Morning sports update: The Nets are reportedly unsure about trying to sign Kyrie Irving
Also: Celtics draft trivia, the latest from Adrian Wojnarowski, and the reported cast of Space Jam 2.
The Red Sox defeated the Twins 9-4 on Wednesday night to take two out of three from the series. Starting pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez struck out nine over seven innings as he helped give the bullpen a rest after the team lost in 17 innings in the second game of the series.
Also on Wednesday night, the Revolution fell to Orlando City in the U.S. Open Cup 2-1 in extra time. The silver lining was 20-year-old Massachusetts native Justin Rennicks scoring his first professional goal:
You’ll always remember your first professional goal.
đđđ@JustinRennicks#NERevs pic.twitter.com/g19g8B38k5
â New England Revolution (@NERevolution) June 20, 2019
Tonight, the NBA holds its annual rookie draft, beginning at 7 p.m. The Celtics hold three first-round picks (14th, 20th, and 22nd overall).
The Nets are reportedly debating signing Kyrie Irving: The Nets reportedly continue to dream of an offseason in which the team adds Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant, according to the New York Post’s Brian Lewis.
But as Lewis also reported on Wednesday night, Brooklyn’s front office is debating the merits of signing Irving if the team is unable to also land Durant.
“The Post has confirmed Brooklyn might have qualms about signing the enigmatic Irving if he isnât bringing the injured Durant with him,” wrote Lewis.
Lewis also stated that Irving’s deteriorating relationship with the Celtics has made potential free agent suitors apprehensive.
“Other teams had already backed off of pursuing Irving with similar concerns over the way things went awry in Boston,” Lewis said.
The Nets currently have D’Angelo Russell as a restricted free agent, and the 23-year-old shooting guard could be brought back for less money than it would cost to sign Irving. Renouncing his contract would create more cap space for Brooklyn to sign both Irving and Durant, but would mean shifting away from a player who helped the team make the playoffs in 2019 for the first time since 2015.
An online (unofficial) poll conducted by the Post indicated that a slim majority of Nets fans oppose signing Irving:
Do you want the Nets to sign Kyrie Irving?
â New York Post Sports (@nypostsports) June 18, 2019
Free agency begins on Monday June 30, though players can’t officially sign with new teams until July 6 at 12 p.m.
Trivia: The Celtics have been linked with several players from the University of Kentucky in NBA mock drafts. Who was the last Kentucky player chosen by the Celtics in an NBA draft?
(Answer at the bottom).
Hint: He was the leading scorer in his team’s loss to the University of Connecticut in the Huskies’ most recent National Championship win.
More from Boston.com:
- David Ortiz wasnât intended target of shooting, Dominican authorities say
- 4 paths forward for the Celtics
- Tom Brady and Josh Gordon worked out together Tuesday
- As Red Sox at last get âbetter,â Alex Cora keeps showing his worth
- Womenâs World Cup: Sweden poses biggest challenge to United States yet
- Sports Q: Who should the Celtics try to acquire and draft?
- Al Horford would have fit in with any great Celtics team
- Don Sweeney named NHL General Manager of the Year
- Rafael Devers leaves Red Sox game because of hamstring tightness
- 8 prospects for Bruins fans to watch at the NHL Entry Draft, according to experts
Mookie Betts is up for an ESPY
:
The nominees are in! Who do you think should win Best Male Athlete at this year’s @ESPYS?
(đ @CapitalOne)
â ESPN (@espn) June 20, 2019
The Celtics reportedly hosted six prospects for a late pre-draft workout:
League sources tell me and @JakeLFischer that the Celtics had the following players in today for a last-minute workout: Darius Bazley, Jalen Lecque, Tremont Waters, Jordan Bone, Chris Clemons and Jared Harper. Boston has picks 14, 20, 22 and 51 and is expected to be active.
â Jeremy Woo (@JeremyWoo) June 19, 2019
The latest Celtics news from Adrian Wojnarowski:
Boston has offered center Aron Baynes — $5.4M expiring contract — into salary cap space elsewhere, league sources tell ESPN. Without Kyrie Irving and Al Horford on the books, moving Baynes without taking back salary could get the Celtics to $23M in space.
â Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 20, 2019
Here’s the reported cast of Space Jam 2:
The cast of Space Jam 2 will include:
⢠Anthony Davis
⢠Damian Lillard
⢠Nneka Ogwumike
⢠Chiney Ogwumike
⢠Chris Paul
⢠Diana Taurasi
⢠Klay Thompson(via multiple reports) pic.twitter.com/Tphu9U40F9
â SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) June 20, 2019
On this day: In 1975, an overcapacity crowd (estimated somewhere between 18,000 and 20,000) packed into Nickerson Field to catch a glimpse of Brazilian soccer player Pele during a game between the New York Cosmos and the Boston Minutemen of the North American Soccer League.
Pele, then 34, had signed a world-record deal with the Cosmos earlier in June. He squared off against fellow soccer superstar Eusebio, who joined the Minutemen that season from his longtime Portuguese club, Benfica. It was Eusebio who scored first, but when it appeared Pele had equalized (the goal was later ruled out due to a foul), the crowd flooded the field.
“They swarmed him, burying him from view for several minutes,” wrote Boston Globe reporter John Powers.
“We just threw ourselves over PelĂŠ to protect him,” said Cosmosâ publicist John O’Reilly afterward. “Those people were wild.”
Pele was injured in the incident, and had to be substituted from the game. Still, he would go on to have a successful career with the Cosmos, helping the team win the NASL title in his final year (1977) while simultaneously growing the sport in the United States.
Daily highlight: The montage of great Jackie Bradley Jr. defense got one play longer after he made this throw on Wednesday night.
Yesterday he showed off the hops. Today he’s showing off the cannon. pic.twitter.com/yZjp35z2t2
â Red Sox (@RedSox) June 20, 2019
Trivia answer: James Young
