PMTPMT DB

Ryan Whitney, College Basketball Is Back, And Tony Finau Is Officially Cursed

Monday, February 22, 202115 takes

College Basketball is back and the blue bloods had themselves a weekend ( - ). Our guy Max Homa wins a tournament and Tony Finau is the poster child for the Puerto Rico Open Curse ( - ). Hot Seat/Cool Throne including stay woke on Cam Newton and a new podcast from PFT and Arian Foster ( - ). Ryan Whitney joins the show to talk hockey, the winter classic, Sidney Crosby and his golf game ( - ). Segments include Talking Tennis and Monday Reading is Back.

Interview

Win
Take Slip·Feb 22, 2021
#PMT-2021-0222-15234
Ryan WhitneyRyan Whitney

The Chicago Blackhawks have no chance of making the playoffs

I said, it's great to watch, but there's no chance they're making the playoffs. No chance. I just don't see it happening there's like the depth isn't there... maybe if Taze comes back but who knows.

The Blackhawks finished 6th in the Central Division and did not make the playoffs in the 2020-21 season.
Void
Take Slip·Feb 22, 2021
#PMT-2021-0222-15235
Ryan WhitneyRyan Whitney

PGA Tour golfers are higher-level athletes relative to their sport than any other professional athletes

I actually say a lot that I think that PGA Tour golfers are better at their sport than any other professional athlete is at their sport, if that makes any sense. If you threw me in an NBA game, I'll look like Sean Bradley. Throw me on the tour, I'll shoot 100 and quit.

This is a subjective comparison of athletic specialization and skill gaps across different sports.
Void
Take Slip·Feb 22, 2021
#PMT-2021-0222-15231
Ryan WhitneyRyan Whitney

Sidney Crosby is a top-five hockey player of all time

Crosby's in my top five players of all time. I actually think it's in no particular order... it's Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, Sidney Crosby, Bobby Orr, Gordie Howe.

Crosby's rank in the top 5 is a widely held opinion among hockey experts, though the order varies.
Void
Take Slip·Feb 22, 2021
#PMT-2021-0222-15232
Ryan WhitneyRyan Whitney

Alex Ovechkin is the best goal scorer in the history of hockey

Ovechkin is, I think, the best goal scorer of all time. I know he doesn't have the most goals, which he actually somehow might break... But Ovechkin is right there with Gretzky and Hall, top goal scorers of all time.

Ovechkin is widely regarded as the greatest goal scorer due to playing in a much lower-scoring era than Gretzky.
Loss
Take Slip·Feb 22, 2021
#PMT-2021-0222-15233
Ryan WhitneyRyan Whitney

The Toronto Maple Leafs are legitimate Stanley Cup contenders and I am rooting for them

The Maple Leafs have been pathetic. 53 years? But now they have a team that is like legitimately built to win a Stanley Cup, I think... I've actually come out and said that I'm rooting for the Toronto Maple Leafs to win the cup this year. That's my team this year.

The 2021 Maple Leafs lost in the first round of the playoffs to the Montreal Canadiens after leading the series 3-1.

Recap

Void
Take Slip·Feb 22, 2021
#PMT-2021-0222-15224
HankHank

Arizona is a college basketball blue blood

Arizona could be a blue blood. I think Arizona is a blue blood. I mean, they won a national championship in the early 2000s... Legendary coach [Lute Olson]?

The concept of 'blue blood' is subjective, but Arizona is generally considered just below the top tier of UK, UNC, Duke, Kansas, UCLA, and Indiana.
Loss
Take Slip·Feb 22, 2021
#PMT-2021-0222-15225
Billy FootballBilly Football

No college basketball team will ever win back-to-back national championships again

Back-to-back championships. They'll never be done again.

UConn won back-to-back championships in 2023 and 2024, proving this take wrong within three years.
Push
Take Slip·Feb 22, 2021
#PMT-2021-0222-15226
PFT CommenterPFT Commenter

Michigan is good enough to beat Baylor or Gonzaga this season

I feel like in yesterday's game, that was the first time in months that somebody's been like, showed up on a national stage, and you're like, that team can beat Baylor. That team can beat Gonzaga. Michigan, yeah. I feel like we need to include them in that conversation.

Michigan was a top-tier team but did not ultimately face or beat the unbeatens, losing to UCLA in the Elite Eight. Baylor beat Gonzaga in the title game.
Void
Take Slip·Feb 22, 2021
#PMT-2021-0222-15227
Big CatBig Cat

An NFL quarterback should always be a team captain

I'd prefer you to be a captain. It's so hard to be a quarterback and not be a captain. Yes, yes. There's something. The Bo Callahan joke and Draft Day joke actually becomes real when you have a college quarterback who's a first-round talent and not a captain.

Leadership is subjective, but Wilson's career was famously troubled by locker room and leadership concerns, somewhat validating Big Cat's 'red flag' sentiment.
Loss
Take Slip·Feb 22, 2021
#PMT-2021-0222-15228
Big CatBig Cat

Tony Finau is officially cursed by the Puerto Rico Open

Tony Finau is officially cursed... There's a legitimate curse out there, and I'm so fucking in on it. So the Puerto Rico Open, Puerto Rico Open, that is the one win that Tony Finau has... 11-year history. No winner has gone on to win any other tournament after they won the Puerto Rico Open.

The curse was broken. Tony Finau went on to win the Northern Trust later in 2021 and multiple other tournaments (3M Open, Rocket Mortgage, etc.) since this recording.

Talking Tennis

Void
Take Slip·Feb 22, 2021·Talking Tennis
#PMT-2021-0222-15236
Big CatBig Cat

Novak Djokovic is the tennis GOAT

Novak Djokovic... He's the fucking goat. Suck on this dick, Jake. I am the number one Novak Djokovic fan out there. He wins his 18th title. 18th major... He's the fucking goat.

As of 2024, Djokovic holds the record for most Grand Slam titles (24), strengthening the statistical argument for him being the GOAT.
Void
Take Slip·Feb 22, 2021·Talking Tennis
#PMT-2021-0222-15237
Big CatBig Cat

Fear of missing out (FOMO) is the correct reason to get into Bitcoin or Top Shot

If the only reason you're getting into it is a fear of missing out, that's the wrong reason? No, no, no, no. That's exactly the only reason to get in. The only reason to get into all of these things is that you don't want to someday be pumping the gas for a fucking Bitcoin billionaire's boat.

This is a philosophical approach to high-risk investing and social trends.

Who Is Back

Void
Take Slip·Feb 22, 2021·Who's Back
#PMT-2021-0222-15229
Big CatBig Cat

The viral video of Cam Newton getting heckled was a PR setup

I'm woke on this Cam Newton clip... It almost feels like that was kind of set up to remind everyone how awesome Cam Newton was. We'll put out a video of Cam getting disrespected so that people are forced to recall how great he is at football. Because you're right. This is the most sympathetic press Cam Newton's got in the last year.

This is a conspiracy theory that cannot be definitively proven or disproven, though most people believe it was a genuine organic moment at a camp.
Loss
Take Slip·Feb 22, 2021·Who's Back
#PMT-2021-0222-15230
PFT CommenterPFT Commenter

Cam Newton isn't fully healthy because he didn't swing on the heckling kid

That's actually what's telling me that Cam Newton isn't healthy. Because if he was, he should have just swung on the kid. Where somebody's being that disrespectful... Cam, you should be able to defend yourself.

OpinionFootballHotSarcastic
Cam Newton's choice not to hit a child is likely due to maturity and legal/career awareness rather than a shoulder injury.

Monday Reading

Void
Take Slip·Feb 22, 2021·Monday Reading
#PMT-2021-0222-15238
Big CatBig Cat

Society is trending into the toilet

What we're saying is our society is heading to the toilet. So in 12 years when my son has to go through middle school and high school, it is going to be a landmine. You think we're trending up? Uh-uh... We're trending down.

Societal decline is a matter of perception and cannot be objectively verified.