Enthusiasms - What to look forward to 5-10-24
Welcome to Enthusiasms. Your reminder to always be looking forward to something. Pulltab Sports Editor-In-Chief, John King, points you in the right direction.
THE TIMBERWOLVES TURNING MINNESOTA INTO WINNESOTA.
Let’s be honest, until now, there hasn’t been much overlap between Timberwolves and Wild fans. Hockey doesn’t do basketball, and basketball doesn’t do hockey. It has to be brutal for Timberwolves fans to watch the bandwagon (and the bars) filling up with the entire State of Hockey. You can hear the newbie outsiders while you’re watching the game, “That’s Ant. He’s good, he’s like Michael Jordan.” “So, there’s an Ant, and a KAT, are there any other animals we should know about?!” I feel you; it must be cringe worthy.
But you need to know that it’s not easy for us hockey fans to jump on the basketball bandwagon either. For hockey fans, liking the Timberwolves is roughly as scary as going to Minneapolis. We don’t want to go there. We don’t like it. We’re far more comfortable drinking in our garages in the suburbs. But a few times a year, there’s some hot new Minneapolis restaurant or the obligatory Twins home game or two. Hockey fans are stepping into a new world with this basketball deal. We’re used to missing Mother’s Day for fishing opener, and now we’re trying to mix into a crowd filled with guys in bro-tanks and girls that still carry their phones in their back pocket. The language is different too. Phrases like “Ant is him” or “Ant is wet from everywhere” are a long way from a Zamboni making ice.
But there are a couple reasons that the State of Hockey becoming a basketball state makes the list of things to look forward to.
#1 Ant. For any lifelong hockey fan climbing aboard the Timberwolves bandwagon, Anthony Edwards was most certainly your gateway drug. We were all introduced to Ant in precisely the same way.
“He’s like a young Michael Jordan.” Also, “He might be Michael Jordan’s son.”
“He’s tough, he plays basketball like a hockey player.” Bonus points here.
You’ve for sure been sent the clips. Likely his roof rattling block . . .
The pass off the backboard to himself . . .
You maybe even got this amazing SVP interview where Ant confesses to being a playoff serial killer . . .
Yes, Ant is a world class badass. He’s special. He’s fearless. He might not be Jordan, but he’s Jordan like. He’s a top 5 player in the NBA. And he’s 22. So, that doesn’t suck.
#2 is the more important reason. To quote Princess Leia, the Timberwolves might be “our only hope.” If Minnesota isn’t on top of the current rankings of sports misery for a major American city, we’re right up there. But even the hockey fan who doesn’t know a ton about basketball will be able to see the Timberwolves pass the eye test this postseason. They play suffocating defense, they have the best young star in the league, they distribute like a true team, and they have real depth. They haven’t lost a playoff game yet, and dare I say it . . . THEY. MIGHT. JUST. WIN. IT. ALL.
No, seriously. The Timberwolves could win it all. The Timberwolves could be the team to finally turn Minnesota into Winnesota. I know you thought it would be the Vikings, or the Wild, or maybe even the Twins again—but turns out the Wolf is in Wolves clothing. So, call up your other hockey buddies and let them know, this is our shot. If they’re like most of the other new additions to the Wolves bandwagon, they won’t care how it happens or who does it—just that it happens. They’ll want Minnesota to get its title. Sure, we had the Lynx, but before that it was the Twins way back in ’87 and ’91, otherwise known as the Arsenio Hall era. It’d be nice to renew out championship tabs, and Ant might be just the guy we need to finally turn Minnesota into Winnesota. And then all of us hockey fans can leave our suburban garages and take one more trip to Minneapolis . . . for the parade!
RYAN GOSLING IS OFFICIALLY COOLER THAN RYAN REYNOLDS
It happened. Ryan Gosling is officially cooler than Ryan Reynolds. Both funny Canadians with lovely wives, with the Midas touch . . .but Gosling now wins the race by a nose, a Beavis nose (more later).
Yes, Gosling is starring in The Fall Guy remake, or “the reason they invented popcorn” said one reviewer. But read between the lines of The Fall Guy reviews, and what most of the critics are saying is this only works because it’s Ryan Gosling. There’s just something about the smirk that lets you know Gosling’s in on the joke too.
Generally, you know your peaking as a pop culture star if not only do you host SNL, but you’re really, really good at hosting SNL. From his singalong cold open, to several hilarious skits including the aforementioned Beavis & Butthead News Nation skit, Gosling crushed SNL:
But the true beauty of Gosling is when he’s effortlessly cool. And Ryan Gosling was All Conference in effortlessly cool. Perhaps the best indication of this is the recent promo for The Fall Guy. It’s a simple premise, “what would carpool karaoke look like if stunt guys did it?” And it gets even better when you realize the videos was eventually shared by, wait for it, the official account of the band Journey. Of course it was, now that’s full circle.
Oh, and The Fall Guy premiere. Yep, Gosling showed up as Beavis again. . .because, well, actually that makes no sense at all. Which is even cooler. We should all be so lucky as to be down a Ryan Gosling rabbit hole right now.
SOMEHOW PEAR JAM’S NEW RECORD SOUNDS LIKE VINTAGE PEARL JAM
If you thought it was crazy to hear people saying that the Timberwolves might be the one to get Minnesota over the championship hump, you’ll likely be just as surprised to hear that Pearl Jam’s new album, Dark Matter, is being described by many as sounding like a 1990’s Pearl Jam record.
If you’re a Pearl Jam fan, and were around in the ‘90s, you know that’s high praise. Pearl Jam took a visit to Malibu and Rick Rubin’s Shangri-La working with “it” producer, Andrew Watt (Rolling Stones), on the new album. The results are excellent. Dark Matter has tremendous depth to the production and the guys cover a lot of ground from “Even Flow” style hard stuff, to the more jangly “Wreckage,” that sounds like it could have been on their second record Vs. sitting right alongside “Daughter.”
Play it loud. Play it soft. Text your children and say, “this is what I loved in the first place about Pearl Jam.” Dark Matter does not disappoint.
NO HOLDS BARRED COMEDY IS BACK.
If, like many, you were sitting there wondering why on earth Tom Brady would have signed up to be roasted live on Netflix, you’re missing the bigger point. Yes, Brady was obliterated by an all-star lineup of roasters, but he was also an executive producer of his own roast on Netflix.
The numbers are in, and The Roast of Tom Brady did 2 million views on Sunday, making it a Top 10 show for the week in a single day. That’s a fancy way of saying there are going to be a lot more roasts. Netflix proved the model with The Roast of Tom Brady, namely choosing to make it a live event and selling out the Kia Forum in L.A.
Comedy was already making a comeback with Shane Gillis, Nate Bargatze, and John Mulaney popping off. The roast format gaining steam again will only help more comedians get more exposure. Nikki Glaser, Tony Hinchcliffe, and Andrew Schulz all made star turns on The Roast of Tom Brady. In short, the resurgence of roasts means more funny people being funny more often. And that’s a good thing. It also means the gloves are officially off post be-careful-or-get-cancelled-Covid, and if The Roast of Tom Brady is any indication—once again anything goes for getting a laugh. Which should be a good thing as we welcome another big wave of top tier comedy talent into the fold.
