| | | | | | | | | | | Axios Sports | | By Kendall Baker ·Jan 29, 2021 | | 🎉 Happy Friday! Nice and short edition for you today. Let's sports. Today's word count: 1,493 words (6 minutes). | | | | | | 1 big thing: ⚽️ Premier League snapshot |  Data: Premier League; Table: Axios Visuals The Premier League campaign is just past the halfway point, and has thus far been defined by parity, Axios' Jeff Tracy writes. - Last season, Liverpool ran away with the league title, finishing a whopping 17 points ahead of second-place Manchester City.
- This season, nine teams are within seven points of a Champions League berth (top four finishers) and the eventual champion is unlikely to crack 80 points — 10 fewer than the average for the past 10 winners (90.2).
Stat leaders: - Goals: Mo Salah, Liverpool (13); Son Heung-Min and Harry Kane, Tottenham (12); Bruno Fernandes, Man United (11); Jamie Vardy, Leicester City (11); Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Everton (11)
- Assists: Kane (11); Kevin De Bruyne, Man City (10); Jack Grealish, Aston Villa (8); Fernandes (7); Heung-Min (6)
- Clean sheets: Ederson, Man City (11); Emiliano Martínez, Aston Villa (9); Édouard Mendy, Chelsea (8); four tied with 7
- Saves: Sam Johnstone, West Brom (80); Karl Darlow, Newcastle (74); Nick Pope, Burnley (73); Alphonse Areola, Fulham (72); Illan Meslier, Leeds (71)
Injury report ... Kane, arguably the most valuable player in the league right now, will miss a few weeks after injuring both ankles in Thursday's loss to Liverpool. 📆 Saturday's slate: - Arsenal vs. Man United
- Everton vs. Newcastle
- Crystal Palace vs. Wolves
- Man City vs. Sheffield United
- West Brom vs. Fulham
- Southampton vs. Aston Villa
Go deeper: Midseason awards (ESPN) |     | | | | | | 2. 🏀 Inside ESPN's pandemic-era NBA broadcast | | Control room at ESPN HQ in Bristol, Conn. Courtesy: ESPN After broadcasting games inside the NBA bubble, ESPN's production team jumped almost immediately into preparing for the 2020-21 season. The state of play: While some games feature on-site announcers and production trucks, others require ESPN to produce the broadcast from hundreds of miles away. They call this the "Enhanced World Feed" (EWF) model. - How it works: The production team works out of ESPN's Bristol or Charlotte studios and takes the "clean feed" from the host team's Regional Sports Network and adds layers on top of it, like commentary and graphics.
What they're saying: "Normally, we're creating everything. But with this model, it's almost like we're working off someone else's draft and making adjustments," Mike Shiffman, ESPN's VP of production, tells me. - "Each RSN has a different setup and goals for its broadcast, so we meet ahead of time to discuss our needs and what they're able to do provide."
Mike Breen's setup in his Long Island home. Courtesy: ESPN Announcers like Mike Breen have been calling games from home, where they're able to customize their setup to their liking. - "Do they want the game on a big monitor, or are they okay with that in a multi-box where they're also seeing their announcing partner, stats, and other stuff? It's up to them," says Shiffman.
Control room at ESPN HQ in Bristol, Connecticut. Courtesy: ESPN Producers and directors are generally in one control room, while graphics and replay teams are in a separate room for social distancing reasons. - As for the stats person? "They're on Zoom," says Shiffman. Very relatable.
| | | | | | | | 3. 🏈 It's official: Deshaun Watson wants out |  | | | Photo: Christian Petersen/Getty Images | | | | After weeks of speculation about his future, it's confirmed: Texans QB Deshaun Watson has formally requested a trade, per ESPN's Adam Schefter. - Why it matters: This has the potential to be one of the biggest NFL trades in recent memory, akin to when the Saints traded their entire 1999 draft, plus two picks in 2000, to select Ricky Williams.
- Of note: Watson has a no-trade clause, meaning he can essentially choose where he lands.
Likeliest destinations, per The Draft Network: - Favorites: Jets, Dolphins, Panthers
- They have to call: Washington, Bears, Raiders, 49ers, Broncos, Colts
- Everyone would hate this: Cowboys, Patriots
The big picture: There should probably be a "30 for 30" about this dark period in Houston sports history. The Astros scandal ... the Harden saga ... DeAndre Hopkins' ugly exit ... and now this. | | | | | | | | A message from Axios | | NEW: Axios Local delivers news for your hometown | | |  | | | | Get a daily digest of what's new in your hometown with our new Axios Local newsletters. Launching with the Twin Cities, Tampa Bay, Des Moines, Charlotte and Denver with more cities to come. Subscribe for free | | | | | | 4. ⚡️ Lightning round | Source: @naomiosaka (Twitter) ⚽️ Naomi Osaka, Forbes' highest-paid female athlete according to last year's ranking, has become a part owner of the NWSL's North Carolina Courage. 🏈 25% of Americans plan to attend gatherings to watch the Super Bowl despite the pandemic, per a recent Seton Hall Sports poll. ⚾️ Masahiro Tanaka will return to Japan to pitch for the Rakuten Golden Eagles after spending seven seasons with the Yankees. He was one of the MLB's most consistent starting pitchers, going 78-46 with a 3.74 ERA in 173 starts. 🏀 Bears dominance: This century, just four D-I men's college hoops teams have started 15-0 while outscoring opponents by 25+ points per game: 2007-08 Kansas (national champ), 2009-10 Texas, 2010-11 Ohio State and this year's Baylor squad. 🍿 Watch: "The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers" comes out on Disney+ in March, and the new trailer is great. The show directly follows the timeline of the 1992 film and Emilio Estevez is back as Gordon Bombay. | | | | | | | | 5. 🏈 College football is back this weekend |  | | | Notre Dame's Ian Book practices with the National Team. Photo: Collegiate Images/Getty Images | | | | 136 graduating college seniors (or fourth-year juniors) will take the field in front of ~6,200 fans and NFL scouts tomorrow for the 72nd annual Senior Bowl, Jeff writes. Details: - TV: 2:30pm ET (NFL Network)
- Location: University of South Alabama
- Coaches: Panthers coach Matt Rhule will lead the American team, while Dolphins coach Brian Flores will lead the National team.
Why it matters: This is the highest profile All-Star game since the pandemic began, and while having so many athletes converge on one location right now is a risk, everyone involved felt it was too important not to try. - For those who didn't play in the fall (injured, opted out, FCS, D-III), this could be their last, best chance for an in-person, pre-draft audition given the unorthodox combine and pro days to come.
- "I have an FCS and a D-III guy, who didn't get to play this year. This is their Super Bowl," agent Ron Slavin told SI.
Top prospects: - WR DeVonta Smith (Alabama)
- WR Kadarius Toney (Florida)
- QB Mac Jones (Alabama)
- DE Carlos Basham Jr. (Wake Forest)
- OT Alex Leatherwood (Alabama)
- S Hamsah Nasirildeen (FSU)
- QB Kyle Trask (Florida)
- OT Liam Eichenberg (Notre Dame)
- RB Najee Harris (Alabama)
- DT Levi Onwuzurike (Washington)
Between the lines: While the Dolphins and Panthers each sent full staffs, the other 30 NFL teams are limited to parties of 10 — a distinct disadvantage compared to past years. - "The idea my head coach isn't going to be face-to-face with any one of these guys before the draft is unfathomable," said one NFC executive.
Go deeper: | | | | | | | | 6. 🏀 NBA signals further interest in PE funding |  | | | Illustration: Eniola Odetunde/Axios | | | | The NBA is opening the door a little wider for private equity funds, which to date have been largely excluded from investing in its franchises, Axios' Dan Primack writes. Driving the news: The league's board of governors has approved a framework whereby a PE fund could own up to 20% in a single franchise, and stakes in up to five franchises, as first reported by Sportico and confirmed by Axios. The backdrop: In 2019, the NBA began thinking about creating an investment fund that would buy small equity stakes in a portfolio of teams. - Part of the goal was to provide liquidity options for minority owners, while part was to help finance new team purchases (as skyrocketing prices had limited the buyer universe).
- Then it changed course, essentially giving exclusive purchasing power to Dyal Capital Partners, which set out to raise a $2 billion fund specifically focused on NBA franchise stakes.
- Now the NBA is expanding the universe of potential buyers beyond just Dyal.
Between the lines: There are some caveats. The most significant is that participating funds must be long-dated, or have at least 10 years of investment cycle runway in from of them. - That knocks out most active PE funds, but there are several that would qualify. And, of course, new ones could get raised with this in mind.
- An NBA spokesman declined to comment on this story.
The bottom line: The rules of the game are changing. | | | | | | | | 7. 🌍 Photos 'round the world | | Photo: Sebastian Salom-Gomis/AFP via Getty Images LES SABLES-D'OLONNE, France — France's Yannick Bestaven won the Vendée Globe, "the most grueling sailing event ever conceived." He was third across the line but won because of his 10-hour time bonus for helping rescue a competitor. Photo: VCG via Getty Images BEIJING, China — The National Speed Skating Oval, also known as the "Ice Ribbon," will host speed skating events at the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics. Photo: Warren Little/Getty Images DUBAI, U.A.E. — Can't get enough of these photos from the Dubai Desert Classic. | | | | | | | | 8. Jan. 29, 1936 & 1963: 🏅 Inaugural HOF classes | | Photo: Bettmann Archives/Getty Images 85 years ago today, the votes were tallied for baseball's inaugural Hall of Fame class. Unlike today, active players were fair game. - Inaugural class: Ty Cobb (222 of 226 votes); Babe Ruth (215); Honus Wagner (215); Christy Mathewson (205); Walter Johnson (189)
- Fun fact: Of the 50 players to show up on that first ballot, only eight failed to eventually make the Hall.
Photo: Bettmann Archives/Getty Images 57 years ago today, the inaugural class of the Pro Football Hall of Fame was announced. The 17 entrants comprised 11 players and six coaches/executives. - Players: Sammy Baugh, Red Grange, Don Hutson, Dutch Clark, Bronko Nagurski, Mel Hein, Pete Henry, Cal Hubbard, John McNally, Ernie Nevers, Jim Thorpe.
- Coaches/execs: Bert Bell, Joe Carr, George Halas, Curly Lambeau, Tim Mara and George Marshall.
Looking ahead ... The Class of 2021 will be revealed on Feb. 6, the day before the Super Bowl. | | | | | | | | 9. 🏒 NHL trivia |  | | | Photo: Rob Carr/Getty Images | | | | Zdeno Chara scored his first goal with the Capitals in a 6-3 win over the Islanders, which marked his 1,561st career regular-season game. - Question: Who are the only two active players with more regular-season games under their belt?
- Hint: They play the same position.
Answer at the bottom. | | | | | | | | 10. 🎥 Thursday's top plays |  | | | Photo: Rich Schultz/Getty Images | | | | Myles Johnson had 13 points and 14 rebounds as Rutgers beat Michigan State for the first time ever. He also made top plays. Have a night, young man! - 🏀 Putback poster
- 🏀 Bradley ties it!
- ⚽️ What a strike
- 🏒 Baseball on ice
- 🏀 Ferocious alley oop
Watch all 5. | | | | | | | | A message from Axios | | NEW: Axios Local delivers news for your hometown | | | | | | | | Get a daily digest of what's new in your hometown with our new Axios Local newsletters. Launching with the Twin Cities, Tampa Bay, Des Moines, Charlotte and Denver with more cities to come. Subscribe for free | | | | Enjoy the weekend, Kendall "Friday vibe" Baker Trivia answer: Patrick Marleau (1,731 games) and Joe Thornton (1,641) | | Invite friends to follow Axios Sports Use your personal link to track how many readers you bring into the community  You currently have 00 referrals. Share with a friend For questions email referralsupport@axios.com. Participation in the Axios Sports Referral Program constitutes your acceptance of the Axios Terms and Conditions of Use, which can be viewed here. | | | | Axios thanks our partners for supporting our newsletters.
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