Jun 10, 2026; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Philadelphia Phillies designated hitter Kyle Schwarber (12) celebrates hitting a home run against the Toronto Blue Jays during the fourth inning with teammates at Rogers Centre. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Sousa-Imagn Images | Kevin Sousa-Imagn Images
The Phillies have an off day today before traveling for a rather big series in Milwaukee this weekend. The Brewers sit atop the NL Central and are one of only five teams to have eclipsed the 40-win mark. If that wasn’t enough of a test, the Phillies will get to face Jacob Misiorowski right out of the gate on Friday.
The Chicago Blackhawks should be looking to add a veteran defenseman to the left side of their blueline this summer. While this year's free agent market is not the strongest, San Jose Sharks defenseman Mario Ferraro is one pending UFA who would make a lot of sense for Chicago to target if he hits the market on July 1.
Ferraro is the NHL's top pending UFA left-shot defenseman and would have the potential to be a strong addition to the Blackhawks' roster if signed. This is because he is a steady top-four defenseman who plays a heavy game, blocks shots, and contributes a bit of offense from the point. With this, he would have the potential to be a nice pickup for the Blackhawks as they look to be more competitive in 2026-27.
Ferraro's age also adds to his appeal, as he is only 27 years old. With this, he has multiple years left in his prime and would be a good fit on a Blackhawks club that is focused on the future.
Ferraro is coming off a solid season with the Sharks, too. In 82 games this campaign with the Pacific Division club, he posted seven goals, 23 points, 137 hits, and 150 blocks. With numbers like these, he provides a bit of everything from the point.
Ultimately, with the Blackhawks' blueline needing a boost, Ferraro is a player who they should strongly consider pursuing. Let's see if they do just that from here.
All England Club announces 20% rise from last year
Increase unlikely to appease tennis player group
Wimbledon has announced the biggest prize money increase in the history of the Championships, but this significant rise still may not be enough to appease the demands of the top tennis players in dispute with the grand slam tournaments.
The All England Club revealed a prize-money purse of £64.2m, a 20% increase from last year and a £10.7m rise. There have been rises across all rounds, with the men’s and women’s champions receiving £3.6m prize money this year while players who lose in the first round will receive £80,000.
Colorado Avalanche fans have spent weeks debating whether Jared Bednar should stay or go, but the conversation could always be worse.
Just ask the Edmonton Oilers, whose reported interest in Mike Babcock has prompted the NHL Players' Association to push for the league to revisit the coach's controversial past before he lands another job.
The Debate Around Bednar Suddenly Looks Different
According to multiple reports, the NHLPA has asked the league to examine Babcock's brief and turbulent tenure with the Columbus Blue Jackets before Edmonton—or any other franchise—is allowed to make him its next head coach.
The request surfaced after reports connected Babcock to the Oilers' coaching vacancy, with two people familiar with the discussions telling The Associated Press that the union wants the NHL to take another look at the circumstances that ended his last opportunity before it truly began. Both spoke on condition of anonymity because the conversations remain private.
Babcock returning to the NHL would be one of the more shocking news stories of the season. Credit: Kyle Robertson - Imagn Images
Whether the league has officially reopened its previous investigation is unclear, but any coaching hire must ultimately receive NHL approval.
Babcock's stint in Columbus lasted less than three months.
Hired in July 2023 with hopes of restoring a struggling franchise, he resigned before coaching a single regular-season game after reports emerged that he had asked players to share personal photos from their phones as a way of getting to know them. What was intended as a team-building exercise quickly became a league-wide controversy, with players questioning professional boundaries and the union stepping in.
"Our players deserve to be treated with respect in the workplace," NHLPA executive director Marty Walsh said then. "Unfortunately, that was not the case in Columbus. The club’s decision to move forward with a new head coach is the appropriate course of action."
The players' association conducted its own review of the situation, while the NHL chose not to continue its planned investigation once Babcock resigned.
Now, nearly three years later, his name is once again circulating in coaching rumors.
The Oilers are searching for a replacement after surprisingly moving on from Kris Knoblauch following a first-round playoff exit, despite reaching the Stanley Cup Final in each of the previous two seasons. If Edmonton ultimately decides Babcock deserves another chance, it appears the NHLPA wants every question from his Columbus departure answered first.
A Second Chance Comes With Plenty Of Questions
It isn't the first time Babcock's methods have drawn criticism.
After the Toronto Maple Leafs fired him early in the 2019-20 season, reports surfaced that he asked a player to rank teammates from hardest-working to least-hardest-working before sharing those rankings with the locker room. The story became another example cited by former players who described an environment built on intimidation rather than motivation.
Former Detroit Red Wings forward Johan Franzen was among Babcock's harshest critics, telling a Swedish publication that Babcock was "the worst person" he had ever met and revealing there were times he was terrified to go to the rink.
Those accounts have dramatically reshaped the public perception of a coach who once stood among hockey's most respected figures.
Babcock's résumé remains difficult to ignore. The 63-year-old led the Detroit Red Wings to the Stanley Cup in 2008, reached another Final in 2009, guided the Anaheim Ducks to the championship series in 2003, and coached Canada to consecutive Olympic gold medals in 2010 and 2014.
Edmonton has already explored other options during its coaching search. The organization requested permission to speak with Bruce Cassidy, but the Vegas Golden Knights denied that request because Cassidy remains under contract through next season.
The decision frustrated the NHL Coaches' Association, although Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly defended Vegas' position.
"We don’t find it unreasonable because we’re allowing it to happen," he said. "I do think Vegas is clearly within their contractual rights to do what they’re doing."
For Avalanche fans frustrated by another playoff disappointment, the debate surrounding Bednar isn't likely to disappear anytime soon. But as Edmonton weighs the possibility of bringing one of hockey's most polarizing figures back behind an NHL bench, Colorado's coaching conversation suddenly feels far less chaotic.
02/27/1971--Connie Hawkins (42), Phoenix Suns, scores against Philadelphia. Seen in this photograph in the air, ball leaving his hand on a lay up.
Connie Hawkins was an immense talent who missed some of his best years professionally after being falsely implicated in the notorious 1961 point shaving scandal. He signed with Iowa, but was kicked out of school in his freshman year. The NBA warned teams not to draft him, so he played for a year with the old ABL before it folded, then with the Harlem Globetrotters, and then the ABA, before the NBA, under public and legal pressure, finally allowed him to play in 1969.
Few fans got to see him in those pre-NBA years, but he played a lot of ball and had a lot of stories.
This story involves Rucker Park, the Mecca of New York / Harlem basketball, Wilt Chamberlain, and a freakishly athletic street player named Jackie Jackson.
Just 6-4, Jackson blocked a Chamberlain shot, which kind of set Wilt off. Keep in mind that Chamberlain reportedly had a 50” vertical. It’s a great story.
Wolves have sacked Rob Edwards and are poised to appoint the Portuguese head coach César Peixoto as his replacement. The 46-year-old Peixoto was most recently in charge of Gil Vicente, who finished sixth in the Portuguese top flight last season.
The news came as a huge shock to Edwards, who was alerted to rumours on social media of a deal for Peixito. Edwards, who is abroad on holiday, was informed in a phone call that his tenure was over after seven months, leaving even senior club staff stunned.
The high school season has wrapped up, almost every college team has packed and punched out and portaled, and now Major League Baseball’s draft evaluation period quiets just a bit – even as some of the most important work remains.
As the men’s College World Series arrives, pitting the final eight teams against each other (and this year’s group is, relatively speaking, not bursting with potential high-round draftees) the next phase has begun. MLB’s draft combine begins June 22 in Phoenix, where skills will be measured but perhaps more important interviews and personal evaluations will occur, a key time for clubs and players alike to determine how well they match up.
And while it won’t really affect the first round, the MLB draft league is up and running, giving prospects of all ages a Statcast-able platform to buoy their stock or at least get on the 2027 radar.
With that, USA TODAY Sports takes another stab at projecting the first 30 picks when the draft commences July 11 from Philadelphia:
We’re rolling with consistency here. While much has and can and will change over the next five weeks, Cholowsky still represents the best fusion of current value and impact. While Cholowsky’s season ended as quietly as his team’s – two singles in 12 at-bats in the No. 1 Bruins’ stunning regional elimination - he still did nothing to betray the notion he’s not the best option atop this draft.
2. Tampa Bay Rays: SS Grady Emerson, Fort Worth Christian HS
Now the consensus national high school player of the year, Emerson’s also the lone prep player named a Golden Spikes Award semifinalist; he batted .532 during his regular season with seven homers and 31 stolen bases.
Easily the nation’s leader with a 1.06 ERA (No. 2 was 1.98), Flora ran through the tape in his junior season, winning his last seven starts and posting a 30-4 strikeout-walk ratio in his final three. Lots of positional temptations but Flora represents a slam dunk foundational piece.
We’ll see how far north Lackey’s arrow points. It’s just gotten harder to see him slip this low, where Buster Posey can sell a building block catcher for an organization that needs one. Lackey finished his season with 20 homers and a 1.291 OPS in 61 games.
5. Pittsburgh Pirates: SS Jacob Lombard, Gulliver Prep (Fla.) HS
Still a chance he goes higher, and hard to conceive this isn’t his floor. Lombard’s speed-power profile nearly matches Emerson’s and his 6-3 frame and athleticism is perfect to play shortstop a long time in the big leagues.
Produced a .358/.473/.657 slash with 16 home runs, not an effusive platform year but one that will keep him near the top of the round, where the Orioles never met an SEC/ACC outfielder they didn’t like.
8. Athletics: SS Justin Lebron, Alabama
With Burress gone the A’s go with the more dynamic skill set while brushing off Lebron’s suboptimal platform season, especially in SEC play. Yet the 6-2 shortstop should benefit from the advanced college players who have already beat a quick path to Yolo County.
9. Atlanta Braves: LHP Gio Rojas, Marjory Stoneman Douglas (Fla.) HS
A perfect match between an organization that excels at nudging prep pitchers toward the majors and a 6-4 lefty who pairs a fastball that touches 98 mph with a devastating sweeper.
The Rockies’ semi-successful Coors pitching project will get a readymade Patient One to mold from the start of a professional career. Flukey’s 6-6 frame and bat-missing ability (11.6 strikeouts per nine in three seasons) give them a lot to work with.
After revamping their offensive apparatus, the Nationals do themselves a favor and draft a guy already gifted with excellent swing decisions. Curiel struck out 43 times and drew 34 walks in 58 games and had a .452 OBP across two seasons in Baton Rouge.
He has a lot to clean up, and the Angels usually like their rush-to-the-big-leagues guys close to finished products when they draft them. But Peterson’s big stuff will be too much to ignore for a regime that will already ponder how soon the 6-5 prospect can get to Anaheim.
13. St. Louis Cardinals: INF Chris Hacopian, Texas A&M
Not really sure what his future position will be but the Cardinals know what to do with another plug-and-play guy who can keep the line moving and perhaps grow into more power. If not, no biggie.
Three years into Peter Bendix’s tenure should give us a better idea this innovative club’s draft approach. In this scenario, a potentially elite bat from the college ranks falls to them.
The Diamondbacks haven’t used their top pick on a catcher since 2012 (where art thou, Stryker Trahan?) but Helfrick is too good a value to pass on here after his 18-homer, .979-OPS final season in Fayetteville.
16. Texas Rangers: OF AJ Gracia, Virginia
A steady left-handed collegiate bat with excellent bat-to-ball skills, Gracia could move quickly toward Arlington.
We’re now at the point where every pick can go in so many different directions, but the Astros opt for the former Houston Cougar with power to all fields; Reese smacked 24 home runs in his final year in Starkville.
18. Cincinnati Reds: SS Tyler Bell, Kentucky
A switch-hitting sophomore-eligible shortstop who may require shoulder surgery, Bell may eventually develop an elite offensive profile but for now is a steady player with excellent plate discipline, drawing 30 walks to just 36 strikeouts in earning first-team All-SEC honors.
An excellent senior season and the lure of a lefty topping 100 mph with the athleticism that comes with being an elite basketball player, Bumila will puncture the top 20. While the Guardians prefer college arms, they did OK in 2024 with prep lefty Braylon Doughty, now in high Class A.
20. Boston Red Sox: LHP Hunter Dietz, Arkansas
At 6-6, 235 pounds, Dietz can stand eye-to-eye with Garrett Crochet and also touches 98 mph with his fastball. Still in need of polish but struck out more batters than anyone in the SEC, punching out 13.76 per nine innings.
21. San Diego Padres: LHP/OF Jared Grindlinger, Huntington Beach (Calif.) HS
He doesn’t turn 18 until April 2027 and Grindlinger’s drafting team has the luxury of workshopping him as a pitcher or hitter. Here’s guessing the mound wins out, especially as Grindlinger’s frame fills out.
22. Detroit Tigers: RHP Cade Townsend, Mississippi
The Tigers generally prefer higher-ceiling prep players but go for a little more certainty with Townsend, a draft-eligible sophomore with a powerful profile in his repertoire.
23. Chicago Cubs: SS Eric Becker, Virginia
A steady choice, Becker is a technically sound player with gap-to-gap power who should move methodically through a minor league system.
24. Seattle Mariners: OF Trevor Condon, Etowah (Ga.) HS
Condon brings high energy and elite speed, along with the profile to stick in center field. A long-term investment for a club with the luxury to wait.
25. Milwaukee Brewers: OF Aiden Robbins, Texas
Now slashing .342/.435/.720 for the Omaha-bound Longhorns, Robbins boosted his homers from six to 24 in transferring from Seton Hall to Austin.
26. Atlanta Braves: RHP Jensen Hirschkorn, Kingsburg (Calif.) HS
A 6-7 frame that already produces a mid-90s fastball, Hirschkorn is another pitcher with basketball athleticism and tons of projectability. Two picks in the top 26 should help Atlanta keep Hirschkorn away from LSU.
27. New York Mets: OF Caden Sorrell, Texas A&M
Quite a skill set, as Sorrell produced 23 homers, 11 steals and a 1.177 OPS – all in a center fielder’s package - in his final year in College Station.
28. Houston Astros: OF Zion Rose, Louisville
A career 1.023 OPS at Louisville, Rose stole 24 bases in 27 attempts and had a .491 OBP in his final season. Strong 205-pound frame could produce more power than he’s shown.
29. San Francisco Giants: Daniel Jackson, C, Georgia
We’re just going to assign Buster Posey catchers with Georgia connections until he’s had his fill. Jackson transferred from Wofford to become a Bulldogs legend, ripping 31 homers to key their CWS run.
30. Kansas City Royals: RHP Logan Reddemann, UCLA
They’re buying low on Reddemann after arm issues slowed a platform year that seemed to push him closer to the top 10. Reddemann hasn’t pitched since April 17 but posted a 0.97 WHIP and 12.7 strikeouts per nine before he was idled.
Justin Verlander was shelled for four home runs, and the Hens couldn’t put much together at the plate against Twins’ starter Mick Abel and the Saints’ bullpen on Wednesday.
Well, Justin Verlander appears healthy, so I don’t know how much longer the Tigers can keep him on the injured list. He also looks incapable of starting successfully in the major leagues right now. Enjoy that dilemma, Scott Harris.
The right-hander allowed four solo shots in 5.2 innings of work, and there were several other very sharply hit balls in play in this outing. What there was not, was much swing and miss. Verlander threw 86 pitches, recording six whiffs, four of them on the fourseam fastball, which averaging 92.9 mph with below average extension. The riding action is still good, and he topped out at 95.5 mph, but we would’ve liked to see him sitting more comfortably around 94 mph. He worked on his slider for much of the outing but it wasn’t very sharp.
Aaron Sabato and Kyler Fedko recorded the first two homers in the second and third innings, respectively. Verlander settled in for a couple of innings, but in the sixth, Matt Wallner crushed a slider and Gabriel Gonzalez a fastball back-to-back to finish Verlander’s outing on a pretty sour note.
Ben Malgeri hit a solo shot in the bottom of the sixth for the Hens only run.
Ben Malgeri rips a solo homer over the wall to get Toledo on the board. That’s his 8th home run of the year, and it raises his slash line against left-handed pitching to .375/.478/.750 pic.twitter.com/zXBM1b08eA
Things got even rougher for the future Hall of Fame set when Kenley Jansen took over the in the seventh. He quickly gave up three runs on a walk and two hits, striking out one, and Yoniel Curet had to take over with two outs. The 23-year-old right-hander gave up three more runs of his own, and Konnor Pilkington gave up two more before this came to an end.
Cruz: 3-4, 2B, 3B
Malgeri: 2-4, R, RBI, HR, 2 K
Verlander (L, 1-1): 5.2 IP, 4 ER, 5 H, 2 BB, 3 K
Jansen: 0.2 IP, 3 ER, 2 H, B, K
Coming Up Next: It’s a 7:05 p.m. ET start time on Thursday with the series tied at a game apiece.
Tigers have acquired RHP Jacob Waguespack from the Brewers in exchange for cash or a player to be named later.
Waguespack currently has a 1.66 ERA and 13.7 K/9 in Triple-A.
The 32-year-old has a 5.11 ERA in 105.2 career MLB innings, most recently with 2024 Rays
Carlos Peña was hit hard in this one, but the SeaWolves fought back and then seized control in the middle innings to win on Wednesday.
Justice Bigbie cracked a solo shot in the bottom of the second to open the scoring, but Peña was knocked around for four runs in the third, and another in the fourth.
So it was 5-1 in the bottom of the fourth when the SeaWolves started turning this game around. Thayron Liranzo led off with a walk and was wild pitched to second. Bigbie singled home Liranzo, and Chris Meyers singled as well. After a pair of strikeouts, E.J. Exposito finally cashed in the runners with a double to left, and it was 5-4 Akron.
Unfortunately, Peña wild pitched a run home in the fifth, and so the task was again more difficult down 6-4.
Brett Callahan kicked started the final push with a solo shot to right field for his 11th home run of the year in the bottom of the fifth. That was Callahan’s fourth homer in five games, and the well rounded outfielder is starting to make a serious push toward Toledo.
Brett Callahan hit this ball a long way for his team-leading 11th home run of the season. pic.twitter.com/4acaico1fJ
In the sixth, Meyers led off with a single and stole second base. He eventually scored on throwing error, while Exposito walked and Seth Stephenson singled. Stephenson stole second base, and a swinging bunt toward third from John Peck scored Exposito as Peck beat out the throw to first. Stephenson never stopped running and tore around third base and home under a tag at the plate for an 8-6 lead.
Dariel Fregio and Tyler Owens were each excellent in relief, throwing a pair of scoreless innings apiece.
Callahan: 1-3, R, RBI, HR, BB, K (.913 OPS on the year)
Bigbie: 2-4, 2 R, 2 RBI, HR, K
Stephenson: 3-5, R, 2B, SB
Peña: 5.0 IP, 6 ER, 5 H, 0 BB, 2 K
Coming Up Next: It’s a 6:30 p.m. ET start on Thursday with the SeaWolves up 2-0 in the series.
West Michigan Whitecaps 8, Lake County Captains 4 (box)
Ben Jacobs was a little wild in this one, which made for another relatively short outing, but he allowed just one run while his teammates went off at the plate.
Jacobs struck out the side in the bottom of the first, and in the top of the second, Clayton Campbell singled with one out and took second on a wild pitch. Luke Shliger flew out, but Cristian Santana drew a walk to keep the inning alive. Juan Hernandez singled in Campbell, and Caleb Shpur singled in Santana for a 2-0 lead.
Jackson Strong, Garrett Pennington, and Bryce Rainer all walked in the third, but Pennington was thrown out in a double steal attempt with Strong taking third, and they couldn’t push across a run.
Jacobs walked the first two hitters in the fourth, and wild pitched a runner to third. A single scored the run before Jacobs dug in for a strikeout, pop up, and a ground out to escape the inning.
So it was 2-1 Whitecaps, and it was quickly 3-1 when Woody Hadeen and Strong doubled back-to-back to start the fifth. In the seventh, Shpur singled, and Strong walked before Pennington mashed a three-run shot to left center field for a 6-1 lead.
Logan Berrier gave up a run to the Captains in the seventh to make it 6-2. he gave up a two-run shot in the eighth as well.
However, Strong launched a two-run shot to right in the top of the ninth to make it 8-4 and put this one away. After a solid but unspectacular first two months, Strong is suddenly scorching hot. The strikeout rate is still way too high, but he’s homered four times in five games and may be turning the corner a bit.
Strong: 2-3, 2 R, 3 RBI, 2B, HR, 2 BB, K, SB
Campbell: 2-5, R, K
Pennington; 1-4, R, 3 RBI, HR, BB, 2 K
Jacobs: 4.0 IP, ER, 2 H, 4 BB, 6 K
Coming Up Next: The series is tied heading into a 7:00 p.m. ET start on Thursday.
Cash Kuiper put together a solid start and the bats were hot as the Flying Tigers built an early lead and then poured it on to take a 2-0 lead in the series on Wednesday.
Kuiper wasn’t getting a ton of whiffs, but he spun five innings of one run ball.
The offense took over in the top of the second as Carson Rucker walked with two outs. Singles from Nick Dumesnil and Jack Goodman followed for a 1-0 lead. Anibal Salas doubled in both runs, and then scored on a Jordan Yost double for a 4-0 lead.
Jordan Yost with a nice inside-out RBI double to left that put Lakeland up 4-0. pic.twitter.com/sgjTQktBWi
In the fifth, Jesus Pinto, Beau Ankeney, and Edian Espinal all singled with one-out. That scored one run, and Rucker drew a two out walk to load the bases. Dumesnil was hit by a pitch to make it 6-1, but that was all they’d get.
However, in the top of the sixth, Salas was hit by a pitch to leadoff the inning, and Yost then went deep to right field with a 102.3 mph shot for his first home run of the season. 8-1 Lakeland.
Congratulations to Jordan Yost, who launches a 2-run blast to right for his first professional home run. Left his bat at 101.2 MPH and went 384 feet. pic.twitter.com/PitNF3nhbI
Later in the inning, Espinal doubled and scored on a Jude Warwick single. Yost was walked with the bases loaded in the top of the ninth to make it 10-1.
Win Scott, Andrew Pogue, and Eliseo Mota were all solid in relief, allowing just two baserunners over the final four innings.
Yost: 2-5, R, 3 RBI, 2B, HR, BB, K
Espinal: 2-3, R, RBI, 2B, 2 BB
Salas: 2-4, 2 R, 2 RBI, 2B, K
Kuiper (W, 1-2): 5.0 IP, ER, 3 H, BB, 2 K
Coming Up Next: It’s a 6:30 p.m. ET start on Thursday as the Flying Tigers look to run their winning streak to four.
NEW YORK, NY - JUNE 10: OG Anunoby #8 of the New York Knicks shoots the game winning shot during the game against the San Antonio Spurs during Game Four of the 2026 NBA Finals on June 10, 2026 at Madison Square Garden in New York, New York. 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 Joe Murphy/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
“I knew there was a lot of time left. I knew we’ve got to get a little lucky, but let’s do what we have to do to make some of that luck happen.”
On Jalen Brunson’s performance:
“Jalen, he’s an MVP candidate. I say the same thing about Jalen every game: He does what an MVP is supposed to, and he did it again tonight.”
On OG Anunoby’s Game 4 tip-in:
“How he had to control it and tip it in, that has to be the most iconic shot in the history of New York basketball. It’s unbelievable. Just how he had to control it and tip it in.”
On challenging Anunoby before Game 4:
“I challenged a lot of our guys today, and OG was one of the guys I challenged. I told OG, as big, as strong, as athletic as he is, he’s got to be a monster on the offensive glass tonight. I don’t know if there was a play bigger than any other play in the history in Knicks basketball. That was a huge offensive rebound. Huge offensive rebound. He took on the challenge, and he went and won the game for us doing exactly what I called him out for during shootaround today.”
On not changing much schematically before the second half rally:
“Really, we didn’t change much. We basically kept the same game plan. But defensively, we just did it [better] for longer stretches, and we were really in tune to what we were supposed to be doing. Our level of physicality increased without sending them to the free-throw line as well, which is huge.”
On Jose Alvarado’s Game 4 impact:
“Jose was unbelievable tonight. He changed the game. His speed, his ability to touch the paint… if you don’t close out to Jose, as hard as he works on his shot, he’s gonna make you pay. If you close out to him, he’s quick enough to go by you and he made some great basketball plays offensively tonight. And then he was great defensively.”
On the league not upgrading Victor Wembanyama’s foul to a flagrant before Game 4:
“The league is gonna do what they’re gonna do. You gotta live with it. They ain’t gonna listen to me, they ain’t gonna listen to nobody else. You just hope at the end of the day, everything is consistent on both ends throughout the whole game, that’s it. It is what it is. Stuff like that can cause a fight. Obviously, they didn’t see it. If it happens in the future, fingers crossed the officials see it and call it, but again, it’s out of my control. The officials are human; they’re gonna miss stuff. You hope that they miss stuff for both teams, but they’re gonna miss stuff.”
On the Knicks’ chemistry, continuity and keeping a group together:
“The longer you can keep a group together, I think that’s better. And it’s kind of always been that to a certain degree. You know, way, way back, the Lakers, they had Karl Malone, I think Gary Payton and a couple other superstars that they threw together one year, and it was hard. Not to say that it can’t be done. I’m sure it’s been done. But the longer the group can stay together, I feel the better chance they have.”
“That’s called Knicks basketball. Stay together, be together. And look at this f—— energy man. This is who we do it for.”
On the Knicks’ mindset at halftime in Game 4:
“Regardless of the outcome, these next 24 minutes, we better bring it and show them how we really play basketball.”
On proving the first half was an anomaly:
“We needed to show them that first half was a fluke.”
On playing in the fourth quarter of an NBA Finals game:
“Playing in the fourth quarter, that’s something, when you play this game, that’s when you want to play at. Shout out to our bench… we all stepped up when our number was called and I’m glad we got the job done today.”
On being part of the Knicks’ journey:
“Just to be part of the journey is amazing. I appreciate coach [Brown] and everybody giving me my flowers, but this is what I worked hard for, to be in moments like this and it’s showing. I’m glad we got a win today and I’ll definitely remember this for the rest of my life.”
On Brown’s message to the team while trailing:
“Stay together, and chop the lead down. More importantly, stay together and stay confident.”
On nearly crying after the Game 4 win:
“I was about to cry, not because — obviously there is one more, but … I’m at Madison Square Garden, end of the fourth quarter, playing with these guys, and we’re playing for something special. It’s really something. I couldn’t put it in words.”
"Right hand of God!"✋
Karl-Anthony Towns and Jose Alvarado talk about OG Anunoby's game-winning tip-in.
KAT: "He gave us a chance to win and that's all you can ask for from the best two-way player in the NBA." pic.twitter.com/CoAlOxZ4J7
“He gave us a chance to win, and that’s all you can ask for from the best two-way player in the NBA.”
On Jose Alvarado’s Game 4 performance:
“He’s a special player. His tenacity, his defensive ability and his offensive ability that I got to see first-hand… He has so much to his basketball game that people don’t give credit to and I’m glad at this stage and like this he was able to show the world what he can do when he’s given a chance. Jose Alvarado literally told everybody in the world tonight he’s a big time player.”
On an emotional Madison Square Garden after the comeback:
“I felt for all of y’all who were at the game, obviously, you could feel the abundance of joy at one time from everyone at one time, the collective joy that came out of everybody for that one moment, to hear the buzzer going off and not to see the ball go in the basket, I think we all felt something, like that emotion that was special. It’s something that MSG hasn’t had that kind of moment in a long time, so shoutout to our fans for real. I’ve seen people leave before the game was over at MSG, watching on MSG Network before. … You could see my reaction, the emotion, it kind of spilled out of that moment. It was tears of joy … All you can do is ask for a chance. And for me personally, I just wanted one break in life. And I got one.”
“We’re a team, a brotherhood, you know, we just have each other’s backs. That’s just how it goes sometimes. We would all do the same for each other.”
On his message in the locker room at halftime:
“I’ll just say stuff like, ‘We’re fine. Stay with it, we’re fine.’ “We know it’s a game of runs. We’re a resilient group. We’ve been through a lot. We’ve come back plenty of times when we’re behind. Just staying with it, weathering the storm, not being too down or angry or frustrated. Cut it down to 18, cut it down to 12, cut it down to six. Pushing through. It’s a 48-minute game. Just play to the end.”
On how Mike Brown challenged him at shootaround:
“Make an impact on the offensive glass. And it happened at the end.”
On crashing the glass after Brunson’s miss:
“I inbounded the ball to Jalen. He got a pretty good look and I just went and crashed. Tried to get a tip-dunk or something. The ball went over my head, so I couldn’t really dunk it. So, I tried to tip it in softly and it went in.”
“I was free. There was no one boxing me out. So I just went in there for a tip-dunk and then ended up just tipping it in. Brunson got a pretty good look. And I just went and crashed.”
On the defensive turnaround in the second half:
“Our contests were better, just 1 percent better. Getting out faster and then finishing possessions with rebounds.”
On pulling off another monster comeback:
“When you do it once. You know you can do it again.”
On the MSG faithful belief in these Knicks:
“They believed the whole way.”
On the team’s resilience:
“We stayed with it. It’s a game of runs. We’ve come back before, we’re battle-tested, we’re tough, we’re a resilient group.”
On staying focused on the task at hand:
“We’re enjoying it right now. But we’re just focused on the next game now.”
On the Knicks’ chemistry playing a big role in their postseason run:
“For sure, having another year together builds chemistry, builds just every day learning how to play off each other. Yeah, that means a lot. It’s a big time for us. Just going through the experience last year — we played a lot of games, 82-plus — and losing in the Eastern Conference finals and learning a lot of things about each other definitely helps.”
"I got a special shout-out for OG because he saved me … a lifetime of regret.
On OG Anunoby saving him after the missed layup and rebound:
“I’ve got a special shout-out for OG, man, because he saved me, at least for this game, a lifetime of regret. So I’m sitting there just hoping my guys make a play. And OG, he’s been amazing since he’s got here. This whole playoff run, he’s been amazing on both ends of the ball. He’s a winning player and he made a winning play.”
On Anunoby’s season and game-winner:
“This whole playoff run he’s been amazing, and he’s a winning player, and he went and made a winning play.”
On the fourth-quarter defensive effort:
“That’s unreal, and doing that especially in the fourth quarter. We were able to get stops without fouling, and that fueled our offense.”
On where he ranks the Game 4 win among his career highs:
“I won a national championship in 2016. [Jalen Brunson] and [Mikal Bridges] will probably remind you that I only have one and they have two. So that night is No. 1. This one is definitely No. 2.”
On the trust and familiarity within the Knicks:
“I think you just get a familiarity and a certain comfort level with those guys. All of them can go out there and make plays, especially end of shot clock. … I think it’s more so the trust that’s built, and you know where everyone likes the ball and plays for them to execute.”
“Really wasn’t that much to be said at that point. It was really just, we need to chip away. We need to hit singles, get on base and make plays from there.”
On focusing on what’s next instead of getting distracted:
“The most important thing for me over the next 48 hours is focusing on what we have to do to win Game 5. There’s nothing to celebrate. It’s not over yet, not even close.”
On OG Anunoby’s Game 4 performance:
“OG is someone who brings it, every night. Does what’s asked of him, plus more, every single night.”
“I don’t think any of us have ever seen anything like that. It’s a lot to process.
“On the bench when we’re slowly walking them down and you feel it shift a little bit and there’s a little bit of hope there that creeps in, it’s hard to explain, but if you were in the building, everybody felt it. This isn’t just talking about staying in the game, let’s cut the lead. It was like, ‘No, we’re here, let’s make something happen.’”
On Alvarado’s spark:
“He checked into the game and changed the game. That’s when things really started to shift. He’s a spark. The energy he brings for us … he was ready to go and stepped in and made some huge plays for us.”
“To put as much good work into that first half as we did and get the lead that we had and not finish the job, it’s disappointing to say the least. We felt the momentum [shift]. Too much to overcome? I didn’t feel that way until the clock hit zero…. We got away from playing the brand of basketball that got us the lead. And then you saw at times, the aggressiveness and conviction that we played with early on dissipated and they made some shots. We needed a couple of more tough-minded plays to finish the job.”
Victor Wembanyama:
End of Game 1: 👽Dribbles off foot
End of Game 2: 👽Butt pass 👽Fouls Jalen Brunson 👽Misses good look at buzzer
End of Game 4: 👽Misses both FTs 👽Doesn't crash boards on losing putback 👽Ball not in hands last shot
“It began before that. I can’t really explain it right now. Stopped moving the ball. Stopped executing.”
“I can’t really explain it right now, I don’t know. I think it’s just execution, greediness of some sort. We clearly weren’t the most hungry in the second half.”
“It’s gonna go one of two ways. A bad one and a good one. The bad one would be giving up; the good one would be getting stronger from this, getting more together, and this is what we’re gonna do.”
“It was painful, of course. It feels like we’re working too hard to give up our leads. It just hurts.”
On what’s next for San Antonio after suffering the worst loss in NBA history:
“Holding each other accountable, communicating, not pointing fingers. After that, we either got it or we don’t. But we’ve proven we can surpass these difficulties, and even though we haven’t been there before, I’m convinced we’re built this way and we’re gonna get better from this.”
On focusing on his weaknesses during his early development:
“As a kid, whether you’re 10, 13, 16 years old, you’re working for the future. You’re trying to develop your range of skills. I would say, long story short, play on your weaknesses, not only your strengths.”
On the Spurs’ identity:
“What we’ve built with this team is we have an identity that makes everybody dangerous. Sometimes it will pay off over a season, [sometimes] over a playoff series.”
On the MSG crowd and playing on the road:
“I like lively crowds, active crowds. … At home, it’s an extra motivation because you want to give the people who support you a good show. On the road, you want to do the opposite.”
“We’re all definitely hurt. I mean, we kind of gave the game up. Was up, what, 30? Hurt, I mean, angry. But I mean, I feel like this is all fuel to the fire for us. I think that we’re just going to go out next game with a sense of fire, and we’re just going to focus on game five. I mean, can’t do anything about it now.”
“A whole new fire, I feel like, is ignited in me, in a sense that we gave that game away. And if we’re going to lose, we’re not going out like that. We’re going to put up a fight. We’re going to keep swinging.”
On the Spurs’ chemistry despite their youth:
“I feel like those kind of events and things like that make up for the years that we weren’t together or the years that we haven’t had. So, the biggest thing, I feel like, is chemistry when you get in a building like this, when you get in an environment like this. I feel like we have the most chemistry and camaraderie, and togetherness as anyone else.”
On OG Anunoby’s tip-in:
“It bounced off the rim the right way. He tipped it in the right way. It went in. I could play, ‘Wish I could have did this, wish I could have did that.’ But at the end of the day, he tipped the ball, and it went in the rim. I definitely thought I had a hand on it. I definitely think I helped put the ball in the rim. But just got to box out.”
The Knicks led for just 53.8 seconds in Game 4 🤯
That's the 2nd-lowest amount of time leading in a Finals win since the 1976-77 merger 😲 pic.twitter.com/QBOqZGc6Sq
“Coach Mitch said it best, we’ve pretty much dictated the winner and loser of all these games. I think that just finishing games and just trying to maintain our lead has been tough for us.”
Keldon Johnson
On the Spurs’ belief after going down 3-1:
“The main thing is that belief is there. We believe. Our belief is as high as ever. You don’t get here without belief, without faith in each other, and that’s not going to change now. If it was easy, everybody would do it.”
"I just thought I'd be able to outrun [OG Anunoby]."
De'Aaron Fox explains his late game shot that was blocked by OG Anunoby.
On going for a layup late instead of just running the clock:
“I just thought I’d be able to outrun (OG). That’s it. I tried to get the layup to get up three, force them to need a three, and OG made a good block.”
On what makes the Knicks different:
“Yeah, I mean, I think just all four of our playoff series this year. I mean, Portland, physical team. Minnesota, physical team. OKC, physical team. New York, physical team. I think all these teams have something in common.”
“I think on the offensive end is where these teams are really different. Neither of those other three teams shoot the ball like [New York] does. Neither of those other three teams play as fast as [New York] does. Knowing there’s something similar that we come out but knowing there’s going to be differences in some of the nuances of schematics or personnel. I think those three series did help us prepare for the physicality we were going to see.”
“We saw the dumbest basketball team in the history of civilization. … The San Antonio Spurs helped the New York Knicks win this game.”
Charles Barkley after the Spurs allowed the largest comeback in NBA Finals history 👀 pic.twitter.com/Y7t4UZsVhU
“We saw the dumbest basketball team in the history of civilization. We saw they had a 25-point lead, took eight straight threes. Like they thought… that was some of the most mismanaged and stupid basketball.”
“Hey, when you blow a 29-point lead, the other team has to help you. The San Antonio Spurs helped the New York Knicks win this game by doing some of the stupid a– stuff I’ve ever seen on the basketball court. When they shot when they had a 25-point lead, they shot eight threes in a row.”
“Never even came close to using any time on the clock. And you’re like, ‘This game ain’t over yet.’ Then the Spurs and DeAndre Fox, whatever his name is. Calling him a– DeAndre tonight.”
“That was a dumba– play. He did not have to shoot that ball. They could have just gotten fouled. There was no reason for him to shoot that ball. They had a 29-point lead, and they shot eight threes in a row and never came close to losing any time on the clock, and you’re like ‘This game ain’t over yet.’ The Knicks got a Christmas gift in June tonight.”
On the Knicks’ historic comeback and Fox’s decision:
“We just watched the Knicks make the greatest comeback in NBA Finals history! The first and second halves were two completely different stories – the Spurs dominated in the first half and the Knicks stormed back in the second. Jalen Brunson put the team on his back with his 36-point performance, but OG Anunoby was the true hero tonight, finishing with 33 points AND the game-winning tip-in!”
“De’Aaron Fox made a huge mistake when he got the ball with seconds left in the fourth and decided to go for a layup instead of dribbling the ball out to be fouled. I think the Spurs have another win in them, and the Series will stretch out to 6 or 7 games, but I still see the Knicks winning it all.”
"I just tried to make a play."🔥
OG Anunoby after making the game-winning shot in the Knicks' Game 4 comeback 😤 pic.twitter.com/uYx9SwGfOw
“Fox, come on, fam! Finish that or dribble it out.”
Latrell Sprewell
On the Garden atmosphere during Game 4:
“I’ve heard it loud in here before. I remember how loud it was when [Larry Johnson] hit that four-point play against the Pacers in ’99. I’ve never heard it like this.”
“That game was physical as shit. There was times where [Karl-Anthony Towns] was holding on to [Victor Wembenyama], grabbing him, and it was no calls. There was times where [Jalen Brunson] was getting bumped. It was no calls.”
“I think that the physicality of this series is it’s whoever’s the most physical team, but the smart physical team, because now, after a game like that, game three back in New York, all eyes are on it, the energy that’s surrounding it, they’re going to pay close attention to all the little shit in the game. So don’t be surprised if game four they come out and the game is super tight.”
On the Knicks’ lack of response to Wembanyama’s shove of Brunson:
“Somebody should have put Wemby right there. You put me on the ground and you laughed at me? Nah. Next play, boom. He got to feel something.”
On the need for standing up for teammates on the court:
“It’s like football. If you hit the quarterback late, them offensive linemen come see you.”
On the criticism of Brunson’s shot volume:
“The reality of that is he has to do that. If he don’t do that, Knicks don’t stand a chance.”
On Towns’ small fourth-quarter involvement heading into Game 4:
“KAT just can’t have one shot in a half, fourth quarter. You can’t be doing that in the Finals. You got to set the tone for Game 4 in the post. That’s what KAT got to do. And that will help JB.”
“I don’t think I know enough about the history of the older teams to fully know. But forget the Knicks, this is one of the most dominant runs we’ve seen in NBA history.”
“One word that captures that all is just believe.”
Jalen Brunson joins Inside the NBA to react to the Knicks’ historic comeback win in Game 4 🙌 pic.twitter.com/lj0GKIGYaO
“They’re going to win it. I think this is going to be the time. I knew I wanted to see it in my lifetime, and it feels like Jalen Brunson is the best player in the playoffs right now even though [San Antonio’s Victor] Wembanyama is really good. But right now, Jalen Brunson is the best player in the playoffs.”
On wanting to play and lead the Knicks in his prime:
“I wanted to be the one to bring the Knicks back and be a real core piece in my prime. Being the Defensive Player of the Year in the Garden, I just felt like that would’ve been a helluva — if you would’ve come to the Garden with me on the other side in my prime, good luck to you. I’m always going to go back to me, personally. But for the Knicks to win the championship now, you can’t take it away from nobody. You can’t take it away from anybody from New York. You can’t take it away from the players. You can’t take it away from the coaches. You can’t take it away from the owners. You can’t take it away from the fans. We want to see that because we’re from New York.”
Apr 6, 2026; Memphis, Tennessee, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Tyrese Proctor (24) drives to the basket as Memphis Grizzlies forward Cedric Coward (23) defends during the third quarter at FedExForum. Mandatory Credit: Petre Thomas-Imagn Images | Petre Thomas-Imagn Images
Being selected 49th overall, Tyrese Proctor faced an uphill battle for relevance in his rookie season. Even though his playing time was uneven, he showed that there’s a pathway to battle for the Cleveland Cavaliers’ backup point guard spot as early as next season.
All grades are based on our usual expectations for each player.
Regular Season Stats
5.4 points
1.3 rebounds
1.5 assists
41.3% FG
35% 3PT FG
88.9% FT
It’s tough to break into the rotation on a playoff team as a rookie, never mind a second-round pick on a team with a dearth of guards. Proctor was always going to have to flash in his limited meaningful minutes with the Cavaliers this past season. For the most part, he showed that he could be up to the task with more development.
Proctor’s bread and butter is his jumper. In college, Proctor shot the three-ball around 40%. While that number dipped down to around 35% in the NBA, it could climb back up with more stable minutes in the future.
The majority of the opportunities Proctor was presented with came either in garbage time or in short bursts. The Cavaliers have done this before, most recently with Jaylon Tyson, sprinkling in some quality runs to get the young guy familiar with the system in meaningful moments.
Proctor has a lot physically going for him, he is 6’5” and has a good frame for showing combo guard potential. The Duke product isn’t a defensive hound by any means, but the instincts shown this past season give hope that there is potential for two-way play. The size gives him a huge advantage, while the athleticism is enough to create havoc in passing lanes and make smaller guards’ lives harder.
Where Proctor really struggled with was playmaking for others. It felt like sometimes the game was a little too fast. Proctor was forcing passes to make the perfect read, which while showing that he can see the floor, he didn’t necessarily have the ability yet to convert on those reads.
Proctor had 40 turnovers compared to 74 assists. A 1.85 assist-to-turnover ratio is not great, however, it is fair to note that going forward it is likely that this primary facilitator role will be held by either Donovan Mitchell or James Harden. It will be imperative that Proctor can alleviate either for possessions at a time rather than for entire games. Proctor will rarely, if ever, be the point guard of the Cavaliers’ offensive ecosystem.
Proctor’s road map is definitely there for next season. The Cavaliers have Dennis Schroeder and Craig Porter Jr. on the books vying for that backup point guard spot. Neither really offers much upside, so it’ll be a perfect opportunity for Proctor to flash his offensive skills and make use of his frame on defense.
The rookie laid a decent foundation for his role with the Cavaliers. With increased reps, Proctor could rise to become a valuable contributor sooner rather than later.
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - JUNE 09: Jordan Staal #11 of the Carolina Hurricanes celebrates his power-play goal against Carter Hart #79 of the Vegas Golden Knights in the first period of Game Four of the 2026 Stanley Cup Final at T-Mobile Arena on June 09, 2026 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) | Getty Images
In hockey, as in life, the game of what if’s can go just about any direction possible.
By now the story about the end of Jordan Staal’s stint with the Penguins is fairly famous since it gets repeated just about nightly on national hockey telecasts. Which, hey, why not, since it is such a colorful story to tell. News that the Pens traded Staal to Carolina broke on his wedding night in the summer of 2012, while he was surrounded by many teammates in what understandably had to be a crazy and surreal scene. What is often left out of the story for brevity before moving onto other subjects is that Staal decided to reject a 10-year contract offer from Pittsburgh earlier that week and would have been an unrestricted free agent in 2013, so it wasn’t like a major trade on NHL draft night was a true bolt out of nowhere, it just happened to have bad timing since it was when his wedding was scheduled. (Interestingly enough, Staal would soon sign a 10-year contract once traded to the Hurricanes with a $6.0 million cap hit, the exact offer that was on the table from the Pens).
So, in that sense, what was done was about the only result that could have happened, pragmatically-speaking. Pittsburgh made their best shot to keep Staal, and at the time he felt it in his best interests to decline. The only real ‘what if’ has to start based around changing Staal’s answer in the first place.
Which leads to the great hypothetical: what if Staal would have signed with the Penguins in 2012?
The first issue to confront and address would be the NHL’s salary cap in 2013-14, when the new contract would have kicked in. It was set at $64.3 million. Adding Staal at a $6 million cap would have been 9.3% of the salary cap, which to put into today’s dollars on a $104 million cap would be the equivalent of a $10.1 million cap hit.
Add Staal to Crosby and Malkin (each at 13.5% of the cap, $8.7m hits, with Malkin increasing to $9.5m in 2014-15) plus Marc-Andre Fleury and Paul Martin’s matching $5m hits would have taken up 52% of the total space in 2013-14 for just those five players. A massive problem in the latter part of the Ray Shero era was finding enough talent to create a quality team around their star players, retaining Staal would have compounded that issue even further, likely to negative results for the club’s overall success in that 2013-18 range (did anything good end up happening then for the Pens?).
Had Staal stayed, the shape of the Penguins would have had to morph drastically as a result. That might start with Chris Kunitz, Pittsburgh had Kunitz re-sign in 2013 for a $3.85 million cap hit for 2014-15 (at the time the Malkin+Letang increases kicked in). Jam Staal into the Pens’ structure and that would have made for a sticky situation to keep Kunitz. A $3.85 million contract might not sound like a lot from the 2026 perspective, but back then that was 5.6% of the cap, comparable to $5.8 million in today’s cap dollars. (And, let’s not forget both Crosby+Malkin would be at $13.5m each in today’s dollars. Throw Staal’s $10 in there and suddenly we can understand the math isn’t adding up for someone like Kunitz).
Going down that rabbit hole, beyond just someone like Kunitz – the possibility can’t be dismissed that Pittsburgh keeping Staal would directly tie to having to shed one of Malkin or Kris Letang in the 2013 or 2014 range prior to their next contracts in 2014-15. Letang’s 10.5% of the cap contract in 2014-15 is almost an $11 million contract in 2026-27 dollars. At some point it was fated to become an inevitability that the core of high picks of Fleury-Malkin-Crosby-Staal couldn’t be retained indefinitely in those early days of a restrictive salary cap once they got into their high-earning days. The way the timing and contract lengths worked out it ended up being be Staal as the first to go due to his unrestricted free agency coming up the soonest.
There’s more possibilities for change in every area you look. Staal staying with the Pens could have altered whether or not the Pens acquired Brendan Morrow the following spring in 2013. That proved significant since of the pick Dallas sent to Pittsburgh ended up being used on Jake Guentzel, and Pittsburgh wouldn’t have been in position to select Guentzel without having that pick. Therefore, it’s conceivable that keeping Staal could have changed the course of the franchise in ways both obvious and under the surface. Changing any one decision can have a cascading effect down the line for everything else that is to come in ways large and small. That’s deep into the butterfly flapping its wings causing a tornado on the other side of the continent, but the direct line can be traced just the same.
The other glaring result without requiring a deep dive is that Brian Dumoulin and Nick Bonino were added to the organization via the Staal trade (Dumoulin coming directly from Carolina, Bonino traded for Brandon Sutter, a piece Pittsburgh got for Staal) and those two were instrumental in the 2016 and 2017 Stanley Cups. Dropping Staal meant increasing the team’s depth, eventually leading to success. It’s possible there’s a path that includes keeping Staal leads to championships in the mid-2010’s, but it would be difficult to do the same or better than how the reality played out – with the Staal trade leaving no small lasting effect on the Pens.
In the end, without the benefit of viewing a parallel universe to see how it all played out under slightly different circumstances, we ultimately couldn’t say for sure what would have happened if Jordan Staal agreed to a contract with the Penguins. Maybe the Pens don’t have Malkin and never drafted Guentzel. It also doesn’t have to be negative, maybe the Pens would have traded for some excellent players that we can’t even fathom now because their focus was changed. Literally any potential scenario is possible once getting into that realm, without any one clear path.
Regardless of exactly how the Pens with Staal post-2012 would have panned out, it is indisputable that a large number of team construction decisions would have been different to make it all work with the salary cap. Without going too off the rails, we can take comfort that fate generally worked out the best for all parties- especially now that Staal has seen his 14 years in Carolina pay off by helping get them within reach of a Stanley Cup. In the end, Staal’s choice not to sign with the Pens and Pittsburgh’s use of the resources they got from him helped to bring two more Stanley Cups to Western Pennsylvania, while also sending out what would have been a very successful and popular player away from the team that drafted him, allowing him to get onto his next chapter that’s still being written.
But we can always stop to wonder how it might have gone if that decision was different..
CLEVELAND, OH - JUNE 09: New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone (17) makes the call to the bullpen during the eighth inning of the Major League Baseball game between the New York Yankees and Cleveland Guardians on June 9, 2026, at Progressive Field in Cleveland, OH. (Photo by Frank Jansky/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
It’s less a question of “if” than “when” as it pertains to whether the Yankees will add to their bullpen this year. Though the consternation over the club’s relief unit has been overblown (the bullpen does have the third-best ERA and best expected ERA in the American League right now), it’s clear the Yankees plan to make some sort of alterations to a group that contains a few question marks.
As of now, there’s probably only two guys out there that fans would pencil in with relative confidence as late-inning guys, in David Bednar and Fernando Cruz. That pair, barring injury, will almost certainly factor into the Yankees’ high-leverage plans throughout the year. After that, it’s anyone’s guess how the hierarchy will shake out.
Outside of Cruz and Bednar, which Yankees reliever are you most optimistic about? As shaky as the group has felt at times, there are some decent choices to pick from. Maybe the most obvious choice is Camilo Doval, whose 100-mph cutters and sinkers force one to wonder how it’s even possible that he’s not a dominant reliever. Doval has looked better lately after a terrible first couple of weeks of the season, but he’s still got an unimpressive 5.47 ERA and 3.99 FIP for the year.
Perhaps you’ve bought into Brent Headrick, who actually leads the Yankee bullpen in fWAR and narrowly trails Cruz in rWAR. Though he won’t run a 2.03 ERA all year, Headrick has done an admirable job missing bats and limiting homers, sitting 94-95 mph from the left side. There’s also Paul Blackburn, whose quietly been excellent at managing contact this year, and has seen his fastball velo tick up toward 95 mph, the hardest of his career.
There’s of course Tim Hill, the early-season hero who’s numbers have taken a hit after a few bad outings lately, but still has the look of a good contact-manager. There could ostensibly be some Jake Bird believers out there, with the right-hander posting totally cogent fielding-independent numbers. One could even cape for the flame-throwing Yovanny Cruz, who impressed in a cup of coffee with the Yankees, but whose control problems (he walks 4.5 per nine in the minors) have likely kept the team from committing to him.
Look up and down the bullpen, and the Yankees really have managed to coax fine production from most of their relievers this year, but there just aren’t many that inspire iron-clad confidence. If you had to choose one, which of the Yankees’ relievers that aren’t fully in the Circle of Trust now would you bet on to ascend there by season’s end?
It’ll be a relatively light day, as we all catch a breather while the Yankees travel back from Cleveland. In the morning, John wonders whether Paul Blackburn can take the Luke Weaver route to a high-leverage relief role, and Andrew recaps Wednesday’s American League action. Later, Matt’s entry in our Yankee Birthday series highlights Dan Topping, and Andres analyzes the dismal production the Yankees have gotten from their catchers at the plate the last few weeks.
The Athletic | Brendan Kuty ($): Many worried how the Yankees offense would suffer in the absence of Aaron Judge as he recovers from a broken rib, and while they will always be a better team with him in the lineup, they have to feel encouraged about the sweep they just completed over the Guardians scoring 18 runs across the three games. Cody Bellinger, Trent Grisham, and Paul Goldschmidt in particular stepped up in Cleveland and the hope is that they can continue to lead the team into the summer.
Also contained within this series takeaway was a nugget that Ryan Weathers was seen warming up in the bullpen in the fourth inning on Wednesday and was “in play” as a reliever according to Aaron Boone despite being scheduled to start against the Blue Jays on Friday. It offers an insight into the Yankees’ rotation plans as Max Fried makes progress in his elbow injury rehab, Weathers perhaps now the first name on the chopping block for a move to the bullpen.
Yahoo! Sports | Jordan Shusterman: Gerrit Cole labored through his Tuesday night start against the Guardians, though it is interesting to note that he threw his first 100 mph fastball in an MLB game since September 28, 2022. Cole offered some insights into the possible cause of the bump in velocity, noting the hot, humid weather and a very elevated heartbeat up to what he felt was around 185 BPM. He did admit that he was completely gassed by the 29-pitch third inning where the Guardians scored two runs, but also felt encouraged that he was able to complete four innings and limit the damage to two.
New York Daily News | Gary Phillips: As Anthony Volpe neared his season debut from offseason shoulder surgery, Aaron Boone promised the media and fans that José Caballero had played well enough that he would not lose the starting job at short should Volpe hit better than him upon returning. Well, it turns out that is exactly what happened, Volpe riding a ten-game hot streak to start his campaign to effectively steal the starting shortstop job from Caballero. Volpe has gone cold since then with a 78 wRC+ in 20 total games yet continues to receive the lion’s share of starts at short despite several notable fielding blunders and non-competitive at bats. To be fair, Caballero has gotten starts in the outfield with Judge injured, but that is also taking playing time away from guys like Spencer Jones and Max Schuemann, both of whom have been more productive hitters than Volpe in limited playing time.
New York Post | Ryan Dunleavy: Jasson Domínguez is nearing his return from a shoulder injury and has been learning a new position in his Triple-A rehab assignment. Domínguez manned right field in his two outings with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre despite playing just one game there in the minors and none in the majors. The idea is that it will give him the opportunity for more reps between right and DH with Judge and Giancarlo Stanton sidelined. Once Domínguez has completed his rehab assignment, Spencer Jones is the most likely to be optioned to make room on the major league roster, though Boone did not guarantee an immediate call-up and committed to playing it day-by-day based on the performances of Domínguez and Jones.
NJ Advance Media | Randy Miller: In addition to overlapping on the report of Domínguez’s position change, Miller provides an update on Carlos Lagrange’s progress transitioning to a bullpen role. Lagrange tossed four scoreless innings of one-hit ball while striking out seven in his first relief appearance as the bulk guy to follow and opener before giving up a run on three hits and a walk in 2.2 innings his next time out. He had five days of rest in between those relief appearances and the plan now is to reduce the time between outings. The Yankees still believe his long-term future is as a quality big league starter, but the hope this year is that he can reinforce the struggling big league bullpen with his triple-digit heater.
Knicks fans threw objects at Spurs superstar Victor Wembanyama as he and his teammates returned to their Midtown hotel following New York’s historic comeback win on Wednesday night.
Wembanyama had just gotten off the team’s bus and was walking towards the entrance of the Ritz-Carlton New York, NoMad when an object was hurled towards him and smashed into a street sign, according to video posted on X.
San Antonio’s towering 7-foot-5 center, wearing street clothes and carrying a large Louis Vuitton duffel bag, ducked as the apparent piece of trash shattered against the post.
An object is thrown at Spurs’ star Victor Wembanyama as he walked from the team bus to the Ritz-Carlton New York, NoMad after Game 4 of the NBA Finals on June 11, 2026. @KingCharge/X
Security guards grabbed Wembanyama and rushed him inside the luxury hotel as the crazed fans continued jeering the NBA Defensive Player of the Year, shouting “Wemby” after the Spurs blew a 29-point lead in the 107-106 loss.
Wembanyama made one last glance at the thousands of Knicks fans behind metal barriers before he vanished inside the hotel.
Police have not been called or made any arrests around the hotel as of early Thursday morning, the NYPD told The Post.
“The Alien,” as he is known, scored 24 points and one assist in the 44 minutes he played, making only eight points in the second half and missing two crucial free throws when the Spurs were up 104-103 with 1:47 left in the 4th quarter.
Play got chippy early Wednesday night as Knicks center Mitchell Robinson was called for a flagrant foul after throwing an elbow into Wembanyama, knocking San Antonio’s big man to the floor.
As his teammates ran to pick him up, Wembanyama stared down Robinson, pointing at his temple, saying ‘I’m in your head.”
Knicks fans throwing stuff at Wemby and the Spurs as they arrive at their hotelpic.twitter.com/R2qGunsxBW
Wembanyama made one last glance at the thousands of Knicks fans behind metal barriers before he vanished inside the hotel. @KingCharge/X
Two quarters later, Wembanyama was hit with his own Flagrant 1 after his elbow came across the face of Knicks star Karl-Anthony Towns while he was trying to break free as the Spurs held their 29-point lead.
Knicks fans had swarmed the area around W28th Street waiting for the Spurs to return to the luxury hotel they’ve been staying at while in town for Game 3 and Game 4 of the NBA finals.
Hours before tip-off, Knicks fans had given the Spurs a “boo-filled” send-off to Madison Square Garden as the team boarded the bus headed towards the “World’s Most Famous Arena.”
Wembanyama had been branded public enemy number one after he got away with shoving Knicks’ captain Jalen Brunson in a dirty play during the first quarter of Game 3 on Monday.
Had Wembanyama been charged with a flagrant in Game 3, he would now have four flagrant foul points that would’ve suspended him for one game, meaning he would have missed Game 5 back in San Antonio on Saturday.
New Yorkers had called for “Wemby” to be charged with a flagrant foul, but both the referees and NBA officials declined to charge the penalty to Wembanyama.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - JUNE 08: Victor Wembanyama #1 of the San Antonio Spurs works against Jose Alvarado #5 of the New York Knicks during the fourth quarter in Game Three of the 2026 NBA Finals at Madison Square Garden on June 08, 2026 in New York City. 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 Al Bello/Getty Images) | Getty Images
I cannot believe that just happened.
At halftime, I remarked in the P&T group chat that I wasn’t doing player grades. Why should I? The entire team deserved a big ol’ F.
He wasn’t immune to the unanimous feeling of being flustered in the first half that every last Knick felt, so some of the possessions looked downright ugly early, but he calmed everything down in the second half, leading the impossible comeback.
He played 23 minutes in the second half. He had 17 points on 6-11 shooting. He nailed momentum shot after momentum shot. It was vintage Jalen Brunson.
— Basketball Performances (@NBAPerformances) June 11, 2026
But what was most impressive was that he was more willing to get the ball out of his hands. He had some bad turnovers, but had a series-high in assists and was more willing to work off-ball. The plan coming into the game was very clearly to get back to the KAT-centric offense, but him getting in foul trouble early ruined it.
I cannot find it in my heart to critique really anything. Even his startling final shot was calculated. He dragged Victor Wembanyama out of the paint with his gravity, and it allowed OG Anunoby to fly in for a putback to win the game.
I refuse to be too negative after that game, but this was another disappointing game for Bridges, who’s now just 1-for-4 in the Finals on impactful games.
He played just 28 minutes and spent a lot of the fourth on the bench after not making much of an impact early. The defense wasn’t good enough. The offense wasn’t good.
For all the good that Josh Hart has done for this franchise, this could’ve been the game that sealed him in history in infamy.
The brick open layup for the lead. The ball-watching on the Stephon Castle offensive rebound. Two disastrous plays threatened to spoil one of the greatest comebacks in sports history.
Even aside from that, he didn’t really do much. He clearly had some sort of impact, being on the court for pretty much the entire comeback, but man.
This is one of the greatest games in Knicks history. This was, quite simply, unbelievable.
He made clutch three after clutch three. His shooting in the first half was the only reason we weren’t down 50. Every time he had the ball, he made something happen.
— Basketball Performances (@NBAPerformances) June 11, 2026
He made a game-saving play when he swatted De’Aaron Fox on a layup with 15 seconds to go. He then hit the greatest shot in franchise history by tipping in a missed 3 by Brunson.
It was absolutely abysmal that he was forced out of the game in one minute because of two ticky-tack calls. He’s a star. Why doesn’t he get a whistle like one? Oh, wait, I can think of a reason.
Anyway, the one benefit of him being glued to the bench for the entire first half is that he was able to empty the tank in the second half, playing 17 of his 26 minutes. He was unable to get to much offense, but he was a beast on the boards, re-established physicality on Wemby, and played with energy.
He also scored five points in that fourth-quarter run, including an incredible stepback three and a drive on Wemby himself that was probably also a blocking foul. Zach Zarba, this is why you let the man play.
Genuinely unbelievable that this is the shot KAT ended up with on this possession lol pic.twitter.com/rrvX1JvPI8
— Nekias (Nuh-KAI-us) Duncan (@NekiasNBA) June 11, 2026
(Bonus: He seems to have tipped the game-ending inbound that led to Castle not getting a clean catch. Big time stuff.)
Mike Brown got bold in the fourth quarter. He played Alvarado alongside Brunson, giving up a ridiculous amount of size on the defensive end to diversify the team’s offense and take pressure off JB.
In his 16 minutes, he committed five fouls. He played with intensity. He bit Wemby’s ankles. He made two massive shots in a row to cut the lead to four with 3 minutes to go.
Couldn't believe this from Alvarado. Big time move with no fear of the moment. pic.twitter.com/y6smvAAS1u
He probably deserves a D, to be honest. He looked gassed when he had to come in to play early for KAT. He missed three layups early and a dunk in the third quarter. He was pulled for Ariel Hukporti and Jeremy Sochan.
Why does he get a C? He got a lick back on Wemby late in the first quarter for his shenanigans the last two games. It wasn’t the turning point, per se, but it was the warning shot that the Knicks were done getting punked by Victor Wembanyama. That’s what an enforcer does.
Wemby has been great in isolation so far this game and gives Mitch Rob some extra words afterwards
These were some ugly minutes. When the Knicks tried to make a run in the third quarter, he was extremely clumsy with the ball and threw away multiple possessions.
You had to reward him with minutes with the way Deuce is playing and how he played on Monday, but goodness.
Miscellanous
Ariel Hukporti: Welcome to the series, Huk! Three minutes, 1 block, 1 foul. He didn’t really do much, but I guess he was the start of slowing down Wemby late in the second quarter?
Jeremy Sochan: The only thing I remember him doing in three minutes was taking a hilarious turnaround jumper that missed badly. The center rotation was in shambles in that first half. Trey Jemison III, where art thou?
