Wednesday’s Hot Clicks: Draymond Green Took Two Incredible L’s

The dunk by James Harden wasn’t even the worst part of Draymond’s night.

Rough Night for Draymond Green

Ezra Shaw/Getty Images

The Warriors and Rockets finally—FINALLY—gave us the first entertaining game of either Conference Finals last night. Golden State started the game on a 12–0 run, which led the SI.com NBA chatroom to contemplate changing the channel to a new episode of Chopped. But Houston came all the way back and even weathered a monster third quarter by the Warrirs to come back and win 95–92.

It was a great night for basketball fans, not so much for Draymond Green. He may have stuffed the stat sheet (11 points, 14 rebounds, eight assists) but he was on the wrong end of two viral highlights. 

First he got totally humiliated by James Harden with a vicious dunk.

Then he got rejected by the rim while going up for an easy slam in the fourth quarter of a three-point game.

the most satisfying GIF pic.twitter.com/HP2NWgg4s0

— Kenny Ducey (@KennyDucey) May 23, 2018

So now the series is tied 2–2 and the Rockets have a chance to put the Warriors on the brink of elimination with a win at home on Thursday. That’s entirely plausible if Andre Iguodala’s knee keeps him out again and Kevin Durant and Stephen Curry shoot a combined 19–50 from the field. 

Come on, aren’t you excited?

This is Nationals outfielder Michael A. Taylor. Based on this image, what do you think has just happened?

Did he strike out? Did he just realize he locked his keys in his car? Did someone tell him he has six months to live?

No, he just hit a walk-off double in the ninth inning. 

Taylor said after the game that the muted reaction was due to his recent struggles at the plate. 

“Like a weight was being lifted off. It's been a rough stretch for me,” Taylor told MLB.com. “I took a deep breath. I've been waiting to have something turn for me.

Would the Eagles really do this? 

NFL.com’s Mike Silver reports that the Browns offered the Eagles the No. 35 pick in last month’s draft in exchange for Nick Foles. 

“Before rejecting the deal, two sources said, the Eagles ran the scenario by Foles, who said he preferred to remain in Philadelphia,” Silver adds.

What I want to know is why the team would even solicit Foles’s input. We’re not talking about a fairly low-value late-round pick—this is a pick at the top of the second round (that the Browns ended up using to select talented Georgia running back Nick Chubb).

Of course, Silver doesn’t say how much of a factor Foles’s reaction was in the Eagles’ decision making, but I have a hard time believing Foles’s disinterest in going to Cleveland would have dissuaded Philadelphia from accepting a trade that could land them an impact player in exchange for a backup.

Bits & Pieces

A Blue Jackets prospect was shocked to discover that the reason for his constant fatigue was a 25-inch tapeworm that had been inside him for a year. ... An upstate New York man was evicted by his parents after he refused to clean his room or move his car. ... This Florida city has been inadvertantly sending out zombie alerts to its residents’ phones. ... A guy in Florida claims a McDonald’s employee put a detergent pod in his soda. ...

Someone tell the Breaking Bad guy the difference between the search box and the tweet box

You gotta be kidding me

SC family says supermarket wouldn't write Summa Cum Laude on a cake due to profanity https://t.co/QQbZWCJQno pic.twitter.com/SkT5D72s4v

— WYFF News 4 (@wyffnews4) May 22, 2018

The Patriots already forfeited their 2008 first-round pick. What more do you want?

SPYGATE could be one of the biggest political scandals in history!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 23, 2018

New York tabloids remain undefeated

Not what it looks like?

Because Trevor Bauer’s sense of humor is inspired only by over-repeated internet memes, I (and everyone else) thought this meant “Bush did 9/11.” Not so fast, says Bauer. 

I’m not entirely sure I believe him. 

Damn, it’s true

The Breaking Bad tweet reminded me

I’m not sure which is more impressive

I wrote yesterday about LeBron copying his son’s dunk. This here by Real Madrid fullback Marcelo is the opposite. Marcelo’s eight-year-old son was in the Real Madrid dressing room last week and successfully completed 25 consecutive headers. 

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Real Madrid C.F. (@realmadrid)

This week, Marcelo replicated the feat with a bunch of kids. 

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Enzo Alves (@enzoalvesv)

A good song

Hot Clicks is everything you need to know in the world of sports and pop culture, ready for you to read right when you get to your desk in the morning. Email dan.gartland@simail.com with any feedback or ping me on Twitter. Click here for previous editions of Hot Clicks. Visit our Extra Mustard page throughout each day for more offbeat sports stories.