By Trejan Rowbotham
July 22, 2018
July is a month that many sports fans look forward to every year. Between NBA free agency, The Championships, Wimbledon, and the MLB All-Star Game, July crams a lot of content into its thirty-one days. Additionally, July 2018 also held the men’s World Cup, which added yet another highly-anticipated event to July’s repertoire.
NBA Free Agency
The biggest news regarding NBA free agency dropped on the first day of July. Opening free agency with a bang, LeBron James decided to take his talents to the L.A. Lakers. After the best player on the planet decided to swap teams, many experts believed that other big-name free agents would follow suit. That never really happened. Paul George, Chris Paul, and Kevin Durant all stayed with their previous teams. The Golden State Warriors, however, made a medium-sized splash of their own during free agency. They exercised their $5.3 million taxpayer mid-level exception on All-Star center DeMarcus Cousins, which gives them a starting five of All-Stars once Cousins returns from injury. The last headline from the NBA in July came by way of a trade. The San Antonio Spurs agreed to trade their disgruntled star Kawhi Leonard, along with other players, to the Toronto Raptors in exchange for DeMar DeRozan.
The Championships, Wimbledon
Photo Credit: The Guardian Photo Credit: Daily Express
The oldest tennis tournament in the world did not disappoint in 2018. On the men’s side of the draw, the semi-finals saw a lot of extra tennis. Both matches went to a fifth set, and both matches went well past the typical six game threshold. Novak Djokovic (12) defeated Rafa Nadal (2) 10-8 in the final set to advance, and Kevin Anderson defeated John Isner 26-24 in the decisive set. Djokovic swept through the final in straight sets to capture the Wimbledon Championship.
On the ladies’ side, the lower seeds did not have their way. By the round of sixteen, the only top-ten player remaining was Karolina Pliskova (7), who lost in that very same round. This means that the entire tournament was wide open; anyone could swoop in and take the win. Serena Williams (25) was still the favorite to win the Championship despite her high seed. Williams made it to the finals, where she faced off against Angelique Kerber (11). Kerber defeated Williams 6-3, 6-3 in the finals to secure the coveted Wimbledon trophy.
MLB All-Star Week
As is usually the case with the MLB All-Star week, the spectacle of the week was not the All-Star Game itself. The real showcase takes place during the Home Run Derby. With All-Star festivities taking place in Washington D.C. in 2018, the home crowd made their way out to the ballpark to see their hometown hero, Bryce Harper, take a few swings. Harper, being the number-one seed, easily blasted his way into the finals of the eight-player tournament. Once in the finals, Harper faced steep competition. His opponent, Kyle Schwarber, hit 18 home runs in the final round. Harper had 12 home runs with one minute left on the clock. From that point on, Harper turned on the jets. He cranked seven home runs over the course of that final minute and won the 2018 Home Run Derby in front of his home fans.
Men’s World Cup
The men’s World Cup caps off the crazy sports-filled month of July 2018. Starting in Group C, France was one of the four favorites to win the entire tournament. Allowing only one goal in their three group-play matches, France easily moved on to the round of sixteen. In this round, the French national football team squared off against Argentina. France allowed three goals to the high-powered Argentinian offense, but they advanced to the quarter-finals behind their four-goal performance. In the following two rounds, France shut out both Uruguay and Belgium. Backed by solid goalkeeping, France was the heavy favorite heading into the finals of the World Cup. Their opponent was a stunning Croatian team that had defied all odds to reach the finals. In an exhilarating final match, the French national football team came out on top by a score of 4-2.
The opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Infuse Student Media or Southwest Baptist University.
Comments