It's been a busy couple of weeks in the world of sports.
UNLV and UNR are in the midst of their football offseasons, trying to recruit new players to take them to the next level in the fall.
The Golden Knights are gearing up for their first season on the ice.
High school sports are coming under new attention.
And, there's talk of a big fight coming to Las Vegas very soon.
Mitch Moss from the Vegas Stats and Information Network is here to help break it all down for us.
Is the McGregor/Mayweather fight going to happen:
If the money is right for Mayweather, then I would say yes. I think a lot of people are obviously excited about it. I think the Nevada State Athletic Commission they’re excited about it for some reason, because what I think the impact is going to be for Las Vegas once the fight is going to be here and I believe it’s actually going to happen.
If you through enough money at Floyd and actually make him an offer he cannot refuse, I believe that at some point maybe at the end of the 2017 calendar year we are going to get this. Because after all, if there is one thing that Floyd Mayweather cares about its money. It is certainly not about giving us the best fight possible.
Would McGregor have a chance against Mayweather?
No, zero. Twelve rounds it would be a 12-round win. Every single one of them for Mayweather. I don’t even know how many times McGregor would touch Mayweather. He is arguably the best defensive fighter in the history of the sport and he’s taking on a guy who does not come from a full boxing background.
And I think he’s going to frustrate Conor so much during the fight that McGregor might lose his cool and resort to some silly UFC style of take down.
I personally don’t think the fight should take place. I think it’s a joke. I think it’s an exhibition. I think it is actually embarrassing and I don’t want it to happen. Having said that, I would probably watch it. I would not want to pay the money for the pay-per-view.
Does the fact that this year’s NBA Summer League has drawn so many teams increase the likelihood that the NBA will locate a team here?
I don’t know if it’s just this Summer League news, but it’s been a gradual build to Las Vegas eventually getting a team in the NBA. I would like to say sooner than later. And now who knows, because now obviously we have two teams coming at that level in front of an NBA team, obviously with the Golden Knights starting this year and the Raiders down the road in a few years.
Is the full ownership of the 51s by the Hughes Corporation, which is an underwriter of Nevada Public Radio, a sign that the team will move to the Summerlin area?
Yes. I will say two-fold here. Yes, partially because I believe it is, partially because it is wishful thinking on my part because I have for years wanted the 51s to get a new stadium. I like going to 51s games now. I like downtown, but let’s be honest, Cashman Field is not exactly even close to being up to date. When you have major league teams looking at it and saying, ‘Yeah, it’s not good for our players at lower levels to be coming here.” If they have to go here and rehab, or for our star players that are eventually going to join us at the highest level, they look at Cashman Field as something that is outdated.
Explain how the NHL expansion draft is going to work:
It is a little tricky. There is a lot of fine print to it obviously. They’re going to have to probably go after I would think a really good goalie and make it a defensive squad at first.
So, here’s an example. Some of the players that would have to be protected from the teams in the league. Clubs will have two options for players they wish to protect in the draft, seven forwards, three defensemen and one goaltender, or they can protect eight skaters and one goaltender. All first and second-year pros, that includes unsigned draft choices, will be exempt from the selection and they’re not going to be counted towards their clubs’ applicable protection limit.
It is a little tricky. It is a little confusing. The team has been doing a lot of mock drafts, leading up to see what the best approach might be to this expansion draft… Once they go through enough mocks and figure out the player protection list, the exposure requirements, and the players that might be available that might form the best team in the early stages here. I think they’ll have that setup and ready to go here in the next couple of weeks.
Which college, UNLV or UNR, has the edge in recruiting for football this year?
I would say it is a slight nod to Nevada. Slight might be understating it a little a bit. UNLV is ranking at or near the bottom in the Mountain West Conference in recruiting. Overall, when you look at the three-star recruits they have coming in compared to Nevada, UNLV has three, Nevada has five. So, I guess the overall scale of total players, how they’re recruited, how they’re rated, I think Nevada has the slight edge going into next year for football anyway.
The NBA and the NHL playoffs are going on. Where should the bettors put their money?
Never use the word ‘lock,’ especially here in Las Vegas, or in the state of Nevada. It would be a miracle if it’s not Golden State and Cleveland in the NBA finals. They’re such big favorites… Golden State is -7,500 to win the series right now. That is just absurd against a team that won 61 games in San Antonio. The Cavaliers against the one seed, they’re -2,700. These are astronomical favorites we’re talking about. So, they’re going to get there. The way it plays out in seven games I think the Cavs can win it again this year.
And in the NHL, anything can happen. The NHL playoffs are clearly better than the NBA playoffs. The finals might be a different story because these two teams are so good in the NBA.
Mitch Moss, VSIN
