🔥 Passing the Torch

Good Morning! It was a gargantuan weekend in sports, and if you decided to soak up some rays instead of rotting on the couch, don't worry — because I chose the latter. First-round action in the NBA and Stanley Cup playoffs is heating up, and an up-and-coming title contender in each league is already moving on while a pair of aging powerhouses are joining me on the sofa. It was all about the future on the gridiron too, and we’ll wrap up our NFL draft coverage with this weekend’s biggest winners and losers, a meaningless exercise that shockingly does not translate to any physical victories. We also had some walk-off wins in the MLB, and the Premier League title race is in the home stretch. Finally, don’t stop believing in Rory McIlroy. Let’s go!

WTF Stat: Alabama has produced 133 NFL draft picks since 2009, the most of any program in that span, and has had at least seven players drafted for 13 straight years (2012-present) - the Tide has had at least 10 or more players selected in five of the last eight drafts (2017, 2019, 2021, 2023, 2024).

🏀 First-Round Frenzy

NBA Playoffs - First Round

Sunday

• West, Game 4 | #3 Minnesota Timberwolves 122, #6 Phoenix Suns 116 (MIN Wins series 4-0): Ain’t it sweep, Minnesota? Devin Booker (49 PTS, 13-21 FG, 5 REB, 6 AST) did everything he could, but Phoenix only got 34 points outside of him and Kevin Durant (33 PTS, 9 REB, 5 AST), and although the Suns hung around, Anthony Edwards (40 PTS, 7-13 3PT, 9 REB, 6 AST) took over with 31 points in the second half and posterized KD with a ferocious hammer to put the Wolves up four with two minutes remaining, as Minnesota pulled away in the clutch to earn their first playoff series win since 2004 - Timberwolves HC Chris Finch left the game in the 4th quarter after reportedly suffering a torn patellar tendon while colliding with Mike Conley (10 PTS, 7 AST), and Bradley Beal (9 PTS, 4-13 FG, 2 AST, 6 TO, 6 PF) was flat-out awful

• West, Game 4 | #4 LA Clippers 116, #5 Dallas Mavericks 111 (Series tied 2-2): This one could be going seven, folks! In a thriller down in Texas, the Mavs trailed by as many as 31 points in the 2nd quarter, but Kyrie Irving (40 PTS, 6-12 3PT, 7 REB, 5 AST) and Luka Doncic (29 PTS, 10 REB, 10 AST) willed them back, and Irving hit a downright diabolical layup to give Dallas a 105-104 lead with 2:14 remaining; however, Paul George (33 PTS, 7-10 3PT, 6 REB, 8 AST) responded with a ridiculous shot of his own, and then James Harden (33 PTS, 4-5 3PT, 6 REB, 7 AST) converted a late and-1 to seal it, as the Clippers survived a nightmarish meltdown to split the opening home-and-home sets - the series will return to LA for Game 5 on Wednesday

• East, Game 4 | #2 New York Knicks 97, #7 Philadelphia 76ers 92 (NYK lead series 3-1): In another chippy affair at the Wells Fargo Center, Jalen Brunson (47 PTS, 18-34 FG, 10 REB) followed up a 39-piece in Game 3 with a Knicks postseason record 47 points and had some massive buckets in crunch time while New York held Joel Embiid (27 PTS, 10 REB, 6 AST) and the Sixers to just three points in the final 5:04, as the Knicks prevailed down the stretch to return home with a chance to close out the series - Brunson received “MVP” chants during the game (in Philly!)

• East, Game 4 | Indiana Pacers 126, Milwaukee Bucks 113 (IND leads series 3-1): Deer in headlights! With Giannis Antetokounmpo (calf) still in street clothes and Damian Lillard joining him on the sideline after hurting his Achilles tendon in Friday’s overtime loss, Khris Middleton (25 PTS, 10 REB, 5 AST) and the shorthanded Bucks couldn’t keep pace with Indiana, as Myles Turner (29 PTS, 7-14 3PT, 4 AST), Tyrese Haliburton (24 PTS, 5-12 3PT, 4 AST), and the Pacers knocked down 22 triples at home to claim their third straight W - both Giannis and Dame could miss Tuesday’s game as well

Saturday

• West, Game 4 | #7 Los Angeles Lakers 119, #2 Denver Nuggets 108 (DEN leads series 3-1): Looking to avoid a second consecutive playoff sweep at the hands of the Nuggets, LeBron James (30 PTS, 14-23 FG, 5 REB, 4 AST), Anthony Davis (25 PTS, 23 REB, 6 AST), and the Lakers were finally able to crack Nikola Jokic (33 PTS, 14 REB, 14 AST) and the defending champs, as Los Angeles led the entire second half at Crypto.com Arena to keep their season alive - it was the Lakers first win against Denver in 12 games

• East, Game 3 | #1 Boston Celtics 104, #8 Miami Heat 84 (BOS leads series 2-1): Following a surprising Game 2 loss at TD Garden, Jayson Tatum (22 PTS, 11 REB, 6 AST) and the top-seeded C’s reclaimed control of the series by blowing out Bam Adebayo (20 PTS, 9 REB) and the Heat on their home floor in a wire-to-wire victory - Boston led 63-39 at halftime

• West, Game 3 | #1 Oklahoma City Thunder 106, #8 New Orleans Pelicans 85 (OKC leads series 3-0): After taking the first two games in Oklahoma City, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (24 PTS, 5 REB, 8 AST) and the Thunder took a commanding 3-0 series lead by waxing Brandon Ingram (19 PTS, 4 REB) and the Pels in New Orleans, as OKC blew things open in the second half for another convincing win - the Pelicans haven't scored more than 92 points in a game all series

• East, Game 4 | #5 Orlando Magic 112, #4 Cleveland Cavaliers 89 (Series tied 2-2): Despite not trailing for a single second in the first two games, the Magic suddenly tied the series on Saturday, as Franz Wagner (34 PTS, 13 REB) single-handily outscored Donavan Mitchell (18 PTS, 5-14 FG, 6 AST) and the Cavs and in the 3rd quarter to erase a nine-point halftime deficit, and Orlando didn’t look back to hold court at home

See the full box scores here.

Tonight’s Schedule - First Round

• East, Game 4 | #1 Boston Celtics @ #8 Miami Heat 7:30pm ET, TNT - (BOS leads series 2-1)

• West, Game 4 | #1 Oklahoma City Thunder @ #8 New Orleans Pelicans 8:30pm ET, NBA TV - (OKC leads series 3-1)

• West, Game 5 | #7 Los Angeles Lakers @ #2 Denver Nuggets 10:00pm ET, TNT - (DEN leads series 3-1)

See the entire NBA playoffs bracket here.

🏒 Playoff Hockey!

NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs - First Round

Sunday

• East, Game 4 | New York Rangers 4, Washington Capitals 2 (NYR Win series 4-0): Break out the brooms! The Caps fought admirably all series, and Hendrix Lapierre (1 G) tied the game at two midway through the 2nd period, but once again, the Rangers were simply too much, as Artemi Panarin (1 G, 1 A) reclaimed the lead for New York shortly after intermission, and Jack Roslovic (1 G) said goodnight with an empty-netter, giving the Blue Shirts an impressive series sweep - the Rangers are the first team to advance to the second round, and Alex Ovechkin failed to record a point the entire series

• West, Game 4 | Vancouver Canucks 4, Nashville Predators 3 / OT (VAN leads series 3-1): Smashville was rocking as the Preds appeared to be on their way to evening the series after Filip Forsperg (1 G) gave them a 3-1 early in the 3rd period, but then Brock Boeser (3 G) lit the lamp twice in the span of three minutes, including a game-tying goal with eight seconds remaining to force overtime, where Elias Lindholm (1 G) completed the comeback with an OT-winner to stun the Nashville faithful - Vancouver can close the series out on Tuesday at home

• West, Game 4 | Colorado Avalanche 5, Winnipeg Jets 1 (COL leads series 3-1): The Avs high-octane offensive continued to roll Sunday, as Valeri Nichushkin (3 G) and Cale Makar (1 G, 1 A) combined for three straight goals in the 2nd period to break a 1-1 tie, and then Nichushkin added an empty-netter in the game’s final seconds to cap another big Colorado win with a hat trick - the Avalanche, who led the NHL in goals per game in the regular season (3.68), have scored five or more goals in all four games this postseason

• West, Game 4 | Edmonton Oilers 1, Los Angeles Kings 0 (EDM leads series 3-1): Evan Bouchard’s (1 G) one-timer from Leon Draisaitl (1 A) and Connor McDavid (1 G) was all the Oils needed to top David Rittich (12 SV) and the Kings in LA late Sunday night, as Stuart Skinner (33 SV) earned a shutout to give Edmonton a 3-1 series lead heading back home

Saturday

• West, Game 3 | Dallas Stars 3, Vegas Golden Knights 2 / OT (VGK leads series 2-1): The Stars still have life! Logan Thompson (43 SV) stood on his head, and the Knights erased a 2-0 deficit in the 2nd period with goals from Brayden McNabb (1 G, 1 A) and Jack Eichel (1 G), but 20-year-old Wyatt Johnston (2 G) saved the day for Dallas with a beautiful OT-winner, as the Stars took the first game in Vegas to gain a foothold in the series

• East, Game 4 | Boston Bruins 3, Toronto Maple Leafs 1 (BOS leads series 3-1): After splitting the first two games in Beantown, the B’s left Toronto with a pair of wins, as 2nd-period goals from Brad Marchand (1 G, 1 A) and David Pastrnak (1 G) put them up 3-0, which was more than enough room for Jeremy Swayman (24 SV) to close out Mitch Marner (1 G) and the Leafs at Scotiabank Arena - Auston Matthews sat out the 3rd period because of an illness

• East, Game 4 | New York Islanders 3, Carolina Hurricanes 2 / 2OT (CAR leads series 3-1): With their season hanging in the balance, Matthew Barzal (1 G) came through for the Isles as the team’s regular-season points leader called game in overtime with a filthy wrister to edge out Stefan Noesen (1 G) and the Canes in Elmont

• East, Game 4 | Tampa Bay Lightning 6, Florida Panthers 3 (FLA leads series 3-1): With their backs against the wall on their home ice, Tampa Bay finally showed up, as Brandon Hagel (2 G, 1 A), Steven Stamkos (2 G), and the Bolts built a 4-1 lead in the 2nd period, which was ultimately too great for Matthew Tkachuck (2 A) and the Cats to overcome, allowing the Lightning to avoid the sweep

See the full box scores here.

Tonight’s Schedule - First Round

• East, Game 5 | (WC1) Tampa Bay Lightning @ (A1) Florida Panthers 7:00pm ET, ESPN - (FLA leads series 3-1)

• West, Game 4 | (C1) Dallas Stars @ (WC2) Vegas Golden Knights 9:30pm ET, ESPN - (VGK leads series 2-1)

See the entire Stanley Cup playoffs bracket here.

🏈 NFL Draft Recap

2024 NFL Draft Recap

The 2024 NFL Draft wrapped up in Detroit on Saturday after three days of intrigue and excitement. Let us remind you that “draft grades” before a single snap has been played mean next to nothing. (Remember when the experts said this about the Chiefs selecting Patrick Mahomes?) Regardless, it’s still fun to see some instant reactions. So, below is the general consensus of the league’s biggest “winners” and “losers” from the draft, along with the weekend’s top storylines.

Winners

• Eagles: After trading back to land Toledo CB Quinyon Mitchell in Round 1, GM Howie Roseman continued his wheeling and dealing this weekend to finish with a record nine trades during draft week. Philadelphia added Iowa CB Cooper DeJean in Round 2 to pair with Mitchell and then landed two Clemson standouts on Saturday in RB Will Shipley and LB Jeremiah Trotter Jr., who were both considered late-round steals - the Eagles also added two 2025 picks via trade for a whopping nine selections in next year’s draft.

• Steelers: Pittsburgh is also deemed a big winner of the weekend after overhauling their offensive line by taking Washington OT Tray Fautanu, West Virginia C Zach Frazier, and South Dakota State OG Mason McCormick with three of their first five picks, alongside NC State LB Payton Wilson in Round 4, arguably the biggest steal of the draft.

• Bears: Chicago only made five selections, but their two picks in Round 1 could turn around the franchise. They landed the draft’s ultimate prize in USC QB Caleb Williams with the No. 1 overall pick and then grabbed his future WR1 in Washington’s Rome Odunze at No. 9. They also added Yale OT Kiran Amegadije in Round 3 to protect Williams and bolstered their defensive line by trading up for Kansas EDGE Austin Booker in Round 5.

• Honorable Mentions: Chargers, Chiefs, Commanders, Ravens.

Losers

• Falcons: Also, Kirk Cousins. After signing Cousins to a four-year, $180 million contract this offseason, Atlanta shockingly opted to add another quarterback with the No. 8 overall pick in Washington’s Michael Penix Jr., who will be 28 years old and on the last year of his rookie deal when Cousin’s contract expires. They added second-round DT Ruke Orhorhoro (Clemson) and third-round EDGE Bralen Trice (Washington) to help fill a glaring need at defensive line, but the decision to take Penix with a top-10 pick was puzzling.

• Raiders: Unlike Atlanta, the Raiders didn’t reach for a quarterback, but unlike Atlanta, the Raiders needed a quarterback! Georgia TE Brock Bowers was solid value at No. 13 overall, but Las Vegas drafted TE Michael Mayers 34th overall last year and has more immediate issues at hand. They didn’t address their needs in the secondary until the later rounds and will now enter training camp with Gardner Minshew and Aidan O’Connell battling it out under center.

• Browns: Not too many experts loved Cleveland’s draft, largely due to the effects of their 2022 trade with Houston for QB Deshaun Watson. The Browns were without their first- and fourth-round pick because of the deal and added Ohio State DT Michael Hall Jr. and Michigan OG Zak Ziner in Rounds 2 and 3 to bolster the trenches, but apart from Louisville WR Jamari Thrash, they didn’t add any weapons to an aging offense. In the end, Cleveland made its bed this weekend by dealing for Watson two years ago. The Texans got the best of them.

• Honorable Mentions: Cowboys, Dolphins, Lions, Panthers.

See every selection from all 32 teams and their draft grades here.

Other Top Storylines

• Detroit broke the draft’s all-time attendance record, with more than 775,000 fans showing up for the event - Nashville previously held the three-day attendance record with 600,000 people in 2019.

• Michigan led all college programs with 13 former players selected, from QB JJ McCarthy, who went to the Vikings at No. 10, to WR Cornelius Johnson, who went to Jim Harbaugh’s Chargers at No. 253 - the Wolverines were followed by Texas (11), Alabama (10), Florida State (10), and Washington (10).

• The SEC led all college conferences with 59 players selected, followed by the Pac-12 (43), the Big Ten (42), the ACC (41), and the Big 12 (31) - the Sun Belt had the most players drafted of any non-Power Five conference, with six.

• After a record-tying six quarterbacks were selected in the first round, zero signal-callers were drafted on Day 2 in the second and third rounds. Ultimately, 11 quarterbacks were selected - Day 3 QB selections: South Carolina’s Spencer Rattler (NO - Round 5), Florida State’s Jordan Travis (NYJ - Round 5), Tennessee’s Joe Milton III (NE - Round 6), Kentucky’s Devin Leary (BAL - Round 6), Tulane’s Michael Pratt (GB - Round 7).

See Friday’s letter for a full first-round recap.

MLB - Top Games

• Atlanta Braves 4, Cleveland Guardians 3 / F10: In a weekend series between two of the best in the bigs, the Bravos walked away with the rubber match in style, as Matt Olson (1-4, 1 RBI) tied the game in the 8th with an RBI single before Austin Riley (2-4, 1 RBI) drove in Ronald Acuna Jr. (1-5, 2 R) in the bottom of the 10th to edge out Andres Gimenez (2-4, 1 RBI) and the Guardians in Atlanta with a walk-off win - the Braves (19-7), Guardians (19-9), and Yankees (19-10) lead the MLB with 19 wins apiece

• New York Mets 4, St. Louis Cardinals 2 / F11: After dropping the first two games of the series, the Mets avoided a sweep at the hands of Brendan Donovan (1-5, 1 RBI) and the Cards thanks to a gem from Jose Quintana (8.0 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 3 Ks) and Mark Vientos’ (2-2, 1 HR, 2 RBIs) two-run, walk-off homer in the 11th on just his second day in the majors this season - the win puts New York (14-13) back above .500

• New York Yankees 15, Milwaukee Brewers 5: The Bronx Bombers took the deciding leg of a three-game set in Milwaukee as Anthony Volpe (2-4, 1 HR, 3 RBIs) cranked a three-run shot on his 23rd birthday, and Aaron Judge (3-4, 1 HR, 3 RBIs) went yard in the 1st before sparking a seven-run 6th inning by controversially knocking down a throw to first while sliding into second to prevent a double play, and the Yanks soon pulled away to beat the Brew Crew - all seven of New York’s runs in the 6th came with two outs after the failed double play

• Oakland Athletics 7, Baltimore Orioles 6: Look at the A’s! In another Sunday rubber match, Craig Kimbrel (0.0 IP, 1 H, 2 ER, 1 BB) blew his second straight save for the O’s as Kyle McCann (2-4, 1 HR, 2 RBIs) took him deep in the top of the 9th for a go-ahead, two-run homer, leading Oakland to a come-from-behind victory at Camden Yards - in a seven-game stretch against the Yankees and Orioles, the Athletics went 4-3

See the full MLB scoreboard here and the current standings here.

English Premier League - Top Match

• Arsenal 3, Tottenham 2: In the match of the weekend featuring two teams in the top five, the Gunners retained their one-point lead atop the table over Man City by defeating Tottenham on their home pitch, as a Pierre Emile Hojbgerg own-goal (15’) and strikes from Bukayo Saka (27’) and Kai Havertz (38’) gave Arsenal a 3-0 lead in the first half, which was ultimately too great for Son Heung-Min (87’) and the Hotspurs to overcome

See the full international scoreboard here and the current EPL table here.

PGA Tour - Zurich Classic of New Orleans (TPC Louisiana)

• Winner: McIlroy / Lowry (-25). Longtime friends Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry won the fun-filled alternate shot tournament at TPC Louisiana in a playoff against Chad Ramey and Martin Trainer, as the Irishmen birdied the 18th hole to force extra golf where Trainer pushed a six-foot par putt on the first playoff hole to give McIlroy and Lowry their first PGA wins of the season and a cool $1.29 million apiece - Rory celebrated the win by singing “Don’t Stop Believing” at the trophy presentation

See the entire final leaderboard here.

🏎️ Denny Hamlin held off Kyle Larson to win the NASCAR Cup Series at Dover on Sunday for his fourth victory this season - Hamlin guaranteed a victory at Dover last week

⛳️ Hannah Green (-12) won the LGPA LA Championship on Sunday by three strokes for her second straight title at the event - Nelly Korda, who has won her past five consecutive Tour starts, withdrew from the tournament last week, citing rest

🏈 Texans WR Tank Dell was released from the hospital yesterday after sustaining a minor gunshot wound in a Florida shooting on Saturday night - Dell was a bystander amid the shooting in which a teenage gunman wounded 10 people at a private event

🏀 Thunder HC Mark Daigneault was named the 2023-24 NBA Coach of the Year on Sunday, beating out the Magic’s Jamahl Mosley and Timberwolves’ Chris Finch with 89 first-place votes - Mosley came in second with four first-place votes

NBA Playoffs - First Round

• Game 4: Boston Celtics @ Miami Heat 7:30pm ET, TNT

• Game 4: Oklahoma City Thunder @ New Orleans Pelicans 8:30pm ET, NBA TV

• Game 5: Los Angeles Lakers @ Denver Nuggets 10:00pm ET, TNT

NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs - First Round

• Game 5: Tampa Bay Lightning @ Florida Panthers 7:00pm ET, ESPN

• Game 4: Dallas Stars @ Vegas Golden Knights 9:30pm ET, ESPN

MLB

• New York Yankees @ Baltimore Orioles 6:35pm ET, Local

• Minnesota Twins @ Chicago White Sox 7:40pm ET, FS1

• Pittsburgh Pirates @ Oakland Athletics 9:40ppm ET, ESPN+

• Full Schedule

Trivia Time Answer

C. 10. Ten Power Five schools did not have a player selected in the 2024 NFL Draft: Arizona, Baylor, Colorado, Georgia Tech, Indiana, Nebraska, Northwestern, Syracuse, Vanderbilt, and Virginia Tech.

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