The WNBA is back and we should all do our very best to be normal and not so toxic about it
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Goooood morning, Winners! Welcome back to the Morning Win. Thanks so much for reading today. We appreciate you giving us a bit of your time.
After being away for nearly a month since the All-Star game, the WNBA is officially back from its Olympic hiatus. We've finally got our first slate of regular season games tonight.
Mystics @ Lynx (8 p.m. ET)
Mercury @ Sky (8 p.m. ET)
Liberty @ Sparks (9 p.m. ET)
It's exciting to be back in the swing of things with a little less than half of the season left to go. There's a lot to watch as we inch closer and closer to the end of the season.
The Rookie of the Year race was heating up between Angel Reese and Caitlin Clark and it should be even better after the rest those two just got. Both the Sky and Fever are looking to make the playoffs.
A'ja Wilson and Breanna Stewart became besties at the Olympics but we're looking at another possible WNBA Finals matchup between the Aces and Liberty.
But there are also plenty of teams who might come between that, starting with the Connecticut Sun (18-6), the Lynx (17-8) and the Seattle Storm (17-8).
It'll be a great time. I only ask one thing: Can we not be so ... toxic about everything for these last few weeks?
Fans argued about so much early on in the year — specifically when it came to Clark. There was the whole Team USA thing. There was also the hard foul thing, which was really annoying. It was like nobody wanted to treat the WNBA like the professional sports league that it is. Folks wanted to handle everything with kid gloves.
As the season progressed, things certainly weren't perfect on that front, but they got better. I'm grateful for that progress. I hope it sticks, and we can all just act normal about this league for once. I won't get my hopes up too high, of course.
Regardless of public sentiment, I'll be enjoying the final stretch of this season. I suggest you do the same.
On another more serious note: The Las Vegas Aces might be in big trouble with how the team — particularly Becky Hammon — treated Dearica Hamby on her way out the door. Read more from Meghan Hall on that here.
The Vikings are going through it
After losing Kirk Cousins in free agency, the Minnesota Vikings were already going to have an experimental season. But now, it's become a bit of a nightmare.
J.J. McCarthy is officially lost for the season with a torn meniscus. Jordan Addison was also carted off the field with an ankle injury shortly after McCarthy's injury.
That's just overall terrible injury luck, which happens in the NFL. But I'd also be remiss if I didn't talk about the death of Khyree Jackson this summer. That's obviously more weighty and heartbreaking than any simple football injury. My heart goes out to his family — the folks who really have to endure this tragedy. Every day is another day they have to live without their son.
So it's been a rough few months, to say the least. You hope things turn around just to bring a bit of light to the team.
Speaking for myself here: I'm definitely rooting for that.
You're done in this town, Tony Romo
There was a time when Tony Romo was the most beloved broadcaster in the NFL and it wasn't that long ago.
Hard to believe, isn't it? Nowadays, he just rants and rabbles off incoherent noises during crucial game moments. But he used to actually come with analysis and insight that taught viewers a ton about the game.
That's what Fox is hoping to get out of Tom Brady this season in the booth. If they do, that means the run for Romo is over. Not officially, obviously. He isn't being fired. But he certainly will be supplanted as the guy in the NFL Broadcast world.
That's why it's so weird that he's cheering for this to happen, Robert Zeglinski writes.
"Romo talking about how Brady working for Fox is excellent for the broadcast industry is him missing the mark on his own place in football. For cinephiles, it’s like Blockbuster praising Netflix for how it will revolutionize the DVD market. For you work-from-home 9-5ers, it’s like Skype giving Zoom some public shine for jumping into the video call space. For you history buffs out there, it’s like Napoleon Bonaparte telling British naval commander Horatio Nelson, “good job” for hamstringing his navy.
You get the idea."
Might be a rough fall for the CBS broadcast if Tom Brady is good. We'll see. I wouldn't bet money on it, though. Brady seems to really hate the NFL these days.
Quick hits: Who won the Matthew Judon trade? ... Go to weddings this fall ... and more
— Cory Woodroof has trade grades for the Matthew Judon deal between the Patriots and Falcons. This is a good one.
— We give you seven reasons why you should not be afraid to go to weddings during this college football season. Please be an adult.
— The Mercury trolled Caitlin Clark to break the ice after the WNBA All-Star break. Here's Meg Hall with more.
— Fans are ripping this intentional walk that led to Aaron Judge's 300th home run. This is kind of funny.
— Christian D'Andrea says the 49ers are jamming their Super Bowl window open.
— George Kittle roasting the media's sneakers completely made my day. Here's more from Andrew Joseph.
That's a wrap, folks! Let's do this again tomorrow. Peace! We out.
-Sykes ✌️
This article originally appeared on For The Win: The WNBA is back and we should all do our very best to be normal and not so toxic about it
