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Good morning all, hopefully your Christmas day was filled with whatever makes you happy. No matter how big of a day, or small, it may have been, we hope it was a good one. Whether your day was FULL of sports or not yesterday, we’ll go over all the big news from the NBA, the gist of the NFL matinee, and a Jimmy Butler update. All that, and more, in today’s edition of The Daily Stump!
Today’s Trivia🧠
After trading Babe Ruth to the Yankees in 1919, the Red Sox went on an epic World Series drought known as the "Curse of the Bambino". When did the Red Sox finally win another World Series? |
(answer at the bottom of the Stump)
On This Day…
⚾️ On this day in 1919, the Yankees and Boston Red Sox reach an agreement to move future Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher and slugger Babe Ruth.
It will go down as one of the best trades in New York’s history, and one of the worst in Boston’s history. The curse of the Bambino begins for the Red Sox.
Today’s Stump Story…
🏀 3 Things We Learned in the NBA on Xmas
We were treated to some really good basketball on Xmas day, but what did we learn from all the action?
The Knicks, and Wemby, are Legit: The New York Knicks got off to a relatively slow start to the year, but as of this morning the team currently sits at 20-10. Not only are they hot, but their stars are shining, BRIGHT! Brunson had 20 points, 9 assists, and 7 rebounds, KAT had 21 points, 9 rebounds, but they were led by Mikal Bridges. Their big offseason addition got HOT in the second half, dropping 41 total points. Those 3 guys can take over the game at any moment, an obvious challenge for other teams. The Spurs, although losers on Christmas, have truly won the lottery with Wemby. He is as good as advertised and did not blink at all in the bright lights of MSG on Christmas. 42 points (game high), 18 rebounds, 6 threes! Gave it all he could.
The Mavs Can, and Will Have To, Compete Without Luka: Early indications show that the Mavs may be without Luka Doncic for a few weeks after he left yesterday’s game early with a strained left calf. Without him, the Mavs fell behind 28 points but roared back behind Kyrie Irving and some clutch shots from Klay Thompson. The game got as close as 2-points before the Timberwolves pulled away late. What the Mavericks, and Kyrie, showed that they will be able to compete with some of the best even without Luka. They’ll lean on guys like Quentin Grimes, Naji Marshall, and others to fill in.
The Sixers Will Go as far as Tyrese Maxey Takes Them: Joel Embiid himself even said it after the game, their win over the Celtics showed just how good they can be. Even with Paul George’s struggles (12 points and 0-7 from three), the 76ers played at such a high level. Embiid had 27, but man, Tyrese Maxey was unreal. He was the best player on the court, especially with Joel and PG playing less minutes in the second half. Maxey had 33 to go along with 12 assists. He was a floor general, a scorer, and defender, and the emotional leader. With Embiid and PG being injury-prone, Maxey will be the catalyst for this team, even when those two come back. He has to be the guy.
Quick Hitters
🥇 In yesterday’s blowout of the Houston Texans, Baltimore Ravens QB Lamar Jackson became the all-time leading rushing quarterback. Jackson reached a career total of 6,110 rushing yards, ending the game just one yard above of the former career total leader, Mike Vick. Vick held the record for 13 years after he eclipsed Randall Cunningham in October of 2011. Jackson has played in 41 less career games than Vick. Final score, Ravens 31, Texans 2!
🏈 The Kansas City Chiefs claimed a first-round bye in the playoffs with their win over the Pittsburgh Steelers. This one was more of a matter of time type of thing, to be honest, but I guess it’s always nice to finally have it secured early. The Chiefs embarrassed the Steelers on their home field, controlling the flow and tempo of the game from start to finish. With all the injuries on their roster right now, a week off for the Chiefs in pivotal and quite scary for the rest of the league.
👋 While we were all opening presents, Miami Heat’s Jimmy Butler news broke! According to sources, Butler prefers to be traded out of Miami, rather than staying with the organization through the rest of the season. He also prefers to be traded sooner rather than later, not waiting until the trade deadline to make a move. Butlers is reportedly open to trade destinations such as Phoenix Suns, Golden State Warriors, Dallas Mavericks, and Houston Rockets.
Other News:
Top Performers:
🏀 Mikal Bridges (NYK): 41 points, W
🏀 Kyrie Irving (DAL): 39 points
🏀 Steph Curry (GSW): 38 points, 6 assists
🏀 Austin Reaves (LAL): 26 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists
Stump Favorites
💨 Lamar hits the BOOSTERS
Today’s Slate
*All times are ET*
🏈 NFL: Seahawks @ Bears (8:15 PM on Prime) ; NCAAF: GameAbove Sports Bowl: Pitt vs Toledo (2:00 PM on ESPN), Rate Bowl: Rutgers vs Kansas State (5:30 PM on ESPN), 68 Ventures Bowl: Arkansas State vs Bowling Green (9:00 PM on ESPN)
🏀 NBA: Thunder @ Pacers (7:00 PM on NBAtv), Jazz @ Trail Blazers (10:00 PM on NBAtv), full schedule
⚽️ EPL: Man City vs Everton (7:30 AM on USA), Wolverhampton vs Man United (12:30 PM on USA), Liverpool vs Leicester City (3:00 PM on USA), full schedule
🏀 NCAAM: No teams in action, full schedule
🏀 NCAAW: No teams in action, full schedule
🏒 NHL: No hockey action today, full schedule
🎙️Song OTD🎙️
 | Wonderful Christmastime Pentatonix We hope you had an absolutely WONDERFUL Christmas |
🗣️ Quote OTD🗣️
 | “Just one cookie wouldn’t hurt…” Internal Dialogue Ah man, I can’t get over how many sweets went down the gullet yesterday. Woof. |
❗️Glue Guy OTD❗️
 | Sweatpants Clothing Anyone eat too much last night and needed to throw on some sweat pants yesterday? Cause boy oh boy, my waist was STRUGGLING! |
Trivia Answer:
C. 2004. The Red Sox broke the 86 year curse (1918-2004) when they won the World Series with their 2004 team. That is the same team that was down 3-0 in the ALCS against none other than the New York Yankees.
Can’t thank you enough for sticking to the end of this thing we call The Daily Stump. If you know anybody who might want this bit of daily sports news in their life, send them this link, it would go a long way. Appreciate the hell out of you all…
Trees get chopped. Stumps hold strong 💪