Luka Gets '1-Name' Status, MVP Votes With Best of 2022 Dallas Mavs Performance
WHITT'S END 12.30.22:
Whether you’re at the end of your coffee, your day, your week or even your rope, welcome to Whitt’s End …
*Out with the old. In with … some more old.
I’m admittedly a bit of a hoarder. Not with tangible things, but more so non-perishable thoughts. They tend to collect there in the cob-webbed corner of Whitt’s End, excitedly curated for publication only to wait for Spring cleaning or – better yet – the flipping of the calendar.
Usually, this space is pseudo-organized with a balance of sports and stuff. But this week, in the final hours of 2022, let’s just rummage through the pile and give light to the ideas, snippets and obscurities we stumbled upon over the past year.
An emptying of the files. A dusting of the shelves. An attempt at a clear mind, clean palate and Happy New Year:
*Granted we haven’t been treated to a championship since the Dallas Mavericks in 2011, but DFW has been treated to some pretty entertaining sports in the last six days.
The Dallas Cowboys converted a third-and-30 in beating the Eagles on Christmas Eve.
The following day the Mavs unveiled a spot-on Dirk Nowitzki statue and then produced the most lopsided quarter in franchise history (51-21) in beating LeBron James and the Lakers.
Two days later Luka Doncic recorded the NBA’s first game of 60 points-21 rebounds-10 assists in an epic comeback against the Knicks.
And on a rare Thursday night when the Cowboys, Mavs and Dallas Stars played simultaneously, DFW went 3-0 by a combined 160-128.
That’ll work.
What might not quite work: The way Dallas won at Tennessee on Thursday, with Dak Prescott and the offense again exhibiting poor habits in "valuing the ball'' and a magnificent run of takeaways saving the day against a bad team.
After the Thursday Nighter, both Dak and coach Mike McCarthy pooh-poohed the issue of "style points,'' Dak saying, "The style points and all that, that's for y'all who think games are won on paper."
But actually, we use "style points'' to gauge whether a team is ready for the big time. And I bet Dak and McCarthy both acknowledge that - along with 12 wins, which is a big deal - they need to stuff a lot of improvement into the next two week to be truly "ready'' for the playoffs.
*In 2022 we watched our big four teams –Cowboys (13-6), Mavericks (64-37), Texas Rangers and Stars (56-31-10) – go a combined 201-168-10 with 12 playoff wins. All were well over .500, except the 68-94 Rangers. The Mavs led the way with nine playoff-game victories.
*Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell recently blamed U.S. inflation on three things: 1. Outsized demand for goods during the pandemic, creating supply chain issues; 2. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine spiking energy prices; 3. Trillions in stimulus packages that created a glut of money looking for a place to go. Translation: Don’t blame one person.
*Cowboys 27, Titans 13. My Top 10 Whitty Observations about the uninspiring victory are right here.
*Bravo, New Zealand. The country this month banned the sale of tobacco in a push to make it “smoke free” by 2025. Possession of tobacco now comes with a hefty fine of $96,000 U.S. dollars. That better be one incredible cigarette.
*Elite company: CeeDee Lamb has 102 catches, joining Michael Irvin (111 in 1995) and Jason Witten (110 in 2012) as the only Cowboys’ receivers to snag 100+ passes in a season.
"Icing on the cake,'' Lamb called it.
*Christmas Conversations I. Me: “I like you, you’re quirky.”
Her: “I don’t like being called quirky.”
Me: “I rest my case.”
*In 2022 we lost Pele, Mike Leach, Bill Russell, Vin Scully, Gaylord Perry, Franco Harris, Ted Nichols-Payne, Queen Elizabeth II, Sidney Poitier, Loretta Lynn, Meat Loaf, Christine McVie, Taylor Hawkins, Olivia Newton-John, Coolio, Tony Dow, Kirstie Alley and Ray Liotta.
*Two “words” you rarely hear: “Semitism”, and “Hodgkins” Lymphoma. “Anti-” and “Non-” seem to be the gold standard.
*The Mavs’ rally over New York last Tuesday snapped a streak of 13,884 times that an NBA team trailing by nine points with 30 seconds remaining went on to lose. Even more rare, Luka’s performance was once in a lifetime.
He scored 60 of his team’s 126 points. In the final 30 seconds of regulation he made a 3-point jumper, an and-1 three-point play and, of course, a three-point possession by making a free throw, intentionally missing a free throw, grabbing the rebound and – in the same motion, mind you – making a 10-foot putback.
*Sights I’ve witnessed in December: A car cut through a gas station parking lot to avoid a traffic light. Cars racing to an exit to avoid a looming traffic jam on the highway. A driver honking at the car in front of it without a nano-second of the light turning green.
Funny, because in general we are a slovenly country that eats McDonald’s, embraces naps and stares mindlessly at TikTok for hours. We’re in such a hurry to get from Point A to B, but when we arrive at B we’re just … lazy.
*It’s now officially just “Luka.” He’s earned the right to shed his cumbersome last name. Like Elvis. Wilt. Madonna. Tiger. Serena. Nolan. Deion. And, yes, Dirk.
*By the way, on Dec. 9 I told you that he’d score 60 this season.
*The National Transportation Safety Board is recommending a new vehicle system that could stop drivers from speeding. The technology essentially recognizes speed limits and either issues visual or audible alerts when a driver is speeding, or prevents vehicles from going above those limits. After more than 20,000 deaths on U.S. roads this year alone, the NTSB has called on the federal government to start incentivizing car makers to put speed-limiting systems in new cars. Bring. It. On!
*Truly great athletes make the impossible probable, and turn the amazing routine. Right, Luka? His triple-double encore of 35 points-12 rebounds-13 assists in Thursday’s rout of the Rockets was relatively boring. By any other player on any other night, it’s the lead to ESPN’s Sportscenter.
*I’m not real good at math, but in the complete meltdown of their system during last week’s winter storm Southwest Airlines canceled almost 20,000 flights. A standard plane carries about 250 passengers. What other company could piss off 5 million customers in a span of seven days and stay in business? The Cowboys, you say? Touché.
*In 2022 we said “goodbye” to masks, and former members of the Cowboys family Rayfield Wright, Ralph Neely, Marion Barber, Gavin Escobar, Ernie Zampese, Larry Lacewell and Marilyn Love.
*Okay Rangers, now I’m interested. A starting rotation of Jacob deGrom, Martin Perez, Jon Gray, Nathan Eovaldi and Andrew Heaney smells like a staff that can put up a winning record.
*The James Webb telescope has identified the “Phantom Galaxy,” which is 32 million light years from Earth. A light year is 5.8 trillion miles. So, we now know there are stars bigger than us that reside 32 million x 5.8 trillion miles from here. But, sure, go ahead and tell me just how important you are again.
*Days until the Rangers throw their first exhibition pitch at Spring Training in Surprise, Arizona: 56.
*In 2022 we said “Happy Retirement” to Tom Grieve, Coach K, Serena Williams and Roger Federer. Tom Brady left, but then came back.
*In 2022 we welcomed the shocking unretirement of Mike Rhyner.
*After an extensive, exclusive interview with the Dallas man who caught – and sold – Aaron Judge’s historic 62nd home run ball, I can’t say I would’ve adopted his same strategy.
But I can say that I respect, even admire, the process that Cory Youmans voluntarily navigated to walk away with “only” $1.5 million.
*In 2020, my Dad got cancer (Leukemia) and spent 79 days in the hospital. We figured it would come back, and sure enough. Checked him in Wednesday to begin new rounds of chemo. With any luck, he’ll be back on the golf course shooting his age (83 in March) by Spring.
*Swear this is true: One of his nurses in Fort Worth is named Stormy … Cloud.
*In 2022 we saw Russia invade Ukraine, Elon Musk ruin Twitter and Will Smith shockingly slap Chris Rock at The Oscars.
*This year COVID basically disappeared. But we proved we don’t need a pandemic to act crazy. With the rise of niche sports came cheating scandals in bass fishing (hidden weights), cornhole (undersized bags) and even chess (vibrating sex toy).
*When we’re done with buildings why don’t we call them “builts”?
*In 2022 we almost endured Herschel Walker becoming a U.S. Senator. Whew.
*Throughout 36 years in DFW sports, I’ve interviewed a ton of people and been interviewed by my fair share as well. Kinda special to spend 10 minutes Thursday chatting with one of the trailblazers of her industry: ESPN’s Linda Cohn.
*Hot.
*Not.
*In 2022 we offered congratulations to Matthew Stafford, Justin Verlander, Steph Curry, Scottie Scheffler and TCU football.
*The Cowboys’ success – 24-10 over the last two seasons – is fueled by defensive takeaways. They’ve led the NFL with 34, and 32 and counting. You can count on a pass rush prompting rushed passes. But can you rely on elite teams fumbling snaps in the playoffs? We’ll see.
*Christmas Conversations II. Me: “If there’s an invisible level in space where gravity starts, I’d like to straddle it so one leg falls toward Earth and the other just floats.” Much Smarter Friend: “There is no such line.” Me: “You’re quirky, too.”
*Micah Parsons sacks in his first five games: 6. Micah Parsons sacks in his last five games: 1.
*Texas prison inmates can read Hitler’s manifesto, but the state recently banned pioneering Black journalist Ida B. Wells’ book On Lynchings because its examination of vigilante mobs dared to use “racial slurs.”
*I don’t get the fuss over the “sun problem” at AT&T Stadium? Jerry Jones is correct when he says “the sun was there for both teams.” Do we get our panties in a wad if the Rangers misplay a pop-up because of the light shining onto Globe Life Field?
*At this irrational rate, next year Kroger will have the Easter Bunny ushering Santa Claus off the stage Christmas afternoon.
*In 2022 we (sorta) welcomed LIV golf, and (sorta) welcomed home Brittney Griner.
*Luka’s 60-point performance is the best in Mavs’ history. Off the top of my noggin’, the best by a Cowboy is Emmitt Smith’s shoulder game against the Giants in 1993 and by a Ranger it’s Josh Hamilton hitting four homers against the Orioles in 2012.
*So, you’re a progressive woman that’s not about to take your husband’s last name? Cool, be strong and stick with your maiden name … bestowed upon you by your father.
*Best movie I saw this year: The Alpinist.
*Best music I stumbled onto: Sofi Tukker.
*Best advice I read, courtesy of the world’s oldest person – Kane Tanaka, 119 – before he passed away last April: “Have fun. Be cheerful. Remain active.”
*Let’s see, we’ve celebrated Dirk with a day, a street, a jersey retirement and a statue. What’s next: Ah yes, presenting him with his Hall of Fame ring in the Fall of 2023.
*Nothing, and I mean nothing, about Danny DeVito makes me want to run out and eat at Jersey Mike’s. Gross.
*In 2022 we cringed at the collapse of Crypto, the rise of “Karens” and the beautiful body count amassed by Pete Davidson (Ariana Grande, Kate Beckinsale, Kaia Gerber, Kim Kardashian and Emily Ratajkowski).
*Multiple Texans purchased winning Lottery tickets in July and have yet to claim their prize. Only acceptable excuse: Death.
*Trust college football “experts” at your own peril. TCU began the season unranked and ESPN’s Desmond Howard picked Texas A&M to win the National Championship. The 12-1 Frogs play Michigan in Saturday’s semifinal, while the Aggies had to win their final two games just to end their dismal season 5-7.
*In 2022 we were enthralled by Tom Cruise’s return, Taylor Swift breaking Ticket Master and a Johnny Depp-Amber Heard trial that prompted us to debate the justification of pooping in a bed.
*For years I’ve thought it was lunacy for Texas to not have casinos. Go to Shreveport or Oklahoma and the parking lots are littered with Lone Star license plates. Why doesn’t our state – which allows for a Lottery – keep that gambling revenue in-house? Mark Cuban agrees and, unlike me, has the oomph to prompt change. The Mavs owner has visions of building a destination casino-’n-resort near his team’s future new arena. There is also a reported softening of the stance among Texas legislatures against sports betting. But don’t hold your breath. We are still, after all, constricted by the Bible Belt.
*For the first time since 1950, there were no U.S.-born Black players in baseball’s World Series.
*A list of the best things in Texas in 2022 – including bald eagles at White Rock Lake – is here.
*Not exactly a “resolution,” but on my 2023 to-do list: Can I return a 90mph tennis serve? Last time I played consistent, competitive tennis was 2017, but I think I can handle it. Win a point against 40-year-old Serena? Nope. Return her 90mph second serve? Yep. Bunch of buddies disagree and are willing to wager on it. To be continued …
*Happy New Year! Like Luka, I’m tired as hell and need a recovery beer(s).
*This Weekend? Friday let’s enjoy a New Year’s Eve Eve party. Saturday let’s enjoy a New Year’s Eve party. Sunday let’s ring in 2023 by rooting against the Eagles, and not attending anything remotely close to resembling a party. As always, don’t be a stranger.
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