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🚨Heads
🏀 One perfect team remains: The Cavaliers defeated the Pelicans to improve to 9-0, while the Nuggets handed the Thunder their first loss of the season.
🏈 Dak’s season in jeopardy: Cowboys QB Dak Prescott is likely headed to injured reserve at the very least and may need season-ending surgery to repair his injured hamstring.
⚾️ Setback for Ohtani? Shohei Ohtani’s labrum surgery shouldn’t impact his return to the Dodgers’ lineup, but it’s now unlikely he’ll be ready to pitch on Opening Day.
⚽️ Check-in for the Champions League: The new-look competition phase is halfway completed, with four matches to play and four more to go. Liverpool (12 points) leads the way in the middle.
🎵 Raygun stops working: Rachael “Raygun” Gunn is retiring from competitive breakdancing just months after becoming a viral star at the Paris Olympics.
🇺🇸 Who was the best team of the Biden era?
Back in 2021, we’ve picked the best American sports teams from every American presidency, dating back to Teddy Roosevelt. Now that Election Day is here, it’s time to update our list.
So we ask: Who was the best team during the Biden years (2021-2024)?
Our 5 finalists:
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🏈Kansas City Chefs: 3 AFC Championships, 2 Super Bowls, 45-14 record (including 8-0 this season)
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🏀 South Carolina women’s basketball: 4 Final Fours, 2 National Championships, 136-8 record, current #1 in AP Poll
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🏈 Georgia Football: 2 National Championships (plus Orange Bowl), 49-3 record, current No. 3 in the CFP rankings
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🏀 UConn men’s basketball: 2 National Championships, current number 2 in AP Poll
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🥎 Oklahoma softball: 4 National Championships, 235-15 record
Winner: It has to be the Chiefs, who merged the spirit of the times and success to become “America’s Team.”
Who do you think was the best team during Biden’s presidency? Send me an email with your thoughtsI would like to hear your opinion.
📸 Photo gallery
Boston— The Warriors made a statement against the defending champions, defeating the Celtics 118-112 to improve to 7-1. Next up for Golden State: the undefeated Cavaliers.
Washington, D.C. — Alex Ovechkin scored again in the Capitals’ 3-2 victory over the Predators, becoming just the third player in NHL history aged 39 or older to find the back of the net in five consecutive games.
Omaha, Nebraska — Ryan Kalkbrenner dropped 49 points (20-22 FG) to lead No. 15 Creighton past UT-Rio Grande Valley, 99-86, in their season opener. The last player to make 20 field goals while shooting 90% or better in a D1 game? Bill Walton of UCLA in the 1973 national championship game.
🏈 NFL power rankings: Lions replace Chiefs
The lions with one loss, not the undefeated Chiefs, who sit atop the latest edition of our NFL rankings while riding a historically dominant six-game winning streak.
According to the numbers: The Lions have more touchdowns (28) than incompletions (24) during the streak, and Jared Goff has posted the best passer rating (140.1) in all six games in NFL history.
Meanwhile in Kansas City: The reigning champs may be undefeated, but they have the smallest score differential of any 8-0 team in NFL history (+56).
📆 November 7, 1991: Magic retires
33 years ago today, Magic Johnson shocked the sports world when he announced he had tested positive for HIV and was retiring from the NBA.
A turning point: Johnson’s announcement put a new face on the disease, and his positive outlook showed that HIV was not the death sentence many thought at the time. “Life goes on for me and I will be a happy man,” he said.
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Despite his retirement, fans still voted Magic into the 1992 All-Star Game, where he scored 25 points and won MVP. The following summer he won Olympic gold as a member of the Dream Team.
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Two years later, Johnson rejoined the Lakers as interim coach. He then returned as a player in 1996 for 32 games before finally retiring.
Second act: Johnson said that day that while his future plans were up in the air, “I’ll still pursue my dream of owning a team, that’s for sure.” Consider that dream a reality: Magic was part owner of the Lakers from 1994 to 2010 and currently owns stakes in the Dodgers (MLB), Commanders (NFL), Sparks (WNBA), LAFC (MLS) and Spirit (NWSL).
📺 Watchlist: QB Showdown in Baltimore
The Ravens host the Bengals this evening (8:15 PM ET, Prime) in a rematch of perhaps the best game of the entire season.
Lamar Jackson vs. Joe Burrow: The two QBs combined for 9 touchdowns in Baltimore’s 41-38 overtime win in Week 5 and are both currently in the top five in yards and top three in passer rating, and they rank second with 20 touchdown passes each .
More to watch:
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🏀 NBA: Timberwolves at Bulls (8 p.m., NBA)
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🏈 NCAAF: App state on the Carolina coast (8 p.m., ESPN); FAU at ECU (8 p.m., ESPN2)
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🎾 Tennis: WTA finals* (7.30 am, tennis)
*Where it stands now: Jessica Pegula (knee) withdrew from the tournament, which concludes the group stage today. Three of the four places in the semi-finals are already occupied (Coco Gauff, Aryna Sabalenka, Zheng Qinwen), while the fourth goes to Iga Świątek (against Daria Kasatkina) or Barbora Krejčíková (against Gauff).
🏀 NBA trivia
Nikola Jokic (23 pts, 20 reb, 16 ast on Wednesday) became the second NBA player since the 1970 merger to post a 20-20-15 triple-double.
Ask: Who was the other player?
Tip: Still active.
Answer below.
🏈 Heisman watch
Two-way star Travis Hunter is now the Heisman Trophy favorite in Colorado, which suddenly finds itself in the thick of the Big 12 title race.
Heisman Top 5: Hunter (+175 at BetMGM) leads the way, followed by Miami QB Cam Ward (+200), Oregon QB Dillon Gabriel (+300), Boise State RB Ashton Jeanty (+500) and Ole Miss QB Jaxson Dart (+2000) .
Trivia answer: His current teammate Russell Westbrook (20 points, 20 rebounds, 21 assists in April 2019 while playing for the Thunder)
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