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🏀 Good morning to all but especially to …
THE INDIANA PACERS
In 49 states, it’s just basketball. But this is Indiana.
And in Indiana, there’s magic.
The Pacers lead the NBA Finals 2-1 after a 116-107 Game 3 win over the Thunder in which they outscored Oklahoma City 32-18 in the final quarter.
- Tyrese Haliburton had 22 points, nine rebounds and 11 assists, a tremendous performance after a quiet Game 2.
- Bennedict Mathurin had 27 points, outscoring the ballyhooed Oklahoma City reserves by himself. Overall, Indiana had a 49-18 bench points advantage, with T.J. McConnell (10 points and five hilariously crafty steals) also playing a big role.
- Think Indiana is all offense? Think again. The Pacers forced 19 turnovers (21 points off) and allowed just one made field goal over the final 5:57 of the game, during which they outscored the Thunder 15-7. Shoutout Andrew Nembhard.
Indiana keeps proving us wrong. We thought they had to shoot it well to win, but they shot just 9 for 27 (33%) from 3. We thought they’d have trouble with Oklahoma City’s depth, but Indiana’s bench won that battle decisively. We thought they’d have trouble attacking this historically great Oklahoma City defense, but they shot 35 for 58 (60.3%) on 2-pointers, the second-best anyone has done against the Thunder this season.
One thing we always knew that is indeed proving correct? The Pacers just keep plugging away. Indiana has been outscored by 33 in the first three quarters this series but have outscored Oklahoma City by 27 in the fourth quarter. Saying “there’s no quit” is underselling it, though. When they needed them most, the Pacers’ effort and skill ascend, Brad Botkin writes.
- Botkin: “It’s fair to question how long the Pacers can keep pulling off these wins that have never been pulled off before. Well, they only need two more. Of any variety. And the trophy is theirs. Chances are they’re not going to blow the Thunder out in any game moving forward, so winning these fourth quarters remains an essential ingredient for the Pacers. On Wednesday, they were plus-14 in the fourth quarter, in which the Thunder managed just 18 points — by far their lowest single-quarter output in this series.”
😃 Honorable mentions
🏀 And not such a good morning for …
THE OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER
I called McConnell’s steals “hilariously crafty.” But no one in Oklahoma City is laughing. McConnell stole three inbounds passes after buckets, including two within two minutes, off of the same inbounder (Cason Wallace). That’s inexcusable.
Many of the 19 turnovers were the result of either not enough urgency or too much urgency — trying too hard. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had six turnovers and needed 20 shots to reach 24 points. Oklahoma City had too many missed boxouts as Indiana had a 13-7 edge in second-chance points.
The stakes are too high for these errors, and when things get tight late, we see over and over — the Thunder’s offense hopes Gilgeous-Alexander can bail them out.
This isn’t the juggernaut we saw in the regular season or at many times in the postseason. Oklahoma City hasn’t lost consecutive games this postseason, but to win the title, it has to beat Indiana twice in a row at some point, something no team has done this postseason, either.
😓 Not so honorable mentions
🏈 NFL minicamps: Predicting outcomes for holdouts, why T.J. Watt deal will get done
There are plenty of notable NFL minicamp holdouts, but not everyone unhappy with their contract is absent. Micah Parsons is at Cowboys minicamp, for example, even without a contract. Dallas loves to wait to give out extensions — often to its own detriment, monetarily — and Parsons is no different.
But Parsons is different in that he’s there. And rest assured the Cowboys will get something done. Cody Benjamin predicted what contracts for Parsons and other stars due for new contracts will get.
As for pass rushers unhappy with their contract and not attending, Trey Hendrickson and T.J. Watt are in very different spots. Hendrickson’s contract issues have no end in sight, writes former NFL agent Joel Corry, while the Steelers will ultimately take care of their longtime star, Bryan writes.
- DeArdo: “From a personnel standpoint, extending Watt makes sense. After trying and failing for years, the Steelers finally have the depth at pass rusher that should help them apply consistent pressure to the opposing quarterback … Watt is also a legacy player. It’s important to Steelers president Art Rooney II that Watt finish his career as a Steeler and not somewhere else. That surely played into the team’s decision to again extend Cam Heyward‘s contract last offseason.”
I still don’t understand what the Bengals are doing with Hendrickson and/or rookie holdout Shemar Stewart. But this is what they are: a penny-pinching franchise that, despite incredible offensive talent, has fallen behind the upper crust because of conservative spending and contract structuring.
Here’s more:
🏀 Kevin Durant trade rumors: Five teams heavily involved, but are there sleepers?
You can never be too sure about anything in the NBA offseason, but one thing’s all but official: The Suns will trade Kevin Durant. Phoenix listened to offers at the trade deadline, and now five teams have emerged as frontrunners: the Rockets, Spurs, Heat, Timberwolves and Knicks. However, we can maybe strike that down to four, as other reports have indicated New York isn’t pursuing Durant.
Be forewarned, Sam writes: Durant isn’t going to command the massive haul other stars have. Durant is 37, and his advanced numbers have fallen. He’s very expensive but also on an expiring contract. Keep that in mind when you consider Sam’s trade ideas for the frontrunners, including this proposed three-way deal.
- Suns get: Jalen Green, Jabari Smith Jr., Jock Landale, No. 10 overall pick
- Rockets get: Kevin Durant
- Nets get: Aaron Holiday, 2026 second-round pick (via Thunder, Mavericks or 76ers)
- Quinn: “You’ll notice most of Houston’s best assets are off of the table. No Amen Thompson. No Alperen Sengun. No 2027 or 2029 Suns picks. … Smith is extension-eligible, but so is Tari Eason, and the Rockets are probably only paying to keep one of their young, defensive-minded forwards. The Rockets didn’t use last year’s No. 3 pick, Reed Sheppard, so there aren’t minutes available for No. 10 this year either.”
I slightly preferred this one — from Phoenix’s point of view — to the Spurs’ hypothetical offer, but Jasmyn Wimbish ranks San Antonio as Durant’s top landing spot.
Sam also has four sleeper teams that could be in play.
⚽ What’s wrong with USMNT? Can it be fixed?
We’re now officially inside the one-year mark of the start of the 2026 World Cup — which the U.S. is co-hosting, by the way — and things are very, very not good for the USMNT. They’re on their longest losing streak (four straight) since 2007. They just got blasted 4-0 at home by Switzerland, a game in which they didn’t record a single shot on goal and gave up four goals in the first 40 minutes at home for the first time … ever.
Oh yeah, and did I mention the face of the last generation (Landon Donovan) and the face of this generation (Christian Pulisic) are beefing over Pulisic’s lack of involvement this summer?
Other than that, Mrs. Lincoln, how was the play?
Chuck Booth says there’s a long way to go and a short time to get there.
- Booth: “The first team regulars will return and have a chance to right the ship, but with only four international breaks remaining after the Gold Cup wraps, time is dwindling before Mauricio Pochettino will need to name his final squad. Problems such as the starting striker and goalkeeper will also remain when figuring out that squad. … The ceiling for this team could be repeating the 2022 World Cup, where they made it out of the group stage before losing to the Netherlands in the round of 16.”
That last sentence is really disappointing. The more things change, the more they stay the same.
📺 What we’re watching Thursday
⛳ We’re watching the U.S. Open. Here’s how.
⚾ Rangers at Twins, 1:10 p.m. on MLB Network
⚾ Yankees at Royals, 7:40 p.m. on MLB Network
🏒 Game 4: Oilers at Panthers (Panthers lead 2-1), 8 p.m. on TNT/truTV
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Author: Zachary Pereles
June 12, 2025 | 8:55 am
