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Food seems to be the biggest issue so far.

It’s been 24 hours since NBA and WNBA players reported to their respective bubbles, and I take no joy in telling you that the bubbles are a mess. Okay, so that might be a little harsh — it’s not so much that the bubbles are a mess and more that players are having WILDLY different experiences depending on their team, location, and personal needs.

One would assume with less people to cater to and no general public it would be a breeze to give elite athletes world class treatment. Alas, that isn’t happening for all of them. Food seems to be the biggest issue so far. The first night meal served to the majority of the league was Fyre Fest worthy.

It wasn’t much better in the WNBA, or maybe it’s worse.

this was a meal option served to some WNBA players. i don’t think they would have agreed if this is what was advertised. pic.twitter.com/C9PjykUd3l

On the other end of the spectrum we have LeBron James and the Lakers, who somehow managed to get a gourmet, delicious looking sushi dinner while the rest of the league ate a tray of food that looked like it was hastily thrown together at a rest stop.

It’s good to be the king, I guess. But aside from laughing at the disparity in food quality there’s something far worse happening for Diamond DeShields of the Chicago Sky. DeShields says she has repeatedly told the WNBA that she doesn’t eat meat, yet non-vegetarian meals keep being sent to her room. As a result she’s stuck eating the same thing every day from the hotel bar while waiting to hear back from the league on how it will handle the issue. DeShields said the league asked players to fill out a card with their dietary restrictions on it prior to heading to Orlando, but that information isn’t being heeded.

I’ve emailed the HQ here and I’ve reached out and done my part but the response I get is “we will put a note in the system” I don’t want to paint a bad picture of this experience but at this point.... idk what else to do. Idk who else to call. I’ve sent the email, I’ve had my team reach out to to the league, and now it’s 8:30 AM I’ve been here for 2 days and I am missing another meal because of this same problem. I would like to get food that I am actually able to eat orrrrrrrrr my per Diem for these meals like I requested TWO DAYS ago. @wnba I know there are a mountain of issues but this is one that cannot wait or be pushed aside ESPECALLY for the players who stay in the hotel where there is no kitchen or microwave for them to use. So.....yea. lets maybe revisit the dietary restrictions form that we all filled out before we got here and make sure players are getting the proper meals because I know I’m not. I can’t keep eating beyond burgers from the bar everyday SN: this is me sharing some of MY experience I’m not speaking on behalf of everyone here. Nor am I trying to make anyone look bad. I’m just trying to get my $$ and cancel these meals...But yeaaa... off to workout ‍♂️

A post shared by Diamond DeShields (@diamonddoesit1) on Jul 8, 2020 at 5:48am PDT

So far there haven’t been any complaints from NBA players about the quality of their rooms themselves, but in the WNBA it’s pretty, pretty bad. Some players are saying their rooms are fine, or of high quality — but other images have emerged showing that some atrocious conditions including dead worms, bed bug traps, and a laundry facility that looks like a Saw-themed escape room.

just got this video from one of the laundry rooms inside the WNBA “bubble” and couldn’t be more disturbed. this is not ok. pic.twitter.com/6FC10jlcql

Organizing massive events like this on the fly is difficult, but it shouldn't be this difficult. The most basic needs of players are being met, but these are athletes risking their health in order to resume play. Considering the circumstances it should be easy enough to at least give them the same level of service and comfort anyone would get at a hotel. Alas, that isn’t happening for everyone.

NWSL supporters groups are finding new ways to show their spirit during the pandemic.

The NWSL was the first American professional sports league to return to play, and chose to do so without fans in the stands. So supporters groups — whose members typically spend game days tailgating, cheering, beating drums, waving flags, and generally hyping up their teams and other fans — needed to adapt their traditions to something completely new: a tournament that they can’t attend.

The Spirit Squadron is the supporters group of the Washington Spirit, with members throughout the DC, Maryland, and Virginia region. These members have found new ways to stay involved with the sport during the pandemic. Angie Kanellopulos is Squadron’s president and helped to coordinate sending a handmade banner for the Spirit to have while they play the Challenge Cup in Utah.

Like most other NWSL supporters groups, the Squadron is part of the Independent Supporters Council. Members of the ISC emailed back and forth with the NWSL in order to get guidelines about ways that they would be able to participate in the tournament. That’s how Angie Kanellopulos, the Squadron’s president, learned that the league would allow groups to send banners.

After that, she was left with the matter of reaching out to the Washington Spirit’s front office to coordinate the details.

“[The Spirit] actually reached out to me right as I was reaching out to them about things we might be interested in doing, so it was kind of a mutual thing” Kanellopulos said. “We talked together about what we’d like to do and how they could facilitate that.”

Individual teams chose to display banners at locker rooms or hotels, instead of the stands where they would normally be displayed in by supporters groups standing in designated sections.

For members of the Squadron, being able to send a banner was an opportunity to send a message of solidarity to the team in a difficult time, while also emphasizing the group’s values.

“One person had the idea, and then three or four of us worked together to really nail down the exact language we wanted to use,” Kanellopulos said.

When it came time to decorate, things were also different from normal: instead of getting a large group together to paint, only two members worked on it in order to follow social distancing protocol.

Among the other groups that have sent banners is Cloud 9, the supporters group of Sky Blue FC. Their banner focuses on their dedication to their team despite the distance.

Slightly better shot of our banner behind the @SkyBlueFC bench. pic.twitter.com/PNe3TjTXIQ

Other teams shipped along their usual game banners to Utah with their teams. This one was sent by The Uproar, a group supporting the North Carolina Courage.

The groups’ efforts haven’t stopped with the banners, because each one has its own additional traditions that needed to be adapted to work remotely. For the Squadron, that includes an honor that they typically bestow on players in person.

“We have a tradition where we choose a ‘Player of the Match’ at the end of each game, and the team is working with us so we can still do that,” Kanellopulos said. “This time, we’re sending them our little trophy that gets handed to the player after the game, and coordinating a fan vote.”

Groups have also started to host video chat watch parties during matches. For the Squadron, these events also include virtual tailgates co-hosted with the team itself.

But adapting old traditions isn’t the only thing that these groups have focused their attention on. Some of these fans also wanted to use the Challenge Cup as an opportunity to make a difference. In order to meet those goals, eleven supporters groups have come together and created an initiative titled Activating Communities Through Support (ACTS).

ACTS is proud to present our NWSL Challenge Cup Fundraiser benefitting the Urban Indian Center of Salt Lake!(@IndianSalt) Powered by @Prideraiser.https://t.co/hprRqfUPpl

Throughout the tournament, supporters groups will be honoring this initiative by donating money to the Urban Indian Center of Salt Lake. Fans pledge a specific amount of money to donate to the organization each time their team scores a goal.

On their fundraising website, these groups write that they are using their platforms in this way in order to give back to the local community in Utah, because the NWSL teams participating in the tournament will be playing on traditional Indigenous lands.

The pandemic also shaped the initiative’s direction. In a press release, Maggie Dziubek of Chicago Local 134 (a Chicago Red Stars supporters group) writes that “public health concerns, including the COVID-19 pandemic, often have an outsized impact on Native American communities.”

The initiative raised more than $5000 during the tournament’s first week of play, and will continue throughout the Challenge Cup. So although the tournament isn’t the same experience that fans have come to love in years past, it’s also driven them to find new ways to support their teams and the communities around them.

“That whole game day experience— it’s hard to imitate that when you’re not actually there,” Kanellopulos said, “But for right now, we’re just focused on doing what we can.”

NFL insiders come from interesting places.

In an era of social media, breaking news and flight tracking, we’re all clamoring to know about a team’s big signing before it happens. However, despite the endless resources at the disposal of NFL insiders, a liquor store employee who knew Patrick Mahomes signed his record-breaking contract extension with the Chiefs before anyone else did.

pic.twitter.com/Q5RH2oP70X

Katie Camlin, an employee of Plaza Liquor in Kansas City noticed a team employee stocking up on some of the good stuff for what appeared to be a celebration. By the timestamp this happened at 12:21 p.m., well before Adam Schefter’s tweet announcing the deal, which happened at 2:54 p.m.

Naturally, Camlin was proud of herself for scooping the biggest insider in the NFL.

Holy shit I beat Schefter hahaha

While the world was taking in the mammoth 10-year deal, Camlin was just thrilled to be playing NFL insider for a day. Honestly, connecting the dots like that was a pretty impressive feat a lot of people would have missed, and it’s that kind of awareness that led to the breaking news.

Best of all Schefter acknowledged he’d been scooped, and wanted to add Camlin to his list of NFL sources.

ALRIGHT EVERYONE ELSE GO HOME THIS IS THE COOLEST THING EVER @AdamSchefter pic.twitter.com/Y985QVeLn7

So keep an eye out the next time a team employee is buying a case load of high-end champagne. You might be poised to scoop everyone.

Photo by Bob Frid/Icon SMI/Corbis/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

No matter how old, these rivalries are the best.

As you have undoubtedly noticed by now, this week is Rivalry Week across SB Nation. In order to dig into the rivalries across the NHL, we talked to our NHL team sites about historic rivalries and then asked NHL fans what they thought were hockey’s biggest rivalries. Leave a comment below for yours!

There was once a time when Islanders-Rangers would be considered one of the most intense rivalries in the NHL. Judging by my colleagues’ answers and the accompanying survey (not to mention the common sense that almost no one but a very select, damaged few stragglers still care about the Islanders right now), it’s pretty clear that those days are well over. But the embers are still there. The franchises have almost 50 years of brawls and playoff series and crushing defeats and euphoric wins on both sides. The thing the Islanders and Rangers have over all other NHL rivalries is the deep familial bonds that tie them together. Families, friend groups, work places, neighborhoods, all have been split between the two for decades. It’s not unusual for, say, a mother and son to be fans of one team and a daughter and father to be fans of the other all in the same family. You might be the only Islanders fan in an office of Rangers fans or a lone Ranger on a block of blue and orange. Long Island has never truly been “Islanders Country” when a short ride on the railroad can drop you right underneath Madison Square Garden. There are a million permutations and they all boil down to a simple hatred of the other person’s choice of hockey team. It’s as primal as that. Maybe one day, it will be the single biggest rivalry in the NHL. But for now, that honor belongs to “The New York Islanders vs. A Place to Play.”

- Dan Saraceni, Lighthouse Hockey

Since my team can’t beat anybody right now, it’s hard to say they even have a current rivalry, let alone the best in hockey. I’ll drop gloves with and turtle anybody who says the old Wings vs. Avalanche rivalry wasn’t the best, but that one died years ago. Watching from the outside of all these heated matchups, I’m going to agree that Flames/Oilers is heating up nicely with both teams being good enough to be relevant again. Boston and just about everybody else because nobody likes the Bruins works well. I’ll say in all seriousness though that the current biggest rivalry in our sport is Eugene Melnyk vs. the fans. Nobody crushes dreams like the Senators’ owner.

- J.J. from Kansas, Winging it in Motown

I’m going to stick with what I know and that’s the Calgary Flames. And with me sticking with the Flames, it has to be the Flames and Oilers. Ever since the Flames moved to Calgary from Atlanta there’s been nothing but visceral hate between these two franchises and cities. And yes, Edmonton has the Cups and sure, there were some lean years on both sides, things are really heating up again. Matthew Tkachuk (you know the Oilers passed on him in the draft, right?) did a splendid job of sending this heated rivalry into the stratosphere this season with his new friendship with Edmonton’s Zack Kassian. Heck, a Calgary radio station raised enough money to put up a Tkachuk billboard in Edmonton prior to a Flames visit. All rivalries require some sort of foil and some stars that each city hates. Both Calgary and Edmonton have those and the fact that they could meet in the playoffs this season makes it that much better. Rivalries require both teams to be on equal footing, otherwise it’s no fun and this rivalry is right where it needs to be.

- Mark Parkinson, Matchsticks & Gasoline

If we’re talking teams, I’m going to have to say Flames/Oilers. Two teams that are roughly equal in talent and close geographically. It’s something that, hopefully, the Lightning and the Panthers will finally develop over the next few seasons. I’ll throw Connor McDavid vs. Auston Matthews as the player vs. player rivalry that the league will push to keep things spicy over the next decade.

- Justin G., Raw Charge

With respect to the team that matters, the New Jersey Devils, that would be the one with the New York Rangers — better known on the site as Our Hated Rivals. With respect to the league as a whole and considering NHL history, I would select Boston and Montreal.

With respect to international hockey, as tempting as it is to pick America and Canada or Sweden and Finland, I think Canada and Russia is the bigger one. The 1972 Summit Series alone was more than just the politics or the known facing the unknown; it was a series of hockey philosophies which has continued to permeate how hockey is played today. Even to this day, the international games at any age level between Canada versus Russia has this air of each country wanting to show which system is better and, as such, the games carry their own special weight.

- John Fischer, All About the Jersey

I’ll be a little bit biased here and go with the Blues and Blackhawks. There are a lot of teams that hate each other, but in many of the rivalries the two teams have overall had the same amount of success. For the Blues and Blackhawks, it was always a little brother/big brother dynamic, which I think served the double purpose of irritating the Hawks and their fans to no end and also irritating Blues fans. We know we don’t have the success of the Blackhawks, recent or not, and to a degree I think that shoulder chip is what drives the competition. At least now we’ll never have to hear that “how do they drink beer in St. Louis without cups?” joke again.

- Laura Astorian, St. Louis Game Time

There is only one answer for all of hockey: USA v Canada in women’s hockey. Only two teams have ever won Olympic gold: USA and Canada. Only two teams have ever won IIHF World Championship gold: USA and Canada. They literally play an exhibition series called “Rivalry Series.” Where else do you see such continued dominance but also a natural see-sawing over the years between which of the two teams is better?

- Michelle Jay, The Ice Garden

Michelle is correct. It’s Team USA vs Team Canada in women’s hockey. The NHL rivalry that has made the biggest impact on my life is the Rangers v. the Devils — aka the Battle of the Hudson. In just a few short years the rivalry that has literally changed NHL rules (looking at you, Sean Avery) could heat up again in a big way with both teams stockpiling young talent.

- Mike Murphy, Blueshirt Banter and The Ice Garden

To vote in the NHL Reacts surveys and have your voice heard each week, sign up here.

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