Good Morning! Today is Monday, June 23. Here’s what happened over the weekend in the world of sports.

NBA FINALS

For the first time ever, Oklahoma City are NBA champions! The Thunder used a dominant second half to stomp the Pacers 103-91 in game seven, clinching the first title for the franchise since moving to OKC in 2008. The win caps a historic year for a team who won a league-best 68 games during the regular season. The scariest part of all? With an average age of 25.33, OKC is the second-youngest champion of all-time. They literally just won and I really don’t want to get ahead of anything, but this might be the beginning of a Thunder dynasty…

If you’re wondering why I haven’t spoken about the actual game yet, well, it wasn’t the most entertaining watch. After battling a calf injury since game five, Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton went down in the first quarter on what was confirmed afterwards to be an Achilles injury. Indiana fought hard all game– shoutout TJ McConnell, who was once again incredible in the third quarter– but they just couldn’t create enough offense without their leader. OKC’s trademark defense was swarming and stifling and there was no answer for it. The Pacers turned the ball over 23 times and scored under 100 points for one of the few times this postseason. Even if the better team ultimately won the trophy, it was a shame to see Indiana’s remarkable postseason run end in this fashion.

Finally, let’s take a moment to celebrate the MVP. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has just completed one of the most dominant seasons in NBA history, winning both MVP and Finals MVP. Only 10 others have accomplished that feat. Just four others have won a scoring title and a championship in the same season. And the only three besides Shai to have done all of those things in the same year are Michael Jordan, Shaq, and Kareem. "It's hard to believe that I'm part of that group," said SGA afterwards.

THE KEVIN DURANT TRADE

The game was almost overshadowed by a big trade in the early afternoon. The Houston Rockets acquired Kevin Durant from the Phoenix Suns for Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, the 10th pick in this week’s draft, and five future 2nds. Let’s dive into each side of the deal:

THE ROCKETS: Receive Kevin Durant

Kevin Durant is one of the best basketball players on the planet– you have to start with that. Houston was a great team this year, but we saw during the playoffs against Golden State that they were missing an offensive leader. They struggled without a go-to guy who can get you a bucket on their own. In that sense, Durant is a perfect fit. Yes, he’s turning 37 this year, will command a very expensive contract extension, and has flamed out at each of the last two teams he’s joined. But I really like KD as the final puzzle piece to this young, gritty Houston team. They don’t need him to play 40 minutes a game, 82 games a season, and they aren’t trying to build a new big three. All Houston needs is for Kevin Durant to teach the young kids how to win and to get a bucket in the big moments. Especially considering the price they paid (more on that in a minute), this is a fantastic deal for the Rockets.

THE SUNS: Receive Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, 2025 pick 10, five future 2nds

Everyone knew KD was leaving, so maybe the Suns lacked leverage in this deal. But I don’t love the return. Of all the young players on Houston’s roster, Green makes the least sense for Phoenix, who now boast a team made up almost entirely of shooting guards. Green isn’t on a cheap deal, either, so the Suns didn’t save as much money as they might have hoped. Now let’s talk about the pick. It’s possible Phoenix nails the draft and accomplishes a quick reset around Devin Booker, Bradley Beal, Green, and whoever they select. That’s a very possible scenario, and one that all Suns fans are rooting for. But here’s the problem: Phoenix doesn’t control any of their own first round picks for the rest of the 2020s! You know who has two of them? That’s right, Houston. Owning those picks and giving your team a safety net in case the bottom falls out would be pretty valuable, and if I was the general manager, that would have been my primary target. It’s not a bad trade, and I’d expect more moves to come from the Suns. But if you have to give up a player like Kevin Durant, you’d hope to get the best valuable possible.

MLB

Rafael Devers hit a home run against his former team, Jacob Misiorowski is pitching lights out as a rookie, and Shohei Ohtani is doing Shohei Ohtani things. But the story of the weekend is Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh.

Before Raleigh knocked out four homers against the Cubs this weekend, the last player in Major League history to hit 30 home runs in their team’s first 75 games was a guy named Barry Bonds. It was 2001, the year he set the single-season home run record of 73. Other guys on that list include Babe Ruth, Reggie Jackson, and Mark McGwire– it’s a pretty elite club of sluggers. But Raleigh is the first ever switch-hitter to reach the 30-homer mark before the all-star break. Big Dumper, as he’s affectionately called, is also the first catcher to hit 30 homers before the end of June. All of this is to say Cal Raleigh is having a really, really good season. Oh, and he absolutely crushed number 31 yesterday in Seattle’s 14-6 win:

NCAA

Congratulations to LSU, the winners of the 2025 College World Series. The Tigers beat Coastal Carolina 1-0 in game one, thanks to an impressive 130-pitch complete-game shutout by lefty Kade Anderson.

We had a bit of controversy yesterday in game two. Coastal Carolina manager Kevin Schnall was ejected in the first inning for arguing balls and strikes. A pretty ridiculous start to the biggest game of the entire season. In the end, LSU won 5-3 to clinch the eighth CWS championship in school history.

GOLF

What a finish at the Traveler’s! Tommy Fleetwood led going into the final round and maintained his lead all the way to the 18th green. He even led Keegan Bradley and the rest of the field by three shots with four holes to play. Russell Henley drained an awesome chip from just off the green to finish at -14 and apply pressure to Fleetwood, who was holding at -15. That’s when the leader three-putted, dropping down to tie Henley and open the door for Bradley to win outright with this birdie putt:

That’s how you end a golf tournament! What a great weekend in Connecticut.

NOTEWORTHY NEWS

Jonathan Toews is back in professional hockey. The three-time Stanley Cup winner and leader of the great 2010s Chicago Blackhawks has signed with his hometown Winnipeg Jets. After struggling with various injuries and illnesses in the 2020s, Toews was a free agent and focused on recovery for two seasons. And so the comeback begins…

Angels head coach Ron Washington will be away from the team indefinitely due to health concerns. One of the best minds in baseball and a beloved figure around the game, we’re all thinking of Wash during this time.

Joe Burrow is one of the greatest throwers of a ball in the world. Well, greatest throwers of a football, that is. Watch as the Bengals quarterback struggles a bit when challenged to switch things up at Fanatics Fest this weekend:

TODAY’S BIG GAMES (all times Eastern)

MLB:

• Braves @ Mets, 7:10 PM

• Mariners @ Twins, 7:40 PM on FS1

• Cubs @ Cardinals, 7:45 PM

”This is the way the world ends, not with a bang but a whimper,” –Tennessee Williams, clearly using “the world” as a metaphor for the NBA Finals. Apparently the famous poet was a big fan of Mike Breen’s legendary three-point call…