We’re back, good morning Chicago.
I honestly didn’t realize how long it’s been, and I apologize. Going to get in a newsletter-writing groove here.
To get the juices flowing, let’s start with what’s on everyone’s mind, even outside of Chicago: the epidemic (of LeBron James ruining shit).
Space Jam: A New Legacy is out, and the reviews are so putrid that I’ve actually been reading movie reviews for the first time in my life. I’m literally drooling while reading some dude from England write in The Guardian about how “soulless” the remake is, nodding my head at each scathing sentence.
The LeBron Stans have rebutted with “It’s a kids movie!” Dude, good kids movies are amazing. What is that supposed to prove? The Incredibles movie can get thrown on in my apartment at any time and I’ll watch it full through. Frozen’s soundtrack? Incredible. I love Moana.
And by the way, I watched the original Space Jam not long ago on a Sunday in effort to take a nap and ended up watching the whole thing. The last time this guy stayed up for an entire movie on a Sunday was Crazy, Stupid, Love. That’s really elite company.
And by the way, I haven’t watched the movie. Nor will I ever watch it. I’ve heard from countless people that it’s terrible, but I won’t let LeBron get the satisfaction of seeing that I watched it on his ticker, just like I’ll never step into Blaze Pizza as long as he’s an owner.
I have about as much appetite for that shitty, fake pizza joint as I do for news articles about the Delta variant. No thanks. And this is coming from a guy who actually owns a Sarpinos Pizza shirt. (If you’re 16-17 beers deep and dunk it in the marinara sauce at 3 a.m., it’s quite good.)
LeBron has been ruining things I like for a long time now. It started with Chicago’s own, Dwyane Wade, one of my favorite athletes until he joined forces with LeBron and promptly became one of the most annoying basketball players on the planet.
Poor Mario Chalmers was one of my least favorite people there for a couple of years, solely because he started alongside LeBron in Miami.
Others include:
— The song “My Moment,” which was tough. Great song but a mention of LeBron balling by Meek Mill killed it for me. The same goes for J.Cole’s “Middle Child,” unfortunately.
— China’s dictatorship. Never was a fan of dictatorships, admittedly, but LeBron’s support of them has taken it to a new level. Not that I wasn’t against concentration camps and overbearing governments in the first place. But this really put me over the edge when LeBron essentially told Daryl Morey to shut up and general manage because he said “Free Hong Kong.”
—Anthony Davis
—Chris “the Birdman” Anderson
—The song “Gotta Have It” was extremely close (‘ain’t that just like Bron James, and that just like D-Wade’), but is, in the end, too good to hate. Plus, an ode to Michael Jordan and Derrick Rose elsewhere on “Watch the Throne” mitigated the harm of that line.
—Bill Hader and Amy Schumer. Heard Hader is funny, haven’t heard the same about Schumer, but LeBron was in that movie Trainwreck, which I also haven’t seen because I refuse to. Worse yet, they apparently wrote him in pretty well, which sucks.
—LeBron James Jr. LeBron said he didn’t want “Bronny” to have to live in his shadow, despite naming him after himself and also running around the sidelines at his games like the 7 year old at the youth basketball tournaments that the entire town knows as a horror. Sorry Bronny, not a fan of you or Bleacher Report.
—People that are losing their hair but won’t shave their heads (Definitely a tough one here that could come back to bite someone, not me of course, but maybe someone).
—Michael B. Jordan, who has been hanging out with LeBron too much for my liking, and thus I’ve told at least four people in the last week that it’s pretty creepy that he’s dating Steve Harvey’s daughter because she’s a decade younger than him…
Anyways, there’s a laundry list of things I dislike thanks to LeBron. And now — sigh — Adele is on the chopping block.
Adele and her lovely vocal cords were pictured next to LeBron’s agent, Rich Paul, at the Finals on Saturday. Paul is somehow a part of LeBron’s inner circle and also the agent of some of the best players in the league, meaning he can do things like manipulate the trade market for Anthony Davis so he is moved to the Lakers as opposed to anywhere else.
Apparently Adele and Paul are dating, which is extremely disappointing. But just as we as a society began phasing out some (really good) R. Kelly songs after the past few years, I, alas, must phase out Adele’s beautiful tracks for the time being, until they break up and she writes another wonderful album about how Rich Paul is a bad lover and also exposes him for being a corrupt agent.
The only time I actually cheered for LeBron was when he was on Team USA in the Olympics. I detailed last newsletter how insanely into international basketball I am, and how I essentially become an America-First xenophobe when those Red, White, and Blue unis are being donned by the game’s best.
That being said, we’re in some trouble. After I wrote that, Team USA promptly lost to both Nigeria and Australia in exhibition games. They rebounded slightly with wins over Argentina and Spain, but not before losing Bradley Beal to COVID-19 and Kevin Love to, actually, I don’t know.
I'm going to blame this, first of all, on the fact that all of Team USA is not together yet. They’re still missing Jrue Holiday, Devin Booker and Khris Middleton, who are still playing in the finals. Also, I’m not sure Las Vegas is the best place to get a basketball team ready?
Jalen Rose got a lot of flack recently for saying that Love was only picked because Team USA wanted a white guy. I’m not sure he was wrong, because Kevin Love sucks. I have no idea why he was on the team. I think he realized the same.
Now back to Chicago Sports, which this newsletter is purportedly about.
Having said that, Zach LaVine was playing pretty awesome. He shot really well Sunday against Spain and looked like one of the better players on the team. He capitalized off of a few great passes from KD and Damian Lillard as well.
And then, just as the Bulls season, he went from dominating to COVID protocols.
Why he would be in protocols, I have no idea. You’ll remember that he missed about a month in March because he actually had COVID-19. Because of that, I assume he won’t miss time, but he’ll already be late to Tokyo.
I really think that LaVine having this showcase will prove to people that he’s every bit the player that Devin Booker is and that good players — and veterans looking for a new spot — will be more attracted to the Bulls as a landing spot over the next few years.
The Bulls, really though no fault of their own, have kind of shoehorned themselves in here. They saw an All-Star asset available in Nikola Vucevic and gave up significant assets to get him. That means they’re unable to get the next disgruntled star, whether it’s Dame Lillard or anyone else unhappy with their current situation.
But that’s the NBA. You can’t necessarily predict these things, and at the very least, the Bulls are committed to getting better by any means necessary. They’re left with just one eligible 1st rounder to trade in the next four years, but that’s the risk you take.
Even so, it seems as if the Bulls will be competing against other teams, and not the Pelicans, to win the services of Lonzo Ball during free agency. The Pels are reportedly uninterested in giving Lonzo Ball a big deal, which means the Bulls will likely be giving him an offer sheet and trying to clear room to fit him into their plans.
It’s not as exciting as a Dame Lillard, or even a Ben Simmons — depending on who you are — but putting a pass-first defender next to LaVine with offensive capabilities is exactly what the Bulls need. As always, it’s in AK-47 we trust, and I think Arturas will find a way to significantly improve the Bulls this offseason. I am bullish on the Bulls ability to be a top-6 seed in the East next year, and if nothing else, we’ll be back in the playoffs and back on the map. That alone bodes well for the future after that.
The summer started, I blinked my eyes, and now the Bears are a week away from training camp.
A few months ago, I think most of us were dreading the next Bears season. Justin Fields, who may not even play for the Bears for the foreseeable future, has changed all of that. What a gift that is.
But again, he may not even be playing. And here’s the thing about that: Nagy should be on thin ice, but who knows if he is. But if the Bears struggle out of the gate with Andy Dalton and it’s very clear to the players — many of which are veterans with weighty voices at this point — that Fields is the better option, Nagy’s hand will be forced.
Nagy is a process-driven guy, meaning he talks about random processes to sound like a head coach when those idiotic ideals don’t even need to be in place. The NFL has changed, and it should always be about the best player being out there.
If Fields can’t get over early adversity in the NFL, he was never going to succeed anyway. Plus, he’s not a one-year starter out of North Carolina. The dude went to two college football playoffs and played against Clemson and Alabama. If there’s ever been a QB ready immediately for the NFL, he’s it.
I am already anticipating this being a frustrating storyline out of the gate. And yet I still maintain that while Fields should start if he’s the best player available, we should not expect the world out of him from the outset. Naturally, expectations have become unrealistic for him already, and it’s important he gets the same shots that any other young quarterback does.
He’ll falter and take his bumps, and just because our shitty organization hasn’t had a good QB for decades doesn’t mean that we have to be harsher on Fields.
I actually had a dream on Sunday night that Nick Foles was named the starter, which again probably says a lot more about me than anyone else. But it does highlight the fact that the Bears, who no one had expectations for this year, are now under the microscope in a year where their win total is 7.5 in Vegas.
A rookie quarterback generally buys the head coach and GM some time, but in some ways, this has put even more pressure on the decision makers.
Plus, the Bears haven’t really gotten better elsewhere. They’re going to be relying on young linemen who I’m not sure are even ready for the NFL, despite their potential.
They’re also in dire need of some recent draft picks improving. Robert Quinn’s absence — despite playing — last year means that the Bears are going to need something significant out of a pass rusher other than Khalil Mack. Could that be Trevis Gipson, who we saw very little out of last year?
Eddie Goldman has also been an under-the-radar bizarre story. He opted out of last season and then posted unexcused absences during OTAs. He’s reportedly back in Chicago working out now, but for being another guy the Bears threw considerable money at recently, the whole situation is concerning.
After this saga, I’m just not sure his head is in the right place to be considered a shoe-in for the Bears defense. With Akiem Hicks injury problems the last few years, that’s a major problem.
The offensive and defensive lines, outside of the quarterback, are where good teams are essentially made. Before we get excited about the Bears season, we ought to feel better about the trenches on both sides of the ball. I’m not sure I have much confidence in either side right now.
Elsewhere, if Fields does play, Cole Kmet’s development will be crucial. There’s nothing a young quarterback needs more than a reliable tight end target (outside of an offensive line). With Trubisky and Foles leading the offense last year, it was tough to project Kmet’s future. I’m still bullish on his development, and think him and Fields can really have a mutually beneficial relationship.
Either way, the fact that we’re less than a month away from college football and preseason NFL football is enough to wash away any other worries I have about the Bears.
We’re a week away from Bears players reporting.
By the week’s end, the above banner may be moot.
The Ricketts family has won. The Cubs are dreadful enough to watch at this point that almost all Cubs fans are on board with a firesale, which would mean offloading both current and future salaries.
If you’ve noticed, the Cubs have enough trade pieces to fill out the rosters of almost every team in need of a player at the deadline, which in theory probably means they should have been competing themselves in a more meaningful way in the first place?
Kris Bryant, an All-Star again, gave an ode to Chicago mid-game while he was mic’d up last week, which was both frustrating and heartbreaking to hear.
Sort of like Jimmy Butler being traded from the Bulls, the ultimate goal in any of these trades is to get another player like Bryant, which makes trading him in the first place confusing, unless the front office knows something about his contract demands or future wishes that we don’t.
We’re also subject again to god awful fake trades on every baseball site in America, which treat Bryant as if he’s a plug-and-play role guy or something. I understand that Bryant would be a half-year rental in most scenarios, but I don’t think people nationally respect him for how good he is.
The ideal scenario, of course, would be a Chapman-Yankees scenario where the Cubs trade him and then sign him after the season. But at this point, I doubt that’s happening, and I wonder if any team he gets traded to will receive some sort of under-the-table promise that he’ll sign long term. That, at least, would probably yield the Cubs a greater return.
Bryant is by far the Cubs best position-player trade piece, with Craig Kimbrel rivaling him for value overall. I still think Bryant is far more valuable based on all of things he can do well on a day-to-day basis.
But because the Cubs have become such a shitshow, I’ve been forced to live with the fact that a few of the Cubs players that have been in my life for a while now may no longer be.
—Anthony Rizzo is an all-time Cub. He’s also, in my mind, clearly on the decline. He’s still plenty valuable, and that’s why he’s a good trade piece, but he’s become merely a very good player and not a great one on the other side of 30. From 2014-2019, he posted an OPS over .900. The last two years, he’s been around a .770-OPS guy, which puts him about 9% over league average. For context, in the four five years prior, he was about 40% above league average.
—Javier Baez being traded would absolutely devastate me. He’s probably my favorite Cub to watch in person of all time. But he’s reportedly looking for $200 million+ as a free agent, which is just completely unreasonable. For one, he’s having his worst fielding season ever. He’s closing in on 20 errors this season, which doesn’t mean he’s not a great fielder overall, but is disappointing nonetheless. His OBP is a brutal .288, which shows he just hasn’t improved, and may be unwilling to improve, in certain areas. That’s fine, because he’s still a wonderfully unique player. But that won’t get you a $200 million contract. His power is still potent enough to put him over league average from an OPS perspective, but just by mere percentage points.
I still hope a deal gets done with Javy. But the Cubs need to stop sitting on their hands. Either extend the players you want long-term or trade them now for the best possible return you can get. There’s plenty of teams that could use the services of Rizzo and Baez.
With the relief arms they have — especially with Kimbrel and his team option next year — the Cubs should be able to get a lot for the guys they have at the deadline. Their next focus should be immediately improving the team in the offseason. They should never be in rebuilding mode, and at least Hoyer has said as much.
The Cubs drafted a lefty out of Kansas State, Jordan Wicks, in the first round of the MLB Draft. From what I can tell, he’s a high floor guy. He allegedly has the best change up in the draft and his fastball is fast enough that he’d be the hardest thrower on the Cubs staff right now outside of Alzolay, despite being low-90s.
I imagine he’ll be up in the big leagues sooner rather than later, and the Cubs seem pretty hellbent on rebuilding their farm system through pitching based on their recent activity.
What’s most comical about the entire Cubs season is that, just before Joc Pederson was traded, Hoyer said the Cubs were going to be buyers before their losing streak. That’s easy to say now, and I’m not buying it.
Also, if you are mad the Cubs traded Pederson, I don’t know what planet you’re on. He’s on a one-year deal and the Cubs got a semi-highly ranked prospect from the Braves out of him.
Still, I wouldn’t bank on Bryce Ball — the return in the trade — being the Rizzo replacement yet.
He was the Braves 12th-best prospect and will sit even lower in the Cubs ranks, according to MLB pipeline. A decent return for Pederson, but certainly not a guarantee for the future.
The White Sox played two games yesterday, winning the one that Reynaldo Lopez started and losing the one that Lance Lynn did. And such is baseball.
The Sox season is playing out like a concert tour from a beloved band that disbanded for a decade and then reunited. Every other night something amazing happens, often from someone unexpected.
And each time it does, last night being the Gavin Sheets walk off home run, it ends with an endearing hug with Tony La Russa, who looks like an older guy that got convinced to come out to the bar. The youngin’s are too drunk and getting emotional, looking for intoxicated hugs from the older fellow in the corner, and he’s happy to oblige, even laughing at the kids that remind him of himself when he was younger, but still a bit wary at how drunk they are.
In the actual scenario, he’d probably be the drunk one, but I digress.
That may seem like an absurd description, but if I’m going to pat myself on the back here, I’ll say that that description made complete sense.
It’ll be interesting to see what the Sox do at the deadline now that they’re very clearly a World Series contender, even before getting two of their best players back.
The only thing I’ll comment on that is that if you’re hanging onto Jake Burger — an inspiring story, for sure — you should remember that you’re 8.5 games up in the division, you don’t need to clutch your pearls over a guy who has torn his achilles twice.
Again, I’m so happy for Burger and that he’s made it to the big leagues after all that’s happened. But any person in professional sports, in general, who has torn their achilles twice is expendable.
The Sox inked Lance Lynn to a two-year extension, which includes a team option in a third year. It’s worth $38 million, but for a guy that has been consistently incredible this year and clearly wants to be on the South Side, it seems like a no-brainer. Keeping it at that length, too, is a win for the Sox. Lynn said there was no point going into free agency if he knew where he wanted to be — in Chicago — which showed he went the Abreu route in negotiations, but still got paid handsomely.
Both Carlos Rodon — who may have had his best overall start the other day against the Astros — and Lynn are likely to be Cy Young finalists, and boy do I hope they beat out Gerritt Cole in the end.
Since the sticky stuff crackdown, Lucas Giolito got in a verbal altercation with Josh Donaldson where he somehow came out looking worse than Donaldson, and Dylan Cease has had the 5th largest drop in spin rate in the entire majors.
Both are hovering over a 4 ERA, and it seems pretty likely at this point that Cease will be phased out in the playoffs and that he may eventually lose his spot to Kopech in the rotation, even if someone like Dallas Keuchel ends up off the roster after his contract expires.
Still, as he has before, I assume Giolito will figure things out. Having him as a third or fourth option is an embarrassment of riches, even though in 2018 he was THE WORST PITCHER IN BASEBALL, as that once commercial has made clear.
Luis Robert is cleared for a rehab assignment, and Eloy Jimenez is already hitting bombs and making fielding mistakes in the minors. All is well with the world, and it seems like both of them will be back in the lineup with considerable time left in the season.
A lot has been going on in the Blackhawks world this offseason.
Jonathan Toews returned from a still-confusing hiatus in which he explained a scary issue where his body was not responding to stress correctly. His return was undoubtedly welcomed by the Blackhawks front office as they shied away from the media regarding this sexual abuse case that has resurfaced from 2010.
The perpetrator coach went on to sexually abuse others at different stops, able to do so based on the inaction of Blackhawks executives when a skills coach reported the issue to them back when they happened.
Paul Vincent — the skills Coach — told WBEZ that he told team executives, including team president John McDonough and general manager Stan Bowman, to report the allegations to Chicago police. That request was allegedly rejected.
The lawsuit was filed by an unnamed former player, and it seems as if this coach was taking advantage of the power he had to force players to watch him masturbate, among other things, with the threat of them being professionally damaged if they told or did not participate.
It makes John McDonough’s exit from the team more sensical, and also furthers Bowman’s place as the Teflon Don of the Blackhawks.
The entire story is very, very troubling and it’s unclear what other players knew, especially because some of the more popular players were probably not subject to the abuse. If they did know, though, some of the onus falls on them as well.
The Blackhawks have not handled the situation well since it has resurfaced, either. They’ve avoided questions from the media about the incident even as they’ve made personnel moves.
Awkward transition, but that obviously includes the trade of Blackhawks legend Duncan Keith, who was moved to the Oilers.
The trade is clearly a good one for the Hawks. It clears cap space, and they are not paying any of Keith’s remaining contract. He leaves on good terms with the organization and as the all-time leader for the franchise in games played among defensemen.
In return, the Hawks get a chance to become more youthful on the defensive end as they try to expedite a return to the playoffs before the last of their championship players are no longer valuable.
Thanks a lot for reading the newsletter today, as always. Do tell others to subscribe today, and drop a comment if you are so inclined. Appreciate you all and STILL GOTTA COME THROUGH CHICAGO! We’ll be back soon.