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Steph Curry Hilariously Calls Out Kevin Harlan After a Free Throw Jinx

Also in Traina Thoughts: Charles Barkley gets a spelling challenge; Joe Burrow vs. bug; NFL player loves the Kardashians and more.

Jimmy Traina

1. When Steph Curry went to the free throw line Wednesday in the second quarter of the Warriors’ game against the Suns, he was 22-for-22 from the charity stripe this season.

As he put up his foul shot, Kevin Harlan, calling the game for TNT, pointed out Curry had not missed a free throw this year. The ball rattled around the rim and fell out.

Harlan’s analysts, Reggie Miller and Candace Parker, immediately jumped on Harlan for the jinx. “Kevin. Kevin that is YOU,” said Parker, while Miller kept asking, “Why?”

Miller and Parker weren’t the only ones to blame Harlan, however.

In a great TV moment, Curry actually turned to the broadcast table and pointed directly at Harlan and jokingly jawed at him, while Harlan profusely apologized.

Later in the third quarter, Curry missed another free throw, causing Harlan to say, “I didn’t say anything. Don’t look at me.”

There are a few takeaways here. First, kudos to Harlan for embracing the jinx and to Miller and Parker for playing along. Second, I know Harlan has amazing pipes, but it’s still wild to me that the players on the court can actually hear him do play-by-play. Three, we need more interaction between players and the broadcast crew during games, because this was a very entertaining moment.

2. There was nothing funnier on television Wednesday than Charles Barkley trying to spell "spectacular" on Inside the NBA.

3. Joe Burrow threw for 481 yards and three touchdowns in the Bengals’ 35–17 win against the Falcons on Sunday, but the day was entirely perfect as you’ll see below.

4. Burrow’s teammate stud kicker Evan McPherson has professed his love for all things Kardashians in a recent interview. “Thursday nights are our Kardashian nights,” he told Renee All Dey.

5. Here is this week’s edition of the always entertaining “Bad Beats.”

6. This week’s SI Media Podcast features a conversation with longtime radio host Chris Russo. The man known as “Mad Dog” talks about his upcoming induction into the Radio Hall of Fame and what it means to him, the career renaissance he has enjoyed over the past year thanks to his weekly appearances on First Take, some of the ups and downs he’s experienced while doing the debate show anchored by Stephen A. Smith and what his role is on the show.

Russo also reveals what happened after he revealed his First Take salary during an interview with Howard Stern and discusses his First Take future. In addition, Russo weighs in on recent sports headlines, including the broadcasts of the MLB playoffs, the NFL’s Thursday Night Football problem, Jim Irsay’s calling out Daniel Snyder and Tom Brady’s current problems.

Other topics covered include the Mount Rushmore of TV shows, Bruce Springsteen and much more.

You can listen to the podcast below or download it on Apple, Spotify and Google.

You can also watch the SI Media Podcast on YouTube.

7. Regarding that podcast with Chris Russo, I need to thank Howard Stern for giving full and proper credit to the SI Media Podcast on his Tuesday show.

8. RANDOM VIDEO OF THE DAY: McDonald’s has gotten a lot of headlines over the past couple of days because it’s bringing back the McRib. So this seems like a good time to share Jason Alexander’s old McDonald’s commercials in case any of you Seinfeld fans out there have never seen it.

Be sure to catch up on past editions of Traina Thoughts and check out the Sports Illustrated Media Podcast hosted by Jimmy Traina on Apple, Spotify or Google. You can also follow Jimmy on Twitter, Instagram and TikTok.

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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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