A good bit has happened since the last post, so be prepared. First of, the NBA Draft took place on Thursday, and it did not lack for excitement. Kentucky big man Karl-Anthony Towns was taken first overall by Minnesota, Then all the speculation was confirmed when the Lakers took freshmen guard D’Angelo Russell over Duke center Jahlil Okafor, who went third to Philadelphia. The New York Knicks took foreign big man Kristaps Porzingis, which was followwed by a massive wave of boos. The real surprise of the lottery (first 14 picks) was Justise Winslow falling all the way to Miami at number 10. And with the first pick outside the lottery, the Atlanta Hawks selected Kelly Oubre Jr, and that’s when things got interesting. First the Hawks traded the 15th pick (Oubre) to the Washington Wizards for their 19th pick. Then, the Wizards selected guard Jerian Grant, where Washington traded the 19th pick (Grant) to the Knicks for Tim Hardaway Jr. Remember the 19th pick belonged to Atlanta, so Hardaway actually went to Atlanta. That’s a lot to keep up with. Hardaway is good pickup for the Hawks because it gives more scoring depth on the wing, and possibly insurance if DeMarre Carroll leaves in free agency. In other Draft news, Kentucky had seven players drafted on Thursday, tying the record for most players drafted from one school.
It has also been announced today that Atlanta guard Kyle Korver will ungergo surgery to remove loose bodies in his right elbow. It is the third surgery Korver has had, after the broken nose in the regular season and the broken ankle suffered in the playoffs. He is expected to be ready by training camp.
Tomorrow is a big day for not only soccer fans, but United States fans in general. The US Women’s national team will take on Germany in a semifinal matchup on July 1st . This will be the toughest test the United States will probably face, since the German women are ranked number one in the world, and picked to win the World Cup. Most soccer analysts are acutally picking against the US to defeat German, who is the top goal scoring team in the tournament. However, the US has the top defense in the tournament, so it’s your classic “unstopppable force versus the immovable object” clash. Only one will prevail. The winner of that game will face the victor of the other semifinal battle between the Cinderella of the tournament, England, squaring off against Japan. There is some bad blood between the US and Japan, as Japan had defeated the United States in penalty kicks to win the previous World Cup. Things are shaping up to have a possible rematch between the two titans, a rematch the US would surely love to have.
The United States have been an intriguing story the last few matches, when head coach Jill Ellis changed the formation, as well as the lineup. She took Sidney Leroux and Abby Wambach out of the starting lineup. We’ll have to see if the changes prove beneficial.
It has also been announced today that Atlanta guard Kyle Korver will ungergo surgery to remove loose bodies in his right elbow. It is the third surgery Korver has had, after the broken nose in the regular season and the broken ankle suffered in the playoffs. He is expected to be ready by training camp.
Tomorrow is a big day for not only soccer fans, but United States fans in general. The US Women’s national team will take on Germany in a semifinal matchup on July 1st . This will be the toughest test the United States will probably face, since the German women are ranked number one in the world, and picked to win the World Cup. Most soccer analysts are acutally picking against the US to defeat German, who is the top goal scoring team in the tournament. However, the US has the top defense in the tournament, so it’s your classic “unstopppable force versus the immovable object” clash. Only one will prevail. The winner of that game will face the victor of the other semifinal battle between the Cinderella of the tournament, England, squaring off against Japan. There is some bad blood between the US and Japan, as Japan had defeated the United States in penalty kicks to win the previous World Cup. Things are shaping up to have a possible rematch between the two titans, a rematch the US would surely love to have.
The United States have been an intriguing story the last few matches, when head coach Jill Ellis changed the formation, as well as the lineup. She took Sidney Leroux and Abby Wambach out of the starting lineup. We’ll have to see if the changes prove beneficial.