Whether you’re at the end of your coffee, your day, your week or even your rope, welcome to Whitt’s End …
*So yes, actually, I am saying there’s a chance. A 26% chance, in fact. Now, if I told you there was a 74% chance of rain on Saturday, you’d pack an umbrella and perhaps re-route your plans. But if I told you there was a 26% chance of the Mavericks moving up in Tuesday’s NBA Draft Lottery and, in turn, keeping their draft pick, you’d likely tune in. Right? Because of last June’s draft-night trade to acquire Luka Doncic, the Mavs will only retain this year’s pick if it’s in the Top 5. Otherwise, it goes to the Hawks. With a 33-49 record and slotted ninth in the lottery, Dallas has a 6% chance of nabbing the No. 1 pick and, similarly, for moving up separately to picks 2-4. Add it all up, and it’s a 26% chance of being in the Top 5. CEO Cynt Marshall will represent the Mavs at the lottery. Can’t hurt. Because in the history of the event they’ve never once improved their draft position. The Knicks and Cavs have the best chance to win the No. 1 pick. But with the Mavs at 26% of moving into the top four, I’ll repeat: There’s a chance.
*Joey Gallo on Wednesday became the first player in Major League Baseball history to hit 100 homers before he hit 100 singles (93). Half-quirky, half amazing. But let’s not forget he also has a whopping 524 career strikeouts. Almost as strange, the wallop-or-whiff hitter is now the Rangers’ everyday center fielder, as Delino DeShields has been sent to the minors.
*We criticized Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott when he was suspended six games for alleged domestic violence, and later when he yanked a girl’s shirt up at a parade and partied on a boat on Lewisville Lake with his investigation ongoing. To be fair, let’s praise him for his latest actions. Elliott was a constant at Stars playoff games, even comforting and taking a selfie with a kid who was accidentally hit by a puck. Now comes word that Elliott will pay for the funeral of an eighth-grade football player who was killed last week by a stray, drive-by bullet in St. Louis. Zeke might just be growing up right before our eyes.
*Remember how I said what ultimately keeps me from being a hockey fanatic is the inordinate amount of luck involved in outcomes? Game 7 reiterated my point. The Blues’ series-winning goal caromed off the right post, pinballed onto the back of Stars goalie Ben Bishop and then dropped to the ice and trundled toward the goal line before St. Louis’ Pat Maroon nudged it across. It’d be like an NBA player launching a shot at the buzzer of a tie game … and hoping someone tips it in. With their head.
*A Plano bartender has been charged with continuing to serve drinks to a drunk man who left the bar to kill his estranged wife and seven others in September 2017. Good. If you read this column enough, you know I feel America is careening in a dangerous direction because of lack of accountability. If found guilty, the bartender should be an accessory to crime. Likewise, parents should be charged if their children take guns from the household and murder classmates. Accountability. The more, the merrier.
*As we surmised, the Stars fan proudly displaying her large “pucks” behind the bench during Game 6 wasn’t just a fan. It was none other than Dallas-based Instagram model Natalie Gauvreau, who has 3.7 million followers and, suddenly, a hockey-based fan club.
*Cowboys owner Jerry Jones on Dak Prescott this week on the Rich Eisen Show: “We’re sold on Dak and we do want to have him for the long term. We think he’s worthy of investing in for the long term. We see real upside in Dak. You don’t have it all yet.” Translation: $30 million per year, coming soon.
*You or someone you know likely received a random robocall this week from – of all places – West Africa. The “One-Ring Scam” folks call you from the +232 area code of Sierra Leone, then quickly hang up. Their hope is that you call the number back, absorbing high toll charges in the process. I’m not smart enough – or evil enough – to figure out how a scammer would somehow profit from international calls. But it must work, or else they wouldn’t be investing time and money and brain power into the scam. Best advice: Don’t answer the call. The end.
*With the Stars’ loss, DFW’s streak continues of not having a team get past the second round of the playoffs. Last occasion? Oct. 15, 2011, when Nelson Cruz homered and Michael Young had two, two-run doubles in a nine-run third inning of a 15-5 Game 6 romp over the Tigers that clinched the ALCS. Since then – for eight years and counting – we’ve been treated only to post-season one-and-done.
*While acknowledging it’s a cool idea and a very big deal, I have no interest in attending this week’s KAABOO at AT&T Stadium in Arlington. Once you’ve seen Pearl Jam, Nine Inch Nails, Alice in Chains, Cypress Hill, Soundgarden and the Red Hot Chili Peppers as part of 1992’s Lollapalooza at Starplex, every other festival pales in comparison. Forever.
*Baseball all-time no-hitters: Roger Clemens 0, Greg Maddux 0, Pedro Martinez 0, Steve Carlton 0 and, after Tuesday night, Mike Fiers 2. The A’s pitcher is with his fourth team in five years, has a career record under .500 and entered the game with a 6.81 ERA. Weird sport, I tell ya.
*Certain to drive people of a certain creed crazy: The current Miss USA, Miss Teen USA and Miss America are all black.
*Certain to make people of a certain creed giggle: The Kentucky 18-year-old that sued his high school for banning him in the wake of his refusal to be vaccinated for chickenpox has … chickenpox.
*Trinity Forest Golf Club says it has made several changes to make this year’s Byron Nelson more fan-friendly. Until those changes include a move back to Las Colinas and a resurrection of the Pavilion, not interested.
*For years the Cowboys couldn’t beat the Packers. Then it was the Steelers. For the Mavs it was always the Spurs. I think after a couple of heart-breaking Game 7s in the shadow of The Arch, for the Rangers and Stars the nemesis is definitely St. Louis.
*C’mon, you expect me to believe that in the previous 144 Kentucky Derbies there was never a horse that didn’t run in a perfectly straight line rounding the curve toward the home stretch? The unprecedented disqualification stinks, especially to the Ohio woman who thought for a couple minutes that she’d won her $186,000 wager. That gut-punch was almost criminal.
*A true hero is someone that voluntarily risks life and/or limb to help a stranger without any promise of survival, much less recognition. Kendrick Castillo, an 18-year-old student who was killed while tackling a shooter at a Colorado high school this week, should be remembered and hailed as such a hero. By temporarily subduing the shooter, Castillo gave 15 students the time to hide, and live.
*Globe Life Field update: 1,300 workers per day. 60% complete.
*NBA analyst Hubie Brown is a national treasure and – even at 85 – still one of the best in the biz. Let’s enjoy him while we can.
*Been a banner year for our teams’ trades: Doncic (Mavs), Amari Cooper (Cowboys) and Mats Zuccarello (Stars) were all home runs.
*RIP, New Orleans Times-Picayune. The dogged reporters that covered Hurricane Katrina with their city under water were all essentially fired last week when the paper was bought out by its competition. Another dark day for journalism.
*This won’t mean much unless you’re a tennis junkie. My fave player – David Ferrer – retired this week at the Madrid Open after a 19-year career that included everything – except a major. Only 5-9 and without a booming serve or a rally-ending weapon, Ferrer had to grind out every point of every match. Nothing ever came easy. Not the 734 wins, 27 titles nor career-high No. 3 ranking. He lost his only appearance in a Grand Slam final, to Rafael Nadal at the French Open in 2013. In other words, Dirk Nowitzki would be Ferrer had he not won his championship in 2011. Ferrer was a constant reminder to me that it’s not what you accomplish in life, it’s whether you reach your potential for accomplishment. We should all find something we love that makes us try as hard as Ferrer tried at tennis.
*My advice? Don’t take criticism from those you wouldn’t take advice from.
*This weekend? Tennis – indoors, of course – early Saturday morning. Then lunch with a former 105.3 The Fan co-worker. Sunday is – in JoCoMoFo, of course – a trek to see dear ol’ Mom. As always, don’t be a stranger.
