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JJ Redick gets a technical foul for bizarre crashout in Game 2

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It did not take long for JJ Redick to get upset with the officiating during Game 2.

The Los Angeles Lakers head coach Redick picked up an early technical foul on Thursday against the Oklahoma City Thunder. In the first quarter at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, Okla., Redick got irate after the Thunder supposedly got away with fouling Lakers star Austin Reaves on back-to-back possessions.

The second such instance led to a Thunder steal for an easy dunk by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. Redick immediately called a timeout after the dunk and proceeded to crash out.

He grabbed Lakers center Jaxson Hayes, who was doing nothing other than walking to the bench, and appeared to spank Hayes to illustrate the contact that OKC was allegedly getting away with. Redick then got right up into the face of referee Ben Taylor, who hit him with a technical foul.

Here is the video of the incident.

The Lakers lost Game 1 of the second-round series to the Thunder by a lopsided final score of 108-90, so that may have been Redick simply trying to show some fight. But under any circumstances, Redick is never afraid to mix it up with the refs and was once even caught on video delivering a very profane message to an official during a game.

James Harden gets the memes for his Game 2 stinker vs. Pistons

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The NBA playoffs continue to be James Harden’s mortal enemy.

Harden was atrocious in the Cleveland Cavaliers’ Game 2 loss to the Detroit Pistons on Thursday. The Cavs star went 3/13 from the field for just 10 points as Cleveland fell to Detroit by a final score of 107-97.

The former MVP Harden also had more turnovers (four) than assists (three) on Thursday night. That included one particularly awful misdribble with under 40 seconds left in the fourth quarter to seal the Cavaliers’ fate.

Harden’s latest playoff dud led to a number of memes flooding social media. X users were more than happy to pile onto Harden over yet another disappearing act by him in the postseason.

The three-time NBA scoring champion Harden is one of the league’s all-time great regular season performers. But he has a well-earned reputation as a playoff choker and has not made it out of the second round since 2018 (despite getting to the playoffs in every single season since then).

Now Harden and the Cavaliers are down 0-2 in their second-round series against the Pistons. Though Cleveland traded for Harden at the February deadline in an effort to go all-in on winning this season, the 11-time All-Star is not really helping matters right now and has even been losing his cool over the course of the Detroit series.

Vikings add an exciting new weapon for Kyler Murray

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The Minnesota Vikings are doing their best to put Kyler Murray in a position to succeed.

Minnesota announced on Thursday that they have agree to sign wide receiver Jauan Jennings in free agency. Adam Schefter of ESPN adds that Jennings is getting a one-year deal from the Vikings that can be worth up to $13 million with incentives.

Jennings, 28, spent the first five seasons of his NFL career with the San Francisco 49ers. In recent years, Jennings had emerged as one of the most underrated receivers in the NFL, posting 975 receiving yards and six touchdowns in 2024 and 643 yards and nine touchdowns in 2025.

As for the Vikings, they recently lost fellow receiver Jalen Nailor in free agency. Nailor, who had spent the last four seasons in Minnesota, signed a three-year, $35 million contract with the Las Vegas Raiders in March.

Meanwhile, Minnesota also landed the former No. 1 overall pick Murray in free agency after Murray was released by the Arizona Cardinals. Murray is expected to beat out JJ McCarthy and Carson Wentz to become the Vikings’ starting quarterback in 2026.

Minnesota’s receiver room is currently led by ex-NFL Offensive Player of the Year Justin Jefferson and former first-round pick Jordan Addison. But Jennings is an exciting new addition as the Vikings’ projected WR3 and should give them an interesting edge with his very petty personality as well.

Reds’ Tyler Stephenson commits the dumbest blunder of season

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Tyler Stephenson left his fundamentals at home on Thursday.

The Cincinnati Reds catcher Stephenson committed the dumbest blunder of the season during his team’s game against the Chicago Cubs. In the fourth inning at Wrigley Field in Chicago, Ill., the Cubs had the bases loaded with nobody out.

Cubs shortstop Dansby Swanson then bounced a grounder to the left side, which was fielded by Reds third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes. After stepping on third to record one out, Hayes fired the ball to his teammate Stephenson behind the plate.

Inexplicably though, Stephenson failed to tag the runner coming home (Chicago’s Ian Happ). As a result of the play no longer being a force out (due to Hayes recording the out at third), Happ scored a run on the play.

The howler by the 29-year-old Stephenson gave the Cubs a 3-0 lead, and they would eventually beat the Reds by a final score of 8-3. Here is the video of the boneheaded moment.

Even if Stephenson forgot about the force rule, it should be automatic for an MLB catcher to tag the runner there in addition to stepping on the plate. Instead though, Stephenson goofed and gave away a free run to the Cubs (who are usually the ones committing defensive miscues themselves).

Donovan Mitchell injures Tobias Harris with a wicked crossover in Game 2

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Donovan Mitchell was out there committing acts of violence on Thursday.

Mitchell and the Cleveland Cavaliers played Thursday against Tobias Harris and the Detroit Pistons for Game 2 of their second-round playoff series. In the first quarter at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, Mich., the Cavaliers star Mitchell got the Pistons forward Harris isolated on the perimeter.

Immediately, Mitchell hit Harris with an inside-out dribble followed by a right-left and then a left-right crossover all the way into a made floater at the rim. That entire sequence proved to be far too much for Harris (and his mortal body) as he promptly collapsed to the hardwood grabbing onto his left hip.

Here is the video of the play.

The Pistons were forced to take a timeout as Harris gingerly picked himself up off the floor. But Harris did not actually end up leaving the game and ultimately gutted through the hip injury for the rest of the contest.

Harris, 33, entered play on Thursday averaging a stout 21.4 points and 8.1 rebounds per game in the playoffs (after posting just 13.3 points and 5.1 rebounds per game in the regular season). As for the seven-time All-Star Mitchell, he can now add his name to the list of Cleveland players who have actually managed to injure opponents with in-game crossovers.

Former cult hero NFL quarterback announces his retirement

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A former cult hero has dropped back to pass for the final time.

Ex-Washington Commanders quarterback Taylor Heinicke announced on Thursday that he is retiring from the NFL after 11 total seasons. Heinicke took to his Instagram page to issue messages of gratitude and added that he was “excited for this next chapter” of his life.

Heinicke went undrafted in 2015 but managed to put together a very respectable career as a journeyman QB. He saw game action for five different NFL teams, but Heinicke’s best years came in Washington, where he played from 2020-23.

The Old Dominion product Heinicke got a playoff start for Washington in 2020 in relief of the injured Alex Smith and then became the starting quarterback in 2021 after an early-season injury to Ryan Fitzpatrick. Overall with Washington, Heinicke started 24 games, going 12-11-1 and throwing for 5,415 yards and 33 total touchdowns.

Heinicke also had a memorable run of producing game-winners for the Commanders, which helped make him a cult hero. He even went viral back in 2022 over his petty moves for every opponent that he beat.

In more recent years, Heinicke had been a backup for the Atlanta Falcons and the Los Angeles Chargers. But he did not receive another NFL deal after failing to survive preseason cuts by the Chargers in 2025. Heinicke was also in the news a little while back over his vocal support for Donald Trump and is now calling it quits from the NFL at 33 years old.

Cubs accomplish rare feat not seen since 1955 Dodgers

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The Chicago Cubs just continue to win baseball games.

On Thursday, the Cubs defeated the Cincinnati Reds 8-3 at Wrigley Field, finishing a four-game sweep and winning their ninth straight game.

The Cubs now have two nine-game win streaks this season, making them the first team since the 1955 Brooklyn Dodgers to have multiple nine-game win streaks in the first 38 games.

Chicago is also the seventh team in MLB history to accomplish such a feat.

For what it’s worth, the Dodgers won the World Series in 1955, so this could bode very well for Chicago.

The Cubs won nine in a row from April 14 through April 24, and this latest streak began on April 28 with a win over the San Diego Padres.

To make things even more impressive for Chicago is the fact that several injuries have taken place, with Matthew Boyd recently landing on the IL in a bizarre injury and Cade Horton undergoing season-ending surgery at the start of the season.

The Cubs have a four-game lead over the St. Louis Cardinals in the National League Central.

Chicago will begin a three-game series against the Texas Rangers, which is the start of a nine-game road trip.

Cody Bellinger had a perfect description of Spencer Jones after Yankees’ promotion

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The New York Yankees defeated the Texas Rangers on Thursday, 9-2, in the Bronx, but they saw Jasson Dominguez leave the game in the first inning after crashing into a wall while making a catch.

Dominguez was carted off, and after the game, manager Aaron Boone announced the outfielder tested negative for a concussion, but he suffered a low-grade AC sprain in his left shoulder, which will sideline him for “a few weeks.”

In turn, the Yankees decided to promote star prospect Spencer Jones, and Cody Bellinger had a perfect description for the young slugger.

Jones is one of the top prospects in the organization, and he has 11 home runs with 41 RBI and a .958 OPS in 33 games in Triple-A this season.

Jones, who is listed at 6-foot-7 and 240 pounds, earned some Shohei Ohtani comparisons during spring training.

Jones also made waves when he hit a home run out of the stadium and into the parking lot at George M. Steinbrenner Field in Tampa, Fla., in February (video can be found here).

Yankees fans have been waiting for Jones to get the MLB promotion, and while it comes with an unfortunate injury to Dominguez, the team will see what the young prospect can do at the big-league level.

The Yankees begin a three-game series on the road on Friday against the Milwaukee Brewers.

Draymond Green’s future with the Warriors gets a new update

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The Golden State Warriors have a lot of questions to answer this offseason, and one is regarding veteran forward Draymond Green.

Green has a $27.7 million player option for next season, and it remains to be seen what the future holds for him. On Thursday, ClutchPoints’ NBA insider Brett Siegel gave an update, saying Green’s chances of staying with Golden State are “50-50” while adding that Green’s contract could be a trade chip if he accepts it this summer.

Green, 36, has spent his entire career with the Warriors since being selected in the second round of the 2012 NBA Draft.

Green averaged 8.4 points per game with 5.5 rebounds and 5.5 assists, but his value goes far beyond the box score.

At the same time, the Warriors and head coach Steve Kerr are still discussing his future, but the latest updates stated that Kerr is increasingly likely to return as the coach for at least one more season.

The Warriors finished as the No. 10 seed in the Western Conference but lost to the Phoenix Suns in the final game of the NBA Play-In Tournament.

Stephen A. Smith responds to Jaylen Brown’s retirement comment

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Boston Celtics star Jaylen Brown and TY personality Stephen A. Smith have been going back and forth on social media lately.

It began with Smith saying Brown needs to “be quiet,” and Brown responded.

“I’ll “be quiet” / stop streaming if you “be quiet” and retire let’s give the people what they want,” Brown wrote on X.

Then, Smith responded with a lengthy post on X, saying it’s not about him, but rather it is all about Brown.

All of this comes on the heels of former NBA star Tracy McGrady saying that Brown is frustrated with the Celtics following their first-round upset loss to the Philadelphia 76ers.

“His frustration lies deeply within the organization and other things that we don’t really have the details to,” said McGrady of Brown. “There’s just been a lot of stuff that I’ve been hearing, just going on with the Boston organization with JB.

Brown also said this was his “favorite” season despite blowing a 3-1 deficit to Philadelphia, but those comments didn’t sit well with Smith, although Brown explained it was because of the challenges the team faced.

Let’s see who responds next.

Jose Altuve received an unusual tribute from Houston Zoo

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Jose Altuve is a nine-time All-Star and a member of two World Series-winning teams with the Houston Astros.

Altuve has become a popular name in the city of Houston, and the Houston Zoo is now paying tribute to Altuve in a unique way.

The zoo announced that it named a new baby monkey Tuve in honor of the Astros star. The reveal came on May 6, which is also Altuve’s birthday.

The zoo also gave a shoutout to Altuve on his birthday while revealing the new monkey.

“Altuve hits dingers. Tuve turns up the volume,” the zoo wrote. “Today, we are proud to wish Jose Altuve a very happy birthday and celebrate the hometown hero who continues to inspire our community.”

In 2017, the Fort Worth Zoo named a male giraffe calf after Adrian Beltre when the former Texas Rangers star recorded his 3,000th career hit.

Now, Astros fans can flock to the local zoo and see the monkey named after Jose Altuve.

Hornets announce big news about coach Charles Lee

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The Charlotte Hornets went 19-63 in Charles Lee’s first season as head coach, but they went 44-38 in Year 2 with a loss in the NBA Play-In Tournament.

Lee has this team trending in the right direction, and the Hornets announced they are giving the head coach a new contract extension.

Jeff Peterson, the Hornets’ president of basketball operations, said that Lee has done an “outstanding job establishing a foundation” as part of the official release from the team.

The Hornets defeated the Miami Heat in the first play-in game, but they Charlotte then lost to the Orlando Magic to miss out on earning the No. 8 seed in the Eastern Conference.

Still, it was a notable improvement in Lee’s second season. The 25-win difference marked the largest win improvement in franchise history.

Lee began his coaching career as an assistant at Bucknell before being an NBA assistant with the Atlanta Hawks, Milwaukee Bucks and Boston Celtics, which includes being part of two NBA title winners.

Lee was also named the Eastern Conference Coach of the Month after the Hornets went 11-6 in January. Kon Knueppel also finished second in the NBA Rookie of the Year voting, so there are a lot of positives for Charlotte after its second winning season in the last 10 years.

NCAA Tournament expansion gets another major update

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The 68-team NCAA Tournament field has now come to an end.

Talks of a new 76-team format have circulated, and on Thursday, those conversations took another step closer to becoming a reality.

The NCAA men’s and women’s selection committees approved the decision.

In February, NCAA President Charlie Baker said he would “like to see the tournament expanded,” although fans expressed plenty of pushback against more teams in the field.

Former Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski also expressed his feelings about the potential change, calling any expansion a “big mistake” while adding, “You don’t mess with something that is gold.”

The NCAA Tournament went from 64 teams to 68 teams in 2011. Shortly after, the NCAA announced the official decision to move it to the new 76-team format with a video explaining the move.

If approved, the new format will include 12 games with 24 teams at two different locations, with eight additional at-large bids, according to Pete Nakos of On3.

So, beginning in 2027, the NCAA Tournament will have 76 teams in yet another change to March Madness.

Knicks receive OG Anunoby injury update ahead of Game 3 vs. 76ers

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The New York Knicks took a 2-0 series lead with a 108-102 win over the Philadelphia 76ers on Wednesday at Madison Square Garden in New York.

However, the Knicks faced uncertain news on star OG Anunoby, who appeared to suffer an injury late in the game.

On Thursday, the Knicks got some encouraging news on that front as Anunoby was diagnosed with a hamstring strain and is listed as day-to-day, via ESPN’s Shams Charania.

Here’s a video of the sequence where Anunoby suffered the injury.

Anunoby scored 24 points in 37 minutes in Game 2 and he had 18 points in the Game 1 win, so he is a big part of the rotation for New York.

The Knicks and 76ers face off in Game 3 on Friday at Xfinity Mobile Arena in Philadelphia, Pa., so Anunoby’s status will be one to monitor going forward.

Report: Matt Campbell walked away from 1 NFL head coaching agreement in 2021

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Matt Campbell is preparing for his first season as the head coach of the Penn State football program.

Campbell spent 10 seasons as Iowa State’s head coach, finishing as the winningest coach in program history before coming to Happy Valley. Campbell had been a big name for years, and it turns out that he accepted one NFL job in 2021 before changing his mind and ultimately staying at Iowa State.

“The three-time Big 12 Coach of the Year and winningest coach in Iowa State history had rebuffed overtures from other big-time college programs over the years, including from Texas and USC, according to sources. In 2021, Campbell initially agreed to coach the Detroit Lions before changing his mind; the Lions hired Dan Campbell instead,” according to Jake Trotter of ESPN.

In the end, the Lions hired another Campbell, Dan, who has found success with Detroit over a few seasons as head coach.

Matt Campbell, however, stayed at Iowa State, but he finally left this past offseason in what was a very busy college football coaching carousel.

Penn State fired James Franklin in October, but the Nittany Lions missed on several candidates, including Vanderbilt’s Clark Lea and BYU’s Kalani Sitake, before hiring Campbell and giving him an eight-year deal worth $70.5 million.

Still, one can only imagine what would’ve happened if Matt Campbell took the Lions job in 2021.

Yankees outfielder leaves game on cart after crashing into the wall

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The New York Yankees saw a concerning injury take place early in the game on Thursday against the Texas Rangers at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx.

Jasson Dominguez, who was playing in his ninth game this season, crashed into the outfield wall after making a catch. He then went down to the ground in pain and had to leave the field on a cart.

Dominguez was seen shaking his head and looking emotional while exiting the field in a cart in a tough scene for the Yankees and the young outfielder.

Dominguez was regarded as one of the Yankees’ star prospects, and he saw significant playing time in 2025.

Dominguez appeared in 123 regular-season games, hitting .257 with 10 home runs and 47 RBI.

Entering 2026, playing time looked scarce for Dominguez with the Yankees having a starting outfield of Aaron Judge, Trent Grisham and Cody Bellinger, and the team also added veteran Randall Grichuk in the offseason.

After Dominguez left the game, Bellinger moved to left field and Ryan McMahon moved to third base.

2027 college football game set to be played in Toronto

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The ACC has announced that there will be a college football game in Toronto, Canada, in Week 0 of the college football season between Syracuse and Wake Forest.

The game will be held at BMO Field, marking the first-ever college football game held there.

BMO Field is the home of the Toronto Argonauts (Canadian Football League) and Toronto FC (Major League Soccer).

The official date and time have not been set, but it will be on either August 28 or August 29 and will be aired on ESPN.

While it is a first for BMO Field, there have been college football games in Toronto previously. The International Bowl was held at the Rogers Centre, the home of the Blue Jays, from 2007 to 2010 before it came to an end.

Syracuse Director of Athletics John Wildhack and ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips both called it an “exciting opportunity” to be able to play the game in Toronto.

The Syracuse campus is just a four-hour drive to Toronto, so it shouldn’t be much of an issue for Orange fans, although Wake Forest is a 12-hour drive to BMO Field.

BMO Field is also set to be one of the host venues for the 2026 World Cup.

Cubs starter undergoes surgery after bizarre off-field injury

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The Chicago Cubs have had to deal with a lot of injuries this season, and now veteran starting pitcher Matthew Boyd is also out for the foreseeable future.

On Wednesday, it was revealed that Boyd was undergoing surgery after he had oddly injured his left meniscus while playing at home with his kids.

Cubs manager Craig Counsell said it was “Kind of an innocent, going down to the ground and getting back up,” via Jesse Rogers of ESPN.

Boyd, 35, had a 2-1 record with a 6.00 ERA this season in five starts for the Cubs, and the exact timetable for Boyd to return is unknown after he underwent the surgery.

However, Cubs GM Carter Hawkins gave an update on Thursday following Boyd’s surgery.

“I think there’s a really good chance that Matt is contributing in a meaningful level here relatively soon,” Hawkins said, via 104.3 The Score. “It’s not going to be this month.”

The Cubs rotation is also without Justin Steele, who has yet to return after suffering an injury in 2025. Reigning National League Rookie of the Year runner-up Cade Horton is out for the season after making just two starts in 2026.

Now, Boyd is also out for some time, and the Cubs will try and stay alive while searching for more pitching help.

Tim Duncan has fans cracking up with his reaction to Dylan Harper’s basket

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Tim Duncan had an on-brand reaction caught on video during Game 2 of the second-round series between the San Antonio Spurs and the Minnesota Timberwolves at Frost Bank Center in San Antonio, Texas, on Wednesday.

After San Antonio rookie Dylan Harper got into the paint and made a tough jumper off a spin move late in the first quarter, the broadcast showed the Spurs legend reacting to the play like one would to drying paint. While everyone in the building was losing it, Duncan remained seated, staring into the void as though he were attending a lecture.

Here’s a video of that moment.

But even during his long career in the NBA, Duncan was never known as someone who would show much emotion. It is safe to say that Duncan hasn’t changed a bit.

His demeanor after Harper’s bucket, meanwhile, got a lot of fans cracking up online.

A first-quarter basket clearly doesn’t excite the 50-year-old Duncan enough for him to even crack a smile. He’s won five NBA championships and bagged two NBA Most Valuable Player awards. He’s not in it for buckets as much as for the ultimate success that he hopes this version of the Spurs will achieve.

San Antonio took a step closer to that goal by beating Minnesota in Game 2, 133-95.

Aaron Rodgers’ 2026 plans may already be clear

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Aaron Rodgers could be donning the same black, gold and white colors in 2026. 

The future Pro Football Hall of Famer has yet to put pen to paper, but it has become even clearer that he will play his 22nd NFL season with the Pittsburgh Steelers.

93.7 The Fan reported on Thursday that the four-time NFL Most Valuable Player will be in Pittsburgh on Thursday and intends to sign a contract with the AFC North franchise over the weekend.

Rodgers’ future has been one of the biggest storylines of the offseason. The Steelers have been waiting on the quarterback’s decision, and it now appears the two sides will run it back for the 2026 campaign, which could be Rodgers’ final season in the NFL.

Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network reminded that “a deal is not done,” but his sources say that Rodgers intends to suit up for Pittsburgh.

Rodgers initially arrived in Pittsburgh in 2025, signing a 1-year, $13.65 million contract with the Steelers. He showed last year that he’s got some gas left in the tank, passing for 3,322 yards and 24 touchdowns against 7 interceptions on a 65.7% pass completion rate.

A return to Pittsburgh for Rodgers will also mean a reunion with his former Green Bay Packers head coach, Mike McCarthy.

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