From The Sports Desk: Thunder strike

We’re officially in the middle of an all-time great Western Conference finals. We’ll recap that, plus look ahead to Formula 1’s Montreal Grand Prix. We also feature Iran soccer star Mehdi Taremi as today’s World Cup spotlight player.

Get unlimited access to ad-free articles and exclusive content.

NBA Playoffs

The hotly contested Western Conference finals are now tied 1-1 after the Oklahoma City Thunder defeated the San Antonio Spurs 122-113 last night. After losing its first game of the postseason, OKC received a championship response from MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander , who scored 30 points to go along with four rebounds and nine assists.

The unsung hero for the Thunder, however, was center Isaiah Hartenstein . After playing only 12 minutes in Game 1, Hartenstein played 27 in Game 2. He also played an incredibly physical defense on San Antonio star Victor Wembanyama , using every grab, hold and push in the book to make life miserable for the Spurs big man. Wemby still finished with a remarkable stat line — 21 points, 17 rebounds and four assists — but he labored through a game he wasn’t able to dominate.

“I’m just kind of one of those players that brings physicality to the game,” said Hartenstein, who also scored 10 points — including a couple of floaters over an outstretched Wemby — and collected 13 rebounds. “I think that’s just kind of what we needed.”

Turnovers were also an issue for San Antonio, which coughed up the ball 21 times in the face of an extra desperate OKC defense. The Thunder had only nine turnovers.

The intensity through two games appears to be taking a toll. Spurs guard Dylan Harper and Thunder forward Jalen Williams both left Game 2 with hamstring injuries, putting their status in doubt moving forward. When the series resumes tomorrow night, the teams will not only have to survive each other, but the war of attrition that comes with such high-level basketball.

F1 Preview

When the Formula 1 season began, Mercedes veteran George Russell was the betting odds favorite to win the championship.

Four races later , that dynamic has shifted. His 19-year-old Mercedes teammate Kimi Antonelli , racing in his sophomore year in F1, has overtaken him after three wins in a row , leading by 20 points in the standings.

As Montreal hosts another Grand Prix this weekend, pressure is mounting on Russell to prove he’s still championship material.

Canada provides a good opportunity: It’s a track the 28-year-old has excelled at, taking pole position the last two years and winning without the fastest car in 2025.

Part of the reason is that Russell prefers grippier and more traditional race tracks like Montreal. By his own admission, he struggles in low-grip tracks — like recently in Miami .

It’s a pivotal moment for Russell. He joined Mercedes in 2022 after an extraordinary eight years of constructors’ championships, just as it fell backward and lost the ability to compete for titles. This year, they’re the favorites again — but Russell risks being usurped by his younger teammate, who team boss Toto Wolff is heavily invested in after defying the skeptics and putting him in a Mercedes F1 car at just 18 years old.

Fans can watch the race Sunday at 4 p.m. ET live on Apple TV or Netflix, just after the Indy 500 wraps up.

In Miami, Antonelli played up Russell’s prospects in Montreal when asked by NBC News if he’s growing more optimistic about winning the championship.

“George for sure is going to be super strong in Canada,” Antonelli said. “He’s always been very strong there, so he’s for sure going to be back at the top.”

World Cup Countdown

Leading up to the 2026 World Cup, we’re counting down 26 players to watch. Today’s entry is Iran’s Mehdi Taremi .

The 33-year-old Taremi was seemingly single-footedly trying to get Iran into the World Cup. He scored 10 goals during the qualifying period for 2026, including a hat trick against Hong Kong in 2024.

After a brief, one-season stint at Inter Milan, Taremi is currently scoring at a blazing pace for Olympiacos in Greece’s top league, with 10 goals in his first 14 appearances this season. He’s also scored twice in nine Champions League matches. Taremi’s club career began in 2010 and he played for seven teams before ultimately joining Olympiacos in 2025.

Iran relies heavily on Taremi, as he scored two of the country’s total four goals during the 2022 World Cup. Iran has not made it beyond the group stage of the tournament since 1978, though it has competed in four of the five previous World Cups. Taremi brings a much-needed offensive spark to a country that’s not scored more than four goals in any of its World Cup runs.

Taremi will also be playing amid significant political turmoil back home. Earlier this year, he refused to celebrate after scoring a goal in solidarity with Iranian protesters. There are also concerns about how Taremi and his teammates will be received in North America, as the country’s football federation continues to seek assurances regarding visas, security and other issues ahead of the tournament.

Yesterday’s entry was Egypt’s Mohamed Salah . Read about him here .

What We’re Reading

The Savannah Bananas are made up of entertainers, but they want you to know they also have real players.

Montreal Victoire won its first PWHL title by beating Ottawa.

Aaron Rodgers says this is really it and the next season will be his last.

Congo is forced to change its World Cup preparations over the Ebola outbreak.

Eagles linebacker Nolan Smith Jr. was allegedly driving 135 miles per hour when he was arrested on reckless driving charges.

What We’re Watching

The New York Knicks shocked the NBA world with a 22-point comeback in the fourth quarter to beat the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals. Will they once again get it done at home?

Meanwhile, in the NHL, the Eastern Conference finals kick off with the Montreal Canadiens taking on the Carolina Hurricanes. The Canadiens are coming off a brutal seven-game series with the Buffalo Sabres and the Hurricanes are well rested after sweeping the Philadelphia Flyers. Will the extended time off help or hurt tonight? We’ll be watching.

That’s it for now! We’ll be back tomorrow.