The Day After …

The Day After

So with the Tokyo Summer Olympics having begun , beyond the controversy of the Japanese government making the decision to have no members of the public be in attendance for any of the events , has created a scenario unlike any other previously held Summer Olympic event hosted in recent history . If that wasn’t enough , we also have several high-profiled athletes not in attendance for the Games as well as their being several historic results and some surprising ones The US Men’s Basketball Team suffered an embarrassing a they fell to n France in the opening game within their group.

Kevin Durant is seen here with the US Flag adorning his upper body after the NBA star led Team USA to their fourth straight Olympic Gold Medal in Men’s Basketball . The team defeated France to win the title .

Men’s Head Coach Gregg Popovich has often said the players were in need of a wake up call and that has been very clear, given that this was the third defeat suffered by the team over their last five games . Far be it for me to suggest still remains the favorites to win Olympic Gold , but from where I sit this team may well struggle should they make it out of the group phase .

Simone Biles , now considered the greatest female gymnast in US history has withdrawn from the competition , with the Women’s Team having failed to successfully defend their team Gold Medal with their having lost out to Russia this time around Biles withdrew from the All Round Competition , citing health issues and undue stress . Yet many believe the real reason she withdrew stemmed from the fact judges had began to penalize her routines , because she was so much better than her opponents at the international level. Luckily , for Team USA in the All Round Competition the gold medalist was an American , with Sunisa Lee . This competition and the jingoism often associated with the Olympics seems synonymous with what’s deemed as patriotism. We now have the issue of their being false sense of security of false patriotism and racism being exhibited .

In this COVID sound world , we have the issue of non appearance of fans for these events. These games have not proven to be a ratings’ extravaganza for NBC, even though billions was spent for the broadcast rights here in America. It is hard to create excitement when many of the venues are sparsely attended for the events , especially for the most popular ones . No doubt NBC will seek to recoup potential losses , with their seeking to resell and rebroadcast elements of their coverage through their various services.

The off-season insanity of the NBA continues , with their being more excitement surrounding the trades taking place along with the signing of free agents. Veteran , Carmelo Anthony has signed with the Los Angeles Lakers , where he will play alongside close friend LeBron James . Also joining Anthony in Los Angeles will be seasoned point guard Russell Westbrook. Given the Playoff Run of the Lakers ended so disappointingly , it was understandable why GM Rob Pelinka and Head Coach Frank Vogel decided to make these moves .

Not to be left out of the equation the New York Knicks signed Kemba Walker , providing them with quite a formidable starting unit . With that being said, it is becoming increasingly difficult in believing or seeing them take down the likes of the Milwaukee Bucks as the reigning NBA champions , much less their being good enough to take on the best that the Eastern Conference has to offer or the rest of the NBA for that matter.

Say what you will , but the MLB season has began to heat up . The Los Angeles Dodgers are looking to make a successful defense of their World Series’ title . As one of the highest paid teams in all of baseball. It has to be said that the front office is now intent on taking on all of the identical traits once associated when it came to the New York Yankees and their willingness to pay exorbitant salaries . Over their last ten games , the most impressive team in all of baseball has been the Philadelphia Phillies having gone 5-0 with their win streak, but nowhere as impressive with 8-2 shot . The Phillies for their part will begin a weekend schedule against the New York Mets , whereas the Dodgers are due to face the Los Angeles Angels . That series could prove to be very enthralling for both teams.

So the mandatory OTA’s (Organized training activities) have began within the NFL and the story on everyone’s mind seems to be the impending future of Green Bay Packers’ starting quarterback , Aaron Rodgers and the likelihood of his remaining with the team and signing a long term contract . As the salaries continue to escalate along with the incentives by way of the contracts for the league’s quarterbacks . It has to be said that the general managers around the NFL seem to have lost their way even with regard to the salary cap .

Josh Allen of the Buffalo Bills is the latest quarterback in the NFL , having signed a lucrative deal with a guaranteed six figure sum . Whether or not Allen can fulfill the potential based on just one year , where he got the Bills into the postseason remains to be seen. The team will begin their preseason schedule with their preseason opener against the Detroit Lions . While Josh Allen seeks to prove himself , we also have Lamar Jackson of the Baltimore Ravens seeking to up the ante by way of a new deal . I am sure his agents will. have that in mind based on Allen’s contract. Jackson’s mother Felicia Jones just happens to be his agent and manager. The front office of the Ravens will be hard pressed to seemingly franchise-tag the player, while hoping to provide him with a lucrative long term contract . Jackson for his part will be hoping that he can lead this Ravens’ team to deep postseason run , but preferably as divisional champion , than a wildcard entrant even with the regular season moving to a seventeen-game schedule for the 2021 season .

I’ve never been enamored with the Dallas Cowboys , their opinionated fans or that of their team owner and de-facto General Manager Jerry Jones. This has been a franchise which hasn’t not achieved anything of note by way of a deep postseason run in over two decades . Yet year in and year out , Jerry Jones tries to convince us all that his team is the one to beat. Jones has a shrewd business acumen , but beyond that he’s simply not that great in assessing talent or putting it on the field of play. In their preseason opener , albeit that the team played a number of their second and third stringers, their loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers indicated a great deal to me. I can only hope that the Cowboys are able to overcome the loss and prove to us that they’re capable of winning the Superbowl .

Peyton Manning will be inducted in the Hall of Fame in Canton , Ohio . Manning will be part of a distinguished group of stars who made a name for themselves in the NFL .

I for one hope that in the coming months, the sports’ stories will be one, which will provide a great deal of news for the ever discerning fan.

Tophatal ………

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