Who’s cutting onions? We’ve got an NBA Double-Header on today! And it’s on TNT! We’ve got Knicks @ Celtics and T’Wolves @ Lakers! Two big-time matchups. Best of luck to you and your franchise as we embark on this 6-month journey! Outside of that, yesterday we had two MNF games, a Neymar update, and some contract extensions before the season kicks off! Happy Tuesday!

We keep the feedback form active, so don’t be afraid to let us know what you think!

(answer at the bottom of the Stump!)

🏈 On this day in 1939, the first-ever network television pro football game!

NBC became the first network to televise a professional football game on this day 85 years ago! Little did they know, they changed the way that the world would consume sports. On that day, the Brooklyn Dodgers defeated the Philadelphia Eagles, 23-14, at Ebbets Field in Brooklyn.

You already know ladies and gentlemen, the NBA starts TODAY! We’re going to dive into our biggest and boldest predictions for the season, from our mouth to your eyes. Hold us accountable.

Bold Prediction #1: The Minnesota Timberwolves will be better this year without KAT. It’s only been a few weeks since the KAT deal went down and he headed to New York, but I’m already thinking the Timberwolves won this trade. Donte DiVincenzo has that killer instinct and brings a really elite 3-and-D mindset to a team that needed it last year to complement Ant. Julius Randle is an elite scorer and will easily slide into the KAT role, while also being able to play defense on multiple positions. Their first-round pick Rob Dillingham has impressed in this year’s preseason, and looks to add another elite ball handler to the rotation. This team is more talented than last year, but more importantly, has some junkyard dogs like DiVincenzo and Randle who fit Ant’s killer mentality.

Bold Prediction #2: Don’t be surprised to see the San Antonio Spurs win a playoff series. Yeah, that’s right, I said it. The Spurs were pretty bad last year, arguably dreadful. But what they added this offseason can put them over the hump. The addition of Chris Paul will help solidify a young backcourt that will allow the unicorn himself, Victor Wembenyama, to put up MVP like numbers. Wemby put the French National Team on his back this last offseason and I think we may see something similar in San Antonio. Don’t forget, the Spurs also have one of the best young rookies in the NBA in Steph Castle and one of the best coaches to ever do it, Gregg Popovich.

Bold Prediction #3: The Milwaukee Bucks will be the best team in the East. The Bucks were picked to finish fourth in the east by many basketball pundits this offseason, but I’m thinking something different. A prime Giannis and Dame Lillard will figure it out this year. The Bucks were missing key role players last season, but they went out and got three guys in the offseason: Delon Wright, Taurean Prince, and Gary Trent Jr. All three are flawed players in some respects, but they have strengths that the Bucks need. Combine them with their two first-round picks from this past draft, AJ Johnson and Tyler Green, and the Bucks really have something cooking off the bench.

Bold Prediction #4: The Lakers will be a bubble team. I just don’t get the hype around this team. Arguably, they are the same team as last year, if not worse. They didn’t add anything of note in the offseason other than their first-round pick Dalton Knecht. They resigned a lot of their players from last year, but that team was a trainwreck. The Lakers obviously moved on from their former coach Darvin Hamm and agreed to a deal with rookie head coach JJ Reddick. A team with two aging megastars who don’t play a lot in the regular season, a rookie head coach, and some role players. That’s the Lakers, and that’s why they're a bubble team in my eyes.

🏀 A couple of NBA contract extensions yesterday: The Nuggets and Aaron Gordon reach a 4-year, $133M deal to keep him in Denver until 2029. Gordon is a key piece for a Denver team that is eyeing another NBA Finals run. The Rockets agreed to a big-time deal with one of their young franchise centerpieces, Alperen Sengun, 5-years, $185M. Sengun is one of the most underappreciated talents in the NBA and will be a key piece for Houston to build on.

⚾ The resale market is BLOWING UP for Yankees and Dodgers World Series tickets. The tickets started at $1358 for Game One on StubHub, this outpaced last year’s final figures and is four times higher than the pace of the 2022 World Series. The average ticket on Vivid Seats sold for $1,368, compared to last years average ticket which sold for $685. Safe to say that these big market teams bring big-time money into the fold.

🏈 MNF Double-Header: One high-scoring affair and one dud. Although the score may not show it, the Baltimore Ravens beat the breaks off of the Buccaneers, 41-31! Lamar Jackson threw 5 TDs and Derrick Henry tacked on 169 on the ground as well! They looked like the best team in football last night! Sad ending for the Bucs as both Mike Evans and Chris Godwin went down with injuries, Godwin’s did not seem positive at all. If you were watching Cards-Chargers on ESPN+ you must’ve had something on that game! 5 FGs for the Chargers from Dicker the Kicker, and one Game-Winning FG from the Cards! Cards win, 17-15!

🏀 A day after the WNBA finals ended, WNBA Players Association opted out of their current Collecting Bargaining Agreement. Players had until Nov. 1st to opt out of the current deal which was set to expire in 2027. Citing higher TV ratings, higher attendance and franchise values, the union said the time is now to renegotiate a deal with the league and owners. The current CBA is active until Oct. 31st, 2025, but the players face the prospect of a work stoppage if a deal isn’t reached by that date.

⚽ World-class soccer player, Neymar, made his long-awaited return to the pitch yesterday for Al Hilal. Neymar missed the previous 12 months nursing an anterior cruciate ligament tear, or ACL tear for short. It’s great to see Neymar back playing, he had suited up in just 5 games for Al Hilal before suffering the injury.

💯Top Performers:

🏈 LAMAR throws hid FIFTH TD!!!

🏒 STOLARZ! Sheesh! Stolarz a goal!

🏈 James Conner! CLUTCH!

🏈 Post game smiles from Lamar

💯 Full Scoreboards: MLB, Soccer, PGA, NFL, WNBA, NCAAF, NHL

Trivia Answer:

A. St. Louis Cardinals! The Cardinals have 11 total World Series Championships, the most recent came in 2010, where they defeated the NY Yankees. Following the Cardinals is the Athletics franchise and Red Sox tired with 9 a piece. The Giants come in third with 8 total.

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!