SPORTS LINE
The NBA championships, third game.
For those of you who are fans of professional basketball, the games now are affordable to only a few. Seats running eight to ten thousand dollars each, and beyond, are making such championship games attainable only by being outside the dome and cheering on the streets. The New York Knickerbockers played the San Antonio Spurs days ago and lost. There was no celebrating in the streets, however, as the biggest Knicks fan, the President of the United States, was in attendance. All streets were cleared, and great substantial fences were erected, and garbage trucks blocked everything. They say it cost almost forty million dollars for the security, which was paid by U.S. taxpayers, not Madison Square Garden or the teams. The Knicks won while the president slept, as has become his habit when he’s bored, or worse. It is of note that the owner of Madison Square Gardens was asleep beside him. How anyone sleeps during one of those high-emotion and terribly loud games is almost beyond belief, but there they were, and check out the Internet to see it for yourself. Some sportscasters claimed that the president was at fault, but that might be stretching it. All the president had to say was that he would attend the next game in San Antonio.
The Milwaukee Brewers.
Obviously, the nation’s ‘great’ leader needs another nap. For the second time this season, the Brewers are investing big in a player who has yet to step foot in the Major Leagues. The Milwaukee Brewers have signed outfield prospect Luis Lara to a seven-year contract extension, the team announced on Tuesday. The agreement for the 21-year-old Lara includes $31 million in guaranteed money and maxes out at $79 million. It runs through 2032 with team options for 2033, 2034, and 2035. Considered a plus defender in center field, Lara has gone from unranked among Brewers prospects at the start of the season to No. 5 in the latest rankings by ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel, largely because of his improved exit velocity and in-game loft, which had spiked his isolated slugging by about 80 points entering the month.
The 2022 international signee has 144 stolen bases in 447 minor league games. In addition to a 15.8% walk rate, Lara is hitting .338 this season and has seven home runs after never having hit more than four in any prior season. Lara’s calling card is his defense in center field that earned him a Minor League Gold Glove Award in 2025. If Lara continues to display improved hitting and more power as has been the case so far this season, his stock will continue to soar, and this extension will look like a bargain for the Brewers. Lara’s agreement positions the native of San Felipe, Venezuela, alongside Jackson Chourio and Cooper Pratt as Brewers phenoms who were locked down on long-term contracts while they were still Minor Leaguers.
The Milwaukee Bucks.
In his first year with the Milwaukee Bucks, Taylor Jenkins is looking at a handful of lead guards on Milwaukee’s radar ahead of the NBA Draft. Names connected to the Milwaukee Bucks by Vecenie include Mikel Brown Jr., Labaron Philon Jr., Christian Anderson Jr., and Kingston Flemings. If the Bucks want to acquire a guard with their 10th overall pick, they will have options to choose from. The top guard prospect among the bunch linked to the Milwaukee Bucks is Darius Acuff Jr., but he will likely be long gone by the time Milwaukee is on the clock with the 10th overall selection. Instead, they should hope that Mikel Brown Jr. falls into their lap. That would be a dream scenario for a team that could use a shot in the arm in the backcourt. Known for high-level scoring, passing, and defense, Brown has the tools to be an immediate threat at the next level, especially under a coach like Jenkins. He’d make for a perfect fit next to Ryan Rollins in the backcourt, especially if Kevin Porter Jr. declines his player option and walks out the door. With or without Giannis Antetokounmpo on the roster, Brown would be a tremendous pickup. The question is whether Brown will even be available when Milwaukee is up. Plenty of teams within the top 10 have already worked him out, and he seems to have a lot of fans.
