Clippers facing unwinnable situation with Kawhi Leonard
The Sporting Tribune's Mark Medina writes the Clippers are on the brink of elimination and an uncertain future with Kawhi Leonard.
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1. Clippers facing unwinnable situation with Kawhi Leonard
The Sporting Tribune's Mark Medina writes the Clippers are on the brink of elimination and an uncertain future with Kawhi Leonard.
As the LA Clippers fall closer toward playoff elimination, they have wrestled with two unsettling developments.
The Clippers face ongoing uncertainty on when and even if Kawhi Leonard can heal enough from a right knee injury that has sidelined him for three of the team’s five post-season games.
“We’re not sure when he’s coming back,” Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said. “It’s a day-to-day thing.”
The Clippers also have displayed dueling identities during their first-round playoff series against the Dallas Mavericks. For two games, they have shown they can win without Leonard. For two games, they have struggled with integrating him back into the lineup. And in their 123-93 Game 5 loss to Dallas on Wednesday at Crypto.com Arena, the Clippers demonstrated none of this seems sustainable after suffering their largest margin of defeat in franchise playoff history.
“We just didn’t play well, all around defensively, offensively,” Lue said. “We just didn’t play a good game.”
2. Olympic fame put Suni Lee in minefield of business, bullying
Suni Lee has one of the most valuable social media presences of any female athlete in the country, but she has to keep a distance from her social media accounts, writes The Sporting Tribune’s Jackson Thompson.
Suni Lee had to make a business decision.
After winning gold for the U.S. at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics at 18 years old, the gymnast’s life and reputation were bound to change forever. She became the next gymnastics celebrity and built an Instagram following of over 1.6 million.
Oh, and she earned the second-largest NIL valuation of any women’s college athlete at $1.3 million when she competed at Auburn University, per On3, second only to LSU gymnast Livvy Dunne in 2023.
Her meteoric rise to fame earned her an appearance on Dancing With the Stars three years ago and endorsement deals with household brands like Playstation, Gatorade, Target and Amazon, which have been primarily channeled on her Instagram page.
But through all the deals, she stays off of her social media, choosing to monetize her brand from a distance.
“I try to stay off of social media as much as possible,” Lee said last week at the U.S. Olympics Media Summit. “A lot of my posts, I’ll send to my manager and they’ll post it for me.”
3. Oilers eliminate Kings in first round for third straight season
The Edmonton Oilers defeated the Los Angeles Kings 4-3, with Leon Draisaitl scoring twice to eliminate the Kings once again, writes The Sporting Tribune’s Fredo Cervantes.
The Los Angeles Kings were down 3-1 in the series entering Game 5. Edmonton scored first, making it a 21-game winning streak for the Oilers when scoring first at home.
The Edmonton Oilers managed to eliminate the Los Angeles Kings in just five games. Although the Kings were able to win Game 3 at Crypto.com Arena, they lost the last two games after the Kings switched from Cam Talbot to David Rittich as the goaltender. This wasn’t the way the Kings expected their season to end, but it marked the third straight year the Oilers have eliminated them from the playoffs.
The Oilers won against the Kings, 4-3, which marked the end of the Kings season. The Kings will now have to search for a new head coach as Jim Hiller, who became the interim coach two months ago, is not expected to be retained. The Kings have not won a playoff series since 2014. During the series, the Oilers dominated the power plays as they score on 9 of 20, while the Kings failed to capitalize on all power play opportunities and went 0-12.
4. Golden Knights on verge of elimination after Game 5 loss in Dallas
The Golden Knights are on the brink of being out of the playoffs after Wednesday’s 3-2 loss in Game 5, writes The Sporting Tribune’s Will Despart.
It’s been a season defined by turbulence for the Golden Knights, and there’s no better evidence of that than what is occurring in their first round playoff series.
After taking a 2-0 series lead in Dallas and seemingly setting themselves up for another long playoff run, the Knights have now lost three games in a row following Wednesday’s 3-2 loss to put themselves on the verge of elimination.
“I still think these last two games that we were right there, and in the second period, late again, (it) got away from us (with) puck management and discipline and allowed them to get going,” said Bruce Cassidy after the game.
He continued, “So, we’ll hang our hat on the other stuff. We feel we’re playing a pretty good game when we manage the puck and make the plays that are in front of us. They’re quick. They’re a team that gets on you. We obviously have to make a few adjustments on them leaving the zone early, how we can manage that better.”
5. Kentucky Derby jockeys work shift at Raising Cane’s
Kentucky Derby jockeys Tyler Gaffalione, Joel Rosario and Brian Hernandez Jr. served Raising Cane’s to race fans in Louisville, writes The Sporting Tribune’s Arash Markazi.
Tyler Gaffalione was the first one to arrive at the Raising Cane’s about 20 minutes southeast of Churchill Downs. He was soon followed by fellow jockeys Brian Hernandez Jr. and Joel Rosario.
The only thing that was on Gaffalione’s mind, however, was finishing ahead of Hernandez, Rosario and the rest of the field on Saturday during the 150th running of the Kentucky Derby.
This is Gaffalione’s seventh time riding in the Kentucky Derby but it is easily his best chance to win it all. His previous six rides were longshots of at least 14-1 or greater and none finished better than seventh.
He enters Saturday’s Kentucky Derby with Sierra Leones, who sits just behind Fierceness as the current morning line favorite. Sunny Leone is also at the top of the points list and coming off an impressive Blue Grass Stakes victory.
“I love my horse, Sierra Leone, going into the Kentucky Derby,” Gaffalione said. “He’s done nothing wrong this year. He seems to be improving each race so it’s all system go right now.”
6. Los Angeles Sparks look optimistic in new chapter
The Los Angeles Sparks start their season against the Atlanta Dream on May 15 and look to start a new era, writes The Sporting Tribune’s Rey Moralde.
The Los Angeles Sparks will start a new era.
The departure of Nneka Ogwumike closed a chapter. But the draft brought in two new potential superstars in Cameron Brink and Rickea Jackson. They also picked McKenzie Forbes in the third round. The Sparks have a lot of optimism going into this season. It is the start of the season but the vibes are good.
On Media Day, head coach Curt Miller talked about how talented their rookies are.
“(Brink) has the unique way of making people smile and making people lead with her already. She is an elite athlete for her size,” said second-year Sparks head coach Curt Miller. “Obviously, what we liked going into the draft was (Jackson’s) versatility to play multiple spots and find her opportunities to score.”
7. Video of the Day
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8. Ticket Time
Here are the “get in” prices for tickets if you’re thinking about going to a game Friday:
7:10 p.m. – Braves at Dodgers – $48
7:30 p.m. – Stars at Golden Knights (Game 6) – $83
9. On the Air
Here are the game times and television channels for professional teams in the region today:
4:10 p.m. – Angels at Guardians – Bally Sports West
5:00 p.m. – Clippers at Mavericks (Game 6) – ESPN
6:30 p.m. – Angel City at Royals – Bally Sports West
7:00 p.m. – Wave at Reign – Prime
7:10 p.m. – Braves at Dodgers – SportsNet LA
7:30 p.m. – Stars at Golden Knights (Game 6) – ESPN
10. The Arash Markazi Show presented by The Sporting Tribune
Listen to The Arash Markazi Show presented by The Sporting Tribune on The Mightier 1090 ESPN Radio in Southern California, 98.5 The Bet in Las Vegas and the Hawaii Sports Radio Network 95.1 FM and 760 AM in Hawaii. You can also listen to the show on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Play and Stitcher. You can also watch every Friday on BLEAV on FuboTV.
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That’s it for today. Talk to you tomorrow!