Sports
Oof, Detroit. Plus, a surprising PGA winner
The Pulse Newsletter 
Good morning! Wear two gloves today. Coming up:
Bright Lights: Pistons’ dream season withers away
The psychology of a Game 7 will forever fascinate me. A concept simultaneously basic — win or go home — and layered — is this how the story of a 90-plus game season ends? — that wreaks havoc on the brain. Cleveland’s huge win in Detroit last night lived in that liminal space.
- The Cavaliers are moving on to the Eastern Conference finals to play the Knicks after a 125-94 win over the Pistons in a game that was never truly close. It was jarring to see the stands mostly empty in the fourth quarter of a Game 7. Both the Pistons and their fans probably didn’t deserve that ending after a magical year that landed Detroit the No. 1 seed in the East.
- And yet here we are. Are the Cavaliers an elite team? Who knows! Cleveland could end up taking Oklahoma City to seven games in the NBA Finals or get wiped off the floor by New York this week. Both are equally plausible.
As for Detroit? This humbling end must not define a startling come-up.
Let’s keep moving:
Faux Pas, Schmaux Pas: Gloves, iron covers and major wins
James Lang / Imagn Images
Consider this a brief mea culpa. Last week, I wrote about the PGA Championship’s place on the majors scale — fourth of four — and how Rory McIlroy thought the course, Aronimink, wouldn’t present much of a strategic challenge.
The tournament’s status remains a subjective discussion we don’t have to settle here. But two things were quite clear this weekend: Aronimink was actually really, really hard, and the tournament’s champion, Aaron Rai, is maybe the best story of the golf year so far:
- Rai, a 31-year-old Englishman, became the first of his countrymen to win the PGA Championship since 1919 with a dominant final-round 65 to win at 9 under par. A field that had promised parity and overloaded competition faded as Rai, ranked 44th in the world, sped past. Marathon putts and incredible bunker shots put the tournament out of reach. It was awe-inspiring stuff.
- Rai is awe-inspiring, too. As Brody Miller detailed in his recap, Rai entered the tournament with his career on edge, his putting dreadful. He leaves the weekend a major winner — and in a tournament where we thought only a superstar would win. Or Alex Smalley or Matti Schmid, the two Cinderellas who didn’t earn slippers yesterday.
- He’s likable to boot. Most golf fans poke fun at him for wearing two gloves or using iron covers, both seen as amateurish faux pas. The backstory on his quirks goes deeper than you think, though. Count me as a Rai fan.
Justin Ray has a full breakdown of what made the tournament so compelling. It was Rai’s time, and to be more literal, he was punctual for every tee time this weekend, unlike our friend Garrick Higgo. Final thoughts on Friday’s poll:
- Of the nearly 25,000 people who voted, 59 percent of you said that Higgo, who was late for his first-round tee time by about 30 seconds, should’ve known better. I think I agree. Is this a guy who shows up at the airport 25 minutes before his flight boards? I know these people exist, but I don’t want to travel with them.
Most of your emails agreed with the majority winner, too. Thank you to everyone for voting.
News to Know
Mallard Creek boys track and field was disqualified for unsportsmanlike conduct after winning the 4×400 relay in the final event of the day. Had the result stayed, the Mavericks would have won the team state championship. Instead, they remained in second place.
You can read the… pic.twitter.com/fdWIAW1UXT
— HighSchoolOT (@HighSchoolOT) May 16, 2026
A ‘targeted’ penalty
See the clip above? That single hand motion cost a high school in North Carolina a state championship Saturday after an official penalized Mallard Creek anchor Nyan Brown for unsportsmanlike conduct. With the win, Mallard Creek would’ve clinched the championship; a disqualification left the four-time state champs in second place. Mallard Creek coach Samuel Willoughby told The Athletic’s David Ubben he was upset and dumbfounded, adding that multiple other teams celebrated as they crossed the finish line in the meet’s other races. “It was like we were targeted, almost,” Willoughby said.
SGA wins MVP, Amazon hates spoilers
Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander won his second straight MVP yesterday, beating out Nikola Jokić and Victor Wembanyama for the honor. He is the first back-to-back winner since Jokić won it in 2021 and 2022, and becomes the 16th player in NBA history to win multiple MVPs. It was well-deserved.
The only actual drama about the selection happened live on Prime Video, when hosts Taylor Rooks and Blake Griffin poked fun at ESPN’s Shams Charania, who reported the award news hours before Prime was supposed to announce it exclusively. Griffin said Charania should’ve been getting brunch instead of working. See the whole saga here.
More news:
- The Nationals banned a fan who unfurled a white nationalist sign at Nationals Park during yesterday’s game. Read our full story.
- The Mets — yes, these Mets — look competent again, especially in yesterday’s comeback win in the Subway Series.
- Seattle called up top prospect Colt Emerson as injuries mount on the major-league roster. Read about Emerson here.
- Indiana Fever stalwart Aliyah Boston missed a game for the first time in eight years due to a leg injury. RIP streak.
- USMNT players Brenden Aaronson and Chris Richards both suffered injury scares over the weekend, less than a month before the World Cup. More here.
- The Columbus Crew fired coach Henrik Rydström just 14 games into his tenure. It was probably the right decision.
Watch Guide
3 p.m. ET on USA Network
Arsenal can’t technically win the Premier League crown today, but it can go a long way toward it. Burnley will be relegated next season, and thus, it would be an astronomical shock if the Gunners do not win this.
7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN
A special evening awaits us. We start here with Game 7 of this second-round series, which has been brilliant. The juggernaut Hurricanes await one of these two excellent stories — a slump-busting Buffalo team or the resurrected blueblood Montreal — in the Eastern Conference final. Expect a seismic atmosphere.
8:30 p.m. ET on NBC and Peacock
This is what many pundits will argue is the real NBA Finals, unfair to the Eastern Conference champ or not. I strongly believe San Antonio is the team best positioned to beat Oklahoma City in these playoffs, thanks to both the existence of Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs’ 4-1 record against OKC this year. Tune in.
8 p.m. ET on Peacock
I’m still bullish on Dallas this season, but a 1-2 start — including 0-2 at home — is a bit troubling. It’s still worth a watch to see Paige Bueckers and Azzi Fudd play together more. On the other side, Sonia Citron (24.3 points a game) has been electric so far this year.
Pulse Picks
Sure, all the NBA playoff stuff is important. But a massive question looms over the league: Where will Giannis Antetokounmpo play next season? See what 151 NBA players predicted.
I loved this from over the weekend on Jason Collins’ groundbreaking essay in Sports Illustrated, which changed the NBA forever. Rebecca Tauber got the backstory on how it happened.
Texas Tech quarterback Brendan Sorsby could be forced to enter the NFL’s supplemental draft. He’d be the most interesting entry in years.
A year ago, Wilmer Flores hit three home runs in an MLB game. So why is he in Mexico, still playing baseball, away from the league that thinks his skill set is obsolete? Dennis Lin and Sam Blum went to Tijuana to find out.
These days, coming back from a Tommy John surgery is standard rehab for an MLB pitcher. Two is tough, but doable. Three, though? Nearly impossible … except for Reds reliever Tejay Antone. His comeback was almost unbelievable.
Most-clicked in the newsletter yesterday: The wild story of a pit crew member saving a Fox Sports reporter at a NASCAR race over the weekend. Catch up here.
Most-read on the website yesterday: Shohei Ohtani’s little-league home run from Saturday night. So good.
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