Thursday’s Hot Clicks: David Fizdale Inspires Knicks With Story of Falling in Frozen Poop

Things could always be worse, even for the Knicks.

Things could always be worse, even for the Knicks

Jim McIsaac/Getty Images

If you had to come up with a metaphor for the last six Knicks seasons, falling in frozen dog poop would be a pretty good one. Actually, that happened to coach David Fizdale for real. 

Fizdale appeared on MSG Network’s “Conference Room B” on Monday and explained how his unfamiliarity with Northeastern weather led to him laying on his back in his dogs’ mess on a frozen lawn. 

A transcription of the key bit, via Deadspin:

“So I’m laying on the grass—I told this story to the team just to kinda give them a laugh and a boost—I’m laying in dog poop and pee in the yard, in ice, and I’m bleeding, and I just start laughing, on my back. Welcome to New York City, and get your butt up. And so that was the message to the team, is, ‘hey, we’re getting punched, and that’s okay, you young dudes, we’re all gonna go through this together, but we’re gonna get up together.’”

The Knicks haven’t won a game in regulation since Nov. 25. So yeah, that’s pretty crappy. 

“Hold those bears!”

What’s the worst-case scenario on Teddy Bear Toss night? A stick save like the one Coventry Blaze goalie Miroslav Kopriva made. 

The tradition, if you’re not familiar, calls for fans to rain plush toys down on the ice after the home team’s first goal. The Sheffield Steelers appeared to have given the fans the green light to begin tossing when the red light went on after Jonas Westerling’s shot. But not so fast! Kopriva flat-out robbed him. 

What a way to lose a game (and make gamblers hate you)

Keith Dambrot going full hold me back pic.twitter.com/DCi9WeutrG

— Backdoor Cuts (@stoolbackcuts) December 20, 2018

The worst time to give an opponent free points is in a tie game with five seconds to play. Just ask Duquesne’s Keith Dambrot, who gave Penn State four free points by picking up two technical fouls in the closing seconds. Those shots, paired with the two the Nittany Lions were already shooting (for the foul Dambrot was so upset about in the first place) put the game out of reach. 

Even worse, Penn State was favored by 5.5 points in the game. Without those four extra shots, the Dukes would have covered. Even worse than that, the over-under was 138 and those four extra points pushed the total to 140. I sincerely hope no one reading this actually bet on a Penn State-Duquesne game on a Wednesday, but I understand why you’re mad if you did. 

The best of SI

History-making former Division-I kicker Katie Hnida is on the mend after a life-threatening medical emergency. ... Why aren’t the Cubs pursuing either of baseball's top two free agents? ... Catch up here on all the big news from National Signing Day.

Around the sports world

The New York Times profiled Scooter Magruder, whose viral sports fan parodies you’ve definitely seen. ... Dear god, Nathan Peterman got another NFL job. ... MLB has a new deal with the Cuban baseball federation that should make moving from Cuba to the big leagues safer (if the American government doesn’t squash it). ... Niners defensive lineman Solomon Thomas and a nine-year-old fan have formed a bond after both losing loved ones to suicide recently. 

Hey look, another Tom Wilson controversy

Soccer player gets gifted a car, but he can’t start it or drive it very well

Cristiano Ronaldo is not one for subtlety

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A post shared by MR BLING COLOMBIA (@mrblingcolombia)

Two of the best announcements from National Signing Day

This is one of the greatest signing days you will ever see. Hanahan’s Cooper Dawson picks Syracuse- but does it by first telling close friend Kingsley Feinman. Kingsley announces the decision- Dawson adds that Kingsley taught him the only disability is a bad attitude. @ABCNews4 pic.twitter.com/3OGJzJmlXg

— Scott Eisberg (@SEisbergWCIV) December 19, 2018

There were also guys signed named Storm Duck and Sean Dollars. 

Marshawn Lynch makes his voice heard in local government

Not sports

Doctors in China believe a man’s fungal pneumonia may have been caused by sniffing his socks every day after work. ... An escaped convict was found hiding in a hot tub. ... The Twitter app has a new feature that lets you go back to the old chronological timeline. 

2 Chainz cannot believe this kid made seven figures re-selling shoes

Everybody loves this Google Home ad

I personally think putting an always-on microphone owned by a company that tracks your every move in your home is scarier than Joe Pesci trying to break into your house, but whatever. 

This guy has too much time on his hands

A good song

Email dan.gartland@simail.com with any feedback or follow me on Twitter for approximately one half-decent baseball joke per week. Bookmark this page to see previous editions of Hot Clicks and find the newest edition every day. By popular request I’ve made a Spotify playlist of the music featured here. Visit our Extra Mustard page throughout each day for more offbeat sports stories.