Good Morning! Here’s what happened in the world of sports on Wednesday, June 12.

REMEMBERING JERRY WEST

It saddens me to begin today’s Remix with this news, but NBA legend Jerry West passed away yesterday at the age of 86. West was one of the greatest basketball players and one of the greatest basketball executives of all-time, a rare individual who knew not only how to impact the games on the court, but off of it as well. A nine-time NBA champion (once as a player), West is the only NBA player ever to win Finals MVP as a member of the losing team. You can read more about him here, in this well-written obituary from the New York Times.

I had the pleasure and the privilege of working with Mr. West last May, as a member of a crew sent to his home for an interview. Our interview focused on the 20th anniversary of the famous Lebron James draft lottery– you can watch the story at the link here. Not only was he warm and welcoming, but I will never forget the passion and pride Mr. West displayed when discussing his work– even as we discussed what he called “probably the biggest disappointment [of his career], other than the times we lost as a player.”

So today, we remember Jerry West– a truly great competitor, and a life worth celebrating.

NBA

The Boston Celtics are now one win away from their 18th NBA Championship. The Mavericks made a late push, at one point going on a 22-2 run in the fourth quarter, but the well-rounded Celtics were simply too much to handle. Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown scored 30 points each, and little-used big man Xavier Tillman stepped up for the injured Kristaps Porzingis, making his first three-pointer of the playoffs and registering two blocks. In the end, the Celtics won 106-99.

• Luka Doncic fouled out with four minutes remaining, all but ending Dallas’ late rally. Had he still been in the game, the superstar guard may have been the difference for the Mavs down the stretch.

• No team in NBA history has come back to win a playoff series down three games to none. And Boston is undefeated on the road in the playoffs this season. The only real question left is which Celtic will win Finals MVP…

SOCCER

For the first time ever, the US Men’s National Team tied Brazil in a soccer game. The back-and-forth affair ended 1-1 (you might want to check out the play of the day below!). Although this friendly match doesn’t technically count for anything, a positive result against one of the best teams in the world is a great confidence booster. Up next for the US? The Copa America, beginning in one week.

MLB

In the words of Yogi Berra, “It’s deja vu all over again!” For the second day in a row, the Padres hit a walk-off home run to beat the Oakland Athletics 5-4. This time, it was rookie center fielder Jackson Merrill.

•Despite another home run from Shohei Ohtani, the Los Angeles Dodgers lost 3-2 to the Texas Rangers. The game ended on a wild play at the plate that has to be seen to be properly understood. 

•And finally, today’s edition of Baseball is Fun takes us to Minnesota, where the Twins and Rockies combined for 36 hits and 26 runs! The Twins won the game 17-9 over their lowly opponents from Colorado, who dropped to 24-44 on the year– good for the third-worst record in all of baseball.

NOTEWORTHY NEWS

Newly-crowned French Open champion Carlos Alcaraz and 14-time French Open champion Rafael Nadal are combining forces to play doubles together at next month’s Summer Olympics. Where are the Summer Olympics being played? At Roland Garros, home of the French Open. I don’t think it’s a stretch to say the Spaniards are the clear gold-medal favorites.

Tom Brady was inducted into the Patriots Hall of Fame. And the Red Sox won, too. Pretty good day all around for the city of Boston.

PLAY OF THE DAY

As promised, here’s Captain America…

How about that? GOOOOOOAAAALLLLLLLLLLL

TODAY’S BIG GAMES (all times Eastern)

Stanley Cup Final: Florida Panthers @ Edmonton Oilers, 8 PM on ABC

The Panthers hold a 2-0 lead. Only five teams in NHL history have come back from 2-0 to win the Stanley Cup. But Connor McDavid is the best player on the planet– I wouldn’t be surprised if the team from up North comes out real strong to start game three.

U.S. Open, starting at 6:30 AM, on USA/Peacock

The best golfers in the world take on the famous Pinehurst 2 course in North Carolina. It’s a beautiful yet impossibly difficult golf course, which should make for some really entertaining golf (not a typo– it really will be entertaining).. I’ll have plenty of highlights tomorrow after round one– for now, just know that world number one and Masters champion Scottie Scheffler is a big, big favorite.

MLB: Phillies @ Red Sox, 7:10 PM

Two of the top performing pitchers in baseball this season face off in Boston, as Aaron Nola and the Phillies take on Tanner Houck and the Red Sox.

WNBA: Dream @ Fever, 7 PM on ESPN3

It’s Caitlin Clark. Every game she plays is a big game. Clark and the Indiana Fever are slight underdogs against the Atlanta Dream.

We’ll end today with a few more words from Jerry West– “You can’t get much done in life if you only work on the days you feel good.”

Enjoy your Thursday