Ovi’s Chasing Gretzky, RBs Cashing In, and NBA Contenders vs. Pretenders
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Yo yo yo, Turn it up Tuesday!
Here’s your morning reminder: Take full accountability for where you are in life, embrace gratitude for what the challenges teach you, and—most importantly—enjoy every chapter. Don’t wait for that next goal to feel alive; embrace the climb. Humans thrive chasing something bigger, but it’s 100% on you to find joy in the small stuff, the daily grind. Master that, and you’re living a happier life. Let’s roll!
Ovi Closing In On The Great One
Alright, folks, let’s start with the ageless Russian sniper, Alex Ovechkin. Last night, he dropped a hat trick at 39 years old, pushing his career total to 882 goals—just 13 shy of passing Wayne Gretzky’s untouchable 894. Ovi’s hit that mark in 1,467 games; Gretzky took 1,487. Even with a broken fibula sidelining him for 16 games this year, he’s seventh in the league with 29 goals in 41 games—a 50-goal pace! Plus, he tied Jagr for the most game-winners ever, 135. And going into Monday night, his Capitals sit atop the East. This dude’s unreal.
So, how many legends were this good at 39? Let’s stack Ovi up.
LeBron James: age-39 season in 2023-24: 25.7 points, 7.3 rebounds, 8.3 assists, 35 minutes a night over 71 games. Still All-NBA, casually dropping 40 pieces. Ovi’s right there—defying time, still the pulse of his squad.
Tom Brady: age-39 season in 2015-16: Missed four games thanks to Deflategate, but in 12 starts, he slung 3,554 yards, 28 touchdowns, 2 picks, then torched the Falcons for 466 yards in that Super Bowl comeback. Clutch, like Ovi’s 135 game-winners.
Nolan Ryan: age-39 season in 1986: Still a beast for the Astros—12-8, 194 strikeouts in 178 innings, including a 10-K masterpiece. Not league-leading, but dominant. Ovi’s outpacing him, though—29 goals in 41 games is MVP territory. Though I will add Nolan had a 300 strikeout season at age 42. Animal.
Wayne Gretzky: age-39 season in 1998-99: Past his prime—9 goals, 62 points in 70 games. Solid, but Ovi’s lapping him post-All-Star break.
Here’s the wild part, Ovi could hit 50 goals in his 20th season—his 10th 50-goal campaign—and catch Gretzky by mid-March if he stays healthy. We’re witnessing history. LeBron, Brady, Ryan were elite at 39, but Ovechkin’s chasing the GOAT on one leg, sniping like it’s 2005. I thought that fibula break would slow him down, but nope—age is just a number, and Gretzky’s sweating!
RB’s Gonna Get Paid?
Alright, let’s flip the script to the NFL—time to talk some cash and quads! Are running backs finally getting their flowers and their paychecks?
They’ve got the shortest NFL shelf life—bodies battered by wear and tear—but let’s run it back to two of the best free agents signings of last offseason.
We’ll start with Barkley. The G-Men decided a couple of years ago to pay Danny Dimes $160M over four years and then let Saquon Barkley walk. The Eagles pounced, signing him for 3 years, $37.5M—$12.5M a year. Result? The #1 rushing offense in football, a Super Bowl win and Saquon setting single season and playoffs combined total rushing record. He just turned 27 this month.
Then there’s Derrick Henry. Ravens snagged him for 2 years, $16M. I was gutted—he bought a house in Dallas, but Jerry wouldn’t cut the cheque. Probably a good thing for Henry, though: 1,921 rushing yards, over 2K all-purpose, 18 total TDs. He turned 31 in January. Freak of nature.
So, with these two killing it, will RBs cash in? The league’s gone pass-happy—and QBs and WRs are banking in on it—but check this list of WR’s who each made more than Barkley and Henry:
Brandin Cooks, Diontae Johnson, Tyler Lockett, Darnell Mooney, DeAndre Hopkins, Gabe Davis— Not one hit 1,000 yards.
Meanwhile, Quads and King Henry were the best offensive weapons along with Jamar. Insane value.
But here’s the reality, I don’t see the RB market spiking. These are Hall of Fame backs with elite offensive lines, producing past the typical RB drop-off at 27. Most teams lean on multi-back systems or mid-round picks instead of big FA bets. Henry in Dallas wouldn’t have hit those numbers—the fit matters. These two are outliers, not trendsetters. RB paydays like that? Don’t hold your breath.
NBA Contenders & Pretenders
Lace em up! It’s time to separate the real deal hollyfields from the hype.. Who’s got the juice to hoist the Larry O’Brien and who is straight pretending.
We’ll start with the East because there’s a short list of contenders. Cavs are legit, you gotta give D-Mitch his flowers. This dude is a playoff problem, his Utah teams were always a tough out, I remember that one series when him and Jamal Murray were exchanging 50 bombs back and forth, one of the best playoff duels I can remember. Contenders.
The Celtics are the defending champions. Even though Believeland might lock up home court, the east still belongs to the Celtics until they fall. They beat Cleveland before the break and they will square off again Friday night 730 eastern. Contenders.
The Bucks still have Giannis and Dame Dollar.. So I’m gonna keep them in the contender category because those are two players worthy of making a run.
The Knicks have not been consistent, Brunson and KAT have struggled defensively, they’re still pretenders to me.
Now we get to the West.. which is absolutely stacked.
OKC’s got a 9.5-game lead, led by MVP fave SGA, trying to be the 2nd Canadian PG to win the award. They clinched first last year but fell in Round 2 to Luka. This time, they’re young, electric, and going deeper—contenders.
The Nugg Show at 2 - Absolute contenders. Joker’s climbing the all-time ranks, Murray’s a heater, and Westbrook’s hustle is infectious—I’m a big Westbrook fan and I’d love to see him get a ring.
The 3 seed - The Vancouver.. I mean.. Memphis Grizzlies.. Ja and Jaren have them humming, better than expected, but they’re not toppling the West’s giants—pretenders in Tennessee.
Lake show are now in 4th. They went into Colorado and slapped the Nuggets by 24. Denver had won 9 straight going in. Lebron and Lukas might have the highest two IQ’s in the game - they will continue to elevate. Frontcourt’s thin–Mark Williams’ failed physical still baffles me—but those with the two superstars they are still contenders.
We’re gonna jump down to the 9 spot.. Could you imagine having a play in game and having Steve Kerr roll out Chef Curry, Jimmy Buckets and Draymond into your arena for a do or die? No thanks. I don’t like how Jimmy exited Miami, absolute diva mode, but the guy is a fierce competitor and knows how to win. He willed that Miami team to a couple deep playoff runs.. He averaged 27 a game in the playoffs the last two seasons. He makes life easier for Chef Curry and you gotta believe this move has rejuvenated Steph, Draymond and Kerr. Yes I’m giving them contender status at the 9 seed.
$220M Team Salary In The Desert
One more pretender that needs to be pointed out.. The team with the highest salary this season.. $220M… what the hell is going on in the desert. They have 3 of the 7 highest paid players in the league; KD $51M, Bradley “Biggest robbery of all time because I took 40 shots a game in DC” Beal $50M, D-Book $49.. That’s $150M combined. The NBA cap this season was set at $140M.. Just the three of these guys are in the luxury tax alone.
KD is without a doubt one of the greatest scorers of all time, love watching him play the game.. but I gotta bring this up.. Since he left G-State in 2019 after winning two chips and finals MVPs.. He chose to go to BK, he asked for James Harden, then he requested a trade out of there to Phoenix.. He hasn’t made it past the 2nd round. Matt Ishbia looks like a young owner desperately trying to win a championship, trying to fast track it by bringing in big names while mortgaging the house and the Suns future by trading away a ridiculous amount of future draft picks. The Suns are in trouble if they don’t make a run here.
Closing
That is all for today. Do me a huge favour and hit that subscribe button, it helps me tremendously. Drop a comment. Shoot me a text. Talk some shit. When is Ovi gonna break it? Who do you think are contenders and who ya got as pretendaaaaas.
Have a wonderful day and thank you for tuning in.
