NBA Playoffs
The NBA playoffs have begun and this week we started to see the first round of teams to be eliminated. The Minnesota Timberwolves swept the Phoenix Suns 4–0. This comes as a surprise due to the Suns’ roster, which includes three of the best players in the league: Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, and Bradley Beal. However, rising superstar Anthony Edwards showed off his incredible athleticism, and, with the help of Rudy Gobert and Karl Anthony Towns, they managed to win every game convincingly. The New Orleans Pelicans also got swept 4–0 by the Oklahoma City Thunder, who have one of the youngest rosters in the league, including frontrunner for MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. The Los Angeles Lakers got eliminated by the Denver Nuggets in a five-game series. The Lakers won for the first time in game four, avoiding the sweep, but in the fifth game Jamal Murray made a game-winning shot that put the Nuggets on top, 108–106.
There are some series that are still yet to be decided; the Indiana Pacers have a 3–2 lead over the Milwaukee Bucks, the Cleveland Cavaliers have a 3–2 lead over the Orlando Magic, and the New York Knicks have a 3–2 lead over the Philadelphia 76ers. Finally, the Celtics have a 3–1 lead over the Miami Heat and have a chance to win the series on May 1. Younger talents like Anthony Edwards, Gilgeous-Alexander, and Tyrese Haliburton are starting to cement themselves as the new faces of the league, which means that the rest of the playoffs are going to be exciting.
Candace Parker Retirement
This past Sunday, one of the greatest players in the WNBA’s history announced her retirement from professional basketball. Candace Parker was the face of the league for nearly two decades; she competed in the sport for 16 seasons. Parker won two NCAA championships for the University of Tennessee, in 2007 and 2008. She was the first overall pick in the 2008 WNBA draft and was selected by the Los Angeles Sparks and spent most of her career there until 2020. She then played for the Chicago Sky for two seasons, and in her final season, she played for the Las Vegas Aces. Parker won three championships in her career, one with each team she played with. The most recent was just last season when the Aces won their second championship in a row. To many, Parker is one of the greatest of all time, with her accolades including two league MVPs, 10 all-WNBA selections, seven all-star selections, one defensive player of the year award, and two Olympic gold medals.
Parker announced her retirement on Instagram by stating, “I promised I’d never cheat the game and that I’d leave it in a better place than I came into it. The competitor in me always wants one more, but it’s time. My heart and body knew, but I needed to give my mind time to accept it.”
Champions League Semifinals First Leg
The Champions League semi-finals were set a couple of weeks ago with Real Madrid facing Bayern Munich, and Paris Saint Germain taking on Borussia Dortmund. Real Madrid is the favorite to win the Champions League followed by Paris Saint Germain. The first game between Real Madrid and Bayern saw them tie in Munich’s Allianz Arena 2–2. The game was filled with excitement, as Madrid had an early lead thanks to Vinicius Junior. However, Bayern player Leroy Sane equalized it with an amazing goal, which was followed by a penalty for Harry Kane, making the German team lead 2–1. However, in the latter stages of the game, a foul by Bayern’s defender Kim Min-Jae saw Vinicius Junior take a penalty and equalize the game. The second leg of the game will be held Wednesday, May 8.
The second semifinal between Paris Saint Germain and Borussia Dortmund saw Dortmund win 1–0 at home in Signal Iduna Park. It came as a surprise as PSG was the favorite to win the matchup. A great goal by Niclas Fülkrug put Dortmund ahead 1–0, and the rest of the game saw clashes up and down the foil with Kylian Mbappé almost scoring and equalizing the game. The second leg of the semifinal will be played Tuesday, May 7 in Paris.
NHL Playoffs
The NHL started its first-round playoffs with a few teams already in the second round and others eliminated. The first team to advance to the next round was the New York Rangers, sweeping the Washington Capitals 4–0. The Rangers will face the Carolina Hurricanes, who completed a comeback win against the New York Islanders to eliminate them. The Hurricanes were up 3–1 and later fell 3–3 at the end of the second period. However, in the third period, the Hurricanes managed to score two goals in eight seconds, which saw them go up 5–3 and end up winning 6–3 to eliminate the Islanders. The two teams in Florida faced each other, with the Florida Panthers beating the Tampa Bay Lightning 4–1. The Panthers await the winner of the Boston Bruins and Toronto Maple Leafs series, which is currently led by the Bruins with a 3–2 advantage. The Colorado Rapids also advanced to the next rounds whilst beating the Winnipeg Jets 4–1 and are waiting for the winner of the Dallas Stars vs. Vegas Golden Knights who are currently tied 2–2. The rest of the second-round games await the results of the Vancouver Canucks, who lead the series 3–2 against the Nashville Predators and the winner of The Edmonton Oilers vs the Los Angeles Kings, which the Oilers lead 3–1.
NFL Draft
The NFL marked the beginning of its ‘24–’25 season last week on Thursday with the annual draft, which happened in Detroit. This draft saw six quarterbacks going in the first 12 picks, something that had never happened before. With the first pick, the Chicago Bears drafted USC quarterback Caleb Williams, who, for many, was the best player in the draft. However, the biggest surprise was the Atlanta Falcons picking Washington University’s Michael Penix, Jr. eighth overall. For many, Penix was not even in the top ten; the other issue with the pick is that the Falcons signed quarterback Kirk Cousins to a four-year $180 million contract this offseason, which left many confused.
The first defensive player was picked in the 15th pick, which is the longest streak of offensive players being picked ever in the draft. The Indianapolis Colts selected edge Laiatu Latu from UCLA. The Buffalo Bills also surprised many as they traded away their first-round pick, which many thought they would use to address the departure of star wide receiver Stefon Diggs. The Kansas City Chiefs addressed their main concern by drafting the University of Texas wide receiver Xavier Worthy, who broke the NFL combined record for the 40-yard dash with a time of 4.21 seconds; this, along with the offseason addition of Hollywood Brown, means that the Chiefs have an incredible first couple of receivers. This sets up a great class of rookies that will leave their mark on their respective NFL teams.
