Alexander Zverev moved to the verge of a long-awaited first Grand Slam title as the second seed saw off Jakub Mensik in four sets (7-5, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3) to reach his second French Open final on Friday.
The German will face 10th seed Flavio Cobolli, who qualified without playing after fellow Italian Matteo Arnaldi pulled out of the tournament due to illness.
Zverev has endured several near misses at major tournaments, with three previous final defeats, including against Carlos Alcaraz at Roland Garros two years ago.
“This is a Grand Slam, it’s best of five, things are going to happen, opponents are going to play better. I managed it,” said Zverev.
But he will be a strong favourite against either Cobolli or world number 104 Arnaldi to finally get over the line and lift a Slam trophy.
The world number three was playing in his 11th Grand Slam semi-final and his experience showed against Czech youngster Mensik.
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The 20-year-old, in the last four of a major for the first time, tired as the match went on as his previous exertions in Paris, including two five-set matches, took their toll.
Zverev has dealt well with the pressure of being the tournament favourite since the early exits of Jannik Sinner and Novak Djokovic, in the second and third rounds respectively.
He will face one last test of his mental strength on Court Philippe Chatrier in two days’ time, but should at least be fresh physically after reaching the final having only lost two sets in six matches.
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“Pure emptiness, there’s absolutely nothing in my head,” insisted a smiling Zverev in his on-court interview.
“We’re athletes, very few of us have anything in our heads. Sometimes it’s easier to be stupid and not to think too much.”
The 29-year-old has been within one set of victory in two of his previous Slam finals, when facing Alcaraz in Paris in 2024 and when he blew a two-set lead against Dominic Thiem at the 2020 US Open.
Zverev is also aiming to end a 14-month title drought dating back to a clay-court event in Munich in April last year.
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Mensik briefly threatens comeback
Zverev took a closely-fought first set courtesy of a break in the 11th game, having earlier saved three break points to deny Mensik a 5-3 lead.
The 26th seed could not keep pace at all in the second set, as Zverev broke twice and only dropped four points on his own serve.
Mensik called for a medical time-out just three games into the third set, appearing to struggle with a neck injury.
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But he dragged himself back into the contest seemingly out of nowhere, breaking to take a 4-2 lead in the third set as his use of the drop shot started to make a greater impact.
That shot wrapped up a hold to love and the set – only the second Zverev had lost in the tournament.
Mensik could not keep up his momentum, though, falling 2-0 behind in the fourth set as consecutive backhand unforced errors gifted Zverev a break.
The three-time Grand Slam runner-up powered into the final from there, despite drawing the ire of some spectators for disputing two line calls and also receiving a warning for a time violation.
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Zverev wrapped up victory on his first match point as Mensik netted a backhand.
Thundering On (5/1) and Dylan Browne McMonagle landed the Group 1 Betfred Oaks at Epsom on Friday afternoon.
It was a second British classic training success for the successful handler, Joseph O’Brien, who previously won the Betfred St Leger with Galileo Gold.
The second English classic of the season saw nine fillies go to post – four of them trained by an O’Brien, one by Joseph, and three by his father Aidan.
Amelia Earhart (7/4f), the choice of Ballydoyle stable jockey Ryan Moore was the race favourite, with the Colin Keane-ridden Legacy Link (3/1) the second choice of the bookies.
Sugar Island (25/1) and Ronan Whelan set the early pace, closely followed by stable companion Cameo (7/1), the mount of last season’s Epsom Derby-winning rider Wayne Lordan.
The eventual winner, Thundering On, was towards the rear of the field for much of the one mile four furlong race.
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Once into the home straight, the chestnut daughter of Frankel, out of Thundering Nights, struck for home alone the stands’ side rail.
Colin Keane, wearing the Juddmonte Farms colours aboard Legacy Link, looked the biggest danger to the Salsabil Stakes winner.
Despite the strong challenge of the Dubawi filly, Legacy Link, Thundering On held on comfortably for a three-and-three-quarter length victory to give Donegal rider McMonagle a first British classic success.
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The John and Thady Gosden-conditioned Legacy Link took the runner-up position ahead of the outsider of the Ballydoyle trio, Sugar Island (25/1).
Race favourite Amelia Earhart and Ryan Moore finished sixth.
SUBIC BAY—Five-time world champion Craig “Crowie” Alexander will be a source of inspiration to the Century Tuna full Ironman Philippines and the IM 70.3 Subic Bay fields blasting off this Sunday, as he watches the action where participants from 45 countries have signed up.
The Australian icon, the 70.3 Subic champion in 2016, is retired from competitive racing, but has come to the country to join in celebrating the 10th anniversary of the event and the fifth holding of the full Ironman.
More than 1,500 participants have so far entered as slots to the World Championship will be dangled in the tournament seen as one of the best stops of the circuit with Subic Bay maintaining the world-class course.
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Widely regarded as one of the greatest endurance athletes in history, Alexander cemented his legacy in 2011 by capturing both the Ironman and IM 70.3 World Championships on the same year, a historic “double” that remains the stuff of triathlon lore.
His arrival has already supercharged the energy in Subic Bay, as action kicked off on Friday with the vibrant Sun Life Underpants Run.
It all leads to the weekend’s crowning jewels on Sunday, where close to 500 elite endurance athletes will push their minds and bodies to the absolute limit in the punishing full Ironman event–a grueling 3.8-kilometer swim, 180-km bike, and a full 42-km marathon run.
The others will see action in the IM 70.3, a 1.9-km swim, 90-km bike, and 21-km run event.
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Manchester City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak sent out a deliberate message as he addressed supporters at the end of the season.
Every year Khaldoon Al Mubarak sits down for one interview about Manchester City and no more. The club chairman has been giving his annual interview to the same interviewer, making his summer address a part of the club’s calendar.
It is a rare chance to hear the views of the City hierarchy, although at the same time, unlike an interview with external media, there is absolutely nothing that goes out without Al Mubarak wanting it to go out. His words are always worth noting, but so too is the very fact that they are being presented.
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The theme of this year’s address is stability and growth. Al Mubarak baulks at the suggestion a club that has won 20 trophies in 10 years under Pep Guardiola has peaked, promises they have found the best possible successor and pledges more commitment and investment from owner Sheikh Mansour.
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Nobody had even been thinking that Mansour might sell up, and yet here is the chairman on the one time each year he goes on the record to state that there is no chance of it. The show, under Mansour and Enzo Maresca, will absolutely go on.
There is even a retelling of the dynamic between Al Mubarak and Guardiola with the serial-winning coach likened to the boy who cried wolf as fans are told how he resigned ‘100 times’ in ten years. Each time, of course, Al Mubarak was the one to guide him to the right decision just as this time the City chairman knew that it was time for him to go.
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It certainly feels a little rose-tinted, and Guardiola is no longer here to offer any more balance to the story, but then maybe that is the point. Fans are understandably worried about how the club can move on from the most successful coach in their history as they struggle to appoint Maresca and key players publicly flirt with a move away.
In that vacuum, Al Mubarak has stepped up to tell supporters that not only are the hierarchy here to oversee what comes next but they always were during the Guardiola era having more of an influence than has perhaps been recognised. The manager will be missed, yet everything is under control.
Of course, as you would expect with a skilled negotiator who is trusted by the United Arab Emirates to speak on their behalf around the world, none of this is explicit. There will be people who haven’t got this far in the article before rushing to the comments to scream ‘MUEN’ into the corners of the internet, outraged at the idea that there could be more to Al Mubarak’s message than meets the eye.
But it is a very deliberate interview, as they are every year, that deserves to be deconstructed with the same care and attention that it was put together with. Whether City fans needed to hear it or not, Al Mubarak has made a conscious effort to reassure them over who is running their club and what they should expect to come.
Marcus Rashford is expected to leave Manchester United this summer and has been linked with a move to Arsenal among other clubs
Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford has reportedly ruled out a move to Arsenal after the Gunners made enquiries for the forward. The 28-year-old is likely to leave Old Trafford on a permanent basis this summer, but his preferred switch to Barcelona was blocked when Anthony Gordon joined the Catalan giants, with Premier League sides now expressing interest.
Newcastle United and Tottenham have also been linked with the England international, but Rashford remains determined to return to the Camp Nou following a highly productive loan spell during which he recorded 28 goal contributions. That impressive spell earned him an England recall and a place in Thomas Tuchel’s World Cup squad, where he will be vying for a starting position with Gordon.
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With Barcelona having spent £69million on Gordon, their buy option for Rashford, valued at just under half that amount, appears unlikely to be exercised.
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As he is not expected to be brought back into the United fold, several clubs have expressed interest and received a definitive response.
According to Spanish publication Sport, Arsenal, Tottenham and Newcastle have all approached Rashford, but the forward is not prepared to entertain any proposals from those sides.
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All three Premier League clubs are seeking a left winger, with Manchester City’s Savinho back on Tottenham’s radar. Newcastle, meanwhile, are competing with Chelsea for Swedish talent Zadok Yohanna. Arsenal have set their sights on Aston Villa’s Morgan Rogers.
Rashford’s stance is a blow for United, who are looking to offload him this summer. Should Barca decide not to trigger the buy option, then other potential moves will have to be looked at.
Sport reports that the situation has led to United softening their stance on negotiating a lower price with Barcelona. It’s added that the Spanish giants have unsuccessfully tried to sign Rashford on another loan deal.
It’s said that while United are now eager to negotiate, Barca are instead focusing on signing an out-and-out striker to replace Robert Lewandowski, who left at the end of the season. It’s added that while nothing is ‘off the table’ a return to Barcelona ‘seems unlikely.’
Should United not be able to sell Rashford, it could potentially have a domino effect on their own transfer business, with £26 million less to play with, plus having to cover his wages. The club have already been active, agreeing a fee with Atalanta for midfielder Ederson.
For Rashford, concentration will be on impressing for England this summer. The Three Lions kick off their preparations for the World Cup on Saturday when they take on New Zealand.
They then take on Costa Rica on Wednesday before kicking off their tournament. Tuchel’s side start against Croatia on Wednesday, 17 June (9pm).
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Upgrade your World Cup TV setup with the Sky Glass ‘designed for football’
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Sky is knocking 20% off its entire range of Glass TVs to mark the start of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Until June 17, shoppers can upgrade to the Sky smart TV that’s ‘designed for football’ from £4.50 per month when taken alongside a Sky TV and Netflix package.
Striving for improvement in your game is addictive. When you’ve got the golf bug, all you can do is think about the game.
As a golf addict for going on 20 years, the feeling is all to familiar. I’m the guy that rehearses my swing any chance I get. In the living room. On the subway platform. At the bar. Heck, sometimes I even dream about my swing thoughts. What can I say, it’s a sickness.
Since last summer, I’ve been militant about improving my swing. I’ve always known how to score, but now it’s my mission to build a consistent, technically sound swing. That includes practicing two to three days a week, and learning all I can about how my swing works.
I’m fortunate to have plenty of top golf-instruction minds at my disposal, but sometimes, diagnosing my swing comes from other sources. For example, the app Sportsbox AI has become my go-to for quick swing diagnoses.
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How Sportsbox AI is helping fix my swing
Sportsbox AI is an app that uses motion-analysis kinetic software to convert videos of your swing (taken on your smartphone) into 3D models to provide real-time, corrective feedback. The app has the backing of some of the brightest teaching minds in the game, and was recently acquired by a group led by Bryson DeChambeau. The two-time major champ himself even utilizes the app to work on his own game, if that tells you anything about its swing-nerdiness.
Over the past few months, I’ve been using Sportsbox AI to analyze my swing after every practice session — and it exposed a couple of glaring flaws in my swing.
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Too much hip rotation
One of the cool things about Sportsbox AI is that it provides a generally acceptable range for just about every movement in the swing. One such movement is called “Pelvis Turn,” which measures how much your hips rotate during the swing.
Early on in using Sportsbox, I noticed that my pelvis turn numbers were always in the red when I reached the top of the backswing. Upon further inspection, it turned out that my hips were turning too much, too early in the swing.
Now, a big hip turn may sound like something good, but it is easy to overdo it. When you turn your trail hip too much early in the backswing, it reaches the end of its range of motion. And if this happens before you finish turning your upper body to the top of the swing, you have to lift your arms to complete the backswing.
This is a problem that many recreational golfers have — and it was killing my swing. Sportsbox AI flags the issue in my swing every time it happens, letting me know when I need to watch how much I am turning my hips during the backswing.
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When I first started using Sportsbox, my hip-turn number was as much as -51 degrees (negative is turn away from the target). But now, when I am swinging my best, I am closer to -39 degrees, keeping my pelvis turn numbers in the green.
Early extension
I’ve always had a bit of early extension in my swing, and Sportsbox caught it right away. One of the features of the app is its “Swing Flaws” feature which tells you if it catches a common flaw in your swing.
One way you can monitor for early extension is the “Chest Bend” number. When you bend at your hips and your chest gets closer to the ground, it helps keep your pelvis back and out of the way, reducing early extension and allowing room for your arms to swing freely.
With my old swing, my chest-bend number at the top of the swing was around -6 degrees, which is right at the edge of the range for the top of the swing. After seeing that, I made sure to bend at my hips more to initiate the downswing, and my chest bend number is now around +2 degrees.
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This number is great for me to keep an eye on throughout the swing, as it tells me if I am early extending during the downswing. In my experience thus far, so long as I keep the chest bend numbers in the green, I do not early extend nearly as much.
If you’re someone who wants high-level analysis of your swing, Sportsxbox AI is a great option. The amount of data it throws at you can be intimidating at first, but once you begin to interperate what all the numbers mean, you’ll understand your swing like never before.
Welcome to Fully Equipped’s weekly Tour equipment report. Every Friday of PGA Tour weeks (plus other times, if news warrants), GOLF equipment editor Jack Hirsh runs you through some of the biggest news surrounding golf clubs on Tour, including changes, tweaks and launches.
DUBLIN, Ohio — Cameron Young has made his move to golf’s hottest new driver.
Young became the latest player to switch to one of Titleist’s new GTS drivers, opting for a 10-degree GTS3, moving from the 11-degree GT3 he switched to earlier this year before winning the Players and Cadillac Championships.
Young is the first player ranked inside the top 10 of the Official World Golf Ranking to add the new driver. Previously, the highest-ranked player was No. 16 Justin Thomas. The add makes Young the 65th player currently gaming a GTS driver, while over 70 players have played one.
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Young has had a unique driver build since his switch at Bay Hill, where he went back to his Mitsubishi Diamana PD 60TX shaft and changed to the 11-degree GT3, lofted down in the D1 setting, to help get more launch to match his prototype Pro V1x Double Dot golf ball.
While that switch put his spin in a great window, around 2,500 with an extra two degrees of launch at 11 degrees, his spin started creeping up as the season went on. Titleist rep J.J. Van Wezenbeeck told GOLF he was climbing into the upper 2,000s.
Big change for Cameron Young this week as he’s made the move to the Titleist GTS3 driver.
Down in loft to 10˚ from the 11.0 GT3 he was playing since Bay Hill.
“His spins have been kind of creeping up a little bit. So the spins have been getting a little bit closer to 28, 29,” he said. “At times when he’s swinging really fast, the 11-degree head is bordering on a little too high, and a 10 is bordering a little bit on the too low.”
This is where the GTS’s dual weighting system really came in handy.
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“Being able to utilize the dual weighting just lets us kind of get into a really nice in-between spot in terms of launch and spin for him,” Van Wezenbeeck said.
Because the GTS has both an adjustable front track weight and an adjustable rear flat weight, Titleist was able to put an extra two grams in the rear of Young’s new GTS3, which was just enough to give him the extra launch he needed, while staying at the 10-degree loft.
Young has been testing GTS3 since the prototype stage back in December, so he already knew the GTS3 was potentially going to be the right fit for him. Once he finally had some time off between this week’s Memorial and last month’s PGA Championship, he made the switch at home.
The new driver brings Young’s spin window into the 2,600 to 2,700 range and keeps it there thanks to the GTS platform’s improved spin consistency. While that’s a bit higher than it was at the beginning of the year, that extra spin helps Young manage his mishits and keeps them from falling out of the sky.
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“He kind of knew the spin stability that he gets with this driver,” Van Wezenbeeck said. “So that was kind of a big one, it’s really how well it manages his mishits. And so that was kind of a big one to have in play for him.”
Young also made a tweak to his iron set, soft-stepping his Dynamic Gold X7 shafts to give him back the ability to hit off-speed shots more effectively.
Similar to his driver setup, soft-stepping the X7 as opposed to going back to the X100s gave him a nice middle ground of control and feel, Van Wezenbeeck said.
This week, Rose made the most notable move yet, switching to a completely raw set of Series 1s.
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But don’t get too excited. McLaren doesn’t have any immediate plans to offer their new irons unfinished. Instead, the absence of the plating and polishing serves a functional purpose, McLaren Golf Senior Design Manager for Irons and Wedges JP Herrington told GOLF, as Rose works to tweak his new clubs.
“Right now we want to be able to move fast and get everything dialed in,” Herrington said. “It allows that flexibility to make some of those adjustments versus having to send them out and get them plated and then get them back.”
The change Rose and Herrington made at the Memorial this week? Moving toward less offset in the mid-irons.
At Rose’s request, the initial Series 1s had a unique progressive offset package with jumps between the short and mid-irons and the mid- to the long irons. With this new raw set Rose saw for the first time at Muirfield Village, the offset on the mid-irons was reduced by half a millimeter. That’s enough to make a difference to someone like Rose, who Herrington said has one of the most discerning eyes on Tour.
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“Having something that really feels comfortable looking down at it — and we’re talking those little minute changes, whether it’s a half or a quarter of a millimeter — make a difference, especially to someone like Justin,” Herrington said. “A lot of it, he talks about just that visual at address, how it meets his eye, and then that translates to confidence into the golf swing.”
Herrington wasn’t sure Rose would end up gaming the raw set this week, but it looked like from watching Rose’s first testing session on Tuesday that a lightbulb went off on the first swing. He immediately noted that he was reaching apex heights of more than 130 feet with the raw irons, something he said he hadn’t seen in a long time.
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The ball also seemed to be holding his line better, Herrington said.
That probably had more to do with visual comfort than any performance difference with the clubs.
The raw finished irons could remain in the bag, but Herrington said it’s unlikely. Rose even asked if the specific set he had could eventually be polished and plated.
After a rough start with the new irons at the Cadillac Championship, Rose seemed to find a groove at the PGA Championship with a T10 finish. This week, he opened with a 69 on Thursday and led the field with 15 greens in regulation.
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Maybe he continues with the raw irons if he keeps hitting the ball like that.
Fleetwood sees ‘shadows’
Tommy Fleetwood is looking for a “shadow” on the greens this week and it might have finally jump-started his putting slump to begin the season.
The reigning FedEx Cup champion made his fourth putter switch this season and perhaps the most significant one yet. After playing with TaylorMade’s larger Spider Tour since moving to the mallet platform at the RBC Heritage last year, Fleetwood is gaming a new, smaller Spider Tour X this week at the Memorial.
Tommy Fleetwood is testing a new Spider Tour X Black putter this week.
He’s had this putter for a few months now and it has the same pilot’s eye alignment that he switched to on his Spider Tour in March.
Despite earning five top-10s already this season, Fleetwood has struggled on the greens, losing .064 strokes a round and ranking 93rd on the PGA Tour. Last season he gained more than four-tenths of a stroke and ranked 20th.
At the Valero Texas Open, Fleetwood changed his alignment aid on the Spider Tour Black from the custom Sharpie lines hand-drawn on the top by TaylorMade putter rep James Holley to a “pilot’s eye” aid. He then used a similar model in the new 2026 Torched finish at the RBC Heritage before returning to the black finish for his next start at the Cadillac Championship.
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But this week, he’s gone to a different head entirely with the Spider Tour Black X with the same “pilot’s eye” alignment aid and short slant hosel.
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TaylorMade 2025 Spider Tour X Black Custom Putter
BLACK PVD FINISH The durable PVD coating creates a beautiful high-quality finish with sole plate, back badge and copper accents.
TRUE PATH™ ALIGNMENT The patented alignment system provides visual clarity and helps golfers better envision the line to the hole.
WHITE TPU PURE ROLL™ INSERTMade from a combination of Surlyn and aluminum, the white TPU Pure Roll™ insert creates a softer feel. Grooves are angled at 45° to encourage optimal forward roll as well as better sound, feel and overall roll characteristics. The white insert also creates better symmetry with the white True Path alignment.
THIN WALL UNDERCUT CONSTRUCTION We’ve engineered a super stable structure by removing excess weight to create high MOI and legendary Spider performance.
HYBRAR ECHO®DAMPENER HYBRAR is behind the face to dampen unwanted vibrations, delivering premium sound and feel on every putt with the best possible sensation.
TSS WEIGHTING TSS weights provide balanced weighting and help optimize performance for all various putter lengths.
STEEL WIREFRAME Allows engineers to better control weight distribution and CG location.
“The main reason Tommy switched to the X was the slightly more forward CG and the alignment benefits of the true path,” Holley told GOLF. “He started lining up the Clear Path on his TP5 pix more often and although the TruePath is blacked out, the ‘shadow’ of the true path matched up nicely to that.”
While Fleetwood’s new Spider Tour X is still all black with no TruePath aid like his previous putters, the Spider Tour X has the outline of the True Path built into the top, while a Spider Tour without TruePath is smooth.
That outline of the TruePath turned out to really help Fleetwood with his alignment on the greens. Fleetwood has actually had the putter for a few months leading up to the change.
In Round 1 at Jack’s place, that paid off as Fleetwood was third in the field in SG: Putting, picking up nearly two and a half shots as he fired a 67 to co-lead going into Friday.
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Fleetwood also got two new replica putters this week to celebrate his FedEx Cup victory last year. Holley had the original Sharpie lines scanned and then laser-etched them into the toplines of the putter. The replicas also came with custom Winston Collection headcovers with the same design embroidered on top.
TaylorMade gave Tommy Fleetwood a replica of the Spider Tour Black putter he used to win the FedEx Cup with last summer.
Instead of rep James Holley drawing the sharpie lines on the top alignment aid, this version has been lasered on to exactly mimic the imperfections of the… pic.twitter.com/WzhbSWKCbo
Rory McIlroy leads the PGA Tour in SG: Off-the-Tee this season, but he’s still finding the fairway just 55 percent of the time.
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McIlroy is switching this week to the Fujikura Ventus Black 7-X shaft, up in weight from the 6-X he has played for the past several years. McIlroy also added weight to the head of his TaylorMade Qi4D driver, going up to two 13g weights in the rear instead of the 11s he had to begin the year.
Rory McIlroy is making a slight tweak to his driver setup, going to a heavier Fujikura Ventus Black OG 7-X shaft, up from the 6-X he’s used this year.
Caddie Harry Diamond told me he was seeing a bit extra stability out of the heavier build.
Explaining Project X’s Titan Yellow wood shaft – Clark earned his win the week he switched to Project X’s new counterbalanced Titan yellow wood shaft. Jake Morrow explains how the new shaft works.
Fox News’ Kayleigh McEnany reports on President Donald Trump’s plans to attend Game 3 of the NBA Finals in New York City. Trump, a lifelong Knicks fan, was personally invited by NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, who expressed excitement over the president’s attendance and highlighted shared interests. The segment also notes President Trump’s presence at multiple major sporting events during his time in office and his plans to host a UFC fight at the White House on June 14.
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The first NBA Finals game at Madison Square Garden this millennium has the potential to be the hottest ticket of all time.
The New York Knicks are aiming for their first title in 53 years, and they will host Game 3 of the NBA Finals for the first time since 1999 on Monday.
Knicks games are always a pricey ticket, but this one trumps all.
Fans react at a watch party inside Madison Square Garden in New York City during Game 1 of the NBA Finals between the New York Knicks and San Antonio Spurs on June 3, 2026. The Knicks are in the NBA Finals for the first time since 1999, seeking their first championship since 1973.(Adam Gray/Getty Images)
At the time of publishing, SeatGeek’s current get-in price was $9,990 to sit in the nosebleeds — there were just two listings below $10,000. StubHub’s cheapest 100-level ticket was $13,115.
According to the New York Post, citing further information from SeatGeek, the average ticket price of $7,149 for Madison Square Garden games during this Finals (Games 3, 4 and 6) has shattered the all-time record of $1,965 from 2024 in Dallas.
The court is seen ahead of Game 1 of the NBA Finals between the New York Knicks and the San Antonio Spurs as fans arrive at Madison Square Garden in New York City on June 3, 2026.(Timothy A. Clary/AFP)
Only Super Bowl LVIII in 2024 between the Kansas City Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers had a higher average price ($10,497) than the Knicks’ home games this series.
President Donald Trump said he will be in attendance for Monday’s game.
The Knicks won Game 1 on the road in San Antonio, prompting a tremendous spike in prices as Finals fever got even more real than it already was.
So, if the Knicks can snag Game 2 on the road and come back home with a 2-0 series lead, prices could rise even further.
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A Nike Basketball digital billboard featuring New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson displays “This Train is Not Stopping” on the exterior of Madison Square Garden in New York on May 31, 2026. The Knicks are the 2026 Eastern Conference champions and are playing in the NBA Finals for the first time since 1999.(Erica Denhoff/Icon Sportswire)
Oct 3, 2021; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett (95) wraps up Minnesota Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins (8) during the third quarter at U.S. Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports
A few days ago, an NFL trade caught essentially everybody’s attention. The LA Rams, already a juggernaut, added edge rusher Myles Garrett. All of the sudden, the NFC became considerably more dangerous, making the path toward the Super Bowl more difficult.
As the conference reels from the impact of Garrett’s arrival, the Minnesota Vikings need to digest an individualized warning.
Boasting a player as magnificent as Justin Jefferson can be a blessing and a curse. The “blessing” portion of things is easy to see: a weekly advantage since #18 usually demands a minimum of two receivers to slow down. But then there’s the “curse:” needing to allow that elite player to achieve massive success. Failing to do so will very likely mean seeing that unique talent push for a divorce in the same way that Garrett did down in Cleveland.
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NFL Trade Offers a Vikings Warning Regarding Justin Jefferson
In a lot of ways, Mr. Jefferson finds himself in an odd spot.
Envisioning him playing for another team feels close to impossible since it feels as though he has been part of the team forever. Already, the man has been in the NFL for six seasons and is fast approaching his seventh. But then the reality is that he is still only 26, meaning he could still be in the middle of his career.
The other side of these realities — being around forever but still having lots of football ahead — is that he hasn’t yet experienced meaningful success. Jefferson has gone to the playoffs a pair of times, losing both times. In each instance, Jefferson struggled to produce, mostly due to his teammates losing the line of scrimmage so consistently.
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Justin Jefferson is a great talent who hasn’t yet found a way to block, pass, and catch all within the same play. So far, he has been constrained by the normal human limitation of simply being a historically-great receiver.
Jan 4, 2026; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson (18) celebrates after a play in front of Green Bay Packers safety Evan Williams (33) during the second quarter at U.S. Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images.
At some point, Jefferson’s patience may run out. Money can only go so far.
Putting him in a different environment would mean that Jefferson’s star would shine much more brightly, as hard as that is to imagine. A superstar, Jefferson is famous due to personal excellence rather than team excellence. Very few players reach his heights; these highs, though, have been found in receiving yards and All Pro teams rather than Super Bowl rings and championship parades.
Myles Garrett eventually decided he had had enough. And, in fairness, that’s completely fair. Who wants to play for the Browns? The Defensive Player of the Year wants a Lombardi, a completely reasonable desire.
Now, the obvious counterpoint: the Vikings are far ahead of the Browns. In fact, there’s no comparison between these two franchises. For all of the stumbling and bumbling, at least the Vikings generate respect before arriving at heartbreak. Something to be said for that, folks.
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Moving off of Justin Jefferson will only happen with the effort from the man himself to move on. Indeed, Jefferson’s future trade — if that ever did occur — would almost certainly need to be at the behest of the receiver demanding a swap.
Seeing Jefferson ask for a one-way ticket out of town would mean snagging a considerable haul (the Browns got Jared Verse alongside three valuable draft picks) but it’s hard to replace a talent who is so sensational. After all, there’s a reason why teams aren’t keen to move on from these guys: top-ten NFL talents are very hard to find.
Oct 5, 2025; Tottenham, United Kingdom; Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell greets Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett (95) after an NFL International Series game at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
Already, the online football chatter contains Jefferson trade ideas. At this stage, those ideas are essentially hogwash. Sure, teams can call, but Nolan Teasley can just hang up the phone.
However, not putting Jefferson in a position to experience meaningful success can lead to a strange transfiguration whereby the ludicrous becomes plausible. Myles Garrett proves as much.
Justin Jefferson will turn 27 on June 16th. He has won Offensive Player of the Year, been to the Pro Bowl four times, and is a four-time All Pro.
It has been a difficult stretch for the NASCAR community, and now it is mourning another loss, as legendary driver and broadcaster Ned Jarrett has passed away.
He was 93.
Jarrett, a NASCAR Hall of Famer, died of natural causes at his home in Newton, North Carolina. A celebrated driver and broadcaster, he was named one of NASCAR’s 50 Greatest Drivers in 1998.
He raced in the Cup Series from 1953 to 1966, first taking up racing while working on his family’s farm and sawmill when Hickory Speedway opened.
“I played a little basketball and baseball in high school (and) thought I had some athletic ability,” he said, according to NASCAR. “When they opened the speedway, I ran the first race they ever run there. I was hooked.”
Jarrett is still No. 1 on the all-time wins list for Ford drivers. He won 43 races behind the wheel of a car with a Blue Oval on the front, and his position on that list seems safe for quite some time.
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Ned Jarrett straps on his helmet as he prepares for a practice session at Darlington Raceway.(Photo by ISC Images & Archives via Getty Images)
The highest active driver on the list is Team Penske’s Joey Logano, who has 35 of his 37 career wins with Ford.
Jarrett is also remembered for his career in broadcasting that began after he retired from driving. He began as a pit reporter on radio for Motor Racing Network (MRN), then moved into TV with CBS and ESPN.
CHARLOTTE, NC – JANUARY 29: NASCAR Hall of Famers Dale Jarrett (left) and dad Ned Jarrett pose for a portrait session during the NASCAR Hall of Fame induction ceremony.(Photo by Jared C. Tilton/NASCAR via Getty Images)
There’s likely no moment of his broadcasting career as memorable as the 1993 Daytona 500 in which he called a late-race battle between his son, NASCAR great Dale Jarrett, and Dale Earnhardt Sr. that ended with his son taking the win.
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“You know who I’m pulling for, it’s Dale Jarrett. Bring her to the inside, Dale, don’t let him get down there,” Jarrett said during the broadcast. “He’s gonna make it! Dale Jarrett’s gonna win the Daytona 500! Alright!”
Jarrett’s sons — the aforementioned Dale and brother, Glenn — both followed in their old man’s footsteps by going into broadcasting after their racing careers were over.
RALEIGH, N.C. — In the middle of one of the most unlikely playoff scoring heaters the National Hockey League has seen in years, Brett Howden got a question no one asks in polite company.
The kind you don’t lob at a co-worker. Or your neighbour.
“Did you ever think you should have asked for a little bit more money?”
It came at the tail end of a podium availability during the Colorado series — awkward, blunt, and dripping with hindsight.
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Howden smiled, waited for the room to finish laughing, then deadpanned the only answer he could.
“That never even crossed my mind.”
What also never crossed anyone’s mind back in November 2024 — when Howden inked a five-year deal worth $2.5 million annually — was that he’d morph into one of Vegas’ best playoff performers, let alone a springtime sniper pacing the field.
In Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final on Thursday, the 28-year-old winger scored the first two goals in a game Vegas controlled for 50 minutes. He nearly had a third before the second intermission, used his wheels to draw a penalty, and spent the night turning Carolina’s defence.
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For a long stretch, he was the story.
Then came 14 minutes of chaos, capped by a Seth Jarvis overtime winner that flipped the script and stole both the spotlight and the result.
Now, with the series tied 1-1 and shifting to T-Mobile Arena, the conversation keeps circling back to the same unlikely source:
No one has scored more this spring than the 13 he’s piled up through 18 games. Not the superstars. Not the usual suspects.
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And here’s where it gets absurd.
He had 12 goals in 58 regular-season games.
Now he has more in the playoffs alone.
No player in NHL history has scored a dozen or more in the regular season and then topped that number in the same post-season.
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All told, he’s sitting on 25 goals this year — roughly $100,000 per.
Add in three game-winners, and you’re talking about production every general manager in the league dreams of. At any price.
“I think over the course of my career I’ve started to build a little bit more consistency in my game, and I think that was something I struggled with early on,” said Howden, a first-round pick by Tampa who started his pro career with the Rangers before becoming a reclamation project in Vegas.
“I’ve always been a centre, but when I came here I started playing wing a little bit more and kind of got used to that.
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“I enjoy going back and forth. Honestly, I try to bring the same game, just trying to play an honest game, and try to bring my best that I can every day.”
Right now, his best has him riding shotgun on the second line, clicking with Mitch Marner and William Karlsson — a trio that has quietly become one of Vegas’ most dangerous looks.
“I think he’s in the moment, I just think he likes the situation,” said head coach John Tortorella of Howden’s emergence.
“I think the line’s been good. That line, once we put it together, just connected. I don’t think he’s afraid of a damn thing, as far as playoffs, what comes with it, the flows of it. I just think he feels that good about himself.”
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The pedigree was always there.
The Moose Jaw Warriors captain also captained Canada to gold at the 2015 Hlinka Gretzky Cup. He won again at the world juniors. He chipped in during Vegas’ 2023 Cup run alongside Mark Stone and Chandler Stephenson.
This isn’t coming from nowhere.
It just never looked like this.
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So when Howden opened the 2024-25 season with six goals in his first 12 games, Kelly McCrimmon didn’t hesitate, locking him up long-term.
The Manitoban rewarded that faith with 23 goals.
Now he’s blowing past expectations entirely.
His first Thursday came late in the opening frame off a broken play turned footrace. Marner flipped a backhand out to neutral ice, Howden beat Sean Walker to it, and in alone, he snapped it clean past Frederik Andersen.
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Vegas’ second shot of the night.
Early in the second, his speed forced K’Andre Miller into an interference penalty. Moments after Carolina killed it off and the building found its voice again, Howden took it away.
He blew through the middle, danced around Jaccob Slavin, and tucked a forehand past Andersen to double the lead.
“Two great plays,” said Howden, crediting his teammates.
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“One, Mitch put the puck in a perfect spot. I just looked down, the puck was there, and I felt like I had an edge on him. And then Barney (Ivan Barbashev) made a great play on the second one. I just tried using my speed up the middle there, and he found me in a great spot.”
For a while, it felt like he’d sucked the air out of Lenovo Center completely — like he’d buried the Hurricanes and put a stranglehold on the series.
That’s the job description for stars.
Names like Jack Eichel. Tomas Hertl. Pavel Dorofeyev. Maybe even Marner.
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And he’s doing it for a price tag every team in the league would sign off on without a second thought.
Even if, in hindsight, someone might suggest he left a little on the table.
;)
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