Sports
Report: Wolves star Anthony Edwards expected to play Game 1 vs. Spurs
Mar 3, 2026; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards (5) celebrates after a three point basket against the Memphis Grizzlies in the second half at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images Anthony Edwards has received medical clearance and is expected to play for the Minnesota Timberwolves on Monday night, pending final sign-off after his pregame routine, ESPN reported.
The Timberwolves visit the San Antonio Spurs for Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals.
Per ESPN, Edwards was a “significant participant” in the team’s shootaround Monday morning and video clips on social media showed him shooting jumpers and wearing a sleeve on his injured left knee.
Edwards was listed as questionable on the league’s injury report as of mid-afternoon Monday. He suffered a hyperextended left knee and a bone bruise on an awkward landing in Minnesota’s Game 4 victory over the Denver Nuggets in the first round on April 25. He avoided ligament damage but did not play in the rest of the series.
Teammate Julius Randle told reporters after shootaround that he wouldn’t be surprised to see Edwards on the court for tipoff.
“He loves to play the game so he’s going to do whatever he can to put himself in position to be out here,” Randle said.
The No. 1 overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, Edwards is in his sixth season with Minnesota. In the first three games of the series against the Nuggets, Edwards averaged 23 points, eight rebounds and four assists. He also totaled five blocks.
The four-time All-Star averaged a career-high 28.8 points per game on 48.9% shooting, including 39.9% from 3-point range, in the regular season (61 games).
Ayo Dosunmu, who led the Timberwolves in scoring in the Denver series (21.8 points per game), including 43 points in Game 4, was downgraded to out due to right calf soreness. He missed the clinching Game 6 win over the Nuggets with the ailment.
If Edwards, 24, is ultimately not able to play on Monday, his next opportunity will come Wednesday in Game 2 in San Antonio. The series shifts to Minneapolis with Game 3 on Friday.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Why the Celtics’ Jaylen Brown Trade to the 76ers Still Doesn’t Make Sense
Boston Celtics fans have been scratching their heads and looking for answers since the team traded Jaylen Brown to the rival Philadelphia 76ers earlier this month. In exchange, Boston received Paul George, two first-round draft picks and two second-round picks.
Brown, 29, was selected to five All-Star teams during his 10 years in Boston and earned two All-NBA selections. He was also selected as the 2024 NBA Finals MVP after he helped Boston defeat Dallas in five games.
George, 36, is a nine-time All-Star who remains an excellent shooter from beyond the 3-point arc, but has had difficulty staying on the court in recent years. He has missed at least half of the last two regular-seasons due to injuries and a suspension for using performance-enhancing drugs.
When Celtics majority owner Bill Chisholm and president of basketball operations Brad Stevens addressed the media regarding the trade, the press conference provided more questions than answers. Questions like these:
Why did the Celtics feel the need to trade Brown?
Stevens said having Brown and Jayson Tatum on the roster would eat up 70 percent of the team’s salary cap, and that wasn’t a formula that could produce an NBA championship under the new collective bargaining agreement. Brown and Tatum accounted for 47 percent of the salary cap when the Celtics won the championship in 2024.
It’s worth noting that George’s $54.1 million salary is comparable to what Brown makes. George has one guaranteed year remaining on his contract followed by a $56.6 million player option.
Brown is entering the third year of a five-year deal. Since the Celtics will likely be in a bad financial spot for the next two years anyway, Boston may have been better off biting the financial bullet for an extra year and keeping Brown until his contract expired.
Did ownership or possibly Tatum make it clear that they wanted Brown off the roster?
Chisholm said there was no mandate from ownership to trade Brown, and Stevens insists Tatum had no input in the decision to move Brown either.
“I have a real hard and fast rule,” Stevens said. “I don’t ask other guys about other guys because it’s not — I won’t put them in that position. So, he had none.”
Still, with the underwhelming package the Celtics received for Brown, it’s hard to believe there weren’t some behind-the-scenes forces at work that made Stevens a little more eager to pull the trigger on a deal.
Why make the trade with Philadelphia, a team the Celtics share space with in the Eastern Conference’s Atlantic Division?
The Celtics playing nice with the 76ers is like the Red Sox sending a top player to the Yankees which is difficult to envision under any circumstance. This part of the trade was also puzzling, especially since Philadelphia overcame a 3-1 series deficit and eliminated the Celtics in the first round last season. The trade handed the 76ers one of the best players in the NBA.
There are reports that Brown was picky about which teams he would play for, so that could have narrowed the market. If only the Celtics had shown some patience a better deal may have materialized – one that didn’t involve a team in Boston’s division. It’s unlikely the 76ers were going to pull their offer off the table.
Even if you don’t believe the Celtics were fleeced in the deal, Boston had a better chance to win a championship in the next few years with Brown than without him.
There’s no question about that.
Sports
UFC 329 predictions: Best bets for Conor McGregor vs. Max Holloway
Apr 13, 2024; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Max Holloway (blue gloves) reacts after defeating Justin Gaethje (not pictured) during UFC 300 at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images After five years away from the Octagon, the UFC’s biggest superstar in its history, Conor McGregor, finally steps back in the cage to headline the 2026 UFC International Fight Week card, UFC 329.
McGregor, the former UFC featherweight and lightweight champion, returns to take on another legendary name in former lightweight and BMF champion Max Holloway. This will be a rematch of their first meeting back in August 2013, a bout McGregor won by unanimous decision. This bout will also take place at welterweight – marking the fourth time McGregor has fought at the weight class, and Holloway’s first.
McGregor last fought at UFC 264 in July 2021, a bout that saw him break his leg in a loss to Dustin Poirier in their trilogy bout. McGregor is just 1-3 since his first hiatus from the UFC – when he fought Floyd Mayweather during a two-year break from the Octagon.
Holloway went unbeaten for nearly six years after losing to McGregor, going on to become one of the UFC’s greatest featherweight champions. He’s just 7-6 since the end of that streak, however. He added the BMF title to his mantle but lost that belt to Charles Oliveira four months ago at UFC 326.
The co-main event will be a pivotal lightweight battle between Benoit Saint Denis and Paddy Pimblett. BSD enters this fight having won four straight, scoring finishes of Kyle Prepolec, Mauricio Ruffy, Beneil Dariush and Dan Hooker. Pimblett, meanwhile, enters this fight after suffering his first UFC loss, coming up short in an interim lightweight title fight with current champ Justin Gaethje in the UFC 324 main event.
The rest of the main card includes Cory Sandhagen vs. Mario Bautista, Brandon Royval vs. Lone’er Kavanagh, and King Green vs. Terrance McKinney.
CONOR MCGREGOR VS MAX HOLLOWAY
Conor McGregor is returning to the Octagon after a five-year hiatus, raising questions about whether his skills and vintage power remain intact against a highly evolved Max Holloway. However, Holloway faces his own questions regarding how he’ll look making yet another jump in weight division. And while UFC CEO and President Dana White said at the press conference that there are multiple scenarios in play regardless of who wins, it feels hard to imagine the UFC lets their most valuable fighter ever simply fight out his contract.
For McGregor to have a chance at securing victory, he has to use his reach and look for that vintage McGregor striking to secure an early KO. The longer the fight goes, the more it benefits “Blessed.” And if McGregor can’t get the job done in 10 minutes, maybe even the first five minutes, it’s likely Holloway could put a hurting on him when you add in five years of ring rust.
BET: Fight to NOT start Round 3 (DraftKings: +120)
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BRANDON ROYVAL VS LONE’ER KAVANAGH
Brandon Royval is a fun flyweight fighter to watch, and he’ll be looking to rebound from his loss to Manel Kape. Royval is still a top flyweight contender, but he’s consistently losing to those who you’d consider the next-level and championship-level fighters. Lone’er Kavanagh’s UFC run is young. He’s just 10-1 in the sport, and after the upset loss to Charles Johnson, he rebounded hugely with his win over former champion Brandon Moreno.
Even with the KO loss to Kape, Royval is still one of the toughest flyweights, having had the Fight of the Year with current champ Joshua Van last year. And while Kavanagh has a lot of momentum on his side, Royval is still experienced and will pose a strong test to determine if Kavanagh is ready for upper-echelon competition.
BET: Fight to end via decision (DraftKings, FanDuel, Caesars, & BetMGM: -150)
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LUKE RILEY VS KAI KAMAKA III
Luke Riley is a promising European prospect who has impressed so far in his first two UFC bouts. Now he takes on the always durable Kai Kamaka III, a Hawaiian fighter with a strong chin and strong fists. The speciality for both of these men comes in their stand-up game, so expect an entertaining war with practically no time on the ground. It’s another opportunity for Riley to impress.
BET: Riley via decision (FanDuel: +140)
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Sports
World Cup quarterfinal best bets: England vs. Norway, Argentina vs. Switzerland
July 1, 2026; Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.; England’s Harry Kane celebrates scoring their second goal. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images The World Cup quarterfinals conclude with a Saturday doubleheader.
First, Harry Kane and England take on Erling Haaland and Norway in a meeting of two of the world’s best (and tallest) center forwards.
Then, Lionel Messi and Argentina continue their title defense when they meet a sneaky good Switzerland side.
Let’s take a look at our best bets for the twin bill.
England vs. Norway, Anytime Goal Scorer
Both Kane and Haaland have had exceptional tournaments, but only Haaland will be facing a makeshift England rearguard.
Jarell Quansah is serving a two-match ban after his sending off for a violent challenge in the 3-2 win over Mexico.
His fellow center back Marc Guehl is questionable heading into the encounter with a hamstring issue.
And England have conceded to every opponent who mustered even a hint of an attacking threat this tournament, with their two clean sheets coming against an overmatched Panama and a Ghana side content to play a very low block. Even the latter should’ve had a penalty when Esri Konsa’s airborne challenge on Prince Kwabena Adu went unpunished.
It’s not that Kane is unlikely to score here. But Haaland — whose seven goals this tournament have come in just four appearances — is facing more favorable circumstances, despite being at a cheaper price given Norway’s underdog status on the money line. At well better than even money and a 43.5% implied probability, he’s worth backing against an England rear guard that has been far from rigid.
Anytime goal scorer: Erling Haaland (+130, BetRivers)
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England vs. Norway, Exact Team Goals
Norway has scored exactly twice in each of its knockout phase matches, and England has conceded exactly two goals in two of its five games so far.
And that’s a number Norway might be likely to land on again considering the circumstances. With Haaland and Martin Odegaard, they certainly have the quality to be able to solve England’s rearguard.
But the stakes of knockout play make it less likely that the Scandinavians would aggressively hunt for more rather than try to manage the lead.
Two goals might not even be enough to beat this England team, but a wager on that exact Norway total at a 23.8% implied probability is worth a play.
Exact Norway Goals: 2 (+320, theScore)
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Argentina vs. Switzerland, Total Goals
Argentina have looked wobbly in their last two matches, and at first glance thei quarterfinal could be a tempting spot to back an underdog.
But with Switzerland hit with an injury to breakout performer Johan Monzambi, the better play is probably betting on the total to go over 2.5 goals.
Under manager Lionel Scaloni, Argentina have played eight knockout phase matches across two World Cups. The total has gone over during 90 minutes in all but one of those, thanks in no small part to the presence of Lionel Messi, the rare attacker who consistently outperforms expected-goal models.
Meanwhile, Switzerland played a somewhat dour 0-0 draw with Colombia in the round of 16 before triumphing on penalties.
But their lower chance creation and chance allowance numbers are based partly on the teams they’ve played: All three of their group opponents had attacking limitations. Colombia exited the tournament scoring only twice in its last 390 minutes.
Knockout football often gets tighter in the later stages, which is driving the price on the over down. But dynamics in Argentina matches have proven different. Take advantage with a bet on the over at a 43.9% implied probability.
Total over 2.5 goals (+128, Parx)
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Why the Celtics’ Jaylen Brown Trade to the 76ers Still Doesn’t Make Sense
Obsession Just Beat Bruce Lee
