Sports
Welcome to the Atlanta Hawks Invitational (a.k.a. the NBA Play-In Tournament)
It’s time for the tradition unlike any other: the NBA play-in tournament. Or, as it deserves to be called, the Atlanta Hawks Invitational.
For an unprecedented fourth consecutive year, the Hawks have qualified for this four-day Tournament of Mid that serves as the demarcation line between the NBA’s real teams and really bad teams.
(While we’re thinking about the NBA’s real teams, can we take a moment to celebrate the Milwaukee Bucks and Denver Nuggets? They’re the only franchises that have qualified directly for the playoffs — a.k.a. finished in the top six of their conference — in all five years of the Atlanta Hawks Invitational era.)
OK, let’s put the punchline machine on pause for a moment to explain how the play-in tournament works — and how it came to be.
When COVID-19 overwhelmed the world and brought the 2019–20 NBA season to an abrupt halt, the league hit upon an idea as they prepared to finish the regular season and host the playoffs in the Walt Disney World bubble: If the No. 8 and 9 teams in a conference were separated by four games or fewer, they would hold a quick playoff to qualify for the postseason. The eighth-seeded team would only have to win once, but the ninth-seeded squad would have to win twice.
The Eastern Conference didn’t require such a playoff, but the West did, and No. 8 Portland snuffed out No. 9 Memphis in one game. And an idea apparently made in marketing heaven was born.
Prior to the 2020–21 season, the NBA decided to try the format that remains in effect today: The No. 7 and 8 seeds meet, with the winner earning the No. 7 seed in the conference playoffs. The No. 9 and 10 seeds meet, then the winner gets the loser of the 7–8 game for the right to be the No. 8 seed.
This year in the East, it means No. 7 Orlando (41–41) and No. 8 Atlanta (40–42) joust Tuesday for the right to face the Boston Celtics in the first round, while No. 9 Chicago (39–43) and No. 10 Miami (37–45) are in the mix to meet the top-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers.
In the West, No. 7 Golden State (48–34) and No. 8 Memphis (48–34) battle Tuesday to advance to face No. 2 Houston, while No. 9 Sacramento (40–42) and No. 10 Dallas (39–43) are in the mix to become the Oklahoma City Thunder’s first-round foe.
Now, in most years, the play-in tournament looks and feels like a fool’s errand. Most of these teams should have focused on collecting NBA Draft lottery balls instead of play-in participation medals.
But this year might actually be different — especially in the Western Conference.
A few paragraphs above, you noticed Golden State and Memphis finished the regular season 48–34. That’s only four wins fewer than the No. 2 seed Houston Rockets, who will be the first-round foe for Tuesday’s winner between the Warriors and Grizzlies.
It doesn’t take much dreaming to project the Warriors or Grizzlies upsetting the Rockets in their best-of-seven first-round series, which would be just the third time a play-in tournament graduate got past the first round.
Most famously, the 2023 Miami Heat (led by Jimmy Butler) rode the No. 8 seed all the way to the NBA Finals. But there’s a Greek Freak of an asterisk attached to that achievement. Giannis Antetokounmpo injured his back in the first quarter of Game 1 and didn’t come back until Game 4. By that time, the Heat owned a 2–1 lead and won the next two to close out that first-round series.
It doesn’t make sense to expect lightning to strike like that again. But, hey, one of the reasons we watch sports is to enjoy a spectacular light show — no matter how random or unlikely it might be.
It would be amazing if, two months from now, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver climbed the steps on a temporary platform, looked directly into a camera and declared he was overjoyed to hand the Larry O’Brien Trophy to … Atlanta Hawks point guard Trae Young.
Then this postseason would truly deserve to be known as the Atlanta Hawks Invitational.
Sports
Dodgers' Clayton Kershaw set for Triple-A rehab start
Mar 28, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw before the game against the Detroit Tigers at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images For the first time since Aug. 30, Los Angeles Dodgers left-hander Clayton Kershaw will take the mound in a game Wednesday when he makes a rehab start with Triple-A Oklahoma City.
He will take on Tacoma, the Seattle Mariners’ affiliate, in Oklahoma City at 12:05 p.m. ET.
Kershaw, 37, is recovering from toe and left knee surgeries in November, the results of injuries that caused him to miss the Dodgers’ run to a World Series title. On Aug. 30 against the Arizona Diamondbacks, the three-time NL Cy Young Award winner and 2014 National League MVP left in the second inning with pain in his left big toe.
Entering his 18th season — all with the Dodgers — Kershaw is 32 whiffs shy of becoming the 20th member of the 3,000-strikeout club. He is on the 60-day injured list and is eligible to be activated on May 17.
Kershaw was limited to seven starts in 2024 coming off left shoulder surgery in the offseason.
He made his season debut on July 25 and pitched 30 innings before reporting damage to his toe, which turned out to be a ruptured plantar plate and arthritis in his left foot.
A 10-time All-Star, Kershaw has a career record of 212-94 with a 2.50 ERA in 432 games (429 starts). His 15 career shutouts are the most among active pitchers.
He is set to earn $7.5 million during the upcoming season with multiple roster and games-started bonuses that are worth an additional $8.5 million.
According to FanSided, Kershaw can receive $1 million bonuses for 13, 14, 15 and 16 starts, as well as 60 days and 90 days on the active roster. There is a $2.5 million bonus available for his first 30 days on the active roster.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Reds activate three players from injured list
Cincinnati Reds pitcher Alexis Diaz (43) delivers the pitch in the ninth inning of the MLB game at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati on Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024. Cincinnati Reds defeated Houston Astros 1-0. The Cincinnati Reds activated outfielder Austin Hays, second baseman Matt McLain and reliever Alexis Diaz from the injured list on Tuesday.
Hays (calf) and McLain (hamstring) were on the 10-day IL and Diaz (hamstring) was on the 15-day IL.
Hays, 29, has yet to make his Reds debut. The former All-Star split last season with the Baltimore Orioles and Philadelphia Phillies and signed a one-year, $5 million deal with the Reds in January.
McLain, 25, has appeared in eight games this season for Cincinnati, batting .214 with three homers and five RBIs.
Diaz, 28, has yet to play for the Reds this season after serving as their closer the past two years. The right-hander made the All-Star team and finished with 37 saves in 2023.
The Reds optioned outfielder Jacob Hurtubise and infielder Noelvi Marte to Triple-A Louisville in corresponding transactions.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Leafs hope D Oliver Ekman-Larsson will be ready by playoffs
Mar 22, 2025; Nashville, Tennessee, USA; Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson (95) looks to pass the puck during the first period of the game against the Nashville Predators at Bridgestone Arena. Mandatory Credit: Alan Poizner-Imagn Images Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson is expected to be ready for the playoffs, head coach Craig Berube said on Tuesday.
Ekman-Larsson, 33, hasn’t played since sustaining an upper-body injury while falling awkwardly on a breakaway in a 4-3 win against the Tampa Bay Lightning last Wednesday.
The Maple Leafs (50-26-4, 104 points) visit the Buffalo Sabres on Tuesday night and host the Detroit Red Wings on Thursday to conclude the regular season.
Toronto is four points up on the second-place Lightning in the race for the Atlantic Division title. The postseason begins on Saturday.
“Right now, I mean, I expect (Ekman-Larsson) to play, but you never know,” Berube said on Tuesday. “He’s tough. He’ll play through things. And if he’s not in the lineup, somebody else is going to have to step up. That’s just the bottom line. That’s part of the playoffs.”
Edman-Larsson, 33, has four goals, 25 assists, a plus-14 rating, 52 penalty minutes, 83 blocks, 108 hits and a 21:04 average ice time in 77 games in his first season with Toronto.
He has 500 career points (148 goals, 362 assists) in 1,059 games with the then-Phoenix/Arizona Coyotes (2010-21), Vancouver Canucks (2021-23), Florida Panthers (2023-24) and Maple Leafs.
Defenseman Jake McCabe will miss his sixth consecutive game on Tuesday because of an upper-body injury. He might not return before the first-round playoff series is underway.
“There’s always a concern, right?” Berube said. “It’s just a little ways away yet for me to make those kinds of decisions and things like that. I’ve got to see them up close a little bit more here and talk to these guys and see where they’re at.”
McCabe, 31, has two goals, 21 assists, a plus-23 rating, 40 penalty minutes, 135 blocks and 118 hits while averaging a team-high 21:31 of ice time in 66 games this season.
He has 175 career points (35 goals, 140 assists) in 643 games with the Sabres (2013-21), Chicago Blackhawks (2021-23) and Maple Leafs (February 2023-present).
–Field Level Media
Dodgers' Clayton Kershaw set for Triple-A rehab start
Nvidias RTX 5060 GPUs get release date, $299 staring price
