Screen Shots: October 24th-30th, 2024

Welcome to Screen Shots! This is where I tell you what sporting events you should watch on TV every week! Make sure you subscribe so it comes straight to your inbox! Have your own suggestions? Shoot me an email at [email protected]!

Looking for some NBA coverage? You have come to the right place! Not only did I write my season predictions in an easy-to-read 2-part guide (Part 1: Eastern Conference + Season Awards; Part 2: Western Conference + NBA Finals), but had some really cool guests come on to talk about what to expect from the teams they cover and/or follow! You’re going to want to watch my interviews with Alex Golden about the Indiana Pacers, Esfandiar Baraheni about the Toronto Raptors, and Danny Foxworth about the Oklahoma City Thunder! Now, to the sports!

Thursday, October 24th, 2024

• NBA: San Antonio Spurs @ Dallas Mavericks at 7:30 pm (ET) on TNT

The idea for a weekly sports watch guide was borne out of the daily watch guide I wrote for this year’s Olympics. One of the recurring bits in those was my insistence that you tune in whenever Victor Wembanyama was playing. I won’t be as strict about that during the NBA regular season, but you should watch his 1st nationally televised game of the regular season. As a bonus, you also get Klay Thompson’s 1st regular season game with the Mavericks plus Luka Doncic.

Friday, October 25th, 2024

• MLB World Series Game 1: New York Yankees @ Los Angeles Dodgers at 8:08 pm (ET) on Fox

I know MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred was ugly crying happy tears when the Dodgers made this official. This is as good as it gets in terms of championship matchups. 2 iconic franchises whose histories are interwoven into the game itself. 2 of the biggest cities in the country that calls baseball its pastime. 2 rosters full of the most recognizable names in a sport where stars can sometimes still enjoy relative anonymity. This series will show us exactly where baseball stands in our society today, and more importantly, where it’s headed.

• College Football: #17 Boise State Broncos @ UNLV Rebels at 10:30 pm (ET) on CBSSN

Some high-stakes Friday night college football! In all likelihood, whoever wins this Mountain West Conference showdown will claim the Group of 5 College Football Playoff spot. On the flip side, the loser will be eliminated for all intents and purposes. Expect a ton of points and rushing yards as both teams are top 5 in the nation in both categories. Extra motivation for Boise State: a loss would most likely end RB Ashton Jeanty’s Heisman hopes.

Saturday, October 26th, 2024

• College Football: #12 Notre Dame Fighting Irish @ #24 Navy Midshipmen at 12:00 pm (ET) on ABC

In case you find yourself longing for the days of college football when players wore leather helmets and missed time due to World Wars.

• College Football: #5 Texas Longhorns @ #25 Vanderbilt Commodores at 4:15 pm (ET) on SEC Network

Texas is coming into this one after committing the cardinal sin of giving Kirby Smart a reason to shout about how nobody believed in his team stacked with 5-star recruits who refuse to obey traffic laws. Despite that, they are still heavy favorites against the Commodores. In any normal season, that wouldn’t be a surprise, but college football has been insane this year and this Vandy squad is proof of that. Not only are they ranked for the 1st time since the final poll of the 2013 season, but they are just a couple of weeks removed from upsetting then-#1 Alabama. There’s a real possibility the NCAA does a Space Jam-style shutdown of college football so they can figure out what’s happening if Clark Lea’s team does the impossible again.

• MLB World Series Game 2: New York Yankees @ Los Angeles Dodgers at 8:08 pm (ET) on Fox

If you are complaining about this matchup because these teams spend too much money, you have a big dump in your pants. Your beef is with whoever owns your favorite team. Newsflash: every single MLB owner is insanely wealthy. The absolute least they can do with their wealth is spend it to put together a competitive baseball team.

Sunday, October 27th, 2024

• International Women’s Soccer: Iceland @ USWNT at 5:30 pm (ET) on TNT

A nice palate cleanser if you’ve been following the USMNT. There will be plenty of new faces as head coach Emma Hayes begins the process of identifying who will be on the 2027 World Cup roster.

• NFL: Dallas Cowboys @ San Francisco 49ers at 8:20 pm (ET) on NBC

The NFL version of “these women having a mid off.” The Cowboys have been so disappointing that owner Jerry Jones has already threatened to fire radio hosts after they asked him why he didn’t bring in more talent in the offseason. The 49ers seemingly refuse to keep their skill position players healthy. It was brought to my attention that the healthiest wide receiver on their roster is a guy who was shot in the chest 2 months ago. High entertainment value in this one due to a potential meltdown by either side.

Monday, October 28th, 2024

• MLB World Series Game 3: Los Angeles Dodgers @ New York Yankees at 8:08 pm (ET) on Fox

Rest in peace to Dodgers legend Fernando Valenzuela. He passed away Tuesday, October 22nd at the age of 63. The Mexican pitcher became a cultural phenom during his incredible rookie season in 1981. That season saw Valenzuela win both the NL Rookie of the Year and NL Cy Young Award winner en route to leading the Dodgers to the World Series where they defeated…the New York Yankees.

• NBA: Los Angeles Lakers @ Phoenix Suns at 10:30 pm (ET) on NBA TV

1st-ever Lakers’ son’s Lakers-Suns game in NBA history.

Tuesday, October 29th, 2024

• Horror Movie of the Week: Sinister (2012) streaming on HBO Max

Ethan Hawke stars as a one-hit-wonder true crime writer trying to recapture success. He stupidly tempts fate by moving his family into a house where a family was murdered and finds that there’s a lot more to that case than meets the eye. There are several jump scare moments, but the general creepiness of what happens is what makes this one great to me. If you’re a fan of The Wire (and you should be), the guy who played Ziggy Sobotka is in this too.

• MLB World Series Game 4: Los Angeles Dodgers @ New York Yankees at 8:08 pm (ET) on Fox

Wednesday, October 30th, 2024

• NBA: Boston Celtics @ Indiana Pacers at 7:00 pm (ET) on ESPN

A rematch of last year’s Eastern Conference Finals. That one was a sweep, but it was a competitive sweep if that’s worth anything. The Pacers were awful on defense last season but actually did a great job at defending the 3-point line. They’ll need to do that again or the Celtics could very well score 200 points. I typed and deleted several jokes about Tyrese Haliburton’s compulsion to flaunt his dating preferences and/or his similarities to Jordan Baker in The CW show All-American. There will be plenty of time for that later.

Thanks again for reading! It would mean a lot if you shared this with people. Any people at all! See you next week!