In a league where every movement is tracked and every statistic is measured, chemistry remains the rare, unquantifiable variable that dictates NBA wins and losses.
The intrigue: Fostering NBA chemistry has become increasingly difficult now that players change teams so often. But nothing has ever impacted chemistry-building quite like the pandemic. The question is: has it helped or hurt?
Tennessee's Republican Gov. Bill Lee said Monday that transgender girls should be banned from playing on middle and high school sports teams, claiming trans athletes will "destroy women's sports," AP reports.
Why it matters: His comments come as the Tennessee GOP attempts to pass legislation requiring student-athletes to provide "original" birth certificates in order to participate in school sports. They argue that trans girls have an edge in athletics because they were assigned male at birth, but research has shown there is no automatic advantage.
The NBA said in the statement Wednesday that "all teams will play the national anthem in keeping with longstanding league policy."
Why it matters: The statement came after Dallas Mavericks' owner Mark Cuban said his team hadn't played the national anthem during home games so far this season and didn't plan to do so moving forward. The Mavericks are believed to be the first American professional sports team to cease the practice.
MLB is slightly altering the construction of its baseballs in the hopes of deadening them off the bat.
Driving the news: The league sent a memo to all 30 teams outlining changes that would "center the ball within the specification range" of bounciness — a range that has always been wide enough for significant variance among balls.
The Dallas Mavericks haven't played the national anthem during home games this season and don't plan to play it moving forward, owner Mark Cuban confirmed to Axios.
Why it matters: The Mavericks are believed to be the first American professional sports team to cease playing the anthem at home.
Former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick on Tuesday disclosed that he has formed a blank-check company that will seek to raise $250 million in an IPO.
Why it matters: Kaepernick hasn't played pro football since 2016, but has remained a cultural lightning rod — either loved or loathed for his social activism, including his strong support of the Black Lives Matters movement.
