Author: rb809rb

NBA All-Star Weekend is always a fun time of year. Players and media alike get to let their hair down; fans get the opportunity to see — and sometimes interact with — the league’s best players in one spot. It’s a time for celebration and relaxation; a time for us to soak in and share a collective love for the league, and basketball as a whole.

I was fortunate enough to be on the scene for All-Star festivities this year. L.A. traffic aside (more on that later), I had a blast. Below, you’ll find my big-picture takeaways from the weekend, as well as some less consequential thoughts I wanted to share.

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Let’s dig in, shall we?

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Anthony Edwards was right

There I was, standing near the door of a crowded news conference room Saturday morning. All-Star media availabilities are happening, and a star is up front, on stage, fielding questions.

During one of his answers, the door pops open. In comes Anthony Edwards with a few other members of his crew. Edwards stands to the side for a moment, soaks in part of the answer being given and drops a bar — simultaneously to no one and everyone in that room.

“Man, none of them dudes can guard me.”

Edwards would eventually have his turn as the focus of the media, with questions ranging from his scoring process in isolation situations, to his feelings on being ranked one of the most handsome basketball players of all time, to giving out legitimate hoops advice to an up-and-comer.

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No matter the topic, Edwards had a quick quip ready to go, and did so with a seamless flair. It was the kind of showcase, if you want to call it that, one could use as evidence for Edwards as a worthy Face of the League candidate.

Only Edwards, once again, shut that down when asked about it.

“Man, them folks got [Victor] Wembanyama,” he said. “That’s what they got goin’ on. They got Wembanyama; they’ll be all right!”

There’s a lot that could be said about Edwards’ weekend, but one thing I’ll give him is that he didn’t lie.

Nobody had fun trying to stay in front of Edwards, whether that was Wembanyama when he had that assignment, or Kevin Durant — someone that Edwards looked up to and, ironically, was the guy at the podium when Edwards walked in and proclaimed nobody could guard him.

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I mean …

Edwards got to the basket at will, dropped in a barrage of jumpers and made splash plays defensively. He even attempted (and failed) to win a jump ball against Wemby, whom he credited with setting the tone in their opening 37-35 win over Team World.

Ultimately, Edwards earned All-Star MVP honors for his performance, accumulating 32 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal in nearly 27 minutes of action.

Victor Wembanyama set the tone

As Edwards and others pointed out, Victor Wembanyama was ready to take on whatever challenge he needed to. While it wasn’t full-blown regular-season effort — nobody hit that bar consistently — it’s certainly fair to argue Wembanyama was the closest to that bar, both in approach and in responsibility.

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He was the game’s most active screener, often sprinting into position before pushing off and diving to the basket with juice. He showed no hesitation driving, whether that came via perimeter catches or grab-and-go opportunities after missed shots.

Any time a smaller player wound up on him, within the flow of action or due to transition cross-matching, you could expect to see Wembanyama’s hand in the air while working to seal that defender. He kept constant pressure on the defenses he faced — it was funny to see Team Stars experiment with some (late) doubles on some of his touches.

On top of that, Wembanyama remained a menace on the defensive end. Imagine my glee watching him direct traffic on the weak side, swapping places with whoever was in the opposite corner so he could stay lower on the floor — a hallmark of the Spurs’ defensive plan.

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While it was genuinely hilarious watching Wembanyama absolutely lose it after his team gave up a game-winning 3 in overtime, that level of care was so refreshing to witness.

The new All-Star Game format was a success — even if it’s not a replacement

There was understandable angst about the format — three teams of eight (kinda), round-robin style with a 12-minute sprint to determine the winner of each game — heading into Sunday’s action. Considering the first three games were decided by a combined seven points — we’ll set the final aside for now —  you have to admit the shift was successful.

Players were naturally asked about how they felt about the format after the games were over, and the response was pretty firmly positive. There were players like Kawhi Leonard who expressed a desire to go back to the classic East-versus-West style in the future, but even that came after praising the current form.

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Of note: I got to ask Leonard, Jalen Johnson, Chet Holmgren about how the shorter games affected the way they warmed up and established (or maintained) a rhythm. Leonard and Holmgren acknowledged it was a different feel, but ultimately got used to it, while Johnson attributed his (and his team’s) youth to being able to get warm without much issue.

If this format returns next year, I wonder if the timing of the matchups will change at all.

The fans were put in a tough spot this weekend

If you’re reading this article, well, thank you, first of all.

Beyond that, if you’re online enough to read this, you’ve likely been online enough to see some of the unfortunate half-filled crowd shots of Intuit Dome during the weekend. That, combined with the conversation heading in — particularly how perilous the dunk contest and All-Star game felt — would make it easy to conclude that people simply didn’t care and the future of the weekend is in trouble.

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Do not fall into that trap. You’re within your right to hold that opinion, of course, but at least consider a few factors.

First, the combination of weekend festivities being held on the West Coast and NBC splitting coverage duties between that and the Olympics likely played a role in everything being earlier than usual. And without boring you with the actual logistics, let’s just say driving around Los Angeles (and surrounding areas) comes with its own hassles — that’s ramped up even more with a weekend like this.

Getting to the Rising Stars event on Friday for example, starting at 6 p.m. local time, means dealing with your usual rush hour traffic on top of all of the visitors. It becomes a little easier to understand why the building wasn’t full at the start. To that end, Saturday (also Valentine’s Day) and especially Sunday featured much fuller crowds and a better atmosphere overall.

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On a related note, I’d like to focus more on Saturday. I personally thought the events were well done. Damian Lillard shot the leather off the ball to capture his third 3-point contest crown; Team Knicks (Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns, Allan Houston) bombed away late to sneak past Team Cameron (Jalen Johnson, Kon Knueppel, Corey Maggette) in the Shooting Stars competition; Heat forward Keshad Johnson jumped and danced (and danced, and danced!) his way to a dunk contest win.

It became clear, at least in my social-media bubble, that not only were people unaware of the earlier-than-usual start time (2 p.m. local, 5 p.m. ET), they were also unaware at the order of events being shifted. The 3-point contest actually led the show on Saturday versus its usual slot sandwiched between the now-defunct (?) Skills Challenge (Shooting Stars this year) and the dunk contest.

The 3-point contest has been the premier event the last few seasons, so I’m not opposed to that going first moving forward; it just has to be communicated in a better, louder way so people don’t miss out.

Adam Silver really cares about tanking

NBA commissioner Adam Silver spent nearly an hour fielding questions ahead of Saturday’s events. Plenty of ground was covered — potential expansion or relocation (Silver said no on this front), the Clippers/Aspiration/Kawhi Leonard investigation, updates on NBA Europe and more — but tanking ruled the conversation.

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“We spend a lot of time at the league office going back and forth with teams on injury reports, on coaches’ decisions. It’s not a position [we] necessarily want to be in … it’s not what the fans want, at the end of the day,” Silver said.

“Although my caveat is, this is where teams are in a difficult place. Many of you in this room have written understandably about our teams that the worst place to be, for example, is to be a middle-of-the-road team. Either be great or be bad, because then that will help you with the draft.

“In many cases, you have fans of those teams — remember, it’s not what they want to pay for to see poor performance on the floor, but they’re actually rooting for their teams in some cases to be bad to improve their draft chances.

“I think we’re coming at it in two ways. One is, again, focusing on the here and now, the behavior we’re seeing from our teams and doing whatever we can to remind them of what their obligation is to the fans and to their partner teams. But No. 2, as I also said in that statement, the Competition Committee started earlier this year reexamining the whole approach to how the draft lottery works.”

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I appreciated Silver acknowledging the tightrope non-contending teams are trying to walk. Bad teams need a way to get better, and the draft currently serves as the best opportunity to do so — especially a draft class like this one. Being a team in the middle — too good to be in the lottery, but not nearly good enough to seriously compete for a title — is an area nobody should want to be in.

(I’ve already given my rant about one team this pertains to. I’ll be kind today.)

But Silver, fresh off of fining the Utah Jazz ($500,000) and Indiana Pacers ($100,000), was also clear in his displeasure with even the optics of rotational hijinks that could increase the odds of losing — and thus, increasing a team’s odds at landing one of the top picks in this year’s draft.

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I came away from his presser feeling like he’d consider pretty much anything short of abolishing the draft altogether — and maybe that isn’t as farfetched of an idea as it may have been, say, five years ago. This offseason is going to be an interesting one.

Other thoughts

• Leonard’s 31-point performance in a win over Team World is one of the wildest shot-making displays we’ve ever gotten in an All-Star Game. It honestly served as an extension of what the last two-plus months have been like for him — he’s currently on track to have the best scoring season (27.9 points on 61.9 true shooting) of his career.

• Speaking of the dunk contest, I stand on it being pretty good this year! I understand people want bigger names, and there’s nothing inherently wrong with that desire, but I think there were enough skillful dunks and showmanship (especially from Johnson) to where we can put off the “DUNK CONTEST IS DEAD” talks for another year.

• Last thing, do we need to add a blue tent for this contest? Are we sure Jase Richardson didn’t hurt himself before ultimately nailing a 360? Talk about putting it all on the line.

• Bobby Portis, your 3-point contest round will live on in infamy. The bar for bigs in the contest will likely skyrocket.

• With all due respect to his comedic chops, I think I’ll be OK never seeing Druski on the court during an actual competition again. That brother was tasked with dishing out passes during the Shooting Stars competition (welcome back!) and somehow managed to toss a ball into Row G.

After months of what university president Luke Wood describes as “disruptive marketing,” Sacramento State has completed its yearslong goal of membership into the NCAA’s top football division, FBS.

But the Hornets’ five-year football-only agreement into the Mid-American Conference comes at a steep price — the steepest price, at least in cash, that we’ve seen from any conference expansion move in history.

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Sac State will pay an $18 million entry fee into the league ($6 million the first year) and $5 million in an NCAA FBS entry fee, as well as accepting zero conference distribution over that stretch and covering the air travel costs for all visiting MAC football teams (an additional $2-4 million over the five years).

The total price for the move (the entry fees and the travel costs) stands to exceed $25 million. All of this to compete in a division where Sac State’s budget will be dwarfed by power conference giants?

It’s left so many inside and outside of college athletics asking a question: Why?

“It is putting the university on the map,” Wood said in an interview Monday with Yahoo Sports.

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In short, Sacramento State views this promotion as a branding and marketing play for the university, where the FBS moniker, nationally televised MAC games and path to bowls and the College Football Playoff brings eyeballs that, Wood says, you just don’t get at the FCS level.

Wood, himself a Sacramento State alum, commissioned a consulting firm to generate the economic impact of five years in FBS. It produced a $975 million figure to the Sacramento area (roughly $250 million annually).

But perhaps the most significant impact of the move is related to the school’s enrollment. Wood says studies have shown that the value of a university degree increases with a move from FCS to FBS.

“Part of what we need to be able to do is market ourselves not just in-state but also out of state,” Wood said. “The lack of exposure in FCS does have an impact on recruiting students, especially out of state. You need out-of-state students to ensure your university is viable.”

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Though the university subsidizes a large percentage of Sac State’s athletic budget, Wood says most of the MAC and FBS entry fees will originate from the football program’s revenues, specifically the cash accrued from non-conference “buy games” against FBS and power league programs. Football will pay the fees for football’s move, he says.

There are other expenses beyond entry fees and compensating MAC teams for their travel. For instance, the school plans millions this offseason in modifications to its stadium to prepare it for FBS play, including the creation of a new visiting locker room, visiting suites for the opponent’s administration, additional end-zone seating and video boards. That doesn’t include millions in its own travel costs to ship its football team across the country at least four times a year for five years (likely at a cost of at least $150,000 a trip).

Is it all worth it?

“The whole point is to make sure Sacramento State is a flagship university,” Wood said. “We are a case study in disruptive marketing. People would say North Dakota State did it the right way. Well, we can’t wait around to win 10 national championships.

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“There were many who fought tooth and nail to make sure this didn’t happen. We had many people rooting against us. Despite all the odds, we did something that hasn’t been done in 57 years. It is historic.”

Wood is referring to Sacramento State becoming the first West Coast FCS program to move its football team to FBS since Fresno State and San Diego State made the move in 1969.

Nearly six decades later, the Hornets arrive, delivering the Mid-American Conference quite a windfall. The MAC distributes around $1.5-$2 million annually to its members in all-in conference distribution (this includes NCAA and bowl distributions). Sac State’s entry fee is expected to increase the annual distribution by about 15-20%.

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As one school administrator quipped, “That’s a big deal.”

The MAC gets money. Sac State gets the FBS brand.

And that includes the Hornets’ inclusion in EA’s College Football video game, too.

“I was talking to our players this morning,” Wood said. “You know what they are most excited about? Being in the video game.”

Since a two-goal performance for the U.S. national team in October, Haji Wright had labored mightily with his English team, Coventry City. At his lowest, the 27-year-old went 15 matches for club and country over three months without scoring — an eternity in the life of a striker.

On Monday, in a showdown between the top sides in the second-flight Championship, Wright roared back into scoring form with his third career hat trick as Coventry defeated visiting Middlesbrough 3-1 to reclaim first place after a prolonged rut.

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The Los Angeles native scored in the run of play in the 21st and 55th minutes before completing the hat trick with a 71st-minute penalty kick, increasing his total to 13 — two off the league lead.

“When you’re a striker, you want to score goals,” Wright told Paramount+. “I was hoping to get back into form, and tonight was a great opportunity for that. … It was a great night to come out and show what we can do.”

The uprising ended a difficult stretch for Wright, who is vying for a return to the World Cup squad after scoring against the Netherlands in the 2022 round of 16 in Qatar.

During the October international window, he scored twice in a 2-1 comeback victory over Australia in Commerce City, Colorado. And then the goals dried up, both for front-running Coventry and for the U.S. in November. He did score in consecutive Coventry matches last month before coming up empty in the subsequent three outings.

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Wright’s first goal came on a simple redirect at the edge of the 6-yard box. His second was an absolute gem. Goalkeeper Carl Rushworth punted a long ball. On the run, Wright fought off a defender and, as the ball bounced a second time, the American struck a left-footed half-volley from 9 yards into the far corner of the net for a 2-0 lead.

After Middlesbrough had halved the deficit, a handball led to Wright’s penalty kick and his first hat trick since March 2025 against Sunderland.

“I’m trying to be more consistent in my play,” Wright said, “so do what I do well and do it consistently and try to impose myself on the opposition. I’m a big frame, a big striker [6 foot 4], and I try to impose that on other players.”

With the hat trick, Wright surpassed last season’s goal total (12) and drew him within three of his Coventry debut campaign in 2023-24.

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Wright received a rousing ovation when he left Monday’s match in the 82nd minute. Coventry ended a three-game winless streak and leapt over Middlesbrough for the top spot on the 24-team circuit with 14 matches left.

The top two will earn automatic promotion to the Premier League, with Coventry now six points ahead of third-place Millwall. Teams that finish third through sixth will advance to a playoff for the final ticket to the top division.

Coventry has not played in the Premier League since 2001.

Midfielder Aidan Morris played all 90 minutes for Middlesbrough, which experienced its first loss after six consecutive league victories. It is seeking to return to the Premier League for the first time in nine years.

MILAN — There are two distinct kinds of happy Olympians in the moments after an event: those who are happy they medaled, and those who are happy to be there. The medalists go home with hardware and fame; the others take satisfaction in the fact they’ve accomplished their dreams. Even if they take, say, an extra 25 years to achieve.

At the pairs figure skating event on Monday night, Japan’s Riku Miura and Ryuichi Kiahara claimed gold, Georgia’s Anastasiia Metelkina and Luka Berulava won silver and Germany’s Minerva Fabienne Hase and Nikita Volodin earned bronze. Americans Emily Chan and Spencer Howe finished sixth while Ellie Kam and Danny O’Shea finished eighth. They were all happy in their own ways, but none of them were quite happy in the way that Canada’s Deanna Stellato-Dudek was, because none of them have a story that can quite match hers.

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At age 42, Stellato-Dudek embodies persistence, stubbornness, hard-headedness … whatever you’d call the will to stick with your Olympic dreams even after a long retirement. A junior skater with substantial promise, including a silver medal in the 2000 World Junior Championships, she initially targeted the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics as her goal. But persistent injuries forced her into retirement in 2001, and for 16 years, that seemed like the end of her figure skating story.

Something nagged at her, though, some unfinished business deep inside. At a team-building exercise in her mid-30s, she surprised herself by answering the question, “What would you do if you knew you couldn’t fail?” with “I would win an Olympic gold medal.” She then decided she wanted to take one more run at the Olympics, she had to overcome doubts from virtually every corner. There aren’t many Olympians who start skating again in their mid-30s, after all.

On the suggestion of a U.S. Figure Skating official, she tried pairs, which better fit her skillset. She paired with 2014 Olympian Nathan Bartholomay until he was forced to retire in 2019 with persistent knee injuries. To keep her career going and her dreams alive, Stellato-Dudek opted to move to Canada and pair with Maxime Deschamps, eight years her junior. The duo decided to skate for Canada, reasoning that it would be easier to get Stellato-Dudek a Canadian passport in time for the 2026 Olympics than for Deschamps to get a U.S. one.

The pair won a surprise gold at the 2024 World Championships, and continued to push forward toward the 2026 Olympics even as the obstacles grew higher and higher, from tougher competition to lingering illness and injury. Still, they persisted, and in January were named to the Canadian Olympic team and slated to skate in the team event.

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But since nothing is ever easy for Stellato-Dudek, disaster again struck. Just days before the pair was scheduled to leave for Milan, days before she would finally achieve her Olympic dream … she hit her head in a training accident. Suddenly, everything she had worked for over the course of decades was in jeopardy.

Doctors finally cleared her to fly early last week, and the pair landed in Milan well after the Opening Ceremony had started. They had little time to get accustomed to the ice of Assago Ice Skating Arena, and struggled through their short program, finishing 14th of 19 teams after a late fall marred their routine.

“The potential was still there, but there was nothing I could do. It was an accident,” she said. “Stuff like that happens in life all the time, and I’m not young, so I’m aware of that.”

In one way, being so close to competing for a medal was surely maddening. In another, it didn’t really matter, not when you’ve waited your whole life — a life twice as long as some of your teammates — to be here at the Olympics.

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“We’ve been really busy, busier than normal, so I have not been able to enjoy much,” Stellato-Dudek said. “I look forward to having a great Olympic experience now that the ‘work’ is done. I’ll take the photo with Maxim in front of the rings and go get some of the free stuff. We’ve gotten nothing so far, so we look forward to doing that now.”

And after Milan? Who knows? Could she be a 46-year-old Olympian?

“I’m not certain that I’m done,” she said. “I think the only limits you have are the ones that you set on yourself. Even though everybody loves to try to put limits on me because I’m 42. I don’t believe in any of that. Only I can put limits on myself. So I might see you again in four years.”

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Real Madrid are staring down a potentially humiliating Champions League exit — can they steady the ship against Benfica in the Round of 32? The boys break down what’s gone wrong, whether Madrid’s aura still carries weight in Europe, and give their official predictions for all Round of 32 matchups.

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Then we’re joined by the legendary Glenn Crooks, who gives incredible insight into how Emma Hayes developed into the elite manager she is today. Crooks also reflects on his own journey in soccer, shares thoughts on NYCFC’s upcoming season, discusses Pascal Jansen’s evolution as a coach, and weighs in on what the club’s new stadium means for the future of football in New York City.

To close it out, we react to Carlo Ancelotti being spotted at Carnival — is that a bad look for Brazil’s head coach given the national team’s current form? Plus, we discuss Tottenham’s new manager, Raheem Sterling’s move to Feyenoord, Pellegrino Matarazzo’s first La Liga loss, and Antoine Semenyo’s absolutely unhinged pizza opinion. Another packed episode full of insight, debate, and chaos.

Timestamps:

(7:30) – Real Madrid in Champions League trouble?

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(13:00) – Every Round of 32 UCL prediction

(25:00) – Glenn Crooks joins The Cooligans

(1:02:00) – Carlo Ancelotti spotted at Carnival

(1:06:30) – Reacting to other world soccer news

🖥️ Watch this full episode on YouTube

Check out the rest of the Yahoo Sports podcast family at https://apple.co/3zEuTQj or at yahoosports.tv

The NBA’s new All-Star Game format, at least on paper, was a big success.

About 8.8 million viewers tuned in to watch the All-Star Game this past weekend, NBC announced Monday afternoon. While that’s not close to a record, it made it the most-watched All-Star Game since 2011.

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Viewership peaked at about 9.8 million viewers Sunday during the closing minutes of the third game under the new format, when the Stripes team beat the World team to secure a spot in the championship. The Stars team then beat the Stripes to win the tournament at the Intuit Dome in Southern California.

Viewership for this year’s All-Star Game was the best in recent years by far. Only about 4.7 million people tuned in last year, meaning this year’s event came close to doubling last year’s audience. The game hasn’t had more than 6 million viewers since 2022.

By comparison, the NFL’s Pro Bowl (a flag football game) drew about 2 million viewers earlier this year on ESPN. The MLB All-Star Game drew about 7.2 million viewers last summer on Fox.

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After years of complaints and issues keeping the All-Star Game interesting and competitive, the NBA switched to a USA-vs.-World format this season. There were two teams of U.S. players and one team of international players who competed in a round-robin tournament. While the title game was a blowout, all three of the early games were very close and entertaining. By all accounts, the switch was a big success for the league.

While the format undoubtedly helped out, the Winter Olympics also played a part. NBC announced that its coverage of the Milan Cortina Olympics averaged about 26.6 million viewers for the live afternoon window and its “Primetime in Milan” coverage Sunday, which occurred before and after the All-Star Game. The Games are averaging about 24.5 million viewers each day.

LIVIGNO, Italy — A beaming Eileen Gu had finished a row of interviews, silver medal around her neck, where a throng of Olympic volunteers were waiting to ask her for a group selfie. After putting on her million-dollar smile, she headed down the hill where she obliged another group asking her to do it all over again.

The gold medalist in freeski big air, Canada’s Megan Oldham, had long since left the scene.

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As always at the Winter Olympics, the American-born Gu who now represents China was the center of attention Monday night, which is usually right where she likes to be.

“I think I’m the first freeskier to five [Olympic medals],” Gu said, though it was technically moguls specialist Mikael Kingsbury one day earlier. “Five-time Olympic medalist kind of has a ring to it.”

It sure does. But on this particular night, even if it doesn’t generate as many clicks or social-media comments or requests for selfies, the story of how Oldham won her second seemed far more compelling.

It’s a story that goes back to Parry Sound, located a couple hours north of Toronto, when Oldham’s adrenaline junkie brothers convinced her they should start skiing off the roof of their garage. Her father, Howard, of course, was livid — mostly about the roof.

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“The dad is a crazy dad and she has two really, really crazy brothers, and they grew up together doing obviously crazy stuff,” her coach, J.F. Cusson said. “And this produces Megan. I call her ‘Mighty Meg.’”

Mighty enough to overcome a November concussion that lingered for weeks and took her out of training during a key period of preparation for the Milan Cortina Olympics. Mighty enough to push through a bruised quad that she suffered one week ago during a heavy fall in slopestyle on her way to the bronze medal in that event. Mighty enough to take down the great Eileen Gu in big air, the event Gu won four years ago in Beijing for her second gold medal of those Olympics.

“Honestly, this has been an Olympics that has totally surpassed my dreams,” Oldham said. “I wanted to come home with one medal and to come home with gold is something I never thought was possible. I’m so proud of myself.”

In terms of sheer toughness, you cannot deny Oldham’s performance Monday ranks among the most impressive of these Winter Olympics.

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Her job as a freestyle skier is to perform outrageous, dangerous tricks, and big air is an event where only the most daring win.

But it was one of those tricks — one she worked on specifically for this event, the one Cusson said would have made her “unbeatable”  — that almost cost her a chance to be here at all. It was the forward double cork 1440 mute — four full rotations in the air while performing two off-axis spins while also grabbing outside of her ski with the opposite hand — that caused a crash so bad Oldham can’t remember anything about that day.

“I hadn’t dealt with something like that before,” she said. “I really wasn’t sure how long the recovery would be and definitely felt a lot of pressure with the Games coming so close.”

And still, even after she started to come back in December, the mental trauma was so acute she couldn’t bring herself to try that trick again.

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“She had the yips, so that was a no-go,” Cusson said. “It was pretty dramatic.”

The plan changed. She was going to do a double cork 1260 both forward and switch — the switch meaning a backward launch — with the potential to try that big 1440 on the third run if she really, really needed it.

She did not.

On a night when the competition was delayed by 75 minutes due to snow blowing sideways in 18-mph winds but heated up instantly with massive tricks — including a couple stomped 1620s — Oldham’s first two runs were so pure that she had clinched the gold before even needing a third since this event is scored by combining the best two attempts.

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When Great Britain’s Kirsty Muir — one of the 1620 landers — crashed on her third and final attempt, Oldham stood at the top of the ramp having fulfilled a desire that began to burn four years ago when she finished just off the podium in Beijing and didn’t qualify for the finals in slopestyle.

“That was a bit of a heartbreak,” she said. “I knew I was up there with the top girls. Being just off was really hard to process. I was really hungry to change that.”

Gu did not come to these Games with that same hunger, which is why after landing a flawless double cork 1260 on third run, she celebrated like she won the gold when the 89.00 score flashed on the scoreboard, putting her in second place. Combined with the 1440 she landed on her first run, she felt it was a wild success in an event she hasn’t even contested since the Beijing Olympics.

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“I’m a competitor, so I’d be lying if I said I came into this contest and didn’t think I had a chance at the podium, but I will say I definitely didn’t expect it,” she said. “I think I really showcased my best skiing. I’ve never done that trick in a contest before. I did it for the first time in four years three days ago in training. So talk about peaking at the right time. I was sitting at the top and thinking, if not now, then when? Right? When am I going to show the world what I’ve been working on? When am I going to show the world this level of women’s skiing? When am I going to show the world how I handle pressure? This is it. Time is now. That’s what I love about the Olympics.”

The wind-up to that moment, of course, was pure Gu. Headed back to Stanford after these Olympics, there is no big moment in her life or athletic career without an interesting backstory.

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And this one came when, after winning the silver in slopestyle last week, her mother Yan called a breakfast meeting and implored her to skip big air to focus exclusively on halfpipe — her best event — which will be contested here Saturday night.

“I was like, ‘Let’s just do the training and see how I do,’” Gu said. “It’s most important for my body to feel good going into halfpipe, but if I can compete, why not? Like, I don’t want to be afraid to try. And especially as young women, it’s so important to, like, don’t stop yourself before you have the opportunity to show the world how great you are. Don’t be your own barrier.”

That isn’t likely to be a problem for Gu, whose ambition and composure is yet to meet a threshold it cannot demolish. Now a five-time Olympic medalist with an excellent chance to make it six, her story will never leave center stage.

But sometimes you have to make room for another A-list star — even if they’re not getting mugged for selfies.

Three people were killed in a shooting Monday, including the suspect, at a high school hockey game in Pawtucket, Rhode Island.

Three other shooting victims were hospitalized in critical condition, according to Pawtucket Police Chief Tina Goncalves. She did not divulge the nature of their injuries. Pawtucket is situated just north of Providence near the Massachusetts border.

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Goncalves told reporters that officers were dispatched to Dennis M. Lynch Arena to respond to reports of the shooting just before 2:30 p.m. ET. Per Goncalves, officers found the suspected shooter dead at the scene due to a potential self-inflicted gunshot wound.

One victim was found dead at the scene and another died after arriving at a local hospital. Goncalves did not release personal information or details about the victims or the suspected shooter, explaining that family notifications had not yet been made.

“It appears that this was a targeted event, that it may be a family dispute,” Goncalves told reporters.

Per NBC News, the FBI and ATF were also on the scene, and the FBI announced there was no further threat to the community.

Goncalves declined to divulge other details about the shooting, citing the ongoing investigation, according to NBC News. It’s unclear what kind of weapon or weapons were used, and it’s not clear what relationship the suspected shooter had with the victims.

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“We have several witnesses that are at the station,” Goncalves told reporters. “So we’re going to put together a story before we release information, to make sure that the information is put out there is accurate and correct.”

Per local NBC affiliate WJAR, the shooting took place during a hockey game between the Coventry-Johnston co-op and the St. Raphael-Providence Country Day-North Providence-North Smithfield co-op. Per WJAR, high schools in Pawtucket form co-op teams if they don’t have enough players to field a full team on their own.

Citing live-stream footage of the game, WJAR reports that gunshots were audible on the stream and that players off the ice jumped from their seats onto the ice in an effort to skate to safety. None of those players were shot, per WJAR.

Coventry Superintendent Don Cowart, Providence Country Day School, St. Raphael Academy, Johnston Public Schools and North Smithfield issued statements either confirming that none of their students were shot or stating that they were unaware of any of their students being injured in the shooting, according to WJAR.

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Per the Associated Press, players still in uniform and tearful families shared hugs outside the arena after the shooting. Police closed down roads around the arena as they conducted their investigation.

France’s Pierre Crinon was suspended by the French Olympic ice hockey federation Monday for his fight with Canada’s Tom Wilson during Sunday’s group-play match.

Crinon, 30, is not allowed to play in the rest of the Olympic tournament. At 0-3, France likely has only one more game remaining in Milan Cortina with Tuesday’s qualification round matchup versus Germany.

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Canada had a 10-2 lead with 6:59 remaining when Crinon hit Canadian forward Nathan McKinnon up high. That prompted Wilson to retaliate against Crinon and the two tangled near the French goal. Crinon quickly forced Wilson to the ice face-first. But after the referee pulled the French defenseman off, Wilson went back at Crinon for some pushing and shoving.

(A wider view of the fight can be seen in this BlueSky post.)

Both players eventually received five-minute penalties for fighting and were ejected for game misconduct. Neither infraction resulted in an automatic suspension and shortly after the match, SportsNet’s Elliotte Friedman reported that both Crinon and Wilson would be allowed by the International Ice Hockey Federation to play in their teams’ next games.

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The French Olympic ice hockey federation felt differently.

Citing “the values ​​of every player wearing the French national team jersey, as well as their duty to set an example, particularly during the Olympic Games,” Crinon was no longer allowed to play in the remainder of the Milan Cortina tournament.

“Pierre Crinon’s provocative behavior upon leaving the ice, even though he had just been ejected from the game for fighting, constitutes a clear violation of the Olympic spirit and also undermines the values ​​of our sport,” Hockey France said in a statement.

“Therefore, in full agreement with the French National Olympic and Sports Committee, the decision has been made not to authorize his participation in the upcoming game[s] of the Olympic tournament.”

As the statement mentioned, Crinon goaded the Canadian supporters in the crowd at Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena while leaving the ice following his ejection.

France could advance to the qualification round with a win over Germany (1-2 in group play). If so, the French will face Slovakia in the next round. Regardless, Crinon will not be on the ice.

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Canada (3-0) will play either Czechia or Denmark at 10:40 a.m. ET Wednesday.

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Tyreek Hill is back on the job market after being one of the latest stars released from the Miami Dolphins. Yahoo Sports’ Andrew Siciliano, Frank Schwab and Ben Fawkes discuss Miami’s shift to rebuild mode, who is the best suitor for Hill and what Tua Tagovailoa’s future looks like. Then, the guys dive into some of the off-season’s biggest free agency decisions. The franchise tag is not something players enjoy seeing, but does it seem to be in the future for Daniel Jones and George Pickens? Plus, what will happen with Breece Hall and Kenneth Walker III? Later, the crew breaks down Frank’s way-too-early power rankings. Hear about that and more on today’s episode!

(4:20) – Dolphins release 4 key veterans including Tyreek Hill
(19:20) – Who will get the franchise tag this offseason?
(42:15) – Frank’s Way-Too-Early NFL Power Rankings
(55:55) – One More Thing

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