Digital Sports Desk

Online Destination for the Best in Boston Sports

Archives for November 2021

Big East Saturday Sweep

by

JAMAICA ESTATES – (Staff Report from Official News Release) – After winning all four games on Saturday, BIG EAST teams own a collective 38-4 record, including a 4-1 mark against teams ranked in the Associated Press poll.

Embed from Getty Images

On paper, Villanova had the toughest assignment, taking on No. 17 Tennessee in the Hall of Fame Classic. The Wildcats held the Volunteers scoreless in the first six minutes and led 35-15 by halftime. Villanova won 71-53 with Jermaine Samuels, Collin Gillespie and Brandon Slater all finishing with 14 points. Samuels added a game-high 11 rebounds.

After a bit of a slow start, UConn got rolling against Binghamton and pulled away to win 87-63. Tyrese Martin led four Huskies in double figures and posted a double-double with 15 points and 11 rebounds. UConn (4-0) outshot Binghamton from the floor 49.3 percent to 37.5 percent.

St. John’s bounced back from Wednesday’s two-point loss at Indiana to defeat Fairleigh Dickinson 87-74 at Carnesecca Arena. Julian Champagnie and Posh Alexander each scored 17 points. Champagnie had 10 rebounds. The Johnnies (3-1) led by as many as 22 points.

DePaul was trailing Western Illinois by seven points with 14 minutes to play before reeling off a 13-0 run en route to an 84-80 victory. Javon Freeman-Liberty led the charge, scoring 27 of his career-high 33 points in the second half. The Blue Demons are 4-0 for only the fourth time since 1990.

Sunday’s four-game slate has three teams continuing in tournament play and one single game matchup. The day begins with Xavier hosting unbeaten Norfolk State (5-0) at noon ET on FS1 in the final game of a four-game homestand. The Musketeers (3-0) are coming off their 71-65 win over No. 19 Ohio State. Norfolk State won 90-84 at Bowling Green on Friday.

Villanova takes on its second ranked opponent in as many days when it battles No. 6 Purdue on ABC at 1 p.m. in the Hall of Fame Classic It will be the Wildcats’ third ranked opponent in five games.

In the second round of the Paradise Jam, Creighton (4-0) meets Colorado State on ESPN3 at 5:45 p.m. in a battle of 4-0 teams. The Bluejays have held all four opponents to less than 40 percent shooting from the field.

Marquette battles No. 22 St. Bonaventure (4-0) in the title game of the Charleston Classic on ESPN at 7:30 p.m. In the last three games, the Golden Eagles (5-0) have trailed by at least 12 points before recovering to win.

BIG EAST: Rolls Into Saturday Schedule

by

CHARLESTON – (Staff Report from Official News Release) – Marquette and Creighton posted victories on neutral floors, while Georgetown registered a home win on a three-game Friday in BIG EAST play.

Embed from Getty Images

Marquette came back from a 12-point halftime deficit to defeat West Virginia 82-71 and advance to the championship game of the Charleston Classic. The Golden Eagles (5-0) made 8-of-13 from beyond the arc in the second half. Tyler Kolek and Kam Jones of Marquette each made four 3-pointers. Kolek finished with 18 points, eight assists and six rebounds. Jones had 12 points. Marquette plays St. Bonaventure Sunday night for the tournament championship.

In the Paradise Jam, Creighton started fast against Brown and posted a 78-57 victory. The Bluejays (4-0) started the game with a 26-10 run. Creighton center Ryan Kalkbrenner scored a career-high 19 points to pace five players in double figures. Creighton has started 4-0 for the sixth time in coach Greg McDermott’s 12 seasons. The Bluejays play Colorado State in the second round on Sunday.

Georgetown improved to 2-1 with an 83-65 win against Siena. Hoya grad student Kaiden Rice made 7-of-10 from 3-point range and finished with a team-high 23 points. Backcourt partner Donald Carey added 20 points and was 3-of-4 from beyond the arc. As a team, the Hoyas shot 12-of-18 from 3-point range.

The November 20 schedule calls for four games involving BIG EAST basketball teams. At noon ET, Connecticut hosts Binghamton on FS1. The 23rd ranked Huskies will be aiming to improve on their 3-0 mark. No. 5 Villanova battles No. 17 Tennessee in the Hall of Fame Classic at Mohegan Sun Arena. ESPNews will televise the contest at 1 p.m.

FS2 has a doubleheader that starts at 6 p.m. with St. John’s trying to bounce back from Wednesday’s close loss at Indiana. The Johnnies host Fairleigh Dickinson at 6 p.m. on FS2. At 8 p.m., DePaul is back in action quickly after Thursday’s win against Rutgers. The Blue Demons (3-0) host Western Illinois.

BIG EAST teams own a collective 34-4 record going into Saturday’s schedule.

Red Sox Promote Four to MLB Roster

by

BOSTON – The Boston Red Sox made the following roster moves on Friday, November 19, taking Boston’s 40-man MLB roster up to 37 players.

  • Infielder Jeter Downs and right-handed pitchers Kutter Crawford and Josh Winckowski were selected to the major league roster from Triple-A Pawtucket.
  • Right-handed pitcher Brayan Bello was selected to the major league roster from Double-A Portland.

Bello, 22, is ranked by Baseball America as the Red Sox’ No. 5 prospect. The right-hander split the 2021 season between High-A Greenville and Double-A Portland, making 21 starts and going 7-3 with a 3.87 ERA (41 ER/95.1 IP), 132 strikeouts, and 31 walks. Following the season, the Red Sox named Bello the organization’s Minor League Starting Pitcher of the Year. Acquired as an international free agent in July 2017, the Dominican Republic native has a 3.98 ERA (124 ER/280.1 IP) in 60 career minor league appearances (59 starts).

Crawford, 25, is ranked by MLB.com as the Red Sox’ No. 23 prospect. The right-hander made 20 appearances (19 starts) between Portland and Triple-A Worcester in 2021, going 6-6 with a 4.28 ERA (45 ER/94.2 IP) and 131 strikeouts. The Florida native also made his major league debut last season, starting against Cleveland on September 5. He has made four starts in the Dominican Winter League this year, allowing one earned run in 18.1 innings (0.49 ERA). Selected by Boston in the 16th round of the 2017 June Draft out of Florida Gulf Coast University, Crawford is 18-21 with a 3.63 ERA (132 ER/327.2 IP) and 390 strikeouts in 67 minor league games (66 starts).

Downs, 23, is ranked as one of the Red Sox’ top 10 prospects by both Baseball America (No. 6) and MLB.com (No. 5). The right-handed hitter spent the 2021 season with Worcester, making 78 starts at shortstop and 21 at second base while batting .190 (68-for-357) with 14 home runs and 18 stolen bases. In 16 games for Scottsdale in the Arizona Fall League, he went 13-for-57 (.228) with five home runs and an .880 OPS. Selected by the Cincinnati Reds in the first round of the 2017 June Draft (No. 32 overall), Downs was acquired by the Red Sox from the Los Angeles Dodgers on February 10, 2020.

Winckowski, 23, is ranked by Baseball America as the Red Sox’ No. 9 prospect. He split the 2021 season between Portland (21 games, 20 starts) and Worcester (two starts), going 9-4 with a 3.94 ERA (49 ER/112.0 IP), 101 strikeouts, and 33 walks. Following the season, the right-hander made six appearances for Scottsdale in the Arizona Fall League. Selected by the Blue Jays in the 15th round of the 2016 June Draft, Winckowski spent his first five seasons in Toronto’s minor league system before being traded to the Mets on January 27, 2021, then to the Red Sox on February 10.

BOSTON RED SOX 40-MAN ROSTER (37)

Pitchers (19): Matt Barnes, Eduard Bazardo, Brayan Bello, Ryan Brasier, Kutter Crawford, Austin Davis, Nathan Eovaldi, Jay Groome, Darwinzon Hernandez, Tanner Houck, Bryan Mata, Nick Pivetta, Chris Sale, Hirokazu Sawamura, Connor Seabold, Josh Taylor, Phillips Valdez, Garrett Whitlock, Josh Winckowski

Catchers (4): Ronaldo Hernández, Kevin Plawecki, Christian Vázquez, Connor Wong

Infielders (6): Jonathan Araúz, Christian Arroyo, Xander Bogaerts, Bobby Dalbec, Rafael Devers, Hudson Potts

Outfielders (6): Jarren Duran, Tim Locastro, J.D. Martinez, Hunter Renfroe, Jeisson Rosario, Alex Verdugo

Infielder/Outfielders (2): Jeter Downs, Kiké Hernández

 

Xavier, DePaul Clinch Gavitt Games

by

CINCINNATI – The Gavitt Tipoff Games concluded with Xavier and DePaul earning victories on November 18 while Providence and Marquette nailed down wins for a 4-0 night for league teams.

The BIG EAST went 6-2 in Gavitt Games contests against the Big 10.

In an in-state matchup that had not been played since 2007, Xavier defeated No. 19 Ohio State 71-65 at a sold-out Cintas Center. Xavier led wire to wire, but the Musketeers (4-0) needed Paul Scruggs’ clutch play down the stretch. The guard scored 10 of Xavier’s final 12 points. Forward Jack Nunge helped with 14 points and 14 rebounds.

In the Gavitt finale, DePaul used 3-point marksmanship along with some critical free throws in a 73-70 win over Rutgers. The Blue Demons (3-0) made their last six shot attempts – four were from 3-point range. David Jones of DePaul scored a game-high 22 points and teammate Javon Freeman-Liberty contributed 19 points, nine rebounds and three steals.

Providence is 4-0 after a 69-58 home win against New Hampshire. Newcomer Al Durham and Nate Watson continue to shine. Durham scored 19 points and Watson had 17 points and four rebounds. Noah Horchler added 10 points and 12 boards. PC excelled defensively, holding UNH to 39.3 shooting from the field.

Marquette rallied to beat Mississippi 78-72 in the first round of the Charleston Classic. The Golden Eagles (4-0) trailed by 12 points in the first half, but recovered after halftime. Darryl Morsell continues to lead offensively, scoring 22 points. He has scored at least 20 points in all four games. Justin Lewis tallied a career-high 21 points.

Friday’s slate starts with Creighton playing Brown at 3:15 p.m. ET on ESPN3 in the first round of the Paradise Jam. Georgetown hosts Siena at 6:30 on FS2. Marquette meets West Virginia in the second round of the Charleston Classic at 7 p.m. on ESPN2.

BIG EAST teams own a collective 31-4 record going into Friday’s schedule.

Kevin Garnett: “Anything Is Possible”

by

BOSTON – The Boston Celtics’ acquisition of superstar forward-center Kevin Garnett began on the night of the 2007 NBA Draft (June 28) when the Celtics did two things to make a future move for Garnett possible.

Although Ray Allen and Garnett would later be at odds over Allen’s post championship departure to Miami, that late June 2007 night, the Celtics acquired Hall of Fame sharp-shooter Allen in a multi-player deal with the then-Seattle SuperSonics, shipping a package of point guard Delonte West, small forward Wally Szczerbiak and forward Jeff Green to the the Sonics in exchange for Allen and center Glen “Big Baby” Davis.

The two steps taken by then-Celtics head of basketball operations Danny Ainge?

  1. Obtaining another scoring threat in Allen to form a “Big 3” needed to win.
  2. Moving Szczerbiak, a former teammate of Garnett’s he was none too fond of in previous exposure.

The “Anything Is Possible” journey to the 2008 NBA title took a giant step that night.

Garnett’s story is currently being told via a Showtime sports documentary entitled, (You Guessed It): ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE.

The story is good. KG’s personality shining through is great. The language is filthy.

Co-directed and produced by Eric Newman and Dan Levin, along with producers Mike Marangu, Marc Levin and Brian Bennett—KG’s partner at his production company, Content Cartel—the documentary is a look at KG’s past, delving heavily into Garnett’s youth, his progression as a high school player and astonishing talents displayed at Chicago’s Farragut Academy.

The story winds its way to the fact Garnett became the fifth overall pick of the 1995 draft with team GM Kevin McHale and the Minnesota Timberwolves taking the gamble on the 6-11 high school phenom. Until then, only a sporadic few (Moses Malone, Bill Willoughby, Darryl Dawkins and a small handful of others) had made it to the NBA (or ABA) via high school, not college.

The documentary explains the successful start of Garnett’s NBA career in Minnesota seemingly opened the floodgates for other high school talents to jump right to the NBA, namely Kobe Bryant, Jermaine O’Neal, LeBron James, Rashard Lewis, Tyson Chandler, Amare Stoudimire, Dwight Howard, and Tracy McGrady.

As you would expect with anything and everything Garnett does, the story is true, it’s raw and it is produced by  circle of people Garnett allowed into his tight inner sanctum, a place he guards 24/7.

Another take-away for seasoned NBA observers is the undeniable similarities between Garnett and NBA/Celtics’ All-Time great Bill Russell, both very guarded and well-aware of the circle of madness that is fame and the NBA. Both very conscious to keep their privacy – private and families secure.

YouTube player

The documentary is currently running/streaming on Showtime after its November 12th release date. Interviews of the likes of Doc Rivers, KG’s championship coach with the 2008 Celtics, and former teammate Sam Cassell, examine the complexity of Garnett – a player with serious work ethic, intensity on and off court, humor, loyalty to those he trusts, keen observation of the fast-moving world surrounding him and a disdain for anything and anyone who disrupts his normal routine.

Said Eric Newman to Variety: I don’t think the younger generation realizes the overall impact he had, which we obviously do our best to convey in the film. It’s going from high school to the NBA when no one had done it for 20 plus years and the circumstances in which he did it. It’s the pre-salary cap NBA when he got that contract which changed the financial structure of the sport. It’s transforming this physical, intense power forward position where he adds this dynamic skill set on both ends of the floor. And then of course it’s forming the Big Three with the Celtics. We tried to weave these four pillars in without being too in your face about it, but find another — forget basketball, find another athlete who had this kind of impact on their sport. There’s not many.

Sports Biz: MSG, Caesars Take Gamble

by

NEW YORK – (Staff Report from Official News Release) – Madison Square Garden Sports agreed to a multi-year marketing partnership with Caesars Sportsbook, an entity of Caesars Entertainment, making Caesars Sportsbook an Official Sports Betting Partner of the New York Knicks, New York Rangers, Madison Square Garden Arena and MSG Networks. In addition, the sportsbook operator will gain significant digital media exposure via MSG Sports’ and MSG Entertainment’s platforms. MSG will offer its menu of hospitality experiences at The Garden that will be available to Caesars Rewards program customers.

Embed from Getty Images

Caesars Sportsbook will have a branded, premium hospitality space inside Madison Square Garden that will be open for all Knicks and Rangers home games, and additional events. Caesars Rewards members – including customers that sign up for the Caesars Sportsbook mobile app – will have an opportunity to access the space, which will undergo a full refurbishment leading into the 2022-23 Knicks and Rangers seasons. Once complete, the space will be highlighted with Caesars Sportsbook branding and feature unique programming, including special guest appearances, giveaways, and enhanced activations, all available through Caesars Rewards.

Through this partnership with Caesars Sportsbook, a part of the largest gaming and entertainment company in the US, MSG Networks and Caesars Sportsbook will also launch a new content series on MSG Networks and its social media channels featuring Caesar himself, JB Smoove. A longtime Knicks fan and avid New York sports fan, JB Smoove embodies the legendary Caesar in Caesars Sportsbook’s national advertising campaign and the new content series “One Course with JB Smoove” will integrate Caesars Sportsbook betting odds and content.

“We’re thrilled to welcome Caesars Sportsbook – a renowned brand in the sports betting industry– to the MSG Sports and MSG Entertainment families,” said Ron Skotarczak, Executive Vice President, Marketing Partnerships, MSG Entertainment. “Caesars Sportsbook is a key player in the growing world of sports betting – and we look forward to utilizing this partnership to further strengthen our brands’ connection with Caesars customers, while also providing the company with significant exposure across our unrivaled set of assets.”

MSG Networks and Caesars Sportsbook will launch a 20-part programming marathon to bring back the hit series, “Four Courses with JB Smoove.” The show, which premiered in 2013, showcased JB Smoove having conversations with acclaimed athletes and celebrities from the comfort of a dinner table, and will now be updated with Caesars-themed content.

“I am thrilled to be reunited with my friends at MSG Networks,” said JB Smoove, Emmy nominated actor-comedian. “I can see it now: Caesar in the Mecca! A match made in heaven!”

Caesars Sportsbook will receive prominent exposure inside Madison Square Garden, including TV visible signage, in-arena LED messaging, GardenVision features and activations on the court and ice during Knicks and Rangers games. Digital boards outside of Madison Square Garden and in the new Moynihan Train Hall will also feature Caesars Sportsbook branding on display to the millions of people who walk by every day.

“Caesars Sportsbook is ready for expansion into New York,” said Eric Hession, Co-President of Caesars Digital. “To partner with these legendary New York brands for compelling creative content and branding uniquely positions us to reach the avid sports fans in the region.” 

The easy-to-navigate Caesars Sportsbook app is currently live in 20 states and jurisdictions – 14 of which are mobile – and operates the largest number of retail sportsbooks across the country.

Big East: Butler, St. John’s Fall

by

BLOOMINGTON – (Staff Report from Official Press Release) – A St. John’s rally fell short and Butler could not get going offensively in their respective Gavitt Tipoff Games contests, while UConn comfortably improved to 3-0.

After a slow start, UConn handled Long Island U. 93-40 at Gampel Pavilion in a non Gavitt Games contest. The Huskies have placed five players in double figures in all three games this season. On Wednesday, graduate student Tyler Polley was the scoring leader with 17 points. The margin of victory was UConn’s largest since a 103-47 win over Tennessee-Chattanooga in the first round of the 2009 NCAA Tournament.

After trailing by as many as 14 points, St. John’s rallied to tie twice, but the Johnnies lost 76-74 at Indiana. St. John’s star Julian Champagnie poured in 32 points – the highest scoring total by a BIG EAST player this season – and made a career-high six 3-pointers. Stef Smith scored 13 of his 16 points in the second half.

Butler lost 73-52 to Michigan State at Hinkle Fieldhouse. The Bulldogs made only 29 percent from the field and had to deal with an injury to Bryce Nze, who hurt his shoulder seven minutes into the game and did not return. Graduate student Ty Groce led Butler with 15 points and nine rebounds.

BIG EAST teams own a collective 27-4 record going into the Nov. 18th schedule.

NBA Fines TWolves $250,000

by

NEW YORK – (Staff Report from official News Release) – The Minnesota Timberwolves organization was fined $250,000 for violating NBA rules that prohibit teams from arranging or paying for offseason practice or group workout sessions for their players outside a team’s home market. The violations occurred in connection with Timberwolves’ player activities in Miami in early September, noted the NBA in a statement to the media.

Filed Under: NBA

NHL: Senators Games Postponed

by

OTTAWA – (Staff Report from Official News Release) – The National Hockey League will postpone Ottawa Senators’ games at least through Saturday, Nov. 20. The decision was made by the League’s, NHLPA’s and Club’s medical groups after 10 Senators’ players entered the NHL’s COVID+ protocol, and evidence of continued spread became obvious in recent days, said the league in a news release to media.

As an appropriate precaution, the team’s training facilities have been closed, and will remain closed to players until further notice. The NHL is in the process of reviewing and revising the Senators’ regular season schedule. The Senators organization has, and will continue to follow, all recommended guidelines aimed at protecting the health and safety of its players, staff and community at large as set by the NHL, local, provincial and national agencies.

While We’re Young (Ideas) – Nov. 14

by

TL’s Sunday Sports Notes – DIGGIES for Best Sports Town

BOSTON – One of the most popular sports columnists in the whole shooting match, Bob Ryan of the Boston Globe, got a hold a sports survey by a financial service firm, called Wallet Hub. The site named Boston as the No. 1 sports town in the USA.

Wallet Hub reporter Adam McCann, a 2017 graduate of The Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland, penned the report and crunched some numbers to determine his listings. As Mr. McCann graduated with a Hopkins’ degree in Writing Seminars (one of the toughest majors, aside from Hopkins’ famed medical school and science degrees) AND International Studies, we’re here to applaud his efforts. Here’s a few other McCann columns archived on Muck Rack). Way to be Adam and Go Hop!

But, this TL Sunday sports notebook zigs when others might zag, so there will be a new version of the popular DIGGIES Awards with our very own 2021-22 @DigSportsDesk – Best Sports Towns listing.

In case you weren’t onboard for previous Digital Sports Desk DIGGIES,here’s an example of a prior listing. Click HERE for The Influencers. Or, click HERE for an archived 2018 DIGGIES on Hot Sports Properties to Watch. Sadly, with a Pandemic Purge of our prior Digital Sports Desk archives, there were dozens of other DIGGIES that are on a Cloud computing device somewhere. Exactly where, we do not know.

Getting back to the efforts of Mr. McCann for Wallet Hub and Mr. Ryan’s take on the listing for the Globe, the methodology of the report was quite in-depth and it started with the Global Sports Media Report of 2014. The seven-year-old report was then supplemented by scores of data, collected from and cited properly by Wallet Hub. Ready? … They used: The U.S. Census Bureau, Team Marketing Report, ESPN, NCAA, Pro Football Hall of Fame, Sports Reference, Forbes, Sports Analytics Research from Mike Lewis, MLB Advanced Media, Minor League Baseball, Nielsen, National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, The National Collegiate Athletic Association, Wikipedia, Facebook, Twitter, NBA, Ranker.com, NHL.com, U.S. College Hockey Online, U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame, USL, Soccer Stadium Digest, FlashScore, Sportico, Google Trends, National Soccer Hall of Fame and WalletHub analysis.

Somehow or another, they left Barstool Sports and Digital Sports Desk out?

The other key factor in the report and rankings, the data crunching of 392 cities in the United States was carved into three population-based categories of:

  • Large Cities (300,000+ people)
  • Mid-sized Cities (100,000 to 299,999 people)
  • Small Cities (Fewer than 100,000 people)

Here are the findings:

Large Cities:

  1. Boston
  2. Los Angeles
  3. New York
  4. Pittsburgh
  5. Philadelphia
  6. Denver
  7. Wash DC
  8. Dallas
  9. Chicago
  10. Miami

(Note: They went 61 deep in their listing of Large Cities.

Mid-sized Cities:

  1. Buffalo
  2. Green Bay
  3. Salt Lake City
  4. Orlando
  5. Glendale
  6. Durham
  7. Ann Arbor
  8. Baton Rouge
  9. South Bend
  10. Norman

Small Cities:

  1. Clemson
  2. West Point
  3. Fayette (Michigan)
  4. East Lansing
  5. Tuscaloosa
  6. Hanover
  7. State College
  8. Buies Creek (North Carolina)
  9. Stanford
  10. Morgantown (West Virginia)

Much to its credit, the report also broke down the various cities by the major sports. Ryan was quick to point out that Boston ranked No. 5 in Baseball, No. 1 in ice hockey, No. 3 in football and No. 2 in basketball while also placing the very-much “pro” sports town as No. 15 in college basketball. … You ‘gotta love’ the Buffalo, Green Bay, Clemson and West Point mentions, too.

The college basketball rankings had Durham as No. 1 (thanks Coach K and Duke) and Lexington as No. 2 (thanks Coach Cal and UK). All things considered, Boston’s rather high ranking had to come from the fact you can see no fewer than seven Division I college programs, including:

  1. America East – UMass Lowell
  2. Atlantic 10 – UMass
  3. ACC – Boston College
  4. BIG EAST – Providence
  5. Colonial – Northeastern
  6. IVY League – Harvard
  7. Patriot League – Boston U, and Holy Cross

With all things considered, there’s no real way to determine the No. 1 Sports City. Do you consider success in a calendar year by pro sports teams and then add some college programs when it is appropriate? How many sports in the NCAA athletics do you consider?

Do you base it on a loyal fan base? Attendance? TV Ratings logged when the clubs play on national TV and/or the playoffs?

Do you base the rankings on the athletes themselves and try to pinpoint the cities which have had the most champions, MVPs, league leaders in scoring and the other key stats? Do you base it on players who might be considered the Greatest of All-Time (G.O.A.T.S) who all played in the same city?

If the last question provides the full criteria, then there’s no question that Boston would rank as the No. 1 sports city, with all due respect to Jim Brownof football’s Cleveland Browns, Babe Ruth (who played in Boston before his incredible baseball career with the New York Yankees), Wayne Gretzky (who put Edmonton on the map when he led the Oilers to four Stanley Cup championships between 1983-84 and 1987-88, and basketball’s Michael Jordan, Wilt Chamberlain and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

This is where the 2021-22 DIGGIES for Best Sports Towns come into the picture.

The criteria:

  • Winning
  • Loyal Fans who come out to the park and watch on TV
  • Deep knowledge by large numbers of fans “on the streets”
  • LOUD buildings from sold-out crowds supporting their team
  • History
  • Great players, coaches and organizations (G.O.A.T.S included)
  • New Trends in sports success

Here we go:

  1. CHICAGO: When you combine the friendly confines of Wrigley, the passion for the Cubs, the up & coming White Sox, the incredible Michael Jordan-led run and newfound resurgence of the Bulls and the loyalty of the Blackhawks and Bears fans, Chi-town has to be No. 1. There was no sports venue any louder than the old Chicago Stadium. There never will be.
  2. PHILADELPHIA: Although the City of Brotherly Love has not cashed-in on a major sports championship since the Philly Eagles upset the NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS in Super Bowl LII in 2017, the rabid (and sometimes felonious) fanbase that is a Philly sports fan earns the No. 2 spot. … On two different occasions, while seeking information on the great Red Sox vs NY Yankees rivalry and crazy fans, I was told by security honchos at both Yankees Stadium and Fenway Park that the Phillies fans were “by far” the rowdiest group.
  3. BOSTON: The incredible history and winning ways of the Celtics and Patriots combined with the recent successes of the NHL Bruins and Red Sox place Boston HIGH on any list of great sports towns. That success, however, has spoiled the average fan as its now an expectation for teams to reach “The Finals” in every sport.
  4. TAMPA BAY: Maybe a surprise, but the recent trend of winning by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the NFL, the consistent winning teams put on the baseball field by the Tampa Bay Rays of late and the two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Lightning. Rays fans deserve a new baseball stadium as opposed to the giant Hefty Bag that is Tropicana Field.
  5. NEW YORK: There’s been a bit of a drought for champions in New York but sports fans can not overlook the 27 World Series championships by the Yankees and sporadic success of the New York Giants. While the Mets, Knicks, Jets, and Rangers have struggled of late, NY fans have hope with the Nets in Brooklyn and the Islanders in their brand new Belmont building. New York sports fans are loyal, loud and knowledgeable but very demanding. Madison Square Garden, the Mecca of College Basketball and home for the Knicks and Rangers, is reason enough to get a Top 5 listing.
  6. SAN FRANCISCO BAY: Roller Derby’s Bay Area Bombers come right to mind as one of the greatest teams of all-time, but the Golden State Warriors are the reason the SF-Oakland area is listed so high. The Bay Area can also lay claim to the 49ers (now playing in nearby Santa Clara) but perennial contenders in the NFL as the SF 49ers and their five Super Bowl victories. This year, the SF Giants surprised everyone while winning 107 games to take the highly competitive National League West. The Giants disappointed in Postseason, losing to the LA Dodgers.
  7. LOS ANGELES: The Hall of Fame players, sold-out crowds and historical success of the Dodgers and Lakers carry weight for LA, even though the current version of the Lakers are struggling. The LA Kings had their 15 minutes of fame, which is reason enough not to allow LA to crack the Top 5, but with this season’s Super Bowl scheduled for February 13th at Inglewood’s SoFi Stadium, both the LA Rams and LA Chargers are bound to make the NFL Playoffs come January. In college basketball, U.C.L.A. is ranked No. 1 and could do some damage come March Madness time.
  8. DALLAS: The iconic NFL franchise valued at $6.5 billion by Forbes Magazine puts Dallas on every Top 10 list for sports towns and the relative success of the Dallas Mavericks (NBA), Stars (NHL) and a brand new ballpark for the Texas Rangers (MLB) fill-out the list of pro teams. Dallas is also noted as a top Nielsen TV market for national sports, no matter the teams playing. Of course, College football is king in Texas and the AT&T Dome (the house that Jerry Jones built) plays host to all kinds of sports championships.
  9. ST. LOUIS: With the support baseball fans show year-after-year to the Cardinals, that alone places St. Louis as a Top 10 sports town in the USA. The 2019 St. Louis Blues won the Stanley Cup, too, but the fact there’s no NFL (good-bye Rams) and no NBA (good-bye Hawks) in town sets St. Louis back.
  10. MIAMI: Pat Riley’s winning ways for the Heat, combined with the iconic ways of the Miami Dolphins and the upstart 2021-22 Florida Panthers put the heart of South Florida as our No. 10 great sports city.

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: The Top 10 listing deserves a few “also rans” and certainly great sports cities like Detroit, Pittsburgh and its Terrible Towels and Steelers, Salt Lake City for its support of the Jazz, Seattle, Wash DC/Baltimore, and Atlanta – home of the 2021 World Series champion Braves are all worthy of consideration. Small towns? How about Annapolis?

Parting Words …

ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE: Former Celtics champion Kevin Garnett’s documentary, entitled with his famous exclamation of joy, post 2008 NBA Championship debuted on Showtime this past Friday. Look for a review in next week’s notebook.