Happy Thursday SportsBallers,

With the holidays nearing, you may soon be chatting with people you don't often see. Let this week's SportsBall supply you with talking points to be the lively guest at any table, and have people saying our subject line re: your sports prowess and knowledge.

🏈 📚 NFL Playoffs terms to know
🥊 🏒 Maybe Hockey isn’t so tough
⛳️ 🇮🇪 Parenting lessons

Before we get into it, as a SportsBall holiday gift, simply respond to this email and we’ll send some stickers your way. Thanks for reading and supporting us this year as we got started. ❤️

THIS PAST WEEK ⏮

Good Parenting Alert 🚨 

If you're seeking inspiration on how to be a supportive sports parent, look no further than this video of golfer Padraig Harrington from Monday discussing how he introduced his child to golf. Not only will you enjoy his charming Irish accent, but you'll also appreciate his philosophy on fostering a love for the sport.

Boots on the Ground 🏀

The Sportsball research department was busy this week. On Tuesday Claire and I went to our first-ever NBA game as the Warriors played the league-best Celtics.

Reaction 🥸
Live basketball games are wild. Every time there’s a stoppage of play, a different entertainer emerges to make sure you don’t take your eyes off the court. Like switching apps on your phone in the attention economy and cooking your screen time.

On Tuesday for example, they brought in Limbo Queen during a timeout to casually limbo under a one-foot-tall bar. 😵‍💫

The game 🙌
For three quarters, the game was steady as the Celtics sustained a strong lead. Suddenly, the Warriors came roaring back and lit the stadium on fire. 🔥 Tying the game and sending it to overtime, they eventually won with a Steph Curry dagger. 🗡️ Even for non-fans, the energy was palpable and the game was super engaging. Would recommend.

Pushin’ P(layoffs) 🏈

The NFL regular season is 90% done. That means we’re in the middle of the most exciting part of the year — the playoff push. A time when teams are vying for those last few spots in the postseason and a shot at a championship.

To evaluate playoff picture scenarios in the upcoming weeks, you’ll need to know the key terms used by the league below. We'll explain them by comparing to people you may be shopping for this holiday season. 🎁

Here is a link if you want to see the teams associated with each category.

LEARNING MODULE 💡

Is somebody gonna punch somebody?

If you know one thing about hockey, it’s likely the fact that they’re allowed to fight. 🥊 To the untrained eye, this is the most exciting part of the game - and for good reason. Grown men on skates dropping their gloves to legally thwack each other is objectively energizing.

Did you know that in today’s game, there is only a quarter of the fighting of 3 decades ago? If you were a fan in 1991, after stressing about the Cold War all day, you could show up to the arena and have a 94% chance of watching a borderline brawl. Nowadays, that number is barely 24%. What’s the deal?

Since 1922, fighting has been fully allowed in the rulebook of hockey — and when one occurs — both players get standard 5-minute penalties. This led to the rise of “enforcers” whose sole job was to fight and protect star players on their team. Each team would essentially have a bouncer who didn’t need to be any good at actual hockey.

In the late 80s, as fighting peaked, the league began to question if it was the right direction for the sport. Many thought it was a mark on the reputation of the game while retired players were frequently showing signs of CTE and lingering head injuries. 🤕 Rhetoric shifted toward limiting fighting as much as possible for game reputation and safety reasons, slowly leaving an impact on the product on the ice.

It also became clear that having enforcers didn’t necessarily lead to winning games. These days, the game is so skilled that you can’t afford to have clumsy big guys taking important roster spots needed for actually playing the game. It’s the same as your company trying to focus on profitability and getting rid of personality hires. 👎

It will be interesting to see how the NHL navigates the pickle they’re in as rules around fighting tighten up — there’s also worries that TV ratings will go down in the name of player safety (can’t have that!). If you’re looking for an example of fights in the game, here are some resources:

• The Brawl in Hockeytown - a fifteen-minute saga between the Avalanche and Red Wings, one of the biggest rivalries ever. Skip to 1:15 for the start of the action. 💪

• Every fight this year in order - Someone at hockeyfights.com made a lovely website dedicated to logging every fight back to 1983, truly a person for the people. ⏰

ATHLETE OF THE WEEK 🏆

Drew Lock - Seattle Seahawks 🏈 

We have a tiny little Cinderella 👑 story on our hands here. A few weeks back we brought you Josh Dobbs, backup quarterback/astronaut who had a career-defining 2 game stretch of stellar wins. This week we present you with Drew Lock. Is he an astronaut? No. He IS a backup quarterback who stunned the world Monday night with a win over the powerhouse Eagles.

We love seeing an athlete taking advantage of their big shot with a well-deserved smile on their face afterward. Congrats to our athlete of the week. 🏆

THIS NEXT WEEK - CHRISTMAS EDITION 🎄 

The NBA and the NFL on Christmas are like Toyotathon and Lexus December to Remember, fighting for viewership and screen time. Both leagues love rolling out their best games on the big day and attempting to ruin or bolster your quality family time: ⬇️

NBA 🏀

Some say the season starts on Christmas as teams start getting serious about the upcoming playoff race. Tune into one of these games after opening presents and double down on that sports holiday cheer.

• Bucks vs. Knicks (9 PST)

• Warriors vs. Nuggets (11:30 PST)

• Celtics vs. Lakers (2 PST)

• 76ers vs. Heat (5 PST)

• Mavericks vs. Suns (7:30 PST)

NFL 🏈 

Not interested in basketball? No problem, there’s still plenty of football for you on Christmas day.

The biggest game certainly will be the 49ers vs. the Ravens on Monday night. These teams are respectively the best in their conferences and this game could serve as a Super Bowl preview if we’re lucky!

Happy Holidays to all of you, we hope you get time with loved ones this week and can maybe sprinkle in some sports!

— Riley and Claire