šŸ€ The USA wouldn't let it happen again...

Plus, this former hooper does what?

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ITS PLAYOFF TIME!

Okay, itā€™s just the FIBA playoffs. But even without Kawhi Leonardā€™s fading buzzer beaters or Mike Breenā€™s iconic calls, basketball is basketball. And we love us some international hoops. Let get into it!

Todayā€™s Lineup

Mamma Mia šŸ: The USA wasnā€™t playing around against Italyā€¦

The ā€œ-vicā€s šŸ‡·šŸ‡ø: Serbia just thrashed the Lithuanian team that beat the Americans on Sunday.

Golden Years šŸ‘“: How this former player helps out retired hoopers!

But first, try your hand at this:

Who has the most regular season double-doubles of all time?

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World Cup Action šŸ‡µšŸ‡­ 

Itā€™s win or go home in the FIBA World Cup, so letā€™s take a look at the high-stakes matchups that have happened in the quarterfinals so far.

šŸ‡ŗšŸ‡ø USA blew out šŸ‡®šŸ‡¹ Italy, 100-63

Unfortunately for Italy, the USA said enough was enough after losing to Lithuania three days ago. But weā€™ll keep the pizza and pasta, thanks!

Mikal Bridges led the squad offensively to the tune of a smooth 24 points. Tyrese Haliburton and Paolo Banchero had an electric fast break alley-oop that had us reminiscing about Lob City. Plus, the American defense held Italy to its lowest point total in international tournaments in over fifty yearsā€¦ šŸ˜Æ

How do you think Tony Soprano, the greatest Italian-American of all time, would feel about the USA beating Italy?

šŸ‡·šŸ‡ø Serbia beat šŸ‡±šŸ‡¹ Lithuania, 87-68

Even without Nikola Jokic, Serbia is STILL nasty in international play. Bogdan Bogdanovic (21 points) proved Shaqā€™s comments on ā€œ-vić playersā€ to be true. Serbia was also motivated by the absence of Borisa Simanic, who had two surgeries and lost a kidney after an injury against South Sudan.

As for Lithuania? We like to joke that Jonas Valanciunas is basically FIBAā€™s version of Shaquille Oā€™Neal, but yesterday he looked a little more like Celtics Shaq.

Lakers Add ANOTHER Weapon

The Lakers already had arguably the best offseason in the NBA, bringing in Gabe Vincent, Taurean Prince, Cam Reddish and Jaxson Hayes in addition to re-signing Rui Hachimura, Dā€™Angelo Russell, and Austin Reaves on mostly team-friendly deals. But this next move puts the cherry on topā€¦

Does Christian Wood have his defensive issues? Definitely. But centers who shoot 38% from three donā€™t grow on trees, and getting him for 2 years/$5.7 million is great value. Wood becomes another weapon in LAā€™s toolkit, and if anyone can get Wood thriving again, itā€™s LeBron! šŸ‘‘

Golden Years šŸ‘“

Throughout our Golden Years segments, weā€™ve told you about household NBA names and what theyā€™ve been up to in retirement. But today, weā€™re discussing someone who was on the ends of benches and scraping to make training camps throughout his career.

Throughout his four-year career with New Jersey and Atlanta, Mario West only played 162 games in the Association. But during his time in the league, he learned that professional athletes often struggle with bankruptcy and depression once the crowds fadeā€”as recently described in an article in The Guardian. So West devoted his post-NBA career to this issue, as he explains here:

Since 2019, West has led the National Basketball Players Associationā€™s Off The Court program, which helps retired hoopers transition to life after basketball. Off The Courtā€™s programming focuses on five main pillars: mental health, physical health, financial literacy, brotherhood, and professional development.

ā€œAs a former player myself, I know how difficult it can be, mentally and physically, to walk away from a game you devoted your whole life to. I hope to help players view this process as the beginning of a new chapterā€¦ as they transition away from their playing days.ā€

Mario West, Director of NBPAā€™s Off The Court

Weā€™re glad someone with Westā€™s level of enthusiasm and compassion is working to help these hoopers be the best humans they can be! šŸ

Legit Football

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Frozen Moments

  • The Hornets GM made a brutally honest joke during PJ Washingtonā€™s welcome back press conferenceā€¦ šŸ˜‚ 

  • Check out yesterdayā€™s best plays from NBA players in the FIBA World Cup! šŸ€ 

  • Do you think these two players had a higher basketball IQ than Rajon Rondo? šŸ¤“

What Weā€™re Enjoying

We are PUMPED for Loki Season 2ā€”we think itā€™s the best project in MCUā€™s Phase 4. Take a look at the trailer that just dropped:

And whether itā€™s basketball, football, or badminton, thereā€™s nothing we love more than an upset. On Monday night, a basketball school dominated a football school on the gridironā€”check out the highlights from unranked Dukeā€™s win over #9 Clemson:

Signing Off

Before we say goodbye, make sure to send your good wishes to Trey Murphy III, who hurt his meniscus in practice and will be out for anywhere from six weeks to a few months. Weā€™ll fill you in as the full story develops, but prayers up! šŸ™ Letā€™s all appreciate our health in this moment, folks. Itā€™s our biggest asset! Take it easy.

Trivia Answer: If weā€™re talking consistency, the answer will always be Timmy D! The Big Fundamental posted a double-double in 841 of his 1,392 regular season games.

Before you goā€¦

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In your best Mike Breen impression, what did you think of today's newsletter?

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