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      Victor Wembanyama Picked No. 1 Overall by Spurs in 2023 NBA Draft

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      Wembanyama, the 19-year-old French basketball star, had been perhaps the most-hyped prospect since LeBron James.Victor Wembanyama had grown up in the suburbs of Paris dreaming about this moment since he was 12 years old. He had long felt as though he was different from everyone else, as though he could be great — and not just in basketball.He’d spent the past several months, and even the last few days, exuding cool calm about his future. But when his moment finally arrived, he couldn’t help but cry.The San Antonio Spurs selected Wembanyama No. 1 overall in Thursday’s N.B.A. draft at Barclays Center in Brooklyn. In doing so, they officially started the N.B.A. career of one of the most highly anticipated prospects in league history.“One of the best feelings of my life,” Wembanyama, 19, said. “Probably the best night of my life. I’ve been dreaming about this for so long. It’s a dream come true. It’s incredible.”The Charlotte Hornets selected Alabama’s Brandon Miller with the No. 2 pick. The Portland Trail Blazers chose Scoot Henderson, a guard from the N.B.A.’s G League Ignite, with the third pick. The Thompson twins from Overtime Elite, a semiprofessional league for prospects, went next. Houston took Amen Thompson with the fourth pick, and Detroit selected Ausar Thompson at No. 5.The Charlotte Hornets selected Alabama’s Brandon Miller with the second pick.Hiroko Masuike/The New York TimesScoot Henderson was the No. 3 pick overall, by the Portland Trail Blazers.Hiroko Masuike/The New York TimesEach team had five minutes to make its selection in the first round. Although the Spurs’ pick had been submitted early in the allotted time, N.B.A. Commissioner Adam Silver waited until all five minutes had elapsed before announcing the selection.“Longest five minutes of my life,” Wembanyama said.His stomach began to flutter, and his family members grew quiet. They began looking at their watches.Then Silver finally called Wembanyama’s name, and a new chapter of his life began. He hugged his sister and his brother, who both cried with joy. He hugged his parents and then his agents.Later, backstage, someone handed him a Spurs jersey with his name on it.“Someone knew this was happening somehow,” he quipped.In San Antonio, Spurs Coach Gregg Popovich was thrilled.“He’s not LeBron, or Tim, or Kobe, or anyone else,” Popovich told reporters there. “He’s Victor.”Wembanyama talked about working to win a championship as soon as possible, and about the Texas breakfast tacos he’d heard so much about.Fourteen players from outside the United States have been selected first overall in the N.B.A. draft. Wembanyama is the first international top pick who did not play high school or college basketball in the United States since the Italian player Andrea Bargnani, whom the Toronto Raptors selected first in 2006.At more than seven feet tall, with the agility and ball-handling skills of a much smaller player, Wembanyama has drawn comparisons to N.B.A. stars like Giannis Antetokounmpo and Kevin Durant. He has long admired those players, but he has often said he doesn’t want to be like anyone in particular. He has said he wants to “be something that’s never been seen before and will never be seen again.”Fans line up outside Barclays Center in Brooklyn before the N.B.A. draft.Hiroko Masuike/The New York TimesOn Wednesday, the N.B.A. took the unusual step of hosting a news conference just for Wembanyama before the other prospects addressed the news media in groups.“Welcome to San Antonio,” a reporter from Texas said during Wembanyama’s news conference. With the draft still a day away, the reporter quickly added, “Not yet.”Wembanyama smiled.“Not yet,” he said.Wembanyama had been projected as the No. 1 pick for this draft even before the 2022-23 season.The Spurs won the draft lottery in May, as Wembanyama watched with friends and family in France.“I was just thinking I was feeling lucky that they got the pick as a franchise that has that culture and that experience in winning and making, creating good players,” Wembanyama said on Wednesday. “I really can’t wait.”The Spurs have had a strong history with French players and with the top pick in the draft.They drafted the French point guard Tony Parker late in the first round in 2001. He won four championships with the Spurs and was named the most valuable player of the finals in 2007. Another French player, Boris Diaw, spent more than four seasons in San Antonio and was part of the 2014 championship team.The Spurs have also had great success making the first pick in the draft. In 1987, they used the No. 1 pick to take David Robinson, who won the league’s M.V.P. Award in 1995, was a 10-time All-Star and won two championships with the Spurs. Then in 1997, San Antonio chose Tim Duncan first overall. Duncan went on to win five championships and two M.V.P. Awards, and he was named finals M.V.P. three times.Coming into a team with that kind of history might seem like a lot of pressure for a teenager like Wembanyama, but he has appeared to be unruffled by it.Spurs fans at Barclays cheer for Wembanyama.Hiroko Masuike/The New York TimesThe 2023 draft class onstage with N.B.A. Commissioner Adam Silver. Wembanyama stood at the back, a head taller than everyone else.Hiroko Masuike/The New York TimesOn Wednesday, Wembanyama had been asked about a comment from a pundit, who said that his career would be a disappointment if it wasn’t like that of Durant or the Hall of Fame center Hakeem Olajuwon.Wembanyama calmly dismissed the premise.“I’ve got such high expectations for myself that I’m immune to all this stuff,” he said. “So I really don’t care.”Wembanyama grew up in Le Chesnay, west of Paris, but left at age 14 to live about 20 minutes away in the dorms of his childhood club, Nanterre. He went to high school across the street. He has played professionally in France since he was 15, often competing against and with players much older than him. It meant he had few opportunities to lead a team.But last season, he starred for Metropolitans 92, a French club based in the Paris suburb of Levallois-Perret. Most of his games were broadcast on the N.B.A. App.“Only this year I had the opportunity to learn to know this kind of responsibility,” Wembanyama said. “It is the best thing I learned in my career so far.”The team had created a plan to prepare Wembanyama physically and mentally for the N.B.A. In turn, Wembanyama became deeply invested in his teammates’ growth.One day in April, he told his agent Bouna Ndiaye that he needed a second athletic trainer because the first was overloaded. Ndiaye, assuming Wembanyama meant a second trainer for himself, found one and had been prepared to pay the second trainer’s salary to satisfy his client. But Wembanyama told him the trainer was for the whole team.“He told me, ‘Yeah, but you don’t understand,’” Ndiaye said. “‘My teammates need that. Because I believe in this team.’”Wembanyama said it felt “surreal” to hear his name called at the draft.Hiroko Masuike/The New York TimesThe club eventually agreed to hire another trainer.Wembanyama was named the most valuable player of his French league, the youngest ever to win that award, and led his team to a second-place finish. They lost in the finals last week.He got to New York on Monday, excited to experience the city he had seen only in films and on television.He rode the subway to Yankee Stadium in the Bronx from Columbus Circle in Manhattan on Tuesday. He jumped over the turnstile as he exited the train station in homage to Jacques Chirac, the former French president, who hopped a turnstile in the Paris metro in 1980. Wembanyama threw out the ceremonial first pitch for the Yankees’ game against Seattle and laughed after it sailed wide.It had otherwise been difficult for Wembanyama to simply go out and see the city. The anticipation for what heights his career could reach had been building even before Thursday’s official welcome into the N.B.A.He was the first player to walk into the green room at Barclays Center on Thursday night. About two and a half hours before he heard his name called, he walked onto the stage for a moment. As he left the floor a minute later, he turned back to look at the stage one more time.“This is when it started to feel a little bit real,” Wembanyama said after he was selected. “It still isn’t completely real. At that moment I started visualizing.”In San Antonio, Spurs fans felt a new sense of hope after a stretch of losing seasons. They walked around yelling “Go Spurs Go!” In one bar, fans passed around a cutout of Wembanyama’s head for photographs.At a draft night party at the Spurs’ arena, the crowd was chanting “Wemby” an hour before the draft had even begun.Wembanyama said he had felt “so much love” from Spurs fans since San Antonio won the draft lottery last month.“I think there’s murals of me in the city center in San Antonio,” he said. “It’s just incredible. I could not ask for a better welcome than this.”Santul Nerkar More

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      Best-Dressed at the NBA Draft

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      Tailoring, bling and Louis Vuitton, oh my.The fact that the N.B.A. draft occurred smack in the middle of the Paris men’s wear shows was something of a cosmically appropriate coincidence.After all, the draft has increasingly become one of our most watched runways, the heart of the convergence between fashion and sport that has spawned the tunnel walk and social media accounts that chronicle players’ wardrobes — and leads to front row seats at shows like Louis Vuitton, recently attended by LeBron James, and Rick Owens, where Kyle Kuzma showed up. And it is only getting more important.ESPN has added a one-hour “N.B.A. Draft Red Carpet Special” just as E! does for the Oscars and the Met Gala, including a 360 degree cam kind of like the E! Glambot, the better to capture the looks in the round, as well as a reporter asking the attendees, “What are you wearing?”Yes, the question isn’t just for women any more.Perhaps because most of the athletes aren’t used to answering, they didn’t respond with a “what” — they didn’t name their brand — but a “why.” Why they chose the look they chose. Which in turn reflects why this all matters.As Mitchell Jackson, the author of the forthcoming “Fly: The Big Book of Basketball Fashion,” a coffee-table book that elevates the subject to the same decorative status as a Dior or Gucci monograph, said: “N.B.A. draft fashion is its own subject now, not an afterthought but part of the big show. It was always something the players cared about, but with more media coverage of the draft, with the advent of social media and the tunnel, it’s an important part, dare I say essential part, of player’s star power.”It’s the players’ first chance to create the brand of them and offer it up for public consumption. As a result, everything is tailored. Not just literally, but conceptually.The draft class, in all their finery.Hiroko Masuike/The New York TimesStarting with Victor Wembanyama, the No. 1 overall pick and widely touted “generational talent” from France, who wore a forest green suit from Louis Vuitton with a kimono-like jacket that wrapped at the waist and a matching forest green shirt, a large stone dangling from his neck. Vuitton is, of course, the world’s dominant luxury brand, one synonymous with French savoir-faire and one that recently hired a Black American — Pharrell Williams — as its men’s wear designer, all values (inclusivity, cross-border diplomacy, success) that line up with what Mr. Wembanyama promises to represent.As for the color, he said he liked it because it made him think of outer space (he’s reaching for the stars), while the stone around his neck, less blingy than some of the other ice sported by his soon-to-be competitors, was an element said to help achieve goals.His only competition in the high-fashion stakes came from Kobe Bufkin (picked 15th, by the Atlanta Hawks), in a cream tweed double-breasted suit sans shirt, a choice that revealed a highly tuned trend antenna. It implicitly associated him with other celebrity proponents of the suit-without-shirt look, like Timothée Chalamet (who popularized the trend when he went shirtless to the 2022 Oscars). Little wonder LeagueFits announced that “Atlanta will be competing for a leaguefits championship, confirmed.”Kobe Bufkin in double-breasted tweed, shirtless. Hiroko Masuike/The New York TimesNotably restrained was Brandon Miller, the No. 2 pick, in a three-piece plaid number, and Amen and Ausar Thompson, identical twins chosen fourth and fifth, who wore matching double-breasted suits by the tailor Waraire Boswell. One was white, and one was navy. “They went for subtlety,” Mr. Jackson said, a sign of just how much draft fashion has shifted from the straightforward “look at me” to “think about me” or “invest in me.”Pointedly, the looks were part of a collaboration with Amex, and Mr. Boswell also designed a limited-edition jacket inspired by the Thompson suits that will be available only to Amex cardholders. Why not start the influencing as soon as possible?Amen (in white) and Ausar (in navy) Thompson, dressed by the tailor Waraire Boswell.Hiroko Masuike/The New York TimesOn the other end of the spectrum were Scoot Henderson (picked third) and Gradey Dick (picked 13th), who were the most bedazzled athletes of the night. Even then, though, their bling wasn’t just bling for bling’s sake. It was bling with reason.Mr. Henderson’s suit, by Indochino (a label that has something of a lock on draft-day dressing, this year working with nine athletes), was covered in more than 600 gemstones meant to represent his family tree, incorporating the birthstones of his parents and siblings.Scoot Henderson, in blinged-out Indochino.Hiroko Masuike/The New York Times“I wanted to be very thoughtful about how my draft-day look represents both my journey so far and what’s next,” Mr. Henderson, who also wore a customized bedazzled grill, said in a news release. “This suit is a visual representation of what got me here.”This is the next iteration of the personal-story-in-a-lining approach that has become familiar among many players, who paper the inside of their jackets with photographs and memorabilia printed onto silk. See, for example, Taylor Hendricks (picked ninth), whose sugar-pink suit concealed a whole biography.Taylor Hendricks, whose pink suit had a special lining.Hiroko Masuike/The New York TimesAs for Mr. Dick, he wore a turtleneck and zoot suit jacket, both covered in red sequins. The look got him compared to Zoolander and Siegfried and Roy on social media but was a nod, he said, to Dorothy’s ruby slippers and his own journey from Kansas to the presumably magical world of the Toronto Raptors (a team whose color also happens to be red). Not to mention the suggestion that he has courage and heart, too.Gradey Dick, in sequins. Hiroko Masuike/The New York TimesAs a choice, the sequins were mocked and praised in equal measure, but either way they were impossible to ignore. In the attention economy, that’s a win. More

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      Chris Paul Headed to Warriors as Wizards Trade for Jordan Poole

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      Paul, who has spent the past three seasons in Phoenix, is expected to be traded to Washington and then to Golden State.The Washington Wizards plan to trade Chris Paul to Golden State for guard Jordan Poole after reaching an agreement to acquire Paul from the Phoenix Suns earlier this week, according to a person familiar with the deals who was not authorized to discuss them publicly.The plan, which was first reported by ESPN on Thursday just hours before the N.B.A. draft, continues a chaotic off-season for Paul, a 12-time All-Star guard who has spent the past three seasons in Phoenix. Paul, 38, said he was caught off guard on Sunday when he learned that the Suns planned to trade him. The Wizards’ deal with the Suns is expected to send Bradley Beal, a three-time All-Star guard, to Phoenix, according to the person.“Seriously, it is part of the business, and what you realize is that no one owes you anything,” Paul said of the Suns trading him, in an interview with The New York Times on Monday. “No matter how you are with them or what you do, you realize that in this business, nobody owes you anything, as it should be.”In Golden State, Paul would team up with the sharpshooting guards Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson, whom he has faced in the playoffs three times, most memorably in the 2018 Western Conference finals with the Houston Rockets. Golden State beat Houston in seven games that year, with Paul missing the final two games due to injury, then swept Cleveland in the N.B.A. finals. Paul hasn’t won a title, but he helped lead the Suns to the finals in 2021.In recent years, Paul has scored less and missed time with injuries. In the 2022-23 season, he averaged a career-low 13.9 points per game and missed the Suns’ final four playoff games. But teaming up with Curry, one of the best point guards in N.B.A. history, may provide his best chance to win an elusive championship.The move is risky for Golden State. Curry, 35, will have in Paul another historically talented guard to help get him easy shots, if Paul can approximate his All-Star form. But if Paul continues to decline, Curry will have to shoulder more of the offensive burden. Paul likely will also have to get used to not being his team’s primary ballhandler.For Golden State, the trade is a rapid about-face on the 24-year-old Poole, whom the team once viewed as a promising bridge out of the Curry era. So much so that in October, Golden State rewarded Poole with a four-year contract extension worth up to $140 million.Poole, who just finished his fourth season, helped Golden State win a championship in 2022. While he has shown potential as an elite scorer, he had a penchant for erratic play and sloppy turnovers. His season got off to a rocky start: During a preseason practice, Golden State forward Draymond Green punched Poole in the face, video of which was leaked to TMZ, causing a headache for a franchise known for stability. The friction between Green and Poole lingered over the season.Poole is the second key young player Golden State has moved on from in the past several months. In February, the Warriors traded center James Wiseman, 22, to the Detroit Pistons. They had drafted him No. 2 overall in 2020 amid much hype. The young talents they have left, like Jonathan Kuminga, 20, and Moses Moody, 21, who were both first-round draft picks in 2021, have yet to play well consistently, though they have shown flashes of promise.Poole, whom Golden State drafted late in the first round in 2019, had been the best of the team’s recent picks. Now he is poised to join a Wizards team that appears to be commencing a full-scale rebuild. More

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      The Boot Camp for NBA Analysis and Hot Takes

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      Alan Williams was the first person to brave the anchor desk, tucked away on a chilly set at the University of Southern California that was darkened, save for the spotlight on Williams in his black suit and blue-striped tie. Almost involuntarily, he lifted a hand from the desk’s shiny surface and nervously scratched his face.Williams, a former N.B.A. player, read from a teleprompter, his deep voice booming robotically in the nearby control room, where U.S.C. students monitored his volume and made sure the camera was level. He bobbed his head up and down, much like the aliens inhabiting human bodies in the 1990s movie “Men in Black.”“Hi, everyone!” he said as he looked into a camera. “Welcome to ‘Sports Extra.’ I’m Alan Williams. The Miami Heat have evened the series against the Denver Nuggets. The Miami Heat’s tough-mindedness is really led by Coach Erik Spoelstra. And their identity truly proves Heat culture. Goodbye.”The camera stopped rolling, and Williams loosened his shoulders.“Oh god, did I go too fast?” Williams muttered. He looked around the set. Five other current and former professional basketball players quietly lingered in the corners. After a woman off to the side reassured Williams that he was fine, he responded with relief: “Man, I was about to say. Silence?”Norense Odiase, left, said broadcasting allowed him to tap into his skills beyond basketball.Alan Williams, left, and Norense Odiase, top right, are seen in the monitors during an exercise with Rob Parker, an analyst at Fox Sports.This drew laughter from the set and scattered applause from the players, who, like Williams, were wearing crisply pressed, stylish suits. Williams did another, smoother take, prompting one of the suited men to yell, “That boy good!”Williams, 30, and the men were at U.S.C.’s journalism school this month for a two-day N.B.A. players’ union camp called Broadcaster U., now in its 15th year. They learned how to host a studio show or podcast, do color commentary and rapidly dole out hot takes for an on-camera sports debate. Former N.B.A. players like Vince Carter, Richard Jefferson and Shaquille O’Neal have gone through the program.Willow Bay, who once hosted “Inside Stuff” with Ahmad Rashad, addressed players during the camp. She’s now the dean of the U.S.C. Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism.While superstars typically compete for more than a decade, the average N.B.A. player lasts only a handful of years. Dozens of players will get their start at the N.B.A. draft on Thursday at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, but most of them will eventually have to find a new way to make a living. Crossing over into film and television has proved to be a viable, and often lucrative, alternate path, even for players who weren’t big stars.With a new television deal looming for the N.B.A., and streaming services and social media changing how fans engage with the game, there will likely be more opportunities for players to cash in.Williams played for the Nets and the Phoenix Suns from 2015 to 2019. Last year, while playing in Australia, he occasionally provided color commentary for the National Basketball League there.“I know that my time is coming to an end soon,” Williams said. “I want to be as prepared for the next step as possible.”Brevin Knight, a former N.B.A. point guard who went through the program in its inaugural year in 2008, is now a color commentator for the Memphis Grizzlies.“When you are done playing, you would like to take a little bit of time just to take a deep breath,” Knight said. “But I’ll tell you: The spending habits keep going and you always need something coming in.”Some camp attendees have already undertaken pursuits beyond the court. Norense Odiase, 27, plays in the NB.A.’s developmental league, the G League, and has a self-help podcast called “Mind Bully.” Will Barton, 32, has been in the N.B.A. since 2012 and has released several albums for his singing career under the name Thrill. Craig Smith, 39, spent six seasons in the N.B.A. and has written a children’s book.Will Barton, right, working with Jordan Moore, co-host of the “Trojans Live” radio show.Gerry Matalon, a talent performance coach and former ESPN producer, talking with Craig Smith.Smith was next up at the anchor desk after Williams, and he bounced in his seat. The words on his teleprompter were in all capital letters, though they were not supposed to be read that enthusiastically. Someone must have forgotten to tell him.“Hi, everyone!” Smith nearly shouted. “Welcome to ‘SPORTS EXTRA!’ I’m Craig Smith! Just about 24 HOURS until Game 3 of the N.B.A. finals!”He even stomped his feet a few times.Smith said he has been inspired by the many players who have started podcasts and especially by LeBron James and Stephen Curry, who have used their fame to create production companies.“It influences me a lot because I feel like we have a real voice and I feel like we have power that comes with it, being that we’re more than just ‘shut up and dribble’ players,” Smith said. “We have meaning and people want to hear what we have to say.”Hours later, Rob Parker, a Fox Sports host and an adjunct professor at U.S.C., gathered the players for what might be called Hot Take O’Clock to show them how to throw verbal bombs. He shared directives like “Don’t stay in the middle of the road” and “Make stuff that you can pull out — ‘Meme-able.’”“It’s OK to be wrong,” Parker said, adding that if they could be right all the time, they “would be in Las Vegas making money.”Parker frequently debates Chris Broussard, a Fox Sports host, on their radio show “The Odd Couple.” Williams asked Parker if he had ever disagreed with Broussard just for argument’s sake. Parker said no, and that he and Broussard discuss topics before their show. They use the ones they disagree on.“If we all agree that LeBron is the greatest player ever, what conversation are we having?” Parker said. “Do you know what I mean? There’s nothing going on here, and no one’s going to watch it.”Parker led the players in mock debates, as if they were on ESPN’s “First Take” or Fox Sports’s “Undisputed.” Those are among the most-watched programs at their networks and have turned their hosts into household names.Barton, center, taking notes during the broadcasting camp.Odiase and Smith argued about whether the Miami Heat star Jimmy Butler needed to win a championship to get into the Basketball Hall of Fame. Odiase said no; Smith said yes.“How many guys have taken a team of seven undrafted players, the eighth seed, to the N.B.A. finals?” Odiase said.“Is it Jimmy or is it Erik Spoelstra and Pat Riley?” Parker interjected, referring to Miami’s longtime coach, Spoelstra, and its president and former coach, Riley.Odiase paused.“I’m sorry,” he said. “Before Jimmy got there, did they win without LeBron?”“Yeah, with Shaq and D-Wade,” Smith retorted, referring to O’Neal and Dwyane Wade, who won a championship in 2006 with Riley as coach.This rebuttal, undercutting Odiase’s argument, elicited laughter from the control room. Parker ended the segment and complimented Odiase and Smith for having a lively debate.“I do not believe nothing I’m saying,” Odiase told Parker afterward. Later, in an interview, Odiase said he felt “very uncomfortable” arguing a point he did not support, though he believes it happens “a lot” in sports media.The players receive reels of their best moments to show with networks in hopes of getting hired.For current and former players, taking part in hot take culture means having to critique players in ways they might not like if the comments were directed at them.Barton said that he gets frustrated sometimes when analysts “go too far on a player, especially if you haven’t played or you don’t really know what the guy’s going through.”He continued: “I feel like a lot of guys try to do that so they could go viral or feel like they’re a bigger asset to whatever company they’re working with because it’s entertainment.”The players also pretended to be analysts for an N.B.A. finals game. Jordan Moore, the radio voice for U.S.C. men’s basketball, did play-by-play. But first, he had advice.“Worst broadcast is if I go, ‘Oh, what a shot by Jimmy Butler!’ And you go, ‘Man, what a shot!’” Moore said.He added: “You all played in this league. You played with these guys. You have advance knowledge. That’s what you need to tap into. I could never get your job.”Vince Carter and Richard Jefferson, who have worked for ESPN, and Shaquille O’Neal, an analyst for TNT, are among the former players who have gone through the program.The most earnest session was about podcasting. In 15-minute chunks, the players exchanged stories about their lives: playing on the road, dealing with fans, growing up.Shelvin Mack, 33, who played in the N.B.A. from 2011 to 2019, asked Robert Baker, a 24-year-old in the G League, what it was like to play for Harvard. Baker recalled a game against Kentucky.“My nerves was cool,” he said. “Tip off, I was warming up well. I was hitting shots, and then they played the intro type of song, I said, ‘Oh.’”Mack said, “You froze up?”“Yeah, bro,” Baker said, adding, “Tough day.”The players receive reels with their best moments from the camp that they can send to networks in the hopes of getting hired. Williams said the potential financial rewards of broadcasting appeal to him, though he’s “comfortable” financially. Odiase said this alternative career is a way to tap into his other skills and interests beyond basketball.“It’s learning all aspects of yourself to grow after the game,” he said. More

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      Victor Wembanyama Takes the Subway to Yankee Stadium to Throw First Pitch

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      It was a rather unremarkable Tuesday at Central Park West and Columbus Circle. Vendors sold hot dogs, coffee and overpriced bottled water nearby. A light breeze rustled the sycamore branches hanging over a bicycle rental kiosk filled with neat rows of mint green helmets. Then, at 4:41 p.m., a black Mercedes van crept through the jam of buses, police vehicles and flower-adorned bicycle cabs.Two teenagers watched as a lanky young man in dark sunglasses, black shorts and a white T-shirt unfolded himself out of the van and stood at more than seven feet tall.“Oh my god!” one of the teenagers said. “It’s Victor Wembanyama!”Wembanyama was in town for the N.B.A. draft at Barclays Center in Brooklyn on Thursday, when he will almost certainly be selected No. 1 overall by the San Antonio Spurs as one of the most anticipated prospects since LeBron James. He was on his way to Yankee Stadium to throw the ceremonial first pitch for Tuesday night’s game with Seattle. But before that, he wanted to try something he had never done: ride the New York City subway.Wembanyama greeted fans as he arrived at Columbus Circle.And as he entered the subway.“Watch your head!” a police officer bellowed as Wembanyama walked through the station and ducked beneath a cream-painted pipe on the ceiling.“I’m used to it,” said Wembanyama, who is at least 7-foot-4. In France, where he grew up and played professional basketball last season for Metropolitans 92, he has ridden the Paris metro plenty of times. By now, at 19 years old, he is generally accustomed to bobbing his head to keep it from hitting things.He had flown to the New York metropolitan area on Monday afternoon, when he was swarmed by fans at Newark Liberty International Airport. Now he had just visited the offices of the N.B.A. players’ union on Sixth Avenue, about a block from Bryant Park. He needed to catch a Bronx-bound D train at Columbus Circle. A teammate from France, Bilal Coulibaly, who is also expected to be drafted early on Thursday, Wembanyama’s agents and his communications manager had come along.Wembanyama’s family met him at the subway station — his parents, brother and sister — as did police officers, N.B.A. security personnel, in-house content producers for the N.B.A., and reporters and photographers from two French news media outlets and The New York Times. It was a formidably sized group for a Tuesday afternoon subway car.At over seven feet tall, Wembanyama had to bend his head to keep it from touching the ceiling of the subway car.Exiting the D train at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx.Harry Cisse, 17, who was on the way to a friend’s graduation, sighed deeply as the group packed onto the train, leaving little space to move or breathe.“WELCOME TO NEW YORK!” a woman’s voice boomed in the distance as the train began to roll. She added, as Wembanyama stood in the middle of the car with his head bent: “HOW TALL IS HE?”Sebastian Cardona, 22, immediately texted and called some friends on FaceTime with his iPhone to let them know he was on the train with Wembanyama.“Rookie of the year!” Cardona yelled before trying to get Wembanyama to turn around for a photo. Cardona, too, was on his way to see the Yankees. He said he knew Wembanyama was going to throw out the first pitch, but he never expected to see him on the subway.A few feet away, a woman shouted in French for Wembanyama to turn. He obliged a couple of times and smiled for her photos. Aladji Sacko, 25, a Frenchman who now lives in New York, was standing next to the woman on his way home.“I’ve only seen him on TV,” Sacko said as he grinned. A few minutes later he wove through the crowded car to sneak closer for a photo.Wembanyama surrounded by police and his entourage, walking in the Bronx.Many eager fans awaited a Wembanyama signed baseball.After the first stop, at 125th Street, Wembanyama found a seat. Two seats away, a woman’s headphones flashed colored lights. She closed her eyes and ignored the commotion around her.Wembanyama smiled as he sat, then spent most of the ride like anyone might — checking his phone, chatting with his companions. He did a short interview with the N.B.A.’s entertainment group, telling them he wished he had a chance to visit more of the city. After Thursday night, Wembanyama is expected to be whisked off to San Antonio.It took four stops on the D train to go from Columbus Circle to Yankee Stadium. Wembanyama and his court left the train together, ascending a yellow-tiled stairwell into the Bronx. People driving and biking by Wembanyama yelled to get his attention. One person in a car shouted, “Go Spurs!” and Wembanyama smiled to acknowledge the cheer.Trying to see if the Yankees were a good fit.Wembanyama, left, spoke to Yankees catcher Jose Trevino inside the Yankees’ dugout.Fans waiting in line to enter Yankee Stadium grabbed their cellphones to record Wembanyama as he passed by, chattering excitedly about the N.B.A. draft.Inside the stadium, Wembanyama spent some time in the dugout with Yankees catcher Jose Trevino, perhaps getting some advice on his impending pitch. Wembanyama fiddled with a baseball that looked like a golf ball in his outsize hands. He left the dugout to sign autographs and pose for pictures with children.He still had more than an hour before his pitch.When it was finally time, he clapped as he approached the mound. The crowd, still filling in, cheered to welcome him. Wembanyama wound up and threw the pitch too far outside for Yankees pitcher Clarke Schmidt, stationed behind home plate, to catch it.Wembanyama shrugged, and then he laughed.Wembanyama threw a wild first pitch. More

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      NBA Draft Preview: 5 Players to Know

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      Wembanyama, the French star, is expected to be the top pick. But prospects like Anthony Black of Arkansas and Iowa’s Kris Murray can help teams, too.The only mystery surrounding the top pick in this year’s N.B.A. draft was resolved a month ago. On May 16, the San Antonio Spurs won the draft lottery, giving them the opportunity — or, perhaps more aptly, the obligation — to select Victor Wembanyama with the first overall pick.Wembanyama, a 7-foot-4 French superstar, is perhaps the most-hyped N.B.A. prospect since LeBron James, and for good reason: He shoots the ball like a modern lead guard and blocks it like a classic paint-patrolling center. Within his eight-foot wingspan, Wembanyama has just about every skill N.B.A. teams seek in a franchise player.“There is no better environment for him than the Spurs,” said Jonathan Givony, a draft analyst for ESPN. He added: “Everyone around him is thrilled for him. I don’t see the Spurs messing this up.”But while Wembanyama, 19, is the draft’s ultimate prize, there are plenty of potentially franchise-altering prospects throughout the lottery — the celebrated top 14 picks — and even into the second round.“There are tiers to this draft,” Givony said. “Victor is in a tier of his own. Then it’s Brandon Miller and Scoot Henderson after that. And from there, it really opens up.”Miller, a forward from Alabama, and Henderson, a guard from the N.B.A. G League’s Ignite, are expected to be drafted within the first few picks.Here are five other players to know in the 2023 N.B.A. draft.Basketball is Anthony Black’s first love, but his first scholarship offers came from football teams.Nelson Chenault/USA Today Sports, via ReutersAnthony Black6-6, 210 pounds, guard, ArkansasAnthony Black’s first college scholarship offers came from football teams. As a sophomore wide receiver for Coppell High School in Texas, Black hauled in 39 passes for 762 yards and eight touchdowns. His play got the attention of powerhouse programs like Arkansas, Baylor and Cincinnati. But basketball was his first love.“No doubt I would have made it to the N.F.L. if I would have focused on football,” Black, 19, said. “I was pretty raw with it. I didn’t get to reach my potential. Once I started getting basketball offers during my sophomore year, that became my focus.”Black was born into an athletic family: His mother was a scholarship athlete at Baylor in soccer; his father, in basketball. But they never pushed him to become a Bear, which is how he wound up at Arkansas, where he averaged 12.8 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.9 assists in one season. He became a more confident and reliable shooter as the season wore on, but the reason he’s projected as a potential top-10 pick is his defense. He puts great pressure on the ball and can even defend big men because of his strength and size.“Defense is what I’ve always hung my hat on,” Black said. “I was always the best defender on the team, or in the league or in my area. I sometimes haven’t been aggressive enough on offense so that I could be more active on defense. To me, getting scored on is pretty embarrassing.”Jordan Hawkins helped guide the Huskies to their fifth basketball title.Soobum Im/Getty ImagesJordan Hawkins6-4, 186 pounds, guard, ConnecticutDuring the 2022 N.C.A.A. Division I men’s basketball tournament, Jordan Hawkins watched from the sideline as New Mexico State, a 12th seed, upset his fifth-seeded Connecticut Huskies in the round of 64. In the postgame locker room, Hawkins told Coach Dan Hurley, “This will not happen again next year.”He spent the summer getting basketball advice from UConn alumni and N.B.A. greats like Richard Hamilton and Ray Allen. He also prioritized his mental strength, beginning a daily meditation practice with the Calm app. All that work paid off. After posting one of his worst performances of the season — 5 points on 11 shots — in UConn’s second-round loss to Marquette in the Big East tournament, Hawkins pledged to play better during the N.C.A.A. tournament.“The best players show up in March,” Hawkins, 21, said. “I wanted to prove that I was one of the best players at my position — and of the best players, period, in the country.”In the N.C.A.A. tournament, Hawkins was named the most outstanding player in the West Regional after averaging 22 points per game and sinking nine total 3-pointers against Arkansas and Gonzaga. (He shot 38.8 percent from 3 for the season.)Before the team’s Final Four matchup against Miami, Hawkins contracted a stomach bug. He threw up more than a dozen times before the game and almost passed out during the first half. But he remembered the promise he had made to his coach. He helped guide the Huskies to their fifth basketball title.“That’s what I’m bringing with me to the N.B.A.,” he said. “I have the confidence that I’m a great defender, and I believe that I’m the best shooter in the draft. But more than that, I know how to buy into my role and work hard and win championships.”GG Jackson has a combination of size and skill that’s hard to find.L.G. Patterson/Associated PressGG Jackson6-8, 214 pounds, forward, South CarolinaIn a seven-month stretch last year, GG Jackson became the No. 1 player in the class of 2023, committed to North Carolina, decommitted from North Carolina, reclassified to the class of 2022 and committed to South Carolina. It was a tumultuous time for a player who had yet to turn 18, but by the start of the college basketball season, Jackson believed he had made the right decision.“The coaches told me I had the power to uplift a lot of people in my home state by staying in South Carolina,” he said. “Plus, staying so close to home made my mom happy.”Jackson posted a respectable 15.4 points per game this season, but he made just 38.4 percent of his shots. He also publicly criticized his coaches on Instagram Live after a loss to Arkansas in February. Jackson apologized, and he said he owned up to the outburst during meetings with N.B.A. teams. Although he’s not projected to be a top-10 pick, he has a combination of size and skill that is hard to find and that could persuade a team to select him in the first round.“I remember where I came from in basketball,” Jackson said. “I was a frail kid who had to wear goggles. I got to that No. 1 spot, but now I’m starting back over. I’m not the bad guy that people perceive me to be. I’m serious about the player and person I want to become.”Kris Murray averaged 20.2 points per game last season at Iowa.Michael Reaves/Getty ImagesKris Murray6-8, 213 pounds, forward, IowaWhile Keegan Murray matriculated to the N.B.A. last June, his twin brother, Kris, decided to stay at Iowa for another season. When the Hawkeyes came together for a workout a few weeks later, Kris came to a realization: This would be the first practice without his brother.“I knew I could be an N.B.A. player eventually, but going back to college gave me the chance to make a name for myself,” Murray, 22, said. “Basketball-wise, I got to be the focal point of our team. I got to lead our team, to be on top of the scouting reports for other teams, to be the guy everyone’s trying to stop. That was an invaluable experience for me.”It was also a successful experience. Murray doubled his points and his minutes over the previous season but maintained his field-goal percentage and improved as a passer and rebounder. His 20.2 points per game were slightly behind Keegan’s 23.5 the season prior.“He gives me crap, and I give him crap,” Kris said, referring to his brother. “But we really like to gang up on our dad.”Their father, Kenyon Murray, averaged a mere 9.9 points per game during his four-year run with the Hawkeyes in the mid-1990s.In April, Kris watched Keegan start for the Sacramento Kings in a first-round playoff game win over the Golden State Warriors. And in May, the brothers got to spend a week together training and preparing for the next N.B.A. season.“I feel like my player comparison in the draft is pretty obvious,” Kris said. “It might be a little bit lazy, but it’s pretty accurate.”Rayan Rupert’s (left) goal is to be one of the best players in the league.Emily Barker/Getty ImagesRayan Rupert6-6, 193 pounds, forward, FranceRayan Rupert, 19, was born into one of the best basketball families in France: His father, Thierry, was a former captain of the French national team; his sister, Iliana, won a W.N.B.A. championship last summer with the Las Vegas Aces. Thierry died when Rayan was 8, but he instilled in his children a love for the game that he had dedicated his life to.“For me and my sister, it’s important to represent the Rupert name,” Rayan said. “I’m very proud of my father. At the same time, I want to have my own career. I want people to know me not only as the son of Thierry, but also as Rayan.”After playing at the prestigious French academy INSEP for four years, Rupert signed with the New Zealand Breakers as part of the N.B.L.’s Next Stars development program. He was following in the footsteps of his best friend, Ousmane Dieng, who went from INSEP to the Breakers to the Oklahoma City Thunder as the 11th overall pick in last year’s N.B.A. draft.He’s part of a movement of French players who have turned into first-round N.B.A. draft prospects, and he has known Wembanyama since he was 12. But for now, he’s more concerned with making a name for himself.“I’m very happy for Victor and for all the French players in this class,” he said. “But my goal is to be one of the best players in this league. That’s my only focus.” More

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      Ja Morant Suspended 25 Games for Second Gun Video

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      Morant, the Memphis Grizzlies star, was suspended for 25 games for recklessly waving a gun in a video shared on social media in May. It was the second time he had done so.As the United States grapples with the very American problem of rampant gun violence, the issue of gun safety has touched the N.B.A. through one of its brightest young stars, Ja Morant of the Memphis Grizzlies, who was suspended for 25 games on Friday after recklessly waving a gun around in a social media video for a second time.Morant, 23, is a small but electrifying point guard with one of the most popular jerseys in the N.B.A. and 12.5 million followers across Twitter and Instagram. But against a backdrop of frequent mass shootings, and as he plays in a city that has struggled with gun violence, Morant has used his growing sphere of influence to model behavior that even he has acknowledged was harmful.For years, the image-conscious N.B.A. has endeavored to be seen as progressive, particularly on the fraught topic of gun violence. Many coaches and stars, like LeBron James and Stephen Curry, have spoken out about gun safety. The Golden State Warriors, last season’s champions, met with officials at the White House for a panel on the issue in January. Though it does not appear that Morant broke any of the league’s firearms rules with his videos — he didn’t bring a gun into a locker room, as two players were suspended for doing in 2010 — his carelessness has threatened to undermine the league’s efforts.The Golden State Warriors, including guard Stephen Curry, center, and Coach Steve Kerr, right, spoke to White House officials about gun safety during a trip to Washington in January to celebrate their 2022 championship.Doug Mills/The New York Times“The potential for other young people to emulate Ja’s conduct is particularly concerning,” N.B.A. Commissioner Adam Silver said in a statement. He added that the length of the suspension — about a third of the season — was meant to show that “engaging in reckless and irresponsible behavior with guns will not be tolerated.”Tamika Tremaglio, the executive director of the N.B.A. players’ union, said in a statement Friday that Morant had shown remorse and that the punishment was “excessive and inappropriate.” She added that the union would “explore with Ja all options and next steps.” The N.B.A. said it had suspended Morant for conduct detrimental to the league.In early March, the N.B.A. suspended Morant for eight games after he live-streamed video on Instagram as he laughed and brandished a firearm in a nightclub near Denver after a game. Morant apologized and said he had checked into a health facility in Florida to better deal with stress. Then, on May 13, one of Morant’s friends streamed video of him waving a gun as he rode in a vehicle. The Grizzlies suspended him indefinitely, and Silver told ESPN he was “shocked.”Kris Brown, the president of Brady, a nonprofit that works to curb gun violence, said she found it “appropriate” that the N.B.A. had taken action to penalize Morant.“Firearms may be a tool in some instances, but they can also kill, maim and injure other people if not handled and stored properly,” Brown said. She added: “Public figures have a responsibility to be held accountable for how they engage on these kinds of life-and-death issues. It’s not a small thing. People could die if they handle firearms in such a cavalier way, and they do every day.”In 2015, the N.B.A. worked with Everytown for Gun Safety, a group that supports gun safety legislation, to create commercials with star players and shooting survivors discussing gun violence. The ads were timed to air during the league’s marquee Christmas Day slate of games.Last May, after 19 students and two teachers were killed in a shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, N.B.A. teams in the playoffs displayed messages at their arenas asking fans to urge their political representatives to pass “common sense” gun safety legislation.Twenty-one crosses stand in the town square in Uvalde, Texas, for the victims of the Robb Elementary School mass shooting in May 2022.Ivan Pierre Aguirre for The New York TimesHundreds of people marched to San Antonio City Hall in June 2022 for the March for Our Lives rally, a nationwide protest demanding change to gun laws.Montinique Monroe for The New York TimesBut even as the N.B.A. has adopted an outwardly progressive stance on gun safety, its comments have not been in line with the actions of several of its team owners. Among others, the Houston Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta, the Knicks’ James Dolan and the DeVos family, which owns the Orlando Magic, have all donated to prominent Republican politicians who have opposed tighter gun restrictions.The N.B.A.’s collective bargaining agreement with the players’ union prohibits players from carrying firearms in any league- or team-operated facility, which includes team planes.The most significant gun-related suspension came in 2010, after Gilbert Arenas and Javaris Crittenton, who played for the Washington Wizards, threatened each other with guns in the team’s locker room. (Arenas has said he was joking.) Arenas was suspended for 50 games, 12 games more than Crittenton, because he made light of the situation with gun gestures during a game while the incident was being investigated.“I think it affected — I don’t even want to say legacy — my name,” Arenas told The New York Times last month. “It affected it really bad. I said it back then, where the most disappointing part of it all is I did 100 things right. I did one wrong thing and that’s all everyone remembers. That’s what really hurts you the most.”Other gun-related incidents have earned much lighter penalties. Raymond Felton was suspended for four games in 2014 after he pleaded guilty to felony gun possession. In 2007, Stephen Jackson was suspended for seven games after he pleaded guilty to a felony count of criminal recklessness. Months before, he had fired a gun outside a strip club in Indianapolis.Tremaglio, the union’s executive director, said in her statement Friday that Morant’s punishment was “not fair and consistent with past discipline.” In addition to the 25-game suspension, Morant will have to meet certain unspecified conditions and, Silver said, “formulate and fulfill a program with the league that directly addresses the circumstances that led him to repeat this destructive behavior.”The N.B.A. had been investigating the second video since the middle of May but had delayed releasing the findings until after the N.B.A. finals. The Denver Nuggets won their first championship on Monday by defeating the Miami Heat in five games. Morant’s Grizzlies had been eliminated from the playoffs at the end of April.Before Game 1 of the N.B.A. finals on June 1, Silver said it would be “unfair” to the Nuggets and the Heat to announce the Morant results while they were still competing.Commissioner Adam Silver delayed the announcement of Morant’s punishment until after the N.B.A. finals because he said distracting from the games would not be fair to the teams still competing.David Zalubowski/Associated PressThere was also a business reason to wait: The N.B.A. finals are as much an advertisement for the league as they are a clash of two conference champions.“You don’t want it to be the story that gets talked about during the finals,” said Lawrence Parnell, the director of the strategic public relations program at George Washington University. He added, “It’s all about shaping the narrative to be about the players and about the game and not about someone who’s not even there.”Contrast that with this week at the U.S. Open in golf, where much of the conversation has been about the pending, and heavily criticized, merger of the PGA Tour and the Saudi-backed LIV Golf.But Morant is not easily forgotten, and neither is gun safety.Morant’s dynamic play made him a fixture on highlight shows, and he has led the Grizzlies to the playoffs three times. Morant will be entering his fifth season, having already made two All-Star teams. This spring, Nike released his first signature sneaker — typically a signifier of true N.B.A. stardom.For the moment, Nike appears to be standing by him, just as it did as he faced an avalanche of criticism after the first video.“We are pleased that Ja is taking accountability and prioritizing his well-being,” Nike said in a statement on Friday. “We will continue to support him on and off the court.”Morant seemed to be aware of his celebrity platform as he apologized in a statement Friday.“To the kids who look up to me, I’m sorry for failing you as a role model,” he said. “I promise I’m going to be better. To all of my sponsors, I’m going to be a better representation of our brands. And to all of my fans, I’m going to make it up to you, I promise.”Powerade, which had announced Morant as a new endorser in March, did not respond to a request for comment about his suspension.The Grizzlies said in a statement that they respected the N.B.A.’s decision to suspend Morant. “Our standards as a league and team are clear, and we expect that all team personnel will adhere to them,” the team said.Morant, in his apology, asked for a chance to prove that “I’m a better man than I’ve been showing you.” But it may be difficult.“I think there’s an opportunity to have a positive story come out of this for the league and for Ja Morant,” Parnell said. “But going to counseling and doing a mea culpa is not going to make any difference in his reputation.” More

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      Michael Jordan to Sell Majority Stake in Charlotte Hornets

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      Jordan, the former star of the Chicago Bulls, purchased the team in 2010.Michael Jordan, the owner of the Charlotte Hornets and one of the most storied athletes in sports history, has agreed to sell his majority share in the team to a group led by Gabe Plotkin and Rick Schnall, two private equity investors.The team was valued at $3 billion, according to a person familiar with the details of the agreement but not authorized to discuss them publicly. The team, in its announcement of the sale, did not disclose what percentage of his stake Jordan would sell, but said he would remain a minority investor. Jordan, a North Carolina native, first purchased the team in 2010 for $275 million, when the team was known as the Bobcats.The acquiring group also includes the country music star Eric Church and the rapper J. Cole, both of whom are from North Carolina.Jordan won six championships with the Chicago Bulls in the 1990s and is considered by many to be the greatest basketball player ever. More