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Traina Thoughts: Nobody Had Hotter Takes on Serena Williams Than Chris 'Mad Dog' Russo

SiriusXM's Chris Russo to Serena Williams: "Who the hell are you?"

Jimmy Traina

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1. If you want a measured, balanced take on the Serena Williams-U.S. Open controversy I suggest this Martina Navratilova New York Times op-ed. If you want over-the-top screaming, yelling and performance art, I strongly suggest SiriusXM's Chris "Mad Dog" Russo, who went completely ballistic on his show Monday while breaking down all angles of the Williams brouhaha. Russo not only had issues with Williams, but he also dropped the hammer on the media, the "phony" fans in Arthur Ashe Stadium and people who defended Serena's behavior.

You can hear the full rant below, thanks to the fine folks at SiriusXM who responded to my request for a longer clip. 

2. This is absolutely disgraceful by MSNBC. The cable network basically told Nate Boyer—an Army Green Beret who served for six years and did multiple tours in Iraq and Afghanistan—that they have no use for his views on players kneeling during the national anthem, after originally booking him for one of their shows, because the Tweeter-In-Chief took a break from trying to rile up his base about the issue.

3. I wrote last week about the ridiculous reaction the Pac-12 had to ESPN play-by-play man Mark Jones sending this harmless tweet about the Washington Huskies last week.

Now we find out ESPN had an even more ridiculous reaction. Nick Dawson, ESPN's vice president of programming and acquisitions, reportedly responded to an email by Washignton's overly sensitive athletic director by saying Jones's tweet was "childish behavior that is unacceptable" and "we will also ensure that Mark is not assigned to any further Washington games."

HOLY FREAKING CRAP! How would Dawson react if Jones, you know, actually did something bad? Childish behavior? Unacceptable? Dawson and ESPN seriously need to get a grip.

4. Rays' slugger Ji-Man Choi had one of the best walkoff celebrations you'll ever see. He didn't wait until he got to home plate to do it either. He literally stopped between third and home to unleash his move—and it was awesome.

5. Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer might be a serial killer.

6. If you don't get a chance to watch Scott Van Pelt's awesome "Bad Beats" segment, or if you just want more (which you should), SI.com has you covered. Every week, my colleague Max Meyer will recap the weekend's worst beats and it's a must-read for any degenerate gambler as you'll read in this season's first edition.

7. RANDOM YOUTUBE VIDEO OF THE DAY: Ever since I started Hot Clicks back in 2007, I always, on this date, post this video of David Letterman's opening monologue on his first show back after the 9/11 attacks in New York City.

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Traina Thoughts is the best of the Internet, plus musings by SI.com writer, Jimmy Traina. Get the link to a new Traina's Thoughts each day by following on Twitter and liking on Facebook. Catch up on previous editions of Traina Thoughts right here.And make sure to listen to and subscribe to the SI Media Podcast hosted by Jimmy Traina.

IN CLOSING: Genius move by Sam Darnold to throw a pick-six on his first ever pass so there was nowhere to go but up. What a performance by the 21-year-old.

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Jimmy Traina
JIMMY TRAINA

Jimmy Traina is a staff writer and podcast host for Sports Illustrated. A 20-year veteran in the industry, he’s been covering the sports media landscape for seven years and writes a daily column, Traina Thoughts. Traina has hosted the Sports Illustrated Media Podcast since 2018, a show known for interviews with some of the most important and powerful people in sports media. He also was the creator and writer of SI’s Hot Clicks feature from 2007 to '13.

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