{"id":617137,"date":"2026-05-01T11:36:10","date_gmt":"2026-05-01T11:36:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/617137\/"},"modified":"2026-05-01T11:36:10","modified_gmt":"2026-05-01T11:36:10","slug":"an-incredible-nba-blowout-plus-livs-cash-burn","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/617137\/","title":{"rendered":"An incredible NBA blowout, plus LIV\u2019s cash burn"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Pulse Newsletter \ud83d\udce3 | This is The Athletic\u2019s daily sports newsletter. Sign up here<\/a> to receive The Pulse directly in your inbox.<\/p>\n

Good morning! I hope you have your hat ready for tomorrow. Coming up:\u00a0<\/p>\n

\ud83d\ude33 A historic Knicks rout<\/a>
\n\ud83d\ude30 Edmonton\u2019s conundrum
\n\ud83d\udcb8 LIV\u2019s cash burn<\/a>
\nAbout Last Night: The Knicks won by h0w much?<\/p>\n

We had a flight of 3-2 series matchups in both the NBA and NHL last night. I must start with an NBA clincher, though, due to a simple staggering fact:\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Knicks advanced to the second round last night after beating the Hawks, in Atlanta, by 51 points. Not a typo! This was a 50-point game in the second quarter. Fans started filing out before halftime. I don\u2019t know if I\u2019ve ever seen that in this scenario. New York looks scary<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The rest of the clinchers:\u00a0<\/p>\n

(NHL) Ducks 5, Oilers 2<\/a>. Anaheim deserves plenty of credit, but Edmonton\u2019s season ending like this after Connor McDavid\u2019s edict before the season is worth an extra look<\/a>.
\n(NHL) Wild 5, Stars 2<\/a>. Minnesota escapes the first round for the first time in over a decade.
\n(NBA) Timberwolves 110, Nuggets 98<\/a>. Minnesota gets a standing ovation for doing this without Anthony Edwards and Donte DiVincenzo. Denver looks a little funny in the light in three seasons since winning a ring. Now we get Wolves-Spurs. Fun.<\/p>\n

Our endcap? The wily Philadelphia 76ers, who might have some real juice after an impressive 106-93 win<\/a> over Boston to force a Game 7 in their opening-round series. Not many gave Philly a chance against the surprising Celtics\u2019 juggernaut. Turns out having a healthy-enough Joel Embiid alongside two elite wing scorers \u2014 Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe \u2014 makes you a pretty good team, and that\u2019s before you factor in Paul George.\u00a0<\/p>\n

I hope tonight is just as good. Let\u2019s move:<\/p>\n

Monitoring \ud83e\uddd0: Stay alert\"\"<\/p>\n

\n Kelley L. Cox \/ Imagn Images<\/p>\n

Every week, there are stories I tab as interesting enough to warrant coverage, or even an expanded focus, that don\u2019t end up making the cut each day. But it doesn\u2019t mean they aren\u2019t worthy of your attention.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Thus a new Friday feature, wherein we simply monitor the situation. Things on my radar:\u00a0<\/p>\n

Brandon Aiyuk. Remember him? The wide receiver is still technically an employee of the San Francisco 49ers, but it sure doesn\u2019t feel that way. He\u2019s been AWOL on the team for nearly a year. What happens next?<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n

MLB labor talks. These have been looming for a while now, and it feels like the future of the sport depends on them. MLB commissioner Rob Manfred wants to make big changes, which could include a salary cap. The players remain defiant. Here\u2019s what we can realistically expect<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Mike Trout is back. The Angels are not. Trout is the prince who was promised \u2026 then got hurt a lot. We wondered before the season whether we\u2019d ever see the Hall-of-Fame glimpses again. Trout is on pace to hit 52 home runs this year and has been a general bright spot. The Angels are still eight games under .500. Read about that and plenty more in our latest Power Rankings<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The PWHL playoffs. They started last night with a 2-1 Boston win over Ottawa. The Minnesota Frost are the back-to-back champs in a league that\u2019s only held two championships. But what maybe is even more compelling is the format of these playoffs, which features my favorite thing: A team choosing which opponent to face next. Get primed here<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The South Carolina teenager in Germany. Remember the name Mathis Albert, a 16-year-old soccer player from Greenville, South Carolina, who became the youngest American to ever play in the Bundesliga last weekend. That beats Gio Reyna and Christian Pulisic. Read his backstory here<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

It\u2019s Derby weekend. The Kentucky Derby runs Saturday, and while we\u2019ll have full coverage this weekend, it\u2019s worth a look today. Whether it\u2019s the food \u2014 50,000 blackberries?<\/a> \u2014 or the fashion \u2014 feathers?<\/a> \u2014 expect the event to take over your feeds at some point in the next 48 hours. A name to know: Brian Repole, the extremely motivated man<\/a> behind the favorite, a horse named Renegade.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Thank you for helping me monitor. Onward:<\/p>\n

News to Know\"Vancouver<\/p>\n

In Vancouver, a mess
A buyer in Las Vegas formally submitted a bid for MLS\u2019 Vancouver Whitecaps, days after news broke that the franchise could relocate. In the meantime, Vancouver\u2019s mayor, along with FIFA and Concacaf officials, have called for the provincial government in Vancouver to step in in order to prevent a move. What\u2019s next? Public pressure mounts by the day, but the team\u2019s situation \u2014 still up for sale \u2014 has not changed. Get a full digest here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

More news:<\/p>\n

\ud83d\udcf0\u00a0Find more news here 24\/7<\/a>.<\/p>\n

One Number: Bye, money<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

LIV Golf is entering what I suspect will be its final stage of relevance: attempting to salvage any form of legitimacy as a professional golf outfit. Maybe that\u2019s a streamlined version of its current self, a team-based tour that\u2019s lean instead of grandiose. Maybe it\u2019s a major-event-themed evolution of the product. Maybe it won\u2019t exist in 2027.<\/p>\n

I still just cannot get over the staggering financial drain here.\u00a0LIV, by some estimates,\u00a0lost $5 billion since forming in 2022. That\u2019s not just spent money.\u00a0It\u2019s pure loss<\/a>. How many sports leagues could even burn $5 billion? For what? The biggest win here, I guess, is some form of sportswashing, but I\u2019m not even sure that happened. Your emails regarding our LIV conversation a couple of weeks ago convinced me of that.<\/p>\n

I recommend reading Gabby Herzig\u2019s incisive look at LIV\u2019s future today.\u00a0Things look bleak<\/a>.<\/p>\n

If anything, they have to change the name, right?<\/p>\n

Watch Guide<\/p>\n

\ud83d\udcfa MLB: Reds at Pirates
6:40 p.m. ET on Apple TV
Did anyone expect Cincinnati to lead the NL Central? Or the division to be entirely composed of teams .500 or above? Pittsburgh is 16-16 \u2026 and in last place. Fun.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\ud83d\udcfa NBA: First round
7 p.m. ET on Prime Video
Three more clinch chances: Pistons-Magic (7 p.m.), Cavaliers-Raptors (7:30 p.m.) and Lakers-Rockets (9:30 p.m.). Each game is either a crowning achievement or leads to a Game 7. Works for me.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\ud83d\udcfa NHL: First round
7 p.m. ET on ESPN and ESPN 2
Again, same exact story here: Lightning-Canadiens (7 p.m.), Sabres-Bruins (7:30 p.m.) and Golden Knights-Mammoth (10 p.m.). More, please. <\/p>\n

Get tickets to games like these here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Pulse Picks\"\"<\/p>\n

\n Hector Vivas \/ Getty Images<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

F1 is going on an unexpected break after this weekend\u2019s Miami Grand Prix, which will draw even more eyes. It\u2019s good that this has turned into F1\u2019s \u201cSuper Bowl weekend.\u201d<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n

Speaking of F1: Why is McLaren, the race car company, making golf clubs for Justin Rose?<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n

Tatsuya Imai\u2019s MLB start continues to be \u2026 suboptimal. After a wild rehab start, where do he and the Astros go from here?<\/a>
Tomorrow, Wrexham finally has a shot at history<\/a>, albeit slim: a chance to earn promotion to the Premier League.\u00a0<\/p>\n

USMNT star Christian Pulisic has the yips in club play. It\u2019s easy to wonder if that carries over to the World Cup<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Yes, Rajon Rondo is a legitimate NBA head coaching candidate. His time with the Bucks has fast-tracked his coaching ascension<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Most-clicked in the newsletter yesterday: The other guy<\/a> on Matt Holliday\u2019s rookie card.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Most-read on the website yesterday: 2026 NFL Draft grades<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\ud83d\udceb That\u2019s all for now! Say hello at thepulse@theathletic.com<\/a>, and check out our other newsletters<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Pulse Newsletter \ud83d\udce3 | This is The Athletic\u2019s daily sports newsletter. Sign up here to receive The…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":617138,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[64],"tags":[355,99],"class_list":["post-617137","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nba","tag-nba","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/617137","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=617137"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/617137\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/617138"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=617137"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=617137"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=617137"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}