The Sportsletter - Leap Day Point Chasers 🏀

BY JEFF YODER

FEB. 29, 2024 |  SUBSCRIBE  |  WEB VIEW

Happy Leap Day 👋

It's February 29th. A rare occurrence calls for rare storylines. Two superstar basketball players are setting the stage for a weekend of records we may never see fall. Let's leap...

Letter Rip!

  NBA  

40-for-40: It's Still LA-Bron's City

Photo: Icon Sportswire / Getty Images

LeBron James (34 Points) Hits Seven 3s to Fuel 21-Point Lakers Comeback Over Clippers (116-112) — Now 40 Away From 40,000-Point Milestone

Say what you will about the Clippers’ recent hot streak, LeBron James is still the latest Los Angeles resident to bring the Larry O’Brien trophy to the City of Angels. It’s still Bron’s city, and he made sure to remind them last night. The Lakers and Clippers met for the final regular-season intra-stadium matchup in which both teams share the same facility (Crypto.com Arena). The Clippers will move to Inglewood (Intuit Dome) to start next season. So this game mattered, and it definitely mattered to LeBron.

The Lakers trailed by 21 at one point — down by 19 to start the 4th — before James and Co. outscored the Clippers 39-16 in the 4th en route to a 116-112 comeback win. LeBron hit seven 3s in a rare deep-shooting display, including five triples in the 4th quarter where he scored 19 of his 34 points. He finished 13-for-21 (7-for-12, 3pt) with 34 points, 8 assists and 5 boards. And the magical conclusion to the shared-arena L.A. series just set the stage for more history this weekend. We’re officially on ‘Bron Watch'.

LeBron James → 40,000 Points

James now has 39,960 career points, which is already an NBA record that should stand the test of time. A mere 40 more points gives James the 40K milestone and a pretty disorienting stat for his Hall of Fame resume. Keep in mind, the 39-year-old just scored 19 in the 4th quarter to rally his team. He’s still elite. Only two other players ever broke the 35,000-point threshold. He’ll have two shots at the record between now and Monday with tonight’s game against the Wizards (10:30 pm ET) and Saturday when L.A. hosts the Nuggets (8:30 pm ET).

NBA’s All-Time Scoring List

1. LeBron James: 39,960 Points

2. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: 38,387 Points

3. Karl Malone: 36,928 Points

4. Kobe Bryant: 33,643 Points

5. Michael Jordan: 32,292 Points

Watch: LeBron James (34 Points) Hits Seven 3s as Lakers Mount 21-Point Comeback

🏀 Other NBA Highlights

Nuggets def. Kings (117-96)

Pacers def. Pelicans (123-114)

Timberwolves def. Grizzlies (110-101)

Bulls def. Cavaliers (132-123, 2OT)

Mavericks def. Raptors (136-125)

*Luka Doncic (30-11-16) Posts Triple-Double on His Birthday

  NCAA  

Caitlin Clark's Editorial

Photo: David Berding / Getty Images

More Records Rewritten as Iowa’s Caitlin Clark (33-12-10) Posts Triple-Double, Pulls Within Reach of Pete Maravich’s Scoring Title

The Caitlin Clark editorial continues. Not our editorial. No, it’s hers. She’s editing names right out of the NCAA record book with a red pen that won’t run dry, and it’s about to get an exclamation point in her final regular season game on Sunday. Iowa’s scoring sensation dropped 33 points last night to package a triple-double in her team’s trip to Minnesota. She broke Lynette Woodard’s *hidden* women’s collegiate scoring record (3,649 points) with Kansas before the NCAA officially sanctioned women’s basketball in the 1970s. Clark had already surpassed Kelsey Plum's NCAA women's scoring record earlier this month. She also hit her 155th 3-pointer of the season last night (another NCAA women’s Division I single-season record). Red pen, everywhere. The Hawkeyes ran roughshod on the Gophers (108-60), and only one regular-season game remains for Clark to scratch out the biggest record of all…

Caitlin Clark → Pete Maravich

With 3,650 career points, Clark only needs 18 to break Pete Maravich’s all-time collegiate scoring record for both men and women. Maravich scored 3,667 points for LSU between 1966-1970. His record has stood for 54 years. Clark will break it in March, likely on Sunday when #6 Iowa hosts #2 Ohio State (1:00 pm ET). Set your alarm. It’s also Iowa’s senior night. The get-in ticket price is $491. 

Watch: Caitlin Clark Breaks More Records With 33-Point Triple-Double, Eight 3s in Iowa’s Runaway Win

🏀 Other NCAA Highlights

W: #2 Ohio State def. Michigan (67-51)

*Buckeyes Secure Big Ten Regular Season Title

W: #20 Oklahoma def. #3 Texas (71-70)

*Sooners Capture Big 12 Regular Season Title

M: #4 Tennessee def. #11 Auburn (92-84)

*Dalton Knecht Scores 39 Points

  NFL  

NFL Team Report Cards 📋

Photo: Megan Briggs / Getty Images

NFLPA’s Team Report Cards Revealed: Dolphins Rank #1, Chiefs Rank 31st

The offseason NFL press often lends itself to funny sidebars, and this is one of my favorites. Team report cards were released yesterday after the NFLPA surveyed 1,700-plus players (more than 75% of the league) to ask questions about their franchise’s front office, coaches, facilities and overall experience. Power to the players, right? The Dolphins ranked 1st overall while a lot of the feedback from the Patriots was not kind to ex-coach Bill Belichick. The Commanders finished dead last. The biggest surprise? The three-time Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs finished 31st. Yikes! 

NFLPA Report Card Takeaways

All 32 teams received grades (A-F) across 11 different categories, including training facilities, food, locker room, team travel and more. The most fascinating categories were grades for head coaches and team owners — the leaders in the spotlight. The lowest-graded coach was a D-grade from the Raiders (Josh McDaniels). Team owners got hammered by the report cards, including three D-grades (Bucs, Patriots and Panthers) and three F-grades (Cardinals, Steelers and Chiefs).

Kansas City players reported the largest disparity among leadership with an A+ grade for head coach Andy Reid and an F- for team owner Clark Hunt — both the highest and lowest grades among all teams, respectively.

View Full NFLPA Report Cards

  HIGHLIGHTS   🎥

⚽️ Soccer

FA Cup: Chelsea def. Leeds United (3-2)

*Conor Gallagher Scores Late Winner for Chelsea

🏒 NHL

Rangers def. Blue Jackets (4-1)

*Artemi Panarin (2G, 1A) Has Huge Night for NY

Oilers def. Blues (3-2, OT)

*Connor McDavid Nets OT Winner

  STORYLINES   

🏒 NHL Trade Deadline

The 2024 NHL trade deadline is fast approaching, and every team should have a good idea of what it needs before March 8. Here are some opinions about what each team should do. (B/R)

🏀 NBA Awards Odds

We’ve reached the point in the NBA season in which every award has an established favorite. But remember, there are nearly two months of basketball left to play. (CBS Sports)

🏈 Mel Kiper Jr.’s Latest Mock Draft

With combine workouts beginning Thursday, this is one of the most important weeks on the draft calendar. This is where coaches and front office executives can really get to know players. (ESPN+)

  NEWS   📰 

🏈 Dolphins WR Tyreek Hill Sued, Accused of Breaking Woman’s Leg During Football Drill (B/R)

🏈 Jets Give QB Zach Wilson Permission to Seek Trade After Rough Season (Yahoo! Sports)

🏈 Chiefs Release WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Save $12 Million in Cap Space (ESPN)

🥊 WWE Star Virgil, Born Mike Jones, Dies at Age 61 (USA Today)

⚽️ USMNT to Face Brazil in June Exhibition Ahead of Copa America (FOX Sports)

🏈 Six NFL Teams Submit Proposal to Push Trade Deadline Back From Week 8 to 10 (CBS Sports)

🥊 Jorge Masvidal Planning Future With Boxing & MMA Bouts (ESPN)

🏈 Andy Reid Says Taylor Swift Baked Homemade Pop-Tarts for Chiefs O-Line: ‘She Didn’t Give Me One’ (Sporting News)

  SCHEDULE   🗓️

Today's Must-Watch List

🏈 NFL Scouting Combine

D-Linemen & Linebackers (3:00 pm ET, NFLN)

⛳️ PGA Tour

Honda Classic, Round 1 (2:00 pm ET, NBC)

🏀 NBA

Warriors at Knicks (7:30 pm ET, TNT)

Heat at Nuggets (10:00 pm ET, TNT)

🏒 NHL

Golden Knights at Bruins (7:00 pm ET, ESPN+)

Avalanche at Blackhawks (9:00 pm ET, ESPN)

🏀 NCAA Basketball

W: #5 Va-Tech at #17 Notre Dame (7:00 pm ET, ESPN)

W: #1 S. Carolina at Arkansas (9:00 pm ET, SECN)

W: #4 Stanford at #11 Oregon State (10:00 pm ET, PAC12)

  POLL   📊

Question of the Day

What’s your favorite NFL Combine drill to watch? (click to vote)

40-Yard Dash (Speed)

Passing Drills (QBs & WRs)

Long/High Jump (Explosion)

Cone Drills (Agility)

Bench Press (Weightlifting)

Poll Results: Yesterday, we asked: What should the Chicago Bears do with QB Justin Fields and the No. 1 pick this spring? It looks pretty split. Good luck, Chicago. They’ll be analyzing this decision for years to come.

41.7% — Draft Quarterback (Trade Fields)

26.9% — Draft Other Position (Keep Fields)

31.4% — Trade Away #1 Pick (Keep Fields)

  THE TEAM  

Writer & Editor: Jeff Yoder

Lead Designer: Joe Stella

Assistant Writer: Marissa Kasch

Social Media: Aaron Yorke

Please consider supporting The Sportsletter, an independently operated and bootstrapped publication, and you'll receive our exclusive Sunday edition. Many thanks to everyone who already supports us!

Did Someone Forward You This Email? Subscribe Here
Feedback? Contact Our Editor: Jeff@TheSportsletter.com
Not Loving The Letter? Unsubscribe

Copyright © 2023 The Sportsletter
717 Market Street, San Francisco, CA, 94103