Big Money and the NBA
Source: 6ABC
The Key for the week of July 1, 2024
The Championships..Wimbledon
Ben heads back across the pond these next two weeks to take in Wimbledon, the oldest tennis tournament in the world, when we use phrases like “strawberries and cream” and “the greatest show on grass” and nobody bats an eye. In the Gentlemen’s Singles Draw, Number 3 in the world Carlos Alcaraz is a favorite to defend his title along with Jannik Sinner, while Marketa Vondrousova looks to repeat as Ladies champ with American Coco Gauff always a threat. Prepare for two weeks of Breakfast at Wimbledon as the pros tune up for the Olympics, just two weeks later.
‘Tis the silly season in basketball..
And the NBA is tossing out Wall Street-type numbers to sign talent. With the free agency window opening this past Sunday at 6 p.m., teams are spending money like they can buy a championship—which they sometimes can. Paul George was the bell cow in the bidding, with everyone else falling into line after he signed a four-year, $212 million max contract with the Sixers, pairing him with last year’s MVP, Joel Embiid. Other signings of note include Chris Paul working out a one-year, $11+ million deal with the Spurs and James Hardin staying with the Clippers on a two-year, $70 million contract (Ben’s math shows that it works out to right around a half million dollars per game). More signings, more big money to come.
Speaking of basketball…
With the initial sturm and drang subsiding over how Caitlin Clark was being treated, the WNBA is settling into a competitive, entertaining show. Last Sunday’s contest in Phoenix between the Mercury and Diana Taurasi and Clark and the Fever had everything—the “goat” (Taurasi) against the “rook” (Clark), a couple of scuffles and five technical, a near triple double by Clark and words of praise from Taurasi, saying Clark’s “future is super bright..it’s pretty cool to see that.” The sold-out crowd had plenty of Fever fans on hand for the Mercury home game—ticket prices in Phoenix’s Footprint Center were up by about 150% from their usual rate.
Ben’s Best Bet..
Ben has an affinity for his past London friends, so let’s look to Wimbledon for this week’s favorites. Sinner comes to the All-England as the favorite to win the title according to BetMGM, with Alcaraz the second betting favorite and Djokovic an uncharacteristic third. While Alcaraz isn’t favorite, he’s been on a roll as of late, defeating Sinner in a classic semi-final at Roland Garros this year. Alcaraz leads the head-to-head 5-4, so Ben says expect the Spaniard to pick up Grand Slam #4 at Wimbledon.