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🏈 A New Dynasty is Here

🏈 A New Dynasty is Here

January 10, 2023

What's good BTP family? What a dominant performance by the Georgia Bulldogs last night as they became the first team since Alabama (2011-12) to win back-to-back national championships. A truly impressive performance all around from the Bulldogs that has already propelled them as the favorite to win it all again next year. In the NBA, we got an update on Kevin Durant's latest MCL sprain that is projected to now sideline him for at least one month. This is a big loss for the Nets so it will be interesting to see how they respond playing without Durant.

Today, we break down last night's BLOWOUT victory by Georgia and how they have become the new face of college football, what lies ahead for the future of the Toronto Raptors, and a flashback to the past to the unforgettable and terrifying Gilbert Arenas gun incident.

Start your day off here!

NEW CFB DYNASTY

Georgia Becomes the New Face of College Football

Move over Alabama — the Georgia Bulldogs are the new kings of college football. Not only did the Bulldogs win back-to-back national championships for the first time in a decade (that other team being Alabama), but their 65-7 victory was hands down the most dominant win of the title game era.

The Bulldogs were 13-point favorites going into last night’s game, and immediately viewers knew Vegas got this one wrong. The Bulldogs scored on every possession in the first half while putting up 589 yards of offense and stifling TCU to a measly 188 yards. It was a good ol’ fashion beatdown.

Naturally, the comparisons to Alabama football began flying, but the two sides have much more in common than just winning back-to-back titles. While Georgia has impressively won 29 of their last 30 games, Georgia has been a powerhouse for years. In addition to their two nattys, since 2017, they've gone 72-10 and won three SEC titles and five SEC East division crowns. But that’s not all.

Bulldogs head coach Kirby Smart worked under Nick Saban for a decade, following Saban with brief stops at LSU and Miami Dolphins before settling in for seven seasons at Alabama. Clearly, he learned a thing or two about how to run an elite college program.

But even though Bama and Nick Saban are still a force to be reckoned with, it’s Georgia that’s already favored to win next year’s CFB title; and if they win three in a row, Georgia would accomplish something no team in the title game era has ever done, not even Saban. The only team to “win” three consecutive national championships was the Minnesota Golden Gophers in the 1930s.

FUTURE IN JEOPARDY

The Raptors Could Change Everything

It's not hyperbolic to say the entire NBA is watching the Toronto Raptors. The Raptors were expected to be a top-six squad in a very competitive Eastern conference, but despite having several stars on the roster, they currently sit in just 11th place through 40 games, leaving them in a bit of no man's land. Will they stay the course, will they sell? Let's break it down.

The case for keeping the status quo: Toronto already has the hardest thing to get in the NBA, star power. Pascal Siakam is playing at an All-NBA level, and OG Anunoby might be the best 3-and-D wing in the league. VanVleet and Barnes are having down years, but VanVleet just made his first All-Star game, and Barnes was recently so highly regarded that the Raptors wouldn’t trade him for KD. Plus, with the NBA play-in tournament, making the postseason isn’t as daunting as in years past.

The case for rebuilding: As presently constructed, the Raptors can’t win it all. They’re in too deep of a hole, their defense is struggling, and they lack depth. But for contending teams, the talent that Toronto could deal would beat just about any name currently on the market. Anunoby alone is one of the hottest names in the NBA, with some insiders projecting a Donovan Mitchell-like haul should the Raptors trade him. With a once-in-a-generation talent like Victor Wembanyama available, Toronto could do a lot worse than punting on this year.

What will they do?: No clue! Team president Masai Ujiri is one of the best executives in the league, so whatever he decides will likely be the right choice. It’s a cop-out, but all eyes will be on this team leading up to the February 9th trade deadline.

LOCKER ROOM TROUBLE

Gilbert Arenas Once had a Gun Pulled on him Over a Game of Cards!

Gilbert Arenas has lived a wild life, even by NBA standards, but nothing will ever top the time his own teammate pulled a loaded gun on him. Here’s how a game of booray and some epic trash-talking got so out of hand that it led to a literal life-or-death situation.

The Story: In December 2009, while on a team flight, Gilbert Arenas joined a card game called booray with Javaris Crittenton and a few other of their Washington Wizards teammates. At the time, Arenas was one of the Wizards’ best and highest-paid players, having just signed a six-year $111M contract in the offseason. Meanwhile, the second-year Crittenton had been on the team for less than a month and was only making $1.48M.

According to Arenas, he interrupted a game of booray that Crittenton was losing badly and decided to rile the young man up for fun. It worked, and things got so heated that after they landed, Crittenton threatened to shoot Arenas, to which Arenas replied: “Man, I’ll bring you the guns to shoot me!’”

At their next team practice two days later, Arenas made good on his word and brought four unloaded guns into the locker room. He then told Crittenton: “Hey, MF, come pick one, I’m going to shoot your [expletive] with one of these.” Arenas claimed he was joking and was simply calling Crittenton’s bluff, but he widely misread the situation. Instead, Crittenton pulled out a loaded gun of his own, cocked it, and pointed it at Arenas. Nearly the entire team fled the scene, but thankfully Caron Butler stayed behind and successfully talked Crittenton down.

The Aftermath: Unsurprisingly, Crittenton and Arenas were promptly suspended for the rest of the season. Arenas received a harsher legal punishment, but due to his talent and contract situation, he was back with the Wizards the following year, while Crittenton was not. Unfortunately, a few years later, Crittenton was charged with the murder of a woman and is currently in the middle of a 23-year prison sentence.

THE RUMOR MILL

Mavs' Tim Hardaway Jr. Trade is 'Essentially Up to Cavs'

People around the NBA are 'scared' of the Clippers in the trade market

THIS DAY IN SPORTS HISTORY

January 10, 1985: Lenny Wilkens becomes first to coach win 1,000 NBA games after his Seattle SuperSonics defeat the Golden State Warriors, 89-86