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This is Defector, a new sports blog and media company. We made this place together, we own it together, we run it together. Without access, without favor, without discretion, and without interference.

Defector

Elizabeth Hawes is a poet, playwright, and essayist from Minneapolis. A recipient of the Keeley Schenwar Memorial Essay Prize, she has contributed to multiple pedagogical journals and books. Her quotes have been projected onto the Rockefeller Center during PEN America&#8217;s Centennial Art Installation Celebration: Speech Itself.

Elizabeth Hawes

An illustration of a steel toilet with blue water, in an empty room.

Stories

What Happens In Prison When You Can’t Pee On Command

Columnist. Author of many <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Drew-Magary/e/B001JS8R52/ref=dp_byline_cont_pop_book_1">fine works of literature</a>, including Point B. Handsomest man in the world.

Drew Magary

Members of the far-right militia group, Patriot Front, participate in the 2025 March for Life in Washington D.C., Friday, Jan. 24, 2025.

Funbag

Nazism & Hitler: The Defector Explainer

Alex Sujong Laughlin

Ray Ratto

Kathryn Xu

charismatic megafauna (they/them)

Sabrina Imbler

Staff Writer
Find me on Signal @DefectorChris.19

Chris Thompson

Black-and-white photo of a writer scrawling on paper.

Defector Reads A Book

‘The Artist’s Way’ Week 3: Synchronicities And Faith

Jaylen Brown and Payton Pritchard look discouraged.

The Celtics Can Afford To Wait For Math To Come Back Around

a hummingbird visiting a flower with itty-bitty white mites on its beak

Creaturefector

A Mite’s Leap Of Electric Faith Into A Hummingbird Nostril

A distraught-looking Kyle Kuzma ards looks on against the Sacramento Kings in the third quarter at Golden 1 Center on January 19, 2025 in Sacramento.

The Washington Wizards Are Going All The Way Down

Heather Chen is a former Defector intern and the managing editor at the Columbia Daily Spectator. She loves hockey, photography, and the good ol’ state of Michigan.

Heather Wei-Xi Chen

DETROIT, MI - SEPTEMBER 14: A worker cleans a RAM truck at the 2022 North American International Auto Show on September 14, 2022 in Detroit, Michigan.The NAIAS opens to the public on September 17 and features the latest state of the art electric vehicles, vehicle rides, the world’s first battery-powered Monster Truck, an Air Mobility Experience featuring flight demonstrations of jet suits, hoverboards, and vertical take-off and landing aircraft, a Dinosaur Encounter featuring 80 life-like and life-size dinosaurs, and the world’s largest rubber duck. (Photo by Bill Pugliano/Getty Images)

Arts And Culture

The Detroit Auto Show Used To Be The Future

Kelsey McKinney

travis kelce and jalen hurts in tan suits

Let Us Compare These Two Men In Tan Suits

David Roth

An Ai Me robot from Chinese company TCL is displayed during the 2025 Consumer Electronics Show CES in Las Vegas.

Capital

The Future Is Too Easy

Maitreyi Anantharaman

Kelsey Plum #10 of the Las Vegas Aces and Jewell Loyd #24 of the Seattle Storm look on during the fourth quarter at Climate Pledge Arena on July 10, 2024 in Seattle, Washington.

WNBA

We Got A Real WNBA Trade, With Stars And Everything

Tom Ley

MIAMI, FLORIDA - JANUARY 01: Jimmy Butler #22 of the Miami Heat looks on prior to a game against the New Orleans Pelicans at Kaseya Center on January 01, 2025 in Miami, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement.

Jimmy Butler Suspended Again, If You Even Care

Giri Nathan

During Day 14 of the 2025 Australian Open at Melbourne Park on January 25, 2025 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Andy Cheung/Getty Images)

Tennis

Madison Keys Won Her First Major By Changing Her Racquet And Mind

Dan McQuade was a founding member of Defector. He died in January 2026.

Dan McQuade

PHILADELPHIA, UNITED STATES - JANUARY 26: A Philadelphia Eagles fan in a mask at Xfinity Live during the NFL NFC Championship in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States on January 26, 2025. The Philadelphia Eagles defeated the Washington Commanders to advance to the Super Bowl.

Eagles Fans Are Happiest At The Brink Of Agony

Luis Paez-Pumar

Ange Postecoglou, Manager of Tottenham Hotspur, reacts during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur FC and Leicester City FC at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on January 26, 2025 in London, England.

Soccer

Tottenham Inches Towards Implosion

Owen Lewis is a former Defector intern and has written for The Guardian, The Second Serve, The Athletic, n+1, Texas Monthly, Air Mail, and other publications.

Owen Lewis

The Australian Open Is Happy And Hot

Michael Taaffe #16 of the Texas Longhorns looks at the Peach Bowl trophy at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on January 1, 2025 in Atlanta, Georgia.

Crosswords

The Crossword, Jan. 27: Bursting With Pride (Themeless)

KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI - JANUARY 26: Patrick Mahomes #15 of the Kansas City Chiefs celebrates after the Chiefs defeated the Buffalo Bills 32-29 to win the AFC Championship Game at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium on January 26, 2025 in Kansas City, Missouri.

Patrick Mahomes Will Always Make You Pay

Why Did Adam Schefter Write “Composite Matchups” Like This?

Andy Reid of the Kansas City Chiefs looks on from the field during warmups prior to an NFL football AFC divisional playoff game against the Houston Texans.

Super Bowl 59: Same Shit, Different Day, Brought To You By Fumble-A-Rooskie-Doo

Diana Moskovitz is Defector&#8217;s investigations editor. You can contact her at diana@defector.com or dfmoskovitz@protonmail.com. She&#8217;s also on Signal @dmoskovitz.99

Diana Moskovitz

Ilia Malinin skates in the Championship Men Free Skate during the 2025 Prevagen U.S. Figure Skating Championships at Intrust Bank Arena on January 26, 2025 in Wichita, Kansas. The photos shows him leaping and spinning off the ice.

Figure Skating

So! Many! Quads!

Florida coach Todd Golden standing in front of a basketball hoop.

College Basketball

Two Florida Hoops Coaches Are The Subject Of University Investigations; Both Are Still Coaching [Updated]

Jordan Davis #90 of the Philadelphia Eagles sacks Jayden Daniels #5 of the Washington Commanders during the third quarter in the NFC Championship Game at Lincoln Financial Field on January 26, 2025 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Chaos Is Fun But It’s Not The Way To Bet

Greg Maffei, CEO of Liberty Media, Mohammed ben Sulayem, FIA President, and Stefano Domenicali, CEO of the Formula One Group, walk on the grid during the F1 Grand Prix of Italy.

Racing

Who Benefits From Formula 1’s New Rules?

Media Meltdowns

Oratorical Uncles Bond Over Increasingly Reactionary Views

Dave McKenna

Japan’s Naoya Inoue poses during the official weigh-in in Tokyo on May 5, 2024 ahead of his super-bantamweight title boxing match against Mexico’s Luis Nery.