LeBron James, Kobe Bryant play roles in Dave Chappelle's newest special
1. If you're on Twitter, you woke up to a few thousand tweets this morning about Dave Chappelle dropping a new special late last night on YouTube.
The show, titled 8:46, the length of time Minneapolis cop Derek Chauvin had his knee on the neck of George Floyd while killing him, only runs 27 minutes and 20 seconds and is very light on comedy and very heavy on emotion, as the comedian speaks about what has gone on in the United States over the past few weeks.
There are a few laughs here and there and one of the best comes from a line Chappelle dropped about LeBron James. While discussing a FOX News host once having the audacity to tell LeBron to "shut up and dribble," Chappelle quickly ran through James' qualities and finished with a great line:
"Let me tell you something about LeBron. This n---- was on the cover of Sports Illustrated when he was 17 years old and exceeded every expectation that they had for him. This business is treacherous. This is a good guy, LeBron. He's a family man and this, that and the other. He didn't let anyone down. Came back to Ohio, won us a championship, and was like, 'I'm gonna move to L.A.,' and everyone in Ohio was like, n---- we understand."
Chappelle speaks about LeBron beginning at the 14:51 mark of the show.
He also spoke briefly about Kobe Bryant toward the end of the show, recalling how he was so devastated by Kobe's death that he couldn't attend the Grammys that night Bryant was killed in a helicopter crash.
2. Ravens coach, John Harbaugh, voiced his displeasure with certain restrictions on his team because of the coronavirus during an interview on a Baltimore radio station.
"I'm pretty sure the huddle is not going to be 6-feet spaced," Harbaugh said. "Are guys going to shower one at a time all day? Are guys going to lift weights one at a time all day? These are things the league and the [players' association] needs to get a handle on and needs to get agreed with some common sense so we can operate in a 13-hour day in training camp that they're giving us and get our work done. That's the one thing, you can tell by my voice, I'm a little frustrated with what I'm hearing there. And I think they need to get that pinned down a little better."
Oh, relax, Karen.
3. If you'd like to relate to a professional athlete, here you go.
4. Jim Nantz apologized for an f-bomb in record time yesterday at the Charles Schwab Challenge.
5. The latest Sports Illustrated Media Podcast features an interview with Nate Burleson from Good Morning Football and CBS Sports.
Burleson talked about the events in the United States since the killing of George Floyd, how he feels about cops, how his grandfather being killed by a cop shaped him as a kid, what he tells his kids about dealing with the police, the Drew Brees controversy, Vic Fangio saying racism isn't a problem in the NFL, whether he was ever uncomfortable in an NFL locker room, and much more.
You can listen to the podcast below or download it on Apple, Spotify, Stitcher and Google Play.
6. RANDOM YOUTUBE VIDEO OF THE DAY: Here's another one of those "Seinfeld Meets Coronavirus" mashup shows.
7. SPORTS HIGHLIGHT OF THE DAY: On Oct. 29, 1993, at the age of 18, LeBron James made his NBA debut. He put up 25 points, nine assists, six rebounds and four steals in 42 minutes against the Kings. The game aired on ESPN and Brad Nessler handled play-by-play duties. Here are the highlights.
Be sure to catch up on past editions of Traina Thoughts and check out the Sports Illustrated Media Podcast hosted by Jimmy Traina on Apple, Spotify or Stitcher. You can also follow Jimmy on Twitter and Instagram.