Latest Hot Button Top 10 (updated): Seven different sports make the list this week. See who's No. 1 and what else ranks where; plus new Greg Cote Show podcast with Ricky Williams out now, my baseball-card sojourn back in time column & more
GREG COTE'S RANDOM EVIDENCE BLOG: MIAMI. SPORTS. AND BEYOND
1) It's MONDAY, MARCH 8. Search out last Tuesday's Le Batard Show podcasts for heavy doses of me including the garage/baseball cards segment and the new 'Back In My Day.' 2) The Greg Cote Show podcast is separately on Twitter and Instagram. Join us on both! 3) In The Previous Blogpost (ITPB): Rediscovering a treasure of 1960s baseball cards, Quit lecturing LeBron on activism, Why Dolphins' Tua/Deshaun dilemma is so complicated, Greg Cote Show podcast's 1st anniversary episode & more. 4) Join me on Twitter and Instagram.
GREG COTE SHOW PODCAST: NEW EPISODE WITH RICKY WILLIAMS OUT NOW!: On the heel of last week's 1st Anniversary episode, our new 10th podcast of 2021 and 52nd overall is out now it features former NFL and Dolphins star Ricky Williams! A new pod drops every Monday morning on Apple, Spotify, Google, Stitcher, Megaphone, iHeart -- wherever you pod, and of course at MiamiHerald.com. You can find all 52 we've done so far HERE for free. In our new Ep10 of '21, we catch the enigmatic, mercurial Ricky in a good mood in a illuminating conversation that touches on football, astrology, cannabis, Le Batard and more. Also on the menu: Cap'n Crunch, LeBron vs. Zlatan, knees to the head in UFC, the new Mount Gregmore (Chris hates it as usual) and more. Ricky Williams was great so don't miss this new episode! Thanks as always, pod family, for the support. Please listen, subscribe, rate and review!
Baseball cards, LeBron, Dolphins: Our most recent columns: Time-Travelling To The 1960s And Childhood, When The Baseball Card Was King / Quit Lecturing LeBron On Activism And His Own Conscience and Dolphins' Tua-or-Deshaun QB Choice Strewn with Complications and What-Ifs. Other recent columns: 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 / These Two Questions Will Determine Dolphins' Path On Watson Vs. Tua / Loss at Aussie Open Leaves Serena's Legacy Firm Yet Still Unfinished / Marlins Stick With Youth Blueprint As Rest Of NL East Spends Big / Oh Say Can You See No Anthem At Games? We Weigh In / Inter Miami's Beckham Risks Stepping Into Massive, Avoidable Mess / and Put Brady In Sports' All-Time Pantheon. But He Has Company.
HOT BUTTON TOP 10 (MARCH 7-8): 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:
1. NBA: Team LeBron on top in condensed 'All-Star Weekend' in Atlanta: Sunday night's 70th annual NBA All-Star Game was a no-fans, TV-only, one-day event because of COVID-19 -- Team LeBron beating Team Durant, 170-150. The Skills Challenge and 3-Point Contest were the pregame show in Atlanta, and the Slam-Dunk Contest the halftime show. It was a Heat shutout, as none of the events includes a Miami player.
2. HEAT: Miami sizzles into the midseason break: Struggling no more, Heat ended season's first half on a 7-1 run to get square at 18-18 and sit only one game out of fourth place in the NBA East -- with Jimmy Butler (20.5 scoring average) and Bam Adebayo (19.2) showing why they deserved the all-star nods they didn't get. Miami resumes play Thursday vs. Orlando.
3. MARLINS: Fish finally lose a spring game: Miami was atop the Grapefruit League standings at 4-0-1, the last team in the bigs to not lose this spring, before Saturday's loss to Nationals and then a second tie Sunday vs. the Mets. This week Miami signed pitcher Gio Gonzalez, 35, a Hialeah native with 131 career wins. Now let's see what's left in his tank and if he can make the rotation. Marlins play Cardinals today.
4. PANTHERS: Cats slip to third in division: Florida has cooled a bit, losing four of past seven after Sunday's 4-2 loss at Carolina. Florida still is 15-5-4, in third place in NHL Central but only two points off the lead. Panthers' five-game road trip wraps up with games at Columbus Tuesday and Thursday.
5. INTER MIAMI: Club dealing with two legal messes as MLS season nears: Year 2 in MLS begins April 17 for Miami, with the first of six preseason matches scheduled March 20 vs. Miami FC, a second-tier USL club. Meantime David Beckham's club is mired in two legal issues. MLS and Italy's Inter Miami are in settlement talks over Miami also using the word "Inter." And MLS is investigating Miami's signing last fall of French star Blaise Matuidi, and whether he was paid additional money in violation of league salary-budget guidelines.
6. UM BASKETBALL: Canes women ousted in ACCs, UM men on deck: Miami's women's team ended its season 11-11 with a one-and-done 72-64 loss Thursday to Virginia Tech in the ACC Tournament in Greensboro, N.C. ACC men's tourney is this Tuesday through Saturday. Injury-wracked Canes men enter at 8-16, their worst season record in 27 years.
7. COLLEGE BASKETBALL: March Madness dates announced: Canceled by COVID-19 a year ago, March Madness returns this spring, though with limited crowds and all games played in and around Indianapolis. NCAA announced Selection Sunday will be March 14 for the men, with play starting March 18 and the title game April 5. Women's field will be announced March 15.
8. HURRICANES: Spring football practice on deck: A month of offseason spring practice will begin March 13, next Saturday, with the first of 15 practices. Coach Manny Diaz's Canes return 19 of 22 starters from a team that finished 8-3 last season. Quarterback D’Eriq King, rehabbing from a Cheez-It Bowl knee injury, will be a notable spring absence.
9. SOCCER: Champions League will advance four clubs this week: Round of 16 second-leg matches this week will see four clubs move on to the April quarterfinals. Borussia Dortmund and FC Porto bring one-goal edges into their Tuesday matches. Paris-Saint Germain (three goals up) and Liverpool (two ahead) enjoy safer advantages on Wednesday.
10. GOLF: Thoughts with Tiger Woods as Players Championship begins: The Players Championship, maybe the PGA Tour's biggest non-major, begins this Thursday at TPC Sawgrass near Jacksonville. And as it does golf fans worldwide continue wishing the best for Tiger Woods as he recovers from the recent car accident that severely injured his right leg.
Missing the HB10 cut: Kyle Van Noy is way too good for the Dolphins not to want him back ..... An "illegal knee to the head"? Sure, because, in IUFC, your safety is paramount! ..... A used Blake Griffin, anyone? ..... Canes baseball entered the week ranked No. 8 but is only 4-4 entering today's game at N.C. State ..... Congrats, Maia Chaka, the NFL's first Black woman official ..... Outfielder/quarterback Kaden Martin committed to play baseball for the Hurricanes ..... Countdown 10 days 'til start of NFL free agency March 17 ..... Two-week countdown to the start of Miami Open tennis at Hard Rock Stadium ..... And NBA trade deadline looms on March 25 ..... America's Cup sailing is now underway in New Zealand! Be still my heart ..... seems to want played ..... The Greg Cote Show podcast's 10th episode of 2021 and 52nd overall drops Monday morning -- and debuts on Sirius XM Channel 145 ..... Update: Countdown now 1,940 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: Why Schilling Is To Blame For Falling Short Of Hall / Why A Brady-Mahomes Super Bowl Is Torture For Dolphins Fans / Chad Henne: Ex-Dolphin An Overnight Sensation, 13 Years Later / Final Herald NFL 2020 QB Rankings / Saban the New G.O.A.T. as Alabama Reigns in Miami / Promising Season For Dolphins, Tua Ends In Crushing Collapse/ 'A' For Effort, But King Hurt As Hurricanes' Bowl-Woes Continue / The King Is Dead! Dolphins Win Signals End of Era For Belichick, Pats / Heat Are Getting No Respect, But Didn't Earn Much In Opener / Le Batard Leaving ESPN, But Assures Fans They'll Hear From Him Again Soon / 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 / Stop the Silly Noise And Speculation. Give Dolphins' Tua Time And a Fair Chance / Fans of ESPN's Dan Le Batard Show With Stugotz Should Prepare For Another Change / Turner, With COVID, Joining Dodgers Celebration A Sadly Fitting End to Season / Heat, Marlins, Canes -- now Tua. Miserable 2020 Suddenly Great Time To Be Miami Fan / Boycott Of NBA Playoffs Shows Nation That Injustice Is Bigger Than Sports Right Now / As Panthers Move on From Tallon, Who's Next Miami Team Executive on Hot Seat? / 'Perfect Storm For Virus Transmission': Why Football Is Struggling to Lift Off / Marlins Delaying Home Opener For COVID Outbreak a Scary Lesson For All Sports / Don Shula, 1930-2020, R.I.P. / What Shula Meant to a Father & Son. They Boy Was Me / It Took George Floyd To Finally Wake Up White America / Goodell's NFL Response to Floyd Killing Is Hypocrisy At Its Most Ironic / and George Floyd Is Why Kaepernick & Sports Must Continue Fight For Social Justice.
Super Bowl With a Smirk series: Smirk V, Smirk IV, Smirk III, Smirk II, Smirk I. Heat NBA Finals last column: LeBron Reigns, But Credit Heat For Unexpected Run to Finals. Marlins postseason run last column: Marlins Season Was A Miracle But Way It Ended Is Lesson On Work Still Ahead.
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).