Knicks win the NBA Cup behind a balanced team effort

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🚨 Headlines

🥊 Bud Crawford retires: Terrence “Bud” Crawford, 38, unexpectedly announced his retirement on Tuesday. Just a few months ago, Canelo Alvarez officially claimed the title of the best boxer of the modern era when he defeated Canelo Alvarez with a perfect 42-0 (31 KOs).

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🏀 NBA expansion talk: The NBA has been considering expansion for years, but Adam Silver said a decision would be made in 2026. He specifically ruled out Seattle and Las Vegas as new teams.

⚽️ FIFA slashes ticket prices: A week after fans expressed outrage over World Cup ticket prices, FIFA said it would provide each participating federation with a limited number of tickets worth $60 per game to distribute to fans.

🏈 ACC adds Game 9: The ACC will join other power conferences in adopting a nine-game conference schedule starting next year. The only caveat is that due to the odd number of members (17), not every team will be able to play nine games each season.

🏒 Saban, Owner: Nick Saban purchased a minority stake in the NHL’s Nashville Predators. “It’s always been a goal to join a sports team in Nashville,” said the Hall of Fame football coach, who already owns several car dealerships in Tennessee’s capital city.

🏆 Knicks win NBA Cup with team effort

The Knicks won the NBA Cup without a hero, which should scare the rest of the league.

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Game review: Despite Jalen Brunson’s 11-for-27 shooting night and the temporary absence of Karl-Anthony Towns due to injury, the Knicks defeated the Spurs 124-113 to erase a double-digit deficit and win their third NBA championship. For a team that hasn’t won an NBA Finals since 1973, that certainly means something.

• OG Anunoby scored a game-high 28 points. Tyler Kolek and Jordan Clarkson came off the bench to contribute double-digit scoring. Josh Hart has been doing Josh Hart things.

• Mitchell Robinson grabbed 10 offensive rebounds and 15 rebounds in 18 minutes, extending the time of possession.

What are they saying: “We couldn’t win this game without Tyler Kolek, OG Anunoby, Mitchell Robinson and Jordan Clarkson,” Brunson said while accepting NBA Cup MVP honors.

From Kelly Iko of Yahoo Sports:

New York has arguably the deepest and most talented team in the East — and perhaps the entire NBA. How many teams can match Brunson’s offensive talent and leadership? The two-way skills of Anunoby and Mikal Bridges? Downs’ unicorn gravity? Hart glue? Does Robinson have the ability to create second chance points? Clarkson came off the bench and scored instantly?

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This is why the Knicks are worth fearing. Brunson is a smuggler, a likely MVP candidate, and deservedly so. But walking into Madison Square Garden, you’re thinking that slowing him down is a surefire way to victory, and your mistakes haven’t even begun.

New venue coming soon? Las Vegas has hosted the previous three NBA Cup Finals, but that could change. Adam Silver told the NBA on Prime’s pregame show that “some notable college locations” are being considered to host future championship games.

If this happens, my top three:

1. Allen Fieldhouse (Kansas)

2. Cameron Indoor Stadium (Duke University)

Which college stadium would you like to see host the NBA Cup Finals?

🏈 Could Pete Golding be football’s Steve Fisher?

As the University of Mississippi prepares for the College Football Playoff, the Rebels are hoping the similarities with Michigan basketball don’t end with the promotion of an assistant coach midseason.

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From Jeff Eisenberg of Yahoo Sports:

In March 1989, two days after tryout Sunday, Michigan men’s basketball coach Bill Fried made a critical miscalculation: He mistakenly believed he could accept a job offer from another school and still coach the Wolverines in the NCAA tournament.

The morning after Fried revealed his intention to head to Arizona State after the season, Michigan athletic director Bo Schembechler summoned Fried’s top assistant, Steve Fisher, to his office for a 7 a.m. meeting.

When the 43-year-old assistant coach arrived, Schembele didn’t waste time making small talk or exchanging pleasantries. “Fisher, can you coach this team?” Fisher recalled Schembele asking gruffly. “Because there’s no way Bill Fried could coach them.”

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Thirty-six years ago, Schembele told Fried not to bother playing in the NCAA tournament, and now that ban has taken on new meaning.

It’s the closest historical precedent to a messy breakup to date, when the University of Mississippi refused to let Lane Kiffin coach the Rebels in the College Football Playoff because he passed on the Rebels to attend conference rival LSU.

As sixth-seeded Mississippi prepares for Saturday’s first-round game against 11th-seeded Tulane, the Rebels hope the similarities with Michigan basketball don’t end with an ill-timed coaching change.

They’ll try to emulate how the ’89 Wolverines rallied around an anonymous new coach, embraced the role of outcast underdogs, and stormed to their program’s first — and only — national championship.

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Could newly minted Mississippi State head coach Pete Golding be college football’s Steve Fisher? Can Golding make it to the College Football Playoff with zero wins as a head coach and then lead the Rebels to an improbable national championship?

Fisher will watch the game with interest from his home in Del Mar, California. “I hope [Golding] Good luck,” he said. “I hope he has a good run and I’ll keep an eye on it. “

Read the full article.

🌎 The world in photos

🇺🇸 Montgomery, Alabama— Jacksonville State defeated Troy University 17-13 on Tuesday night to win the Veterans Salute Bowl, with the two schools separated by just 162 miles.

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3-3: Jacksonville State has been to a bowl game in each of its three seasons at the FBS level. Marshall is the only team to appear in a bowl game in each of its first three eligible seasons (1997-99).

🇫🇷 Courchevel, France— American ski star Mikaela Shiffrin continued her unbeaten run as she began her World Cup slalom campaign and won the night event in the French Alps on Tuesday for her fourth victory in four attempts this season.

All-time leader: It was Shiffrin’s 105th World Cup victory, 19 ahead of second-place Ingmar Steinmark. American Lindsey Vonn won her 83rd match on Friday and finished third.

🇶🇦 Doha, Qatar—— Ballon d’Or winners Ousmane Dembélé (France, Paris Saint-Germain) and Aitana Bonmati (Spain, Barcelona) were named the best men’s and women’s players at FIFA’s 10th annual awards ceremony.

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Best Team: Dembélé is one of six PSG players named to the Best Men’s Team, while Bonmati is one of seven Spanish national team players named to the Best Women’s Team.

🇪🇸 Murcia, Spain— Carlos Alcaraz performs a VO2max test during preparations for the 2026 Australian Open.

VO2max explanation: VO2max is the maximum amount or volume (V) of oxygen that the body can use as a fuel source for exercise. Simply put, it measures how much hard work your body can do and is an objective way to judge your health.

🏈NFL Power Rankings

With just three weeks left in the regular season, the NFL playoff landscape and overall standings are taking shape. Where does your team rank in our latest power rankings?

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rise: No team improved more this week than the Ravens, who climbed four spots to No. 15 after beating the Bengals to keep their playoff hopes alive. Although the Vikings may be eliminated, they still moved up three spots to No. 20, behind the much-improved JJ McCarthy.

come down: The Packers had the biggest drop, not only losing the game but more importantly losing Micah Parsons (ACL) for the season, falling four spots to ninth. The No. 17 Cowboys, No. 23 Dolphins and No. 24 Bengals all dropped three spots after losses.

📺 Watchlist: Wednesday, December 17

🏒 NHL on TNT

The first-place Red Wings host the Mammoths in the first round of tonight’s doubleheader (7:30 p.m. ET)Next up is the second-place Golden Knights hosting the Devils (10 p.m.).

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🏈 Bowl game

Bowl season continues tonight with two games: Old Dominion vs. USF in the Cure Bowl in Orlando (5 p.m., ESPN)and Louisiana State vs. Delaware State in the 68th Venture Bowl in Mobile, Alabama (8:30 p.m., ESPN).

More to watch:

• 🏀 NBA: Grizzlies vs. Timberwolves (8 p.m., NBA) … Minnesota (17-9) is sixth in the West and Memphis (12-14) is ninth.

• ⚽️ FIFA Continental Cup: Paris Saint-Germain vs Flamengo (12 noon, DAZN) …Qatar hosted the finals of the second annual competition, which featured champions from all continents.

• ⚽️ Women’s Champions League: Juventus vs Manchester United (3 p.m., Paramount+)… One of nine matches in the final match of the league stage.

• 🏈 Yuko: Hutchinson vs Iowa Western (7 p.m., ESPNU) … Junior College National Championship at West Texas A&M’s Bain-Schaeffer Buffalo Stadium.

Today’s total.

🏈NFL Trivia

Matthew Stafford, 37, remains the favorite to win his first MVP, which would make him just the sixth player in NFL history to win the award at age 37 or older.

question: Can you name five other people?

hint: 1963, 2002, 2013, 2017, 2020, 2021.

The answer is at the bottom.

🏀 An email from the owner

A Warriors fan sent team owner Joe Lacob an email Sunday night expressing his frustration with the Golden State Warriors’ poor start to the season. He didn’t expect Lacob to respond two minutes later.

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e-mail: Warriors fan Justin Dutari found an email address he thought belonged to Lacob and quickly wrote a note with the subject line “Please read.” He complained about Stephen Curry having to shoulder so much of the scoring load, said Jimmy Butler wasn’t playing well, and asked him to “please do something for this team.”

Owner’s reply:

You can’t be as depressed as I am. I’m working on it. it’s complicated. Play style. Coach’s expectations of players. League trends. jimmy [Butler] Not a problem.

Trivia Answers: Tom Brady (40 in 2017); Aaron Rodgers (37 in 2020, 38 in 2021); Peyton Manning (37 in 2013); Rich Gannon (37 in 2002); YA title (37 in 1963)

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