One of the NBA’s most accomplished scorers is on the move yet again.
The Phoenix Suns are trading forward Kevin Durant to the Houston Rockets, according to multiple reports. The Suns will receive Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, the 10th pick in Wednesday’s draft as well as a slew of future picks in exchange for Durant, according to ESPN and The Athletic.
A 15-time All-Star, Durant averaged 26.6 points. 6.0 rebounds and 4.2 assists a game for Phoenix last season. In his 18-year career, Durant has averaged 27.2 points per game, sixth-best in NBA history.
The Rockets finished 52-30 and earned the second-seed in the Western Conference before getting ousted by the Warriors in the first round of the playoffs.
The Rockets will be the fifth franchise Durant has played for.
After one year in college at Texas, Durant was selected second overall in the 2007 NBA Draft by the then-Seattle SuperSonics. In 2012, after the team had moved to Oklahoma City four years earlier, he led the Thunder to an NBA Finals appearance.
In 2016, Durant signed with the Golden State Warriors in free agency. He teamed up with Stephen Curry and won back-to-back championships in 2017 and 2018, both of which earned Durant Finals MVP honors.
In the summer of 2019, after tearing his Achilles during the Finals, Durant once again entered free agency and chose to play for the Brooklyn Nets. Durant missed the entire 2019-20 season, but then led the Nets to two straight playoff appearances in 2021 (a second-round loss) and 2022 (a first-round sweep).
In February 2023, after a tumultuous tenure in Brooklyn, Durant requested a trade and was dealt to the Suns. Though his individual numbers remained steady, Durant’s Phoenix’s teams also failed to live up to expectations. The Suns lost in the second round of the postseason in ’23, were swept in the first round in 2024, and missed the playoffs altogether this year.
In his three seasons in Phoenix, Durant played for three different head coaches.
Durant will be 37 in September. He will be in the final year of a contract that will pay him $54.7 million next season.
On July 6, Durant will be eligible to sign a contract extension for two years worth up to $122 million.
This article originally appeared on NBCNews.com. Read more from NBC News:
One of the NBA’s most accomplished scorers is on the move yet again.
The Phoenix Suns are trading forward Kevin Durant to the Houston Rockets, according to multiple reports. The Suns will receive Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, the 10th pick in Wednesday’s draft as well as a slew of future picks in exchange for Durant, according to ESPN and The Athletic.
A 15-time All-Star, Durant averaged 26.6 points. 6.0 rebounds and 4.2 assists a game for Phoenix last season. In his 18-year career, Durant has averaged 27.2 points per game, sixth-best in NBA history.
The Rockets finished 52-30 and earned the second-seed in the Western Conference before getting ousted by the Warriors in the first round of the playoffs.
The Rockets will be the fifth franchise Durant has played for.
After one year in college at Texas, Durant was selected second overall in the 2007 NBA Draft by the then-Seattle SuperSonics. In 2012, after the team had moved to Oklahoma City four years earlier, he led the Thunder to an NBA Finals appearance.
In 2016, Durant signed with the Golden State Warriors in free agency. He teamed up with Stephen Curry and won back-to-back championships in 2017 and 2018, both of which earned Durant Finals MVP honors.
In the summer of 2019, after tearing his Achilles during the Finals, Durant once again entered free agency and chose to play for the Brooklyn Nets. Durant missed the entire 2019-20 season, but then led the Nets to two straight playoff appearances in 2021 (a second-round loss) and 2022 (a first-round sweep).
In February 2023, after a tumultuous tenure in Brooklyn, Durant requested a trade and was dealt to the Suns. Though his individual numbers remained steady, Durant’s Phoenix’s teams also failed to live up to expectations. The Suns lost in the second round of the postseason in ’23, were swept in the first round in 2024, and missed the playoffs altogether this year.
In his three seasons in Phoenix, Durant played for three different head coaches.
Durant will be 37 in September. He will be in the final year of a contract that will pay him $54.7 million next season.
On July 6, Durant will be eligible to sign a contract extension for two years worth up to $122 million.
This article originally appeared on NBCNews.com. Read more from NBC News:
From stars to busts, a look at how Detroit’s last 11 first-round picks have shaped the rebuild.
The NHL Draft is just around the corner, taking place next Friday, and the Detroit Red Wings are once again in a pivotal position as they prepare to make their next first-round selection. Holding the 13th overall pick, the Red Wings have been linked to several intriguing prospects, including Carter Bear, Lynden Lakovic, and Radim Mrtka.
Not long ago, during their run as perennial Stanley Cup contenders, the Detroit Red Wings approached the draft with a win-now mindset. Rather than using their first-round picks to build for the future, they frequently traded them away in exchange for proven veterans who could immediately contribute to their championship pursuits.
This strategy helped extend their reign as one of the league's most consistent powerhouses but came at the cost of long-term prospect development. Over the past decade, however, the Red Wings have undergone a major philosophical shift with the team mired in a nine-year playoff drought, the draft has become the cornerstone of their rebuild.
Every first-round pick now represents a potential turning point for the franchise’s future. Some of Detroit’s recent selections have shown promise as foundational pieces, while others have fallen short of expectations, struggling to break into the lineup or make a meaningful impact.
As the team gears up to make another crucial selection in this year’s draft, it is the perfect time to look back at their last 11 first-round picks from the past decade and evaluate which players have helped advance the rebuild and which have fallen short of expectations.
2015 - Evgeny Svechnikov (19th overall)
Drafted with the expectation of developing into a power forward and top-line winger like his brother Andrei, Evgeny Svechnikov was unable to secure a lasting role. He appeared in only 41 games for Detroit, as injuries and inconsistency stalled his development and led to his exit from the team.
Svechnikov went on to spend two more seasons in the NHL with the Winnipeg Jets and San Jose Sharks before continuing his career in the minors and European leagues. Once a high-upside junior star, Svechnikov unfortunately fits the label as a bust.
2016 - Dennis Cholowski (20th overall)
Cholowski entered Detroit as a one of the most promising offensive defenceman in junior play but while he showed some potential in his rookie NHL season with 40 points over a 50-game season in the BCHL, yet that promise began to fade.
He never secured a full-time role, was left unprotected in the 2021 expansion draft and was picked up by the Seattle Kraken but struggled at the NHL level and has bounced between AHL squads since. Cholowski played for the Islanders and Devils last season but enters this summer as a free agent.
2017 - Michael Rasmussen (9th overall)
At six-foot-six and hard-hitting, Rasmussen evolved into a reliable two-way forward rather than the dominant scorer experts expected. He consistently finds a way to record 15-20 points while also killing penalties and still has plenty of room to grow and mature his game as a 26-year-old. He's entering his second year of a four-year, $12.8 million deal with an annual cap hit of $3.2 million per season.
Zadina was highly regarded as a dynamic winger that would be a future superstar and staple of Detroit’s lineup. However, teams took notice when he dropped in the draft from a projected top three pick to the Red Wings at sixth overall.
Things started to trend downwards from there with his production never meeting expectations. After two lacklustre seasons, he was eventually shipped off to the Sharks. Despite flashes of skill, inconsistency defined his tenure, and the Wings greatly regreted passing on defensemen like Quinn Hughes or Cale Makar in that draft.
2019 - Moritz Seider (6th overall)
The Red Wings first draft pick made with new GM Steve Yzerman and it was their first home run in years by landing the German defenceman, that has quickly become a cornerstone on their blue line for the future.
As the 2019 pick, he quickly became Detroit’s top-pair defenceman, earning SHL Rookie of the Year and finding immediate NHL success with 50 points in his debut season. He's not missed a game for the Red Wings since with appearances in 328 straight games.
2020 - Lucas Raymond (4th overall)
Another swing and another hit for the organization as Raymond has transformed into Detroit’s offensive engine as a top-end NHL talent.
He finished with a career-best 80 points this past season and has lead the Red Wings in points in each of the last two seasons. Through 320 career games, he’s amassed 254 points firmly positioning himself as a budding star and one of the most impactful recent first-round selections.
2021 - Simon Edvinsson (6th overall)
Tagged as one of Europe’s top blueliners, Edvinsson impressed in the SHL with 19 points in 44 games and earned a call-up to Detroit in March 2023. After logging 31 points and significant minutes alongside Seider through 78 games this past season, he is expected to take on a regular role in the Red Wings' top defensive pairing moving forward.
2021 - Sebastian Cossa (15th overall)
Cossa made history when making his NHL debut in early December 2024 when he made 12 saves to snap a Red Wings five-game losing skid, and he became the first NHL goalie to earn a shootout win in relief.
The 22-year-old Hamilton native is one of the most elite prospects at the position and should make an impact when making the eventual jump to the main roster. His AHL numbers have fans anxiously waiting his arrival after securing a 21-15-6 record with a 2.45 goals against average this past season.
Drafted as an intelligent two-way centerman, Kasper spent time in Sweden's SHL before transitioning to North America. He debuted in April 2023 and quickly stood out, highlighted by a clutch performance against Tampa Bay where he scored the game-tying and overtime goals to keep Detroit’s playoff hopes alive.
One of the most desired positions in hockey is a second-line centre and Kasper looks like he'll fulfil the role for years to come with the Red Wings.
2023 - Nate Danielson (9th overall)
A WHL standout (150 points in 145 games), Danielson signed an entry-level deal July 2023 and quickly joined the AHL Griffins by May 2024, becoming one of the few to debut in the playoffs within a year of being drafted, just like Dylan Larkin. His road-mapping suggests NHL readiness in 1–2 years, and his leadership profile hints at a strong future.
2024 - Michael Brandsegg-Nygård (15th overall)
Detroit selected Brandsegg-Nygård as the best player available, but did make history with the pick as he was the first Norwegian ever taken in the first round.
A strong, two-way winger with a heavy shot and physical edge, who impressed Steve Yzerman and company with Sweden’s Allsvenskan, totalling 18 points through 41 games. Brandsegg-Nygård added to his success at this year's IIHF World Championships when he recorded four points in five games against some countries with top tier NHL talent.
The allure of competing in the Big 12 Conference was something that was obviously attractive to Ross Hodge when he took the head coaching job at West Virginia. The Big 12 is a gauntlet with 16 teams and will present plenty of opportunities for Hodge and his team to stack their resume with quadrant one matchups. Hodge said.
The Flyers are reportedly interested in acquiring a starting goaltender with Vancouver Thatcher Demko being a potential lead option
The Philadelphia Flyers are making noise ahead of the 2025 NHL Draft as reports swirl that the team is aggressively pursuing a starting goaltender. After a rocky season in net, Philadelphia is looking for more stability at the position with some mentioning a blockbuster trade could happen with the Vancouver Canucks centered around All-Star goaltender Thatcher Demko.
According to league insiders, Vancouver is willing to listen to offers on Demko, who remains under contract through the 2025–26 season at a $5 million cap hit. The 29-year-old is coming off an injury-plagued season, where he posted a 10-8-3 record with a 2.90 goals against average. Prior to that, Demko proved to be one of the most elite players at the position after finishing with a 35-14-2 record and a 2.45 goals against average during the 2023-24 season and earning himself a finalist spot for the Vezina trophy.
Demko appeared to be a solid franchise goaltender that Vancouver would be able to keep for a decade or more and never have to worry about the position but injuries have started to pile up and a pair of goaltenders have taken advantage.
Canucks starter last season, Kevin Lankinen was dominant with a 25-15-10 record and a 2.62 goals against average that secured himself a spot on Finland's Four Nations team last February. He signed a five-year extension with a full no-move clause that firmly places him in the driver seat for the starting job moving forward.
Top prospect Artūrs Šilovs is also waiting in the wings and when given the chance to play, he's made the most of his time, including a run with the Canucks where Šilovs had to take over for an injuried Demko during the 2023-24 postseason and almost helped his team past the eventual Conference champion Edmonton Oilers. Šilovs has throughly dominated the AHL with a 56-28-13 record over the last three seasons and should be ready to take the leap to the main roster.
Canucks winger Brock Boeser is reportedly heading for free agency, meaning Vancouver will need to replace a key top-six forward that played a lot of minutes, including the most power play minutes for a forward on the team.
Philadelphia, who went 33-39-10 and finished last in the Metropolitan division this past season with goaltending being their achilles heel. The Flyers' forward group is loaded with talent and could see a top end winger like Travis Konecny get dealt in a move for Demko, as his point production is similar to Boeser's. A deal could give the Canucks the scoring depth they’ll need with Boeser’s departure imminent while allowing Lankinen and Šilovs to transition into the starter role.
Vancouver finished the regular season with a 38-30-14 record and narrowly missed the playoffs. While losing Demko would be a gamble, the Canucks appear confident in their goaltending depth and are looking to retool their offence and stay competitive quickly.
Betting Impact
From a futures betting standpoint, a trade of this magnitude could shake up both teams’ outlooks. Philadelphia’s current Stanley Cup odds sit around +8000 on FanDuel sportsbook, but acquiring Demko could cause that line to shorten dramatically, possibly into the +4000 to +4500 range, depending on the return package. His stability in net could immediately elevate Philly to a wild-card contender in the Eastern Conference.
Meanwhile, the Canucks, who are currently listed at +5000 to win the Cup could see a slight dip if they lose Demko, unless Silovs proves capable of handling a full-time role. However, if they secure a top-tier scoring forward in the deal, bettors may find value in their odds holding or even improving if the offense becomes more dynamic.
We will have to stay tuned as both teams weigh a franchise-altering decision that could swing the balance of power in both conferences and the betting markets with it.
In 2003, the NHL had perhaps one of the best drafts in history. The first-round class was just amazing. It was headlined by Marc-Andre Fleury, Eric Staal, and Nathan Horton as the top three, but it also included names like Ryan Suter, Jeff Carter, Dustin Brown, Zach Parise, Ryan Getzlaf, Brent Burns, Mike Richards, and Corey Perry, to name a few.
Picking at 10th overall, the Montreal Canadiens elected to pick Andrei Kostitsyn, while Carter, Brown, Parise, Getzlaf, Burns, Richards, and Perry were still on the board. Of course, hindsight is always 20/20, but just leaving one of those names up there to pick the Belarus native would have been a big mistake.
The elder of the Kostitsyn brothers went on to play for the Habs for seven seasons before being sent to the Nashville Predators in a trade that netted the Canadiens a conditional 2013 fifth-round pick and a 2013 second-round pick. In total, he played 398 NHL games, accumulating 222 points (210 with the Tricolore), and he left for the KHL at the end of the season, during which he was traded.
In comparison, Burns is still playing and going strong at the ripe old age of 40, having played in 1497 NHL contests with three different teams, racking up 910 points. The same goes for Perry, who’s just appeared in a fifth Stanley Cup Final in six years and who has skated in 1392 NHL games, picking up 935 points along the way and a Cup win with the Anaheim Ducks in the second year of his career. Carter and Richard went on to win the Cup twice with the Kings, along with Brown, while Getzlaf also raised one in Anaheim as Perry’s partner in crime.
And the mistakes didn’t stop in the first round either. In the second round, the Tricolore picked Cory Urquhart, who had never played a single NHL game. The Canadiens grabbed him at 40th overall, five picks before the Boston Bruins selected Patrice Bergeron and nine picks before the Predators added Shea Weber. Later in the round, Montreal selected Maxime Lapierre, who went on to play 614 NHL games.
In the third round, the Canadiens added Ryan O’Byrne (308 NHL games), in the fourth, they picked Corey Locke (nine NHL games) and Danny Stewart (no NHL games). In the sixth round, they added Christopher Heino-Lindberg (no NHL games) and Mark Flood (39 NHL games). In the seventh round, they went for Oskari Korpikari (no NHL games). They selected Jimmy Bonneau in the eighth round (no NHL games) while future stud defenseman Dustin Byfuglien (869 NHL games) was still on the board, and made their best selection in the ninth round when they added Jaroslav Halak (556 NHL games).
Given all the talent left on the board, this is perhaps the worst draft in the Canadiens’ history, but it just goes to show how hard scouting is. A player has reached a certain level by that point, but what his ceiling will be is and remains a projection, and no player is ever the same either. It takes guts and a lot of confidence to become a scout; these individuals have one of the most challenging jobs in hockey, in my opinion.
Photo credit: Eric Bolte-Imagn Images
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For the first time in nearly a decade, the NBA Finals will go the distance, as the Indiana Pacers and Oklahoma City Thunder get set to square off Sunday night in Game 7 of a series that has defied all expectations.
“One game. This is what it’s all about,” Pacers coach Rick Carlisle told reporters Thursday night after his team trounced OKC 108-91 to extend the NBA season by one last night. “This is what you dream about growing up, this kind of opportunity.”
If the Pacers are psyched to have forced a seventh game, the bonus ABC broadcast is also a dream come true for Rita Ferro. Thanks to Indiana’s refusal to back down in the face of a 3-2 deficit, the president of Disney’s advertising sales unit will max out the company’s ROI, as overall in-game revenue for the Finals should approach the $300 million mark.
As old-school sales execs are wont to say, if Game 6 is when you start to make a profit, Game 7 is all gravy. And while ABC’s windfall may be somewhat reduced by the necessity of doling out the inevitable make-goods that are a function of a battle between two small-market teams, Ferro’s team has ample cause for celebration.
Through the fifth game of the Pacers-Thunder epic, ABC averaged 9.16 million viewers per night, and while the TV turnout has dwarfed everything else on the spring schedule, the deliveries are among the lowest in the modern Nielsen era. Game 5 managed a series-high 9.54 million viewers, but that marked a 22% decline versus last season’s analogous Mavericks-Celtics capper, which scared up 12.2 million viewers.
While ABC has been hampered by the small–town matchup—the Indianapolis and OKC markets are home to a combined 1.99 million TV households, accounting for just 1.6% of the national base—the necessity of a seventh game will go a long way toward moving the ratings needle. Per Nielsen, the spike in deliveries between Game 6 and Game 7 is vertiginous, with an average boost of 43.7%, or from 18.2 million to 26.1 million.
Those figures were derived from the four NBA Finals that have gone the distance since the 21st century got underway; on a percentile basis, the greatest lift was recorded during the 2010 Celtics-Lakers series (+57%). In terms of the absolute number of viewers that were added between a sixth and seventh broadcast, the 2016 Cavaliers-Warriors classic beat all comers with a net gain of 10.3 million viewers.
Since ABC is working from a much smaller base this year—Game 6 of that spellbinding Cleveland-Golden State series drew 20.7 million viewers, while the audience for the deciding game leapt all the way to 31 million—barring a blowout, the network can still expect to serve up around 15.5 million viewers with tonight’s broadcast. While that’s a far cry from the usual crowd that settles in for a Game 7, the NBA is almost certain to post its strongest in-game delivery since 2019.
However the TV numbers shake out, the NBA is guaranteed to crown its seventh new champion in as many years, a streak that serves as a testament to the state of parity under commissioner Adam Silver. A Pacers win would mark the franchise’s very first NBA title since it joined the league in 1976—Indiana earned ABA championships in 1970, 1972 and 1973—while Thunder precursors the Seattle SuperSonics hoisted the hardware in 1979.
Game 7 tips off at 8 p.m. ET on ABC. OKC opened as 8.5-point homecourt favorites.
The Philadelphia Flyers need to establish a plan in net this summer, but going after New Jersey Devils goalie Jake Allen just doesn't make sense for either side.
Allen, 34, is widely considered to be the best goalie option on the market this summer and, despite his advanced age, can still fill in nicely as a pseudo-starter for a contender in need.
But the Flyers aren't one of those contenders.
On a more talented Devils team that was decimated by injuries this season, Allen was still only 13-16-1 despite his 2.66 GAA, .908 save percentage, and four shutouts. Basically, Allen posted a shutout in a third of his wins.
What will Allen's performance look like behind a Flyers team that experienced several regressions and injuries this past season, and a forward group that still struggles to score even after the addition of star rookie Matvei Michkov?
Some have floated the former Stanley Cup champion goalie as a potential "cheap" option for the Flyers, but if Allen is going to be cheap, why not stay with the Devils? Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers would love a cheap goalie themselves.
The Flyers, so long as they continue to fail to make any meaningful additions to their roster via trade or free agency, are not fooling anyone into thinking they are ready to contend, let alone make the playoffs.
And, let's be perfectly clear: Allen has one season with a save percentage greater than .908 since 2016-17. It would be deeply unfair to him to make him the savior of a Flyers team that has shuttled goalies in and out of Philadelphia constantly since the departure of Sergei Bobrovsky, and even before then.
The most the Flyers can offer Allen at this stage, at least what many other teams cannot, is a significant amount of money.
But Allen cannot play forever, so signing him to a contract is just a means to spin wheels in hockey purgatory and avoid sliding down the pole for a top draft pick for what would the third year in a row and potentially four.
If the Flyers want to go the route of free agency for goaltending, they would be better suited considering options like Michael DiPietro, an AHL star in need of a chance at the NHL who just turned 26 two weeks ago, or Alex Lyon, a former Flyers goalie and proven backup whose trade value could be rehabbed with a successful stint.
Indeed, the Flyers cannot afford to have as shocking of a performance in goal as they did last year, which is why Ivan Fedotov has apparently been pegged to start the 2025-26 season in the AHL.
At the same time, there's little value to throwing veteran stopgaps in ahead of younger players, like Aleksei Kolosov and, eventually, Carson Bjarnason, when there is no hope of winning the Stanley Cup and little hope of making the playoffs.
With the $18 million in cap space they have, the Flyers should be thinking bigger than a free agent, such as a potential offer sheet for a player like Lukas Dostal. Anaheim matches any offer sheet for the 25-year-old Dostal nine times out of 10, but the Flyers need to think permanent solution, not temporary.
Something will have to give, either now or a few years down the road.
One of the NBA’s most accomplished scorers is on the move yet again.
The Phoenix Suns are trading forward Kevin Durant to the Houston Rockets, according to multiple reports. The Suns will receive Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, the 10th pick in Wednesday’s draft as well as a slew of future picks in exchange for Durant, according to ESPN and The Athletic.
A 15-time All-Star, Durant averaged 26.6 points. 6.0 rebounds and 4.2 assists a game for Phoenix last season. In his 18-year career, Durant has averaged 27.2 points per game, sixth-best in NBA history.
The Rockets finished 52-30 and earned the second-seed in the Western Conference before getting ousted by the Warriors in the first round of the playoffs.
The Rockets will be the fifth franchise Durant has played for.
After one year in college at Texas, Durant was selected second overall in the 2007 NBA Draft by the then-Seattle SuperSonics. In 2012, after the team had moved to Oklahoma City four years earlier, he led the Thunder to an NBA Finals appearance.
In 2016, Durant signed with the Golden State Warriors in free agency. He teamed up with Stephen Curry and won back-to-back championships in 2017 and 2018, both of which earned Durant Finals MVP honors.
In the summer of 2019, after tearing his Achilles during the Finals, Durant once again entered free agency and chose to play for the Brooklyn Nets. Durant missed the entire 2019-20 season, but then led the Nets to two straight playoff appearances in 2021 (a second-round loss) and 2022 (a first-round sweep).
In February 2023, after a tumultuous tenure in Brooklyn, Durant requested a trade and was dealt to the Suns. Though his individual numbers remained steady, Durant’s Phoenix’s teams also failed to live up to expectations. The Suns lost in the second round of the postseason in ’23, were swept in the first round in 2024, and missed the playoffs altogether this year.
In his three seasons in Phoenix, Durant played for three different head coaches.
Durant will be 37 in September. He will be in the final year of a contract that will pay him $54.7 million next season.
On July 6, Durant will be eligible to sign a contract extension for two years worth up to $122 million.
This article originally appeared on NBCNews.com. Read more from NBC News:
Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Clayton Kershaw celebrates his no-hitter against the Colorado Rockies on June 18, 2014. (Chris Carlson / Associated Press)
If only! On June 18, 2014, the airwaves and the internet lit up in collective awe at one of the greatest athletic feats in modern history. Clayton Kershaw recorded 15 strikeouts in a 107-pitch no-hitter that many consider the best single-game pitching performance of all time. The asterisk of this epic Dodgers game was the one error in the seventh inning that prevented its official recognition as a “perfect game”: When the Rockies’ Corey Dickerson tapped the ball toward the mound, Dodgers shortstop Hanley Ramirez botched a throw to first base, and Dickerson made it to second.
If only Ramirez had made the play at first! If only coach Don Mattingly hadn’t substituted the ailing Ramirez one inning prior! Los Angeles was one bruised right finger away from celebrating perfection.
Baseball has a celebrated history of quantifying value. No professional sport embraces numbers and statistics in the way baseball does. Statisticians are as much a part of the game as the dirt, chalk and grass. Although baseball has been collecting data since the late 1800s, the empiric statistical analysis that is part of our game today dates back to 1977 with the introduction of sabermetrics.
It’s critical to the game: How else are we to determine success when the majority of what we see is failure? The best hitters in baseball are those who only fail less than 70% of the time; in other words, have a batting average over .300. These perennial all-stars will experience the dissatisfaction and humility of an out in 7 out of every 10 plate appearances. In what other profession can you fail 70% of the time and be considered one of the greats? Consider the mental strength required to accept failure as part of the game and the focus to view each at-bat as an opportunity to fail a little bit less.
We need a similar kind of thinking in life to quantify value in our failure rates.
A “perfect game” is defined by Major League Baseball as a game in which a team pitches a victory that lasts a minimum of nine innings and in which no opposing player reaches base. It’s so rare because failure — by pitchers as well as batters — is expected as a matter of course. Francis Thomas Vincent Jr., the eighth commissioner of MLB, is quoted as saying: “Baseball teaches us, or has taught most of us, how to deal with failure. We learn at a very young age that failure is the norm in baseball and, precisely because we have failed, we hold in high regard those who fail less often — those who hit safely in one out of three chances and become star players. I also find it fascinating that baseball, alone in sport, considers errors to be part of the game, part of its rigorous truth.”
On June 19, 2014, the fans and commentators of baseball praised in dramatic fashion Kershaw’s dominant no-hitter, but with a subtle tone of confusion and denial of the ugly blemish recorded across the team’s box score: 0-0-1. Zero runs. Zero hits. One error. One base runner. An imperfect game. If only!
The collective hope for perfection is understandable. Most people are afraid to fail.
Parades aren’t held for the runner-up. Grades aren’t given just for trying. Job promotions aren’t offered for making mistakes. Placing perfection on a pedestal relieves the collective anxiety — but prohibits the opportunity — of accepting failure as an integral part of life. For an individual, failure is an opportunity to grow and become a better person. For a business, failure is an opportunity to pivot and redefine success. The opposite of perfection is not failure. It is accepting the opportunity to learn from transgressions. Winston Churchill once quipped, “The maxim, ‘Nothing prevails but perfection,’ may be spelled P-A-R-A-L-Y-S-I-S.”
Almost to the day, 75 years before Kershaw’s no-hitter, the world of sports witnessed the catastrophic reality of paralysis. In June 1939, after a week of extensive testing at the Mayo Clinic, Lou Gehrig announced to the world that he had amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. This announcement happened to fall on his 36th birthday. This represented the end of Gehrig’s illustrious baseball career. But 75 years later, what is remembered about this man is not his career batting average of .340, seven-time All-Star appearances, six-time World Series championships, winning of the Triple Crown or two-time league MVP. Sabermetrics could not possibly explain Gehrig’s value to the sport. What endures is what no statistic can capture: his grace. His humility. His courage in the face of loss. What is remembered and honored is his response to the ultimate “failure”: a failure of upper and lower motor neurons to make necessary connections that ultimately leads to rapidly progressive muscle weakness and atrophy. In defiance to an illness that is uniformly fatal, Gehrig paid homage to his teammates, professional members of the MLB and its fans by proclaiming himself “the luckiest man on the face of the Earth.”
Similarly, sabermetrics misses the true greatness of Kershaw’s no-hitter. What could never be displayed in statistics or numbers was Kershaw’s response to the error. After Ramirez’s throwing error, his hat lay at the base of Kershaw’s pitching mound. As I watched from the stands, I could not hear what Kershaw said to Ramirez as he picked it up, dusted off and handed the hat back to his humiliated teammate. But his body language appeared unbelievably humble, accepting and supportive, as if to recognize the lesson of baseball, which is that errors are a celebrated part of the game. To dwell on errors and think “if only” leads to disappointment and blame, but to accept and embrace imperfections with a positive and optimistic attitude defines the ultimate success.
If only we could all be that perfect.
Josh Diamond is a physician in private practice in Los Angeles and a lifelong Dodgers fan. Some of his earliest memories are of attending games with his father; he now shares his love of the Dodgers with his son.
The Phoenix Suns are trading the superstar forward to the Rockets in a blockbuster deal that sends Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, the No. 10 pick in the 2025 NBA Draft and five second-round picks to Houston, ESPN’s Shams Charania reported Sunday, citing sources.
BREAKING: The Phoenix Suns are trading two-time NBA Finals MVP Kevin Durant to the Houston Rockets for Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, the No. 10 pick in the 2025 draft and five second-round picks, sources tell ESPN. pic.twitter.com/EwrbA2ES9O
ESPN’s Bobby Marks pointed out on X, that because of the NBA’s “poison pill provision,” the trade cannot be made official until July 6 after the Rockets signed Green to a three-year, $106 million rookie extension in October.
Durant, who was in attendance at Fanatics Fest on Sunday, reacted to the trade live on stage.
Kevin Durant finds out he’s going to Houston while on stage at Fanatics Fest. pic.twitter.com/gPCf3DiE3w
The Rockets will be Durant’s sixth NBA team, and the 36-year-old will join a Houston core built around Amen Thompson, Alperen Şengün, Fred VanVleet, Tari Eason, Jabari Smith Jr. and Steven Adams, who finished the 2024-25 NBA season as the Western Conference’s No. 2 seed before losing to the Warriors in the first round of the playoffs.
Durant won two championships with the Warriors in 2017 and 2018 before leaving Golden State to join the Brooklyn Nets in June 2019, where he missed the entire 2019-20 NBA season after suffering a ruptured right Achilles in the 2019 NBA Finals with the Warriors.
The former NBA MVP then was traded from Brooklyn to Phoenix in Feb. 2023, and in two-plus seasons with the Suns, did not advance past the Western Conference semifinal round in 2023 and 2024 respectively before missing the playoffs altogether in 2025.
In 62 games with Phoenix last season, Durant averaged 26.6 points, 6.0 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game on 52.7-percent shooting from the field and 43 percent from 3-point range.
Durant will remain in the Western Conference, where he will continue competing with both the Warriors and Kings for playoff positioning during the 2025-26 season.
Lawrence took 18 wickets in five Tests for England
He had been diagnosed with motor neurone disease
The former England bowler David “Syd” Lawrence has died aged 61, a year after he was diagnosed with motor neurone disease and only a week after he was awarded an MBE in the king’s birthday honours for his services to cricket.
Lawrence played five Tests between 1988 and 1992, taking 18 wickets and becoming the first British-born black player to be picked for England. His career in effect ended in February 1992 when, in an apparently innocuous incident while playing for England against New Zealand, he fractured his left kneecap. He managed only four more first-class matches before being forced into retirement, with his last appearance coming in 1997.
The word dynasty is starting to be thrown around when discussing the Florida Panthers.
That’s what will happen when you reach three straight Stanley Cup Finals and win the most recent two.
While there are several key reasons you can point to when discussing how and why the Panthers have become the juggernaut they currently are, a very big reason that would be toward the tippy-top of that list would be goaltending.
No matter what kind of style your hockey team plays, good goaltending is going to be required to achieve any kind of greatness.
It’s just science.
Speaking of science, there is also the fact that professional hockey players generally see their skills peak around age 30, with gradual diminishment of said skills as they inch closer to 40.
Those numbers are usually exacerbated when it comes to goalies.
There is, however, the occasional anomaly. The guy who shows up and defies all logic, pushing back against the general way of things.
That man is Sergei Bobrovsky.
Over the past three seasons, while entering what should be the twilight of a very strong career, Bobrovsky has seen his game, and his legacy, reach previously unmatched heights.
The 36-year-old has enjoyed three of his most successful and consistent seasons over the past three years, taking his game to another level during the playoffs and leading the Panthers to three straight Stanley Cup Final appearances.
His play during Florida’s two Stanley Cup-winning campaigns had Bobrovsky among those receiving votes for the Conn Smythe Trophy.
It’s truly remarkable what Bobrovsky has been able to accomplish, seemingly getting strong with each passing year.
“It's not me, it's God,” Bobrovsky said Saturday. “That age category, it's not many people who can play at that level. It's just been a journey for me. I feel like I’m playing my best hockey right now, the last three years or so, and I feel good.”
Over those three years, the Panthers have done we’ll to limit Bobrovsky’s ice time during the regular season.
He’s played in 50, 58 and 54 games in each of the past three seasons, respectively, before acting as Florida’s primary netminder during their Stanley Cup Final runs.
Combined with his legendary work ethic, the efforts to keep Bobrovsky fresh have paid off quite well for Bob and the Panthers.
It’s also given all parties concerned reason to feel confident that the veteran goaltender can maintain his elite level of play for the foreseeable future.
“I'm excited about next season,” Bobrovsky said. “I feel great physically. I feel great mentally. We have a great, great group of guys, and as I said, I'm excited for what's coming next. I'm excited for new challenges. I'm excited to go through them with my teammates, and again, I'm excited to be with the guys again.”
Looking ahead, Bobrovsky has one year remaining on the seven-year, $70 million deal he signed with Florida back in the summer of 2019.
Considering the advanced state of his career combined with Bob’s ability to defy logic and age like a fine wine, it will be interesting to see how he and the Panthers approach his contract situation.
Like many of his teammates, Bobrovsky has seen his life change in many ways after relocating to South Florida.
In addition to becoming a two-time Stanley Cup Champion, Bobrovsky has also become a two-time father over the past several years.
He and his family have established roots, another element that will likely come into consideration at this time next year.
For now, Bobrovsky is trying to stay in the present.
“It's tough to predict for five years right now, and I don't want that,” he said. “I feel like, when you think too much ahead of yourself, you lose the focus on that moment, and I don't want to lose that. I’ve got so many great things right now, and I value them so much. I live in Florida, in an unbelievable city, unbelievable environment. I have my great family (at home), my second great family is here (at the rink). Everything is great here, and I want to take full advantage of this moment and value that moment.”
Photo caption: Jun 17, 2025; Sunrise, Florida, USA; Florida Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky (72) hoists the Stanley Cup after winning game six of the 2025 Stanley Cup Final against the Edmonton Oilers at Amerant Bank Arena. (Sam Navarro-Imagn Images)
