Rumor has it
From The GIST (hi@thegistsports.com)
Leveling The Playing Field
Hello, Friday!
No balloon arches here, but expect WNBA free agency to really, ahem, pop off tomorrow, the first day players can officially sign. Rumors and reports are already flying — scroll on while waiting for more news to drop.
— Skiing legend Lindsey Vonn, sharing an update on her lengthy recovery process after a terrifying crash at February’s Milano Cortina Olympics. Wishing her the best.
NBA
🏀 May the best player win?
The GIST: The NBA postseason picture is taking shape ahead of the regular-season finale on Sunday. And while the Eastern Conference middle-of-the-standings traffic jam is intriguing, the league MVP race is providing the real drama.
- The culprit? A little something called the 65-game rule. Let’s discuss.
🤔 What is the 65-game rule?: Introduced in 2023, the “65-game rule” aimed to course-correct the load management era, in which healthy players sat out of games to rest. In order for players to be eligible for most major awards, including league MVP, they must compete in at least 65 of their team’s 82 games and log at least 20 minutes in each of those tilts.
🏆 The impact on the MVP race: Four players dominated MVP conversations this season: Oklahoma City Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Denver Nugget Nikola Jokić, San Antonio Spur Victor Wembanyama, and LA Laker Luka Dončić. Could the 65-game rule decide the MVP? It’s entirely possible.
- ✅ SGA has played in 68 games this season, making him eligible to defend his MVP crown after averaging 31.1 points per game.
- ↔️ Triple-double savant Jokić and defensive juggernaut Wembanyama are both on the cusp of eligibility. And while neither are 100% healthy heading into their team’s last two tilts, they’ll both need to play in at least one game this weekend to meet the league requirement.
- ❓ Last week’s hamstring injury sidelined Dončić for the rest of the regular season, but an “Extraordinary Circumstance Challenge” could keep the Lakers superstar eligible after he missed two games in December for the birth of his daughter. Watch this space.
⛳ Defending champ Rory McIlroy shares an early lead at the Masters
Freed from the career grand slam pressure, the world No. 2 Northern Irishman posted his best opening round at Augusta National in 15 years yesterday, finishing five under par alongside No. 33 Sam Burns. But there’s still plenty of golf to play these next three days with the 91-player field set to be cut to 50 (plus ties) after today’s second round.
- One of the favorites pre-tournament, No. 24 Bryson DeChambeau is in danger of not making the cut after a frustrating first round. Maybe it was that homemade club.
🏒 Colorado Avalanche clinch Presidents’ Trophy with late-night win
Awarded to the NHL’s best regular-season team, the Presidents’ Trophy is officially heading to the Mile High City after the Avs topped the Calgary Flames 3–1 last night. As for the infamous curse, Colorado is notably one of just eight teams in league history to win the Presidents’ Trophy and the Stanley Cup in the same season.
- Elsewhere, two of the best players to ever wear skates — Pittsburgh Penguin Sidney Crosby and Washington Capital Alex Ovechkin — will face off tomorrow at 3 p.m. ET before meeting again Sunday at the same time. A double dose of legacy.
- And as if that wasn’t enough history on ice: Montreal Canadiens forward Cole Caufield became the Habs’ first 50-goal scorer in 36 years last night, burying the milestone marker in Montreal’s 2–1 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning. Magnifique.
🇨🇦⚽ No. 9 CanWNT face No. 66 Zambia in friendly FIFA Series tomorrow at 3 p.m. ET
CanWNT is entering unknown territory, taking on Zambia for the first time ever, the first match in their three-game FIFA Series held in Brazil. Good thing this roster is stacked, with veteran center back Kadeisha Buchanan and rising star forward Olivia Smith returning from injury and hoping to make a splashy statement in a FIFA Women’s World Cup qualifying year.
📺🏀 Men’s and women’s March Madness draw major viewership numbers
A whopping 18.3M people on average watched Michigan defeat UConn during Monday’s title game, making it the most-watched championship since 2019. As for the women, South Carolina vs. UCLA is officially the third most-watched women’s championship ever, with 9.9M viewers tuning in to see the Bruins hoist the trophy.
🏐 LOVB Playoffs: No. 3 seed Austin vs. No. 2 Atlanta — Today at 4 p.m. ET — YouTube
- The two-round LOVB Playoffs begin with two spots in next week’s LA championship on the line. Defending champ (and friend of The GIST Madisen Skinner’s) Austin kick off the fun against Atlanta before No. 4 Salt Lake faces top-seeded Houston at 6:30 p.m. ET. Aces.
⚾ MLB: Minnesota Twins vs. Toronto Blue Jays — Tonight at 7:07 p.m. ET — Sportsnet
- With an injury list longer than our TBR pile, the Jays called up journeyman pitcher Patrick Corbin to start tonight’s three-game series opener at Rogers Centre. The 36-year-old lefty has experience filling roster gaps and could be the savior for this struggling squad.
🏒 PWHL: Montréal Victoire vs. Boston Fleet — Tomorrow at 7 p.m. ET — TSN
- Boston’s TD Garden will serve as the backdrop for this clash between the top teams in the PWHL. The squads are separated by just one point in the standings and boast the league’s two best tendys: Montréal’s Ann-Renée Desbiens and Boston’s Aerin Frankel. So seated.
So much content, so little time. Here are the sports articles and interviews that had GIST HQ talking this week.
🏀 No Way in Hell They Wanna See Us by Dillon Brooks (The Players Tribune)
⚽ ‘Hard not to feel scammed’: World Cup fans say FIFA misled them with ticket allocations, seat maps (The Athletic)
🏒 For Laila Edwards, accolades are ‘cool,’ but being a role model is more important (Andscape)
⚾ Accountability Culture Is Dead. ABS Is the Exception. (The Ringer)
Today’s email was brought to you by Alessandra Puccio, Lisa Minutillo, Lauren Tuiskula, Grace DePaull, and Charlotte Mackenzie. Fact-checking by Elisha Gunaratnam and Mikaela Perez. Ops by Elisha Gunaratnam and Briana Ekanem. Managing edits by Lauren Tuiskula and Alessandra Puccio. Head of content Ellen Hyslop.