| | | | | | | Presented By Eargo | | | | Axios Sports | | By Kendall Baker ·Nov 18, 2020 | | 👋 Good morning! Let's sports. Today's word count: 1,812 words (7 minutes). | | | | | | 1 big thing: 🇯🇵 Eight months from Tokyo |  | | | Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios | | | | IOC president Thomas Bach arrived in Tokyo this week as a cheerleader for next year's Olympics, saying he's "very confident" the Games will open on July 23, 2021. - What he's saying: Bach issued a gentle plea to all competitors to get vaccinated if and when a vaccine is available, and added that a "reasonable number" of fans should be able to attend with or without a vaccine.
- Worth noting: Team USA's chief medical officer, Jonathan Finnoff, doesn't think there will be enough time to vaccinate everyone, even if vaccines continue to progress. "You have to think about it as a non-vaccinated Games," he told WSJ (subscription).
Shinzo Abe and Thomas Bach elbow bump. Photo: Kim Kyung-Hoon-Pool/Getty Images The backdrop: Japan has controlled the coronavirus relatively well, with about 1,900 deaths in a country of roughly 125 million. And in recent weeks, sporting events have successfully been held with fans in attendance. - A test gymnastics event was staged in Tokyo last week involving athletes from Japan, China, Russia, and the U.S. About 2,000 fans attended, and outside of competition and training, gymnasts were confined to their hotel rooms.
- Baseball games have been held in front of thousands of fans, who are required to wear masks and banned from cheering or shouting.
A baseball game at the Tokyo Dome earlier this month. Photo: Jiji Press/AFP via Getty Images |     | | | | | | 2. 🏀 NBA draft primer |  | | | Anthony Edwards. Photo: Christian Petersen/Getty Images | | | | Nearly five months later than originally scheduled, the 2020 NBA Draft is finally upon us (8pm ET, ESPN). Top 5: No changes to the top of our mock draft from Tuesday. - Wolves: Anthony Edwards, G
- Warriors: James Wiseman, C
- Hornets: LaMelo Ball, G
- Bulls: Obi Toppin, F/C
- Cavs: Onyeka Okongwu, F/C
Details: - Virtual draft: For the first time since 2013, the draft will not commence from Barclays Center in Brooklyn. Instead, 45 league employees will travel to ESPN's Bristol HQ today to put on a virtual event from ESPN's Studio E.
- #FleetWeek: Twitter's newest feature, "Fleets," will be utilized by the NBA as it looks to better connect with its audience across platforms.
- New schedule: The league announced the structure and format for the 2020-21 season Tuesday night, confirming that there will be a play-in tournament from May 18–21 to determine the final two seeds in each conference.
Good reads: - Meet Anthony Edwards: "To be honest, I can't watch basketball," says the projected No. 1 pick.
- 1,000 interviews later: NYT's Scott Cacciola takes us inside the Timberwolves' draft prep.
- The first draft nerds: Long before draft guides, or even WiFi, the Usenet Mock Draft was the go-to place to geek out about the NBA draft.
| | | | | | | | 3. 🏀 The state of high school hoops |  Data: Maxpreps; Map: Axios Visuals High schoolers haven't been able to jump straight to the NBA since 2005, though that could change in 2022, Axios' Jeff Tracy writes. - For now, the focus is on what the coming season will look like for the nearly one million boys and girls playing high school hoops nationwide.
The state of play: Seven states have already begun their seasons, 31 plan to start before the end of the year, nine will begin play in 2021 and four are still TBD. - Already started: Alabama, Mississippi (Nov. 5); Arkansas (Nov. 9); Texas (Nov. 13); Louisiana, South Carolina (Nov. 16); Utah (Nov. 17)
- Later this month: Oklahoma (Nov. 19); Georgia, Indiana (Nov. 20); North Dakota, Tennessee, Florida, Kentucky (Nov. 23); Ohio (Nov. 25); Idaho, Pennsylvania (Nov. 28); Arizona, Iowa, Massachusetts, Missouri (Nov. 30).
- December: Wisconsin (Dec. 1); Kansas, Minnesota, Nebraska (Dec. 3); Delaware, Maryland, Montana (Dec. 4); Michigan (Dec. 7); West Virginia (Dec. 8); South Dakota, Wyoming (Dec. 10); Maine, New Hampshire (Dec. 11); Alaska, Connecticut (Dec. 17); New Jersey (Dec. 18); Virginia (Dec. 28).
- January: North Carolina, New Mexico, New York, Washington, D.C. (Jan. 4); Washington (Jan. 10); Oregon (11); Nevada (Jan. 15); Colorado (Jan. 19).
- March: California (Mar. 12).
- TBD: Hawaii, Illinois, Rhode Island, Vermont.
Top 5 teams: The Montverde Academy Eagles sit atop the rankings after going 25-0 last season and capturing their fourth national title in eight years. At No. 5 is a California school that won't play games until mid-March. Full Top 25. - Montverde Academy (Montverde, Fla.)
- IMG Academy (Bradenton, Fla.)
- Sunrise Christian Academy (Bel Aire, Kan.)
- Ypsi Prep Academy (Ypsilanti, Mich.)
- Prolific Prep (Napa, Calif.)
ICYMI ... Chet Holmgren (No. 2 recruit in 2021) and Emoni Bates (No. 1 recruit in 2022) went head-to-head in an exhibition game last week. Go deeper: | | | | | | | | A message from Eargo | | Hear life to the fullest with Eargo's huge Black Friday offer | | |  | | | | Bring your world to life with Eargo--the virtually invisible, comfortable and rechargeable hearing aid with lifetime professional support. And now until Black Friday, Eargo Neo Hifi is $450 off. Buy now online or talk to a specialist to see if Eargo is the right fit for you. | | | | | | 4. ⚾️ Theo Epstein bids farewell to Chicago |  | | | Photo: Nuccio DiNuzzo/Getty Images | | | | Theo Epstein has stepped down as the Cubs president of baseball operations after nine seasons, during which time he built the team that snapped the longest World Series drought (107 years) in MLB history, Jeff writes. Why it matters: Epstein, a Yale graduate who became the youngest GM in MLB history (28) when the Red Sox hired him in 2002, changed the way baseball teams are built, both on and off the field. - On the field: He didn't invent "Moneyball," but as an early adopter backed by a deep-pocketed franchise, he was the first to build a championship team with the approach.
- Off the field: The year before Epstein took over in Boston, Ivy League grads comprised 3% of MLB clubs' top decision makers. That number today: 43%.
Career timeline: While at Yale, Epstein spent three straight summers interning with the Orioles; after graduating in 1995, they hired him as a PR assistant. - Following brief stints in Baltimore and San Diego, he spent the next 20 years building World Series drought-snapping teams in Boston and Chicago.
Between the lines: Epstein has always been whip-smart, but his philosophy doesn't hinge on a blind dedication to analytics. At least, not anymore. "The biggest surprise for me as a GM is you spend more time as a psychologist than you think. Behind every failure is almost always an emotional or psychological factor that is very real ... If you can find it and address it, it's a huge advantage." — Epstein What's next: Epstein's departure feels sudden, but it's similar to how he left Boston. - Both decisions stemmed from his belief — originally put forth by legendary NFL coach Bill Walsh — that after a decade with one organization, it's best to part ways.
- Epstein told friends that he plans to have a "third chapter" in baseball, according to a letter obtained by The Athletic (subscription), though he doesn't expect it to be next year.
Go deeper: Theo Epstein leaves Cubs with a ring — and his mind made up (SI) | | | | | | | | 5. 🎓 Division I athletes reach 90% graduation rate | | Courtesy: NCAA College athletes continue to graduate at record rates and outperform non-athletes, according to the NCAA's latest Graduation Success Rate (GSR) report. By the numbers: 90% of Division I athletes who enrolled in 2013 earned a degree within six years, up from 74% in 2002 — and an increase of 1% over last year's previous high. - White student-athletes: 93% GSR (up from 81% in 2002)
- Hispanic/Latino student-athletes: 87% (up from 64% in 2002)
- Black student-athletes: 80% GSR (up from 54% in 2002)
Women graduated at particularly high rates. In fact, only one women's sport earned a GSR rate below 90% (bowling: 84%), and women's ice hockey earned a perfect 100%. Other divisions: Even when using the less-inclusive federal graduation rates, student-athletes outperform their peers in Division II and Division III, as well. - D-II student-athletes graduate at a rate 9% higher than the general student body (62% vs. 53%).
- D-III student-athletes graduate at a rate 5% higher than the general student body (68% vs. 63%).
| | | | | | | | 6. 🏈 Field trip: Central Michigan | | Thanks for choosing Axios Airlines. We'll be traveling to a new destination each morning this month. Sit back and enjoy the flight. Screenshot: Google Maps - Location: Kelly/Shorts Stadium
- Coordinates: 43.5776°N, 84.7709°W
Welcome to Mount Pleasant, Michigan, home of Central Michigan University and site of tonight's MACtion rivalry game between the Chippewas and the Western Michigan Broncos (7pm ET, ESPN2), Jeff writes. - Chippewas: Central Michigan's nickname comes from the area's original occupants, the Ojibwa people, known to English speakers as the Chippewa.
Famous alums: - CMU: In 2007, their offense boasted Antonio Brown at receiver and J.J. Watt at tight end. Watt grew frustrated with his minimal role and later transferred to Wisconsin, where he turned into a star defensive end.
- WMU: Greg Jennings was a stud receiver for the Broncos before catching 64 TD across 10 NFL seasons with the Packers, Vikings and Dolphins.
Kelly/Shorts Stadium in 2016. Photo: Rey Del Rio/Getty Images Game preview: The two schools, separated by just 130 miles, have faced off 90 times since 1907 (WMU leads 50-38-2). - Victory Cannon: Since 2008, the winner receives the Victory Cannon trophy, which represents the actual cannons fired at each team's home stadium.
- Battle for first: They're tied atop the MAC's West division at 2-0, so tonight's winner will claim sole possession of first with just three games left.
More MACtion: - 7pm ET, CBSSN: Toledo (1-1) at Eastern Michigan (0-2)
- 7pm, ESPNews: Northern Illinois (0-2) at Ball State (1-1)
| | | | | | | | 7. 📊 By the numbers |  Data: CSSE Johns Hopkins University; Map: Andrew Witherspoon/Axios - 😷 83% of counties: In the past two weeks, 83% of U.S. counties have seen their coronavirus cases increase, by an average of 156%, Axios' Andrew Witherspoon reports.
- 💵 $7.8 million: Wichita State men's basketball coach Gregg Marshall resigned following an internal investigation into allegations of abuse. His reward: A $7.8 million contract settlement, to be paid out over six years.
49ers punter Mitch Wishnowsky. Photo: Bob Kupbens/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images - 🏈 3.62 punts/game: Amid an offensive explosion, NFL teams are averaging just 3.6 punts per game, a historically low number and a ~14% decrease from last year (4.2). Pity the bored punters.
- 🏀 52 players: Kentucky and Duke won't have top-five picks tonight, but they still lap the field when it comes to churning out pros. Kentucky had 28 players on NBA rosters at the start of last season, and Duke had 24. No other school had more than 14.
Photo: Burak Akbulut/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images - ⚽️ 89 years ago: Spain demolished Germany, 6-0, in the Nations League on Tuesday, handing Germany its worst-ever defeat in a competitive match and largest since a 6-0 loss to Austria in a friendly in 1931.
- 🏈 10 TD: Buffalo RB Jaret Patterson loves playing Bowling Green. He had a school-record 301 rushing yards and 4 TD on Tuesday night, giving him 599 rushing yards and 10 TD (!!!) in his last two games against the Falcons.
| | | | | | | | 8. Nov. 18, 1966: ⚾️ Koufax calls it quits |  | | | Sandy Koufax announces his retirement. Photo: Bettmann Archives/Getty Images | | | | 54 years ago today, Sandy Koufax suddenly announced his retirement due to a painfully arthritic elbow. He was only 30 years old. - It's possible his career could have been saved with Tommy John surgery.
- Unfortunately, that procedure wasn't invented until eight years later.
A tale of two halves: Koufax's career was split in two starkly different halves. In the first, he was a serviceable but unspectacular young starting pitcher; in the second, he cemented a legacy as one of the greatest ever. - Age 19–24: Six seasons, zero All-Star selections, 103 games started (36-40 record), five shutouts, 4.10 ERA, 1.428 WHIP, 1959 World Series champion.
- Age 25–30: Six seasons, six All-Star selections, 211 games started (129-47 record), 35 shutouts, 2.19 ERA, 0.970 WHIP, 5x ERA title, 3x Cy Young, 3x Triple Crown, 1963 NL MVP, 2x World Series champion, 2x World Series MVP, three no-hitters, one perfect game.
Go deeper: | | | | | | | | 9. 🏀 NBA draft |  | | | The first five picks of the 1986 draft (L-R): Ken Walker, Chuck Person, Brad Daugherty, Len Bias, Chris Washburn. Photo: Bettmann Archives/Getty Images | | | | Since the NBA draft lottery began in 1985, only four No. 1 picks have won an NBA title with the team that drafted them. - Question: Can you name those four players?
- Hint: Two pairs of former teammates.
Answer at the bottom. | | | | | | | | 10. ⚾️ Results: Hall of Fame voting |  Table: Axios Visuals None of the 25 players from the 2021 class made the Baseball Hall of Fame, according to your vote. Criteria: Players must earn 75% of the vote for election, and at least 5% to remain on the ballot another year. After 10 years, they're dropped. Top vote-getters: - Manny Ramirez (68.5%)
- Roger Clemens (66.8%)
- Barry Bonds (59%)
- Curt Schilling (57.5%)
- Omar Vizquel (54.3%)
- Gary Sheffield (51.9%)
- Andy Pettitte (44.5%)
Dropped (less than 5%): - Shane Victorino (4.7%)
- Aramis Ramírez (3.4%)
- A.J. Burnett (2.8%)
- Nick Swisher (2.6%)
- LaTroy Hawkins (1.3%)
- Michael Cuddyer (0.6%)
- Dan Haren (0.4%)
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