The Chicago Sky brought the door that Phoenix Mercury legend Diana Taurasi broke after losing the WNBA Finals to their championship parade, in case you were wondering how petty is very petty. Now on with the show!

At the end of the day, our job is not to babysit somebody...At this point, I don’t care about that man. He does what he wants.

The GIST: The NBA season is only one day old, but the aforementioned Ben Simmons and Philadelphia 76ers drama has been going on since last season.

The no-background: Simmons was drafted first overall by the Sixers in 2016, though his off-court demeanor stirred up some controversy. After starting his NBA career in 2017, Simmons won Rookie of the Year and is already a three-time All-Star.

• Despite his usually stellar on-court performance, things took a turn when Simmons had a poor (read: brutal) showing during the 2021 postseason, and teammates and Sixers coach Doc Rivers were openly critical of Simmons’ performance.

• In August, Simmons publicly declared he didn’t want to play for the team anymore, said he wouldn’t attend training camp and requested a trade. The 76ers wouldn’t grant that, and Simmons ultimately (and surprisingly) reported to Philly last Monday.

The latest: Simmons rejoined the team Friday, but his first interactions were tense. During Monday’s practice, he barely engaged with his teammates, put little effort into drills, carried a cell phone in his pocket and skipped out on a team huddle.

• And in yesterday’s practice, Rivers had had enough. After Simmons refused to join a drill, Rivers threw Simmons out of practice, called him “a distraction” in a post-practice press conference and suspended him for one game for “detrimental behavior.”

• The team also fined Simmons $1.4 million for the four preseason games he missed and additional undisclosed amounts for missed practices and team meetings.

What’s next: Simmons will miss tonight’s opener against the New Orleans Pelicans — which we’re sure his teammates are pretty happy about (exhibit A: Embiid’s quote above) — and he’ll likely face continued suspensions and/or fines if he doesn’t change his tune.

• But the biggest consequence? Simmons’ behavior is causing his stock to fall, meaning a championship-contending team is pretty unlikely to trade for a guy who’s very obviously not a team player. He’s only hurting himself.

The GIST: The temps may be falling, but things are heating up in the MLB, with two crucial Championship Series (CS) games set for today.

American League (AL): After the Boston Red Sox made (more) postseason history with their third grand slam of the ALCS in Monday’s rout of the Houston Astros, the Astros bats finally came alive in yesterday’s Game 4, as they defeated the Red Sox 9–2 to even the series at two games apiece.

• Game 5 (and the final game in Boston before the series heads back to Houston) is tonight at 5:08 p.m. ET. It’s anyone’s ball game.

National League (NL): Down 2-0 entering yesterday’s NLCS Game 3, it looked like the LA Dodgers wouldn’t be able to turn their luck around at home, but an eighth inning rally lifted the defending champs to a 6–5 win over the Atlanta Braves.

• 2019 NL MVP Cody Bellinger hit a clutch three-run homer to tie things up, then who else but Mookie Betts doubled to drive in the winning run.

• Game 4 is tonight at 8:08 p.m. ET and the Dodgers will be looking to even the series while Atlanta, led by outfielder (and former Dodger) Joc “bad b!tch” Pederson, hopes to reclaim the momentum. Game on.

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🏀WNBA: After losing the W title to the Chicago Sky on Sunday and skipping out on the postgame press conference, the Phoenix Mercury have been fined $10,000 for violating league rules. That’ll set them back.

🏒NHL: On Monday, San Jose Shark Evander Kane was suspended for 21 games (about a quarter of the season) for submitting a fake vaccination record to his team and the league. C’mon man.

🎓🏈NCAA football: Five of Washington State’s football coaching staff — including head coach Nick Rolovich — were fired on Tuesday after refusing the COVID-19 vaccine (which is mandated for all state employees).

• So congratulations to former defensive coordinator and new interim head coach Jake Dickert, who has a vaccine and has a Division I team to run! Good things come to those who get vaccinated.

Already missing the WNBA? Same. Luckily, it’s never too early to start thinking about next season. Check out this list of 10 questions to consider heading into the offseason and cross your fingers that we haven’t seen the last of Sue Bird and Diana Taurasi.

• And if you’re hungry for more hoops news, the women’s college basketball preseason Top 25 poll was released yesterday. Just 20 days until the W’s future stars take the court.

Tomorrow’s Thursday Night Football matchup between the Denver Broncos (3-3) and Cleveland Browns (3-3) is a big one. Can quarterback (QB) Baker Mayfield bounce back from injury to lead the Browns, or will Broncos QB Teddy Bridgewater step up to snap Denver’s three-game losing streak? Tune in at 8:20 p.m. ET to see.

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• Okay, now for the up: former president and CEO of the 1999 FIFA Women’s World Cup (aka the World Cup that transformed women’s soccer) Marla Messing has been named the interim CEO of the NWSL. Here for this.