Features
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The NBA Top 100: Joel Embiid Is Coming for the Joker
The first 20 or so games of the NBA season have been full of surprises, from Alperen Sengun’s and Chet Holmgren’s ascendance to Andrew Wiggins’s total plummet
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The NBA In-Season Tournament’s Real Test Begins Now
By all measures, the NBA’s midseason experiment has been a hit so far, but a slew of questions about its long-term relevancy remain. Can it gain enough traction to become a thing? Or will the novelty wear off?
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The Best TV Shows of 2023
In a year defined by industry upheaval, television still managed to thrill and delight
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“Not So Fast”: The Oral History of ESPN’s ‘College GameDay’
Thirty years ago, ESPN’s college football pregame show broadcast from a college campus for the first time. How pregaming with students and leaning into its hosts’ personalities helped ESPN become the dominant voice of the sport.
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The 10 Best Shows to Watch Right Now
Here’s everything worth checking out on Netflix, Apple TV+, and more
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Can Kara Lawson Build Duke’s Next Basketball Powerhouse?
The former WNBA All-Star left an assistant coaching gig with the Boston Celtics for the chance to run the Duke women’s basketball program. Four seasons in, Lawson is working to establish the kind of sustainable greatness that Coach K cultivated on the men’s side. "If you build it right," she says, "you’ll never build again."
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QB Rankings: Have the Packers Found Yet Another Franchise Passer?
Plus, how Patrick Mahomes has quietly gotten even better this season
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NFL Power Rankings: Patience Prevails in Green Bay and Denver
Week 12 was all about late bloomers. The Packers are in the playoff hunt after a 2-5 start, and Sean Payton’s Broncos are riding a five-game win streak in what once looked like a lost season. Are either of these teams legit?
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How the Pac-12 Became the Pac-2: Oregon State, Washington State, and the Forgotten Schools of Conference Realignment
What’s being lost as television rights dollars spark a seismic shift in the fabric of college sports?
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Top 100 NBA Rankings: The Early-Season Breakouts (and Bombs)
With a few weeks of the season in the books, it’s time to check in on the best players in the league and figure out who’s stepping up
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What Actually Makes a Good NFL Offensive Coordinator? And Are There Fewer of Them in 2023?
Three OCs have already been fired this season, and offense is down across the board. But being good at this job requires a lot more than just play-calling and what fans see on the field on Sundays.
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Alperen Sengun Has Liftoff
The third-year Rockets center known affectionately as "Discount Jokic" is making a name for himself this season—and fueling the most pleasant early surprise in the NBA
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Fantasy Football Rankings: The Cowboys’ Soaring Offense Could Be Your Ticket to the Playoffs
Our top 200 rankings have everything you need to answer start-sit questions and prepare for the week
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The Hotelier Is Finding Home in All Sorts of Places
With the renowned emo band wrapping up the first leg of its reunion tour, frontperson Christian Holden reflects on the return to the road, their many entrepreneurial pursuits, and whether any new music is coming
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Rookie Rankings: Top 15 of 2023-24
This year’s rookie class has a chance to be special. For the debut of The Ringer’s Rookie Rankings, J. Kyle Mann breaks down the early returns from Wemby, Chet, and all of the other intriguing first-year players to hit the NBA hardwood this season.
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Sampling Meets Its Latest Threat: AI
Artificial intelligence has made it easier than ever to identify samples in music. Is it an existential threat to the art form or just a new snitch to outsmart?
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“With Tyrese Haliburton, All Things Are Possible”
The NBA’s assists leader is transforming Indiana’s style, culture, and future—one hit-ahead outlet pass at a time. Is it enough to attract other stars to the small-market Pacers? "They know that I can help bring people here," Haliburton says, "not only with who I am as a basketball player, but who I am as a person."
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Fantasy Football Rankings: C.J. Stroud Is Great. Can You Trust Him in Fantasy?
Our fantasy experts have everything you need to solve your Week 10 start-sit dilemmas
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The Rich History of the Rock ’n’ Roll Sellout
In an excerpt from Rob Harvilla’s new book based on his podcast, ‘60 Songs That Explain the ’90s,’ he breaks down some of the most infamous cases of trading reputation for money that the decade saw
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Matt Turner Isn’t Done Proving Himself
After earning a starting place at the World Cup and in the Premier League, the undrafted goalkeeper has achieved more than he ever could’ve imagined. But the American netminder isn’t content to rest on his laurels. Not after the incredible journey to get here.
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John Carpenter, Dark Lord of the Film Score
The horror master behind ‘Halloween’ and other classics has had a second career as a successful composer. But if you ask him, it almost happened by accident.
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Salem’s Unholy Bargain: How Tragedy Became an Attraction
The Massachusetts town is not the only place to build a tourist economy on the bones of a dark history. But this time of year, the question becomes: Is the cost worth the payoff?
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In ‘Alan Wake 2,’ Sam Lake Will Lead You Deeper into the Woods
After a 13-year wait, Remedy Entertainment creative director Sam Lake’s sequel to meta-masterpiece ‘Alan Wake’ is here to mess with your mind
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Ranking the NFL’s 90 Most Valuable Players Before the Trade Deadline
Teams have just a few days left to make trades. Here are the 90 most-coveted players in the league.
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NBA, Ranked: This Season’s 20 Must-See Players
The list that’s all about razzle-dazzle and ruckus has returned to take stock of Big Tony, the new Pony Express, and of course, Wemby
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Ranking How “All In” Each NBA Team Is in 2023-24
Which teams are pushing their chips in to win now? Which ones are gobbling up picks and building for the future? We analyzed the draft capital and cap sheets of every team and ranked them.
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The Subversive Genius of ‘Far Cry 2,’ 15 Years Later
In 2008, Ubisoft’s trailblazing open-world first-person shooter started conversations about video games that still haven’t subsided
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One Defining Number for Every NBA Team
The 2023-24 season is mere days away. Here’s one key fact or figure for each team in the league that will dictate what’s to come.
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Fantasy Football Rankings: Are There Any Running Backs You Can Trust?
Injuries and byes are causing chaos for fantasy managers. Our rankings can help you navigate Week 7.
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Jordan Poole Is Going His Own Way
After four up-and-down years of trying to fit alongside a title-winning core, the former Warrior hopes to apply everything he learned to his starring role with the Wizards
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NBA, Ranked: A Whole New Top 100
Bill Simmons and the rest of the Ringer committee have reconvened to rank the 100 best players in the NBA ahead of the 2023-24 season
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Martin Scorsese’s 81 Greatest Movie Characters, Ranked
In celebration of the upcoming release of ‘Killers of the Flower Moon’ (and his 81st birthday next month!), we’re counting down the greatest figures of the legendary director’s career
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I Searched for a Con Man for Seven Years. Now My Story Is a True Crime Podcast.
Ahead of Episode 1 of The Ringer’s first true crime show, ‘The Wedding Scammer,’ host Justin Sayles reflects on how he stumbled into a story he became obsessed with—and how a team of amateur detectives helped along the way
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NFL Power Rankings: Who Is on Top Now?
The 49ers’ perfect record is no more. But did any other team rise up to take the crown as the best in football?
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The Summer of Austin Reaves
No other NBA player had a better summer than the Los Angeles Lakers’ young guard. After making waves in the playoffs, in free agency, and for Team USA, he’s no longer just a feel-good story: He’s a star.
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Inside the Denver Nuggets’ Plan to Build a Dynasty
The NBA’s new CBA will make it challenging for homegrown teams to retain their talent, but Calvin Booth and the Nuggets are trying to create a new, sustainable model. "If everything is optimized, we should win three or four [titles]," Booth said.
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There’s Heartbreak Behind Puka Nacua’s Sudden Rise to NFL Stardom
The Los Angeles Rams’ fifth-round pick seemingly came out of nowhere to become this season’s breakout star receiver, but he won’t stop working to prove he belongs