The Chicago Blackhawks acquired Taylor Hall in a trade with the Boston Bruins on Monday, putting the veteran forward in line to play with the No. 1 overall pick in the NHL draft once again. The Blackhawks sent defensemen Ian Mitchell and Alec Regula to Boston for Hall and forward Nick Foligno, creating some valuable salary-cap space for the Bruins heading into free agency.
The Atlanta Hawks cleared significant salary cap space on Monday by agreeing to trade forward John Collins to the Utah Jazz for veteran forward Rudy Gay and a future second-round draft pick, a person with knowledge of the deal told The Associated Press. Collins, who had been mentioned amid much trade speculation leading up to last week's NBA draft, finally was dealt to Utah, according to the person who spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the trade cannot become official before July 6.
In an NHL draft class dominated by skilled forwards, and led by Connor Bedard, questions arise over who and when the first defenseman will be selected when the first round is held in Nashville on Wednesday night. The leading candidate is considered to be Austria's David Reinbacher followed by Sweden's Axel Sandin Pellikka. Whomever it might be, they'll likely have to wait with forwards projected to be taken with the first five picks. If that happens, this would become the first draft since 2003 when a defenseman was selected outside the top five picks.
Aaron D'Souza is sure if he builds it they will come. Not ghostly baseball players but athletes of another sort. Those who compete with an edge. The Australia-born, London-based businessman is president of the Enhanced Games, a sort of Olympics without drug testing which he says "will obliterate all the world records" by "unlocking human potential." The Enhanced Games has its own website, featuring a video that purports to show the "fastest man in the world."
Matvei Michkov is probably the best hockey prospect out of Russia in nearly a decade. He might be the best since Alex Ovechkin and Evgeni Malkin in 2005. But Michkov still is no lock to get drafted in the top five because he's still under contract in the KHL for three more seasons. That's giving NHL teams reason to worry he might never make it to North America. The war in Ukraine has also meant the dilemma over Russian players isn't just limited to Michkov because of resulting travel restrictions and international bans that have made scouting more difficult.
Brittney Griner will be starting in the WNBA All-Star Game a year after she was an honorary choice by the league while she was being detained in Russia. The Phoenix Mercury’s center was chosen by fans, media and players Sunday for her ninth All-Star game. Last season all the players wore Griner No. 42 jerseys for the second half of the game that was played in Chicago.Â
The details of how much time Connor Bedard has devoted to developing his game and imposing shot have become the stuff of lore. Vacations were skipped. Windows were broken. And neighbors awakened by the constant thud of Bedard practicing his shot outside into the night in his driveway. The payoff comes Wednesday, when the 17-year-old from North Vancouver, British Columbia, is expected to be selected by the Chicago Blackhawks with the No. 1 pick in the NHL draft.
As Victor Wembanyama took the stage for his first news conference inside his new home arena, he couldn’t help but notice an accessory that the San Antonio Spurs commissioned for the occasion. It was a replica of the Eiffel Tower made from Legos. Hundreds of them. Wembanyama loves Legos. He looked down at the 4-foot replica when he saw it and smiled. And then he sat next to Spurs general manager Brian Wright and started to talk business.
Assistant Josh Eilert has been selected as the interim coach at West Virginia, punctuating a hectic week after Hall of Famer Bob Huggins resigned following a drunken driving arrest. Athletic director Wren Baker announced the move Saturday night. The 43-year-old Eilert first joined Huggins as a graduate assistant at Kansas State in 2006, then followed him to West Virginia in 2007. Eilert has had a variety of roles with the Mountaineers. Under NCAA rules, West Virginia's players have a 30-day window to enter the transfer portal, and several apparently have chosen to do so, although they have the option to return.
A misdemeanor assault charge filed last October against Las Vegas Raiders' wide receiver Davante Adams has been dismissed.Â
The first dinner that Victor Wembanyama had in his new home city was filled with San Antonio royalty. Gregg Popovich was there, of course. So were Tim Duncan, David Robinson, Manu Ginobili and Sean Elliott. NBA champions, all of them. Wembanyama now starts his quest to join their club. The process of getting him ready for his first NBA season will start quickly. There are summer league practices starting in the next few days and his first game in a Spurs uniform, albeit just the summer kind, coming in early July at either Sacramento or Las Vegas.
The chants from hundreds of fans, some of whom waited outside for hours in nearly 100-degree heat, started at the very moment Victor Wembanyama stepped out of the private plane that carried him to his new NBA home. And the NBA’s newest No. 1 draft pick reveled in his first San Antonio moment, waving at the fans and letting them know how much he was enjoying it all. Wembanyama arrived in San Antonio on Friday afternoon. He was a few hours behind schedule; Spurs fans had waited a long time for something like this, so a little more waiting did nothing to dampen their welcome.
The Texas Rangers are the only one of the 30 teams in Major League Baseball that aren't hosting Pride Night during a game in June as part of Pride Month. The Rangers say they are committed to making everyone feel welcome at all games. The team plays in a state where conservative lawmakers passed several bills in this year’s legislative session to crack down on LBGTQ+ rights. The Houston Astros hosted a Pride Night this week. Houston is one of the Democratic strongholds in Texas.
No. 2 national seed Florida and No. 5 LSU will open the best-of-three College World Series finals on Saturday night in Omaha, Nebraska. The matchup illustrates the longstanding strength of Southeastern Conference baseball. The SEC is assured of winning its fourth straight national title by a fourth different team. Fifteen of the last 33 champions will have come from the SEC. Fourteen of the last 15 finals have included at least one SEC team. Florida won three one-run games to reach the finals. LSU bounced back from a loss in its second game to advance.
Grizzlies general manager Zach Kleiman says the 25-game suspension the NBA slapped guard Ja Morant with "was appropriate." The GM also said Thursday night after the NBA draft that it's up to Morant to change the behavior that led to two suspensions in four months. Kleiman is the first team official to publicly discuss Morant's situation and the NBA's latest punishment of the two-time All-Star for flashing a gun on social media after the season. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver announced the latest suspension June 16 and made clear Morant must stop his "alarming" habit of flashing guns on social media.
