Tuesday, July 7th, 2026

USA Out & NBA Summer League Week

Scott Seidenberg and Mackenzie Rivers react to the USMNT being eliminated in the World Cup by Belgium. Plus Mack's thoughts on the NBA Trades that went down, Summer League action and Colby Marchio on the latest in Major League Baseball.

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⚽ USA ELIMINATED: BELGIUM 4, USA 1

Outclassed, Outplayed, Outgunned

The breakdown:

• US defenders caught standing still — "everyone thought someone else was gonna get the ball"
• Tillman free kick equalizer
• Belgium answered LESS THAN TWO MINUTES LATER — "sucked the life out of the US squad"
• Matt Freese gaffe made it 3-1 — "one of the worst goalie gaffes you're gonna see"
• Christian Pulisic: 11 turnovers in ~40 minutes

The ghost: This is the same team that lost 5-2 to Belgium in a pre-WC friendly — "It looked like they had that game in the back of their heads."

Scott's Frustration

Scott: "It frustrates me to no end when I see the ball not going towards the net. You're down 3-1 — you're not gonna tie the game if you don't shoot. You know how you can guarantee not scoring any goals? Never shoot the ball at the opponent's net."

Mackenzie's Perspective

The context: "It was 86 years — except for 2002 — since the USA did better than the round of 16. This is a very good result. It's better than our average result."

The flex: Mackenzie bet USA to go out in the Round of 16 at +160 after they started 2-0 in the group stage. ✅

The style critique: "Somebody decided years ago the US should play like Spain — beautiful ticky-tack football. But we're not the most technical group. We're athletic. We should have long runs, make athletic plays, be Americans. Americans don't do anything tentatively."

The hype machine: "Once we won a couple games, it was 'we're gonna win the World Cup." The bar got unfairly raised for not just the US, but all three North American teams

⚽ TODAY'S QUARTERFINAL QUALIFIERS

Mackenzie: Egypt Can Do It

Mackenzie: "Argentina is not this dynamo. They had probably the easiest group and almost lost to Cape Verde — probably the 200th best team in the world. Ask any hardcore soccer fan: who's the better player RIGHT NOW, Mo Salah or Messi? Salah is still maybe the best player in England. Minus 800 is ridiculous."

⚽ GOLDEN BOOT: THE TIEBREAKER ANGLE

Three-Way Tie at 7 Goals

Mackenzie: "You're missing a key part — the TIEBREAKER. Mbappé has two assists; Messi doesn't have one. There are many scenarios where they end with the same goals, and the golden boot goes to the guy with more assists. Mbappé at even money is probably the best bet on the board."

⚽ SCOTT'S PLAYS: ENGLAND + KANE

The Case

Scott: "To overcome Mexico in Estadio Azteca was huge. I think they get by Norway. If they match up with Argentina in a semifinal, I think they win that match. Give me 5/1 on England to lift the trophy. And Kane takes ALL the penalties — plus he has assists for the tiebreaker."

Mackenzie: "England has proven to be as good as we thought pre-tournament. Argentina hasn't proven anything — their betting surge is because people love Messi."

Tournament odds: France +175, Spain +340, Argentina +450, England +500

🏀 SUMMER LEAGUE: NEW ROY FAVORITE

The Market Flipped

The Peterson Case

Mackenzie: "Washington has a lot of mouths to feed. Peterson could easily get 20 shots a game on this Jazz team. Bill Self said he was the most talented player he ever coached — and he coached Andrew Wiggins and Joel Embiid. Worth a flyer as a plus-money favorite."

Summer League Betting Philosophy

Mackenzie: "Identify the sixth or seventh best player on a team — the guy motivated to make a roster who can jump once the regular season starts. If you're as good as Wemby or Cooper Flagg, you play one or two games and get shut down. The thing to watch through the championship is that seventh man."

Vegas Summer League: Starts Thursday.

🏀 MACKENZIE'S JAYLEN BROWN RANT

The Contrarian Take

Mackenzie: "Every single show I turned on had the exact same opinion: 'the best front office of the last 10 years suddenly lost their minds.' Why can't we say this is a new data point? Maybe they know him better than we do."

The analytics: "Estimated plus-minus says he's not a top-30 player. He's not a great defender — he's an average one. He's not a great scorer — he's a guy that can take a lot of shots."

The Finals MVP: "We said at the time that was incorrect. That wasn't because he was the most valuable player. That's because people don't like Jayson Tatum."

The tiebreaker argument: "Everyone who says the Celtics made the worst trade of all time spends 20 minutes on it, then says the Sixers are 'pretty good.' If Jaylen Brown was a top-10 player and you plugged him into a second-round team, they'd be a championship favorite. He's not. They're not."

The comp: "He's like Paolo Banchero — a guy with league-average efficiency and a lot of volume. That doesn't actually move the needle. Same with Anthony Edwards — those Minnesota runs were because of the DEFENSE."

The verdict: "People should eat a little humble pie and say, 'I think Jaylen Brown was a little more overrated than I thought.'"

⚾ COLBY'S HOT FIVE: THE YANKEES ARE A CORPSE

The Numbers Are Unbelievable

Colby: "I don't know why anyone isn't just auto-playing the dog if the Yankees are the favorite in ANY game going forward. They're a corpse. There's tremendous value in fading the New York Yankees right now."

The diagnosis: "I don't think it turns around until Aaron Judge comes back — and I don't think that's anytime soon. He is always going to be my most disrespected athlete in sports."

⚾ Murakami Returns

The news: Munetaka Murakami begins his rehab assignment — White Sox comeback imminent.

Colby: "I'm sure there's a little tightness below the equator for Sox fans worrying he won't be the same after the hamstring injury. But the team looks great, and the momentum should lift him even more."

All-Star notes: Miguel Vargas made it (emotional scenes — he'd said he wasn't having fun playing baseball). Colby's snubs: Colson Montgomery, Davis Martin.

Colby on the ASG: "It doesn't mean anything anymore. It's just cool for the kids. As always, everything is for the kids."

⚾ Goodman Watch

Colby: "We're doing just fine on Hunter Goodman to lead the league in home runs. And I need ONE more homer to cash his preseason prop of 27.5. Did not think I'd be sitting in a rocking chair for that bet on July 6th."

Derby concern: "I could taste it — the Derby is becoming the NBA dunk contest where nobody joins. But the Homer Derby is the best all-star event in sports. Do you know how easy it is to be better than the Pro Bowl? I could go in the backyard with my dog."

⚾ DOUBLEHEADER DAY: BREWERS-CARDINALS

The 2026 Doubleheader System

Game 1 starter: Jacob Misiorowski (MIL)

The plan: See who loses Game 1, then assess the Game 2 play.

📅 Coming Up

Today

• World Cup: Argentina vs Egypt, Colombia vs Switzerland
• MLB: Brewers-Cardinals doubleheader

This Week

• Thursday: Vegas Summer League begins
• Off the Board: Wednesday/Friday

This Month

• BettorDay App: Launch coming for Insider/Premium members
• Tier announcements + NEW CONTRIBUTORS coming to BettorDay.com