Sports Poets Society

24 Jun 2025 Jenni Carlson Columnist The Oklahoman USA TODAY NETWORK Tucked in the far back corner of the temporary stage covered in blue and orange confetti, Mark Daigneault positioned himself as far as possible from the action, the interviews, the cameras and the celebration. Leaning on the railing, he looked like he could’ve been observing a November shootaround. It was an NBA Finals coronation instead. Make no mistake, the Thunder coach was excited, thrilled, enthused — “I’m just so happy for the guys,” he said — and why wouldn’t he have all the feels after a 103-91 triumph over the Pacers? But Daigneault’s disappearing act to the back of the stage was telling. Even with the second-youngest team to ever win an NBA title, a bunch so young that several of its core players were old enough to drink the celebration champaign Sunday night but wouldn’t have been old enough to rent a car Monday morning, Daigneault never treated them like youngsters. He enabled them. He held them accountable...

CHRISTINE TANNOUS/INDYSTAR  -  Pacers forward Aaron Nesmith (23) fouls  Thunder  guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) during Game 7 of the NBA Finals in Oklahoma City. 24 Jun 2025 Dustin Dopirak, Pacers Insider The Indianapolis Star USA TODAY NETWORK OKLAHOMA CITY – Tyrese Haliburton was standing just a few feet back from the spot where he stumbled and fell on a drive in Game 5 of the NBA Finals when he began the drive that would end his season. With just more than 5 minutes to go in the first quarter of Game 7, the Pacers All-Star point guard caught a pass from teammate Obi Toppin a few feet above the 3-point arc and tried to push off of his right foot to drive and immediately crumpled to the floor again. In Game 5 -- though clearly hobbled with what was later diagnosed as a right calf strain -- he got up. This time, he didn’t. Haliburton still had enough presence of mind to try to pass the basketball instead of simply taking a travel, but once he let it go and the Thu...

Fans cheer in the fourth quarter during Game 7 of the NBA Finals at Paycom Center on June 22. Some of the Thunder’s most loyal fans have waited 17 long years for the organization’s first championship. NATHAN J. FISH/THE OKLAHOMAN of the Thunder’s most loyal fans have waited 17 long years for the organization’s first championship. NATHAN J. FISH/THE OKLAHOMAN of the Thunder’s most loyal fans have waited 17 long years for the organization’s first championship. NATHAN J. FISH/THE OKLAHOMAN Fans cheer in the fourth quarter during Game 7 of the NBA Finals at Paycom Center on June 22. Some of the Thunder’s most loyal fans have Scott Wright 24 Jun 2025 - The Oklahoman USA TODAY NETWORK In between moments of reaching across aisles to hug his neighbors in the baseline seats of Paycom Center, Thundor raised his hands high — his OKC Thunder megaphone in his right hand and only his index finger extended on the left. With the Larry O'Brien Trophy painted on his belly, he and 18,202 of his close...

NATHAN J. FISH/THE OKLAHOMAN Oklahoma City guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, right,  only had  one  turnover  in Game 7, which marked his lowest total of the series. Justin Martinez 24 Jun 2025 - The Oklahoman USA TODAY NETWORK After 17 seasons of Thunder basketball, it finally rained inside Paycom Center. Blue-and-orange confetti fell from the rafters as the final buzzer sounded Sunday. It solidified the OKC Thunder’s 103-91 win over the Indiana Pacers in Game 7 of the NBA Finals. Indiana fans took shelter by heading toward the exits, leaving nothing but a sea of blue in the stands. Meanwhile, OKC’s players shielded themselves by throwing on T-shirts with large text across the front. NBA champions. For the first time since the franchise’s inception in 2008, OKC has won the NBA championship. And after recording 29 points and 12 assists in the closeout game, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is the Finals MVP. That marked the completion of the hat trick for the Canadian-born super...

SARAH PHIPPS/THE OKLAHOMAN From left, Oklahoma City Thunder players Jaylin Williams and Kenrich Williams celebrate with general manager Sam Presti and team chairman Clay Bennett in the locker room after winning Game 7 of the NBA Finals against the Indiana Pacers at Paycom Center on June 22. 24 giu 2025 Joe Mussatto - The Oklahoman Sam Presti rolled a champagne cork between his fingers long after the bottles had been popped. It was a modest token compared to the shiny Larry O’Brien trophy, to the championship ring he’ll soon be fitted for, but a meaningful one just the same. And Presti had exactly the place to put it. A small glass case in Presti’s closet contains three other corks, one for each of the three Spurs championships he was a part of in 2003, 2005 and 2007. Titles that helped Presti, at age 29, land a job as general manager of the Seattle SuperSonics. Eighteen years later, Year 17 in Oklahoma City, Presti has another cork to add to his collection. A title of his own. The firs...

PHOTOS BY BRYAN TERRY/THE OKLAHOMAN Thunder players celebrate after Game 7 of the NBA Finals following  Oklahoma City’s win over the Indiana Pacers on June 22. Joel Lorenzi 24 giu 2025 - The Oklahoman They deliberated, still unsure what victory tasted like. Chet Holmgren’s lanky arm reached for the neck of the Moet bottle, and Jaylin Williams’ unraveled the seal like a Hershey’s kiss. Across a table littered in neatly lined beer, the centerpiece of this locker room of baby-faced champions, rookie Dillon Jones barbarically shook his bottle like a shake weight. They cluelessly distributed the champagne, seeking Alex Caruso, the 31-year-old in the room and the only player who knew how to celebrate. You’d chuckle at the ceiling. In the aftermath, the once elegantly illuminated white tiles looked like a Jackson Pollock, painted by bottles handled by eager first timers. “We messed up the champagne toast a couple times,” Caruso told The Oklahoman after helping secure the Thunder’s first-e...

BRYAN TERRY/THE OKLAHOMAN Oklahoma City Thunder guard Alex Caruso kisses the Larry O'Brien Trophy on June 22  after the Thunder beat the Indiana Pacers in Game 7 of the NBA Finals at Paycom Center. Thunder finally reach summit 24 giu 2025 -  Jenni Carlson Columnist  The Oklahoman USA TODAY NETWORK With Paycom Center rattling and shaking — and the Indiana Pacers finally seeming to do the same — Jalen Williams joined the celebration by closing his eyes, pumping his fists and adding his voice to the roar. NATHAN J. FISH/THE OKLAHOMAN OKC Thunder celebrates during the trophy presentation after Game 7 of the NBA Finals  between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Indiana Pacers at Paycom Center on June 22. “C’mon!” he bellowed. Thunder fans did. “Let’s go!” he thundered. The fans did — and the Thunder did. Oklahoma City is the NBA champion. On a night the Thunder outlasted the Pacers 103-91 in Game 7 of the NBA Finals, Oklahoma City had plenty of reasons to celebrate. The t...

24 Jun 2025 - USA TODAY US Edition Jeff Zillgitt Columnist USA TODAY An earthquake that rattled Las Vegas on July 5, 2019, suspended play for the night at NBA Summer League. Hours later, another seismic event altered the direction of the NBA in ways that were not immediately recognized. The Oklahoma City Thunder traded Paul George to the Los Angeles Clippers for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and the focus of the deal was George joining Kawhi Leonard on the Clippers. Gilgeous-Alexander had just finished an encouraging rookie season and as part of the deal the Thunder acquired multiple first-round picks, including the Clippers’ 2022 pick that turned into All-Star Jalen Williams. Six years after the Thunder acquired Gilgeous-Alexander and three years after they selected Williams with the No. 12 overall pick in the 2022 draft, the Thunder are NBA champions with Gilgeous-Alexander and Williams excelling throughout the regular season, playoffs and NBA Finals. The Thunder defeated the Indiana Pace...

«L’Équipe» fêtera ses 80 ans le 28 février 2026. Jusqu’au jour de son anniversaire, retrouvez quotidiennement une de ses unes marquantes. 24 Jun 2025 - L'Équipe P. G. Trente ans après, cette image de Nelson Mandela, élu en 1994 premier président noir de l’Afrique du Sud, remettant le trophée à François Pienaar, capitaine afrikaner de la sélection nationale, reste le symbole de la Coupe du monde de rugby 1995 .  Deux jours après la finale, Mandela avait reçu l’envoyé spécial de L’Équipe Olivier Margot et racontait: «Ce n’était pas un symbole, mais bien une réalité. Nos joueurs ont dû batailler ferme pour venir à bout de toutes les autres équipes. Donc, c’est plus fort que le symbole. Quant à moi, j’étais vraiment très ému comme on est ému devant ses enfants… Je ne cessais de penser à la tension qui habitait ces joueurs parce que je les connaissais très bien. Je leur ai rendu visite, j’ai été parmi eux… J’avais les nerfs complètement à vif pendant la finale. Mais cette victoire n’a p...