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The Opening Tip
Why the Timberwolves sale fell through
Kobe was watching Dejounte Murray last night, bro
Why aren’t you spreading the gospel of Domantas Sabonis?
Must-watch games
1. Rich, not wealthy
The long-assumed sale of the Timberwolves fell through on Thursday. When you read between the lines, it sounds like the biggest problem was that Alex Rodriguez is a broke boy, at least as far as rich people go.
Real quick: A-Rod and Generic Rich Man Marc Lore agreed to buy the Wolves in 2021 for $1.5B, via an unusual three-year payment and succession plan.
The final payment was supposed to be Wednesday, but Lore and A-Rod didn’t pay it, according to current governor Glen Taylor, who then canceled the transaction entirely.
What was the problem? From the New York Post:
The initial plan was Lore and A-Rod would invest roughly equally in the team. That meant A-Rod needed to raise most of the money for this next investment round and he tried to for months.
But …
Not many parties wanted to play second fiddle to the Lore and A-Rod ownership group. “Alex has gone through everyone,” a source who spoke recently to A-Rod and considered investing in the team said.
A-Rod reportedly found a private equity firm to back him, but the NBA rejected it this week, which led to the recent fall out and termination of the deal.
A-Rod is worth $350M, according to celebritynetworth.com. (Don’t act like you have a better source). Lore told the NBA he is worth $4B.
And so we have the latest perpetuation of Chris Rock’s bit about rich vs. wealthy.
2. Daily GIF: A true Kobe tribute
Dejounte Murray last night became the only player other than Kobe to miss 12 2-pointers and 12 3-pointers in the same regular season game.
He finished with 44 points on 44 shots and scored every point for the Hawks in an overtime win over the Celtics. A true Kobe tribute.
[Watch: Dejounte Murray hits game-winner in career-high performance]
3. Trivia
4. Can you please spend more time talking about Domantas Sabonis?
Did you know that Domantas Sabonis is averaging 19.7 PPG, 13.7 RPG and 8.2 APG while shooting 60.4% from the floor? Because -- and we don’t want to be rude -- it feels like you don’t.
He also has 25 triple-doubles, which is most in the league. Have you spent enough time discussing this with your friends? Because -- and we don’t want to be rude -- it feels like you haven’t.
Also, on Tuesday, he recorded his 44th double-double in a row, which is a post-merger record. (Wilt has the NBA record, at 227.)
If you need tips on how to bring up Domantas Sabonis’ impressive individual season in conversation, you can email us here.
Quick hits
Kelly Oubre, after a loss on Wednesday, pointed at every ref and said, ‘You’re a bitch, you’re a bitch, you’re a bitch.’
The Kings and Lakers played nearly a minute of basketball on Saturday without anyone noticing the clock wasn’t working.
Isaiah Hartenstein on people finding out he’s black is hilarious.
After a slight shift the last few years, the West is back to being way better than the East.
ICYM this poster last night by Jaylen Brown.
Reads + Pods
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