If any of you out there are not into sports, but tend to find yourself among a sports crowd - I'm here to help. By the end of this article you will be up-to-date on the goings on of the sports world and what is coming up in the future. (At least enough to be able to contribute a fact or two to a conversation and be sure to shock your friends with your newfound sports interest!)
No worries, It won't be all boring 'sports-ing' here, I'll be sure to link some funny videos as well as definitions to some sports lingo to get you through the pains of talking sports.
**Disclaimer: It is kind of long, so just skip to the sports that you really need to know to avoid more sports knowledge than necessary.**
The NBA
Right now a lot is going on with the National Basketball Association. Teams are currently playing playoff games to pave their way to the national championship. Below I'll go over two 'hot' teams right now and a few facts and stats about each of them.
Golden State Warriors:
The Golden State Warriors won last year's championship, and they are looking for a repeat. Speaking of Golden State, most of you will be familiar with Stephen Curry (the guy whose adorable daughter interrupted his press conference). He won MVP of the NBA last year, broke his record for most 3-pointers in a season (see reference below) and a report from ESPN's Mark Stein was just released predicting him to win the MVP award again this year. Getting the NBA MVP award back-to-back has only been done 11 other times in history. This guy is on fire.
However, he injured his knee in game three against the Houston Rockets and has missed four games since. He is still listed as doubtful - meaning that the rest of his teammates are finally getting some recognition as well. A few names to know: Draymond Green, Andre Iguodala and Klay Thompson.
Here are some example talking points to sum up:
"It sucks that Curry is out but at least now players like Green, Iguodala and Thompson are getting to show that he doesn't completely carry the team."
"Isn't it crazy that Steph Curry is getting the MVP award for the second year in a row? That guy is crazy. Only he could break his own record for most three's in a season."
Cleveland Cavaliers:
This team is famously known for having LeBron James leave their team for the Miami Heat for four seasons before coming back home to Cleveland as their prodigal son. (He is also known for his role in Amy Schumer's movie Trainwreck, which makes you kind of want to have him as your best friend to make sure your significant other is on the same rescue-dog-page as you.)
Outside of the big screen, the media lumps James in a group on this team called 'The Big Three' which includes him, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love. Despite LeBron being the household name for the Cavs (most people rarely call them the Cavaliers) Kyrie Irving is actually the leading scorer of the team averaging 24.4 points per game. However, Kevin Love is also a big Game of Thrones fan which might be more relatable to you than his average of 12.5 rebounds per game in the post season.
The Cavs post season record is ridiculous as they opened going 12-0, the first time this has been done in the post season dating back to their sweep of the Boston Celtics in 2015. In their most recent series against the Atlanta Haws where they made 77 of their 152 three-point attempts making for over 50% which was just two shy of the NBA single-series record of 79. That record was ironically set by the 2013-2014 Atlanta Haws against the Indiana Pacers.
Talking points:
"LeBron is really helping to gel the Cavs together as a team this post season. I can't believe they swept everyone to go 12-0."
"Kyrie, Love and LeBron are really coming into their own right now. I'm happy that Love is finally starting to find his groove and is getting to contribute more now."
The NHL
Right now the National Hockey League is in the middle of playoff games for the Stanley Cup. The Stanley Cup is simply the trophy or 'cup' for the national champions in the league. Below are a few teams to know about.
Tampa Bay Lightning:
Being a fan of the Tampa Bay Lightning, it is only right that I start off with saying that they just defeated the New York Long Islanders to advance to their second consecutive Eastern Conference Final in pursuit of the Stanley Cup. They snapped a bunch of fans' predicted brackets across the nation when they won the series against the Islanders, mostly because two of their best players are out on injury - Steven Stamkos and Anton Stralman. They are just one series win away from the national championship.
Ben Bishop and Victor Hedman are two huge names to know for the Lightning. Hedman had eight points in the series and scored two goals in one game alone. In Hockey scores usually don't go into double-digits, so scoring is a huge deal - especially more than once in a single game. Tampa Bay's goalie, Ben Bishop, made 28 saves in the final game alone that allowed them to advance.
Sports-ing points:
"Did you see Hedman in the series against the Islanders? I can't believe he made two goals in their final game."
"I wonder how many people's brackets busted when the Lightning beat the Islanders. I definitely didn't see that one coming with Stamkos and Stralman out."
Pittsburgh Penguins:
The Penguins are playing Game 6 of the Easter Conference Second Round against the Washington Capitals on Tuesday, May 10, where they lead the best-of-7 series at 3-2. Basically if they win this game, then they advance to play the Tampa Bay Lightning in the Eastern Conference Final.
A good thing to know is that rookie Matt Murray will continue to be the starting goalie in their upcoming series-deciding game against the Caps. This will be his eighth consecutive start where he has a .937 save percentage (meaning that under 7% of the shots made on the goal make it in.) However, after their last game where he allowed three goals to be made out of nineteen shots there was rumors of someone (most likely Marc-Andre Fleury) starting over him.
Chatting point:
"I'm happing they are giving Murray another chance after the last game where he allowed three goals. He's still a rookie and is going to have some off games, but hopefully he gets back in his groove to win the series against the Caps."
The NFL
The NFL just had their annual draft in the end of April and not too much is going on right now aside from some rookie camps (camps for the new players on each team). The next big thing for football is training camp - which usually has events open to the public to come out and see the team before preseason games. Take a look at this list here to see who your team drafted this year, if you're really trying to extend your football knowledge.
Here is a quick timeline of a NFL calendar year:
1. NFL Draft: end of April
2. Rookie Camps: Beginning of May
3. Training Camps: July - August
4. NFL Preseason: Four weeks from August 11 - September 2
5. NFL Regular Season: September 8
Talking point:
"How do you feel about (first round pick for your team)? I don't really know too much about him." *Use this one with a die-hard fan who will most likely love that they can show off their knowledge*
