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Good morning! Chris here. I’ll be on vacation through next week, so we have a lineup of some of great writers filling in while I’m out. I’ll miss you. Hannah Vanbiber is with us this morning:
Matchmaker: Consider us your summer sports-TV agent
It’s late July, which means the most dedicated sports sicko you know (who, let’s be real, is probably you) is reenacting the “Sad Pablo Escobar”meme on a 24-hour loop. September and October, with their Eden of packed pro sports schedules, are still a month away, presenting the sports fan with a nightly conundrum: What to watch?
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*puts hand on shoulder* We got you. As The Pulse’s unofficial pop culture correspondent, I’m playing matchmaker. Find yourself, and find your next binge below.
What to watch if you’re …
The Nostalgia Nut: You watch *insert favorite sports movie* on repeat, persisting bravely through your family’s concern persecution. ➡️ “Happy Gilmore 2.” A little obvious? Yes. Mandatory viewing? Also yes!! (In theaters today!)
The True Fanatic: You make Buddy Garrity look like he’s never heard of football. ➡️ “Hard Knocks: Training Camp with the Buffalo Bills,”coming Aug. 5. (HBO)
The Sports Spouse: Your partner/bestie/crush is a sports person, and you’re just trying to be supportive … and stay awake. ➡️ “America’s Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders.” In my husband’s words: “They deserve a better football team!” (Netflix)
The Bandwagonner: All you need for a rooting interest is a good storyline and one “My mom is everything to me” sound bite. ➡️“Quarterback” Season 2, featuring Joe Burrow, Jared Goff and Kirk Cousins. It’s more about vibes than football. (Netflix)
The Sports Truther: You want receipts! You want exposés! You want the truth! ➡️ “Untold: The Fall of Favre” is icky and good to know. (Netflix)
The Cinephile: You’ve seen all the movies on the NYT “Top 100” list.➡️ “Hoop Dreams,” which Roger Ebert called “one of the great moviegoing experiences of my lifetime.” (Various streaming services)
The “Ted Lasso” Addict: The much-touted “It’s Ted Lasso, but golf” Owen Wilson show “Stick” didn’t do it for me. Instead, let’s try … ➡️ “Running Point,” a delightful comedy about family bonds and running an NBA team. (Netflix)
The Alternative Athlete: You like the UK “Office” and indie music and own a carabiner. ➡️ “Tour de France: Unchained.” I usually couldn’t care less about cycling, but for the one week each year when I watch this docuseries, I am a cycling fiend. (Netflix)
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The Blue-Collar Diehard: Underdog heroes, a little bit crass, a lot hilarious. ➡️ “Shoresy” about a down-and-out hockey team (Hulu), or “Eastbound & Down” about an MLB player fallen from grace (HBO).
The LinkedIn Bro: You’ve had people walk out on dates with you while you were explaining that sports is a business. ➡️ “The Playbook: A Coach’s Rules For Life,” a MasterClass-style series with famous coaches sharing their rules for success. (Netflix)
The WNBA Fanatic: You’re wearing an “Everyone Watches Women’s Sports” T-shirt right now. ➡️ “studbudz” on Twitch.
Obsessed With “F1: The Movie” ➡️ “F1: Drive to Survive.” I know you didn’t pay for this free newsletter just to hear me state the obvious, but sometimes the obvious states itself. (Netflix)
⚡ Lightning Round ⚡
- Going Through NBA Withdrawal ➡️ “Starting Five” and “Court of Gold” (Netflix)
- Needing Your Football Fix ➡️ “Last Chance U” (Netflix)
- Needing Your Football Fix (UK Edition) ➡️ “Welcome to Wrexham” (Hulu)
Want to join in the movie-recommendation fun? Our staff put together a list of sports movies we want sequels for. Add your recommendation in the comments!
On to serious matters:
News to Know
Hockey Canada 5 found not guilty
A judge acquitted five members of Canada’s 2018 world junior hockey team — Michael McLeod, Carter Hart, Alex Formenton, Dillon Dubé and Cal Foote — of sexual assault charges nearly six weeks after legal arguments concluded in their trial and seven years after the alleged assault was first reported to police. Judge Maria Carroccia said that she did not find the accuser’s evidence “credible or reliable.”
Dan Robson and Katie Strang have more previously unreported details on the tumultuous trial that shook the sport, and wonder if the players’ exoneration will provide a path back to pro hockey. They are ineligible to play in the NHL while the league considers the judge’s findings, though the players’ association took issue with that approach.
Little League legal battle
A 12-year-old Little League player who was suspended from the New Jersey state final because of a bat-flip celebration was cleared to play after his family took legal action. A judge ruled in favor of Marco Rocco, who was sanctioned for tossing his bat after hitting a two-run homer in a qualifying game earlier this month, hours before first pitch last night. Read our full report.
- Kansas men’s basketball coach Bill Self was hospitalized and had two stents inserted yesterday, the school said, after he “felt unwell and experienced some concerning symptoms.” More details here.
- President Donald Trump signed an executive order intended to bring order to college sports, but NCAA and conference leaders say federal legislation is still needed. Read our full report.
- A Caitlin Clark rookie card sold for $660,000, a women’s sports record. See it here. (Reminder: This and all links free to read.)
- Jets quarterback Justin Fields was carted off during training camp yesterday with a dislocated toe. He’s considered day to day, the team said.
- Venus Williams’ run at the Citi Open ended with a straight-sets loss to Magdalena Fręch in the round of 16.
- The Mariners got the corner infield slugger they’ve been missing, acquiring Josh Naylor from the Diamondbacks. Trade grades here.
- Today’s Tour de France stage was shortened due to the “distress of farmers” after a herd of cows was culled on the original route.
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Watch Guide
📺 WNBA: Wings at Valkyries
10 p.m. ET, Ion
It’s a relatively quiet sports night — and we just gave you more than a dozen other things to watch — but if the pull to live action is strong, the WNBA’s Ion triple-header is solid tonight. Here, Golden State (ninth in the league) looks to get its playoff hopes back on track against Paige Bueckers’ squad after dropping three straight.
Get tickets to games like this here.
Pulse Picks
If you read anything today, make it Christopher Kamrani’s story on Greg Newman, the former Utah football standout whose love for the game ended up contributing to his death. Make time for this one.
I loved this so much: How NHL players turned a charity game into an offseason destination for the stars. Fun read.
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Descending is one of the core skills of professional cycling, but unlike climbing or sprinting, it is less of a test of physical ability than a reckoning of psychological and technical skill, as Jacob Whitehead explains.
Celtics star Jaylen Brown credits Muay Thai with improving his footwork, mobility and body control. So The Athletic’s Elise Devlin tried it out.
Trivia answer: The real-life answer, Minnie Miñoso, tallied a single in 1972 while making an appearance as a promotional stunt with the Chicago White Sox at the age of 54. Bernie Mac’s character was 47 years old.
Most-clicked in the newsletter yesterday: Pat McAfee’s apology to Ole Miss student Mary Kay Cornett.
Most-read on the website yesterday: Live updates on the Hockey Canada verdict.
(Top photo: Aaron M. Sprecher / Getty Images)
This news was originally published on this post .
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