OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLAHOMA - MAY 18: NBA Commissioner Adam Silver looks on after the most valuable player trophy presentation before Game One of the NBA Western Conference Finals between the Oklahoma City Thunder and San Antonio Spurs at Paycom Center on May 18, 2026 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Alex Slitz/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The NBA officially passed its contentious lottery reform on Thursday afternoon in an attempt to address a purported tanking crisis. My initial concerns about the plan still stand, and the NBA added in a couple more bizarre elements for the final product.
It was originally reported that teams can’t pick in the top-5 three years in a row, or No. 1 overall in consecutive years, as part of the new lottery changes. This is seemingly meant to address the San Antonio Spurs moving up into the top-4 in three straight lotteries to draft Victor Wembanyama, Stephon Castle, and Dylan Harper. That rule created a dilemma over picks that had already been traded. The league decided that it will not grandfather in traded picks, meaning teams who initially made those deals are now punished for them.
The one team this affects in the 2027 NBA Draft is the Memphis Grizzlies. The Grizzlies own the Utah Jazz’s unprotected first-round pick in 2027, but now it’s suddenly top-5 protected because the Jazz picked in the top-5 in 2025 and 2026, and thus can’t land a third consecutive top-5 pick in 2027 even if they’re not the ones making it. Somehow, that isn’t even the most bizarre amendment to the reform.
The NBA announced it is flipping the top-16 picks from the first-round in the second-round as part of the lottery reform. This means the team that picks No. 16 in the first-round automatically gets the first pick in the second-round. The team that holds the No. 1 overall pick in the draft won’t pick until No. 16 in the second. The team that drafts No. 2 overall in the first-round now has the 15th pick in the second-round, and so on.
This is an unprecedented move in American professional sports. Previously, the second-round of the NBA draft has been determined by overall record, meaning the Brooklyn Nets pick third in the second-round this year even though their first-round pick fell to No. 6 in the lottery, because they had the league’s third-worst record. Why would the NBA do this? John Hollinger of The Athletic talked to NBA executive vice president Evan Wasch to get an explanation:
Two pieces of logic drove this, according to Wasch. First was to “counterbalance to the luck of the draw in the first round” by at least giving the poor sap whose ping-pong ball was drawn last a better second-round pick.
Secondarily, however, the league wanted to guard against the scenario — one officials acknowledged was unlikely — whereby teams deep in the relegation zone started to tank to land the 31st pick.
My first question is: who asked for this? My second thought is that this is so strange and so creative that I can’t even really be mad about it. I’m mostly just amused.
I always thought a top-10 pick in the second round was pretty valuable. Some recent hits from that range include Jalen Brunson, Ajay Mitchell, Ayo Dosunmu, Herb Jones, Andrew Nembhard, and Neemias Queta. These days, the depth of the NBA Draft has been significantly thinned out by the NIL money flowing through college basketball, so the second round looks a lot weaker. The No. 31 overall pick (or the No. 33 overall pick once the Las Vegas and Seattle expansion teams join) is still a decently valuable asset, but it’s not really worth being upset over at this point.
The best news for NBA lottery reform haters like me is that it’s only a three-year commitment. Come the 2030 NBA Draft, we will possibly have another new lottery system. Three years is a really short trial run, but that’s what the NBA thought it needed to do to address the public relations black eye that came from tanking. It’s going to be fascinating to see how this all goes, including the suddenly flipped second-round.
NBA point guard Terry Rozier arriving at Brooklyn federal court in New York, where he faces charges connected with a sprawling illegal gambling indictment. (Yuki Iwamura / Associated Press)
Part of the rationale to legalize sports gambling was that professional athletes make so much money that they wouldn’t be tempted by bribes. It would be bonkers, the thinking went, to risk untold millions in career earnings by taking dirty dollars to throw games or manipulate statistical outputs.
Bonkers, meet Terry Rozier.
Federal prosecutors filed two new charges against the NBA point guard Thursday, alleging that he agreed to a $100,000 bribe as part of a gambling scheme that involved him intentionally removing himself early in a 2023 game so gamblers could win bets on him failing to reach his usual totals of points, assists and rebounds.
What might motivate Rozier to take part in such as scheme is perplexing. Consider this comparison:
Rozier, a 10-year veteran out of Louisville, has been paid $162 million playing for four NBA teams. He was under contract for $26 million for the 2025-2026 season. The $100,000 bribe prosecutors say he agreed to is the equivalent of $384 for someone making $100,000 a year.
The new indictment adds charges of bribery in sporting contests and honest services wire fraud conspiracy to the existing two wire fraud charges he has faced since October. Those charges followed a sprawling indictment of 34 defendants that also ensnared Hall of Fame player and Portland Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups and former Lakers assistant coach Damon Jones.
Rozier is not speaking to the media because of the ongoing criminal case, but his lawyer said that other defendants are lying about Rozier’s involvement to gain favor with prosecutors.
“There are some desperate men in this case with terrible criminal records and tons of exposure, and they know what to say to please these prosecutors,” said Jim Trusty, Rozier’s attorney.
In December, Trusty asked the federal judge overseeing the case, LaShann DeArcy Hall, to dismiss the initial charges against him, citing government overreach and a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that narrowed the federal wire fraud statute. Hall heard oral arguments for the dismissal in April and has yet to issue a ruling.
“The new indictment confirms that our motion to dismiss was a good one — it’s just new charges and new theories trotted out in the hope that something sticks,” Trusty said.
The indictment alleges that Rozier — then a member of the Charlotte Hornets — informed co-defendant Deniro Laster that he would remove himself from a March 23, 2023, game against the New Orleans Pelicans because of a leg injury. Laster allegedly shared the information with several bettors, who bet $258,700 that Rozier would not reach his statistical averages.
Rozier was removed nine minutes into the game, finishing with five points, four rebounds and two assists. His rebounds total exceeded his average of 3.3 per game, causing some of the bets to lose. According to the indictment, Rozier agreed to reduce the alleged bribe to $70,000 to cover those losses.
As part of the proceedings Thursday, defendant Marves Fairley — described in the original indictment as representing himself on Instagram as a “gambling guru” — pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering.
Fairley told the judge that he and associates obtained information from NBA players and coaches that could influence the outcomes of games and used it to place bets. He also said he placed fraudulent bets himself and on behalf of at least one professional player, who he did not identify.
“I agreed to pay a player to change their game performance to give me an advantage,” Fairley told the judge.
Assistant U.S. Attorney David Berman, however, named Rozier as the player. Fairley also admitted that he purchased information from Lakers assistant coach Damon Jones about the medical status of LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
Jones became the first of the 34 defendants to plead guilty, admitting in April that he urged a co-conspirator to “get a big bet on Milwaukee before the information is out!” ahead of a February 2023 game between the Lakers and Milwaukee Bucks in which James was a late scratch because of a foot injury.
Two unidentified sportsbooks were named as victims of the alleged conspiracy in the original indictment, and the superseding indictment names the NBA and the Hornets as additional victims.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MAY 25: Tyler Stephenson #37 and Graham Ashcraft #23 of the Cincinnati Reds celebrate after the game against the New York Mets at Citi Field on May 25, 2026 in the Queens borough of New York City. (Photo by Ishika Samant/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The blows to the Cincinnati Reds bullpen keep right on coming.
On Friday, somewhat out of the blue, the Reds placed Graham Ashcraft on the injured list with what’s being called a “UCL sprain right forearm,” and they didn’t just place him on the 15-day IL, either. Ashcraft went straight to the 60-day IL, a move that’s both ominous and potentially an indication that we’ve seen the last of Graham for the 2026 season (and maybe longer).
The Reds announced the move on Friday afternoon, noting that they had selected the contract of Yunior Marte from AAA Louisville in a corresponding move.
Ashcraft was a key cog in the bullpen prior to the hamstring injury that landed Emilio Pagan on the 60-day IL himself, but had assumed a much higher importance in the wake of said injury. His last trio of outings had also been rock solid, and he was beginning to be looked upon as a legitimate closing option as the team attempts to manage Pagan’s absence.
Now, though, the Reds must figure out how to reconfigure their bullpen once again, while we all wait and see the severity of the injury. I’m not going to bring up the guy whose medical procedure has been named after him, but it’s hard not to go right to that with your mind the moment you hear that there’s damage to a UCL.
MIAMI, FL - APRIL 06: Noelvi Marte #4 of the Cincinnati Reds looks on from the dugout prior to the game between the Cincinnati Reds and the Miami Marlins at loanDepot park on Monday, April 6, 2026 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Lucas Casel/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
As of the morning of May 29th, there have been 171 players who have logged at least 120 plate appearances at the AAA level so far this season. Noelvi Marte is one of them, and none of the other players in that group has hit for a higher average (.371) than him.
He ranks fifth among that group with a 1.005 OPS, surrounded on the leaderboard by familiar names like Rece Hinds (1.045, 4th) and Edwin Arroyo (.960, 14th). Unlike Hinds, though, his 15.8% strikeout rate ranks among the toughest to fan among that sample, ranking as the 15th lowest.
These are nice numbers. Very nice, very good numbers, indeed. They aren’t at all the numbers the Cincinnati Reds are looking for, however, as they gauge whether or not to bring Marte back into the big league fold.
At the big league level to begin the 2026 season, Marte struggled mightily with these traditional production stats, but more than anything he struggled with many of the underlying ones hitting coaches everywhere break down on film each day. In particular, Marte posted a 45.8% O-Swing% in his time with the Reds, a mark that measures how often a player swung at pitches that were located outside of the strike zone. Among the 309 players who logged at least 30 PA through April 14th – the day Marte was optioned back to AAA due to his struggles – that ranked 9th highest in the sport.
The prevailing sentiment about the gap between big league pitching and the pitching in AAA ball right now isn’t so much about ‘stuff’ as it is about ‘command.’ In AAA, a ball two inches outside the zone is often a trackable delivery that’s simply missing its spot, a pitch intended to be a strike that simply wasn’t accurate enough. That’s the kind of pitch where expanding the zone doesn’t hurt so much, as chasing a four-seamer with a bit of a longer swing can still produce excellent contact. Pitches two inches outside the zone at the big league level, though, are so often there by design – pitches with enough movement to look like they’re going to be in the meat of the zone only to dive just out of reach at the very last.
The worry early with Marte was that while he was producing at the AAA level after being sent down, a lot of that was still coming by swinging at pitch locations that would penalize him, and the Reds offense, if he kept that up upon returning to the bigs. So far with the Bats, though, Marte has begun to rein in those tendencies, and so far sports just a 35.4% O-Swing% at the AAA level this year. That’s much more in-line with where he was at the big league level in 2025 (33.0%) and at AAA last year (35.1%), suggesting that he’s beginning to target the right kind of pitches at which to swing in lieu of free-swinging in a way that simply won’t work at the highest level.
That’s half the equation for Marte fighting his way back onto the active roster of the Reds. The other, of course, is where the heck he’s going to play, something the Reds have been attempting to figure out since the moment they acquired him from the Seattle Mariners.
The Reds picked him up as a SS, and promptly began working him there, at 3B, and even at 2B for a time. We all know their insistence on upgraded defense over his at 3B last summer led to the fateful decision to acquire Ke’Bryan Hayes, a move that shifted Marte to a corner outfield spot where he’d never played before. He’s still getting run in RF so far this season, yet in each of his most recent appearances with the Bats he’s started and played exclusively in CF – something that has coincided with the AAA outfield losing Rece Hinds to the Marlins and Blake Dunn to the big league roster.
Clearly, Reds brass is doing their best to equip him to be the most versatile version of himself defensively in order to get him back on the roster in some form, at some point. The more positions he can play, the fewer pitches he chases will continue to inch him closer to a return to the Reds, something that seems inevitable if he continues to perform at this type of level.
The biggest problem for him now, though, is that the Reds have seemingly found a lineup at the big league level that’s producing well enough without him. Dunn has become the apple of Terry Francona’s eye atop the order and in CF, his speed and defense calling cards being buttressed by more offense (especially against RHP) than most anyone anticipated. That’s beside JJ Bleday carving out a vital everyday role in one outfield corner, while Spencer Steer has had perhaps the hottest bat on the club besides Bleday for the last month while, more often than not, occupying the other outfield corner – that’s because 3B/1B/DH have been seized by Sal Stewart, Eugenio Suarez, and Nathaniel Lowe.
Even if the Reds were to call time on Matt McLain at 2B for a bit, sliding Steer to 2B and calling up Marte for a corner OF spot might not be the most direct move. Arroyo has hit so damn well and is deserving of his own shot at big league pitching, and he’s a more natural fit for 2B in that alignment. And if Dunn begins to struggle as big league pitching gets more of a book on him, there’s a real chance he still sticks around as the 26th man due to his defense and speed while the club turns CF back over to TJ Friedl once more in hopes that the latter can fully shrug off the slump he began the 2026 deeply within.
So, the 24 year old Marte sure looks like he’s going to have to marinate with Louisville for a while longer, barring some catastrophe. And if that’s still the case come July, we’ll find out if there’s another team out there who, during trade season, might have bigger eyes for the future of Marte than the Reds do – especially if it means the Reds get something for a playoff push they can more readily use in 2026.
It's been over two weeks since the Toronto Maple Leafs decided to part ways with head coach Craig Berube. It marks the third instance in which the coach of the Maple Leafs has been fired in the Auston Matthews era.
As Toronto's GM John Chayka and senior executive advisor Mats Sundin search for a new bench boss for the Leafs, it's a good time to reflect on the recent history of coaches with the franchise.
Beginning with Berube, here are the last three coaches of the Maple Leafs, how they fared in their stint with the team, and an overall recap of their tenure in Toronto.
Craig Berube (Hired May 2024, Fired May 2026)
Berube was the coach who took the Maple Leafs the furthest of the team's last three coaches. He was in Toronto for two full seasons, leading the Leafs to Game 7 of the second-round series against the Florida Panthers in his first year.
There was a real possibility for the Maple Leafs to build on that progress, as it was the furthest the team had gone in the Stanley Cup playoffs since Toronto advanced to the conference final in 2001-02.
Though 2024-25 was promising, everything changed in 2025-26. Superstar Mitch Marner was no longer on the team, and the GM at the time, Brad Treliving, tried to make up for his absence by bringing in forwards Nicolas Roy, Dakota Joshua, and Matias Maccelli.
Disaster struck early for Berube and the Leafs. They lost five of their first eight outings of the campaign, and went through a five-game losing streak in early November. Toronto had a hill to climb early in the year and was truly never able to grab hold of the season from that point.
Whatever went right for Berube in his first year did not translate to last year. He didn't get the same goaltending to bail out the defense, blueliners couldn't break out of their own zone cleanly, and they were getting outshot on a nightly basis.
In the end, Berube's heavy, direct and simple approach to the game didn't rub off the right way on the Maple Leafs, specifically in his second season.
Sheldon Keefe (Hired November 2019, Fired May 2024)
Sheldon Keefe's Maple Leafs struggled to win a series or be successful in the post-season. But in hindsight, he was the coach who best suited the team's style of play. After all, despite just one series win in five years with the Maple Leafs, he never missed the playoffs.
Under Keefe, Matthews won a Hart Trophy, a Ted Lindsay Award, and three Rocket Richard Trophies. Marner had three 90-plus-point seasons, was a Selke Trophy finalist, and was one of the best playmakers in hockey. William Nylander molded himself into the superstar that he's known as today, recording a career-high 98 points in 2023-24 and earning his eight-year, $92-million contract.
Again, what's most important in playoff success, but it's fair to say that the big names on the team were performing at their best when Keefe was around.
The furthest Keefe was able to take the Maple Leafs was to the second round of the post-season in 2022-23, losing to the Panthers in a five-game series.
He was also at the hands of some inexcusable first-round exits. That includes the 2019-20 qualifying round against the Columbus Blue Jackets, blowing a 3-1 series lead to the Montreal Canadiens the following year, and being unable to get past the Boston Bruins in his final year with the Leafs.
Ultimately, the partnership between Keefe and Toronto ended after the 2023-24 campaign, and that decision was made by Treliving. Keefe is now the head coach of the New Jersey Devils, preparing for his third season with them.
Mike Babcock (Hired May 2015, Fired November 2019)
Mike Babcock is certainly a polarizing figure in the hockey community. Several stories about his coaching philosophies and the way he interacted with his players over the years.
Aside from the trio of Matthews, Marner and Nylander, players such as Zach Hyman, Kasperi Kapanen, Connor Brown and Rielly were all at critical moments in their careers. And for the most part, all of them are still effective roster players in the NHL.
Despite Babcock being assigned a more growth role in the franchise, he still led the young Maple Leafs to the playoffs twice before Keefe was promoted from the Toronto Marlies to replace him in November 2019.
Today, Babcock doesn't coach in the NHL. His last opportunity to coach in the league was when the Blue Jackets hired him in July 2023. However, he was fired in September, before the 2023-24 regular season even began, because of crossing personal boundaries with his players.
And not long after Berube's firing, TSN's Darren Dreger reached out to Babcock to gauge what his interest was in returning to the NHL as a head coach. He replied, "Dregs, I’m retired. Loving it."
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The clobbering that Oklahoma City Thunder guard Jared McCain took in the final minutes of Tuesday's Game 5 of the Western Conference finals trickled down from a demand by Spurs star Victor Wembanyama, according to a video online.
The clobbering that Oklahoma City Thunder guard Jared McCain took in the final minutes of Tuesday’s Game 5 of the Western Conference finals trickled down from a demand by Spurs star Victor Wembanyama, according to a new video.
The 7-foot-4 Wembanyama whispered “hard foul” to teammates Bismack Biyombo and Mason Plumlee as he exited the game with his team trailing by 14 with 2:20 remaining, Mike Tirico, NBC’s play-by-play announcer, said on the Game 6 broadcast Thursday night.
The new clip of Wembanyama from Game 5 surfaced during Game 6, with Wembanyama seeming to mouth “hard foul” to Plumlee.
“Hard foul was the message to sent to Mason Plumee, Bismack Biyomobo, and you saw just that…” Tirico said during the Spurs’ eventual 118-91 win.
After Wembanyama’s exit, Plumblee and Byombo committed hard fouls on McCain within a minute span.
The first foul happened when McCain received an elbow to the back from Plumlee that knocked him to the floor, and the foul was upgraded to a Flagrant 1 after a league review, the NBA announced Wednesday.
Biyombo committed the second foul as McCain drove to the basket.
Spurs star Victor Wembanyama whispered “hard fouls” to teammates Bismack Byombo and Mason Plumblee as he exited Game 5 of the Western Conference finals against the Oklahoma City Thunder with 2:20 remaining. XSpurs’ Mason Plumblee fouled OKC’s Jared McCain in the final minutes of Game 5 of the Western Conference finals on Tuesday, May 26, 2026. X
NBC Analyst Reggie Miller mentioned that McCain shouldn’t have been in the game in garbage minutes after the two fouls.
“See, these are two shots to McCain in here in the starting lineup in the closing moments of this game,” Miller said. “He doesn’t need to be on the floor here.”
Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama in the first half of Game 5 in the Western Conference finals against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday, May 26, 2026, in Oklahoma City. AP Photo/Julio Cortez
McCain discussed Plumlee’s foul after the Thunder’s 127-114 victory in Game 5.
“That was crazy. I didn’t expect it, obviously,” McCain told “The Association” on Tuesday. “We were at the free-throw line, too, and I was like, ‘Why’d you do that man?’
“I’m just asking him questions, and he was like, ‘I’ve got another one for you, too.’ … It’s all in competition, so gotta respect it.”
Jared McCain of the Thunder shoots a free throw during Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals against the Spurs on May 26, 2026 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. NBAE via Getty Images
In his first start of the series in Game 5, McCain scored 20 points while shooting 7-of-19 from the field. He also grabbed three rebounds.
The Spurs forced a Game 7 on Saturday in Oklahoma City with their resounding win Thursday, and the winner will face the Knicks in the 2026 NBA Finals, beginning June 3.
A promising draft pick once viewed as a potential late-first-round steal for the Colorado Avalanche is now officially set to remain in Russia for the foreseeable future after Mikhail Gulyayev committed to a new deal with Avangard Omsk.
Gulyayev, selected 31st overall by the Avalanche in the 2023 NHL Draft via the pick acquired in the Alex Newhook trade, has signed a two-year, two-way extension in the KHL, according to league transaction records. The agreement keeps the 21-year-old defenseman in Omsk through the 2027-28 campaign, effectively pushing any possible NHL arrival with Colorado to the 2028-29 season at the earliest.
Because of how his rights are structured, the Avalanche can afford patience. The organization retains exclusive control over Gulyayev indefinitely, meaning there is no looming deadline forcing an entry-level contract decision in the near term.
A Timeline Shift That Reshapes Colorado’s Plans
When Gulyayev was drafted, there was genuine excitement about his long-term upside. He had been ranked highly across scouting lists entering the 2023 draft—23rd by Bob McKenzie of TSN and 21st overall by Scott Wheeler of The Athletic—making his availability at 31st appear like a savvy move by Colorado’s front office.
At the time, his path looked relatively straightforward: continue developing in Russia, eventually transition to North America, and compete for a role on the Avalanche blue line. Instead, his trajectory has slowed and stretched further out, now delayed by at least two more seasons following this extension.
After splitting his draft year between the KHL, the VHL, and Russia’s MHL junior league, Gulyayev has spent the last three seasons as a consistent presence with Avangard Omsk’s senior team. However, his role and production have not progressed at the pace many evaluators expected.
Development Questions And An Uncertain Ceiling
Despite still being regarded as one of Colorado’s stronger prospects—ranked No. 3 in Scott Wheeler’s most recent organizational list—there is growing skepticism about how quickly his game is translating at the professional level in Russia.
As his ice time has fluctuated, so too has his offensive output. He finished the 2024-25 season with 15 points, but that total dropped to just three in 2025-26, a step back that has not gone unnoticed by scouts tracking his development.
Wheeler noted concerns in March, writing that Gulyayev “has struggled to take that next step beyond just being a depth guy” in the KHL. That assessment has only gained weight as his usage has remained limited.
He also suggested a change of environment could help accelerate his growth, stating that Gulyayev “needs to get over to North America” to maximize his development and improve his chances of becoming an impactful NHL player. That transition, however, is now on hold for the foreseeable future.
There was never a strong indication that Gulyayev was rushing toward the NHL. He attended Colorado’s development camp last summer but chose to remain in Russia ahead of the season, unlike fellow prospect Ilya Nabokov, who signed his entry-level contract and made the trip to North America.
When asked last year by Sergey Demidov of RG.org about a possible timeline for joining the Avalanche organization, Gulyayev remained noncommittal, saying “right now I can’t say anything concrete.”
With this new extension finalized, that uncertainty has effectively been extended as well. For Colorado, the hope remains that consistent minutes in Omsk eventually help stabilize his game and unlock the upside that once made him such an intriguing first-round gamble.
CLEVELAND, OH - APRIL 29: James Harden #1 and Donovan Mitchell #45 of the Cleveland Cavaliers looks on during the game against the Toronto Raptors during Round One Game Five of the 2026 NBA Playoffs on April 29, 2026 at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland, Ohio. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2026 NBAE (Photo by Jeff Haynes/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
The Cleveland Cavaliers seem to have every intention of bringing back James Harden and Donovan Mitchell this summer.
Harden, who has a player option that he’s expected to exercise this offseason, has already said he ‘100%’ plans on returning to Cleveland.
Meanwhile, Mitchell’s player option isn’t until next season. The Cavs can extend Mitchell long-term this summer and run no risk of losing him unless he demands a trade. President of Basketball Operations Koby Altman suggested that no such trade request is on the horizon.
“All I can tell you is Donovan has been steadfast in how much he loves it here,” said Altman. “There hasn’t been any question of will he be here or does he want to be here; I think the bigger question, is the one that’s been answered, is does he want to be here and does he want to be here long term, and I think he’s answered that.”
Mitchel has led the Cavs to the playoffs in four consecutive seasons and has been on multiple All-NBA teams since arriving in Cleveland. There are valid concerns about his viability as a No. 1 option on a title team — but Altman isn’t openly sharing any of them.
“Yes,” Altman replied when asked if Mitchell can be the best player on a championship team. “And we’re going to keep pouring into that.”
Altman also reinforced his belief in Harden, stating that the Cavs didn’t trade for ‘MVP Harden’ but rather a complementary player who can stabilize them moving forward.
“He helped regalvanize the group; we were kinda shaky there… when he came on board, he gave us a real belief and swagger,” said Koby Altman. “We traded for him and shot out of the gate 5-0, with some real inspiring confidence; we’re not in the Conference Finals without James.”
The plan, for now, appears to be having both guards back with a full offseason and training camp together to figure things out. That might frustrate some fans, but it falls in line with the patient approach that Altman has taken in previous years.
PHOENIX, AZ - DECEMBER 06: Grand Canyon Antelope guard Jaden Henley (10) looks on before the Jerry Colangelo Classic college basketball game between the Oklahoma State Cowboys and the Grand Canyon Antelopes on December 6, 2025 at Mortgage Matchup Center in Phoenix, Arizona. (Photo by Kevin Abele/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
While there is still five months until the 2026-27 college basketball season tips off, we are less than one month away from the 2026 NBA Draft!
There are two former Mountain West guards — Grand Canyon’s Jaden Henley and Utah State’s MJ Collins — hoping to hear their name called on draft night, which begins June 23. Both guards competed in the NBA’s G-League combine earlier this month, but neither were invited to the Draft Combine.
This year’s class is one of the most anticipated in recent memory, although there were fewer early entrants — players departing college early — than in year’s past. Neither Collins nor Henley — who both exhausted all of their college eligibility — fit into that bucket. But the number of players who withdrew their name ahead of Thursday’s deadline could help these two as late June nears.
Why recent withdrawals could help Collins, Henley:
Heading into the 2026 cycle, there were 71 Early Entrants, 106 fewer than the amount heading into the 2025 class. However, over half — including former San Jose State guard Colby Garland, who’s transferring to Georgia Tech with one season of eligibility remaining — returned to college.
A few of them who did include Rueben Chinyelu (Florida), Milan Momcilovic (Iowa State; in transfer portal), Tyler Tanner (Vanderbilt) and Tounde Yessoufou (St. John’s; Baylor transfer). Those aren’t MW players, but ones with legitimate talent that will have an automatic ripple effect on both Collins and Henley.
There’s a higher likelihood that at least one — if not both names — could be called on draft night. I still think Henley, who’s currently No. 75 on Rookie Scale’s consensus big board, would still be the first name. But weirder stuff has happened on draft night.
Nevertheless, the chances that both players are able to find pathways to crack an NBA roster increase, albeit marginally. Each organization is allotted three two-way spots, which is expected to be north of $600K in 2026-27. Those two-way players can be active for 50 games per season. It will be an uphill climb, but both are intriguing in their own way.
Collins is an athletic multi-level scorer who averaged 17.5 points on 48.7/36.1/81.0 shooting splits last season. Henley is a hyper athletic defensive-minded big guard who’s a straight line-drive slasher. He averaged 17.7 points, 5.7 rebounds and 2.9 assists on 46.6 percent shooting and 56.2 percent true shooting last season.
So far, Henley has either planned to, or completed a work out for the 13 teams, including the Atlanta Hawks, Dallas Mavericks, Toronto Raptors, Orlando Magic and Sacramento Kings, according to HoopsHype’s workout tracker. Collins has worked out for three: The Charlotte Hornets, Indiana Pacers and Memphis Grizzlies.
Do you think either have a chance of hearing their name called in the top-60? Let us know in the comments!
CLEVELAND, OHIO - JUNE 18: A view of the sunset over the stadium during the seventh inning between the Seattle Mariners and the Cleveland Guardians at Progressive Field on June 18, 2024 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Nick Cammett/Getty Images) | Getty Images
After another losing homestand the Red Sox thankfully head on the road, where they can win.
Welcome to Cleveland.
First place in the AL Central, the Guardians are 33-25 on the season. They’re three game in front of the Chicago White Sox. Not a typo. You were expecting the Detroit Tigers? They’re sitting at 22-35. The Red Sox are 23-32. So it really could be worse. Without Tarik Skubal the Tigers are in free fall. The Sox unfortunately don’t have such a linchpin player who can return. Well, maybe Roman Anthony or Garrett Crochet, but neither are quite the key Skubal is. Cleveland is scoring 4.14 runs per game. That’s below average but better than Boston’s 3.85 mark. They’re allowing 3.91 runs per game from the pitching unit, also just better than Boston’s 4.02.
It’s that time in the rotation. Brayan Bello will be pitching. This time with the newly-recalled Tyler Samaniego as his opener. With any luck, Typical Bello Dazzlement will appear for the bulk innings. Samaniego last appeared on 5/23 with a scoreless, hitless inning against the Twins. The Guardians have Slade Cecconi, a righthander with a 5.18 ERA facing the nearly unstoppable Bulk Bello. Over 11 starts he’s been up and down and up and down allowing 6 runs, 4 runs, 6 runs, 4 runs, 5 runs, around his better outings. Seattle, Atlanta, Houston, Toronto, and Oakland Sacramento all hit him hard. Those would be some of the better offenses in the league.
Sonny Gray is coming off his first real down outing in weeks. He lasted just 4.0 innings against the Minnesota Twins on Sunday. He’s struck out 6, 9, and 4 over his past three starts of 6.0, 6.0, and 4.0 innings. He’d been in a groove since coming off the IL. He’ll face Parker Messick, a 25-year-old southpaw. Over his last five starts he allowed 2 earned runs or less four times. And he’s struck out 32 in those 28 innings.
With any luck the Sox have one or two wins already before Sunday. A series win in the bag heading into game three would be wonderful. Ranger Suarez, who was in a groove, promptly fell out of it against the Atlanta Braves. The five earned runs allowed last time out were a season high. He’ll be looking to bounce back. In one matchup last season, Suarez didn’t allow a run over 7.0 innings. Tanner Bibbe was roughed up for 7 runs last time out and gave up 8 runs to the Braves in April. Aside from a four-run, 4.0 outing against the Royals all the rest of his outings were 3 runs or less. The Guardians won his first start of the year and then lost the next 9, won against Detroit and then lost to the Nationals.
José Ramírez is off to his normal tricks: 8 homers, 20 steals and he’s an iron man with 58 games played.
Rookie Travis Bazzana is off to .302/.407/.458 start.
Angel Martínez has 9 home runs.
New catcher Patrick Bailey, acquired from the San Francisco Giants, is hitting .120/.185/.280. He’s called for 44 challenges from behind the plate and won 26.
Probable Pitching Matchups
Friday, May 29: Tyler Samaniego (1.04 ERA / 3.88 FIP) vs. Slade Cecconi (5.18 ERA / 4.67 FIP)
Saturday, May 30: Sonny Gray (3.27 ERA / 3.66 FIP) vs. Parker Messick (2.24 ERA / 3.04 FIP)
Sunday, May 31: Ranger Suarez (3.02 ERA / 3.29 FIP) vs. Tanner Bibbe (4.57 ERA / 4.85 FIP)
Tonight is the 58th Cubs game of the 2026 season and finally, finally the team will be facing its biggest rival, the St. Louis Cardinals.
On the one hand, you shouldn’t have to go through 35 percent of the season before facing that biggest rival. On the other hand, this means that 13 of the Cubs’ next 68 games will be against the Cardinals. On the other other hand, that means the Cubs won’t face the Cardinals after Aug. 14, the 125th game of the season.
That all feels wrong. Bring back the unbalanced schedule.
For more on the Cardinals, here’s Doc Holliday, manager of our SB Nation Cardinals site Viva el Birdos, who sent me 11 key points about our division rivals.
JJ Wetherholt has one of the best batting eyes the Cubs will compete against this year. He’s averaging seeing 18 pitches per game and will be the Cardinals leadoff man for years to come.
The Ivan Herrera catching experiment isn’t working. He has yet to throw out a runner, but his bat continues to be vital.
Jordan Walker is for real. He not only got off to a hot start, but then made successful adjustments after pitchers adjusted to him being a threat. He might be the most dangerous hitter in the National League right now.
Nolan Gorman is still Nolan Gorman. He’s been a low .200’s BA hitter and he’s still a low .200’s BA hitter and his power numbers don’t compensate for the lack of contact.
Michael McGreevy is likely the “ace” of the Cardinals rotation right now. He has Greg Maddux-ish tendencies and knows how to move the ball around the zone and grab corners.
Matthew Liberatore has struggled to establish himself. He can be lock-down for four innings, but fall apart in the fifth. Or, as was the case Monday against the Brewers, have a terrible first inning, then be lights out for the next four.
The Cardinals are relentless in their approach and have notched numerous comeback wins. They’re young and don’t know they’re supposed to be losing right now.
The bullpen is problematic. Riley O’Brien started the year with over a dozen saves, but has been hittable his last couple of appearances. Ryne Stanek has had flashes of being good, but he’s wild and has lost more games than he’s helped win. Gordon Graceffo has been a relatively solid middle relief arm, but Justin Bruihl and Matt Svanson remain question marks.
Bryan Torres is a great story – in the minors for a decade and had two hits including a home run in his first game. He tried to quit, but his mother talked him out of it.
The Cardinals fan base has started grumbling about Oli Marmol’s use of the rotation and bullpen. He dropped Brycen Mautz into Monday’s game as a middle innings reliever in a tight 3-1 game against the Brewers for his major league debut and it did not end well. Our community is hot that Oli dropped this guy into the fire of a game against division leader for his first major league appearance.
Overall, St. Louis has become a dangerous team to play. Their offense can be explosive and starters like McGreevy, Dustin May and Andre Pallante are starting to find their groove.
Fun facts
As mentioned above, after a mere 57 other games, more than one third of the season, the Cubs finally will face the Cardinals for the first time this year.
They closed out last season against one another, with the Cubs sweeping three games at Wrigley Field. They have not squared off at St. Louis since the Cardinals won the rubber game of a series on Aug. 10. The Cubs have played 102 games since then.
The Cubs’ 2,526 games vs. the Cardinals are their second most against any opponent, after 2,629 vs. the Pirates. In all those games, the Cubs have outscored the Cards by just 19 runs, 11,045 to 11,026. They lead the rivalry, 1,281 wins to 1,226, but are 566-675 at St. Louis. The 675 losses are their second most on the road, after 714 at Pittsburgh.
Last year, the Cubs were 3-4 at St. Louis, splitting a four-game series and losing two of three in the other. They were 1-1 and 2-2 in 2024. They last won a series, 3-1, July 27-30, 2023.
The Cubs have not swept a series at St. Louis since Sept. 13-15, 2010. This is their 40th series there since then. They have been swept in 10 of the previous 39, most recently Sept. 2-4, 2022. One of the sweeps was four games and another was two.
Sunday: Jordan Wicks, LHP (0-1, 16.62 ERA, 2.308 WHIP, 5.15 FIP) vs. Matthew Liberatore, LHP (2-3, 4.76 ERA, 1.571 WHIP, 4.66 FIP)
Times & TV channels
Friday: 6:15 p.m. CT, Marquee Sports Network
Saturday: 6:15 p.m. CT, Fox-TV (regional — coverage map, scroll down to the bottom of that link). A reminder that if you subscribe to MLB.TV or MLB Extra Innings, you can watch this game via those services even if it’s not on the Fox affiliate in your market. Announcers: Eric Collins, John Smoltz and Ken Rosenthal.
Sunday: 6:20 p.m. CT, NBC/Peacock (full national broadcast, no blackouts). Announcers: Jason Benetti, Jim Deshaies and Albert Pujols.
Prediction
The Cardinals have lost four straight and six of seven and maybe the pixie dust is wearing off. The Cubs offense looks good after the last two games in Pittsburgh.
Two of three.
Up next
The Cubs have Monday off, then return to Wrigley Field for a three-game series against the Athletics beginning Tuesday evening.
ARLINGTON, TX - JUNE 19: Bobby Witt Jr. #7 of the Kansas City Royals runs onto the field prior to the game between the Kansas City Royals and the Texas Rangers at Globe Life Field on Thursday, June 19, 2025 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Karen Hastings/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
The Rangers won their first championship in 2023, in part by spending a lot on free agents. But they had to pay the piper, and since then they have been a middling team around .500, missing the playoffs in each of the last two seasons.
Kansas City Royals (22-34) vs. Texas Rangers (25-31) at Globe Life Field, Arlington, TX
The Rangers are hitting .230 as a team, tied for fifth-worst in baseball. Joc Pederson is hitting .314/.435/.627 with four home runs in his last 20 games. Pederson is hitting .300/.338/.600 in 14 games against the Royals, his best numbers against any team. He is just 2-for-19 (.105) in his career against Seth Lugo, but has homered twice in 29 plate appearances against Michael Wacha.
Josh Jung is hitting .377/.435/.597 at home. Catcher Danny Jansen is hitting .128/.255/.277 in 16 games in the month of May. Alejandro Osuna hits 50.8 percent of balls on the ground. The Rangers have made fewer outs on the bases than any team in baseball. Texas is without starters Wyatt Langford, Josh Smith, and Corey Seager, who are all on the Injured List.
The Rangers acquired MacKenzie Gore in a big trade with the Nationals after he put up a 3.1 rWAR season last year. He exited his May 18 start after one inning with lat nightness, but returned earlier last weekend to give up just one hit in six innings against the Angels. Gore has a reverse split this year and in his career, with lefties hitting him better than righties.
Kumar Rocker was a highly touted pitcher at Vanderbilt that the Mets famously did not sign after drafting him and viewing his medicals. He had Tommy John surgery, and struggled in 14 starts last year, but may be turning a corner this year. He tossed back-to-back scoreless starts before giving up four runs in five innings in his last start against the Astros. He relies heavily on a sinker/slider combo that nets a 53 percent groundball rate.
Jack Leiter was Rocker’s teammate at Vanderbilt and was the #2 overall selection in the 2021 draft. He earned Rookie of the Year votes after posting a 3.86 ERA in 29 starts last year. He throws some heat with a 96.7 mph fastball that opponents are hitting just .205 against.
The Rangers’ bullpen has a 3.10 ERA, fourth-lowest in baseball, despite the third-lowest strikeout rate. Lefty Jacob Latz has been the primary closer, converting six of eight opportunities, while former Royals pitcher Jakob Junis had three saves in April. Lefty Tyler Alexander has a 51.4 percent groundball rate. Lefties are hitting .257/.333/.543 against lefty reliever Jalen Beeks.
This weekend will be a homecoming for Royals star Bobby Witt Jr., who grew up in the Dallas area, the son of a former Rangers pitcher. The Royals have lost 10 of 15 games at Globe Life Park since it opened in 2020. They took six of seven from the Rangers last year, and will need that kind of performance this weekend to turn their season around.
ATLANTA, GEORGIA - MAY 23: Grant Holmes #66 of the Atlanta Braves in action against the Washington Nationals in the third inning at Truist Park on May 23, 2026 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Brett Davis/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Atlanta Braves are coming off a fun series against the Red Sox where we saw the bats go crazy twice and completely silent once. The Braves will now take their elite offense to Cincinnati and face the back end of the Red’s rotation.
Today Grant Holmes and his 3.78 ERA will face off against Chris Paddack who has yet to bring home his first victory and has a 6.86 ERA. It is still early enough in the season that ERA can be at least a bit deceiving, but the Braves do look primed to do some damage with the bats today.
Grant Holmes has had an up and down season thus far and a lot of it has to do with him not being able to stay effective after seeing the lineup after two times through, which is why you are seeing pitchers like Didier Fuentes being on the ready every time he pitches.
It could be argued that Holmes may have started to turn a corner in a positive direction. Last start he lasted five innings and struck out ten hitters to only two walks against the then MLB leader in runs scored (Nationals). He did give up two solo shots on six hits though. His start before that looked promising too with 6.0 innings of zero run ball against the Red Sox where he struck out four and walked one on five hits.
His underlying metric show that his expected ERA (xERA) is 4.17 which is not terrible and not too far off from his actual ERA. What is concerning though is that hitters have a hard-hit rate of 44.4 percent, which is good for bottom 19.0 percent of qualified pitchers.
No one on the Reds has more than seven at-bats against Holmes in their careers, but most of the players that have faced him have had success. Of the nine hitters to have faced him, six of them have an average of .333 or better. Friedl is the clear front runner in terms of success. In four at-bats, he has two HRs.
It could have probably been guessed already, but Chris Paddack has had some poor luck. Although his xERA is not desirable at 4.32, it is much better than his 6.86 actual ERA. One area that may give the Braves trouble is he is able to get hitters to chase the ball out of the zone 33.7 percent of the time, which is good for top 19.0 percent of qualified pitchers. The Braves have a few players like Albies, Harris, and Riley who are notorious for chasing the ball out of the zone.
Mike Yastrzemski leads the team with twenty-five at-bats against Paddack and has had no problem being successful. He has three HRs, a .400 average, and a 1.324 OPS in that span. No other Braves player has more than eleven at-bats against Paddack. It will be interesting to see if Smith gets the DH start today because he has a .182 average in those eleven at-bats.
First pitch is at 6:40 pm EDT.
Game Info
Game Time: Friday, May 29th, 6:40 pm EDT
Location: Great American Ball Park, , Cincinnati, OH
Coach Mike Brown said Friday that Robinson did not suffer the injury in a game or in Thursday’s practice.
Thursday was the Knicks’ first practice since Game 4 of the conference finals.
When asked when or how it happened, the Knicks said they were not getting into specifics. They also did not say when Robinson had surgery on the pinky.
Mitchell Robinson hopes to be ready for Game 1. Brad Penner-Imagn Images
Brown was noncommittal about Robinson’s availability for Game 1 of the Finals on Wednesday.
“For me, I’m always going with whoever is available today,” Brown said Friday. “And he didn’t practice today. So we’re getting whoever we need ready to go. … I don’t want to know, just let me know if he can play and when he can play. Just like we normally would, we’re getting everyone else ready to go.”
Regardless, the hope is that Robinson, after a “minor procedure,” will be able to play, according to league sources.
“Mitch is very important to us,” OG Anunoby said Friday. “Amazing player. It’s unfortunate what happened, but I’m sure — just take it day by day now.”
It’s been a roller-coaster postseason for Robinson. His brutal free-throw shooting — he is 13-for-43 (30.2 percent) from the line in the playoffs — has allowed opponents to utilize Hack-a-Mitch and force the Knicks to take him off the court.
Mitchell Robinson after Game 4 of the Eastern Conference finals. NBAE via Getty Images
He is only averaging 14.2 minutes per game in the postseason, down from 19.6 minutes per game in the regular season. He had not made as big an impact this as most expected entering the playoffs.
Before Game 3 of the conference finals against the Cavaliers, Robinson posted on Snapchat that his “mental health is not the best right now” and that he had a “very upsetting experience,” though he did not detail what happened. That post came a few days after Robinson said he had changed his phone number and planned to delete all of his social media accounts ahead of a “new chapter in my life.”
“I’m deleting all apps for a little while,” Robinson wrote, “until I can get back to myself.”
Robinson missed Game 2 of the second round against the 76ers for what was listed on the injury report as an illness.
He is set to be an unrestricted free agent this offseason.
The last time the Knicks were in the NBA Finals, New Yorkers were hailing cabs without apps, blasting Lauryn Hill on CD players, and nervously checking their Netscape dial-up connection.
The Twin Towers still dominated the skyline, Rudy Giuliani ran City Hall, and “The Sopranos” had just introduced America to Tony Soprano’s panic attacks.
These days, TikTok is where young people socialize, communicate and shape pop culture, oat milk lattes can run more than $9, and Madison Square Garden itself has undergone a billion-dollar glow-up.
From politics to pop culture to the Manhattan skyline itself, here’s how wildly different life in 1999 NYC looks and feels 27 years later.
Gone but not forgotten: Manhattan’s skyline
The Lower Manhattan skyline has been forever transformed since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks tragically brought down the Twin Towers.
A skyline reborn after tragedy: Here’s a look at the Twin Towers in 1999 (left) and the current Freedom Tower at One World Trade Center in 2026 (right). David Lefranc
In their place now stands One World Trade Center — better known as the Freedom Tower — which rose between 2006 and 2014 as the centerpiece of the rebuilt skyline.
Two eras of City Hall: Giuliani’s Gotham in 1999 vs. Mamdani’s 2026 Big Apple
Back in 1999, tough-on-crime Republican Rudy Giuliani led New York City from City Hall during the height of his mayoral tenure, which began in 1994.
From former mayor Rudy Giuliani in 1999 (L) to progressive leader Zohran Mamdani in 2026 (R), New York City’s political landscape has shifted dramatically over the past 27 years. David Lefranc
Fast-forward to 2026, and the Big Apple is now run by Democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani, who took office in January of this year. Talk about New York City’s political landscape shifting dramatically over the past 27 years.
MSG makeover: The Knicks’ home base went ultra-modern after 2010s rebuild
Madison Square Garden, home of the Knicks, looks dramatically different today than it did during the team’s 1999 Finals run.
Madison Square Garden has had a massive makeover within the last 27 years. David Lefranc
Between 2011 and 2013, the arena underwent a nearly $1 billion renovation, transforming it into a sleek, high-tech sports and entertainment hub.
Today, fans scan mobile tickets on their phones, a far cry from the paper stubs and printed tickets of the late 90s.
Political power shift: The White House then and now during Knicks championship runs
During the Knicks’ last trip to the NBA Finals in 1999, Democratic President Bill Clinton occupied the White House.
The Knicks last reached the Finals in 1999 under President Bill Clinton (left), and today, as they return in 2026, the nation is led by President Donald Trump (right). David Lefranc
Now, as the team heads back to the Finals in 2026, Republican President Donald Trump is leading the country for the second time.
Grammy glory in 1999 vs. 2026: Lauryn Hill and Bad Bunny define two eras of music
At the Grammy Awards in February 1999, Lauryn Hill won the coveted Album of the Year award for “The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill.”
Lauryn Hill (left) won Album of the Year at the 1999 Grammy Awards with her neo-soul record, “The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill.” In 2026, Bad Bunny (right) won the same award for “Debí Tirar Más Fotos.” David Lefranc
In 2026, Bad Bunny sparked a global reggaeton movement after winning the very same award for “Debí Tirar Más Fotos.”
A Shakespearean comedy vs. action thriller: The Oscars’ Best Picture across two different Hollywood eras
At the 1999 Oscars, “Shakespeare in Love” took home the coveted Best Picture award, with a cast including Gwyneth Paltrow, Joseph Fiennes and Judi Dench, and direction by John Madden.
“Shakespeare in Love” won the Academy Award for Best Picture in 1999 (left), while 2026 saw “One Battle After Another” take the crown (right). David Lefranc
In 2026, the same top honor went to “One Battle After Another,” starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Sean Penn and Teyana Taylor, and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson.
Billboard Chart Toppers: J.Lo in ’99, Drake in ’26
On June 25, 1999, during the Knicks’ last time in the NBA Finals, Jennifer Lopez topped the Billboard Hot 100 with her groovy pop bop, “If You Had My Love.”
Jennifer Lopez had the hit song of the summer of 1999, while Drake is dominating the charts with his hip-hop single, “Janice STFU.” David Lefranc
It’s now May 2026, and the No. 1 song in the country is Drake’s catchy rap track, “Janice STFU.”
From 1999’s ‘Rock Style’ to 2026’s ‘Costume Art’: Two different Met Gala themes
Liv Tyler and Stella McCartney (left) at the 1999 “Rock Style” Met Gala, with Kim Kardashian (right) at this year’s “Costume Art”-themed Met Gala. David Lefranc
The 1999 Met Gala theme was “Rock Style,” tied to the Costume Institute’s exhibition celebrating the influence of rock-and-roll. Guests like Liv Tyler and Stella McCartney leaned into the moment with DIY “Rock Royalty” tees.
This year, the Met Gala embraced the theme “Costume Art,” with the dress code “Fashion Is Art.”
Kim Kardashian turned heads in a bespoke metallic tangerine and bronze fiberglass breastplate and bodysuit, created by Allen Jones and design duo Whitaker Malem.
Furby fever vs. prehistoric dinos: Toy trends across two eras
At the turn of the millennium, Tiger Electronics’ Furbies, interactive, owl-like robotic toys, were the must-have craze of 1999, dominating kids’ wish lists during the Knicks’ late-90s NBA surge.
Sneak a peek in the trending toy box through time — Furbies were all the rage in ’99, and now, kids are all about T. rex mania in ’26. David Lefranc
Now, as the NBA team continues its 2026 postseason run, the hottest toy at the moment is Spin Master’s Primal Hatch T. Rex — a “Jurassic World”–style interactive dinosaur that hatches from an egg and is captivating kids in a very different toy era.
Prestige TV: From 1999 mobsters to 2026 modern medicine
In 1999, HBO’s “The Sopranos” was the defining television event of its time — a critically acclaimed crime drama starring James Gandolfini, Lorraine Bracco and Edie Falco, created by David Chase.
James Gandolfini’s Tony Soprano (left) ruled HBO — and north Jersey — in 1999, while “The Pitt” (right, with Noah Wyle) is a big hit on the longtime streamer. David Lefranc
Now in 2026, another HBO Max series is dominating the cultural conversation: “The Pitt,” a buzzy medical drama starring Noah Wyle, Katherine LaNasa and Taylor Dearden, created by showrunner R. Scott Gemmill.
Twenty-seven years later: So much of NYC has changed — except love for the Knicks
While the “Urban Jungle” has certainly transformed in many ways since 1999, one thing has remained the same here in New York City — the residents’ undying love for the NBA’s New York Knicks. Aristide Economopoulos for NY Post
From flip phones to FaceTime, CD wallets to streaming playlists, dial-up modems to instant everything — the Knicks’ return to the NBA Finals is also a reminder of just how much life in NYC has been rewired.
The city that once waited for Web pages to load now refreshes culture in real time, faster than ever. And yet, some things feel familiar. The Garden is still rocking. Die-hard celeb fans are still courtside.
Spike Lee proves to be a die-hard Knicks fan, often showing his support courtside in MSG. NBAE via Getty ImagesBen Stiller (center) is one of the Knicks’ most recognizable celeb devotees, often spotted at MSG, reacting to playoff highs on social media and even coordinating his Met Gala looks with the team’s colors. Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images
And when the Knicks win, the city still moves as one — louder, prouder, and now infinitely more online.
Twenty-seven years later, the Big Apple’s skyline has changed, the soundtrack has changed, and the technology has changed — but New York’s obsession with the Knicks?
