Welcome to October.

It’s sure to be one unlike any other in recent memory.

With the NBA Finals underway, WNBA Finals set to begin, a record number of MLB postseason games in addition to the NFL, there is a little something for everybody to keep entertained as we socially distance, wear masks and do our part to get through these uncertain times. 

If you’re like me, a Thursday Night Football matchup between the Denver Broncos and New York Jets sounds pretty good, all things considered.

After all, there won’t be a single NFL game I take for granted ever again.

Here is the Morning Coffee for Thursday, Sept. 30, 2020.

 

Lakers Take Game 1

The Los Angeles Lakers took Game 1 of the NBA Finals with a 116-98 win over the Miami Heat on Wednesday night.

While Miami got off to a fast start, things took a turn for the worse in a hurry.

Anthony Davis, who had averaged 28.8 points per game in the postseason prior to Game 1, scored a game-high 34 points with nine rebounds and five assists.

LeBron James, who is just the eighth player in NBA history to win a championship with a franchise and then face that same franchise in an NBA Finals later in his career, scored 25 with 13 rebounds and nine assists.

As if the result wasn’t bad enough, the Heat also lost Goran Dragic and Bam Adebayo to injuries, while Jimmy Butler clearly wasn’t the same after he tweaked his ankle. 

The Lakers entered the series as -360 favourites, which made them the third-biggest NBA Finals favourite in the last 15 seasons.

After the Game 1 win, that number moved all the way to Lakers -1000, which translates to a 90.9 per cent implied win probability.

Game 2 goes Friday night.

 

WNBA Finals Countdown

Game 1 of the WNBA Finals is also set to go Friday night.

The Seattle Storm, which opened at -450 odds to win the title, are listed at -4.5 to win Game 1.

You can catch that game on TSN1, 4 & 5 at 7 PM ET / 4 PM PT.

 

MLB Postseason Party

The busiest day in MLB postseason history wrapped with the favourites posting a combined 5-3 record in the eight games, which was twice as many as any other day in MLB playoff history.

Favourites are now 8-4 so far in these playoffs.

Freddie Freeman broke up the longest scoreless game in MLB playoff history with a walk-off single in the 13th inning as the Atlanta Braves (-135) beat the Cincinnati Reds 1-0.

For their part, the Reds became the first team in MLB postseason history to produce 11 hits and fail to score a run.

The Braves have a chance to end their record-tying streak of 10 straight playoff round losses in Game 2 against Cincinnati this afternoon.

The Houston Astros became the first team to advance with a 3-1 win over the Minnesota Twins on Wednesday.

Minnesota has now lost 18 straight playoff games – the longest streak by any team in MLB, NFL, NHL or the NBA.

Meanwhile, the Oakland Athletics snapped a franchise-record six-game playoff-losing streak with a 5-3 win over the Chicago White Sox in Game 2 of their series.

The Athletics and White Sox will meet in a decisive Game 3 on Thursday afternoon.

Oakland has lost nine straight winner-take-all games – the longest such slide in MLB postseason history.

Finally, the Tampa Bay Rays completed their sweep of the Toronto Blue Jays with an 8-2 win.

Toronto starter Hyun-Jin Ryu struggled, to put it mildly.

It was a disappointing end to an otherwise impressive season for the Blue Jays.

TSN’s Scott Mitchell had these five takeaways from Toronto’s season-ending Game 2 loss to the Rays.

Thursday will be another busy one with six MLB playoff games on tap, including the aforementioned decisive Game 3 between Chicago and Oakland.

 

Thursday Night Football Week 4

Welcome to Week 4 in the NFL.

Scoring is up across the league and totals have been adjusted almost across the board as a result.

Just not for the Thursday Night Football matchup.

The winless Denver Broncos will visit the winless New York Jets. 

The total for this game is currently set at 40, which is the second-lowest total we have seen so far this season after the number for New York’s Week 1 matchup with the Buffalo Bills was set at 38 and went over.

The Broncos are ranked 32nd in DVOA, per Football Outsiders.

They are down a Pro Bowl linebacker.

They are down a Pro Bowl wide receiver.

They are down to their third-string quarterback – an undrafted free agent set to make his first pro start on the road on a short week.

And STILL, Denver is a small favourite for this game.

The Jets are the only NFL team that hasn’t run a single offensive snap with the lead so far this season.

They’re 0-3 both straight up and against the spread, failing to cover the number by an average of 10.7 points per game this season.

Personally, I have no interest betting either side in this game.

However, I should point out that the outcome could have major implications for a different reason.

With the loser of this game falling to 0-4, there will be a lot of talk about positioning for the 2021 NFL Draft.

There are six 0-3 teams heading into Week 4, but none have been as bad as the Jets and Broncos from a DVOA standpoint.

It’s still really early, but I don’t think it’s unfair to point out that the loser of this game could become the odds-on favourite to land the first overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft.