Clippers still plan to build around Kawhi and George
The Lakers will have to weigh various questions on what they should do with their respective No. 17 and 47 NBA draft picks.
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1. Clippers still plan to build around Kawhi and George
The Clippers will be aggressive this offseason as they plan to build a championship team around Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, writes The Sporting Tribune’s Mark Medina.
The Clippers vow to become aggressive in free agency with either trades or signings. Following the NBA Draft on Thursday, they maintained they would make those moves to complement Kawhi Leonard and Paul George.
“It's still the plan,” Lawrence Frank, the Clippers’ president of basketball operations told reporters. “What we are trying to do is how can we put together the best team around these guys? We look at the different things, what worked, what hasn't worked, the job that we have to do better, the job that we challenge our players to continue to do better. But yeah, that's where we're trying to maximize these two and figure out ways that we can get better.”
The Clippers remain committed toward both Leonard and George, both of whom have two years on their contracts and player options on their final seasons. But Lawrence considered it “premature” on whether the Clippers would sign long-term extensions to Leonard (as early as July) or George (as early as September).
2. Why the Lakers handled NBA Draft the right away
The Lakers did not make a blockbuster trade on draft day but that was the right call, writes The Sporting Tribune's Mark Medina.
Even before the NBA Draft started, a handful of teams made trades that fundamentally changed their identity. Once the NBA Draft started, the Lakers made moves the traditional way by using their draft picks to actually select a college prospect.
The Lakers used their No. 17 pick on Indiana freshman guard Jalen Hood-Schifino, a point guard that impressed the Lakers with his thoughtful job interview, his competitive pre-draft workout and his game footage that captured how he can add additional backcourt scoring and playmaking. After trading their No. 47 pick and $4 million to the Denver Nuggets for the No. 40 pick, the Lakers used that selection to draft Pepperdine sophomore forward Maxwell Lewis for his positional versatility as a 3-and-D player.
The Lakers didn’t package their picks together and other players together to secure an NBA lottery pick. The Lakers didn’t package those assets together to land a star either. And yet for a franchise that judges itself on if it can surpass the Boston Celtics for most NBA titles (17), the Lakers took the right approach in hopes to reach closer toward that destination.
3. Julian Strawther fulfills promise to late mother
Julian Strawther promised his mother before she died, he would fulfill his dream of becoming an NBA player and he did just that. The Sporting Tribune’s W.G. Ramirez was with Strawther and his family in Las Vegas on draft night.
Before Julian Strawther's mother, Lourdes, died of breast cancer in 2011, he promised her one thing.
"And that was that I was going to make the NBA and I was going to accomplish my dreams," Strawther said.
Thursday night Strawther honored his mother's memory when he was chosen 29th overall of the 2023 NBA Draft by the Denver Nuggets, via the Indiana Pacers.
"I got to fulfill that promise, so that's number one for sure," he added, moments after emerging from a back bedroom of a luxury suite high atop Red Rock Casino Resort and Spa. "Everything I do is for her."
Roughly 70 people erupted in cheers, and tears, and laughter, and joy, as NBA commissioner Adam Silver announced Strawther's name.
"It's everything I ever dreamed of, hearing Adam Silver call my name," said Strawther, who graduated from Southern Nevada's Liberty High School. "I mean, you visualize that in your head all the time, you have dreams about it, but it's nothing like the real thing. This is everything."
4. Ohtani named AL’s starting DH for MLB All-Star Game
Mike Trout is a finalist for one of the final Outfield spots in the American League's lineup as well, writes The Sporting Tribune’s Brandon Deutsch.
Shohei Ohtani was the American League’s leading vote getter in phase 1 of MLB All Star Voting, and as a result, he was rewarded in being named the first player to the Midsummer classic from the American League.
Ohtani is already the frontrunner for the AL MVP as he leads the MLB in OPS (.993) and home runs (24) and is also hitting .292 at the plate. In the month of June alone Ohtani is hitting .363 with 9 homers, 20 RBI’s, and 15 walks and has taken the Angels to new heights. On the mound, Ohtani boasts an ERA of 3.13 and a WHIP of 1.04 with 117 strikeouts.
5. Padres beat Giants, 10-0, to win series finale; avoid sweep
The Padres lost the first three games of the series, but found a way to avoid a sweep on Thursday with excellent hitting, writes The Sporting Tribune’s Brandon Deutsch.
Manny Machado is hitting just .258 with 9 home runs and an OPS of .723 this season and Padres fans have been frustrated with his play after demanding a contract extension last summer (which the team gave him). However, on Thursday afternoon Padres fans got a glimpse of the Superstar Machado can still be as he went 2-4 with a 3-run homer in the 3rd inning that helped pad the lead against the Giants. This was Machado's first home run since June 15th, but he has gotten 8 hits in his last 6 games and is starting to heat up. With the way Fernado Tatis Jr. and Juan Soto are hitting right now, if Machado can continue his hot streak the Padres could make a run at some point.
6. USC basketball teams will open season in Vegas
Las Vegas' T-Mobile Arena will feel like a home away from home for USC basketball, writes The Sporting Tribune’s Adam Bradford.
On Wednesday, USC announced that its Men’s and Women’s Basketball teams will open their respective 2023-2024 seasons with high-profile matchups in Las Vegas.
Coming off of its third consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance, the men’s team will open its 2023-2024 campaign against a Kansas State team that made the Elite Eight last season. Meanwhile, the Women of Troy will face off against Ohio State in a matchup of future Big Ten foes. Both games will take place at T-Mobile Arena on November 6.
Much of the hype surrounding the matchups will be on USC's high-profile freshmen. On the men's side of things, head coach Andy Enfield brought in a dynamic duo of number one overall recruit Isaiah Collier and NBA legacy Bronny James. Meanwhile, women's head coach Lindsay Gottlieb also signed the number one player in the country in Juju Watkins.
7. Odds and Ends presented by Circa Sports
Here are some odds at Circa Sports if you’re thinking about placing a wager today:
8. Ticket Time presented by TickPick
Here are the “get in” prices for tickets if you’re thinking about going to a game today.
7:00 p.m. – Astros at Dodgers – $40
7:00 p.m. – Wings at Sparks – $4
9. On the Air presented by The D Las Vegas
Here are the game times and television channels for professional teams in the region today.
5:30 p.m. – Angels at Rockies – Bally Sports West
7:00 p.m. – Astros at Dodgers – SportsNet LA
7:00 p.m. – Wings at Sparks – Ion
10. The Arash Markazi Show presented by The Sporting Tribune
The Sporting Tribune’s Arash Markazi is joined by Ji Hae Wiley, Armani Buckets and Brandon Deutsch to talk about the NBA draft and if the Clippers should hit the reset button and trade Paul George and if the Lakers should break-up a team that made it to the West Finals to improve their title hopes?
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.
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