The 2022 NBA draft is in the books and it started off with drama.
There was lots of speculation that Auburn’s Jabari Smith Jr. would go number one. Orlando surprised some by choosing Paolo Banchero from Duke. I believe the Magic made the right decision because they need an immediate impact player and Banchero will fill that role. I feel he will be a big star at the next level.
I love what Detroit did, adding Jaden Ivey and Jalen Duren. Ivey will team up with Cade Cunningham to form a dynamic duo. I love their potential. Dwayne Casey’s team should improve next season.
The Sacramento Kings are going to appreciate the addition of Keegan Murray. His versatility and scoring ability will help the Kings improve. I love guys that can shoot the rock.
Portland took the mystery man, Shaedon Sharpe, who has looked super in video highlights. He practiced with Kentucky but did not play with the Wildcats. The key to playing in the NBA will be his ability to respond in game situations. He is going to a perfect place to grow as the Blazers are in a rebuilding mode.
I loved the Hornets picking up Mark Williams from Duke. The 7-2 defensive wizard is a terrific shot blocker and rim protector. Michael Jordan’s club took a player from his favorite school in North Carolina! I believe Williams will be special in his first three years.
There were several quality players that slid down to the second round. I feel Jalen Hardy from the G League and Kennedy Chandler of Tennessee could contribute right away.
The winners in the draft were the Pistons, Thunder, Magic and Spurs.
Congratulations to the NBA champion Glden State Warriors, winning the NBA title for the fourth time in eight years. Steve Kerr earned his ninth championship ring, five as a player and four as a coach. Golden State won in six games, capturing the final on Boston’s court. Stephen Curry won NBA playoff MVP for the first time.
The Warriors got great contributions from Klay Thompson, Andrew Wiggins, Draymnd Green and Jordan Poole. The Celtics fell short but the future is bright with Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown and Marcus Smart.
Matt Fitzpatrick won the U.S. Open, capturing his first major, beating Will Zalatoris and Scottie Scheffler by one stroke.
Is there a mercy rule in hockey there should have been one at game two if the Stanley Cup finals. Colorado 7, Tampa Bay 0. Ouch.
Congrats to the Tampa Bay Lightning, winning four straight games to beat the NY Rangers. Jon Cooper’s team is going to its third straight Stanley Cup final.
Several baseball teams remained hot. The Atlanta Braves won their 11th straight. The New York Yankees won their 11th game out of 12.
Thomas Van Rijthoven of the Netherlands beat Danil Medvedev and won Liberia Open tourney. He beat the top three seeds and had never won a tour level match before this event. Amazing
Iga Świątek continued her dominance of women’s tennis. She extended her match win streak to 35 straight as she won the French Open. Swiatek beat Coco Gauff in straight sets in the title match. On the men’s side, Rafael Nadal won his 14th French singles title, beating Casper Ruud in straight sets. That marked a record 22nd Grand Slam singles title.
The NBA finals saw the Celtics split the first two games of the series vs. Golden State. Game 3 is at Boston.
The Stanley Cup playoffs saw Colorado take a 3-0 lead over Edmonton. The Lightning won game three of the Eastern Conference final, pulling to within 2-1 of the Rangers.
Gonzaga added a big piece of the puzzle, adding Chattanooga transfer Malachi Smith.
The NBA Finals are set as the Warriors and the Celtics will meet. Boston won game seven of the Eastern Conference, beating Miami 100-96.
Marcus Ericsson of Sweden won the Indy 500. There was a dramatic ending after a late red flag.
The French Open saw the dream matchup set in the quarterfinals as Novak Djpkovic and Rafael Nadal will meet.
Justin Thomas staged a great comeback to win the PGA Championship. He had two birdies in a three-hole playoff to win.
The Miami Heat took a 2-1 lead on the Celtics in a wacky series.
The Orlando Magic won the NBA Draft lottery. Will it be Chet Holmgren, Jabari Smith or Paolo Banchero going numero uno?
The French Open, the second Grand Slam of the season, got underway. Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal could meet in the quarterfinals. Garbine Muguruza and Ons Jabeur were early upset losers.
The term game seven was all over the place in the NBA and NHL playoffs. The Rangers-Penguins and Flames-Stars went overtime in game seven on the same night. The Mavericks won at Phoenix in a stunning game 7, 123-90. The defending champion Bucks were sent home by Boston. Toronto fell short of a series win; the last time they won a series was 2004.
MLB saw the Yankees continue to roll with great pitching and clutch hitting. Baseball also saw Albert Pujols pitch in a win.
A week away from the French Open and Iga Swiatek has won 28 straight matches and Novak Djokovic went over the 1000 career win mark.
I was so saddened to hear about the passing of Bob Lanier. Bob and I had a fantastic relationship, both personally and professionally. For a number of years, we had a basketball camp together for youngsters between the ages of 10-18, which we held in West Bloomfield. Michigan.
The camp was called the BOB LANIER - DICK VITALE ALL STAR CAMP. Also though only for a short time, I had the opportunity to coach Bob with the Detroit Pistons in the late 70’s. He was a super talent and that was obvious by his induction in 1992 into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame. He was a super Solid Gold All-American at St Bonaventure University, as he led them to the Final 4.
Despite the many knee injuries in his career, he was super successful when healthy. Unfortunately, for me as a coach he missed about 35 games my first year due to knee problems and it hurt us big time.
My last time with Bob was several years ago, when he spent a weekend at my house and attended my Gala. We had so much fun as he had a great sense of humor. I always teased him that he was a gentle giant. After his playing career, he was hired by David Stern to be an Ambassador for the NBA and he traveled all over the world, promoting the NBA while inspiring and motivating young people to get an education .
I will miss him but never, ever forget the great memories we shared together over the years.
My heart and prayers go out to his family, friends and teammates. Please GOD let BOB RIP. I loved YOU GENTLE GIANT!
Sarasota, Florida was the sports capital of the world on May 6.
The 17th Dickie V gala was a huge success as we raised over 11 million for the Jimmy V Foundation for cancer research. We honored tennis legend Chris Evert, who has been in her own fight against cancer; Baylor hoops coach Scott Drew; former NFL star Keyshawn Johnson; and John Saunders courage award winner Rod Gilmore.
I was totally blown away by the generosity of our Sold Out crowd that responded in a big way to our message of how dollars are desperately needed for Pediatric Cancer Research. Wow CAN NOT BELIEVE IT as we raised $11.1 MILLION DOLLARS which certainly exceeded my expectations.
Our crowd was filled with greatness from the world of sports , business, entertainment, education , law, medicine etc.
I just want to say THANK YOU on behalf of my fantastic TEAM headed by MARY KENEALY - JANET ALLEN . A major thank you to SHANE JACOBSON CEO of THE V FOUNDATION & his staff for their incredible efforts in seeing that we get financial support for pediatrics.
It was a night filled with emotion & lived up to the words of my buddy Jimmy V that he stated in his legendary speech . Yes he said basically that everyday you should be moved to tears / laughter & thought & trust me our crowd of 900 felt those emotions during the entire night.
Yes to ALL that DONATED I say THANK YOU for using your success to help young kids in need of new medicines & treatments .
Please join our team: Donate at https://www.v.org/research/specialfunds/pediatrics/ or at dickvitale.com
May GOD BLESS YOU with health & happiness!
College basketball had more news with the transfer portal. Isiah Wong of Miami threatened to leave unless he had a greater NIL. He changed his mind and backed off of his threat. Several big schools landed veteran help. Duke added Ryan Young from Northwestern. Johni Broome went from Morehead State to Auburn.
The NFL Draft provided plenty of exciting moments. Javon Walker, a LB from Georgia, was the #1 pick by the Jacksonville Jaguars.Among teams that did very well in the first round included the Giants, Jets, Eagles, Ravens and Saints. Philadelphia added AJ Brown from Tennessee in a trade.
The NBA playoffs rolled on. Milwaukee got a big win in Boston. Golden State edged Memphis and earned the victory despite Draymond Green’s ejection in the first half.
The New York Mets used five pitchers to combine on a no-hitter of the Phillies. The Yankees extended a win streak to nine games.
Congrats to Miguel Cabrera on his 3000th hit. The Rays had a nine-inning no-hitter vs. Boston. The Red Sox scored twice in the tenth before the Rays scored three to win.
The NBA playoffs have provided excitement galore. Utah rallied to beat Dallas to even the series. The Celtics were very impressive in beating the Nets three straight.
The transfer portal continued to provide more news. AAC Player of the Year went from SMU to Memphis. Kansas State’s All-Big 12 guard Nijel Pack landed at Miami.
Tyson Fury retained his heavyweight title with a TKO.
The NBA playoffs got under way. The Boston Celtics edged the Brooklyn Nets as Jayson Tatum hit the winning shot. The Minnesota Timbwolves upset the Memphis Grizzlies. There were several players that shined in their first playoff game, including Anthony Edwards, Tyrese Maxey and Jordan Poole.
College basketball saw numerous moves via the transfer portal.
MLB rolled on. The Yankees lost two out of three at Baltimore.
Congratulations to Scottie Scheffler on winning the green jacket at The Masters. The world’s #1 player dominated Augusta.
Kansas rallied from a 15-point halftime deficit to beat North Carolina and win the national title.
Major League Baseball got underway. Padres pitcher Sean Manaea threw seven no-hit innings in his San Diego debut.
Congratulations to the women’s basketball national champion, SouthCarolina.Dawn Staley’s team won its first title. Since 2017.
On the men’s side, Kansas and North Carolina advanced to the final. The Jayhawks beat Villanova while the Tar Heels edged Duke, sending Mike Krzyzewski into retirement with 1202 career wins and five national titles.
In the NFL Tampa Bay Bucs coach Bruce Arians moved into the front office as Todd Bowles was promoted to head coach.
The Lakers lost six straight games to fall away from the playoffs.
It was another big week in sports.
We reached the Final Four in men’s basketball. Congratulations to Duke, North Carolina, Villanova and Kansas.
The NFL saw another major deal as the Chiefs sent WR Tyreek Hill to Miami for five draft picks. Matt Ryan was dealt to the Colts.
UConn women’s basketball team made the Elite Eight for the 16th straight time.
It was a busy week in sports, led by the NCAA Tournament. Kentucky, Iowa and Connecticut were first round shock city losers. St. Peter’s became the third 15th seed to make the Sweet 16, beating Kentucky and Murray State. They are this years biggest Cinderella, joining Florida Gulf Coast in 2013 and Oral Roberta in 2021 to go from 15rh seed to Sweet 16. Miami and Iowa State advanced to a Sweet 16 meeting stunning Auburn and Wisconsin.
The NFL and MLB had many transactions. The Tampa Bay Bucs, after bringing Tom Brady back, made several moves to strengthen their lineup. Devante Adams ended up in Las Vegas, Von Miller became a Bill, Deshawn Watson went to the Browns.
Freddie Freeman signed with the Dodgers. Carlos Correa landed with the Twins. Kenley Jansenand Matt Olson joined the Braves. Josh Donaldson became a Yankee, Kris Bryant became a Rockie. Trevor Story joined the Red Sox.
The field of 68 is set! Gonzaga, Arizona, Kansas and Baylor are the 1 seeds. I was surprised Tennessee and Iowa were seeded lower than they deserved.
Texas A&M, SMU, Xavier were left out and had a case to argue.
Championship week gave us some great moments. Virginia Tech was a great story as the seventh seed beat Clemson, Notre Dame, North Carolina and Duke to cut down the nets in Brooklyn. Arizona beat UCLA to win the Pac-12. Villanova and Kansas dominate their leagues.
Then big news as Tom Brady announced his return to the Bucs.
Mike Krzyzewski had an emotional farewell to Cameron Indoor Stadium. Over 90 of his former players were in attendance, though North Carolina spoiled the party.
Nebraska had a great week. The Cornhuskers surprised Ohio State and Wisconsin.
Three NBA stars had big games. LeBron James scored 56 vs. the Warriors. Jayson Tatum scored 54 against the Nets. Ja Morant had a 52-point effort.