Tag: nytimes.com

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They are currently the fiercest of competitors, facing off in the 2026 Western Conference finals. But for one celebratory moment on Friday, the San Antonio Spurs’ Victor Wembanyama and the Oklahoma City Thunder’s Chet Holmgren were named members of the same team. Wembanyama and Holmgren headline the 2025-26 NBA All-Defensive First Team, which was announced…

Why an NBA player used a public bathroom in the middle of a playoff game

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For the first two games of the Western Conference finals, the San Antonio Spurs have turned to rookie Carter Bryant to get stops. But this a story about Bryant needing to go. During Game 2 Wednesday night, Oklahoma City Thunder fans encountered the unusual sight of the in-uniform 6-foot-6 Spurs forward using a public restroom…

The Bounce: The Knicks have won 9 in a row. What’s it mean for their title hopes?

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The Bounce Newsletter | This is The Athletic’s daily NBA newsletter. Sign up here to receive The Bounce directly in your inbox. A couple of The Athletic’s other newsletters have done mailbag editions, and it seems like a fun idea! If you want me or one of our writers to answer a burning question you…

Stephon Castle is always up for the challenge, and the Spurs look ready to join him

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SAN ANTONIO — The most telling part of Stephon Castle’s thunderous dunk over Isaiah Hartenstein in Wednesday’s Game 2 of the Western Conference finals happened before he bounced off the invisible trampoline. Before he suspended in the air like a rhetorical question. Before he cocked it back and flushed it with disrespect. Advertisement It came…

Memorial Day weekend sports guide: NBA and NHL playoffs, Indy 500, Premier League, WNBA

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With the extended holiday weekend comes a wall-to-wall sports slate. There’s something for just about everyone across the next four days. The NBA and NHL continue their anticipated conference finals from the East to the West. MLB and the WNBA heat up their spring seasons with primetime Saturday spots. The French Open begins, the English…

Sean Sweeney? Dawn Staley? 5 names to watch in Mavericks coaching search

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The Dallas Mavericks are in the market for a head coach. Masai Ujiri, who took charge as team president earlier this month, decided Tuesday that it was best for the Mavericks to part ways with Jason Kidd and begin a search for his successor that will leave “no stone unturned.” “We will really, really look…

The (Josh) Hart and soul of the New York Knicks

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NEW YORK — Josh Hart’s jersey tasted like resentment. A man who has done all of the work — hand placement, wide base, visualize, follow-through — felt betrayed in the moment that this all was meant for. Midway through the first quarter of Thursday’s Game 2 Eastern Conference finals matchup against the Cleveland Cavaliers, the…

How NBA teams try to keep opposing fans out of their arenas during the playoffs

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In the NBA playoffs, protecting home court extends from the hardwood to the box office. After Joel Embiid’s Philadelphia 76ers rallied from a 3-1 series deficit in the first round, the 2023 NBA MVP had one request as his team prepared to face the New York Knicks. “I just have a message for our fans,”…

We study decision-making. The Pacers-Clippers trade offers us an unusually clear window

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This story is part of Peak, The Athletic’s desk covering the mental side of sports. Sign up for Peak’s newsletter here. Dr. Jennifer Lerner is a professor of public policy, decision science and management at Harvard. She served as the first chief decision scientist for the U.S. Navy. Dr. Brian Gill is a senior researcher at GiveWell…

Knicks captain Jalen Brunson is on his way to a legendary New York place

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