The Mavericks are no longer the most miserable team in the NBA
This is For The Win’s daily newsletter, The Morning Win. Did a friend recommend or forward this to you? If so, subscribe here. Here’s Mike Sykes.
Good morning, Winners! Rejoice! The Dallas Mavericks finally have something to celebrate!
Klay Thompson and Anthony Davis combined for 50 points in a 120- 106 Dallas win over Sacramento. Let me tell you, folks. I was shocked. Floored. Flabbergasted. I just knew coming into this play-in game that the Mavericks' season was ending on Wednesday night.
That wasn't about my confidence in the Kings — quite the contrary. The Kings stink! But the vibes in Dallas were even worse. There was that weird media meeting with Nico Harrison that the organization reportedly forced him to do (which honestly made me feel bad for Nico). There's also the fact that another report from ESPN's Tim McMahon says that Dirk Nowitzki, the greatest Maverick ever, is now estranged from the organization. With all that happening in the background, it was just hard to believe that the Mavericks would get up for a play-in game against Sacramento on a Wednesday night. After this long, miserable season, you'd think the Mavs would just want to hurry up and get to Cancun already.
Here's the problem with that belief: It greatly underestimated the Kings' desire to get on with their own vacation plans.
I'd forgotten that, while they didn't trade away a generational talent like Luka Doncic, the Kings might be the only team in the association as miserable as the Mavericks — maybe even moreso. We're back to Kangz territory with this team. The locker room seems filled with angst. The GM, Monte McNair, was fired just minutes after Sacramento's play-in loss. Things are bad. Really bad. Maybe just bad enough for the Mavericks to point at them and say, "Hey, guys. At least we're not them!"
Now, here we are. The Mavs are looking at a bit of a chance for redemption. Will making the playoffs as the No. 8 seed change anybody's mind about the Luka trade? No. Of course not. Don't be silly. The fans will still be ready to riot in that building.
But, at the very least, this will give the front office and ownership something to point to as they continue to try and convince the rest of the world that trading away a generational talent was the logical thing to do.
Sometimes, that's all you can ask for!
Go, Habs, go
With a win over the Hurricanes on Wednesday, the Montreal Canadiens clinched a playoff spot for the first time since reaching the Stanley Cup Final in 2021. But that might actually be the least interesting part of this team's story, which is saying a lot.
There's absolutely no way anyone thought the Canadiens would be in the spot they're currently in just a few months ago.
On December 1, Montreal was 31st in the NHL's overall standings. Today, they're a playoff team. They're one of four teams in the NHL over the last 30 years to go from either last or second-to-last to the playoffs, according to Sportsnet.
What an incredible journey.
The path forward won't be easy — the Habs will play the Capitals in the first round. But after taking the path this team did to get to the playoffs? They've got to believe anything is possible at this point.
Caleb Williams has an ARM
The Bulls stink, yes. But you know who doesn't? Caleb Williams. He just blessed someone with a signed football on Wednesday during Chicago's play-in game.
He signed the ball and then just chucked it into the stands on the third level of seating in the United Center.
We'll see that ball on eBay in a couple of weeks, I'm sure.
Quick hits: A USA Today NFL mock draft ... Gabby Thomas on life post-Olympics ... and more
— Experts from around the USA Today network contributed to this massive NFL mock draft that you should definitely check out today.
— What has Gabby Thomas been up to since starring in the Paris Olympics? Michelle Martinelli finds out in this new Q&A.
— David Adelman isn't treating his interim head coach stint with the Nuggets as a job interview. Robert Zeglinski says that's why he's perfect for the job.
— Kendrick Perkins hilariously backtracked on his pledge to abstain from voting on NBA awards this season.
— Vlad Jr. was SO happy to finally hit his first homer. Here's his NSFW reaction to it.
— The Eagles have done it. They've officially broken the Cowboys. You love to see it.
That's a wrap, folks. Thanks so much for reading. Have a great Thursday. Peace.
-Sykes ✌️