🏀 ‘Giving his all’ | Sports Daily Newsletter
Fighting cancer, Philly’s Brian Wanamaker coaches on.
Here at Sports Daily, we’re suckers for inspirational stories about people in sports. Fresh off Wednesday’s coverage of Zack Wheeler’s return, here is another.
Those who are plugged in to Philly hoops know the names of Brad and Brian Wanamaker, the twins who led Roman Catholic to the Catholic League championship in 2007. Brad went on to star at Pittsburgh and played in the NBA. Brian’s path took to him to Texas Wesleyan, an NAIA school where he starred and returned to coach. He is a success as Rams coach now, but he is also in the fight of his life.
Brian Wanamaker was diagnosed with multiple myeloma, an incurable cancer, in 2022. His treatment has not stopped him from giving his all to his team. His players are inspired by him for sure.
“The vets feel like if Coach is giving his all, with his chemo, we should give it our all every day in practice and every day on the court,” says Khalil Turner, a Philly native who plays for Wanamaker on the team in Texas. “He’s going above and beyond for us, so we should do the same.”
— Jim Swan, @phillysport, sports.daily@inquirer.com.
If someone forwarded you this email, sign up for free here.
❓Do you think Joel Embiid can help the Sixers make a playoff run this season? Email us back for a chance to be featured in the newsletter.
What began as a woeful three-game Sixers road trip quickly flipped into a successful one. They snapped a four-game skid by beating the Minnesota Timberwolves, then took care of business against the shorthanded and tanking Indiana Pacers. As they return home tonight to face the Miami Heat (7 p.m., NBCSP), the most encouraging development for the Sixers is that Tyrese Maxey is officially humming again. He has scored 39 and 32 points in his last two games.
Gina Mizell offers some takeaways from the road trip, including Maxey’s friendly rivalry with Minnesota star Anthony Edwards, which goes back to grade school.
Despite previous leaguewide critiques regarding player safety and aesthetics, the Tush Push could be poised to live another season. The Packers sought to ban the Eagles’ signature sneak with a rule change proposal that failed last March, but Green Bay general manager Brian Gutekunst said Tuesday at the NFL Scouting Combine that his team has no plans to try again.
Maybe the critics of the Tush Push have lost interest because the Eagles aren’t very good at it anymore. They tried a league-high 33 push sneaks last season and converted 21, a 64% success rate. The league average is 73.8%.
After a drill on Wednesday, Don Mattingly conferred with Bryce Harper. The Hitman and The Showman. Imagine being a fly on the wall for that.
The Phillies didn’t hire Mattingly to be their bench coach because of the effect he could have on any one player. But they do believe he will bring a different form of credibility to a coaching staff that is well-regarded within the sport but light on major-league playing experience.
And Harper and Mattingly are both chasing something that has eluded them during their long careers: a World Series championship.
Brad Keller was efficient in his spring debut with his new team, and Alec Bohm stood out in the field and at the plate in a win over the Tigers.
Travis Sanheim was back with the Flyers on Wednesday after a couple of productive weeks in Italy with Team Canada. The blueliner did himself proud, winning a silver medal and having a strong tournament.
While Sanheim said ending up with silver stings, he believes there are aspects from the experience that he can bring back with him to help the Flyers.
Speaking of Flyers defensemen, Oliver Bonk hopes to follow in Sanheim’s footsteps with Canada at the Olympic Games. Jackie Spiegel caught up with the Flyers’ top defensive prospect last week to check on his transition to pro hockey.
The Flyers returned from the break with a 3-1 loss to the Capitals in Washington. Noah Cates scored the only goal for Rick Tocchet’s team.
Sports snapshot
Banged up: Frankie Westfield is among three Union players dealing with injuries ahead of tonight’s home game against Defence Force FC.
New role: Milan Iloski is adapting to different duties as a tactical playmaker for the Union.
After the final whistle: Pro Athlete Community is helping Brandon Graham and others plan their post-playing careers.
Our columnists say ...
The U.S. men’s hockey team won Olympic gold in dramatic, heartwarming fashion Sunday, but our sitting president immediately spoiled the afterglow as they celebrated in Italy. Still, most of Team USA accepted an invitation to visit the White House. They met with Trump on Tuesday afternoon and attended the State of the Union address that night. All of this set social media and TV talk shows on fire: How dare they? Which is exactly what Trump wanted. More from Marcus Hayes.
Last season, there wasn’t a lonelier lot in life than to be a Phillies superstar standing on first, second, or third. Only four players in the majors reached base as many times as Bryce Harper did and scored fewer runs. The 72 runs he did score were the fewest of his career in a season with at least 500 plate appearances. ... Not since E.T. have we seen someone with such otherworldly attributes struggle this hard to get home. More from David Murphy.
What you’re saying about comebacks
We asked: What’s your favorite athlete comeback story? Among your responses:
Embiid has certainly been more solid this year when he plays, however my favorite is Tiger Woods. He came back from back and knee surgeries to win the Masters. He’s working hard again to play the Masters this year. Will a miracle happen again? We’ll see. — Tom G.
Here are 2 inspirational comeback stories that resonate strongly for me. Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin suffered a nearly fatal cardiac arrest during a Monday Night Football game in January 2023. He miraculously returned to play the following year and eventually became a starter. In 2003, Professional surfer Bethany Hamilton was bitten by a 14-foot tiger shark while surfing in Hawaii when she was 13. She lost her left arm as well as 60% of her blood. Incredibly, she returned to surfing just 26 days after the attack, and began competing again professionally the next year. So much for “time management.” — Stephen T.
For me, it’s not the comeback from an injury, but rather come back — two words. It was when Dick Allen came back to Philadelphia. No more powerful, emotional, uplifting, soul-cleansing moment I can recall. It still resonates with me after all these years. — Tony R.
Hard to top the 2004, down 0-3, Red Sox in the [World Series] against the dominant Yankees, but came back to win 4 straight and finally end the Curse of the Bambino. Regarding Philly sports, I would pick backup QB Nick Foles who took over for injured Wentz and took the Eagles through the playoffs and on to their 1st ever Super Bowl win over Tom Terrific and the favored Patriots and even added the now famous Philly Special. — Everett S.
You know a procedure to fix your injury is so innovative when it is named after you. Tommy John is the patron saint of the elbow surgery that is ubiquitous in baseball. After the surgery in 1975, many thought that he would never pitch again and that his 10-year major league baseball career was over. But he returned in 1976 and went on to have 14 more years and post 164 of his career 288 victories. — Joseph W.
We compiled today’s newsletter using reporting from Marcus Hayes, David Murphy, Alex Coffey, Olivia Reiner, Gina Mizell, Jackie Spiegel, Gabriela Carroll, Lochlahn March, Scott Lauber, and Jonathan Tannenwald.
By submitting your written, visual, and/or audio contributions, you agree to The Inquirer’s Terms of Use, including the grant of rights in Section 10.
Thanks for reading Sports Daily. I’ll see you in Friday’s newsletter. — Jim