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Good morning! Show some love to Candace Parker today.
While You Were Sleeping: An emphatic, game-changing sweep
I hate the overuse of the term “passing the torch,” but what occurred in Phoenix last night felt worthy of the phrase. The Minnesota Timberwolves, led by ascendant megastar Anthony Edwards, finished off a sweep of his childhood hero Kevin Durant’s Suns with a 122-116 win.
Zoom out and it’s huge two ways:
1. Remember when we worried about how the Timberwolves, coming off a magical regular season, would fare in their first real playoff action as a core group? These are not the Wolves of the past. They are talented, terrifying and ready for the moment, no one more so than the 22-year-old Edwards, who does stuff like this in the closing minutes of a playoff game:
ANTHONY EDWARDS ARE YOU SERIOUS 🤯🤯🤯
WOLVES UP 4 WITH 2 MINUTES REMAINING ON TNT pic.twitter.com/P1DX4w8Cj4
— NBA (@NBA) April 29, 2024
Mercy. This is the first series win for the Timberwolves since 2004, and they might be the biggest threat to Denver at this point. (Also, I hope Minnesota coach Chris Finch is OK after suffering this sideline collision with Mike Conley, which gave the coach a torn patellar tendon.)
2. Kevin Durant’s late career is so intriguing now. The man has two Finals MVPs, but ever since leaving Golden State in 2019, he has just two playoff series wins, both in the first round. NBA playoff success is fleeting, and it feels like the last four seasons have been squandered opportunities for the 35-year-old.
And what about the Suns’ future? Shams Charania and Doug Haller gathered some juicy details about the turmoil inside this team all season, which is worth a read this morning. Sounds to me like Frank Vogel is toast, though he says he believes differently.
I also loved Durant’s comments after the game on Edwards, whom he said is his “favorite player to watch.” A true torch-passing, if you will.
Let’s catch up with everyone else:
- After tough wins yesterday, both the Knicks and Pacers (!) are one game away from advancing. Jalen Brunson put up a heroic 47 points in Philadelphia, while Indiana capitalized on the absence of both Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard to push a preseason favorite to the brink.
- The Clippers and Mavericks are holding our most interesting NBA series right now. LA won yesterday, tying it at 2-2. With wins being traded by superstars (Luka Dončić and Kyrie Irving against Paul George, James Harden and Kawhi Leonard), I have no idea who has the upper hand. See all of yesterday’s NBA action here.
- On the ice, the Rangers also closed out their series against the Capitals with a 4-2 win. Heady stuff, especially on the road. They await the winner of Canes-Islanders, which could wrap up with a Carolina win tomorrow.
- The Canucks, Avalanche and Oilers are also up 3-1 after massive wins yesterday, and few have been more impressive than Vancouver’s 4-3 overtime win in Nashville. The Canucks shocked the world, including our writers. Colorado’s blowout win ended in, ahem, blows. More on that later.
Whew. By the end of the week, we will have fewer teams.
Overdue: Ding dong, the jerseys are gone
I will admit that I figured, no matter how bad the MLB jersey fiasco got, that the hard feelings would subside and we would all accept our small-lettered, see-through-pants future. I was wrong:
- An MLB Players Association memo — obtained by The Athletic — indicates that Nike will largely restore the look and feel of last year’s jerseys, including the larger lettering, thicker pants and even the better zipper used in previous years.
- This comes after months of scrutiny. No one ever seemed overjoyed about the new duds, and we’ve seen multiple pants tears since the season began, not to mention the very obvious change in appearance. The criticism was loud and lengthy.
Just don’t expect the jerseys to change this year — we’ll get the old look back by Opening Day of 2025. It can’t come soon enough.
News to Know
Parker retires
There has never been a women’s basketball player like Candace Parker, who announced her retirement yesterday after 16 years in the WNBA. Her stardom started before that though, as she became a superstar at Tennessee, where she won two national championships and became the first woman to dunk in an NCAA Tournament game. She is a three-time WNBA champion, two-time WNBA MVP and also one of the best basketball analysts on TV. Sabreena Merchant properly captured the moment here.
Dell injured in shooting
Texans wide receiver Tank Dell was shot in Florida this weekend, the team confirmed, adding that he sustained only minor injuries in the incident. There are no other public details about the shooting at this time. Dell became a star for the surprise Texans last season, catching 47 passes for 709 yards and seven touchdowns in just 11 games.
More news
Things You Need to See: Rory karaokes in New Orleans
I may be biased, but there is no city more fun than New Orleans. And Rory McIlroy clearly needed a fun weekend.
He and Shane Lowry won the Zurich Classic yesterday in New Orleans via a dramatic playoff finish, then immediately went to the 19th-hole bar and started blasting out Journey with the house band:
This is not a drill. Rory McIlroy singing Don’t Stop Believing pic.twitter.com/y5PkEDoqo4
— Brody Miller (@BrodyAMiller) April 28, 2024
I urge you to click through on that video to hear Rory completely drown out any singing attempt by Lowry.
It was a cathartic weekend for McIlroy, as Brody Miller wrote, in a place where he could relax from the stressful two years he’s had. There was no LIV talk or awkward interactions with playing partners this week. Just one of the world’s best golfers, playing with one of his best friends, winning a golf tournament and rocking Mardi Gras beads. Perfect.
Watch This Game
NBA: Celtics at Heat
7:30 p.m. on TNT
Miami is not the same caliber team as last year, but I still need to see Boston fully embrace its role as the East’s alpha and swat away the Heat, who have been a nightmare matchup in past seasons.
NHL: Stars at Golden Knights
9:30 p.m. ET on ESPN
This series is fun again thanks to Dallas’ 20-year-old star, Wyatt Johnson, helping the Stars partially dig out of a 2-0 hole.
Get tickets to games like these here.
Pulse Picks
Last year, Deion Sanders cut 20 Colorado players in a day, something unheard of in modern college football. Where are his castoffs now? Max Olson has a great story on the experience those players endured and how they feel about the whole ordeal now.
Adam Jahns has a great, long-look feature on Caleb Williams, who’s been a superstar since high school. Good time to be a Bears fan.
A worthy circle-back: the Angels are calling up Zac Kristofak, the prospect whose father murdered his mother. Sam Blum penned a wonderful piece on how Kristofak has tried to find the light ever since.
Why are the Maple Leafs losing another playoff series? This time, the Bruins are just better, as Sean McIndoe writes.
Most-clicked in the newsletter yesterday: NFL Draft winners and losers. Still relevant.
Most-read on the website yesterday: Eric Duhatschek’s recap of the wild Jets-Avalanche Game 3, which ended with blood everywhere. Literally.
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(Photo: Kate Frese / Getty Images)
