The ESPN Daily: It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmasketball, a history-making Rockette and Giants out on the town …
You remember all that stuff I said about Tuesday being a mediocre day of the week that really brings nothing to the table? Well, you can go ahead and throw that out. Whether you’re observing Christmas Eve, Hanukkah, Chrismukkah, National Eggnog Day (it’s a thing — I looked it up) or just settling in for a week filled with NBA and college football bowl action, today is one worth celebrating. Here’s your ESPN Daily:
It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmasketball …
It’s the most wonderful time of the NBA season! Well, it’s certainly one of them. We have a stacked slate of games on Wednesday, featuring many of the league’s top title contenders in awesome matchups. But each of the 10 teams playing is facing at least one big question affecting its short-and long-term trajectory. For example, can the Houston Rockets play defense? Or this brain-buster: Can the Philadelphia 76ers build a champion around Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons?
On today’s episode of the ESPN Daily podcast, ESPN NBA analyst Kirk Goldsberry joins host Mina Kimes to preview Christmas day in the NBA and search for the answers to all our burning questions. You can listen to the full episode right here.
Christmas kick game strong …
Come for the hoops, stay for the shoes. When it comes to the NBA, everything is bigger on Christmas — and the footwear is no exception. Despite the league’s softening its footwear color restrictions prior to the start of the 2018-19 season, the stars still use marquee Christmas matchups as an excuse to break out their best and brightest. From Gordon Hayward’s Anta GH1 “Ugly Sweater” to Steph Curry’s Under Armour Curry 7 “Super Soaker,” here’s a look at some of the unique looks that will be hitting the hardware on Wednesday.
Don’t count out Toronto …
Did you happen to catch the Dallas Mavericks-Toronto Raptors game? If you didn’t, allow me to regale you with the “SparkNotes” version: The Raptors rallied from a 30-point deficit to cap the biggest comeback in franchise history. It marked the first time in a decade that an NBA team completed a 30-point comeback in a regular-season game. So yeah, you could say the Raptors are on the come-up. As for the top spot in our Week 10 NBA power rankings? That still belongs to Giannis and his Milwaukee Bucks squad that took down King James and the Los Angeles Lakers last week. Both the Bucks and Lakers will get tested again on Christmas, but for now, here’s how things stand in the association.
History-making Rockette …
Being a Radio City Rockette is one of the most coveted jobs in dance. This season alone, roughly 1,000 women auditioned with dreams of joining the 80-spot line. Only 13 of them were offered positions in the iconic dance troupe, and only one of those doesn’t have a left hand. Sydney Mesher is the first Rockette with a visible disability in the organization’s 94-year history. The 22-year-old was born with a rare congenital condition called symbrachydactyly.
“They’re going to see the Rockettes … and that little girl is going to realize, ‘I can do it, too. I’ll fight through all the tough things. But nobody can tell me no.'” — Page Mesher on his daughter’s impact
While Mesher knows that being a Rockette with one hand makes her groundbreaking, she doesn’t seek sympathy. She doesn’t even consider her disability to be that challenging. As Sydney puts it: “I sometimes struggle with tying my shoes, but in the grand scheme of things, that’s not really a big challenge. I have an issue with acting as if I’ve gone through this incredibly hard life.” Putting her complicated feelings about being seen as a representative for the disability community aside, she’s becoming the role model for dance that she didn’t have growing up, and Mesher knows that if she can help just one girl see a bigger future for herself, it will be worth it.
Eli Manning and Daniel Jones show off some dance moves and play a game of flip cup after the Giants’ win against the Redskins.
The Undefeated rim-rocking NBA dunks of the decade, brought to you by Michael Wilbon , Marc Spears, Chiney Ogwumike, Cari Champion and Amin Elhassan. You’re welcome.
“Can we get some professionalism in here, please?” — Larry Fitzgerald calling out a reporter in the locker room who happened to be his dad Watch
Sweet, sweet victory. On this date in 2016, the Cleveland Browns earned their first win in more than a year when they defeated the San Diego Chargers 20-17. After 14 consecutive losses, the W helped the Browns avoid joining the 2008 Detroit Lions as the only teams to go 0-16 and thwarted a dreaded 0-16 parade.Read more
Boomer’s Vault: Top 50 Plays in NFL History (5 p.m. ET Tuesday, ESPN)
SoFi Hawai’i Bowl: Hawai’i vs. BYU (8 p.m. ET Tuesday, ESPN)
Celtics at Raptors (noon ET Wednesday, ESPN)
Bucks at 76ers (2:30 p.m. ET Wednesday, ABC)
Rockets at Warriors (5 p.m. ET Wednesday, ABC)
Clippers at Lakers (8 p.m. ET Wednesday, ABC)
Pelicans at Nuggets (10:30 p.m. ET Wednesday, ESPN)
Walk-On’s Independence Bowl: Louisiana Tech vs. Miami ( 4 p.m. ET Thursday, ESPN)
Quick Lane Bowl: Pittsburgh vs. Eastern Michigan (8 p.m. ET Thursday, ESPN)
I don’t really know how to tell you this, so I’ll just rip the bandage off: We’re going on a break. I assure you, it’s not you … it’s the holidays. We’ll see you same time, same place (your inbox) on Friday. Until then, enjoy all the hoops and football, cherish this Tuesday that is decidedly cooler than the others, and remember: It’s not goodbye. It’s see you later. All right, before I tread any closer to Hallmark holiday movie territory, I’m going to go. This has been your ESPN Daily for Dec. 24, 2019.