NBA

THE ROAD TO THE NBA FINALS

By Jason Berry | June 3rd, 2026

Basketball Forever. (2024). Victor Wembanyama and Jalen Brunson [Photograph]. Basketball Forever. https://basketballforever.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/wemby-brunson.jpg

The stage is finally set for the 2026 NBA Finals with the New York Knicks facing off against the San Antonio Spurs.

While both teams made it to the last stage in the playoffs, there paths to get there were very different.

The New York Knicks came into the season as one of the favorites to make the finals with a projected over/under of 53.5 wins (they finished the season 53-29). After making the conference finals last year they carried that same momentum entering the postseason as the third seed in the Eastern Confrence.

However, the start of the playoffs was not ideal for New York going down 2-1 to the Atlanta Hawks in the first round due to a couple CJ McCollum clutch buckets. After the loss Head Coach Mike Brown said this in his postgame conference.

"This should sting because we gave ourselves a chance knowing that we didn’t play our best basketball. So, it should sting, but we need to feel it and get ready to be locked in for the next game which we will be.”

And locked in the Knicks were. They rattled off three straight wins to beat the Hawks in six, then continued that momentum by sweeping the Philadelphia 76ers and the Cleveland Cavaliers in the second round and Eastern Conference Finals.

New York has won 11 straight postseason games putting them in company with the 2017 Warriors, 1999 Spurs and the Los Angelos Lakers ('89 and '01). They have looked dominant in the Eastern Confrence and look to continue this streak going into game one tonight.

For the San Antonio Spurs their road to the finals has had a few more bumps in the road.

Expected to take a leap, few predicted it would happen this fast. The Spurs finished 62–20 as the second seed, snapping a seven-year playoff drought. Victor Wembanyama followed his breakout sophomore season with a Defensive Player of the Year award and a top three MVP finish. Alongside former ROTY Stephon Castle, new rookies Dylan Harper and Carter Bryant and an already strong core the Spurs put the NBA on notice.

Their first-round series against Portland wasn’t smooth as they split the first two games due to a Wembanyama injury in game two limiting him to only twelve minutes. However, Harper and Castle delivered breakout performances to keep San Antonio alive in game three and once Wembanyama returned, they closed the series quickly.

They then ran into a red-hot Minnesota Timberwolves led by All-NBA guard Anthony Edwards. Minessota brought the fight to San Antonio having the series tied up 2-2 after Wembanyama got ejected in game four. However, they bounced back and finished the series in six.

The Western Conference Finals brought their biggest test: the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder. After falling behind 3–2 and struggling in Game Five, Wembanyama refused to talk to media.

Head Coach Mitch Johnson spoke on Wembanyama's performance during the Game Five press game conference stating, "He’s going to have to score more than 20 points for sure...OKC did a good job. We’ve got to do a better job."

Wembanyama responded in Game Six as the Spurs dominated 118–91. Then in Game Seven on the road, San Antonio controlled most of the game and sealed a 111–103 win to punch their ticket to the Finals.

Now, two completely different journeys collide on basketball’s biggest stage. The Knicks enter riding a historic winning streak, while the Spurs arrive as a young team that has already survived every test thrown their way.

Game 1 tips off tonight at 8:30 p.m. on ABC.

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Eurohoops. (2026). New York Knicks Eastern Conference Champions [Photograph]. https://images.eurohoops.net/2026/05/200f1e82-new-york-knicks-eastern-conference-champions.jpg

Microsoft MSN. (n.d.). [Photograph]. https://img-s-msn-com.akamaized.net/tenant/amp/entityid/AA24ziqf.img

NFL

JUNE 1ST, 2026, BROKE THE NFL

Newsweek. (2025). Myles Garrett [Photograph]. Newsweek. https://assets.newsweek.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/2505244-browns-de-myles-garrett.jpg

By Jason Berry | June 2nd, 2026

Yesterday afternoon the news of two former all pro players getting traded completed shifted the landscape of the NFL.

As reported by NFL insider Ian Rapoport at 1:18 p.m. yesterday, the Cleveland Browns traded former two-time Defensive Player of the Year Myles Garrett to the Los Angeles Rams for 2024 Defensive Rookie of the Year Jared Verse, a 2027 first-round pick, a 2028 second-round pick, and a 2029 third-round pick.

This blockbuster trade came after years of persistence by the Rams front office to acquire Garrett to add to their defensive front. Browns General Manager Andrew Berry claimed he had no interest in trading Garrett but after they included Verse the package was too large to pass up on.

Berry stated three things would be needed in a deal trading Garrett, “Number one, it would have to have short and long term benefits. Number two, as part of the trade, a young cost-controlled star at a premium position would have to be included. And the third piece is that there would have to be premium draft capital."

Once all three of these were satisfied the Browns felt comfortable in trading their franchise leader in sacks to L.A.

For the Rams they continue adding to their elite roster by pairing Garrett with EDGE Byron Young, DE Brandon Fiske and DT Byron Young. They also added All Pro Cornerback Trent McDuffie earlier this offseason and CB Jaylen Watson to strengthen their secondary.

The Rams enter the 2026-2027 season as favorites to win the Super Bowl and their front office made this move to solidify that that's their goal. With 38-year-old Matthew Stafford leading the charge after his first ever MVP season, he aims to add to his hall of fame resume with his second Super Bowl trophy with the L.A. Rams.

Later on in the day it was announced after months of rumors that the Philadelphia Eagles traded WR AJ Brown to the New England Patriots for their 2028 first-round pick and 2027 fifth-round pick.

While this trade has been rumored for months, the Eagles decided to wait until now to pull the trigger for cap space reasons. By waiting until after June 1st, they are now able to spread his $43.5 million dead cap across two years and save an additional $7 million in 2026. If they traded Brown before this deadline, they would've had to pay the entire 43.5 million this season limiting them financially.

Receiving a 2028 first and 2027 fifth is good value for the former 3x pro bowler and this also allows the Eagles to focus more on their youth and resigning their players. General Manager Howie Roseman was also able to draft WR Makai Lemon from USC 20th overall during the draft last April, pairing him alongside former Heisman winner Devonta Smith.

"I think we're going to continue to be able to build the team, feel like we have a good team, a good roster. I think that when we've been able to, you know, over the last few years, kind of slowly move on, get younger, but at the same time, keep a lot of our players, and we'll try to continue to do so," Roseman stated.

For New England while they made the Super Bowl last year, it was clear that they needed more firepower on the offensive side. Brown while having a disappointing season last year still managed to break 1k receiving yards for the 6th time in his career.

His pairing with QB Drake Maye should be exciting as Maye led the league in completion percentage last year at 72% while also being top 5 in passing yards. Brown is a premium deep ball threat and with Maye's strong-arm talent they will be a dynamic duo for defenses to overcome. With Stefon Diggs as a free agent, the Patriots made it apparent to upgrade their WR room by trading for Brown while also adding Romero Doubs in free agency.

Brown is a lifetime Patriots fan and mentioned in his press conference earlier today, "I know this isn’t heaven, but it’s close to it."

With Brown back with his former Tennessee Titans Head Coach Mike Vrabel, the Patriots look to overcome the disappointment they faced in the super bowl earlier this year by bringing the trophy back to New England for the 7th time in franchise history.

The Tennessean / AtoZ Sports syndication image. (2023). [Photograph]. https://atozsports.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/17183-syndication-the-tennessean.jpg

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Newsweek. (2025). Myles Garrett [Photograph]. Newsweek. https://assets.newsweek.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/2505244-browns-de-myles-garrett.jpg