By Joe Torosian
Kick it!
My insignificant prayer to the Lord today is… “Please let Team USA lose to Paraguay…just so I can talk and write trash about soccer.”
But, I jest!
If I were working in a country that was in the process of making me a billionaire, I would stand respectfully for its national anthem.
Victor Wembanyama has chosen not to…and in the end, he’ll still wind up a billionaire. While it’s noticeable he remains in the locker room when the anthem is played, I think it is better than making a scene on the court. I give him props for that.
If that’s his choice, I’m fine with it. He’s still a great player, and he’s going to have a great career. He’s going to be the face of the league.
The only thing it is going to cost Wemby is the status of being beloved. LeBron’s been the face of the league, but I don’t think he’s ever been beloved. I don’t even think Kobe was universally beloved, although his tragic death moved his legacy in that direction.
I think Michael Jordan—in a pre-social media world—was the last face of the league to be beloved. Could someone make an argument for Shaq? I suppose, but I lean Jordan.
And if we need a face of the league, I’ll take the New York Knicks.
A report this morning said thousands of tickets were still available at SoFi tonight for Team USA’s World Cup opener versus Paraguay:
Prices are as follows:
FIFA’s official face value comes in four categories:
Top Three Tiers: $1,120-to-$2,735.
Lowest (Upper Level): $560.
Costs via resale on SeatGeek, Ticketmaster, and StubHub range from $690 to $900, and can go as high as $5,000 to $6,000.
Or you can choose the Dodgers-White Sox at Rate Field in Chicago—for 86 bucks.
Or you can hassle the traffic to the Big A to see the Rays & Angels. You only need 9 bones to get into that one.
Or watch a free “Seinfeld” rerun.
Or do what I’m going to do…take the wife to dinner.
“RamView” is LIVE today on YouTube
I saw a Twitter/X proposal: Would you take 12 years of peak Rob Gronkowski or 12 years of peak Calvin Johnson? I like Megatron, but I’d go Gronk.
And I’d give them both up for 12 more years of peak Matthew Stafford.
Watched an average Indiana Fever team hold on in overtime to beat the Chicago Sky last night. Caitlin Clark, who is so good she makes a terribly run team average, scored 32, grabbed seven boards, and delivered 10 assists.
The fact that she keeps assaulting the record book in only her third season tells you what the level of play has been in the WNBA.
However, when all is said and done, her career is going to look like Pistol Pete’s, and Paige Bueckers is going to have the rings.
By the way, that was a Commissioner’s Cup game between Chicago and Indiana…Whatever…Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indy can hold 17,274…Attendance was announced at 15,30… that’s a great crowd, but the “Commissioner’s Cup” doesn’t move the needle.
Someone tries to sell me the Commissioner’s Cup (NBA or WNBA), and I’m back to reruns of Seinfeld.
The Dodgers have an eight-game lead in the National League West. It’s the end of May and the beginning of June, and it’s the perfect time for some of their key players to take a week or two off. Haven’t we seen this before?
The Harry Hystericals will weep and mourn, but a true Dodger hater like myself knows this is just the Bums getting things aligned for another October surge. This plot is more played than a Marvel movie.
#65—May the San Francisco Giants rot and lie stinking in the earth…
The Dude abides…
1,312
Proverbs 3:5-6
jtbank1964@yahoo.com
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Clark = Trout.
From Joe T.: Good pull…with the exception that Trout has settled for this…Jury is still out on Clark settling for Indy. The league may force her to go someplace else because she remains a draw….Last thing on Trout: I did a funeral for a family with connections to the Angels…they sit in the primo boxes for all the games. And I asked about Trout, and they told me Trout cares about playing hard, but that he really likes Newport Beach doesn’t care about being traded to a contender. (For what it’s worth)