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This afternoon LeBron James posted a video of himself kneeling on a rubber sphere while waggling a large rubbery wand, that, per our own Tim Burke’s experiences, is liable to knock you right on your ass should you stop waggling it at the right rate. Every fiber of James’s action-figure torso strains to stabilize his…Read more...

Red Sox star Mookie Betts uses a weird bat that’s gotten a lot of attention over the last few seasons. Instead of the normal knob that is standard on wooden bats, the bottom of Betts’s looks more like an axe handle; logic is that the more streamlined handle leads to fewer blisters on the palm.Read more...

Video streaming platform Twitch announced a two-year collaboration with Blizzard Entertainment today, where the service will receive exclusive third-party streaming rights to tournaments like the Heroes of the Storm Global Championship and Overwatch APEX League.

Ryan O’Callaghan played 51 games for the Chiefs and Patriots over the course of his five-year NFL career, which ended in 2011. In an interview with Outsports this morning, he came out as gay, discussed how hard it was to transition out of a playing career, and opened up about how he planned to commit suicide after…Read more...

With Adidas taking over the contract for NHL uniforms from Reebok, that means redesigns for everyone. Any major redesigns? Officially, we’ll all have to wait until tonight to find out. The jersey unveiling party is taking place in Las Vegas starting at 8 p.m. Eastern, with the reveal of the Vegas Golden Knights’…Read more...

Following last week’s failed raccoon coup, it seems that the squirrels may have gotten some nutty ideas, too. Today’s edition of Squirrel Watch brings a confusing mix of romantic, vicious, and inscrutable deeds.Read more...

The Golden State Warriors have been champions for one week, and the rest of the NBA is already scrambling to get in position to beat them next year. The Cavs have spent the past few days on a nonsensical roller coaster, flirting with soon-to-be ex-Pacer Paul George then self-immolating and stunting any progress they’d…Read more...

On Monday, with a distinct lack of ceremony, the Arizona Coyotes announced that they would not offer a new contract to Shane Doan, abruptly dismissing the longest-serving active captain in the NHL. Doan had been with the franchise his entire 21-season career, dating all the way back to when the Coyotes were the…Read more...

Time for your weekly edition of the Deadspin Funbag. Got something on your mind? Email the Funbag. Today, we’re talking first bites, kiddie sports, The Ringer, and more.

On yesterday’s show, Mike Francesa passed along the Supreme Court’s ruling on whether a slur could be registered as a trademark—a case that would have affected the Washington Redskins’ trademark—with the signature delicate approach only he could provide.Read more...

Tony DiCicco, the USWNT’s winningest manager, died last night according to a statement released by his son. DiCicco, who coached the team from 1994 to 1999, is the only manager of the U.S. to have won both a World Cup and Olympic gold. Here’s his son Anthony’s statement:Read more...

Phil Savage may have been a lousy NFL general manager—the former Browns GM traded up for Brady Quinn and replied to a fan email with “Go root for Buffalo-f#@* you,”—but he does have some pretty good Lane Kiffin goss.Read more...

Phil Jackson had millions of sad, tri-state area sphincters clenching after an April presser when he said there was no player on the Knicks who was safe from the trading block. They stayed clenched when Kristaps Porzingis skipped his exit meetings, apparently frustrated after wading through this sewer of a franchise…Read more...

Everything about politics and the world in general is pretty bad right now. Walk up to me and say the word “politics” and I’ll say to you, “No sir! No ma’am! I’d rather not!”

The first thing I did when I got to Vegas was put a bet on Sergey Kovalev. It seemed like the right thing to do at the time. You might say, “How could you bet against Andre Ward? One of the most polished pound-for-pound fighters in the world? An Olympic gold medalist? A world champion at two different weight classes?…Read more...

What do the three best teams in the National League all have in common? They all play in the NL West. As of Tuesday, the Diamondbacks have won seven games in a row, the Rockies have won five in a row, and the Dodgers have won four in a row. In their last 10 games, these teams are 9-1, 7-3, and 9-1, respectively.Read more...

According to Spanish prosecutors, Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho owes the state €3.3 million in taxes from his time coaching Real Madrid in 2011 and 2012, as El Mundo reported.Read more...

Enzo and Cass were mostly a shtick, but that shtick was pretty good.

After the pre-draft trade between the Celtics and Sixers was made official yesterday, Celtics GM Danny Ainge held a conference call with reporters to explain his reasoning.

Paleofuture Huge Collection of Nazi Artifacts Discovered Inside Secret Room in Argentina | Jalopnik Tesla Driver In Fatal Florida Crash Got Numerous Warnings To Take Control Back From Autopilot | Kotaku New Nintendo Switch Update Lets You Find Lost Controllers | Lifehacker When Letting Your Dog Greet Another Dog Is a…Read more...

In the abstract, David Brooks’s choice to begin today’s Times column about the assorted Trump/Russia investigations with the following isn’t necessarily a bad one.Read more...

Cody Bellinger, called up when he was only because of injuries on the Dodgers’ big-league roster, gave the rest of the league a three-week head start. He’s caught up. With his 20th and 21st home runs in last night’s 10-6 win over the Mets, Bellinger now leads the NL in home runs, and is just two behind the Yankees’…Read more...

If you’ve never deep-cleaned a carpet, get ready for an eye-opening experience when you see just how much crap a person can track into a home.

Since MLB created new rules a few years ago to protect catchers and limit unnecessary hard contact in plays at the plate, we’ve seen fewer and fewer collisions. But we got one tonight, courtesy of Anthony Rizzo and Austin Hedges, and San Diego is steamed about the way it played out.Read more...

Clayton Kershaw began the night against the Mets looking more or less like Clayton Kershaw, which is to say that he began the night looking as if he’d be very hard to hit. But that soon unraveled—seemingly slowly, at first, and then very quickly—and suddenly it was the seventh inning and baseball’s best pitcher was…Read more...

SNY analyst Keith Hernandez was caught in an unfortunate spot tonight when the broadcast came back from commercial early and caught him unawares—right as he was discussing how Washington Nationals starter Tanner Roark has been “getting his tits lit” lately.Read more...

The NFL has “taken advantage” of players by failing to be transparent about the risks of brain injury, Hall of Famer Jerome Bettis said today.Read more...

Tonight’s Carolina League Home Run Derby was, as always, the year’s premier display of lower minor league power hitting on the East Coast. Glorious! But this year’s event brought us more than dingers. This year brought us Sicnarf Loopstok.Read more...

With the team at the center of trade rumors—not to mention three days before the draft—the Cavaliers have decided to part ways with general manager David Griffin.Read more...

A little more than two weeks ago, Kenley Jansen set the record for most strikeouts to begin a season before allowing one walk. The record-breaking strikeout was No. 36, and he hasn’t slowed down since—getting No. 50 to go down swinging last night.Read more...

Thank you for your continued support of Deadspin. Later.Read more...

io9 Yes, The Dark Tower Movie Is a Sequel to the Books | Jalopnik Here’s Why The Honda Civic Type R Has Three Exhaust Pipes | Vitals How to Start Working Out in the Mornings | Kotaku Metroid: Samus Returns Feels Great To Play |Read more...

The Packers and Bears have played 194 times. Chicago and Green Bay are less than four hours apart, and fans from either team frequently attend Bears-Packers game at the opposing team’s field. This is fine. This is how sports work. But one thing the Bears won’t stand for is letting a fan in Packers gear stand on…Read more...

Deuce Gruden (born Jon Gruden II) is an assistant strength and conditioning coach with his uncle Jay’s NFL team, and he’s also a tiny, powerful weightlifting genius. The 23-year-old is 5-foot-5 and he told TMZ earlier this afternoon that he can squat 622 pounds, which seems like a lot.

Chile’s national football team, reigning South American champions, played Cameroon in the Confederations Cup yesterday, and after scoring what they thought was their first goal (it was later called back for offside) celebrated with a homage to their current Mario Kart obsession.

The Process is a success.

The Yankees are very good, and are on track to get even better given the amount of developing young talent currently stocking the major-league roster and farm system. One of these young talents is 20-year-old shortstop Gleyber Torres, who will now undergo season-ending Tommy John surgery.

Stefan Heck, last seen around these parts ruining mock fantasy drafts, is a cohost of Real Good Show, a podcast about Canadian sports. For a live show this weekend, he created the above highlight reel—five minutes of guys getting hit in the nuts, all set to Peter Gabriel’s classic. It’s a beautiful thing.Read more...

Gianluigi Donnarumma, aside from having an incredible name, is also the most promising young goalkeeper in the world. The prodigy they call “Gigio” is only 18 years old, and yet he’s already played two seasons as AC Milan’s starting keeper. On the international level, Donnarumma is the clear successor to all-time…Read more...

Just over 30,000 people filled Nippert Stadium last week to watch FC Cincinnati upset the Columbus Crew 1-0. It was a huge victory for the nascent USL squad as they eye an expansion bid to join Columbus in MLS. But a move to America’s top tier comes at a cost: A new stadium.

USC quarterback Sam Darnold is enjoying the California heat before his second season at the helm, and it appears that he’s working on his form. Sort of.

Levi’s is a classic American denim brand, and they make your favorite pair of men’s jeans (no surprise there). Right now, they’re giving you an extra 25% off their entire sale section, from denim to outerwear and beyond, with the code 25EXTRA. With prices like these, a Canadian tuxedo may even start to look appealing.Read more...

While I’m still unenthused about the idea of the new Vegas Golden Knights actually playing their games, I’ve been giddy as hell about the drama surrounding the expansion draft. Nothing is more entertaining than watching a highly paid GM make a dumb move, and with 30 teams involved in a fairly complex protocol for…Read more...

This piece originally appeared in the December 1981 issue of Inside Sports. It also appeared in The Breaks Of The Game, and it reprinted here with permission.

Last week we brought you the story of Cinnaminson (N.J.) mayor Anthony Minniti, who got Crying Jordan’d on a town Facebook page and went absolutely bonkers over it. Minniti told the Philadelphia Inquirer on Thursday that “I’m not angry at all now,” but his Facebook rants suggest he has yet to “actually find it funny.”

For most of the soccer world, this summer’s Confederations Cup is the first time fans will have seen the sport’s much ballyhooed instant replay system live and in action. And as anyone familiar with replay’s fundamental epistemological shortcomings could’ve predicted, the whole process blows.Read more...

Oklahoma quarterback and 2016 Heisman finalist Baker Mayfield pleaded guilty Monday morning to charges of public intoxication, disorderly conduct, and fleeing, according to ESPN. Prosecutors dropped his resisting arrest charge, the most serious one, after Mayfield agreed to a plea deal last week.Read more...

Nick Kyrgios’s injury woes continued today in his first-round match at the Queen’s Club Championships, as the tour transitions to a new surface. During his first match on grass—which is well-suited to his ace-hungry game—he slipped and fell, tweaking his knee at an ugly angle. After a medical timeout to treat the…Read more...

Canadian heavyweight fighter Tim Hague was knocked out in the second round of his boxing match with Adam Braidwood this weekend. It was just the fourth professional boxing bout for the MMA veteran, and he suffered a brain hemorrhage during the fight. His family announced yesterday that he died as a result of his…Read more...