Mike McDaniel

2 weeks ago | si.com | Mike McDaniel

Los Angeles Lakers star Luka Doncic hasn’t wasted any time leaving a good impression on basketball fans in the City of Angels, both on and off the court. Most recently, Doncic donated $5,000 to cover the entire goal of the GoFundMe page set up by artist Louie Palsino, which was created to restore the vandalized mural of Kobe and Gigi Bryant between 14th and Main Street in Los Angeles. The mural was painted following Kobe and Gigi's death in a 2020 helicopter crash.

2 weeks ago | si.com | Mike McDaniel

The Cleveland Cavaliers, the Eastern Conference's No. 1 seed, have played the entirety of their first-round series with the No. 8 seed Miami Heat looking like the much better team in the matchup. The Cavaliers took a decisive 3–0 series lead into Monday night following a 37-point win in Game 3 on Saturday. Just two days removed from Heat guard Tyler Herro declaring that his team would not get swept, Miami came out on Monday night and got embarrassed in the first half.

2 weeks ago | si.com | Mike McDaniel

Los Angeles Lakers coach JJ Redick lamented a fourth quarter non-call on a Luka Doncic trip that would have put his team on the free throw line with a chance to take the lead with 33 seconds to play. With the Lakers trailing 114–113, Doncic ran the ball up the court, but appeared to be tripped by Minnesota Timberwolves wing Jaden McDaniels. Instead the officials determined that Doncic tripped over his own feet, and the Lakers were forced to use a timeout.

2 weeks ago | si.com | Mike McDaniel

The New England Patriots on Saturday traded the No. 228 pick in the NFL draft's seventh round to the Kansas City Chiefs in exchange for the 251st pick, as well as the 257th pick. The Patriots took Vanderbilt long snapper Julian Ashby at 251, but the franchise's final selection at 257 was this year's "Mr. Irrelevant," a moniker awarded annually to the final pick in the NFL draft. With pick No. 257, the Patriots selected Memphis defensive back Kobee Minor.

2 weeks ago | si.com | Mike McDaniel

The Cleveland Browns selected Colorado Buffaloes quarterback Shedeur Sanders with the 144th pick in the fifth round of the 2025 NFL draft. The selection from the Browns was a little bit surprising given that the team has already drafted Oregon quarterback Dillon Gabriel in the third round. But given the franchise's need to find a long-term solution under center, a gamble on Sanders, who slid significantly from the first-round grade that many expected him to have, was worth it to the Browns.