveland—and what is yet to come.
As it stands, James will continue to be the lead signature athlete for the company. He inked a lifetime deal with Nike at the end of 2015 that aims to map out a business plan for his post-playing career. There are head counts and marketing budgets in place for a staff that will be fully dedicated to the LeBron business. There’s even an agreed-upon royalty percentage for retro LeBron products, and an outline of plans to expand his namesake series to emerging players across the league. All together, it could net him as much as $500 million over the life of the deal.
ESPN’s Bomani Jones says your employer is the person who pays you the most. Considering that this number far and away trumps that of anything he will make from any NBA team, well, you can see why the Global Icon is just that.
Good news is, for those who bailed on James’ shoe out of spite when he went to Miami, you’ll get another crack at picking up the 8s, 9s, 10s, and 11s. Nike appears primed to retro James’ sneakers after his retirement, choosing to wait out his career to give LeBron more time to mentally distance himself from the man who paved the way for James to make such a lucrative living off sneakers, Michael Jordan.
♦♦♦
So, thanks to Ramona Shelburne (more on her later), I stumbled across a Tumblr dedicated strictly to ESPN The Magazine’s artwork, all of it laid out in its beautiful, seamless glory. The latest issue is almost entirely about the Golden State Warriors (more on this later), where they lay out 73 reasons to love the best team the NBA has seen in over 20 seasons. Had I known about this last week, I would’ve added this image to #ActualSportswriting when we mentioned Ethan Sherwood Strauss’ story on Nike and Steph.
If you’re a magazine nerd like me, you’ll go to this Tumblr and then get lost in all of the links and imagery that awaits. Thank me later.
♦♦♦
It sounds like Johnny Manziel and Von Miller are the new odd couple—how does “Vonny Manziel” sound?
According to Manziel, he’s living with Miller and the two are “getting their lives together.” The only catch here: Miller is the reigning Super Bowl MVP; Manziel is unemployed.
♦♦♦
Mute those talking heads and take in this week’s edition of #ActualSportswriting:
“Goff v. Wentz: Dawn of Judgment” by Robert Mays (The Ringer Newsletter): “All quarterbacks prefer clean pockets and open windows, but Goff was less reliant on them than Wentz. Save for Cal’s quick-screen game, Goff was usually responsible for the ways the Bears influenced defenses. He’s already adept at controlling safeties with his eyes, in part because his eyes are never on the pass rush. Wentz feels outside pressure and steps up with ease, but Goff navigates the entire pocket. He subtly slides to find or make windows that many quarterbacks can’t. That’s a different type of speed.”1
“David Beckham on retirement, life family and protecting his kids” by Michael Paterniti (GQ): “After 20 years in the limelight—after all the haircuts and incarnations (from Skinhead Becks to Miami Vice Becks, from Legolas Becks to 007 Becks)—David Beckham seems to have reached a more permanent astral station. He and his family now get the kind of daily media coverage usually reserved for the stock market, or Britain’s royal family.”2
“Steve Kerr has suffered more than you will ever know” by Ramona Shelburne (ESPN The Magazine): “For months, he was a shell of himself, battling intense pressure headaches and searing pain behind his eyes. The worst of it was not understanding what was wrong or knowing whether it would ever get better. As an athlete, you break a bone and the doctor tells you it will heal in four to six weeks. This was different. Kerr had no answers. It wasn’t his back that hurt, it was his head. He felt sick, weak, tired and dizzy. He sat out the first 43 games of the season, leaving 35-year-old assistant coach Luke Walton in charge of the best team in the league.”
“Matt Bush? That Matt Bush?” by Eli Saslow (ESPN The Magazine): “Danny is contractually obligated to keep an eye on his son, who turned 30 this year — to live with him in the hotel room, monitor his curfew and take him to 12-step meetings. Those are just some of the conditions of Bush’s tenuous return to professional baseball, his last chance to redeem a decade of blown opportunities that made him perhaps the biggest disappointment in the history of the MLB draft.”3
♦♦♦
And finally, if you’re already a subscriber, you’ve seen the news. In the event you are not, however, the WFNY Newsletter that was to predominantly follow the Cavs on their quest to a title is being re-purposed into a new avenue of weekly WFNY content, delievered straight to your inbox. If you have yet to subscribe, please do so here. There will still be some Cavs talk, but we have a few things in the pipeline we think you will like, and we would hate if you missed out on this new and improved element of this here venture. For the most recent mailing, check it out here.
Have a great Monday, you guys. Be safe out there.
- One of the better looks at the quarterback debate at No. 2 comes from, to no surprise, Robert Mays. I’m just out here hoping it doesn’t even come down to either of these guys. [↩]
- Being housed in American and not being much of a Euro soccer fan, I tend to forget that David Beckham is the LeBron James of England. This story is a nice reminder. [↩]
- Two ESPN Mag stories from two separate issues. This one, of course, falls under the edict of Read Everything Eli Saslow Writes. [↩]
47 Comments
THOSE ARE MIAMI HEAT COLORS!
17 days until the draft.
That paragraph above is why Ive favored Goff this entire time. Its about what you can do when things arent perfect
That and the precision on the deep ball routes. It is actually one of the reasons I begrudgingly have some hope in RG3, it is near impossible to teach touch on those.
Audibles, look-offs, stands through pass-rush, deep ball. Goff isn’t the Captain America chiseled prototype, he’s just the best quarterback.
https://45.media.tumblr.com/fbd00617a8517e3ca38fcb54d4f7419b/tumblr_meydjiDofs1r1mkubo1_500.gif
Dang, I know that in some sense another clip of JFF slurred speech bro talk is marginally newsworthy filler, but until when?
If I was putting together WWW I’d probably toss it in too. With a touch of self-loathing. Please let it dissipate to internet nothingness soon.
I just dont understand why, during the silly season, everyone forgets what they saw on the field, and puts so much stock into physical traits. For me, this is the time to focus on their mental aspects, can they process info, hows their track record for decision making on and off the field, what did their teammates/coaches/professors etc think about them?
All they physical stuff is already on film. Anything from the combine or pro day is white noise.
We need him to sign with another team and flame out there too so that he is ex-Bronco QB or something too (see: Weeden, Brandon).
Yeah, Gruden made such a concerted effort to go over-the-top on Wentz mental side it felt like his agents were paying him. On the field (limited clips and games available), Wentz just didn’t have the offense Goff did to direct.
As defensive schemes get ever crazier and the defensive players faster/stronger, you have to be sure your QB has the mental agility when the pocket is chaos. Because in this division the pocket is chaos.
If we’re talking risk aversion when you have the #2 overall with those skills Goff sure seems the safest bet QB with the highest floor. Way higher than anything else that’s bumbled through Berea the last two decades.
All that film is superfluous when analytics is involved.
It’s all about pinkie/thumb ratios, eye focus times, and brainwave coefficients.
Plug all that in to the Sashimetric Computalator and draft whomeve tops the stat-o-matic performace matrix.
Film? Pffffft…
I can’t wait for that day.
thats very funny. Sadly, it might have some truth to it, which scares me
something else I like about Goff is that his father played in MLB. Which means that Goff has a trusted advisor, very close to him, who knows what it means to be a professional athlete. I think the learning curve on that side of things will be much shorter for Goff than Wentz. Not to denigrate Wentz at all, he may acclimate very quickly to the life of a full time professional athlete, but I have more confidence that Goff can do so more seamlessly
Shortly after we cut ties, I told my wife that I hope he signs with another team quickly. She was perplexed, she knew I was not a fan of his, so didnt understand why I’d root for good fortune for him. But that’s exactly why. The sooner the Browns dont come up in the first two sentences of any story about him, the better
I can’t wait to see the look on Sashi’s face when some overpaid overage All-Pro DL bulldozes his value optimized offensive tackle and flattens his biometrically modeled QB.
I don’t think analytics are what you think they are 😉
https://waitingfornextyear.com/2016/01/football-analytics-qa-with-data-expert-trey-causey/
http://vignette4.wikia.nocookie.net/disneycreate/images/b/b9/Cookie_monster_impatient.gif/revision/latest?cb=20140203011504
He might be the greatest Browns embarrassment of the entire reboot. And that’s saying something.
Now, I still maintain had Couch not been shell shocked and then jerked around by Butch Davis he could’ve been a pretty good NFL QB, but I agree with your larger point. I want no part of any “boom or bust” guys.
Au contraire…
“Football analytics is the rigorous application of data and the scientific method to football to inform decisions and maximize the chances of winning as many games as possible. ***This could be via player selection (in the draft, in free agency, on game day)***, in-game decision-making (fourth downs, two-point conversions, etc.), or in the design and analysis of plays. Football analytics is distinct from football “statistics” or football “data,” which I see as just collections of observations about the game which may or may not be useful to anyone.”
Good news is, we have nowhere to go but up from here. He definitely was/is the largest embarrassment. Not like his personality/off field persona/ lack of work ethic were secrets.
Hopefully, we look back at the Ray Farmer era as “rock bottom”
Erving is praying you’re right…
True that!
I think Cam Erving, once back at his natural position, will be a pleasant surprise this season. Everyone remember to screen shot this so you can use it to publicly shame me in December.
I could see that happening. I could also see a scenario where the Browns use their 3rd or 4th round pick to grab a center (there are several solid ones in this draft) and force Erving to battle it out with the glut of warm bodies at right tackle.
works for me. linemen are like starting pitchers. Can never have enough
I hope you’re right. But, watching him get trampled over and over again was just so demoralizing.
share your Couch opinion. And don’t mean to hold our previous guys as a standard: wouldn’t mind the “boom” guy if they’re confident that the kid’s “bust” potential is dampened by excellent football instincts, a football brain and and an unquestionable work ethic. Wentz is supposed to be very book smart, but I’m queasy (maybe stupidly so) by the level of his college competition.
Glad it’s not my choice. To play devil’s advocate with a basketball analogy: there was a reason that Danny Ferry was considered by everyone to be worthy of a first round selection: his level of play had a sophistication and basketball knowledge that was ahead of even his top-tier opponents, and his physical limitations were masked by teammates who drew tons of attention. But he wasn’t Larry Bird like everyone thought. And when matched one on one, both on offense and defense, he was just a taller Steve Kerr with sharp rebounding elbows. Wentz may not be Favre at all, but no one will know – at the earliest but probably much, much later – until his first regular season game when defenses take the gloves off.
I still don’t buy this “greatest embarrassment” thing. How is Johnny Manziel, alone, a greater embarrassment to the Browns than the following?
2 winning seasons in 16 years.
Each loss, individually (some far more embarrassing than others)
24 starting QBs.
All of the head coaches.
All of the constant reboots, FO promises and subsequent failures.
All of the failed drafts.
All of staph infections, and attempts to cover up same.
Colt McCoy treatment and concussiongateapalooza.
Kellen Winslow Jr.
PFJ criminal investigation (which I would also exclude)
The list goes on.
Of all of the things that the Browns have to be embarrassed about, JFF is the least of them.
I get that Manziel was a component of some of those things, but I just don’t see Johnny Manziel as being an embarrassment to anyone other than Johnny Manziel and the Manziel family. In fact, the Browns did a lot to help the guy. On top of that, everyone associated with or that might have ever looked at the NFL knew that Manziel was an absolute gamble for the Browns, on every level.
He is, so far, a failure at life, but not an embarrassment to the Browns.
Just in case nobody noticed, the $EC bullied the NCAA into banning satellite camps…immediately.
And of course Delaney says nothing.
Say what you want about Harbaugh, this was bad for everybody except Saban.
His actions have always been an embarrassment to himself, not the Browns organization.
Now if you want to argue that the circumstances in which he was acquired by the Browns were an embarrassment, you’ve got a point.
jordan spieth has that rare mental make-up that very few athletes have … he still is only 22 years old … it will interesting to see what he does next time out … i’ll be watching.
spieth getting a 7 on the par-3 12th … ernie els got a 10 on the par-4 1st hole on Thursday … and i watched someone 3-putt from 5 feet away yesterday … for me , being an 18 handicapper , it’s nice to know that the pros do it too.
Football analytics is the rigorous application of data and the scientific method to football to inform decisions
Yes, so taking the stats and scouting reports and figuring out what portions are accurate and which tend to not mean anything. Then, using the useful information from each to make informed choices.
That said, I’m interested to see how it will work in football with such small sample sizes. There is a lot of nuance in here.
I think I consider it so because it was broadcast nationally. Staph infections, Winslow, etc. those were sports stories and some of them you are only aware of if you follow the Browns.
But everyone, even non-sports fans, knows about Johnny. And Johnny is synonymous with the Browns.
Arians agrees but would replace your “jerked around” portion to “suffered shoulder injury that limited him” (at least that was his reasonsing for what happened in that era).
Ah, but Goff had the sophisticated opponents, but not the overly talented teammates (for the most part). That is part of the allure, really.
I still don’t think most of those people associate this as a “Browns” thing, though.
As has been noted (and trumpeted by Zac Jackson), it hurts the small schools like the MAC and D2, D3 schools the most. They no longer can attend other schools camps, so they don’t get that “free” scouting and the kids will miss out on playing in front of them.
This was always nothing more than a thinly veiled tactic to protect what Saban and his $EC cronies consider their turf.
If you can’t out recruit them, out legislate them.
It’s disappointing how Delaney just slinked away and offered no support for his Conference.
What Harbaugh was doing was not just beneficial to UM, but the entire B1G.
Oh? I think they do, but perhaps I am wrong.
If they do, the problem lies within the perceiver, not without.
Agree. They could have pushed for a compromise solution (only can be done on Spring Breaks and summers, etc.) rather than just full-on block too.
Agreed. Also feel this way about any content having to do with shoes/brand management, etc. that often populate this space.
https://cdn3.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/T82eSS98zV0vC9BcgndctOpv3jg=/cdn0.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/4268657/camno.0.gif
This may be the *one* play that completely embodies every aspect of the Browns since 1999
They only banned satellite camps.
Don’t think for a second that Harbaugh isn’t going to hold spring practice down there again next season. 😉
“my room mate Maria Is getting paid on the internet 98$/hr.”….i!342two days ago new Silver McLaren P2 bought after earning 18,512 Dollars,,,this was my previous month’s paycheck ,and-a little over, 17k Dollars Last month .,3-5 hours of work a day ..with. extra open doors &. weekly. paychecks… it’s realy the simplest. work. I have ever Do.. I Joined This 7 months. ago. and now making over. 87 Dollars, p/h.Learn. More right Herei!342➤➤➤➤➤ http://GlobalSuperJobsReportsEmploymentsGreenGetPaidHourly98$…. .❖❖:❦❦:❖❖:❦❦:❖❖:❦❦:❖❖:❦❦:❖❖:❦❦:❖❖:❦❦:❖❖:❦❦:❖❖:❦❦:❖❖:❦❦:❖❖:❦❦:❖❖:❦❦::::i!342……….