It’s been awhile Manoverse. Your humble Potentate of Profundity has been dealing with some health issues for a few months, but I am on the mend. The good news?? I’ve been watching a ton of sports, including a renewed interest in NASCAR and an effort to be more supportive of my Pittsburgh Pirates. Thru the years, while battling problems that leave me not really sick or even in pain as much as inconveniently incapacitated, I have been thankful to be a sports fan. It has helped me tremendously during some lonely and bleak moments.

Congratulations to the New York Knicks for winning their first NBA Championship since 1973. As y’all know, I don’t pay much attention to pro basketball’s regular season, but I do enjoy the NBA playoffs. My feeble fandom is fueled more by who I dislike for various reasons since I don’t really have a favorite team. When it got down to the final two it became easy to pull for the Knicks, not only because former WV Mountaineer Deuce McBride is a significant role player for the them, but also because of my disdain for San Antonio Spurs President (and former head coach) Greg Popovich. I know he’s been dealing with some health problems and I wish him no ill will, but he’s also been an ignorant blowhard in years past. Then there is Spurs phenom Victor Wembanyama, a 7ft.4 center from France who can also shoot from way downtown. He seems like a real prick as well, and standing with his arms folded like a petulant 12 year old girl during the national anthem was a bad look. 

I suppose congratulations are also in order for the Carolina Hurricanes, who won their second Stanley Cup since evolving from the Hartford Whalers and moving south in 1997. I didn’t watch that series though because I just can’t get into hockey. However, I continue to be amused that an NHL team from Canada hasn’t raised the Cup since 1993. #GodBlessAmerica 🇺🇸

MLB has really stepped in it, haven’t they?? If they had just ignored three San Francisco Giants players who wrote a Bible scripture on their “Pride” themed caps the moment would have passed and no one would’ve cared, but instead, they decided to chastise the players and threaten to fine them $10k. To be clear, I understand the rules. Players cannot be allowed to use their uniforms as art projects. I get it. I don’t have a problem with the rule. What has become an issue for all professional sports leagues is their hypocrisy. Players aren’t permitted to deface their uniforms, but the league can do so to uniforms, end zones, basketball backboards, etc. These leagues pick & choose the agendas they want to promote, but the second players who might not agree with the messaging push back they’re in trouble. Here’s an idea. The players are paid to play the game. The fans are in attendance or watching on TV because they want to enjoy the game. Even people who might agree with the sociopolitical statements, at the end of the day, really just want to have fun watching the damn game. I seriously doubt that any slogan painted on the field or stitched onto uniforms has ever been a dealbreaker for people deciding whether or not to attend a sporting event. Sports leagues that focus on anything other than the game are not only damaging their own brand, but inadvertently causing harm to those they’re allegedly celebrating, because now fans who otherwise wouldn’t have paid attention now feel some sort of way. Nobody wins. Just play the game. Don’t invite controversy. It isn’t productive, and it’s actually rather stupid.

What is less interesting than hockey?? Soccer. Therefore, I have absolutely zero interest in The World Cup, unless Team USA makes it to the championship, at which point I MIGHT watch the last few minutes of the game.

The NFL Supplemental Draft is a strange bird that only die hard football fans understand. That being said, in the past it has given us outstanding players like Hall of Fame wide receiver Cris Carter, quarterback Bernie Kosar, and linebacker Brian Bosworth. Okay, Boz was a far better college player than pro, but I digress. The last time a player was selected in the supplemental draft was 2019, but that’s probably about to change. Someone will roll the dice on former Cincinnati Bearcats QB Brendan Sorsby, an admitted gambling addict who is being run out of college football, a sport that is heavily sponsored by DraftKings & ESPNBet. I don’t know if he’ll be successful in the NFL, but I wish him luck,  because the hypocrisy of all these leagues, conferences, and institutions raking in millions of dollars from gambling while simultaneously condemning the activity is pretty gross. 

Should the Pittsburgh Pirates trade pitcher Paul Skenes?? It’s become a topic of discussion in the Pirates ecosystem. He is 24 years old, in his third year, and is signed thru 2029. Anyone who has been a Pirates fan for awhile can tell you how this goes. If Skenes maintains his established level of play for the next few years he’ll be offered a huge contract by the Dodgers, Yankees, or some other big market team. By then he will understandably be tired of losing and want to play on a team with a realistic opportunity to go to the World Series. He’s involved with aspiring actress Livvy Dunne, and if they’re still together, well…Pittsburgh, PA ain’t where it’s at for her. A pitcher plays in, at best, 32 games per season. Even if he wins every game (which is unrealistic) a team still has 130 other games. I am NOT discounting the importance of pitching in baseball. That’d be foolish. I am also not trying to diminish Skenes’ talent. All I’m saying is that, if a team were to offer a king’s ransom for Skenes, including good hitters & fielders that impact every game, some high draft picks, and a pitcher or two that might end up being almost as good as Skenes, I think the Pirates have to be open to the conversation.

You know what else I didn’t watch?? UFC Freedom 250 live from the White House. I got rid of my Paramount+ subscription a long time ago because it really offered nothing I’m interested in and choices had to be made. I wasn’t about to resubscribe for one event, especially since my interest in cage fighting is on par with my enthusiasm for hockey. Having said that, I need to address a couple of things. First, I had no problem with the event being held at the White House. Considering what other Presidents have done inside the place, I don’t think President Trump setting up an octagon on the lawn is that big of a deal. Perhaps a bit weird, but as long as everything is deconstructed afterward it’s fine. Secondly, can self righteous gas bags please stop whining about the dude who called former First Lady Michelle Obama a man?? It isn’t something I would have said, but the same people doggin’ this guy for what he probably perceived as being funny are the same people who have verbally mauled the entire Trump family for a decade, practically jumped for joy when Charlie Kirk was murdered, defended Jimmy Kimmel, and have made no secret of their contempt for half of the American population that doesn’t vote for the correct people (in their opinion). If they are under the delusion that they hold the moral high ground they’re mistaken.