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Thunder's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Joins NBA Legend With Playoff Feat During Game 2 vs. Pacers

Thunder's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Joins NBA Legend With Playoff Feat During Game 2 vs. Pacers

Yahooa day ago

Thunder's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Joins NBA Legend With Playoff Feat During Game 2 vs. Pacers originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
The Oklahoma City Thunder were at home on Sunday night as they hosted the Indiana Pacers in Game 2 of the NBA Finals.
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Oklahoma City entered Sunday's game looking to bounce back after blowing a lead in the fourth quarter of Game 1 and that is exactly what they were able to do.
The Thunder jumped out to an early lead in Game 2 as they led by six points at the end of the first quarter.
They then carried an 18-point lead into halftime before closing out the victory in the second half 123-107 to even up the series at 1-1.
Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2), forward Chet Holmgren (7), forward Jalen Williams (8), guard Luguentz Dort © Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the way for the Thunder as he recorded 34 points, five rebounds, eight assists and four steals.
Oklahoma City also saw an incredible performance from Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren as they scored 19 and 15 points respectively.
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Alex Caruso also provided a spark for the team off the bench with 20 points while Aaron Wiggins added 18 of his own.
While it was a complete team effort by Oklahoma City on Sunday, Shai was once again the star as he put together yet another 30-point performance.
This marked Shai's ninth consecutive home playoff game scoring 30 or more points as he joins Wilt Chamberlain as the only two players to do so in NBA history.
That is elite company for Shai as Chamberlain is one of the best players and scorers in NBA history, which shows just how impressive of a season the star point guard is having.
Of course, Shai capped off the regular season by winning MVP and he was then named Western Conference Finals MVP due to his dominant series.
Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) gestures after a play against the Memphis Grizzlies.Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images
Shai will now look to add an NBA Finals MVP to his resume and he and the Thunder will now look to take control of the series on Wednesday night as it shifts to Indiana for Game 3.
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 9, 2025, where it first appeared.

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Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel delivers brutally honest take on star cornerback Jalen Ramsey's trade situation
Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel delivers brutally honest take on star cornerback Jalen Ramsey's trade situation

Fox News

time15 minutes ago

  • Fox News

Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel delivers brutally honest take on star cornerback Jalen Ramsey's trade situation

The Miami Dolphins and Jalen Ramsey mutually agreed to explore trade options heading into the 2025 season, but that was almost two months ago. While no deal has been made, head coach Mike McDaniel doesn't seem worried, concerned or any other adjective about Ramsey's situation. "I don't give a s--- about what I feel," he said when asked his thoughts on the trade dilemma. "I don't even really go down that road of, 'How do I feel about it?' My job is to react and control my controllables and make sure that people are moving in one direction appropriately." McDaniel spoke during his team's opening day of mandatory minicamp, where Ramsey wasn't present, as expected. He has elected to remain away from the Dolphins until his situation is resolved. It's a bit surprising to see the 30-year-old not be dealt over the past two months given he's on the market. Ramsey is a seven-time Pro Bowler and three-time All-Pro who continues to play at a high level at the cornerback position. But when you look at the financials, perhaps it makes sense why the Dolphins remain the team employing Ramsey. He signed a three-year, $72.3 million extension just one season ago, meaning teams would have to carry a heavy cap hit to trade for Ramsey, unless some sort of financial package can be reached in the process with Miami. As a result, McDaniel is simply focused on the roster he has present at his minicamp. He enters his fourth year on the job, and he could be on the hot seat if Miami doesn't turn things around after an 8-9 season. Of course, quarterback play is a large factor in teams winning and losing, and it didn't help that Tua Tagovailoa suffered yet another concussion that had him out early in the season. McDaniel's offense requires precise timing and accuracy, and Tagovailoa has thrived in that atmosphere when healthy. But the Dolphins couldn't keep things afloat with him out, and when Tagovailoa returned, they weren't able to make a run into the playoffs. McDaniel will hope the 2025 campaign is more like 2023, when the Dolphins went 11-6 to reach the playoffs. They play in a tough AFC East division, where the New England Patriots got better in all facets and the New York Jets have a dual-threat quarterback leading the way in Justin Fields. And, of course, Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills are still the team to beat. So, McDaniel has a lot to worry about in terms of getting his team prepared for a hopeful playoff run, and he's clearly letting it be known he doesn't have time for players who wanted to be traded. "The business is business – the opportunity that business does provide in the offseason is a rep to the team about handling noise," McDaniel added. "Noise is [something] that don't have to do with what actually you're there to do… Business and offseasons allow you to speak to your team about how the focus of noise is a constant battle that, [to be] successful, you have to win." The Dolphins open their season on the road against the Indianapolis Colts on Sept. 7 at 1 p.m. ET. Follow Fox News Digital's sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.

Pacers land Cedric Coward in NBA mock draft
Pacers land Cedric Coward in NBA mock draft

Yahoo

time19 minutes ago

  • Yahoo

Pacers land Cedric Coward in NBA mock draft

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2025 U.S. Open pool picks: Scottie Scheffler, Ben Griffin, Sam Burns among picks at Oakmont Country Club
2025 U.S. Open pool picks: Scottie Scheffler, Ben Griffin, Sam Burns among picks at Oakmont Country Club

New York Times

time19 minutes ago

  • New York Times

2025 U.S. Open pool picks: Scottie Scheffler, Ben Griffin, Sam Burns among picks at Oakmont Country Club

Last week, reigning U.S. Open champion Bryson DeChambeau posted a video of his recent round at Oakmont Country Club, the host of this year's tournament, to his YouTube Channel. The videos showcased the many challenges — including fast greens, thick rough and a nearly 300-yard par-3 hole on the front nine — that this course will present its competitors this weekend. Advertisement DeChambeau, who hasn't finished worse than fifth in any tournament since March, including the Masters and PGA Championship, finished the round at even par. If this weekend's major championship plays anything like it did in 2016, an even round would be enough to contend for the win. The last time the U.S. Open was held at Oakmont Country Club, only four players finished under par. The sport's stars will face a tough test this weekend, but there are several value picks for your U.S. Open Championship pool. Here's how it works: One player is selected from each tier of 10 inside the Official World Golf Ranking's Top 50. Let's get to the picks! Odds from BetMGM. Odds: +275 The world's top-ranked golfer isn't providing much value with those odds, but it's hard to go against a hot hand, and Scheffler's hand is sizzling. He's won three of his past four tournaments, including the PGA Championship, and has finished outside of the top five only once in his last seven starts — a T8 at the RBC Heritage. During that stretch, he's gained the most total true strokes of any golfer in the field (3.75), according to That total is boosted by his 1.73 true strokes gained on approach. Avoiding mistakes will be key this week, and Scheffler has largely done that while keeping a tight grip on the No. 1 spot in the rankings. Scottie Scheffler from DEEP ‼️ Scheffler has two birdies through four holes. — ESPN (@espn) April 10, 2025 Odds: +6600 Ben Griffin, No. 15 in the Official World Golf Ranking (WGR), is on quite the run over the last month. Here are his last three finishes: His 3.30 total true strokes gained are second only to Scheffler's 3.88 over that span among the field, according to Griffin's putting accounts for a significant portion of that total, as he has picked up 1.25 strokes on the green in his last three tournaments. Among this week's field, only Sam Burns, who appears next in these picks, and Sepp Straka have gained more strokes putting. WHAT A PUTT 💥‼️ Ben Griffin goes eagle-birdie to reach 8 under par @MemorialGolf — Golf on CBS ⛳ (@GolfonCBS) June 1, 2025 Odds: +6600 Burns' putter has been working all year. Even during a stretch from late March through early April when he missed three straight cuts, Burns was still picking up strokes with the flat stick. In fact, he's only lost strokes with his putter in one tournament this year, the WM Phoenix Open. It looks like the rest of his game is starting to match his putting form over the last month. He lost a playoff to Ryan Fox to finish second at the RBC Canadian Open, but played great throughout the course. Sam Burns birdies the 18th for an exceptional final-round 62 and the clubhouse lead. 💪 📺 CBS — Golf Channel (@GolfChannel) June 8, 2025 That came on the heels of two top-20 finishes in the Memorial Tournament and the PGA Championship. Odds: +8000 Keeping with the theme of going with the hot hand, Fox is coming from a playoff win at the RBC Canadian Open. 'That shot I hit on 18 … probably the best shot I've ever hit."@RyanFoxGolfer sealed the deal with this shot on the fourth playoff hole @RBCCanadianOpen. — PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) June 8, 2025 He also snagged another win at the ONEflight Myrtle Beach Classic in May. Fox's 2.22 total true strokes gained since the South Carolina event ranks seventh among the field at the U.S Open. Odds: +5500 Oddsmakers don't seem to think Spieth is the 47th-best golfer in the world, which is a great endorsement for the 31-year-old to be the selection at this tier. Spieth has some great golf this year as well as not-so-great, sometimes on a single hole. The most normal @JordanSpieth par 😅 (presented by @CDWCorp) — PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) May 30, 2025 He's coming off a T7 finish at the Memorial and could hit one of the best shots you've ever seen at any given moment. Odds: +10000 Young is currently No. 56 in the WGR, but if he keeps playing the way he has been since the start of May, he'll be in the top 50 next week. He's T4, T25, T47 and T7 in his last four starts, respectively. Prior to that stretch, he'd missed the cut in six of 12 events. It seems Young has picked his game up recently and should be confident heading into the U.S. Open. Cameron Young. How? ⚠️ How to make a really tough shot look so easy 😅 — Golf on CBS ⛳ (@GolfonCBS) June 8, 2025 (Photo of Scottie Scheffler: Andy Lyons / Getty Images)

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