He Saved the Lakers From Bankruptcy

Good morning! A warm welcome to the 197 new subscribers who’ve joined since the last edition. I’m fired up to have you on board as we head into my favorite time of the year – baseball season!

Here's what's coming:

• The man who saved the Lakers from bankruptcy

• From $10.81 left in the bank to Coach of the Year

• How a bodybuilder with Down Syndrome is shaking up the fitness world

Let's dive in.

Who was the last MLB pitcher to record back-to-back 20-win seasons?

• A) Roy Oswalt

• B) Justin Verlander

• C) Max Scherzer

• D) Roy Halladay

The answer is at the end of this email! Look for the ⭐ emoji.

The Man Who Saved the Lakers From Bankruptcy

Due to a lack of access to basketball courts and rec facilities, Elgin Baylor didn’t start playing basketball until he was 14 years old.

Evidently, he was a fast learner. In high school, he became a three-time All-City player.

Unfortunately at the time, college coaches didn’t recruit black players. And while some schools were willing to make an exception for him, Baylor didn’t qualify academically.

So a friend helped him land a football scholarship at the College of Idaho – a tiny NAIA school.

But he never played football, and instead made the basketball team without having to try out.

He averaged 31.3 points before transferring to Seattle University, where he led his squad to the Final Four.

Drafted by the Los Angeles Lakers with the first overall pick in the 1958 NBA Draft, Baylor quite literally saved the franchise from financial ruin.

“If he had turned me down then, I’d have been out of business,” then-Lakers owner Bob Short told ESPN.

“The club would have been bankrupt.”

Baylor ultimately became an 11-time NBA All-Star and Basketball Hall of Famer.

#16 seed FDU’s stunning win over #1 Purdue was a tremendous upset in terms of Vegas odds (25-to-1).

But it barely cracks the top 10 for the greatest sports upsets of all time.

Can you name them?

⚾️ Cinderella stories aren’t just for college basketball. Brian Wright breaks down the MLB teams who went from worst to first. [Just Baseball]

🏀 D1 talent rules the NBA. But you don’t need to go to a big school to reach the top of the sport. Here are the improbable stories of the best Division 3 players in NBA history. [Joker Mag]

💸 This coach had $10.81 left in his bank account. And you won’t believe how he spent it. Here are 10 powerful lessons from the Big 12 Coach of the Year. [Andrew Moses]

⚽️ Watford soccer player Ken Sema suffers from a severe stutter. But he bravely came out for a post-match interview, all while speaking a second language. [Overseas Famous]

🏈 Chris Mallee worked a variety of different jobs: UPS, construction, painting, cooking, and more. Now he’s living his dream as a pro football scout. [Joker Mag]

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After being born with Down Syndrome and 13 holes in his heart, Kyle Landi never let his diagnosis hold him back. Now between working three jobs, he is a bodybuilder, aspiring model, and actor. We can all learn something from his approach to life.

⭐ Trivia Answer:

A) Roy Oswalt (2004 and 2005) – “I always heard that I was too small. I always heard that I wasn't from a big school. But I like challenges. I always have. I've always been a guy who likes big games. All the way from high school or Little League or the minors, I always liked big games.”

Wanna submit a trivia question or fun fact for the next edition? Reply to this email.

That's all for now. Thanks for reading!

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Til next time,
Tyler

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