BetMGM Bonus Code NW150: Knicks Look To Force Game 7, Get $150 Promo
The BetMGM bonus code NW150 will give new users a $150 promo or $1,500 bet offer for Game 6 between the Knicks and Pacers on Saturday night.
The BetMGM bonus code NW150 will give new users a $150 promo or $1,500 bet offer for Game 6 between the Knicks and Pacers on Saturday night.
Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content.
Unlock a welcome offer for Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals with the BetMGM bonus code NW150. Win bonus bets or make a hefty wager on the Knicks vs. Pacers.
Begin with a $10 bet if you are in CO, MI, NJ, PA or WV, and the BetMGM bonus code will release a $150 bonus after a win. New users in other states will have a $1,500 first bet to use toward tonight's must-see matchup in Indiana. A loss will cause a bonus refund.
BetMGM Bonus Code NW150 for Pacers-Knicks Game 6
First, find the best market for your qualifying bet. For example, you can take a top player to score more than 15+ points when making a $10 bet to have a great chance at winning the $150 bonus. And the $1,500 first bet option gives you an opportunity to be more aggressive than usual.
Check the promotions tab to find odds boost tokens and a "Second Chance" promo. Bet on any of the following players to score the opening basket of the game and get cash back if they score second.
Jalen Brunson: +350
Karl-Anthony Towns: +475
Pascal Siakam: +675
Mikal Bridges: +700
Myles Turner: +800
Andrew Nembhard: +800
OG Anunoby: +900
Tyrese Haliburton: +950
Aaron Nesmith: +1000
Mitchell Robinson: +1350
The winner of this series will go on to face Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Thunder in the NBA Finals.
Odds Boost Tokens for MLB, Daily Free-to-Play Game
BetMGM regularly releases odds boost tokens for MLB fans. Find boosts this weekend for the Brewers vs. Phillies, Cardinals vs. Rangers, Red Sox vs. Braves, Tigers vs. Royals, Rays vs. Astros, Yankees vs. Dodgers and other matchups.
The Yankees have a chance for payback after losing to the Dodgers in the World Series last fall. Aaron Judge leads MLB in most hitting categories, with a season batting average near .400. Take a swing in the daily free-to-play game to win a prize. Hit a single, double, triple or home run to score an MLB bonus.
Find other promotions for the French Open, Memorial Tournament and Stanley Cup Final. Connor McDavid and the Oilers are slight favorites over the Panthers to win the most coveted trophy in sports. Use the Hat Trick Jackpot to have a chance at winning a share of $10,000 in bonus bets.
Every bet you make will go toward raising your status in the loyalty program. You can redeem betting bonuses and discounts to use at MGM Resorts across the country.
Steps for Using the BetMGM Bonus Code NW150
Take the following steps to use the BetMGM bonus code for the Knicks vs. Pacers. New customers can create an account within a few minutes.
Follow the links on this page to use code NW150. Enter your full name, email address, date of birth and other info to confirm your identity.
Use an accepted payment method to make a deposit. These include online banking, debit cards and PayPal.
Place a $10 bet in certain states or wager up to $1,500.
A winning $150 bet in CO, MI, NJ, PA and WV will result in a $150 bonus. And a loss of $50+ in other states will trigger five bonus bets as a refund, with each bet worth 20 percent of your loss.
21+ and present in participating states. Gambling problem? Call 1-800-Gambler.
Newsweek may earn an affiliate commission if you sign up through the links in this article. See the sportsbook operator's terms and conditions for important details. Sports betting operators have no influence over newsroom coverage.
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Indianapolis Star
an hour ago
- Indianapolis Star
Doyel: Yes, the Pacers have superstars. And they have two more who don't actually play
These Indiana Pacers — sorry, these 2025 NBA Finalist Indiana Pacers — are said to have two stars, superstars, franchise players, whatever you want to call Tyrese Haliburton and Pascal Siakam. And that's true, if we're looking only at the roster. Haliburton has been an NBA All-Star twice, and earned third-team All-NBA recognition this season for the second consecutive year. Siakam has been an NBA All-Star three times, twice has earned All-NBA recognition, and was named MVP of the 2025 Eastern Conference Finals. They are stars, franchise players, max contract guys. Whatever you want to call them. But the Pacers, these specific Pacers — this team headed to the NBA Finals, which begin Thursday at Oklahoma City — have two more stars, superstars, whatever you want to call them. Don't scan the roster for the names because they aren't there, and I say that with all due respect to Myles Turner, Andrew Nembhard and Aaron Nesmith. And to elite bench players Bennedict Mathurin and T.J. McConnell. These two guys were here before almost everyone on this roster. They were here before Haliburton and Siakam, in particular. And before Nembhard and Nesmith, and Mathurin and McConnell. The stars, the original stars, of the 2024-25 Indiana Pacers are the executive who put this team together, Kevin Pritchard, and the coach who will put that team on the court Thursday night against the Thunder, Rick Carlisle. How about we give them their flowers now, huh? Doyel from Game 6: Pacers on a 'magical ride.' Four more wins means first NBA title. Insider: Pacers' unconventional path back to NBA Finals 'a new blueprint for the league' This is the team of Pritchard's dreams, the team he has been trying to craft since he took over for Larry Bird as Pacers president in 2017. Pritchard is not your typical NBA executive, in part because he's not overseeing your typical NBA franchise. He doesn't have an unlimited budget, and even if he did, it wouldn't matter. History has shown that the very best of the very best – past, present and future MVP candidates – don't come here as free agents. And because players of that ability can dictate where they want to play, those guys don't arrive here in trades, either. Some franchises can money-whip a roster into shape, just put as many stars on the court as possible and see what happens next. That's been the story in Philadelphia and Los Angeles — Lakers and Clippers — and even in recent years, Golden State with the please-take-me additions of Kevin Durant and Jimmy Butler. Miami also has done it that way, with success. Brooklyn and Phoenix have tried it, without. Pritchard has always seen his ideal starting five not as one or two superstars — and whoever else can fit around the salary cap — but as five fingers forming a fist. Look at some of the Indiana teams of recent years that fell short of this season's success, or any success really, but would've had power-packed starting fives had injuries not ruined things. That's one hallmark of a Pritchard team, as we're seeing this season with Haliburton-Siakam-Turner-Nembhard-and-Nesmith. But there's another hallmark, and I'll call it the Kumbaya factor. Pritchard is an idealist, a romantic at heart, and sometimes it has cost him. He sees the best in people, in players, and was burned when Paul George turned out to be less of a building block than a mercenary. The unraveling of Victor Oladipo was less about Pritchard's idealism, and more about the brutal injury Oladipo suffered in 2019, months before he expected to receive a max contract extension. Whereas Paul George was changed by his rise to stardom and his visions of self-important grandeur, Oladipo was changed — understandably so — by that career-altering injury. But this team? These Pacers? They've been built in Pritchard's double-vision of depth and decency — and we are seeing the result. Earlier in the Eastern Conference Finals, before Game 1, the New York media was asking Carlisle about this team's secret sauce. Here was one of Carlisle's most telling comments: 'A group of guys that have high character,' he called his roster. What does that mean? It means Bennedict Mathurin, who came into the league as the No. 6 overall pick in 2022 and immediately compared himself to LeBron James and then averaged an eye-popping 16.7 ppg as a rookie, has gone to the bench for the good of the team. Nesmith needs to start, for defense and the way he runs alongside Haliburton and moves the ball, so Mathurin accepted a role as a primary scoring force on the second unit. But along the way Mathurin has noticeably — I mean, obviously — become more of a defensive presence, in particular working so hard on his occasional assignments on stars Donovan Mitchell of Cleveland and Jalen Brunson of the Knicks. What does high character mean? It means Andrew Nembhard, who showed during the 2024 Eastern Conference Finals against Boston just how productive he can be if given the chance — 21 ppg, with Haliburton injured — willingly going back to his supporting role when Haliburton returned. Nembhard averaged 10 ppg this season. What does high character mean? It means center Myles Turner sharing minutes with Domantas Sabonis for years, never making a peep, never asking out. And when it was time to decide which center to keep, Pritchard let Sabonis go to Sacramento at the 2022 trade deadline — knowing the Pacers needed a point guard more than a ball-dominant post player, and knowing Turner would excel in a supporting role to the point guard Pritchard acquired from the Kings: Tyrese Haliburton. What does high character mean? It means, and it starts, with Haliburton playing a joyful style that insists everyone on the floor eats — often before he does, to his detriment. Haliburton, who averaged 6.3 assists per game in his 1½ season with Sacramento, has averaged 10.1 apg in 3½ seasons with the Pacers. Haliburton, a really nice Robin to De'Aaron Fox's Batman in Sacramento, has come to the Pacers and proved to be the better of the two: the All-NBA player, the U.S. Olympian, the author of postseason heroics. 'Sometimes,' Haliburton was saying Saturday night after the Pacers eliminated the Knicks in Game 6, 'I think (Pritchard and Co.) saw more in me than I saw in myself.' Pritchard does that. If I'm another NBA team's executive and Kevin Pritchard is on line one to propose a trade, I'm grabbing a pen and some paper, because I'm about to learn which player on my team is better than any of us had realized. Pritchard has done that, for previous Indiana teams and this one, with stars (Oladipo, Sabonis, Haliburton) and starters (Nesmith) and role players (Obi Toppin, Jalen Smith, Oshae Brissett). And the one time he didn't do it, when he saw something in Denver's Bruce Brown that didn't quite translate — Brown came here as a free agent in 2023, and proved to be the same player even with a bigger opportunity — Pritchard realized it right away. Brown played just 33 games with the Pacers before Pritchard packaged him in the deal that brought to this team… Pascal Siakam. Take a bow, Kevin Pritchard. These flowers are for you. But we have one more bouquet to give. Rick Carlisle, like Kevin Pritchard, received zero respect this season. That's a literal statement, in this way: Thirteen front-office leaders received votes — all 30 franchises had a vote — for 2025 NBA Executive of the Year. Kevin Pritchard? He received zero. Six coaches received votes — from 100 media members — for 2025 NBA Coach of the Year. Rick Carlisle? He received zero. That's a statement about the timing of those votes in particular, because while we (probably) didn't need the Thunder's NBA Finals run to realize Shai Gilgeous-Alexander deserved MVP, the Pacers' run to these same NBA Finals has been instructive, to say the least. First, about the roster Pritchard put together (with help from Chad Buchanan, Ryan Carr and Kelly Krauskopf). But also about the coaching job of Carlisle. Put it this way: Carlisle is changing the game. Not just the Pacers are changing it — but Carlisle. He's the one employing depth and pace as weapons, and around the league, folks are noticing. After being eliminated in the second round by the Thunder, Nuggets MVP candidate Nikola Jokic noted the growing trend of deeper teams, and shouted out the Pacers before shouting out Oklahoma City, the team that eliminated the Nuggets. Put it another way: The best adjustment made during the Eastern Conference Finals by famously stubborn Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau, the one that allowed the Knicks to win Game 3 and force this series to a sixth game? He copied Carlisle. After sticking with his seven-man rotation — 7½ players, tops — Thibs went nine-deep or even 10-deep the rest of the way. The media kept asking him about the Pacers' pace and depth, and while Thibodeau avoided the question entirely before Game 5 — 'It's been a hard-fought series,' he said, 'a couple possessions (apart)' — he tried to counter Carlisle's bench by discovering a bench of his own. That depth allows Carlisle to demand a fast pace from his players, and that pace has allowed the Pacers not only to wear out other teams over the course of 48 minutes — how many historic comebacks have the Pacers had this offseason? — but to maximize the greatness of Haliburton. Another acknowledgement from Thibs, this one spoken, came when he was asked about the Pacers' offensive pace. Specifically, he was asked: During a typical possession do the Pacers tend to get to their second and third actions quicker than most teams? Not really, Thibs said, in the most flattering way possible. 'More often than not it's the primary action,' he said before Game 5. 'It's the kick ahead. There's no second or third actions. You've got to make sure you're getting back and taking care of the primary action.' Indeed, Haliburton probably gets more 40-foot assists than anyone but Jokic, and Andrew Nembhard devastated the Knicks with several such passes in Game 6. Carlisle describes 2025 Indiana Pacers basketball in a way that underscores the special nature of this team, from roster to coaching staff to front office. 'As we've put this group together around Tyrese,' Carlisle said before Game 1, 'we've had to make adjustments to develop a style that was effective for us — and it's a difficult style. It's physically demanding, takes a tremendous amount of wherewithal as an athlete, and then you have to be super unselfish and be willing to do a lot of hard things.' The Pacers have that kind of Kumbaya roster, that depth of talent, those two star players — Haliburton, Siakam — and then those other two central figures. Stars, superstars, whatever you want to call Rick Carlisle and Kevin Pritchard. Find IndyStar columnist Gregg Doyel on Threads, or on BlueSky and Twitter at @GreggDoyelStar, or at Subscribe to the free weekly Doyel on Demand newsletter.
USA Today
an hour ago
- USA Today
Exclusive: Aaron Judge opens up on historic season, life as a Yankee
Exclusive: Aaron Judge opens up on historic season, life as a Yankee – and that error Two-time MVP is putting up eye-popping stats again. But everyone in baseball knows Judge is even more valuable off the field. Show Caption Hide Caption Yankees fans 'welcome' Juan Soto back to the Bronx in game vs. Mets New York Yankees fans made one thing clear, they do not miss Juan Soto. Sports Seriously LOS ANGELES — Aaron Judge packed his bags Sunday evening, looked around the cramped visiting clubhouse at Dodger Stadum before walking out of the door, and broke into a grin. Finally, peace awaited. He was hounded all weekend by interview requests. Everyone wanted a piece of him. The New York Yankees were on national TV every game this weekend at Dodger Stadium. It was Apple TV Friday night, Fox on Saturday, and then Sunday night on ESPN. 'It's just part of the job, it's part of being captain of the Yankees," Judge told USA TODAY Sports after a 7-3 victory in front of a sellout crowd of 54,031. 'I'd rather take that load and that wear and tear than somebody else. I can take some of those distractions. I've been around the game for a little bit now, so I kind of know how to manage it." The hyped series was a rematch of last year's World Series, perhaps a cruel three-day reminder of his calamity the last time they met in October. But to Judge, it was a beautiful affirmation of making the decisions of his career. 'I try to talk to everyone, the guys who aren't Yankees," Judge says, 'and tell them just how special this franchise is. And how special it is to play in front of these fans. 'They demand and they expect the best out of you every single night. It doesn't matter if it's a Monday game, a Tuesday game, or who we're playing. They expect you to go out there and win. They expect you to go out there and get a hit every at-bat. 'That's another reason why I wanted to come back and play for the Yankees. Just that expectation and that level of focus you need to have on a daily basis. It's one of a kind. So I try to tell everyone how special it is, especially at the All-Star Game. 'There's nothing in the world like it." It's not easy, of course, playing on the biggest stage in baseball. Judge, 6-foot-7, 282 pounds, can barely leave his hotel on the road. He went to go grab some coffee at Starbucks in Seattle three weeks ago, and the next thing he knew, dozens of fans mobbed him at the counter. 'I think if I was a little shorter, if you just give me 6-foot-1, 6-2," Judge says, 'I could blend in a little bit. Throw on a Yankee cap and we can go. It's the height. The first thing they think when they see me, they think basketball player. And then they put two-and-two together. 'That's why I don't leave the hotel for the most part. I got a job to do on the road. I try not to explore too much. I can do that when I retire and check out these cities. 'It's just part of it when you play for the Yankees. The biggest franchise in sports. They're going to recognize you and cheer you no matter where you're at." Yet, if you make a mistake, no matter whether on the field or off, you're going to hear about it. Yankee fans constantly remind Judge that they still haven't won a World Series since 2009, and after losing to the Dodgers 4 games to 1 in last year's World Series, with most of the angst directed towards Judge. 'It was rough the way it ended last year, it hurt," Judge softly says in the quiet of the Yankee clubhouse. 'Things happen. It's sports. You just try to put yourself in a better position next time so you don't have that sour taste in your mouth again.' The error It was back in October, in the fifth inning of Game 5 of the World Series at Yankee Stadium, when the Yankees were rolling with a 5-0 lead. Ace Gerrit Cole was on the mound, and they were set to fly out the next day to Los Angeles to prepare for Game 6 of the World Series. But that never happened. Enrique Hernandez was on first base when Tommy Edman hit a fly ball to center field. Judge camped under it, took a peek towards Hernandez, and it clanked off his glove. ('I thought it was an easy out," Edman said) The next thing anyone knew, the Yankees had unraveled and the game was tied. Four innings later, the Dodgers were celebrating in the Bronx. 'Stuff like that happens," Judge says. 'I've just got to make the play. There were five other plays after that could have changed the course of that. Really, you kind of dismiss it right after the play happens. We still have the lead. Once the play is over with, there's nothing you can do about it. Go out and make the next play. That's what it really all comes down to." Judge spent the entire winter listening to people talk about it, the play becoming NFL memes during dropped passes, with even some Dodgers players mocking the Yankees' meltdown. 'What are you going to do?" Judge says. 'People want to talk about it, do this and that. It happened. It happened. There's nothing that can change that." Making history Well, Judge sure has found a way to make that memory fade away into the night, producing one of the greatest seasons in baseball history so far. He's hitting a major-league leading .391 with 21 homers, 50 RBIs and a 1.249 OPS. He's leading MLB in virtually every offensive category from on-base percentage (.485) to slugging percentage (.764) to WAR (4.7). He is the only player in modern-day history to hit 20 or more homers with this high of a batting average in the first 58 games of a season. This isn't just a two-month hot start, but a continuation of the past year, hitting .362 with a .482 on-base percentage, .746 slugging percentage, 1.228 OPS, 62 homers, 155 RBI, 139 runs, 437 total bases in his last 162 games. The last person to have at least 430 total bases in a full season was Hall of Famer Jimmie Foxx in 1932. 'They need to call him up," Yankees bench coach Brad Ausmus says. Call him up? 'Yes," Ausmus says emphatically, 'to another league." When Judge his second home run Saturday night off reliever Chris Stratton in the Dodgers' 18-2 rout, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts could only shake his head. 'It was more disbelief, and I felt OK with it," Roberts says. 'Apologies to Stratton, but I like superstars, so I was OK giving up a solo homer right there to watch him. 'It's really incredible. The batting average. I can appreciate the slug. I can appreciate the on-base. But the batting average for a right-handed hitters, that's something that really stands out to me. You just don't see that." When Judge was being interviewed on the Fox TV set Saturday, Hall of Famer David Ortiz told him: 'I'm actually mad at you. You're making this game look like a joke." 'This is where I feel like I belong' Judge is being asked nearly every single day about his rarified numbers, but despite the hundreds of pre- and postgame interviews, Judge remains humble. 'I try to ignore it because you have to stay in the moment," Judge says. "If I was playing somewhere else, I could say, 'Well, we're not in first place. We kind of stink. But at least I'm hitting well.' 'But how I was raised, especially playing here with the Yankees, 'I don't care what you did yesterday. I don't care what you did last month. It's about what are you doing tonight.' "There have been games I had a walk-off homer the night before, but if I'm 0-for-4, then you're getting booed in your last at-bat, it kind of wakes you up about what's really important." Besides, Judge says, far too often people seem to be getting carried away, passing out superlatives as if baseball history goes back only as far as the pitch clock. You want real greatness, he says, check out Barry Bonds. You want to know the greatest right-handed hitters in the last 50 years, do yourself a favor and look at the numbers produced by Albert Pujols and Miguel Cabrera, particularly in the first 10 years of their career. 'People bring up stuff to me about stats, and seasons, and stuff," says Judge, 'and I say, 'this doesn't even compare in my mind what I saw Pujols doing at Busch Stadium... He's hitting over .300 every year, he's driving in over 100, he's hitting 30-plus homers, and all of those clutch at-bats. 'Those are my favorite guys that I love going back to on YouTube and bringing up the highlights. It was just cool to see a professional hitter like that who can manipulate the bat. They had the knowledge in the box of what they're trying to do, have great approach, and just make the game look so easy." Judge laughs, knowing that, of course, is what everyone is saying about him. There will be a spot for him reserved in Monument Park at Yankee Stadium one day. His number, 99, will be permanently retired. And when Judge walks away, just like Joe DiMaggio and Derek Jeter, he can tell the world how proud he was to be a Yankee his entire career. 'Sometimes it's tough to put into words," Judge says, 'but I never played anywhere else. I never wanted to go anywhere else. This is where I feel I belong." The contract It wasn't long ago when Judge didn't know if he'd still be a Yankee. He rejected the Yankees' final offer of $213.5 million before the 2022 season, and they still were playing hardball after Judge hit an American League record 62 homers after the season. It took a $360 million offer from the San Francisco Giants and the concept of at least a 10-year, $400 million offer from the San Diego Padres for the Yankees to relent and sign him to a nine-year, $360 million deal. 'This is where I always wanted to be, especially after getting drafted here," says Judge, who still beams talking about his wife (Samantha) and 4-month-old daughter (Nora) with Father's Day around the corner. 'This is my home. But if I was to look back, and would have signed with the Padres or signed with the Giants, it could be a little different. 'I might have been getting booed like [Juan] Soto, so I'm happy with my decision. 'Really, for me, it was all about getting a fair deal for what I thought I was worth, while still putting the team in a good position to sign who we need to." The Yankees have done nothing but win since Judge signed his deal, and are again in first place (36-22). 'I'd hate to even think about what it would be like if Aaron didn't sign with us," said Yankees president Randy Levine, watching Judge from his Yankee Stadium suite above third base. 'We're very grateful he came back. He was entitled to test free agency, and we were going to do whatever it took to keep him here. 'This is a very tough place to play. It's not for everybody. So, you've got to really want to be here. And he really wanted to be here." Says Yankees manager Aaron Boone, who concedes he panicked momentarily at the 2022 winter meetings when the Giants looked as if they were closing in on a deal to sign Judge: 'It's so good when your best player is your best people too, and that's what Aaron is. Guys gravitate towards him. Guys look up to him. Guys respect him." The Captain Who else organizes team dinners on the road, renting out entire restaurants where he foots the entire bill? 'He's an amazing human being," says Pittsburgh Pirates infielder Isaih Kiner-Falefa, who spent two years with the Yankees. 'I think the coolest thing about him is that any time you're around him, he makes you feel like you're on his level, like you're the same type of player. 'He brings confidence, swagger to you as a player. As a person, he's always there for you. And on top of all that, he's the best player in the world. I can't imagine how he does it all, how he juggles it all, and still perform at the level he does because he's the most selfless guy I played with." When new Yankees reliever Devin Williams struggled early in the year, it was Judge who was there at his locker every day making sure he was hanging in. When center fielder Cody Bellinger had difficulty adjusting to New York at the start of the season – like outfielder Trent Grisham the year before – Judge was there for them too. 'Everybody just sees what he does on the field, and it's like, 'Man, he's the best player,'" Grisham says. 'But I think he's more valuable in how he runs the clubhouse, how he carries himself, how he shoulders all of the media attention, all of pressure here, and is still able to have a smile on his face and be the bests guy in the clubhouse and taking care of everybody. He just changes this whole place." And when Paul Goldschmidt hit free agency this winter, trying to decide where to go after spending 14 years in the National League with St. Louis and Arizona, he got a text message one day. It was a recruiting pitch from Judge. 'I remember shooting him the message," Judge says. "'Hey man, we got a little vacancy at first base. I think you'd fit in perfect. This is the type of culture and environment I think you were born for.' 'The one thing I try to tell a lot of the guys who come here, even if they were on other teams before, they were meant to be a Yankee. Paul Goldschmidt was meant to be a Yankee." Says Goldschmidt: 'Aaron is the one who makes it great to be a Yankee. He's a big reason why you want to play here." Judge's legacy It's not enough for Judge to be the heart, soul and face of the Yankees, but he's a role model for free agents in their 30s. His nine-year, $360 million contract – the richest free agent deal in baseball history at the time – looks like the biggest steal in baseball just a few years later. Juan Soto is guaranteed more than twice as much money with his $765 million deal with the Mets. Anthony Rendon, who has missed 613 games in five years with the Los Angeles Angels, is earning only $2 million less than Judge this season. Stephen Strasburg, who last pitched in 2022, is still earning $35 million – only $5 million less than Judge. Judge may be 33, but considering he's getting better each and every year, he sees no reason why he can't be just as productive until he's turning grey. He works out religiously, hired a year-round chef, and maintains his body to withstand the grind of a 162-game regular season, and hopefully, all of the way through October, too. 'Tom Brady is a great example," Judge says. 'Every year he tried to get a little bit better. He was still winning Super Bowls in his 40s, and doing some special things. It's all about staying on the field. 'I never wanted to be a guy that was a liability. The contract that I signed, I wanted to be a guy that helps this team win all the way until the last year. ... I'll try to make adjustments and put myself up there as one of the better players that helps this team win." Well, maybe more accurately, he could be one of the greatest players, role models, and competitors who ever put on a uniform. 'He's a great face for the pinstripes," Hall of Fame slugger Reggie Jackson said before the Yankees-Dodgers series finale. "He's a great face for Major League Baseball. New York City. Everything." Says Dodgers infielder Miguel Rojas: 'When that thing happened to him in the World Series, we were all celebrating that we were able to score runs. But afterwards, I think we all felt for him, too. You wish it had happened to someone else. 'I'm a big fan of him because he plays the game the right way. He respects not only the game itself, but he respects the people all around the game. The way he dresses, the way he approaches people, it's just different. 'The game of baseball is in a better place because of him." Judge smiles when hearing the praise, picks up his bag, and heads to the Yankees' team bus for a red-eye flight back to New York. A day off with the family awaits. And then the commotion will start up all over again. 'I wouldn't trade it for the world," Judge says. 'I'm a Yankee." Follow Nightengale on X: @Bnightengale
Boston Globe
an hour ago
- Boston Globe
You may not know much about the Pacers and Thunder, but you'll enjoy the show they put on in the NBA Finals
Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up Indiana also had more defensive weapons, using the versatile former Celtic Aaron Nesmith to defend Jalen Brunson, but the Pacers won the series offensively. They averaged 116.8 points per game compared with Boston's 105.8. Advertisement The Celtics attempted 90 more 3-pointers versus the Knicks than Indiana did, but made only 24 more. With their inability to consistently score, especially down the stretches of Games 1, 2, and Series MVP Pascal Siakam led the Pacers in scoring, and they torched the Knicks defense with 49.1 percent shooting and 39 percent from the 3-point line. Eight Pacers averaged at least 8 points per game. They battered the Knicks with their balance, which gives them at least a shot against the heavily favored Thunder. Advertisement Although this is not an NBA Finals featuring any of the league's darling markets, it is the best teams in each conference, which makes for a compelling matchup. The Pacers and Thunder are a lot alike, their cornerstone players each acquired through trade. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is averaging 29.8 points per game in the playoffs for the Thunder, who won four games by at least 30 points during their postseason run through the Western Conference. Kyle Phillips/Associated Press Oklahoma City made the brilliant move of Gilgeous-Alexander has transformed into one of the great scorers because of a quirky midrange game that draws a slew of fouls and allows him easy points. Oklahoma City general manager Sam Presti fully realizes his franchise will never be a vogue free-agent destination, so he's had to acquire stars through trades and drafts. In the previous generation, it was Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, Serge Ibaka, and James Harden — all drafted. When those four departed for various reasons, Presti tore down the roster, and acquired a litany of first-round picks by serving as a place holder for teams' unwanted and expiring contracts. The Thunder have risen to the league's best team, and Presti still has seven more first-round picks from other clubs from 2026-29. After losing in the bubble during Gilgeous-Alexander's first season with the club, the Thunder missed the playoffs for three years. Those three lottery seasons produced Williams and Chet Holmgren, and solid second-round picks Jaylin Williams and Aaron Wiggins. Presti used former lottery pick Josh Giddey, benched during Advertisement He also used the team's salary space on rugged center Isaiah Hartenstein to give the Thunder a physical post presence. It's taken years for Presti to build this championship contender, and it's come mostly through the draft, but it began with that George for Gilgeous-Alexander trade. Related : What makes this an intriguing Finals, and one that could serve as motivation in other small and medium markets, is that neither is a luxury tax team. Both were built without max free-agent signings. The Pacers traded for Tyrese Haliburton, The Pacers also capitalized on a rebuilding Toronto by Would the NBA and ABC have benefited more financially if the Knicks had reached their first Finals in 26 years? They would not have matched up better with the Thunder than the Pacers, who were a better team with more depth and weapons. The casual basketball fan may not be able to name the Indiana starting five, or even four players from the Thunder roster, but it should be an entertaining series. Advertisement OKC's Mark Daigneault is a Prepare for an entertaining and intriguing Finals, but it may require a little pre-game homework to become familiar with the lack of household names. Gary Washburn is a Globe columnist. He can be reached at
