LOS ANGELES — Nine months ago, the New York Mets were watching the Los Angeles Dodgers celebrate on the same field they played Monday. And after being beaten by LA in the 2024 NL Championship Series, Mets manager Carlos Mendoza acknowledged that his club still had a ways to go to get to the next level.

Dodger Stadium serves as a reminder of not only where the Mets were, but where they want to go.

“It was kind of like a sour taste,” Mendoza said before the game. “But also understanding that after everything that we went through as a team to get to the NLCS when nobody thought about this team. And we ended up facing the team that ended up winning the World Series.

“Different feeling this year. Understanding that they’re really good again, but we’re also good.”

It’s been a little over a year since All-Star shortstop Francisco Lindor called the team meeting that salvaged New York’s season. The Mets would go on to have baseball’s best record from that point in late May en route to the NLCS.

One truth about baseball is how much things change dramatically from season to season. New players coming in and old players going out make duplicating the same chemistry challenging and oftentimes impossible. But the Mets have been able to do it.

Over the last calendar year, no team in MLB has a better record than the Mets, who are 103-61 since June 2, 2024. That’s six wins better than the Dodgers, who have the second-best record in that span.

In their first game back at Dodger Stadium since the NLCS, the Mets came out swinging. And who else would it be but their leader Lindor? The All-Star shortstop started the game with a leadoff homer, giving the Mets a 1-0 lead.

But even after relinquishing their lead late, and coming a matter of feet from being walked off by Shohei Ohtani, who already homered in the game, New York found its resolve. They’d go on to score two runs in the 10th inning to retake the lead, eventually winning 4-3.

“It feels good because you start the game 1-0, but at the end of the day, we understand that we have to play 27 outs,” Lindor said after the Mets’ victory. “That’s a really good team on the other side, tough team. They’re gonna play 27 outs, as well.”

This season, the Mets have shown that the identity they created last season was not only real, but also sustainable. This season, they have the second-best record in baseball (38-22) and are now 10-5 over their last 15 games.

“They’re grinding. It’s a group that continues to fight,” Mendoza said. “We went through a lot of adversity [last year]. Every team is going to go through adversity. … This group has been tested before.

“And I just feel like not only do we have really good players, but they push each other, they prepare, and they’re not afraid to hold each other accountable.”

New York has now won three of their first four games against LA to take the upper hand on the season series. The Mets have started to get hot as they begin the month of June with a tough stretch, including two more in LA against the Dodgers, three games against the Philadelphia Phillies and six against the Atlanta Braves.

There is no revenge won in June, but the Mets’ win over the Dodgers and their success against them so far this season serves as a reminder of what they can be if they sustain this identity and level of play. And that’s not only one of the best teams in baseball, but one that can go toe-to-toe with the best in the West.

The New York Yankees are coming out of their series against the Los Angeles Dodgers with more than just a 1-2 finish. 

Closer Luke Weaver has a hamstring injury and is expected to land on the injured list. That’s according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan, who reported on Monday that Weaver underwent an MRI that confirmed the injury. Weaver could miss 4-6 weeks, and an official timetable is expected to land Tuesday, per the report. 

Weaver was expected to finish Sunday’s game that New York won 7-3. Instead, reliever Tim Cook took the mound for the bottom of the ninth. Manager Aaron Boone revealed postgame that Weaver experienced hamstring discomfort while warming up, which ultimately prompted Monday’s MRI. 

The news is an obvious blow to the Yankees, who hold a 5.5-game lead over the Toronto Blue Jays for first place in the AL East at 36-22. Weaver, 31, is in the midst of the best season of his career. 

Weaver has made 24 appearances for the Yankees this season, posting a 1.05 ERA and 0.701 WHIP with 24 strikeouts and seven walks in 25 2/3 innings pitched. He has eight saves and has taken over New York’s closing role since the Yankees demoted a struggling Devin Williams from the job. 

It’s not clear if Williams or another reliever will be given the chance to take control of the role in Weaver’s absence. Williams has a 6.23 ERA for the season, but has allowed just two runs in his last 11 appearances while primarily working in a setup role for Weaver.

First things first: it’s pronounced cag-lee-OHN. Not cag-lee-ah-NOHN.

That’s important to know because there’s a strong chance Jac Caglianone is about to become a pretty big deal.

The Royals’ top prospect is set to make his Major League debut on Tuesday, just 324 days after Kansas City selected the University of Florida product with the sixth overall pick in the 2024 MLB Draft. Raised in Tampa, Caglianone attended H.B. Plant High School, the same program that produced Kyle Tucker and Pete Alonso. An elbow injury steered Caglianone to Florida, where he blossomed into one of the most dynamic college players of the century. During his draft year in Gainesville, “Cags” slashed a ridiculous .419/.544/.875 with 35 long balls.

In the time since, Caglianone has rocketed up the minor-league ladder while rocketing baseballs with elite exit velocities. After impressing in big league spring training, the 6-foot-5 left-hander posted a .322/.389/.593 line with 15 homers across 50 games split between Double-A and Triple-A. That all came as Caglianone, who played first and pitched in college, was learning the outfield for the first time.

Here’s everything you need to know about the young slugger.

Diamond Images via Getty Images

Why is he a big deal?

Put simply: he hits the baseball really, really, really hard.

Earlier this minor league season, Caglianone laced an opposite field single at 120.9 miles per hour. That top-of-the-scales juice puts him in rarified air. Only six players in the Statcast Era (since 2017) have hit a ball that firmly: Giancarlo Stanton, Oneil Cruz, Gary Sánchez, Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Ronald Acuña Jr. and Aaron Judge.

That’s the offensive ceiling we’re talking about here, which is remarkable considering that Caglianone was a full-time two-way player in college.

So why isn’t he the top prospect in baseball?

Heading into spring training, public prospect lists, on average, had Caglianone slotted around No. 40. Granted, that was before Cags impressed in spring training and before he obliterated minor league pitching for the better part of two months. But still, this is a player with multiple warts.

Coming out of college, Caglianone was considered to be a high-risk prospect, in large part because he chased so much. His out-of-zone swing rates at Florida were just below the 40 percent mark, a red-flag figure that had many teams concerned about how Caglianone would adjust to better pitching in pro ball.

But pro reps and a slight mechanical adjustment have allowed Cags to push that chase rate down to a still-high, but not panic-inducing mark of 34 percent. That would be around the 87th percentile of qualified MLB hitters this season, near some superstars (Bryce Harper, Corbin Carroll) and some chase-happy scufflers (Keibert Ruiz, Trevor Story). Another name in that range, young Rays starlet Junior Caminero, feels like an interesting comp for what Caglianone’s offensive profile could look like this season.

Defense is the other major reason that Caglianone has not been considered a top-shelf prospect. When he wasn’t pitching at Florida, Cags was DHing or playing first base. Because the Royals have something of a DH/1B log jam (Vinnie Pasquantino/Salvador Perez), Caglianone saw the majority of his time in the outfield this season and should be out in the grass a lot in the bigs.

He’s still a work in progress in both spots, but the bat has such potential and the Royals’ offense has been so dreary that the club had no choice but to promote Cags right now. He’s fast and athletic enough that Caglianone shouldn’t be a total butcher in an outfield corner, but don’t expect any Gold Gloves from him either.

Hey, wait. Wasn’t this guy a two-way player?

He was! But not anymore, sadly.

Caglianone’s two-way exploits at Florida helped him cross over into the larger baseball consciousness in a way that few college players do. For instance: In 2023, during his sophomore season, people started calling him “Jac-tani” in a not-so-subtle reference to the Japanese superstar.

Not many living beings can throw a baseball 99 miles per hour with their left hand; only 24 big leaguers have done that since the start of 2024. Even fewer can hit a baseball 119 miles per hour; only four souls — Cruz, Stanton, Guerrero Jr and Shohei Ohtani — have done so over that same span.

Caglianone was, preposterously, doing both. As a college student.

And yet, as the Gator superstar continued to drop jaws on both sides of the ball during his junior year, talent evaluators were beginning to realize that Caglianone’s pro future was almost certainly going to be in the batter’s box. The eye-popping velocity led to an impressive dossier of pitching highlights, yes, but the rest of his on-mound profile — secondary stuff, repeatability, command, control, fastball shape — left much to be desired.

So even though the Royals announced Caglianone as a two-way player when they selected him last July, it was an open secret in the industry that Kansas City would develop him exclusively as a hitter.

So far, that’s paid off big time.

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Why’d the Royals promote him now?

Because they can’t hit.

Coming off an invigorating postseason campaign in 2024, this year’s Royals have stagnated somewhat. It’s been more treading water than massive cannonballs off the high dive as Kansas City’s offense ranks near the bottom in most categories. The Royals are last in home runs, last in walk rate, third to last in runs scored and fifth to last in OPS.

Only two hitters — reigning MVP runner-up Bobby Witt Jr. and third baseman Maikel Garcia — have an OPS+ above league average. Pasquantino has been much better recently after a rough start, but all the secondary pieces, like Michael Massey, Jonathan India and Drew Waters, have underwhelmed. Most concerning has been the steep fall-off from franchise icon Salvador Perez, who has gone from an All-Star a year ago to a bottom-20 qualified hitter in baseball.

The Royals’ stellar pitching and defense has kept this team in the mix. Heading into play on Tuesday, they are 31-29, one game out of a wild-card spot. But this lineup needs a jolt. Caglianone should help.

Dillon Dingler and Zach McKinstry teamed up for what could easily be the luckiest grab of the MLB season on Monday night.

The Detroit Tigers teammates, in the fifth inning of their matchup with the Chicago White Sox, ran to try and catch a foul ball popped up by Joshua Palacios that was headed toward the dugout.

But as Dingler slid to try and make the grab, he just barely mistimed the catch. The ball bounced off his glove and back toward an unsuspecting McKinstry, who somehow managed to make the catch and complete the out. McKinstry could only stand there and laugh once he realized what he had done.

Hey, whatever works.

The play was just part of what ended up being a blowout win for the best team in Major League Baseball on Monday. The Tigers cruised to the 13-1 win over the White Sox, thanks in part to a huge showing from Kerry Carpenter.

Carpenter hit three home runs in the contest, which made him the first Tigers player to hit three in a single game since 2016. He hit a solo shot in the first inning at Rate Field, and then followed it up with a two-run homer in the fourth inning. That second dinger put the Tigers up 8-0 at the time.

Then, two innings later, Carpenter hit a third homer to center for good measure. White Sox center fielder Luis Robert Jr. nearly robbed that one, but he couldn’t quite climb up the outfield wall enough to reach the ball as it crossed over.

The White Sox fell to 18-42 with the loss, which marked their seventh in their last eight games. The Tigers now sit at 40-21 on the year, good for the best record in MLB.

While it’s still early June, the Tigers are making an incredible early push in the American League. If they keep it up, and they manage to keep pulling in ridiculous catches like Monday night’s, there’s no telling where the Tigers will end up in a few months.

Karl-Anthony Towns enjoyed a hell of a season, making an All-NBA roster for the third time in his career and leading his team to a conference finals berth for the second consecutive season. It was, by almost every measure, a successful campaign. Not many players can make the same claims as Towns.

Except the New York Knicks big man fell just short of reaching the NBA Finals for the second straight season, and his role in his team’s shortcomings in the Eastern Conference finals has come under a microscope, as it did last year for the Minnesota Timberwolves in the West.

Towns is a unique player. A rare combination of size, strength and skill, he is one of the greatest shooting big men in NBA history. (He will tell you he is the greatest.) He can put the ball on the floor, score from the post and pass. He is everything you could want offensively from a modern-day, floor-spacing center.

[Tom Haberstroh: Here are three potential trades the Knicks could make]

He also cannot defend. He might be out of position. He might lack the quickness to get into position. And he will definitely foul. A lot. All three of those things make him a liability in pick-and-roll defense. And he provides little opposition around the basket. Opponents are making two-thirds of their attempts at the rim (regular season and playoffs) when Towns is the closest defender, per the NBA’s tracking data.

It is why his teams own a negative net rating when he has been at center on his last two playoff runs:

It is why the Timberwolves traded a handful of first-round draft picks in 2022 for the right to pair Rudy Gobert’s rim protection with Towns. It is one of the reasons why Minnesota abandoned that double-big experiment after two seasons, even after the Wolves reached last year’s Western Conference finals.

And it is the reason why the New York Knicks scrapped their starting lineup, replacing Josh Hart with Mitchell Robinson, in a desperation move that allowed them to force a sixth game, which they ultimately lost.

Teams are bending over backwards not to play Towns at center in big spots, only they have to, since he unlocks their most productive small-ball lineups, and teams rely on those to carry them home in crunch time, when offensive execution is at a premium. Except his defense grants the opponent an advantage.

It is a real conundrum, one the Timberwolves and Knicks have ridden to the conference finals, and one that might have set both of those teams’ ceiling below the NBA Finals. Which raises a curious question: Can a team win the championship with Towns as a centerpiece? (And this marks the first of a four-year, $220.4 million contract extension for Towns, who is scheduled to earn $61 million in the 2027-28 season.)

The Timberwolves reached last season’s conference finals with Towns at Gobert’s side in a monstrous frontcourt, and they were defeated, 4-1, when neither of their bigs could stop then-Dallas Mavericks superstar Luka Dončić from getting whatever he wanted. So they ditched Towns for Julius Randle in what was mainly a cost-cutting decision, and they returned to the Western Conference finals, where they lost to the Oklahoma City Thunder, 4-1, similarly failing to stop their superstar, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

Based strictly on the results these past two years, neither Towns nor Randle was the answer to who could complement Anthony Edwards on a title team, at least not at this early stage of his career. They won two series when they needed four. The Wolves are still searching for answers, as are the Knicks.

Which brings us back to the trade, as so often has happened this season. It was successful for both teams until it has not been for either at the highest level. The teams swapped high-class issues. Randle is his own. He can be wildly inconsistent, especially in the playoffs, vacillating between too engaged and not engaged enough, rarely dialed into the All-NBA sweet spot in between. Except in the first two rounds of this postseason, when he was great in wins over the Los Angeles Lakers and Golden State Warriors.

Randle averaged a 24-6-6 through two rounds this season, far better than he ever was in the playoffs for the Knicks, only for him to turn back into a pumpkin in the conference finals, where he averaged a 17-6-3. In the end, the Timberwolves were more successful against the Thunder when Randle was on the bench.

For all of the Knicks’ success, and for all of Towns’ success, they are being outscored by 1.5 points per 100 possessions when he has been on the court in the playoffs. It is another reminder of what we have come to learn: In either conference, a team can vie for the NBA Finals with Towns as one of its highest-paid players, but his limitations limit its ability to excel on both ends — the stuff necessary to win the title.

That raises another fascinating series of questions: Would Randle have performed at this level for these Knicks? Could they have reached these heights without Towns? Only the basketball gods could know, and they have been more interested in settling a score between the Thunder and the Indiana Pacers. Nobody wants to see the NBA’s bronze-medal series, where, sadly, Towns and Randle might have found a ceiling.

Would the Knicks take a mulligan on their trade? They would have Randle and Donte DiVincenzo (for the full ‘Nova Knicks), plus the 17th overall pick in next month’s draft. Randle owns a $30.9 million player option for next season. He can probably make more over the life of his next deal if he declines it, though the average annual value would still pale in comparison to Towns’ $53.1 million salary for next season.

The real question is which of those packages holds more value — the next three years of Towns or whatever Randle’s next contract is, plus DiVincenzo and the pick. The answer is probably similar. The only All-NBA player you can trade either for is the other, and that is the conclusion the Timberwolves and Knicks drew at the start of this season. They swapped problems for a new look, and now we have seen it.

There is a ceiling to how well you can perform with either Towns or Randle as a high-usage player, and while that ceiling is high, it may be short of a championship. 

Each day that goes by, Mets left-hander Sean Manaea gets closer and closer to returning to the team.

He took another positive step in that direction on Monday after throwing 29 pitches in a live bullpen that “went well,” according to manager Carlos Mendoza.

“We just gotta wait and see how he responds in the next couple of days and then we’ll have that discussion whether he’s gonna need another live BP or he’s ready to go on a rehab assignment,” the skipper added.

Of course, a rehab assignment would be the last hurdle for Manaea to cross before joining the Mets for the first time this season since he suffered a right oblique strain at the start of spring training after re-signing with New York on a three-year, $75 million contract.

Still, given how long he’s been out (after experiencing a setback in April with discomfort and inflammation), the 33-year-old will likely need some more time pitching in rehab games when he does eventually take that next step.

Another injured pitcher is also on his way back to the Mets as reliever Brooks Raley, who signed a one-year deal earlier this season, has already thrown three live bullpen sessions.

“He’s already facing hitters and all that so yeah he’ll continue to face hitters and then he’ll get to a point where he’ll go on a rehab assignment,” Mendoza said.

The lefty reliever is recovering from Tommy John surgery he got at the beginning of the 2024 season.

Meanwhile, Jose Siri (fractured tibia) is with the team on their West Coast road trip as the trainers continue to monitor the outfielder as he continues to do more baseball activities. However, “he’s not close yet” to re-joining the team.

“He’s gotta continue his running progression, build volume and then once he clears that hurdle then we’ll start talking about a potential rehab assignment, but I don’t think that’s happening soon,” Mendoza said.

As for Monday night’s starter, Paul Blackburn is making his season debut after multiple injuries kept him off the field since the end of last year. It will be Blackburn’s first start in the majors since Aug. 23 against the San Diego Padres.

Mendoza noted that the right-hander will have no limitations on the mound after the Mets took their time with him, letting him make seven rehab starts between three minor league levels where he finished with a 3.68 ERA (1.09 WHIP).

“We took our time to make sure that he was fully built up and he’s making this start and he’s going there as a normal pitcher,” Mendoza said. “I’m gonna treat it the same and hopefully he goes out there and does what he usually does — give us a chance to win a baseball game.”

Jayden Reed has led the Green Bay Packers in receiving yards in each of his first two seasons, and while he did not take the emphatic step forward many expected in 2024, the advanced metrics reveal a lot to be hopeful about moving forward.

Based on his statistical profile, here is what we know about the type of receiver Reed has been through two years, and what he can potentially become in the future:

Strengths

Reed has comfortably been an above average receiver from the moment he entered the league and an efficient target to help reliably move the Packers offense down the field.

He ranks in the 78th percentile in yards per route run (Y/RR) and the 64th for yards per reception (Y/REC) among qualified NFL receivers since 2023.

Operating mostly inside, Reed has been one of the better slot receivers in the league in his first two seasons, ranking in the 72nd percentile for Y/RR and the 89th for Y/REC when lined up there.

Reed has also performed very well against zone coverage, landing in the 90th percentile for Y/RR and the 68th for Y/REC.

The Packers often look to get the ball in Reed’s hands quickly, and his ability to get yards after the catch is another string to his bow. Reed ranks in the 83rd percentile for YAC.

He has also shown a nose for the end zone, ranking in the 82nd percentile for touchdowns per target. Reed has 17 total touchdowns in his first two seasons including three rushing scores.

An underrated and rarely discussed strength of Reed’s game is his ability to do damage deep downfield. His numbers are impressive across the board compared to his NFL counterparts in the deep part of the field, where he ranks in the 87th percentile in Y/RR and the 76th for Y/REC.

Reed is underutilized as a deep threat despite having the speed for it. As a slot receiver it is hard to live in the deep part of the field, as the role requires a lot of shorter routes, shown by Reed’s average depth of target (ADOT) ranking in just the 22nd percentile.

With Christian Watson set to miss a significant portion of the season though, could Reed’s ability to stretch the field be used more often in 2025?

Weaknesses

This is no secret, but when separating Reed’s game into different facets, the worst part of it is clearly his ability against man coverage, where he has really failed to make much of an impact so far.

He ranks in the 49th percentile in Y/REC, which is fine, but only the 33rd percentile for Y/RR. Both of those numbers were above average in 2023, but an abysmal 2024 campaign torpedoed the overall ranking.

While Reed has the route running ability to win against man, he is a smaller receiver with short arms, so he can struggle to box out or bring in passes when corners are close by, as is more often the case when facing man coverage.

Drops plagued him in 2024 and were a real problem. Reed ranks in the 38th percentile for drop percentage since entering the league, and most of that damage was done in his second season, when he had ten drops.

The drops showed up much more often against man coverage. He ranks in the 10th percentile for drop rate versus man, compared to the 60th percentile against zone.

Considering how the Packers have used him, Reed has not been as effective on receptions behind the line of scrimmage, in the 0-10 yard area, or on screens as they might hope. His numbers were average at best in terms of Y/REC and Y/RR in all of those facets.

This perhaps helps to explain Green Bay selecting Savion Williams, who was electric with the ball in his hands in college, in this year’s draft.

The Packers could stand to squeeze more juice out of the quick-hitting element of their passing game, and Reed’s talents may be better used elsewhere, as more of a true receiver.

Part of what made Reed’s numbers underwhelming in that regard was the fact he had more drops on targets behind the line of scrimmage (four) than in any other area of the field last year.

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The perception of Reed’s 2024 season has been colored by his issues with drops, but he actually improved many aspects of his game in a significant way last year, which is a very positive sign for 2025 and beyond.

Between 2023 and 2024, his Y/RR and Y/REC numbers went from the 41st and 72nd percentile to the 86th and 83rd respectively, which implies he was a more efficient overall receiver in his second season.

Several of his already established strengths got stronger, such as his ability after the catch. Reed’s YAC per reception went from the 76th percentile to the 90th, and he was a much better tackle breaker, improving from the 40th percentile to the 66th.

He was better in the slot and against zone in 2024 than he was as a rookie in terms of Y/RR and Y/REC, which are his calling cards, and he was an even better deep threat on a play to play basis than he was in 2023.

Removing the drops, which are hard to ignore, he was actually a more efficient target behind the line of scrimmage, in the short area and on screens in his sophomore NFL season in terms of Y/RR and Y/REC.

His contested catch win rate skyrocketed from the 13th percentile to the 93rd between Year 1 and 2. This can deviate wildly year to year, but his numbers were incredibly impressive in 2024, especially for a smaller receiver. Reed caught all five of his deep contested catches.

Something which will have gone unnoticed by many is the improvements he made as a run blocker, a vital part of what Matt LaFleur asks his receivers to do. He jumped from the 22nd percentile to the 78th among receivers in terms of PFF’s run block grades.

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As discussed, the drops were a serious problem for Reed in 2024, and it is a real shame they completely overshadowed the legitimate progress he made in other areas.

He fell off a cliff from 2023, when he ranked in the 72nd percentile in drop percentage, to just the 3rd percentile last year.

Fortunately, drops are volatile, and can come and go. Reed’s strong 2023 season catching the football indicates it is not a chronic issue, and he could very well rebound in 2025.

The improvements he did make in terms of his work behind the line of scrimmage and on screens were outweighed by the drops on what should be routine catches, reducing his overall effectiveness on these targets compared to 2023.

Reed was also worse versus man coverage in 2024 than he was as a rookie, with his Y/RR and Y/REC plummeting from the 57th and 59th percentile, both solid numbers, to the 9th and 39th percentile respectively.

Overall, Reed’s ceiling could be limited if he cannot find a way to be more effective against man coverage, but despite that, he has already settled in as a quality NFL receiver, essentially doing so right out of the gate as a rookie.

He is a well above average slot receiver and has been deadly against zone coverage. He showed real signs of improvement in various key statistical areas in his second season, which has gone under the radar due to his battle with dropping the football.

If he can put that issue behind him and allow his progress to shine through in an even bigger way in 2025, he could be a force to be reckoned with from the slot in Year 3.

This article originally appeared on Packers Wire: What we know about Jayden Reed: Positive signs despite drops

As the Oklahoma City Thunder prepare for the Indiana Pacers, the circus that typically surrounds the NBA Finals is brand new for most of the roster. Even Alex Caruso — the lone champion on their roster — had a unique experience in The Bubble.

Still three days away from Game 1, the Thunder’s typical setup looks vastly different now compared to even Round 1 of the playoffs. Expect national and global media to flock to OKC this week. Practices have had simultaneous media availabilities — one on Zoom and one in-person.

The attention will only increase tenfold. The NBA Finals Media Day will be hosted on Wednesday. Expect hundreds of folks to overwhelm the entire roster with questions. Usually holding practice at their facility, the Thunder will hold it at Paycom Center as the all-day event will be broadcast on NBA TV.

Despite all this hoopla, the Thunder have remained focused on the goal. They’re four wins away from a championship and enter as heavy favorites against the Pacers. Mark Daigneault has helped navigate his group from this first-time experience.

“There are some things that are different. We’re gonna practice Wednesday at the arena and there’s gonna be 100 people at the last 45 minutes of practice. Trying to pretend that’s the exact same would be foolish on our part,” Daigneault said. “That’s going to feel a lot different and we’re trying to define that. We’re also going to try to define what’s the same. And what’s the same is when the ball goes up in the air.”

This is the best mindset to have. All the pageantry involved with the NBA Finals becomes irrelevant once Game 1 starts. The Thunder will need to Eurostep their way through all the glitter. Especially when they’re universally seen as the favorite to win the series.

Mark Daigneault: “There are some things that are different. We’re gonna practice Wednesday at the arena and there’s gonna be 100 people at the last 45 minutes of practice. Trying to pretend that’s the exact same would be foolish on our part. pic.twitter.com/VMTRhig30D

— Clemente Almanza (@CAlmanza1007) June 2, 2025

This article originally appeared on OKC Thunder Wire: Mark Daigneault explains how Thunder have navigated the NBA Finals

The Golden State Warriors have had over 600 players don the more than 60 jersey numbers used by their players over the more than 75 years of existence the team has enjoyed in its rich and storied history.

Founded in 1946 during the Basketball Association of America (BAA — a precursor league of the NBA) era, the team has called home the cities of Philadelphia, San Francisco, Oakland, and even San Diego.

 To commemorate the players who wore those numbers, Warriors Wire is covering the entire history of jersey numbers and the players who sported them since the founding of the team. For this article, we begin with the 27th of 28 players who wore the No. 12 jersey for the Warriors.

That player would be Golden State big man alum Usman Garuba. After starting his pro career abroad, Garuba was picked up with the 23rd overall selection of the 2021 NBA draft by the Houston Rockets.

The Azuqueca de Henares, Spain native would play the first two seasons of his pro career with the Rockets, signing with Golden State in 2023. His stay with the team would span a single season, his last in the NBA.

During his time suiting up for the Warriors, Garuba wore only jersey No. 12 and put up 1.2 rebounds per game.

All stats and data courtesy of Basketball Reference.

This article originally appeared on Warriors Wire: Warriors jersey history – No. 12 – Usman Garuba (2023-24)