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NYT Connections Sports Edition · #700

NYT Connections Sports Edition Hints & Answers (#700) — August 24, 2026

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“If a word looks like food, pause before locking it in — one of the food-looking words belongs somewhere else entirely.Today's puzzle has ALBERT, which may trip up casual baseball fans. The first name points to a slugger who hit a milestone round number in 2022 that put him in very rare company.”

NYT Sports Connections hints for August 24, 2026

Three levels of help — a definition for every word, colour-coded group nudges, and a heads-up on the traps. Skip to all answers →

1

Word clues

A spoiler-free definition for every word in the grid. Tap the eye on any card to reveal which colour-group it belongs to.

1 ALBERTAlbert Pujols — reached exactly 700 home runs in 2022, the newest member of the club.
2 BABEBabe Ruth — 714 home runs, the standard everyone chased for decades.
3 BANANASThe flagship team of the Savannah Bananas organization — not a fruit on this grid.
4 BARRYBarry Bonds — holds the all-time home-run record at 762.
5 BURYTo sink a shot decisively — as in 'she buried the three-pointer at the buzzer.'
6 CLOWNSThe fourth Savannah Bananas team — a nod to the comedic, trick-shot nature of the whole show.
7 DRAINLooks like plumbing; here it means to sink a shot smoothly through the net.
8 DRILLLooks like a tool or a practice rep; here it means to make a shot with sharp precision.
9 FRIESServed in a helmet at the ballpark — the saltiest option of the four.
10 HANKHank Aaron — held the all-time record at 755 for 33 years before Bonds.
11 ICE CREAMThe classic helmet serving — soft-serve or scoops in a plastic mini-helmet.
12 KNOCK DOWNReads as a physical action; in basketball it means to hit a shot, often a mid-range jumper.
13 NACHOSChips and cheese ladled into a souvenir helmet — a stadium staple.
14 PARTY ANIMALSAnother Savannah Bananas squad — the name fits the troupe's entertainment-first style.
15 TAILGATERSOne of the four Savannah Bananas touring teams — named for pre-game parking-lot culture.
16 TENDERSChicken tenders served in a helmet — the most filling of the four.
2

Group hints

Four colour-coded groups, easiest → hardest. Every button reveals the hint, the category name, or a single word — tap only what you need.

See Hint Four verbs a commentator shouts when the ball finds the bottom of the net.
See Group MAKE A SHOT
See WordBURY
See WordDRAIN
See WordDRILL
See WordKNOCK DOWN
See Hint A souvenir container doubles as your plate at the ballpark.
See Group FOOD SERVED IN A BASEBALL HELMET
See WordFRIES
See WordICE CREAM
See WordNACHOS
See WordTENDERS
See Hint Four first names that belong on a very short, very exclusive list.
See Group MEMBERS OF THE 700-HR CLUB, FAMILIARLY
See WordBARRY
See WordBABE
See WordHANK
See WordALBERT
See Hint These squads travel together and play for laughs, not standings.
See Group BANANA BALL TEAMS
See WordBANANAS
See WordTAILGATERS
See WordPARTY ANIMALS
See WordCLOWNS
3

Words the puzzle wants you to mis-group

Read these before you guess — they're the words most likely to break a streak. Tap for the trap.

1 BANANAS Tap to see why this word traps.
You're probably reading it as the fruit — and with a food category on the board, that pull is strong. But the puzzle is using it as a proper name, not a snack.
2 DRILL Tap to see why this word traps.
You're likely picturing a power tool or a practice exercise, but here it's used as a verb for putting a shot through the net with force.
3 DRAIN Tap to see why this word traps.
You're probably thinking of a sink or bathtub drain, but the puzzle uses it as basketball slang for sinking a shot cleanly.
4 ALBERT Tap to see why this word traps.
You're probably reading it as a generic first name and might try to place it with the food group or leave it for last — but it belongs with three other baseball legends, all identified by first name only.

NYT Sports Connections answers for August 24, 2026

All four groups revealed, easiest first. Each card holds the theme, the four words, and why the group works.

Y MAKE A SHOT · Yellow · easiest
  • BURY
  • DRAIN
  • DRILL
  • KNOCK DOWN

BURY, DRAIN, DRILL and KNOCK DOWN are all slang terms for successfully making a shot in basketball. DRILL is the sneakiest — most solvers picture a hardware store before the sports sense clicks.

G FOOD SERVED IN A BASEBALL HELMET · Green · easy
  • FRIES
  • ICE CREAM
  • NACHOS
  • TENDERS

FRIES, ICE CREAM, NACHOS and TENDERS are all foods sold served inside a miniature souvenir baseball helmet at MLB stadiums. The helmet doubles as a keepsake once you've finished eating.

B MEMBERS OF THE 700-HR CLUB, FAMILIARLY · Blue · medium
  • BARRY
  • BABE
  • HANK
  • ALBERT

BARRY, BABE, HANK and ALBERT are the first names of the four members of baseball's 700 home-run club: Barry Bonds (762), Babe Ruth (714), Hank Aaron (755) and Albert Pujols (700). ALBERT is the toughest — Pujols reached 700 only in 2022, and casual fans may not have him on their radar.

P BANANA BALL TEAMS · Purple · hardest
  • BANANAS
  • TAILGATERS
  • PARTY ANIMALS
  • CLOWNS

BANANAS, TAILGATERS, PARTY ANIMALS and CLOWNS are the four teams that make up the Savannah Bananas barnstorming organization, the trick-shot and entertainment baseball troupe that tours the country. BANANAS is the trap — it reads as a food and could tempt solvers toward the green category.

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