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🏀 Five things to know Friday
- The Western Conference Finals are heading to Game 7. A decisive showdown Saturday will determine whether it will be the Thunder or the Spurs who head to the NBA Finals. San Antonio leveled the series at three games apiece with a runaway 118-91 triumph last night, thanks in large part to Victor Wembanyama. The young superstar responded in emphatic fashion to his Game 5 struggles with a pair of 3-pointers in the opening 90 seconds in the exact kind of bounce-back game the Spurs needed from him. The burden is now on Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to reverse his fortunes after a cold night. In fact, his legacy depends on it. The Knicks await the winner but could be without Mitchell Robinson after he broke his right pinky finger.
- Jannik Sinner suffered an unfathomable upset at the French Open. Despite entering the week as the heavy favorite to win the tournament and complete the career Grand Slam, Sinner is out of the field after just two rounds. The world No. 1 blew a two-set lead to unseeded Juan Manuel Cerundolo, who secured a spot in the third round of a major for the first time in his career with his stunning win. Sinner was just one game away from defeating Cerundolo in straight sets but battled cramps and amazingly lost 18 of the final 20 games to drop his first match since February. Might this open the door for an American man to break the grand slam drought?
- MLB officially proposed a salary cap to the MLBPA. It had long been expected that the league would push for the introduction of a salary cap and floor, and that finally came to fruition yesterday in collective bargaining negotiations. Just one day after the MLBPA made its initial proposal, the league responded with one of its own. The $245.3 million salary cap would mark a paradigm shift for baseball if approved, and it is not the only significant ask MLB is making in these early talks.
- Arsenal and Paris Saint-Germain meet tomorrow in the UEFA Champions League final. The most prestigious trophy in European club soccer is on the line. PSG aim to become the first back-to-back winners since Real Madrid won three in a row from 2016-18, while the Gunners are in search of the first UCL crown in club history. Fresh off a Premier League title, Arsenal might just be a team of destiny this year, but PSG's experience in these big spots gives them the edge in our prediction. It will be a star-studded affair with more than 30 World Cup-bound players between the two teams, and you can watch it on CBS and Paramount+.
- The hockey community mourns the loss of Claude Lemieux. The NHL Alumni Association announced Lemieux's death on Thursday. He was 60. News of his passing came as a surprise to the hockey world, especially since he appeared in Montreal earlier this week to carry the torch for the Canadiens ahead of Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Final. Lemieux will be remembered for winning four Stanley Cups across a 21-year career -- two with the Devils and one apiece with the Avalanche and Canadiens -- and taking home the 1995 Conn Smythe Trophy as the postseason's MVP.
🎰 Do not miss this: NBA Draft Lottery reform winners, losers
Tanking is now a thing of the past, or so the NBA hopes. The league announced massive changes to the draft lottery with the intent to curb intentional losing, and while the measures seem somewhat foolproof in that regard, they do come with some less-than-desirable side effects. There is a reason why the Grizzlies were the only team to dissent in what was nearly a unanimous vote.
The so-called "3-2-1" model awards two lottery balls to the three worst teams in the NBA. The next seven worst franchises receive three lottery balls. No. 9 and No. 10 seeds in each conference get two, and the losers of the No. 7 vs. No. 8 seed play-in games get one. Effectively, the lottery still benefits the teams that miss the playoffs, but the worst of the worst are punished slightly compared with their peers.
Among the other changes is the prohibition of a team holding the No. 1 pick in consecutive drafts. Teams also cannot pick inside the top five of three consecutive drafts.
Going back to the Grizzlies, our Sam Quinn detailed why that last point makes them serious losers from this reform.
- Quinn: "When they traded Jaren Jackson Jr. in February, one of the picks they received was the most favorable 2027 selection between Utah, Minnesota and Cleveland. Well, the Jazz picked No. 5 in 2025 and No. 2 in 2026. That makes their pick ineligible for the top five in next year's draft. The Grizzlies are essentially getting punished for Utah's tanking."
Lottery changes will not take effect until next season, so there are no changes to the 2026 draft order. Speaking of next month's draft, here is our latest big board on the heels of the withdrawal deadline.
⚾ National League provides pleasant surprises
If the story in the American League through two months -- as we pointed out in yesterday's newsletter -- is the underwhelming performances from perceived contenders, then the opposite is true in the National League. Yes, there are a couple of disappointments (cough, Mets, cough), but the talk of the NL is how teams like the Braves defied modest expectations to bounce back from a down year and thrust themselves into first place in the NL East.
Only four teams warranted "A" or "A-" grades when our baseball writers constructed the NL report card, and Atlanta is chief among them. Mike Axisa explains.
- Axisa: "The offense has bounced back from a few disappointing seasons and the Robert Suarez/Raisel Iglesias one-two bullpen punch at the end of games is suffocating. Last year's injury-riddled 76-86 season looks like a blip."
Also, how about those Cardinals? What was supposed to be a rebuilding year is suddenly a campaign in which St. Louis finds itself above .500 and contending for a postseason berth. Also, while they did not join the Cardinals in that "A" tier, the Nationals received high marks for a fun start to the year. Behind the bats of CJ Abrams and James Wood, they have one of the highest-scoring offenses in baseball.
While we're at it, our Matt Snyder gave his early prediction for NL Cy Young. Christopher Sánchez is the odds-on favorite during his record-breaking scoreless streak, but the more compelling pick is the pitcher who currently leads the league in strikeouts.
👍👎 The best (and not-so-best) of the rest
- The Women's College World Series began with a surprise as defending champion Texas lost its opener to Tennessee.
- The NCAA baseball tournament begins today, and these 10 elite MLB Draft prospects will be in action.
- The Charles Schwab Challenge is underway with Tom Kim headlining a six-way tie for the lead.
- Jaxson Dart addressed his Giants teammates over his appearance at a Trump rally.
- Mauricio Pochettino denied the report that he met with AC Milan about their vacant coaching job. His USMNT players said their focus remains on the World Cup, even with their coach possibly looking elsewhere.
- Speaking of Italian soccer coaches, our Francesco Porzio reports that Napoli is set to hire Massimiliano Allegri.
- Our college football reporters tapped their Big Ten sources for intel on breakout players, quarterback battles and other buzz coming out of spring camp.
- The Sun waived Hailey Van Lith, raising questions about her development as a recent first-round pick.
- Watch UFC Fight Night early Saturday on Paramount+ as Song Yadong continues to eye a run at the bantamweight title. But first, take a look at our predictions.
- Next up in our division-by-division win totals picks is the AFC West.
- Our picks are in for Sunday's WWE Clash in Italy.
- Get ready for these second-year players to blossom into NFL stars.
- The Lynx are in first place even without Napheesa Collier. Here's how they pulled off their hot start.
- John Calipari has a bold vision to move the SEC Tournament to the start of the season. Meanwhile, he's building another freshman-heavy roster at Arkansas.
- Joey McGuire heard Steve Sarkisian's remarks about Texas Tech's schedule and challenged Texas to play the Red Raiders in Week 1.
- Starting this September, every Barclays Women's Super League match will be available on Paramount+.
📺 What we're watching this weekend
Friday
⚾ NCAA baseball regionals, all day on ESPN networks
🎾 French Open, third round, 5 a.m. on TNT
⛳ Charles Schwab Challenge, second round, 4 p.m. on Golf Channel
⚾ Braves at Reds, 6:40 p.m. on MLB Network
⚾ Twins at Pirates, 6:45 p.m. on Apple TV
🥎 WCWS: Mississippi State vs. No. 2 Texas, 7 p.m. on ESPN
⚾ Blue Jays at Orioles, 7:05 p.m. on Peacock
⚾ Marlins at Mets, 7:10 p.m. on ESPN Unlimited
🏀 Sparks at Mystics OR Lynx at Sky OR Mercury at Liberty, 7:30 p.m. on Ion
🏒 Stanley Cup playoffs: Canadiens at Hurricanes, Game 5, 8 p.m. on TNT
⚽ Summit at Louisville, 8 p.m. on Prime Video
🤼 WWE SmackDown, 8 p.m. on USA Network
🥎 WCWS: No. 8 UCLA vs. No. 5 Arkansas, 9:30 p.m. on ESPN
⚾ Yankees at Athletics, 9:40 p.m. on MLB Network
🏀 Dream at Fire, 10 p.m. on Ion
⚾ Phillies at Dodgers, 10:15 p.m. on Apple TV
Saturday
⚾ NCAA baseball regionals, all day on ESPN networks
🎾 French Open, third round, 5 a.m. on TNT
🤼 UFC Fight Night: Song vs. Figueiredo, 7 a.m. on Paramount+
⚽ UEFA Champions League final: Paris Saint-Germain vs. Arsenal, noon on CBS/Paramount+
⚽ Legacy at Current, 1:30 p.m. on Ion
⚾ Tigers at White Sox, 2:10 p.m. on ESPN Unlimited
🥎 WCWS: No. 11 Texas Tech vs. No. 7 Tennessee, 3 p.m. on ABC
⛳ Charles Schwab Challenge, third round, 3:30 p.m. on CBS/Paramount+
⚽ Royals at Thorns, 4 p.m. on Ion
⚾ Royals at Rangers, 4:05 p.m. on FS1
⚽ Reign at Spirit, 6:30 p.m. on Ion
🥎 WCWS: No. 1 Alabama vs. No. 4 Nebraska, 7 p.m. on ESPN
⚾ Braves at Reds OR Cubs at Cardinals, 7:15 p.m. on Fox
🏀 NBA playoffs: Spurs at Thunder, Game 7, 8 p.m. on NBC
🏀 Fever at Fire, 8 p.m. on CBS/Paramount+
🥊 Han vs. Holm, 9 p.m. on ESPN
⚾ Yankees at Athletics, 10:05 p.m. on Peacock
⚾ Phillies at Dodgers, 10:10 p.m. on MLB Network
Sunday
⚾ NCAA baseball regionals, all day on ESPN networks
🎾 French Open, fourth round, 5 a.m. on TNT
⚾ Blue Jays at Orioles, 12:15 p.m. on Peacock
⚽ Wave at Stars, 1 p.m. on CBS Sports Network
🤼 WWE Clash in Italy, 2 p.m. on ESPN Unlimited
🥎 WCWS: TBD vs. TBD, 3 p.m. on ABC
⛳ Charles Schwab Challenge, final round, 3 p.m. on CBS/Paramount+
⚽ Dash at Gotham, 3 p.m. on Victory+
🏀 Aces at Valkyries, 3:30 p.m. on NBC
⚽ Men's international friendly: United States vs. Senegal, 3:30 p.m. on TBS
⚾ Yankees at Athletics, 4:05 p.m. on MLB Network
⚾ Diamondbacks at Mariners, 4:10 p.m. on Peacock
⚾ Phillies at Dodgers, 4:10 p.m. on ESPN Unlimited
🥎 WCWS: TBD vs. TBD, 7 p.m. on ESPN
🏁 NASCAR at Nashville, 7 p.m. on Prime Video
⚽ Courage at Angel City, 7 p.m. on Victory+
⚾ Cubs at Cardinals, 7:20 p.m. on NBC
🏒 Stanley Cup playoffs: Canadiens at Hurricanes, Game 6 (if necessary), 8 p.m. on TNT
