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Good morning to everyone but especially to...
THE MIAMI HEAT
A little over a month ago, the Miami Heat needed an NBA Play-In Tournament victory over the Chicago Bulls to merely make the playoffs. Now, they're a win away from the NBA Finals.
Miami annihilated the Boston Celtics, 128-102, in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals with a balanced attack that saw six players score in double figures on Sunday. Jimmy -- ahem, Himmy -- Butler led the way for Miami with 16 points, eight rebounds, six assists and two steals.
The second-team All-NBA selection has exceeded all expectations since joining the Heat in 2019, but the run he's authoring this year is arguably his greatest work yet.
Butler has Miami on the verge of its second Finals appearance in the last four years (had his late 3-point miss in Game 7 of last year's conference finals against Boston went the other way, it'd likely be three appearances).Miami shut down Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown again, as Tatum scored 14 on 6-for-18 from the field while Brown went 6-for-17 for 12 points. Tatum and Brown were a combined 1-14 from 3-point range with Tatum accounting for the lone make. Gabe Vincent was the hot shooter for Miami, as the UC Santa Barbara product scored a team-high 29 points on 11-for-14 from the field and 6-for-9 from 3-point range.While many have knocked the Heat for having "shooting luck" this postseason, our Brad Botkin believes the success of role players such as Vincent is by design.
Botkin: "This is not shooting luck. Miami is generating great drive-and-kick looks. They are relocating and beating the Celtics down the floor in transition. Gabe Vincent scoring 29 points on 11-of-14 shooting, including 6 of 9 from deep, feels like an outlier, and it is. But Miami's process created those good looks, and the rhythm they've been steadily gaining throughout these playoffs is contagious. Give them the credit for that."Miami will now aim to eliminate Boston in Game 4 on Tuesday.
Honorable mentions
Brooks Koepka triumphs at PGA Championship for first major win since 2019 ⛳
Getty ImagesIt took four years, but Brooks Koepka has finally won another major. Koepka (-9) captured victory in the PGA Championship for his fifth career major win and first since 2019, edging out Scottie Sheffler and Viktor Hovland by two strokes to do so.
Koepka's win signifies he's back to his old self after struggling through knee injuries the past few years. It also put him in great historical company:
With three Wanamaker Trophies now under his belt, Koepka joins Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods as the only players to win the PGA Championship at least three times. Only Koepka, Woods, Nicklaus, Gene Sarazen and Walter Hagen have three PGA wins and at least two U.S. Open victories. Koepka is one of only 20 golfers to win five majors, as his PGA victory tied him with Seve Ballesteros, James Braid, Phil Mickelson, Byron Nelson, John H. Taylor and Peter Thomson. After finishing -8 for a second-place finish at The Masters in April, Koepka has now placed in the top two in each of the first two majors this season.After the big win, Koepka reflected on his arduous journey back to the winner's circle and what it means for him to be in the same conversation as legends like Woods and Nicklaus.
Koepka: "I look back on where we were two years ago, everything that's gone on, I'm just so happy right now that I'm kind of at a loss for words. To be with those group of names is absolutely incredible, something, I'll be honest, I'm not even sure if I dreamed of it as a kid winning this many."Koepka will now vie for his sixth major win, a result that would have him tied for 12th all-time, at the U.S. Open in June. Lastly, Koepka is not the only one who had a great weekend in Rochester. So did Michael Block.
