Dean Wade’s unlikely heroics stun Celtics, plus an angry moose invades the Iditarod

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Who Did What Now? Bow to the other D-Wade

Let’s start by apologizing to the Celtics for such a mean jinx earlier this week. Because what happened to Boston last night was a little hard to believe. Quickly this morning: 

And Cleveland pulled off the comeback (which snapped an 11-game Celtics winning streak) without the injured Donovan Mitchell or Evan Mobley. Sorry again, Celtics. That’s some voodoo.

Oddities: A moose, a musher and a grisly Iditarod tale

I was barely even sure how to classify this story, which is so unique to its own sport the facts simply must be laid out plainly: 

This isn’t the first time this has happened, though it’s been nearly 40 years since the last notable incident. Read Lauren Merola’s full reporting on the affair here.

News to Know

The Clark effectThis past weekend’s Iowa-Ohio State game, which saw Caitlin Clark pass Pete Maravich on the NCAA all-time scoring list, averaged a staggering 3.39 million viewers, the highest mark for a women’s college basketball game in 25 years. It’s another sign that the women’s game is becoming more popular than ever. It’s not just Clark, either — there are stars across the country right now, and USC’s JuJu Watkins might be poised to succeed Clark as the main attraction.

Dartmouth hoops team votes to unionizeThe Dartmouth men’s basketball team voted 13-2 yesterday in favor of forming a union, a moment that could possibly change college athletics. The process is just beginning, however, as the university — which put out a statement opposing the classification of athletes as employees — filed a request for review by the National Labor Relations Board. For a preview of how this plays out, Nicole Auerbach wrote an insightful column last week with expert input on the road ahead.

Acuña on course for Opening DayBreathe easy, Braves fans: Ronald Acuña Jr. avoided serious injury after feeling pain in his surgically repaired right knee last week, the team announced, adding that the superstar is on track to be healthy on Opening Day. Losing Acuña — last year’s NL MVP — would’ve deflated Atlanta’s soaring hopes for this year.

More news

Mock Drafts: Look at all these trades

We are making good on our promise yesterday to return to Dane Brugler’s latest NFL mock draft. If even half of his predictions come true, the NFL should be thrilled. Consider: 

And a new wrinkle comes this morning from Mike Sando, who polled six executives around the NFL and formulated a top 10 mock draft based on his conversations. The results were quite different from Dane’s mock — Daniels goes No. 2 to Washington and multiple wide receivers fall out of the top 10 completely. 

Read Mike’s full mock here. This is fun.

Watch This Game

NBA: Bucks at Warriors10 p.m. ET on ESPNRemember all that hand-wringing about Milwaukee and Doc Rivers? All gone. The Bucks have won six straight and are officially back in Zach Harper’s contender tier. 

Soccer: USWNT vs. Canada10:15 p.m. ET on Paramount+The Americans had a nice bounce-back win against Colombia, but the Canadians are the No. 1 seed in this tourney. Time for a gut check. Make sure to subscribe to Full Time for comprehensive coverage of women’s soccer, and maybe even a gif poll or two.

Pulse Picks

I love stories like this: Andy McCullough wrote about one of the world’s most niche real estate markets — MLB players living in each other’s houses. Deals are brokered between wives. DJ LeMahieu has housed half of the Tigers organization. Etc. The full story is very fun and worth your time. 

The term “designated for assignment” can be a side note in major MLB news. But for the players involved, it can be a brutal process. Sam Blum interviewed both players and executives about what life can be like on the DFA chopping block. Super interesting. 

Jason Quick has a beautiful story about Tom Meschery, the first Warrior to ever have his number retired. Meschery’s journey is compelling, going from hoops star to lost divorcee. Now, at 85, he is a new man — thanks to poetry and a reconnection with the franchise for which he starred. 

The next Victor Wembanyama? Meet Khaman Maluach, the 7-foot-2 young Frenchman who’s still growing. We’ll have more on him tomorrow. 

Is Sheffield United the worst Premier League team ever? There’s an argument to be made.

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(Photo: Lauren Leigh Bacho/Getty Images)