Geoff Calkins
Calkins: Grizzlies trip to the bubble is just so 2020
No, this isn't what the Grizzlies expected. There have been setbacks in Orlando they didn't foresee. But this year of all years, maybe y'all know how that feels.
Geoff Calkins
Columnist
Geoff Calkins has been chronicling Memphis and Memphis sports for more than two decades. He is host of "The Geoff Calkins Show" from 9-11 a.m. M-F on 92.9 FM. Calkins has been named the best sports columnist in the country five times by the Associated Press sports editors, but still figures his best columns are about the people who make Memphis what it is.
There are 1040 articles by Geoff Calkins :
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August 2020
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Geoff Calkins -
Sports Calkins: Good news, Grizzlies fans — Ja Morant may be ticked
After losing to the New Orleans Pelicans Monday night, the Grizzlies are now 0-3 in the bubble. But if you're looking for good news, that chip on Ja Morant's shoulder may be getting bigger, still.
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GolfCalkins: How lucky shoes and St. Jude helped win the strangest Memphis golf tournament ever
Justin Thomas relied on lucky shoes and good fortune to win the WGC FedEx-St. Jude Invitational. But St. Jude kids were once again the star of the show.
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Geoff Calkins Calkins: Steve Montgomery taught us to look for the goodness — which we must do again today
My longtime pastor, Steve Montgomery, died of injuries from a bicycle accident earlier this week. What would Steve have said to help us make sense of his death? I asked some of his close friends.
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July 2020
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: Grizzlies lose a heartbreaker — and boy, did it feel good
The Portland Trail Blazers defeated the Memphis Grizzlies in the first of eight seeding games. It was agonizing, certainly. But somehow, the agony felt wonderful.
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: It’s Memphis against the world. Or at least the rest of the NBA
The Grizzlies normally save growl towels for the playoffs. But in this strangest of NBA seasons, the next eight games may be the closest thing.
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: The best seat in the house
You can dwell on the disappointment of not having fans at the WGC this year. A Memphian named Rick Gardner was disappointed, too. But then he showed the sort of creativity and perseverance that we all can learn from.
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: We’re shutting down high schools but not high school football? Shame on us
Of all the shameful decisions made by all our feckless leaders during this pandemic, you will have a hard time finding any more disgraceful than the decision by Gov. Bill Lee to allow high schools to resume playing football.
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: The Golf and Games melee should worry us all (but not for the reasons you think)
The melee at Golf and Games is the kind of thing that can happen when kids don't have enough structure and supervision. Now that Shelby County Schools has decided to start out all-virtual, what does that mean for the broader community?
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Geoff Calkins Calkins: On a historic night in Memphis, 901 FC proves that fans in the stands can be done
Memphis 901 FC played a game in front of fans at AutoZone Park Saturday night. In the process, the franchise showed others — including the University of Memphis — how it can be done.
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Geoff Calkins Calkins: After 136 days, Grizzlies basketball is back
The Memphis Grizzlies didn't win their first scrimmage in the NBA bubble. But at a time when everything in life seems fragile, it was a gift to have them back.
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Geoff Calkins Calkins: Happy National Drive-Thru Day! Some American heroes serve fries
We curse them, criticize them and (sometimes even) flip them the bird. On National Drive-Thru Day, let's hear it for the front-line workers who see us at our worst.
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Sports Calkins: Justise Winslow is not Chandler Parsons — and the Grizzlies are not cursed
Yes, Justise Winslow is out for the season with a hip injury. But the idea that the franchise is somehow cursed is a new twist on an old, wrongheaded civic narrative. The Grizzlies — and their fans — have been remarkably lucky. Memphians should appreciate that.
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Opinion
EducationCalkins: At Rhodes College, leadership the whole country needs
As leaders around the country make decisions based on wishful thinking, Rhodes College postponed on-campus eduction for the fall semester because it determined it could not safely bring students, faculty and employees back to campus. "It’s about setting your values and having the courage of your convictions," said president Marjorie Hass. If only more leaders would do the same.
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Geoff Calkins Calkins: With Moussa Cisse aboard, the Memphis Tigers can (once again) dream big
Five-star center Moussa Cisse has committed to Memphis. It's a huge win for Penny Hardaway — and a reason to believe that next season (if there is one) could be what last season was supposed to be.
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High School SportsCalkins: It’s time to move high school football to the spring
There are a lot of hard choices to make during this pandemic, but postponing high school football shouldn't be one of them. It's time to move the season to the spring.
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Food Calkins: Memphis bars want what we all want — competent leadership
Sixteen bars have sued the Shelby County Health Department alleging that they were unfairly singled out for closure. And you know what? They're right. It's the kind of irrational regulation that undercuts the legitimacy of government when we need it most.
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: How Ramen Noodles could give Ja Morant and the Memphis Grizzlies a decisive edge
Ja Morant said Friday he's a "Ramen Noodles guy." That's just the kind of attitude NBA players will need to succeed in the Orlando bubble.
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SportsCalkins: If Tiger Woods plays Memphis now that fans aren’t invited, will this be the cruelest year ever? (Answer: Nah).
Fans won't be allowed at the World Golf Championships-FedEx St. Jude Invitational this year. But for the very best of reasons, Jack Sammons, the chair of the tournament, would still welcome Tiger Woods.
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: When he said there would be no fans in Neyland Stadium, y’all laughed. Nobody is laughing now.
The Ivy League was the first conference to cancel football this fall. It won't be the last. For that, you can blame those who didn't listen to people like Dr. Jon McCullers, who tried to tell you this is how it could go.
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June 2020
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: All these years later, the Grizz arena lease still a win
Here's how the "early termination" section came to be in the Grizzlies lease — and why Memphians should still consider the lease to be an emphatic success.
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: A $29 million pot of money could help the city and county pay off the Grizzlies
When the FedExForum deal was struck, some people worried that the city and county might not have the money to pay off the arena bonds. Instead, there's a $29 million surplus. And it might come in handy real soon.
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Calkins
Geoff Calkins‘Early termination’ clause in Grizzlies lease may require city and county to kick in millions to keep team
The Memphis Grizzlies have met with city and county officials to discuss a little-known "early termination" clause in the Grizzlies lease which could require the city and county to spend millions to make up for ticket shortfalls this season — or risk losing the team.
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: Don’t worry about the Grizzlies moving — worry about this
An "early termination" clause in the Grizzlies lease poses a real challenge for the city and county. But if you're worried about the Grizzlies relocating someday, that's not what you should be most worried about.
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Geoff Calkins Calkins: The hardest Father’s Day of them all
Pete Wickham should be taking his son, Matt, to a Redbirds game today. But Pete was diagnosed with a brain tumor and Matt — who is autistic and intellectually disabled — is locked down with COVID-19. Somehow, this very difficult Father's Day has become a reminder of what it's all about.
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