The New York Times’ Connections: Sports Edition released on January 24th, #488, proved particularly challenging for many players. The puzzle, published through The Athletic, tests a player’s sports knowledge across multiple disciplines – from hockey and baseball to obscure team nicknames. This guide provides the answers, categorized by difficulty, and offers insights into why this edition stood out.
Puzzle Breakdown: Category by Category
The game centers around identifying four groups of four words each, linked by a common theme. The categories range from straightforward associations to obscure connections, demanding both broad sports knowledge and lateral thinking. Here’s how today’s puzzle broke down:
- Yellow (Easiest): The theme was “hit”. The words were deck, punch, slug, and strike.
- Green (Medium): The theme was “sports memorabilia”. The words were autograph, jersey, poster, and trading card.
- Blue (Medium-Hard): The theme was “former NHL teams, in singular form”. The words were Coyote, Nordique, Thrasher, and Whaler. This category required knowledge of defunct professional hockey franchises.
- Purple (Hardest): The theme was “ends in a synonym for throw”. The words were blob (lob), shuffling (fling), surpass (pass), and woodchuck (chuck). This category was especially tricky, relying on a very indirect connection.
Why This Puzzle Was Tougher Than Usual
The difficulty spike in this edition wasn’t accidental. The purple category, in particular, hinged on identifying words that ended in a synonym for “throw” rather than directly representing throwing actions. This level of abstraction is rare in Connections, making it stand out.
The puzzle’s design reflects a trend toward more complex wordplay within the series. Earlier editions often relied on more obvious associations, but the January 24th puzzle demanded a deeper understanding of language and sports terminology.
Examples of Exceptionally Challenging Past Categories
The Connections: Sports Edition has featured other notoriously difficult categories in the past. Some examples include:
- Serie A Clubs: Atalanta, Juventus, Lazio, Roma. (Requires knowledge of Italian soccer teams)
- WNBA MVPs: Catchings, Delle Donne, Fowles, and Stewart. (Demands familiarity with Women’s National Basketball Association history)
- Premier League Team Nicknames: Bees, Cherries, Foxes, and Hammers. (Requires knowledge of British soccer club nicknames.)
- Homophones of NBA Player Names: Barns, Connect, Heart, and Hero. (A play on words rather than direct sports knowledge.)
Key Takeaway
The January 24th Connections: Sports Edition demonstrates the game’s increasing complexity. Players who excel at this edition will need not just sports knowledge but also linguistic agility. This puzzle format rewards those who can think outside the box and make unconventional connections.
