1. I'm not an analytics guy. I try my best not to pay attention to any analytics in any sport. I still have no idea what WAR is.
So I have no idea how ESPN’s analytics gave the Heat a 3% chance to beat the Celtics before the Eastern Conference finals, but they did.
The Miami Heat have a 3% chance of reaching the NBA Finals, according to ESPN Analytics 😮 pic.twitter.com/CbeoYzZQOx
— ESPN (@espn) May 15, 2023
ESPN Analytics then gave the Heat just a 35% chance to win the series after it won the first two games in Boston.
The Heat are STILL underdogs in the series despite a 2-0 lead 😲
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) May 20, 2023
(via ESPN Analytics) pic.twitter.com/HkGGlVq5kS
And now with the Heat up 3–0, ESPN Analytics gives Miami only a 69% chance to close out the series.
ESPN analytics is still at it for this Boston/Miami series.
— Shawn Foss (@Shawn_Foss) May 22, 2023
Teams that fall behind 3-0 in a best-of-7 NBA playoff series are 0-149 all-time. Only 3 of them have rallied back to force a Game 7.
But ESPN says the C's still have a 31% chance of advancing. pic.twitter.com/1F3NKRRtwj
Naturally, this has made for perfect fodder on Twitter with people having a good laugh at the expense of these random and nonsensical figures.
Heat are gonna be in the middle of their parade next month and ESPN Analytics is still only gonna give them a 42% chance to win the Finals.
— Brett Kollmann (@BrettKollmann) May 22, 2023
When this series is over, ESPN analytics will still have the Celtics with a 62% chance to win it
— Five Reasons Sports 🏀🏈⚾️🏒⚽️ (@5ReasonsSports) May 22, 2023
No team has ever come back from a 3-0 deficit to win an NBA playoff series.
— Jeff Schultz (@JeffSchultzATL) May 22, 2023
ESPN analytics still give the Celtics a 37 percent chance over the Heat. pic.twitter.com/U9VD6O5kcu
Live look at the folks running ESPN Analytics pic.twitter.com/vCaNBel1wl
— Andy (@TheMiamiBro) May 22, 2023
The ESPN analytics team. https://t.co/AX4IQo4YZq
— Chris Walder (@WalderSports) May 22, 2023
Where are your analytics at now ESPN? #heatculture pic.twitter.com/8FEhkFdRsV
— ChrisXP (@PincayChris) May 22, 2023
ESPN Analytics Dept pic.twitter.com/QjjwAe7nLZ
— MachineGunTony (@daniel_fant0m) May 22, 2023
2. Trash talking/taunting is a very tricky thing. You don’t want to fire up your opponent, but it’s just so damn fun. In the case of Celtics center, Al Horford, his taunting from Game 1 came back to bite him hard. Not only is his team down 3–0, but Jimmy Butler got payback in a big way Sunday.
Jimmy Butler mocks Al Horford and called the timeout for the Celtics 😂 pic.twitter.com/VFUaFDyw4q
— Backcourt Alerts (@BackcourtAlerts) May 22, 2023
3. Charles Barkley doesn't letter anyone get away with nonsense, as the Heat's Gabe Vincent learned Sunday night.
Gabe Vincent: “They’re a really good team. They’re a well-coached team. They got stars. They’re not gonna lay down. So we know we gotta come in and handle business on Tuesday.”
— Ben Ross (@BenRossTweets) May 22, 2023
Charles Barkley: “Clearly you didn’t watch the game tonight.”
😂😂😂 pic.twitter.com/OlgCKoCNeE
4. Former Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger revealed on his podcast that he initially rooted against his replacement, rookie QB Kenny Pickett, last season.
Ben Roethlisberger openly admitted to Kenny Pickett that he initially didn't want to see him succeed in Pittsburgh.
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) May 22, 2023
"That's the selfishness of me. I feel bad for it.... I think you are the future of this team. I'm excited for you."
(via Channel Seven YT)pic.twitter.com/fcByqeWuQ5
5. Twitter is 99% bad, but then you see something like this, and it reminds you why you still use the awful social media service. This user used a thread to do a deep dive on Mets slugger Peter Alonso and his humping habit.
Pete Alonso has a humping problem.
— One Shining Mets ⭐️ (@oneshiningmets) May 20, 2023
A thread:pic.twitter.com/LG8DptuQat
6. A brand-new episode of SI Media With Jimmy Traina dropped Thursday, and it features two guests.
First up is NFL VP of broadcast planning Mike North on putting together the 2023 schedule.
Just some of the topics covered: Which game did networks want the most? What’s the philosophy behind ESPN having staggered doubleheaders instead of straight doubleheaders? Is it true the league doesn’t want to waste great matchups on days when it’s guaranteed to have a huge rating? Will the league consider a team to be a permanent fixture on Black Friday? Why does the NFL feature the Raiders in prime time so much?
After North, golf journalist Dan Rapaport from Barstool Sports joins the show to talk about the PGA Championship, what’s going on with LIV Golf, Tiger Woods’s future and much more.
Following Rapaport, Sal Licata from WFAN radio and SNY TV in New York joins me for our weekly “Traina Thoughts” segment. This week, we share our thoughts on the NFL putting a playoff game exclusively on Peacock and Pat McAfee joining ESPN. We also discuss which one of us is more difficult to go away with, my recent dilemma with my father’s birthday and more.
You can listen to the podcast below or download it on Apple, Spotify and Google.
You can also watch SI Media With Jimmy Traina on YouTube.
