April 25, 2022
Read in Browser [[link removed]]
POWERED BY
After a weekend of NBA postseason action, no semifinal spots have been clinched. If the Celtics eliminate the Nets tonight, it would be the first time that the two preseason Finals favorites (Lakers) didn’t reach the second round.
Nets Lost The Ben Simmons Trade, Still Owe Him $114M
Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports
In February, the blockbuster James Harden-Ben Simmons trade looked like a win for both sides — but that was assuming the latter would play.
Now the Sixers are a win from advancing, while the Nets are on the brink of elimination — and two months since the trade, Simmons still hasn’t suited up.
According to reports [[link removed]], when he told the team he wouldn’t play Monday, he was met with “surprise and disappointment.”
The Simmons experiment is just the latest failure in a very underwhelming [[link removed]] season for a team with the second-biggest payroll ($174.8M) in the NBA.
The Nets traded Harden and Paul Millsap to Philly for Simmons, Seth Curry, Andre Drummond, and two first-round picks.Despite shooting 41% (2nd-worst in career), Harden is on the court and a pivotal piece in Philadelphia’s title pursuit.Simmons is owed $113.7 million through 2025.
Perhaps Brooklyn saved face by avoiding the five-year, $260 million extension Harden will reportedly demand this summer — but the Nets have already committed $116.4 million to Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, and Simmons for next season.
One year removed from an Eastern Conference Semifinals, Brooklyn — the third Finals favorite entering the postseason — is likely headed for a first-round exit.
Meanwhile, Simmons will be watching from the sidelines “ pain free [[link removed]].”
A Healthy Byron Buxton Easily Vindicates $100M Extension
Nick Wosika-USA TODAY Sports
Last season, Twins outfielder Byron Buxton finally displayed the talent that made him MLB’s top prospect in 2014 and ’15 — and compelled Minnesota to take a long-term gamble on him despite persistent injury woes.
Those concerns haven’t exactly gone away — he’s already missed a week this season with a right knee injury — but the good news is that Buxton’s breakout has continued into 2022.
On Sunday, he belted two home runs against the White Sox — including a titanic 10th-inning walkoff blast [[link removed]] — to seal the Twins’ fourth consecutive victory and the AL Central lead.
Early on, Buxton is justifying November’s seven-year, $100 million extension that keeps him in Minneapolis through 2028.
He’s batting .351 with a .946 SLG (1st) and six HRs (T1).Despite limited AB (37), he’s produced a 1.2 WAR (T5).His 469-foot HR is the longest walkoff HR in the Statcast era (since 2015).
The only real knock on the 28-year-old has been his inability to stay on the field. He’s played 100-plus games just once in his eight-year career (140, 2017).
But when he’s healthy, few can match his raw talent, raising the prospect of a first AL MVP award — Buxton currently has the fourth-best odds to win (+950).
SPONSORED BY ODDSJAM
Bet Like a Pro – Join the Movement
It’s no secret that sports betting is a difficult art to master… at least it used to be.
Now, OddsJams industry-leading software [[link removed]] is changing the sports betting game – and they want YOU to be a part of it!
The days of the fabled “sharp” bettors in Vegas raking in the cash, changing the betting lines, and leaving none for anyone else are fading. The future is sports betting for EVERYBODY and it starts with OddsJam [[link removed]].
Join the thousands of subscribers already blazing the trail for those behind them. Start making $1,000 a week investing in sports betting!
Everton Face 1st Relegation Since 1951 Despite Spending
Everton Football Club
After another loss to city rivals Liverpool on Sunday, the possibility of relegation is a reality for perennial Premier League stalwarts Everton.
With six matches remaining, they’re 18th in the table and two points from safety — a position that would drop them from England’s top flight for the first time since 1951.
Though it’s difficult to nail down what went so catastrophically wrong for Everton, clues point to a string of bad returns on investment in players and managers.
Everton’s $390.7M total [[link removed]] transfer fee value ranks sixth in the Premier League.Five players — Gylfi Sigurdsson, Alex Iwobi, Yerry Mina, Michael Keane, and Jordan Pickford — cumulatively account for $183.8M of those transfer fees; all have been subject to legal trouble, injuries, or poor form this season.After finishing 10th last season with Carlo Ancelotti, the Toffees are 8-5-19 under three different managers this season.
A drop from the Premier League would mean at least one season of significant revenue loss.
Premier League clubs posted [[link removed]] a combined revenue of $6.6 billion in 2018-19 — while EFL Championship clubs generated only $998.8 million.
If Everton end up relegated, they’ll at least get a cash injection to help them land on their feet — the Premier League has instituted parachute payments to relegated teams that are spread out [[link removed]] over three years.
Making Headlines
Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
Tennis: With Sunday’s Barcelona Open win, 18-year-old Carlos Alcaraz moved up to No. 9 in the ATP rankings, the youngest man to enter the Top 10 since fellow Spaniard Rafael Nadal in 2005; Alcaraz has won three tournaments and $2.6 million in prize money in 2022.
Basketball: Naasir Cunningham is signing [[link removed]] with Overtime Elite, with a catch: The No.1 prospect in ESPN’s Class of 2024 won’t make a salary in order to remain eligible for the NCAA.
NFL: Georgia DE Travon Walker is now the odds-on favorite (-160) to be picked No. 1 by the Jaguars in Thursday’s draft; Walker opened as long as +3000 to be picked in the top spot.
F1: Max Verstappen won the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix; Verstappen and Charles Leclerc have each won two of the season’s first four races.
Boxing: Tyson Fury defeated Dillian Whyte via sixth-round TKO to retain the WBC Heavyweight Championship; Fury announced his retirement from professional boxing following the match, but also said he was planning a future “hybrid” fight against UFC Heavyweight Champion Francis Ngannou.
Written by Anthony Puccio [[link removed]], Chris Kuc [[link removed]], Doug Greenberg [[link removed]]
MORE FROM FRONT OFFICE SPORTS:
The Leadoff [[link removed]] - Daily business of sports podcast
Front Office Sports Pro [[link removed]] - The most promising opportunities where sports meets industry
Front Office Sports AM/PM [[link removed]] - Daily business of sports newsletter
Copyright © 2022 Front Office Sports. All rights reserved.
80 Pine Street Suite 3202 New York, NY 10005
If this email was forwarded to you, you can subscribe here [[link removed]].
Advertise [[link removed]] / Update your preferences [link removed] / Unsubscribe [link removed]
