| | | | | | | | | | | Axios Sports | | By Kendall Baker · May 13, 2022 | | π Happy Friday! If you like Game 7s, Saturday's NHL slate may be of interest. Today's word count: 1,485 words (6 minutes). Let's sports... | | | | | | 1 big thing: π The great reveal |  | | | Illustration: AΓ―da Amer/Axios | | | | The NFL released its full 2022 schedule on Thursday night, Axios' Jeff Tracy writes. How it works: The matchups are determined by a formula at the end of the previous season. Then, computers and humans set the actual schedule. - We've known for months what every matchup would be, this was simply a reveal of when.
- Only the NFL could turn such a mundane event into a nationally-televised spectacle.
The great reveal: All 32 teams produced elaborate videos to celebrate the occasion — and give their social media teams a chance to flex. - AFC East: Bills, Patriots, Dolphins, Jets
- AFC North: Bengals, Steelers, Browns, Ravens
- AFC South: Titans, Colts, Texans, Jaguars
- AFC West: Chiefs, Raiders, Chargers, Broncos
- NFC East: Cowboys, Eagles, Commanders, Giants
- NFC North: Packers, Vikings, Bears, Lions
- NFC South: Buccaneers, Saints, Falcons, Panthers
- NFC West: Rams, Cardinals, 49ers, Seahawks
Notes: - Opening night: The defending champion Rams host Josh Allen and the Bills on Thursday, Sept. 8.
- Homecoming: The Seahawks open their season at home against Russell Wilson and the Broncos on "Monday Night Football."
- TNF on Amazon: The Chiefs host the Chargers in Week 2 for the first of 15 Thursday night games exclusive to Amazon Prime.
- Vegas baby, Vegas: Sin City and the NFL are still a new pairing. Fans of the eight visiting teams may want to book their trips now: Cardinals (Week 2), Broncos (4), Texans (7), Colts (10), Chargers (13), Patriots (15), 49ers (17) and Chiefs (18).
- Thanksgiving: Bills at Lions; Giants at Cowboys; Patriots at Vikings.
- Christmas: Packers at Dolphins; Broncos at Rams; Bucs at Cardinals.
Go deeper: |     | | | | | | 2. ππ Playoffs: Heat, Blues advance | | Jimmy Butler is feeling good. Photo: Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images NBA, Round 2: James Harden pulled a Ben Simmons as the 76ers were eliminated by the Heat ... A fired up Luka DonΔiΔ led the Mavericks past the Suns to force Game 7. By the numbers: Jimmy Butler, who has been incredible all postseason, had his fourth straight 30-point road game. Go deeper: Embiid critiques Harden, praises Butler (ESPN) The three-peat is still alive. Photo: Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images NHL, Round 1: The Blues eliminated the Wild, while the Bruins, Lightning (OT game-winner) and Oilers staved off elimination. By the numbers: Evander Kane has seven goals this postseason. The only Oilers with more through six playoff games? Wayne Gretzky (8) and Mark Messier (9). Go deeper: The NHL playoffs finally feel right again (STL Today) | | | | | | | | 3. π₯ Stop and search causes national outrage |  | | | Screenshot: YouTube | | | | The Delaware State women's lacrosse team recently saw a traffic stop in Georgia turn into a search for drugs. Now, the HBCU is demanding answers, Jeff writes. Why it matters: The school believes this was a case of racial profiling and is pursuing legal recourse as the incident — which was caught on video — gains national attention. Details: The lacrosse team was returning home from a game in Florida on April 20 when their bus was pulled over in Liberty County, Georgia, for driving in the wrong lane. - Players noticed their bags from under the bus were being searched by officers, all of whom were white (bodycam footage). They then boarded the bus and said they were looking for drugs.
- "If there is something in [your luggage] ... please tell me now because if we find it, guess what? We're not going to be able to help you," said the officer (video). "Marijuana is still illegal in the state of Georgia."
- The players don't believe the police had probable cause. No drugs were found and no citations were given. The initial stop is also being contested since the lane they were in restricts trucks, not buses.
What they're saying: "The biggest surprise was seeing the dogs immediately pulled out," one player told SI. "That shows the immediate effects of driving while Black." The other side: William Bowman, Liberty County's first Black sheriff, told the Savannah Morning News that the search was legal because it was prompted by a K9 dog "alerting" the officers to something (subscription). He admitted they "frequently have false positive alerts." | | | | | | | | A message from Axios | | Share Axios Sports and earn rewards | | |  | | | | Get free Axios merchandise when you refer your friends to Axios. The more subscribers you refer, the bigger the rewards! Start sharing. | | | | | | 4. ⚡️ Lightning round |  | | | Photo: Rob Carr/Getty Images | | | | π Rich Strike out: Kentucky Derby winner Rich Strike won't run in the Preakness Stakes next weekend to give him more time to recover. Bad news for the race, NBC and the Triple Crown, but seemingly the right decision for the horse, which you love to see. ⛳️ Another 60: Sebastian MuΓ±oz shot a 12-under 60 at the AT&T Byron Nelson on Thursday, becoming the first player in PGA Tour history with two rounds of 60 in the same season. π New hardware: The NBA has unveiled six reimagined postseason trophies. One big addition: There will now be Conference Finals MVP trophies named after Magic Johnson (West) and Larry Bird (East). ⚾️ Double TOOTBLAN: TOOTBLAN is an acronym that stands for "Thrown out on the basepaths like a nincompoop." The Nationals ran into the rare Double TOOTBLAN on Thursday. | | | | | | | | 5. π΄ Stat du jour: South Florida double |  | | | Photo: GraphicaArtis/Getty Images | | | | This is the 75th season in which the NBA and the NHL will both crown champions, and never has the same city or market won both titles in the same year. The intrigue: South Florida — of all places — has a very real chance to make winter sports history by taking home both trophies this year. - The first-place Heat are in the East Finals and have the second-best odds to win the NBA title, per FiveThirtyEight (21% chance).
- The first-place Panthers are up 3-2 on the Capitals and have the second-best odds to win the Stanley Cup (15% chance).
| | | | | | | | 6. ⚾️ Manny takes center stage |  | | | Photo: Denis Poroy/Getty Images | | | | Manny Machado is having an incredible start to the season and will be on national broadcasts all weekend — Apple TV+ on Friday, FS1 on Saturday and Peacock on Sunday, Jeff writes. By the numbers: Machado has led the Padres to a sterling 20-12 record despite the absence of Fernando Tatis Jr. and Blake Snell. He leads MLB in batting average (.383), hits (46), runs (27) and both versions of WAR, making him the early NL MVP favorite. The big picture: Machado, 29, has three top-five MVP finishes and signed a then-record $300 million deal in 2019, but he's long been overshadowed by Mike Trout and Bryce Harper, who debuted around the same time, and now Tatis in San Diego. This could be the year that changes. Go deeper: Will Machado reach 3,000 hits? (The Athletic) | | | | | | | | 7. πΊ Watchlist: Game 7, baby |  | | | Evander Kane holding up seven fingers. Photo: Harry How/Getty Images | | | | Saturday's NHL slate is about as good as it gets for hockey fans: Three Game 7s, back-to-back-to-back. More to watch: - π NBA playoffs: Celtics (down 3-2) at Bucks (Fri. 7:30pm, ESPN); Grizzlies (down 3-2) at Warriors (Fri. 10pm, ESPN); Mavericks (tied 3-3) at Suns (Sun. TBD)
- π NHL playoffs: Rangers (down 3-2) at Penguins (Fri. 7pm, TNT); Panthers (up 3-2) at Capitals (Fri. 7:30pm, TBS); Flames (up 3-2) at Stars (Fri. 9:30pm, TNT)
- ⚾️ MLB: Padres at Braves (Fri. 7:20pm, Apple TV+; Sat. 4pm, FS1; Sun. 11:35am, Peacock); Cubs at Diamondbacks (Fri. 9:40pm, Apple TV+); Giants at Cardinals (Sun. 7pm, ESPN)
- π Hockey World Championship: Group stage (Fri-Sun, NHL)
- π₯ Men's lacrosse: NCAA tournament first round (Sat-Sun, ESPNU)
- π₯ Women's lacrosse: NCAA tournament first and second rounds (Fri-Sun, ESPN+)
- π USFL: Week 5 (Fri-Sun, USA/Fox/NBC)
- ⚽️ Men's FA Cup Final: Liverpool vs. Chelsea (Sat. 11:45am, ESPN+)
- ⚽️ Women's FA Cup Final: Man City vs. Chelsea (Sun. 9:30am, ESPN+)
- ⚽️ NWSL: Portland vs. OL Reign (Fri. 10:30pm, CBSSN); Washington vs. Angel City (Sun. 5pm, Paramount+)
- ⚽️ MLS: Atlanta vs. New England (Sun. 1:30pm, ESPN); Seattle vs. Minnesota (Sun. 4pm, ESPN)
- π WNBA: Mercury at Storm (Sat. 3pm, ABC); Sky at Lynx (Sat. 8pm, NBA); Dream at Fever (Sun. 3pm, Prime)
- ⛳️ Golf: AT&T Byron Nelson (Fri-Sun, ESPN+/Golf/CBS)
- π NASCAR: AdventHealth 400 at Kansas Speedway (Sun. 3pm, FS1)
- πΎ Tennis: Italian Open (Fri-Sun, Tennis)
| | | | | | | | 8. π± The Ocho: Trick shot | Courtesy: @trickshot_ceo (Instagram) So satisfying. | | | | | | | | 9. ⚽️ Soccer trivia |  | | | Photo: Clive Rose/Getty Images | | | | Tottenham's Son Heung-Min scored his 21st goal of the season on Thursday, the most ever by an Asian player in the big five European leagues. - Question: Who's the only player with more Premier League goals this season?
- Hint: Also not from Europe.
Answer at the bottom. | | | | | | | | 10. π 1 hoops thing: Mano a mano |  | | | Illustration: Rebecca Zisser/Axios | | | | Tracy McGrady has launched Ones Basketball League, a 1-on-1 league that will crown champions in seven cities before a winner-take-all event for $250,000 in Las Vegas. "My sons and my AAU guys ... don't watch NBA basketball or NCAA basketball. They just don't have the attention span ... They [watch] YouTube highlights, and it's these kids going around ... playing pickup ball ... games always turning into 1-on-1." Food for thought: How would you design your ideal 1-on-1 basketball player? Here's McGrady's build: - Body: LeBron James
- Shot: Steph Curry
- Handle: Kyrie Irving
- Footwork: Kobe Bryant
| | | | | | | | A message from Axios | | Share Axios Sports and earn rewards | | |  | | | | Get free Axios merchandise when you refer your friends to Axios. The more subscribers you refer, the bigger the rewards! Start sharing. | | | | Enjoy the weekend, Kendall "Playoff Jimmy" Baker Trivia answer: Liverpool's Mo Salah (22 goals) π Thanks for reading. Follow us on Twitter: @kendallbaker and @jeffreytracy. Tell your friends to sign up. |  | It's called Smart Brevity®. Over 200 orgs use it — in a tool called Axios HQ — to drive productivity with clearer workplace communications. | | | | | | Axios thanks our partners for supporting our newsletters. If you're interested in advertising, learn more here.
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