This is the online version of our morning newsletter, The Morning Win. Subscribe to get irreverent and incisive sports stories, delivered to your mailbox every morning. Charles Curtis is filling in for Andy Nesbitt.
I was 14 years old when the first Space Jam hit theaters, and like every NBA fan (who happened to also love the Loony Tunes when I was younger), I had to go to the theaters to see it.
I knew it was perhaps made for a moviegoer who was younger, but it didn’t matter. Michael Jordan was in it. I had to go see the GOAT acting with Bugs and the gang. Could the world’s most talented athlete at the time carry a movie with some cartoons and Bill Murray?
He could. And he was good!
On Thursday, we saw the latest clip from Space Jam: A New Legacy, in which Porky Pig raps. It’s … not great. And the plot of the movie is pretty wild.
But none of that matters.
This is LeBron James we’re talking about. And at least with him, we know he can act: back in 2016, I named him the greatest athlete playing himself in a movie thanks to Trainwreck. He was darn funny, charismatic, and the gag reels showed he cracked up Bill Hader, who is an extremely funny person.
So, yeah. You’re going to watch the new Space Jam. And while I’m sure the movie will produce some jokes and memes and criticisms, I’m betting we’ll still come out of it saying, “Man, LeBron can do it all.”
Quick hits: The Olympics are coming!! … NIL rules are in effect … Worst NFL uniforms … and more.
— With the Tokyo Olympics coming up later this month, we’re spotlighting one athlete a day until the opening ceremonies. First up is swimming superstar Katie Ledecky.
— The NCAA NIL policies are now in effect, and Bo Nix immediately got a deal. Meanwhile, lots of people want to see Reggie Bush get his Heisman Trophy back, something he addressed on Twitter.
— Here are the worst uniforms worn by every NFL team.
— One of the funniest Twitter threads you’ll see stars a reporter who traveled from Pittsburgh to New York to see Shohei Ohtani … but the pitcher/slugger lasted for just one inning.