ESPN Daily

WNBA All-Star Weekend is upon us, with the STARRY 3-Point Contest and the Kia WNBA Skills Challenge airing on Friday night at 9 pm eastern on ESPN. And the AT&T WNBA All-Star Game itself tipping off on tomorrow at 830 PM on ABC So today, ESPN women’s basketball reporter Alexa Philippou, takes us through what the weekend has in store. She previews the faceoff between Team USA and Team WNBA, and dives into the most riveting Rookie of the Year race in the history of the league. Before explaining just how the W can capitalize on the momentum that it’s seeing right now. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

ESPN has released its rankings of the greatest athletes of the 21st century so far, and we’ve got some bones to pick! That is, after all, the point of these things –– it’s fun to argue about. So that’s exactly what we’ll do today. Emily Kaplan and Kevin Clark join guest host Jeremy Schaap to examine why the players missing from the list may be more telling than those actually on it (no Breanna Stewart?!), why the term “GOAT” may be losing its meaning, and why Serena Williams, Tiger Woods, Lionel Messi, Tom Brady and beyond are all more deserving of the top slot than Michael Phelps. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ten years ago, during a skydiving accident, Emma Carey and her instructor plummeted some 14,000 feet into an empty cow pasture in Switzerland. Miraculously, both survived the more than two-mile fall. Our own Ryan Hockensmith had the chance to speak with Emma about that experience. And to find out how she overcame the nightmare, processed her recovery, came to terms with the miracle — and used her story to inspire others, without letting it define her. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Midsummer Classic is upon us once again. And once again, there are more questions than answers in Major League Baseball. What will the Pirates do with Paul Skenes, their rookie phenom? How can we get players interested in the All-Star Game again? How should we honor the late legend Willie Mays? And with a couple weeks left until the trade deadline, what should the powerhouse teams on both coasts do to make sure they are more than ready for October baseball? Today, Buster Olney sits side-by-side with Clinton Yates in Texas to answer all these questions and more on the eve of the 2024 MLB All-Star Game. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There is no greater pain than seeing a child suffer through an illness. But also, there is no greater joy than seeing that child smile.That full spectrum of emotions is at the heart of ESPN’s annual My Wish series that debuts this week. An elite slate of athletes will meet with several children to bond over their shared love of the game and a belief that hope, passion and a good team are the recipe for victory in whatever challenge they face. So today, our very own Chris Connelly reflects on the legacy of this program and shares what his experience has been like having a front-row seat to every My Wish ever granted. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Players scrapping with fans in the stands, continental championships up for grabs on both sides of “the pond,” and US Men's Soccer is once again searching for a new manager. There’s a ton going on in the international soccer world, so today Luis Miguel Echegaray helps us break it all down, and lets us know who he thinks will capture the crown in Europe and the Americas. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After 22 years, Wyc Grousbeck and his family announced they’ll be selling their controlling stake in the Boston Celtics. The announcement marks a seismic moment not just for the Celtics, but for the NBA. Our own Tim Bontemps is here to talk about how the sale of one of the most iconic franchises in the world connects to greater trends in sports team ownership worldwide, and to explain who or what entity could be Jayson Tatum and Jalen Brown’s new boss. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Gamers of a certain age have fond memories of building dynasties with their favorite schools in the NCAA College Football video game series. But - because of a lawsuit filed by former UCLA Bruin Ed O’Bannon over name, image, and likeness violations - it’s been more than a decade since EA Sports released the game. That wait is almost over, as the game returns next week. Today, ESPN staff writer, Michael Rothstein, who broke the news of the game’s return in 2021, and has been covering the journey ever since, explains why college sports video games were shelved, and tells us just how EA Sports worked to return gamers’ holy grail. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After 13 seasons as a splash brother with the Warriors, Klay Thompson is trading in the boats in the Bay for cowboy boots in Dallas, Texas. And it feels like the end of the most recent dynasty in the NBA. But how exactly did it all come to an end? Today, ESPN senior NBA writer Ramona Shelburne explains what forced Klay’s hand, and details how he ended up choosing to moor his boat to the Mavericks. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The NBA has been busy since the Celtics locked down their 18th championship. In Los Angeles, JJ Redick has traded in his microphone for a clipboard, becoming the new coach of the Lakers. And one of the first moves on his watch? Drafting Bronny James, fulfilling a father and son moment that the world has been waiting on. Meanwhile, Paul George says goodbye to the Clippers and heads over to Philly, while DeMar DeRozan pulled back up to the west coast, heading from Chicago to Sacramento. So today we talk with ESPN NBA writer Tim Bontemps about which teams look like chevy hitters. And explore which moves could lead to the beginning of the next NBA dynasty. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Last month, we learned that the rivalry between legendary competitive eaters, Japan’s Takeru Kobayashi and America’s Joey Chestnut, would be renewed this Labor Day. It will be their first head-to-head, hot-dog-eating-showdown in 14 years. A dispute with the organizers of Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating contest, a July 4th tradition, had forced Kobayashi out of the competition in 2010. A similar dispute this year for Chestnut set the stage for a long awaited rematch between two men who had accounted for 22 of the last 23 Nathan’s Famous titles. So today, we bring you an interview with Takeru Kobayashi himself, exploring what drove him to rethink and revolutionize the sport of eating in the early 2000s, why his rivalry with Chestnut wasn’t as fun as it looked, the false reports of his retirement, and what we should expect to see when these two finally meet again on Labor Day. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Now that we are heading to the midpoint of the 2024 MLB season, it’s time to take the temperature of the league. Can the surprising Cleveland Guardians stay hot and catch pennant fever? Will the Orioles’s arms stay healthy enough to take down the Yankees? Are the Phillies and Dodgers simply inevitable in the National League? Or will Grimace continue to hold court in Queens and somehow bring the Mets to the table? To get the answers to all this and more we once again turn to our friend ESPN MLB insider Jeff Passan as he breaks down what stood out to him over the first few months and tells us how things might shape up down the stretch. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There are two absolutely gigantic continental soccer tournaments happening side by side across the globe. In the western hemisphere Copa America features the United States, the Caribbean, and the best of South America on the pitch. Giving Uruguay a spotlight to shine. While across the pond the UEFA European Championship, better known as the Euros, are giving us all of the traditional national rivalries we’re used to seeing. Of course, it wouldn’t be soccer on a global stage, if the USMNT didn’t have some sort of controversy going on, and following their upsetting loss to Panama last week, the questions about Gregg Berhalter’s fitness to lead the team are starting to swirl. So today, Luis Miguel Echegaray is here to: Get us set for tonight’s U.S. vs Uruguay matchup, breakdown everything he’s been seeing in both tournaments, and to let us know who he likes to take home championships on both sides of the Atlantic. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s a big week for the UFC. Out in Vegas, the premier combat sports company is celebrating International Fight Week, and on Thursday night, inducted its latest class to the Hall of Fame. Saturday night, the festivities culminate in UFC 303. But the sport’s biggest star, Conor McGregor, won’t be there, after pulling out of the main event due to injury, and forcing UFC to scramble and find other fighters to carry the card. So today, our Andreas Hale explains why McGregor’s three year absence has proven detrimental for him on all fronts, and why another delayed return has everyone wondering if Mr. Notorious will ever step into the Octagon again. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Three years ago, a positive marijuana test forced Sha’Carri Richardson off of team USA, robbing her and her country of a chance at an all-time Olympic moment. But in the years since, with a style reminiscent of the great Florence Griffith Joyner, Richardson has more than made her mark on the sport. So with 100-meter qualifications complete and the 200-meter on the horizon this weekend, our Coley Harvey explains how Richardson bounced back and why the Summer Games could make her one of the biggest stars on the planet. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

From his time in Negro Leagues as a teenager to his epic run of success with the Giants, Willie Mays was always student and ambassador of America’s Pasttime Mays’ performance on the field has him in the conversation as one of the best players ever. 24 All Star Games, 12 Gold Gloves, two MVP awards, and 660 homers leave him in the most rare of air. In short, putting his legacy into words is almost impossible, so we let his actions tell his story. And the stories you will hear about Willie are that he was the one player from Ted Williams and Mickey Mantle to Reggie Jackson and Ken Griffey Jr. that left every major leaguer simply star struck by his otherworldly skills and his graceful presence. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With all of the air in the WNBA room being sucked up by loud takes on Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese, and what their rivalry means to America, it’s easy to forget that we’re about a month and a half into the season. So today ESPN women’s basketball writer Michael Voepel takes us around the league to fill us in on what we’ve been missing. Tonight’s Commissioner Cup final between the New York Liberty and Minnesota Lynx is one of the stories that has gotten lost in the shuffle. Ironically, we haven’t been talking much about what’s happening on the court with the Indiana Fever and the Chicago Sky. And A’ja Wilson is doing it again, looking like a pretty solid bet to take home her third MVP award. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

By the end of tonight, the world will know if the Edmonton Oilers will be the first Canadian team to hoist the Stanley Cup in more than three decades. Despite an initial 3-0 lead by the Florida Panthers, the Oilers have pushed forward and forced a Game 7. Our own Emily Kaplan is here to tell us how both these teams got to the finals, why key players like Connor McDavid and Stuart Skinner have been crucial to the Oilers’ comeback, and what tonight’s outcome could mean for all of hockey. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The 2024 Olympics are almost upon us. Trials are taking place around the world to determine who will represent their countries in Paris. And next week, all eyes will be on USA gymnastics trials in Minneapolis – as 16 women compete for one of five coveted spots on Team USA. Olympic superstar gymnast Simone Biles is looking to make it to her 3rd Olympics, but alongside her are 15 other women with just as much a shot to make the team as her. So today, our Olympics expert D’Arcy Maine joins us to break down how we got to trials and why this Olympic team might be the hardest to make in the history of the sport. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Copa América is South America’s fiercely competitive international soccer tournament, historically dominated by Argentina, Brazil, and Uruguay. But this summer, the games are happening in the United States, and the Americans have been invited to compete along with other North and Central American teams. So, as this unprecedented tournament gets underway Thursday night, our soccer savant Luis Miguel Echegaray explains how it all landed in the states to begin with, why it will be a major measuring stick for the American squad, and whether Argentina’s Lionel Messi has anything left to prove. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices