Paolo Mariano Articles - Page 36

Dak Prescott and the Dallas Cowboys were brimming with confidence ahead of their Wild Card skirmish with the San Francisco 49ers. They were primed for a deep run in the NFL Playoffs, which would be a fitting story for Prescott’s return from injury. But alas, everything would have to wait. The Cowboys lost a tough […]

Remember that time when Ben Simmons used to play for the Philadelphia 76ers? With the NBA trade deadline fast approaching, the biggest question still revolves around the disgruntled Sixers star. He has played a grand total of zero minutes this season, and by the looks of it, the situation will be status quo. Sixers coach […]

The return of Kyrie Irving feels like a shot in the arm for the Brooklyn Nets. The trio of Irving, Kevin Durant, and James Harden is probably the most talented in the NBA and the Nets’ campaign should only get better as the season progresses. While Irving can only suit up in select games on […]

Portland Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard will be out for an extended period after his abdominal surgery. It’s a sad development for Rip City fans as the squad might miss the NBA Playoffs for the first time since 2013, with both Lillard and sidekick CJ McCollum out of commission. Lillard has always been at his […]

Not many NBA fans are aware that Miami Heat star Jimmy Butler and Utah Jazz forward Joe Ingles have a long-standing beef. It started when Butler was still with the Chicago Bulls and he and Ingles got entangled in a screen. They almost came to blows before cooler heads prevailed. Since then, according to a […]

Tennis star Novak Djokovic is getting a ton of heat for his anti-vaccination stance ahead of the Australian Open. He has created quite a stir for his purportedly selfish mindset despite the recent surge of COVID-19 cases in Australia. Much has been said about Djokovic, who recently got a nod from officials in Melbourne after […]

The Buffalo Bills are looking to survive another day as they face the New England Patriots on Saturday in the AFC Wild Card game. Josh Allen and company will play on the road, where they had a 5-3 record in the regular season. But facing the Patriots at Gillette Stadium poses an entirely different challenge. […]

The Los Angeles Lakers are trying to weather the storm, with star big man Anthony Davis still out due to a knee injury. The Lakers have been rocky all season, forcing head coach Frank Vogel to try to figure out ways to optimize the roster. The return of Davis will definitely help, though he was […]

What was viewed as a season filled with hope ended up with a whimper once again for the Indianapolis Colts. The team failed to advance to the NFL Playoffs after suffering a monumental collapse against the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 18. The embarrassing loss cost the Colts a ticket to the AFC Wild Card game, […]

One game after Klay Thompson’s triumphant return, the Golden State Warriors’ celebratory mood got dampened after losing to the streaking Memphis Grizzlies on Tuesday night. After a tight contest all throughout, the Grizzlies did enough to pull away in the fourth quarter to fashion out a 116-108 win and extend their hot run to 10 […]

No blues for the Memphis Grizzlies these days, as they have now strung up 10 straight wins after beating the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday night. They are currently riding their longest winning streak in team history. As he’s done all season, Ja Morant was special for the Grizzlies, finishing with 29 points, five rebounds, […]

Atlanta Hawks spitfire Trae Young and Phoenix Suns veteran Chris Paul may have been born years apart, but they definitely have similarities. Obviously, both are the focal playmakers for their respective teams, but both have also shined in the NBA despite their diminutive frame. The Hawks and the Suns have been pretty successful because of […]

When you’re a disgruntled NFL star who walked out on his team despite having a good chance of winning the Super Bowl, there’s clearly only one logical recourse: Make a rap video, of course. Right, Antonio Brown? The former Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver, who’s apparently known in the rap world only as AB (unparalleled […]

There are certainly great centers in the rich lore of the Los Angeles Lakers. To wit, George Mikan, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Wilt Chamberlain, Shaquille O’Neal, and of course, LeBron James? LeBron playing center recently has definitely become a focal point of discussion among Lakers fans. It remains to be seen if the experiment is a success […]

The Philadelphia 76ers are on a roll. Joel Embiid and company extended their winning streak to seven games on Monday night after handily beating the Houston Rockets, 111-91. The Sixers now have the second longest winning streak in the NBA behind the nine consecutive Ws of the Memphis Grizzlies. Clearly, Embiid has been the catalyst […]

The New York Knicks returned home on Monday night and notched a 111-96 win over the San Antonio Spurs. While it seemed like a normal victory, as with most games at Madison Square Garden, it wasn’t without the typical histrionics. Just days after issuing an apology to Knicks fans, star forward Julius Randle got the […]

The Utah Jazz probably entered their game on Monday night thinking it would be a cakewalk against the lowly Detroit Pistons. But of course, the exact opposite happened. The Jazz blew a huge 22-point lead and the Pistons completed the impressive come-from-behind victory, 126-116 to improve to 4-2 in 2022. The Jazz terribly missed center […]

The Golden State Warriors, playing without superstar Stephen Curry, absorbed a close 101-96 defeat at the hands of the New Orleans Pelicans on Thursday night. Despite having a depleted crew, the Warriors displayed a valiant effort, keeping the game tight all throughout. It was clear, however, that they missed the services of Curry who was […]

Due to the rising COVID-19 cases in Los Angeles, reports have surfaced that the NFL is considering moving Super Bowl LVI to Dallas or possibly to a different city with a low number of infections. Moving Super Bowl LVI, which is set at the SoFi Stadium on February 13, would be a big blow to […]

After a stirring run last season, many expected the New York Knicks to climb a notch higher this season. The additions of Kemba Walker and Evan Fournier seemed promising, the rise of Immanuel Quickley and Obi Toppin were expected, and Julius Randle and RJ Barrett were projected to be an All-Star pair. Fast forward to […]

The whole Antonio Brown saga is the gift that keeps on giving. On Wednesday night, the disgruntled wide receiver released on Twitter a series of text messages allegedly sent to him by Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach Bruce Arians. Brown wanted to prove that Arians was aware of his ankle injury, as he earlier said in […]

Talk about redeeming yourself. Kevin Porter Jr. saved the day for the Houston Rockets on Wednesday after burying the game-winner against the Washington Wizards, 114-111. His heroics came on the heels of his one-game suspension for blowing his top in the middle of the game between the Rockets and the Denver Nuggets last Saturday. While […]

All roads led to the American Airlines Center on Wednesday night as Dirk Nowitzki’s jersey got raised to the rafters by the Dallas Mavericks. As expected, it was an emotional evening for Nowitzki, who played his entire 21-year career with the Mavericks, steering them to an NBA title in 2011. It could be argued that […]

Antonio Brown on Wednesday finally explained his side of the story by releasing a lengthy statement on the controversial incident that virtually ended his stint with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Brown made pretty scathing allegations, particularly on the Buccaneers covering up his ankle injury. He particularly singled out coach Bruce Arians, who Brown basically said […]

After days of keeping his lips zipped, Antonio Brown finally broke his silence on Wednesday. In a statement released to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, Brown spoke at length about the controversial incident in Week 17 when he walked out in the middle of the game between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the New York Jets. […]

Former NFL superstar Marshawn Lynch is many things. What he is not is boring. Lynch, who helped the Seattle Seahawks win the Super Bowl in 2013, had a rather interesting question on Twitter on Tuesday. With the entire world still dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic and the increasing threats of the more transmissible Omicron variant, […]

It will be a thrilling matchup of two of the NBA’s biggest stars on Wednesday as Stephen Curry and Luka Doncic face off. The Dallas Mavericks will host the Golden State Warriors at the American Airlines Center in what should be a very memorable evening. For sure, Mavericks fans will especially remember the night, because […]

Last September, Kate Scott made history by becoming the first-ever female play-by-play announcer of the Philadelphia 76ers. It was quite the accomplishment for Scott, as the majority of the teams in the NBA still go with an all-male panel to cover games. Sadly, it seems many people are still living in 1827 and throwing a […]

The red-hot Memphis Grizzlies tallied their sixth consecutive win on Tuesday after taking down the hard-fighting Cleveland Cavaliers, 110-106. Ja Morant had another strong game after finishing with all-around norms of 26 points, five rebounds, six assists, two steals, and two blocks. He was not too efficient though, as he only shot 9-of-21 from the […]

With a revamped roster, not many expected the Washington Wizards to do well this season. But with Bradley Beal leading the way and Kyle Kuzma proving doubters wrong, the team is on pace to become a legit contender. The Wizards took down the Charlotte Hornets on Monday night, 124-121 with Kuzma finishing with 36 points, […]

After the Green Bay Packers clinched the top seed in the NFC for the second straight season on Sunday, it looks like Aaron Rodgers also pretty much clinched another MVP trophy. It has been a challenging campaign for Rodgers, who was linked to trade rumors in the offseason. There was also the whole COVID-19 vaccination […]

Much has been said about the much-anticipated return of Golden State Warriors star Klay Thompson. For the most part, reports have been speculative on his comeback date. But it seems one person gave a pretty telling hint: Thompson himself. After joining the Warriors’ shootaround for the game against the Miami Heat on Monday night, Thompson […]

The Brooklyn Nets lost their third straight game on Monday night after running into the streaking Memphis Grizzlies. Ja Morant once again starred for the Grizzlies, who notched their fifth straight win. After previously taking down LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers, Morant also outdueled Kevin Durant in their 118-104 victory over the Nets. […]

For Seattle Seahawks star Russell Wilson, the season has been as tough as an overcooked steak. They failed to advance to the NFL Playoffs for only the third time in the last 10 years and it has become clear that Wilson hasn’t truly performed to his level. It’s no coincidence that he’s been the subject […]

The Boston Celtics leaned on the monster efforts of star swingman Jaylen Brown to hack out a hard-earned win over the Orlando Magic in overtime, 116-111 on Sunday night. Brown exploded for a career-high 50 points on an impressive 19-of-29 shooting from the field. He also added 11 rebounds, four assists, and two blocks to […]

Oklahoma City Thunder rookie Josh Giddey continues to turn heads in the NBA with his all-around game. He entered the league with little fanfare compared to other newcomers, but he’s clearly making his name known. On Sunday against the Dallas Mavericks, the 19-year-old Thunder guard tallied his first triple-double and became the youngest player in […]

The Arizona Cardinals escaped the Dallas Cowboys on the road on Sunday, 25-22 in what could be a preview of another exciting matchup in the coming days. The narrow victory was a huge sigh of relief for the Cardinals who broke their three-game skid. It helped that their star quarterback Kyler Murray was in a […]

Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid has always tagged himself as one of the most dominant players in the NBA. Well, in recent games, he’s been exactly that. Embiid once again powered the Sixers to notch a 110-102 victory over the Brooklyn Nets. The All-Star big man finished with 34 points on 11-of-23 shooting from the […]

It wasn’t too long ago when Aaron Rodgers and Greg Jennings were almost inseparable. They helped lead the Green Bay Packers to a string of successful seasons. Things, however, went south when Jennings signed with the Minnesota Vikings in 2013. Jennings became critical of Rodgers and the Packers, which of course didn’t sit well with […]