GREG COTE'S RANDOM EVIDENCE BLOG: MIAMI. SPORTS. AND BEYOND
1) It's MONDAY, JULY 5. Hope y'all had a Happy Independence Day, my fellow Americans! And made it a safe one. 2) Follow the Greg Cote Show podcast on Twitter and Instagram. 3) In The Previous Blogpost (ITPB): 'NIL' means new era in college sports, Greedy NBA gets the asterisk champ it deserves, Panthers to host 2023 NHL All-Star Weekend, Time for sports to tell Cole Beasley he's wrong, Greg Cote Show podcast & more. 4) Join me on Twitter and Instagram.
GREG COTE SHOW PODCAST: NEW EPISODE OUT NOW!: Our new 26th episode of 2021 and 68th overall is out now! A new pod drops every Monday at 7 a.m. ET on Apple, Spotify, Google, Amazon, Stitcher, Megaphone, iHeart -- wherever you pod, and of course at MiamiHerald.com. You can find all 68 we've done so far HERE, for free. In our new episode Greg and Chris go solo -- no guests. Well, OK, Dan Le Batard makes a brief but memorable appearance if that counts. The guys discuss this week's golfing trip to Lake Tahoe, where Greg and Chris will be in a fivesome with Stugotz, former pro tennis player Mardy Fish and Earth, Wind & Fire lead singer Philip Bailey. Also we discuss college sports' new Name-Image-Likeness (NIL) rule and the proposed expansion to a 12-team College Football Playoff. And there's a new Mount Gregmore! Thanks as always for the support, pod family. Please listen, rate, review and follow! (Our pod simulcasts on Sirius XM, too, every Monday 5-6 p.m. ET on Channel 145).
Our most recent columns: 'I'm D'Eriq King For College Hunks Hauling Junk!' It's Strange New World in College Sports / Injury-Wrecked Playoffs, Asterisk Champion: Why Greedy NBA Is Getting What It Deserves / Better 2 Years Late Than Never, Panthers Get 2023 NHL All-Star Weekend / Time For Sports To Quit Hiding, Stand Up And Lead The Pro-Vaccine Fight / and Nassib Coming Out As Gay NFL Player A Milestone In Sports History. Also: Fate Snatched Basketball From Chris Bosh. His new Book Is Part of His Journey Of Healing / Here's What Else Must Go Right (Besides Tua) For Dolphins To Continue Momentum / Rumors, Speculation and the Truth on Spoelstra, Lillard and Heat / and Wanted: A 'Next Big Thing' In Men's Tennis, Golf.
HOT BUTTON TOP 10 (JULY 4-5): WHAT SOUTH FLORIDA SPORTS FANS ARE TALKING ABOUT: Our blog-exclusive Sunday-into-Monday feature is part week-in-review, part look-ahead. Hot Button means what's on our minds, locally and nationally, from a Miami perspective, as the sports week just past pivots to the week ahead. This week's HB10:
Overriding everything, prayers and sympathy to the victims and families affected by the Surfside condominium collapse that has killed at least 24 and left more than 120 unaccounted for.
1. HURRICANES: King, UM lead way as game-changing 'NIL Rule' kicks in: Name. Image. Likeness. (NIL). It joined the lexicon of college sports this past week as athletes became eligible to barter themselves for financial profit. Canes QB D'Eriq King quickly struck a deal with College Hunks Hauling Junk movers, a Tampa car dealership and The Wharf Miami restaurant/bar. Also, UM launched 'Ignite,’ an initiative to help athletes grow their brand and make money off their NIL.
2. NBA: It's a Bucks-Suns NBA Finals: An NBA postseason steered by injuries has left us a Milwaukee-Phoenix Finals that few outside of those fandoms can be all that thrilled about. Suns eliminated the Kawhi-less Clippers, then Bucks got past a Hawks squad with Trae Young hobbled. Milwaukee seeks its first title since 1971 and Phoenix its first ever starting with Game 1 Tuesday.
3. HEAT: Spoelstra to coach USA Select Team this week: Miami coach Erik Spoelstra was named head coach of the USA Select Team that will help prepare the main U.S. men's national team (which includes the Heat's Bam Adebayo) for the Tokyo Olympics beginning in three weeks. The training camp will be this Tuesday through Friday in Las Vegas. The 14 Select Team members, mostly young NBA players, include Miami's Tyler Herro.
4. MARLINS: Big homestand on deck closes first half: After completing a road swing with a loss in Atlanta Sunday, Marlins finish the first half of the schedule heading into the All-Star break with a seven-game homestand. It starts Monday with four against the red-hot Dodgers, then three vs. the rival Braves. Miami has disappointed so far at 35-47, good for the NL East cellar. Meanwhile the Fish swung a minor deal, acquiring INF Joe Panik and RHP Andrew McInvale from Toronto for OF Corey Dickerson and RHP Adam Cimber.
5. PANTHERS: Florida to host 2023 NHL All-Star Weekend: Cats were supposed to host in '21 but the pandemic canceled the event. The '22 weekend went to Vegas. Better two years late than never, the Panthers will host the league's '23 All-Star Game and surrounding hoopla. Meanwhile, Florida added Tuomo Ruutu to the coaching staff as an assistant. He'd been in player development with the Rangers.
6. SOCCER: Euro '20 reaches semifinals! Finally England's time?: Italy vs. Spain on Tuesday. England vs. Denmark on Wednesday. Winners for the UEFA championship of Europe next Sunday at Wembley Stadium. Spain has won two Euro title and Italy and Denmark one each, while England is still seeking it first. Finally time foe the nation of the throne to be crowned at home?
7. NHL: Lightning embarrassing Canadians in Final: Tampa Bay is up 3-0 on Montreal and by a combine 14-5 score in a lopsided Stanley Cup Final. Canadians try to save face and stay alive and avoid being swept in Game 4 Monday/tonight at home. Canada is trying to claim its first Stanley Cup since Montreal won it in 1993, but needs a miracle on ice.
8. INTER MIAMI: Miserable skid continues for Team Beckham: Inter Miami is 2-2-7 with five straight losses after Saturday's 1-0 fall at Montreal. The second-year squad is now next-to-last in the MLS standings as David Beckham and coach Phil Neville search for missing answers. Miami doesn't play again until July 17.
9. TENNIS: Wimbledon at midpoint finds top seeds still alive: No.1s Ash Barty and Novak Djokovic won Monday to lead a full slate of fourth-round matches to kick off the final week of Wimbledon in London. Results will bring us to the quarterfinals starting Tuesday. Though depleted of some starpower by injuries and key withdrawals, at least the top seeds survive to front the 16 men and 16 women still contending for major hardware.
10. SOCCER: Copa America semifinals, title match this week: It'll be host Brazil vs. Peru on Monday and Lionel Messi's Argentina vs. Colombia Tuesday in a stout Copa America semifinal round, the winners advancing to next Saturday's championship match in Rio de Janeiro. Copa America is tantamount to the South American championship. It would be Messi's first trophy in a major senior tournament.
Missing the HB10 cut: Sha’Carri Richardson should be running in Tokyo ..... Joey Chestnut seeks his 14th mustard belt today in the annual Nathan's Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog-Eating Contest --- the most vile, stomach-turning event televised ..... Bryson DeChambeau and Aaron Rodgers are betting picks over Phil Mickelson and Tom Brady in The Match IV on Tuesday in Montana ..... The CONCACAF Gold Cup, the main soccer tournament for region of North and Central America and Caribbean -- dominated by Mexico and the U.S. -- begins next Saturday July 10 and runs through August 1. U.S. is not fielding its A-team; no Christian Pulisic, for example. Americans will be in Group B (and play in Kansas City) with Canada, Martinique and a team to be determined in a prelim round running in Fort Lauderdale through Tuesday among Barbados, Bermuda, Haiti and St. Vincent and the Grenadines ..... NFL fined Jaguars $200,000 and Sneaky Urban Meyer 100K for violating OTA practice restrictions. Cowboys and 49ers were fined lesser amounts ..... Vladimir Guerrero and Fernando Tatis were leading vote-getters in each league for the July 13 MLB All-Star Game in Denver ..... MLB Draft begins next Sunday July 11 ..... Tour de France update: The loony woman with the sign got arrested. Updates as needed ..... NFL has had a gay player (Carl Nassib) for more than a week now and league is still operating. Everything is OK! ..... Mark Richt revealed he has Parkinson's. Our best wishes are with him ..... Mississippi State beat Vanderbilt to win the men's College World Series ..... Latest Dolphins Challenge Cancer event raised a record $6.3 million, club announced, bringing 11-year total $45.5M ..... The Greg Cote Show podcast is out with a new episode dropping Monday at 7 a.m. ET ..... Update: Countdown now 1,821 days (give or take) until Miami hosts its first match in soccer's 2026 World Cup.
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ARCHIVES
Select other recent columns: Where's Tua? Ranking Our Top 15 South Florida Pro Athletes 25 And Younger / As Teams Like Miami Pray For Right QB, Packers' Disrespect Of Rodgers Is Galling / Messi-to-Miami Is Shot of Hope David Beckham's Troubled Soccer Club Needs / Miami Heat, With No Answers, Put Out of Misery In Game 4 Loss To Milwaukee / Another Early Panthers Playoff Exit Ends An Encouraging Season Too Soon / Pythons, Peppers, Pirate Flag Raised. Inside Le Batard's 24-Hour Triumph / The Curious, Complicated Drama Of Naomi Osaka's French Open Withdrawal / Hall of Fame Snubbed Chris Bosh Last year. Time To Make it Right / Aging Ex-Dolphins Reflect On Own Mortality One Year After Shula's Death / Aaron Rodgers' Packers Drama Involves Miami (Of Course). But Here's Why It Won't Happen / Grade-A Draft Feeds Momentum For Team-On-the-Rise Dolphins / Le Batard Bet On Himself And His Audience -- And Won Big / Justice For George Floyd Helps Heal Our Shaken Faith, But Fight For Equality Goes On / What Would Jackie Robinson Think About Race In America Today? / It Won't Fix the World, But Matsuyama's Masters Win Lifts Japan In Time Of Anti-Asian Hate / Talk Of U.S. Olympic Boycott A Reminder Sports, Politics Are Entwined -- And That's Good / How And Why the Miami Heat Landing Kawhi Leonard This Summer Could Happen / Even After Playoffs In '20, Marlins Still 'Bottom Feeders' Fighting For Respect / Special Opening Day as Marlins Welcome Back Fans, Feeling Of Hope / In History And In Hearts, Howard Schnellenberger Will Matter For All Time / Beckham Keeps Name-Dropping Messi, Ronaldo For Inter Miami. Can He Deliver? / Women Keep Accusing Deshaun Watson of Sexual Misconduct. But Will It Matter to NFL Teams? / Phil Reflects on 25-Year Rivalry/Friendship With Tiger As Honda Classic Tees Off / Reality, Loss, Comeback: How Sports Has Been Guiding Light In America's Awful Past Year / Heat Should Parts Ways With Meyers Leonard Over Anti-Semitic Slur / Beckham's Resolve Tested By Tumult As Inter Miami Nears 2nd MLS Season / Time-Travelling To 1960s And Childhood, When The Baseball Card Was King / Quit Lecturing LeBron On Activism And His Own Conscience / Michael Jordan, Pitbull Signal Needed New Era as NASCAR Returns to Homestead / Doesn't Matter If Tiger Woods Never Wins Again. We Are Lucky He's Alive / Loss at Aussie Open Leaves Serena's Legacy Firm Yet Still Unfinished / Inter Miami's Beckham Risks Stepping Into Massive, Avoidable Mess / Put Brady In Sports' All-Time Pantheon. But He Has Company / Final Herald NFL 2020 QB Rankings / Marlins Hit History-Making Home Run With Kim NG Hire As GM / In a Pandemic-Battered Season For FIU, Butch Davis' Love Of Coaching Survives / Don Shula, 1930-2020, R.I.P. / and What Shula Meant to a Father & Son. The Boy Was Me.
Revisit this blog often because it updates regularly. The Associated Press Sports Editors writing awards ranked the blog's author a Top 10 national sports columnist in the major-outlet category. Greg is also a regular on the Dan Le Batard Show With Stugotz. Finding Greg: Twitter. Instagram. Facebook. Columns. Podcast. Podcast on Twitter. Podcast on Instagram. LeBatard Show. Book: Fins At 50. Songs: Letting Go (audio only) and The Ballad Of 1440 (with video).
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