Let’s Get It Started!
Who Will Be Crowned Champion? The 2024 NBA Playoffs and Stanley Cup Playoffs Kick Off This Weekend!
Dear Reader,
March and April are two of the best months on the sports calendar. You’ve got the Men’s and Women’s March Madness tournaments, the stretch runs of the NBA and NHL seasons, the Stanley Cup Playoffs and NBA Playoffs get up and running, first pitch of the MLB season is thrown, The Masters, and of course there’s the NFL Draft. Every day during these two months, it seems like there’s something important on television to watch in the sports world. What a time to be a sports fan!
Josh
FUN FACT FRIDAY
Since the NBA and the Stanley Cup Playoffs are getting started this weekend, I thought it’d be fun to do a FUN FACT FRIDAY about both playoffs:
NBA
Heading into the last game of the season on Sunday, April 14, the Denver Nuggets, Oklahoma City Thunder, and Minnesota Timberwolves were all 56-25. This was the first time in NBA history that three teams have been tied for the No. 1 seed with one game to go.
NHL
For the fourth time in franchise history, the New York Rangers captured the Presidents' Trophy (they also won it in 1991-92, 1993-94 and 2014-15). However, perhaps it’s not the best thing to win the Presidents’ Trophy because the team who wins it doesn’t typically go on to win the Stanley Cup. The last Presidents' Trophy winner to also win a Stanley Cup title was the 2012-13 Chicago Blackhawks.
WNBA: Monday Night’s Draft Draws Record Breaking Number of Viewers
Monday night’s WNBA Draft featured the likes of Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese, Cameron Brink and a multitude of other star Women’s College Basketball players. With so much star power, people clearly wanted to tune in, as the draft averaged a record 2.45 million viewers, a mind-boggling 307 percent increase in viewership over last year.
The previous all-time viewership for a WNBA Draft came in 2004 for Diana Taurasi’s draft year. The ‘04 draft drew 601,000 viewers. Last year averaged 572,000 viewers on ESPN, which was up 42 percent over 2022 and the most-watched WNBA Draft since 2004.
WNBA: The Popularity of Caitlin Clark is Forcing Teams to Change Venues
Now that Caitlin Clark is officially in the WNBA, teams across the league are seeing a massive demand for tickets to see her play. In fact, two teams have now decided to move their games against the Indiana Fever to larger arenas in order to accommodate the demand for seats. Normally, the Washington Mystics play their home games at the Entertainment and Sports Arena, which can seat up to 4,200 fans. But when Clark and the Fever come to town on June 7, the game will be moved to Capital One Arena (home of the NBA’s Washington Wizards and the NHL’s Washington Capitals). The back-to-back defending champion Las Vegas Aces will also relocate their game against Clark and the Fever on July 2, from the 12,000-seat Michelob Ultra Arena to the 18,000-seat T-Mobile Arena (home of the NHL’s Vegas Golden Knights and major UFC events).
NBA: Will the Third Time be the Charm for the Dallas Mavericks When They Meet the LA Clippers Again?
For the third time since 2020, the Dallas Mavericks will meet the Los Angeles Clippers in Round 1 of the NBA Playoffs. The Clippers are 2-0 against the Mavericks in the postseason, as LA won the 2020 Round 1 series in six games down in the Orlando Bubble, despite the Game 4 buzzer beater by Mavericks superstar guard Luka Doncic, and then the Clippers defeated the Mavs in seven games in 2021. Will the third time be the charm for the Mavs? I can’t wait to find out! Game 1 is Sunday, April 21 at 3:30 p.m. ET on ABC in LA.
Photo above: Luka hits the game-winning shot against the Clippers in Game 4 during the 2020 NBA Playoffs in the Orlando Bubble
NBA: Can the Cleveland Cavaliers Avenge the 2009 Eastern Conference Finals Loss to the Orlando Magic?
Back in 2009, it looked like we were finally going to get the NBA Finals we so desperately wanted to see: LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers. However, All-Star Center Dwight Howard and the Orlando Magic decided to throw a monkey wrench in those plans, as Orlando defeated Cleveland in six games in the Eastern Conference Finals (ECF) despite James’ amazing game winning shot in Game 2. Los Angeles would go on to defeat Orlando in five games in the ‘09 NBA Finals; it was the Lakers’ first of two straight titles.
I understand that it’s been 15 years since the Magic eliminated the Cavaliers in the ‘09 ECF, but I just can’t seem to shake off those memories because it’s one of those “what could’ve been” type of situations. Both teams are very different from when they played each other back then, but this Round 1 series between the Magic and the Cavaliers, which tips off Saturday, April 20 at 1 p.m. ET in Cleveland on ESPN, feels personal. If the Cavs are able to knock off the Magic, for me, it would be a measure of revenge for the ‘09 Eastern Conference Finals.
MLB: Braves Sweep Astros in a Rematch of the 2021 World Series, Face Defending Champion Rangers Next
Back in 2021, the Atlanta Braves defeated the Houston Astros in six games to win their first World Series since 1995. The Braves won Game 6 at Minute Maid Park in Houston, TX, by a score of 7-0. From Monday April 15 to Wednesday April 17, 2024, the Braves were back in Houston for a rematch with the Astros. This was Atlanta’s first time in Minute Maid since the ‘21 World Series. As it was a World Series rematch, I thought all three games of the series would come down to the last strike and keep you on the edge of your seat. I also thought that since it was a three-game series, they’d split the first two games and Game 3 on April 17 would be the tiebreaker. That’s not what happened though, as the Braves got out their brooms 🧹 and swept the Astros 6-1 (April 15), 6-2 (April 16), and 5-4 in 10 innings (April 17).
Following a 2021 World Series rematch in Houston, the Braves will return home to Atlanta to take on the defending champion Texas Rangers for a three-game series from April 19 to April 21. That’s quite a tough two-series stretch for the Braves.
NHL: Nikita Kucherov Reaches 100 Assists
On Wednesday, April 17, the Toronto Maple Leafs took on the Tampa Bay Lightning at Amalie Arena in Tampa, FL. Heading into the game, Lightning right winger Nikita Kucherov was one assist away from reaching 100. If he could do it, he would become the fifth player in NHL history to get 100 assists in a season. With 2:55 left in the second period, Kucherov gave the puck to center Brayden Point, who put the puck in the back of the net. Not only did that goal give the Lightning a 4-1 lead, it also gave Kucherov his 100th assist. Kucherov joins Connor McDavid (who reached 100 assists on Monday), along with Hockey Hall of Famers Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, and Bobby Orr to reach 100 assists. Thanks to Kucherov and McDavid, the NHL ended up with two players breaking the 100-assist mark in the same season after going 32 seasons without one.
Click on the video below to watch Kucherov reach 100 assists
NHL: The Coyotes Win Their Final Game in Arizona
All signs are pointing towards the Arizona Coyotes relocating to Salt Lake City (SLC), UT, so Wednesday night’s game against the Edmonton Oilers at Mullet Arena in Tempe, AZ, was highly emotional for Coyotes fans. Before the team moves to SLC, the Yotes went out with a 5-2 victory against the Oilers.
The attendance for Wednesday’s game was 4,600 people
MLB: The Red Sox Make “Quick” Work of the Guardians and Houck Throws a “Maddux”
In the third game of a four-game series at Fenway Park in Boston, MA, the Boston Red Sox made “quick” work of the Cleveland Guardians en route to a 2-0 win. Red Sox starting pitcher Tanner Houck threw a complete game shutout, going the full nine innings and pitched the first "Maddux" (a shutout on fewer than 100 pitches) by a Red Sox hurler in a decade. Houck completed the masterpiece in an hour and 49 minutes, the fastest nine-inning MLB game in 14 years.
What are the other fastest nine-inning MLB games since 2000? Click Here to find out!
MLB: Cedric Mullins Hits His First Career Walk-Off Home Run!
The Baltimore Orioles were looking to finish off a three-game sweep of the Minnesota Twins at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on Wednesday, April 17. Tied 2-2 in the bottom of the ninth inning, Orioles center fielder Cedric Mullins stepped to the plate having never hit a walk-off home run. hat all changed on a 1-2 count, as Mullins sent a pitch from Twins right-hander Griffin Jax deep into the Baltimore afternoon to give the O’s a 4-2 win, and Baltimore completed the three-game sweep of Minnesota.
Mullins’ walk off blast marked the third home run of the day for the O’s, who got a leadoff homer from Gunnar Henderson and a game-tying solo shot in the seventh by Anthony Santander. It was the fifth straight game in which the Orioles have hit three-plus homers, tied for the second-longest streak in MLB since 1900 behind the ‘87 Orioles, who did it in six straight games from May 8-13 that year. The club previously had a five-game streak from Aug. 6-10, 1996.
Click on the video below to watch the full 9th inning that was capped off by Mullins’ walk off home run
Golf: Scottie Scheffler wins the 2024 Masters
Congratulations to Scottie Scheffler, who won the 2024 Masters Tournament at the Augusta National Golf Club, a private course in the city of Augusta, Ga.. For Schefller, it’s his second Masters victory in three years. Scheeffler joined the select group of 17 golfers who have earned the title twice in their careers. With Sunday's victory, Scheffler is the fourth-youngest golfer to win multiple green jackets, behind Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods, and Seve Ballesteros.
Josh’s Random Thoughts: Madison Square Garden Will be Very Busy in April and May
The New York Knicks (NBA) and the New York Rangers (NHL) both play at Madison Square Garden (MSG) in downtown New York City, NY. Both teams are top seeds in their respective playoffs, so they’ll each start their respective Round 1 series at MSG, meaning the crew at MSG will have to quickly change between a basketball court for the Knicks and an ice rink for the Rangers. Game 1 between the Philadelphia 76ers and the Knicks is on Saturday, April 20 while Game 1 between the Washington Capitals and the Rangers is on Sunday, April 21.
