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The 'Summer Olympics all-time medal leader' quiz
Can you name the nations with most all-time medals at the Summer Olympics?
Asterisk (*) indicated nation that no longer exists Quiz clue: Total Medals / Gold Medals. Good luck!
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More must-reads:
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Steve Kerr 'very concerned' about worrisome trend plaguing NBA
Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr is sounding the alarm on a troubling trend affecting the league that could potentially worsen down the line. The NBA has faced some huge crises over the past few months. The Kawhi Leonard-Aspiration issue in the offseason raised concerns about the Los Angeles Clippers potentially circumventing the salary cap. The arrests of Chauncey Billups and Terry Rozier highlighted the growing threat of sports gambling on the integrity of the game. Steve Kerr highlights an under-the-radar concern While those fiascos have understandably grabbed headlines, Kerr recently expressed unease about a different issue that’s flying under the radar. The Warriors coach admitted to ESPN’s Anthony Slater that he is “very concerned” that the heightened pace of play in the modern game over an 82-game schedule may finally be taking its toll on the Association, with a growing number of soft tissue injuries impacting players of late. Eight different players have suffered soft tissue injuries over the past couple of weeks, headlined by stars like Anthony Davis, Victor Wembanyama and, most recently, Giannis Antetokounmpo. Kerr stated that the Warriors’ medical staff believes “wear and tear, the speed, the pace, the mileage” are increasing the risk of today’s players suffering such injuries. “Across the league, everyone understands that it’s easier to score if you beat the opponent down the floor, get out in transition,” Kerr said. “But when everybody’s doing that, the games are much higher-paced. Everyone has to cover out to 25 feet because everybody can shoot 3s. We have all the data. Players are running faster and further [than] before. We’re trying to do the best we can, but we basically have a game every other night. It’s not an easy thing to do.” Kerr, who has been an advocate for shortening the regular season, also lamented the struggles teams face with the league schedule, which makes it difficult for teams to get adequate recovery and practice time. With the Steph Curry-era Warriors being a huge part of the NBA’s pace and space movement, Kerr knows just how physically demanding the modern game has become. But with the financial implications that come with potentially shortening the season, Kerr understands that such a drastic change to the NBA schedule is “not happening” anytime soon.
Former Heisman winner has bold take on James Franklin, Virginia Tech
It makes sense for the Virginia Tech Hokies to be excited about the addition of James Franklin as their new head coach. Franklin was fired by Penn State for failing to live up to the championship expectations in Happy Valley. For a program looking to get back on its feet and reestablish itself in this new era of college football, though, Franklin is a home run hire. Virginia Tech now has a bona fide head coach who can win games and recruit at a high level. Let's not talk about winning "the big one" for now. Right now, the Hokies just need to get back into that conversation, and Franklin is great for them in that regard. Getting into the conversation is one thing. Staying there is another, and it's worth noting that one college football commentator, former Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Robert Griffin III, thinks this will be the move that helps put VT back in that stratosphere. “Virginia Tech will become an ACC contender year in and year out with James Franklin as Head Coach,” Griffin said on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter. James Franklin will need time to turn things around at Virginia Tech It's one thing to be excited about this move for the Hokies because it is a big-time hire for them. To say that they'll be a contender "year in and year out" is a bit of a premature statement at this moment, though. Franklin can absolutely get them there, but it's going to take time for him to rebuild this program. The Hokies have pledged to put $229M into the athletics budget over the next four years, and you can bet a ton of that is going to go to Franklin so that he can hire good coaches and attract players with big-time NIL deals on the recruiting trail and in the transfer portal. The Hokies haven't had a 10-win season since 2016, though, so even in this era when quick turnarounds are possible, giving Franklin a year or two of cushion would be smart. His getting VT to the top of the ACC every season is an idea that also flies in the face of the reputation that he earned at Penn State. Sure, the ACC is in no way as stacked as the Big Ten, but Clemson, Florida State and Miami are huge brands with a ton of money and momentum behind them that won't be going anywhere. Though Franklin did get PSU into the inaugural 12-team College Football Playoff last season, it's worth remembering that he was 4-21 against AP top-10 opponents at Penn State and 1-18 against top-10 opponents from within the Big Ten. That's a .160 winning percentage against AP top-10 teams, and that's not going to get magically better just because he's coaching in the ACC now. If he's going to get Virginia Tech back into the college football limelight, it's going to be much harder than just showing up when "Enter Sandman" starts playing. He's certainly talented enough of a coach and recruiter to do it, but let's pump the brakes and let him get settled into his new office before we start talking about Virginia Tech once again being a top program.
Concerns continue to mount after No. 12 Kentucky's latest loss
After falling to in-state rival Louisville for the first time since 2020 last week, No. 12 Kentucky had its second test of the season on Tuesday night when it took on No. 17 Michigan State in the Champions Classic at Madison Square Garden. The end result was no different, with the Wildcats falling, 83-66. In fact, the performance was even worse than one week ago as similar issues presented themselves once again. Kentucky's defense is a problem Michigan State entered the night shooting 21.7% from three-point range. Kentucky allowed the Spartans to go 11-of-22 from deep and 32-of-64 from the field overall. That came one week after Kentucky gave up 96 points to Louisville as it continues to struggle getting stops. The Wildcats trailed by as many as 24 and fell behind by at least 15 points in the first half for the second time this season. The issue, though, was not just on defense. Kentucky just simply looked lost on both ends of the floor and could not get any rhythm going on offense, shooting 35% and just 7-of-30 (23%) from long range. It only had 13 assists the entire game. For comparison, Michigan State sophomore guard Jeremy Fears Jr. had 13 assists by himself, speaking to the lack of chemistry and ball movement in the halfcourt. Senior guard Otega Oweh was Kentucky's leading scorer, but he only had 12 points (4-of-12 FG), which speaks to the lack of a go-to option for the Wildcats. There just seems to be some disconnect within this group at the moment. ESPN's Kris Budden reported that Kentucky's players were "barking at each other" in a timeout while trailing by 14, which prompted head coach Mark Pope to step in and tell them to get on the same page. Whatever the issue is, there is a clear chemistry problem with Kentucky right now, and the road ahead only gets tougher. A pair of home games against Loyola (MD) and Tennessee Tech will give them some rebound opportunities, but a brutal nonconference slate lies ahead, beginning with No. 18 North Carolina on Dec. 2. The season is still young, but if Kentucky does not improve its defense and get on the same page, the concerns will only grow larger as this team looks to find its identity after another disappointing loss.
Steelers offense needs to feature massive TE Darnell Washington
If the Pittsburgh Steelers offense has one clear strength to it, it is probably their tight end room where they have three starting caliber players in Pat Freiermuth, Jonnu Smith and Darnell Washington. The latter of those three players seems to be getting an increasingly larger role as the season progresses. That role should continue to get bigger, and Sunday's 34-12 win over the Cincinnati Bengals showed why. Darnell Washington is matchup problem that needs to be utilized by Steelers The first thing that has always stood out about Washington is the fact he is a massive human being, officially listed at 6-foot-7 and 264 pounds. But that official weight is almost certainly underselling what he is actually playing at. His size even prompted offseason speculation that a move to offensive tackle might be in his future. His play shows why that would be a waste of his talents. He is not just a big body taking up space. He is also a tremendous athlete that is a nightmare for opposing defenses. He showed that on Sunday with four catches for 67 yards, including a couple of plays that showed off his rare combination of size, strength and speed. The best of those game in the second quarter when he turned a short crossing route into a 31-yard gain that saw him throw one prospective tackler to the ground with a highlight reel stiff arm, run through another potential tackle that wanted nothing to do with him and then send another defensive back flying eight yards backwards. He has become an increasingly large part of the Steelers offense, and is now up to 18 catches for 209 yards and a touchdown. Almost all of those catches and yards have come since Week 4 when he really started to get meaningful playing time. Darnell Washington excels away from the stat sheet as well Head coach Mike Tomlin said on Tuesday that Washington is not necessarily getting physically better, but that they are just starting to discover him. They should continue, because whenever he is on the field good things seem to happen for them. Not only because of what he can do in the passing game, but also because he is an exceptional blocker at tight end. That was also on display on Sunday. In Washington's two-and-a-half year career the Steelers are 9-0 in games where Washington has played more than 40 snaps, while they average over 100 yards rushing in those games. They are 15-3 when he plays more than 35 snaps. While that might be a small sample size coincidence, or a reflection of the way those games are going (the Steelers running more with leads late in games), there is a very common trend with them performing better the more he plays. Especially when they get him involved in the passing game. There is not really another tight end like him in the NFL, and he can do a lot of things to help maximize what the Steelers offense can do. In the running game, he basically serves as a sixth offensive lineman (which becomes a seventh offensive lineman when they go with their six-man line). In the passing game, he is a matchup problem for linebackers (who can not run with him or match his size) and defensive backs (who can not tackle him). It has taken the Steelers a while to figure out what they have in him. Now that they are seeing it, they need to use him as much as possible.
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