Nothing tries our patience at this time of year more than the congestion caused by last-minute Christmas shoppers.
Except maybe our beloved sports teams, players, coaches, executives and owners (though that’s really more of a year-round battle, if we’re being honest).
There can be a reward in demonstrating patience, even in the sped-up world of 2023.
Ask fans of the Denver Nuggets, who finally got over the championship hump by sticking with their 1-2 punch of Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray. Or Philadelphia Eagles fans wearing “In Howie We Trust” T-shirts after once-demoted, much-maligned general manager Howie Roseman built a second NFC championship roster in five years. Or fans of the Boston Bruins, who retained head coach Jim Montgomery after a historic playoff choke and have the fewest regulation losses in the NHL this season.
Then again, impatience isn’t always wrong. Would the Texas Rangers be World Series champions if not for replacing manager Chris Woodward with Bruce Bochy?
Are the Detroit Lions regretting a long leash for quarterback Jared Goff — who lost his first eight starts in 2021 — during the middle of their best season in 60 years?
So, who is deserving of our patience (and who is not) this holiday season?
Here is a look at some key New York sports figures:
Jets head coach Robert Saleh/Jets general manager Joe Douglas: The defensive-minded Saleh has burned through two offensive coordinators in three years and the numbers are worse than ever. His career record is 16-32.
Douglas’ strength was supposed to be identifying offensive linemen. Well, that unit is in shambles. He botched the No. 2 pick in the 2021 draft with bust quarterback Zach Wilson. There’s not much for him to hang his hat on outside of the four cornerstones in the 2022 draft class.
Aaron Rodgers has voiced support for both leaders, so they probably will stay put because the Jets are beholden to the hope that the injured 40-year-old future Hall of Fame quarterback represents.
Verdict: No patience.
Jets receiver Garrett Wilson: Are you tired of seeing Wilson’s emotions boil over on the sidelines? Maybe not, because it’s clear he hurts from losses and not being able to do more to change the outcome — just like a fan does — but he is walking a fine line when receivers are quick to be labeled as divas.
The Jets need to hope Wilson doesn’t lose patience with their dysfunction because he could be a top-five NFL receiver with a healthy Rodgers.
Verdict: Patience.
Giants quarterback Daniel Jones: It should never take six seasons to evaluate a franchise quarterback. If you don’t know, then you know.
Yes, the Giants have been missing a serviceable offensive line, big-play receivers and good coaching (sometimes more than one limitation at once) during Jones’ tenure, but isn’t the job of a great quarterback to make others around him better and not just thrive in optimal conditions?
Jones reverted to his reputation as turnover-prone and injury-prone in his shortened first year after signing a $160 million extension, and the offense looks more aggressive with lesser talents Tyrod Taylor and Tommy DeVito at quarterback. Will the Giants draft his replacement in the top 10 picks?
Verdict: No patience.
Giants right tackle Evan Neal: The first two years of Neal’s career have been a disaster marked by underperformance, injury and ripping the fans. The No. 7 overall pick in the 2022 draft is reluctant to change positions — and the Giants are doubling down that he is a right tackle. But they need to bring in real competition for the starting job during the offseason instead of handing him a job for a third straight year.
Verdict: No patience.
Yankees pitcher Carlos Rodon: He should not be held responsible for the failures of other big-name pitchers added before him. That said, he can be found guilty of his own disastrous first season with the Yankees (3-8, 6.85 ERA) and committing the cardinal sin of mocking the fans.
American League Cy Young Award winner Gerrit Cole is at risk for burnout if he has to single-handedly carry the rotation through another season. Rodon was 27-13 with a 2.55 ERA over 310 ⅔ innings in 2021-22, so he is not far removed from living up to his $162 million contract if he can stay healthy.
Verdict: Patience.
Yankees designated hitter Giancarlo Stanton: The ability to hit in the postseason (.963 OPS with 11 home runs and 24 RBIs in 27 games) during an era when no other Yankees consistently have, as well as his own willingness to fall on the sword when culpable, bought Stanton six mostly unremarkable years.
But his extensive injury history, the blockade he represents on the base paths, his albatross contract’s role in keeping the Yankees from pursuing better players such as Bryce Harper, and the arrival of a newer, younger, left-handed-hitting star in Juan Soto makes Stanton feel stale. Too bad he still has a full no-trade clause.
Verdict: No patience.
Yankees general manager Brian Cashman: The Soto trade signaled a return to old ways instead of looking for analytics-based bargains. How else can he make the Yankees a more athletic, less-strikeout-prone roster?
Support for Cashman during the 13-year World Series drought has come down to “the Yankees are in the playoff hunt every year.” That wasn’t the case last season. Can’t happen again.
Verdict: No patience.
Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor: After a brutal start to last season, Lindor managed to finish with his highest OPS (.806) since 2019 and was one of three MLB players in the 30/30 home run/stolen bases club. It’s time to appreciate what he is — a slick fielder with pop in his bat, speed in his legs and every-day availability.
If the Mets let homegrown slugger Pete Alonso leave in free agency, however, Lindor’s massive contract surely will be blamed by some fans as the cause for the penny-pinching.
Verdict: Patience.
Mets owner Steve Cohen: No one has more riding on the Yoshinobu Yamamoto sweepstakes. Credit Cohen for putting on the full-court press by first flying to Japan and then having Yamamoto to his home for dinner. But this is a results business, and the Mets need to sign Yamamoto to restore faith in the muscle of Cohen’s wallet.
If Cohen gets outbid for the Mets’ top priority of the offseason, panic. If he makes the highest bid and Yamamoto still signs elsewhere, Cohen better have a Plan B that isn’t just to trot out prospects and rebuild. Time is running out on his 3-to-5 year edict for winning a World Series.
Verdict: Incomplete.
Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau: How quickly we forget the days of David Fizdale (21-83), Jeff Hornacek (60-104), Derek Fisher (40-96), Isiah Thomas (56-108), Larry Brown (23-59) and so many other would-be saviors besides Mike Woodson (109-79) in the post-Jeff Van Gundy era.
The Knicks are a playoff team — and that’s when Thibodeau needs to show more flexibility.
Verdict: Patience.
Knicks forward Julius Randle: One of the great love-hate relationships between New York fans and an athlete.
Is he going to make a big shot? Or dog it on defense? Depends on the season. Depends on the game. Depends on the month.
It feels as if the Knicks have hit their ceiling with Randle as their second option to Jalen Brunson. But you can’t just dump an All-Star when the playoffs still are a rarity around Madison Square Garden.
Verdict: Patience.
Nets point guard Ben Simmons: Even a Tendai Buddhist monk — some of the most patient people in the world — could grow tired of Simmons, who has missed the past 20 games (and counting!) due to injury and played just 48 over the past three injury-plagued seasons.
Verdict: No patience.
Rutgers football coach Greg Schiano: With a win in next week’s Pinstripe Bowl, Rutgers will finish above .500 for the first time since 2014.
Success in Schiano’s first stint at Rutgers (2001-11) was accelerated by the watering down of the Big East through conference realignment. The road to the Top 25 — which should be the program’s annual realistic goal — is much tougher in a Big Ten that is about to add USC, UCLA, Washington and Oregon.
Next year’s schedule actually leaves room for an eight-win (or better) season after inking a top-40 recruiting class on Wednesday.
Verdict: Patience
Today’s back page
New York, New York
The Knicks’ loss came after their rivalry win: Mitchell Robinson now is expected to miss the remainder of the season.
The 25-year-old center initially was projected to miss 8 to 10 weeks before undergoing ankle surgery.
The revised timeline introduces a major challenge for the surging Knicks and questions about how they will address the big-man spot, currently occupied by Isaiah Hartenstein, the sidelined Jericho Sims and aging sage Taj Gibson.
With both teams returning to New York after West Coast trips, the Knicks had out-energized the sluggish Nets and it showed up in every line on the box score during a 121-102 victory on Wednesday night at Barclays Center.
None were bigger than the 14 first-half fast-break points that set the tone as the Knicks led for the final 46 minutes of the game and the Nets’ comeback attempt was thwarted by a stretch of 14 consecutive missed shots.
The Knicks (16-11) moved to a season-high five games over .500. The Nets (13-14) have dropped four straight for the first time this season.
It’s fair to say that the rivalry has shifted directions: The Nets won nine straight against the Knicks from Jan. 13, 2021, through Jan. 28, 2023, but the Knicks have won all three meetings since Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving were shipped out of Brooklyn.
Believe it or not …
Aaron Rodgers didn’t believe in UFOs until he allegedly saw one with some college friends in New Jersey.
We should all believe Rodgers isn’t going to try to play this season when we see the final second of the final game tick off the clock.
Until then, there has been enough conflict at multiple points this season between what Rodgers says during his weekly ESPN appearance on the “The Pat McAfee Show” and what the Jets say one day later to wonder what’s what.
One day after Rodgers seemingly ruled out a return this season because the Jets are eliminated from playoff contention, the Jets activated him off injured reserve.
Saleh said it was just a procedural move so that Rodgers can continue practicing — at the unmentioned expense of another player who would have had a 53-man roster spot and likely a much-needed weekly share of a $750,000 salary — but that he will not play in a game.
Maybe that’s the truth. Or that’s what all involved parties need to think right now.
But what happens when — surprise! — Rodgers suddenly is moving around so much better than expected in practice next week or the week after?
Will he enter a game just to prove he made it back from a torn Achilles faster than anyone in history and that his often-ridiculed scientific beliefs are legitimate? Or will he remain shut down?
The idea that Rodgers can take a victory lap for accomplishing his ambitious goal of returning during the same season as his injury is a bit foolish. Years from now, no one is going to say, “Aaron Rodgers made it back to practice in 14 weeks and that counts!”
The real medical pioneer is going to be the first pro athlete who plays in a game less than four months removed from Achilles surgery. Rodgers is smart enough to know the distinction.
So, don’t rule out that he makes a ceremonial start to hand the ball off once. Or takes a kneel-down snap. Or plays a full series. Or somehow gets his name into a box score before the end of the season.
If it sounds a bit conspiracy-theorist, so be it. There are plenty of UFO-chasers out there.
Sign of the times
Need more proof that college football’s inevitable ultimate destination is two superconferences?
Look no further than Wednesday’s national signing day for high school recruits.
The 2024 season will be the first that includes USC, UCLA, Oregon and Washington in the Big Ten and Oklahoma and Texas in the SEC. It also will be the first with a 12-team playoff to decide the national champion.
Through that lens, here is a breakdown of the top 22 recruiting classes, as ranked by 247Sports: 11 for the SEC, seven for the Big Ten, three for the ACC and independent Notre Dame.
The talent-rich got richer, which could lead to a logjam of Big Ten and SEC teams occupying those 12 playoff spots as soon as next fall.
The best recruiting class to a school with a conference affiliation outside of the SEC, Big Ten and ACC belongs to Texas Tech, which capitalized on its fertile home territory.
This year’s four College Football Playoff finalists ranked No. 2 (Alabama), No. 5 (Texas), No. 15 (Michigan) and No. 35 (Washington).
The two pertinent questions now: Will the Big Ten or the SEC be the first to try to steal away the ACC powers? And when?
Bully ball
The college basketball upset of the night happened at the Prudential Center in Newark, where Seton Hall beat No. 5 UConn, 75-60, for the second time in three meetings since the series became a battle of former Seton Hall point guards on the sidelines (Shaheen Holloway vs. Dan Hurley).
The story of the game? Seton Hall was the tougher team than the defending national champions.
If the 3-point shot usually is the key to a college basketball upset, consider that the Pirates shot just 3-of-8 from behind the arc. The key ingredient was Seton Hall’s 46 points in the paint.
“I’m having a hard time looking you guys in the eyes right now because it’s a feeling of shame,” Hurley told reporters afterward. “They punked us in Big East fashion.”
What we’re reading 👀
⚾ The Mets made a trade with David Stearns’ former team, the Brewers, acquiring projected No. 4 starter Adrian Houser and backup outfielder Tyrone Taylor in exchange for an injured pitching prospect.
🏈 Cinderella quarterback Tommy DeVito said he’s looking forward to what awaits in Philadelphia for the Giants’ Christmas Day game against the Eagles. “I heard it’s a pretty hostile environment,” he said, via The Post’s Steve Serby. “I like to thrive in those environments.”
🏈 The Post’s Mike Vaccaro goes in on the “ridiculous” approach the Jets are signaling they’ll take to 2024 by starting from scratch with Aaron Rodgers, likening it to Groundhog Day. Ned Ryerson even makes an appearance.
🏀 St. John’s used its defense to produce a wire-to-wire, 81-66 win over Xavier in the Big East opener in front of a sold-out crowd at Carnesecca Arena. Joel Soriano dominated with 18 points, 14 rebounds and six blocks, and Nahiem Alleyne provided a two-way spark.
🏒 The tired Islanders came away with a point after Anders Lee’s third-period goal forced overtime in Washington.
🏒 A sign of an offensive breakthrough for the Rangers’ Braden Schneider?
⚽ Soccer drama! MLS wanted to drop out of the U.S. Open Cup. U.S. Soccer said: not so fast. Meanwhile, the MLS schedule was released with Lionel Messi set to visit the Red Bulls and NYCFC.
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