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THE DALLAS MAVERICKS AND THE BOSTON CELTICS
Luka Doncic was suited up for battle in Game 5: a sleeve over a bum knee, shoulder tape, a one-sleeved undershirt that looks like it's been through the wringer, and an illness to boot.
And then he, once again, showed why he's the soldier you want on your side in the biggest games. Doncic produced a rugged-yet-beautiful 35-point, 10-assist double-double, and Dallas thumped the Clippers, 123-93, to take a 3-2 series lead in what might have been LA's last game downtown before the team moves to Inglewood.
Dallas led by 10 at halftime and by 20 going into the fourth quarter, with Doncic's third-quarter takeover as the big difference, Colin Ward-Henninger writes.
Over on the East Coast, the Celtics are not messing around, and their first step of revenge is complete. Boston throttled Miami 118-84 to close out their first-round series, 4-1. It ties the second-largest playoff loss in Heat history and the second-largest win in a series-clinching game in Celtics history.
Sans Jimmy Butler, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Terry Rozier and Josh Richardson, the Heat had no chance, going quietly against the team they knocked out last year. The Heat were once expected to land Damian Lillard, and it's hard not to think about how their season would have been different had that happened, Sam Quinn writes.
THE L.A. CLIPPERS
It's one thing to put your team on your back for a big playoff game. It's an entirely different thing to do it for a series. Once again, James Harden and Paul George couldn't do the latter.
It didn't help that Russell Westbrook's tough series continued -- 2-for-11 shooting -- and Kawhi Leonard (knee) remains out with no return in sight. The result? LA suffered its largest playoff loss ever.
The Clippers are on the brink of yet another early exit, and their biggest names seem unlikely to save them.
LeBron James has gone out of his way to make sure people know he doesn't know what the future holds. The 39-year-old megastar has two months to weigh whether to return to the Lakers or head somewhere else.
A lot will change over those two months. James will certainly factor the status of head coach Darvin Ham -- whose future with the franchise is in jeopardy -- and the team's roster as a whole. Could Los Angeles draft Bronny James, fulfilling LeBron's dream to play with his son? Could it trade for Trae Young, an offensive inferno whose fit is questionable? There's a lot on the board, and don't expect a decision soon.
But eventually he'll have to make the decision, and if his main goal is his fifth title, James should join the 76ers, Sam writes.
It all comes together nicely on paper, though games aren't played on paper, and Philly would need to add a lot of spacing and pacing around a hypothetical James-Embiid-Maxey Big Three.
Plus, as Sam notes, maybe James doesn't want to uproot his life. Maybe winning with the Lakers means more to him than winning anywhere else. Maybe it's not even worth speculating because we have no idea what he values most. But if it's ring number five, Philadelphia is an enticing -- and realistic -- destination. Before you dismiss it, read Sam's well thought-out, balanced piece.
Borussia Dortmund is halfway to its first UEFA Champions League final since 2013 after a 1-0 first-leg win over PSG. Niclas Füllkrug provided the lone goal in the 36th minute, expertly receiving a long Nico Schlotterbeck pass and making no mistake on the finish.
PSG, meanwhile, were denied by goalposts in the second half and wasted several other opportunities. But Les Parisiens can turn things around next week, Jonathan Johnson writes.
In case you missed it amid the whirlwind of last weekend's NFL Draft, Ryan Wilson dropped his 2025 NFL first-round mock draft, and Blake Brockermeyer evaluated how strong each position group is a year out.
But what about the schools producing those potential picks? Chip Patterson took a look at the college teams loaded with the most 2025 draft talent, and atop the list is ...
There's one program -- the premier NFL player producer over the past decade, in fact -- that surprisingly doesn't make Chip's list.
🏀 Game 6: Bucks at Pacers, 6:30 p.m. on TNT
🏒 Game 6: Bruins at Maple Leafs, 8 p.m. on TBS
🏀 Game 6: Knicks at 76ers, 9 p.m. on TNT