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From Dylan Hernández: James Harden produced one of his trademark playoff performances on Wednesday night.
Actually, that’s not true.
This was worse.
In the Clippers’ 123-93 loss to the Dallas Mavericks in Game 5 of their first-round series, the longtime postseason underachiever delivered a Harden Special for the ages, making only two of 12 shots and scoring seven points.
Seven.
You read that right.
Seven.
Seven, as in the number of days in a week.
Seven, as in half the number of points Mavericks reserve Jaden Hardy scored in six minutes of garbage time.
As a result, the Clippers are now behind in the best-of-seven series, 3-2, and one loss away from this season ending like every single one before it: without a championship.
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LAKERS
KEEP LeBRON JAMES POLL
Should LeBron James remain with the Lakers next season, or should they part ways?
After 3,377 responses
Part ways, 59.2%
Remain with Lakers, 40.8%
FIRE DARVIN HAM? POLL
Should the Lakers fire Darvin Ham?
After 4,778 responses
No, 56.6%
Yes, 43.4%
NBA PLAYOFFS SCHEDULE
All times Pacific
FIRST ROUND
Western Conference
No. 1 Oklahoma City vs. No. 8 New Orleans
at Oklahoma City 94, New Orleans 92 (box score)
at Oklahoma City 124, New Orleans 92 (box score)
Oklahoma City 106, at New Orleans 85 (box score)
Oklahoma City 97, at New Orleans 89 (box score)
No. 2 Denver vs. No. 7 Lakers
at Denver 114, Lakers 103 (box score)
at Denver 101, Lakers 99 (box score)
Denver 112, at Lakers 105 (box score)
at Lakers 119, Denver 108 (box score)
at Denver 108, Lakers 106 (box score)
No. 3 Minnesota vs. No. 6 Phoenix
at Minnesota 120, Phoenix 95 (box score)
at Minnesota 105, Phoenix 93 (box score)
Minnesota 126, at Phoenix 109 (box score)
Minnesota 122, at Phoenix 116 (box score)
No. 4 Clippers vs. No. 5 Dallas
at Clippers 109, Dallas 97 (box score)
Dallas 96, at Clippers 93 (box score)
at Dallas 101, Clippers 90 (box score)
Clippers 116, at Dallas 111 (box score)
Dallas 123, at Clippers 93 (box score)
Friday at Dallas, 6:30 p.m., ESPN
*Sunday at Clippers, 5 p.m., TNT
Eastern Conference
No. 1 Boston vs. No. 8 Miami
at Boston 114, Miami 94 (box score)
Miami 111, at Boston 101 (box score)
Boston 104, at Miami 84 (box score)
Boston 102, at Miami 88 (box score)
at Boston 118, Miami 84 (box score)
No. 2 New York vs. No. 7 Philadelphia
at New York 111, Philadelphia 104 (box score)
at New York 104, Philadelphia 101 (box score)
at Philadelphia 125, New York 114 (box score)
New York 97, at Philadelphia 92 (box score)
Philadelphia 112, at New York 106 (OT) (box score)
New York 118, at Philadelphia 115 (box score)
No. 3 Milwaukee vs. No. 6 Indiana
at Milwaukee 109, Indiana 94 (box score)
Indiana 125, Milwaukee 108 (box score)
at Indiana 121, Milwaukee 118 (OT) (box score)
at Indiana 126, Milwaukee 113 (box score)
at Milwaukee 115, Indiana 92 (box score)
at Indiana 120, Milwaukee, 98 (box score)
No. 4 Cleveland vs. No. 5 Orlando
at Cleveland 97, Orlando 83 (box score)
at Cleveland 96, Orlando 86 (box score)
at Orlando 121, Cleveland 83 (box score)
at Orlando 112, Cleveland 89 (box score)
at Cleveland 104, Orlando 103 (box score)
Friday at Orlando, 4 p.m., ESPN
*Sunday at Cleveland, 10 a.m., ABC
*-if necessary
DODGERS
From Jack Harris: The timing was coincidental.
But, on Shohei Ohtani’s first off day as a Dodger, the discourse Wednesday centered on the one big struggle of his 2024 season — a weakness that had cropped up once again the night before.
When there hasn’t been a runner at second or third base season, Ohtani has been the best hitter in baseball. He is batting an MLB-best .398 in such spots. His .774 slugging percentage is more than 100 points better than all but two other players.
When the Dodgers need to start a rally, the $700-million signing is often their most potent spark.
However, with runners in scoring position over the first month of the year, the slugger’s production has unexpectedly cratered, leading to a trend of frustratingly empty key at-bats.
Ex-Dodger Jayson Werth has a horse in the Kentucky Derby. It took him just two years
ANGELS
From Steve Henson: Ron Washington, the first-year manager of the Angels, is unfailingly positive. He was hired in part to inject relentless rah-rah into a franchise that hasn’t reached the playoffs since 2014.
Yet moments after news broke that Mike Trout would need surgery to repair a torn meniscus … four days after Anthony Rendon revealed he has a “high-grade partial tear” in his left hamstring … four months after Shohei Ohtani signed with the Dodgers rather than return to the Angels … Washington’s enthusiasm was muted.
“We’re going to miss Mike,” he said. “I think we all know what he means to this organization. But the thing about baseball — there’s a game on the schedule. You have to play it. You have to put nine guys on the field. So we’re going to put nine guys on the field.”
Never mind star power — that vanished along with Trout, Rendon and Ohtani — the Angels need players who can perform at an acceptable major league level
From Ben Bolch: If there was a College Football Playoff for the offseason, DeShaun Foster would have his team in contention.
Name an aspect of program-building — assembling a staff, getting buy-in from players, recruiting, engaging fans, soliciting name, image and likeness dollars — and UCLA’s new coach has nailed it in his first months on the job.
Foster has rejuvenated the fan base, not to mention a roster that has mostly remained intact because of its belief in its coach. He’s courted donors in a way that his predecessor was unwilling to do. He’s aggressively pursued high school recruits in addition to transfers, who had formed the core of the team in recent years. He’s built a buzz around a faded brand that hasn’t gone to a major bowl game in a quarter of a century.
Can these early wins vault the Bruins to success in their inaugural Big Ten season? Impossible to say. But it’s apparent that Foster will take on challenges as fearlessly as he did defenders when he starred at running back for his alma mater’s last Rose Bowl team.
Here are four takeaways from UCLA’s first spring practice under Foster:
Top UCLA athletics fundraiser Josh Rebholz resigns after 13 years
VOLLEYBALL
From Thuc Nhi Nguyen: Top-seeded UCLA survived in a five-set thriller over UC Irvine in the NCAA semifinals Thursday at Long Beach’s Walter Pyramid, pulling away late in the fifth set to advance to the national championship game. The Bruins, who won 22-25, 25-20, 25-16, 18-25, 15-12, will try to defend their national championship on Saturday at 2 p.m. against No. 2 seed Long Beach State or No. 3 Grand Canyon.
Outside hitter Ethan Champlin led the Bruins (25-5) with 19 kills and 13 digs, scoring the match-winning kill off a three-man UC Irvine block. He outdueled UC Irvine star Hilir Henno, who had 22 kills, nine digs and an ace one day after he was named AVCA collegiate national player of the year.
KENTUCKY DERBY
From John Cherwa: Kentucky Derby 150, just like 149 and 148, will be run without trainer Bob Baffert, the most recognizable name in the sport, even to those who don’t follow it. And, for the first time, none of his horses were moved to other trainers, meaning the race won’t have all the best horses in it.
The overwhelming number of people who attend the Derby are not there to see a great horse race but attend an epic party with hats. But to those who do care about the racing, the sentiment of who is the villain and who is the victim may be shifting in the now three-year fight between Baffert and Churchill Downs.
“It’s very split, you’ve got half the people who say keep the ‘cheater’ out, we don’t want him,” said Louis Rabaut, host of Rabaut & Co. on ESPN Louisville radio and co-host of the Horse Racing Happy Hour. “The other half is, ‘We want the best horses here.’ It’s been long enough.
Resilience’s Kentucky Derby hopes carry a memory and a legacy
KINGS
From Kevin Baxter: The Kings season ended again Wednesday with a whimper not a bang.
It ended again in the first round of the NHL playoffs and again in a loss to the Edmonton Oilers, who have become for the Kings what kryptonite was for Superman.
The final score of the final game was 4-3, but that was just a bookkeeping detail because the series was over long before the final horn sounded. The Oilers outscored the Kings 22-13 in the five games, with nine of those goals coming in 19 chances on the power play. They didn’t concede a goal on the Kings’ 12 power-play opportunities.
Four Oilers — Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, Evan Bouchard and Zach Hyman — finished the series with at least eight points, twice as many as the Kings’ co-leaders, Quinton Byfield and Adrian Kempe. As beatdowns go, this one was about as one-sided as the Kings-Oilers playoff history has been in general.
And a third straight loss in the first round of the playoffs will undoubtedly lead to some offseason soul-searching for the Kings. Did interim coach Jim Hiller show enough in getting the team to the playoffs for general manager Rob Blake to remove the interim tag and give Hiller the permanent job? Will that even be Blake’s decision to make?
In Blake’s seven seasons in charge the Kings have made the playoffs four times, but never advanced beyond the opening round. When Blake fired coach Todd McLellan in February, he said a new voice was needed in the dressing room. Could the same now be true in the front office?
NHL PLAYOFFS SCHEDULE
First round
All times Pacific
Western Conference
C1 Dallas vs. WC2 Vegas
Vegas 4, at Dallas 3 (box score)
Vegas 3, at Dallas 1 (box score)
Dallas 3, at Vegas 2 (OT) (box score)
Dallas 4, at Vegas 2 (box score)
at Dallas 3, Vegas 2 (box score)
Friday at Vegas, 7 p.m., TNT
*Sunday at Dallas, TBD
C2 Winnipeg vs. C3 Colorado
at Winnipeg 7, Colorado 6 (box score)
Colorado 5, at Winnipeg 2 (box score)
at Colorado 6, Winnipeg 2 (box score)
at Colorado 5, Winnipeg 1 (box score)
Colorado 6, at Winnipeg 3 (box score)
P1 Vancouver vs. WC1 Nashville
at Vancouver 4, Nashville 2 (box score)
Nashville 4, at Vancouver 1 (box score)
Vancouver 2, at Nashville 1 (box score)
Vancouver 4, at Nashville 3 (OT) (box score)
Nashville 2, at Vancouver 1 (box score)
Friday at Nashville, 4 p.m., TNT
*Sunday at Vancouver, TBD
P2 Edmonton vs. P3 Kings
at Edmonton 7, Kings 4 (box score)
Kings 5, at Edmonton 4 (OT) (box score)
Edmonton 6, at Kings 1 (box score)
Edmonton 1, at Kings 0 (box score)
at Edmonton 4, Kings 3 (box score)
Eastern Conference
A1 Florida vs. WC1 Tampa Bay
at Florida 3, Tampa Bay 2 (box score)
at Florida 3, Tampa Bay 2 (OT) (box score)
Florida 5, at Tampa Bay 3 (box score)
at Tampa Bay 6, Florida 3 (box score)
at Florida 6, Tampa Bay 1 (box score)
A2 Boston vs. A3 Toronto
at Boston 5, Toronto 1 (box score)
Toronto 3, at Boston 2 (box score)
Boston 4, at Toronto 2 (box score)
Boston 3, at Toronto 1 (box score)
Toronto 2, at Boston 1 (OT) (box score)
at Toronto 2, Boston 1 (box score)
Saturday at Boston, 5 p.m., ESPN
M1 New York Rangers vs. WC2 Washington
at New York 4, Washington 1 (box score)
at New York 4, Washington 3 (box score)
New York 3, at Washington 1 (box score)
New York 4, at Washington 2 (box score)
M2 Carolina vs. M3 New York Islanders
at Carolina 3, New York 1 (box score)
at Carolina 5, New York 3 (box score)
Carolina 3, at New York 2 (box score)
at New York 3, Carolina 2 (2 OT) (box score)
at Carolina 6, NY Islanders 3 (box score)
*-if necessary
THIS DATE IN SPORTS
1902 — Alan-a-Dale wins the Kentucky Derby by a nose over Inventor, giving jockey Jimmy Winkfield his second straight Derby victory. Winkfield is the last Black rider to win the Kentucky Derby.
1936 — NY Yankee Joe DiMaggio makes his major-league debut, gets 3 hits.
1941 — Whirlaway, ridden by Eddie Arcaro, has an easy start to the Triple Crown with an eight-length victory over Staretor in the Kentucky Derby.
1977 — NFL Draft: Ricky Bell from USC first pick by Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
1979 — NFL Draft: Tom Cousineau from Ohio State first pick by Buffalo Bills.
1979 — Cleveland Indian Bobby Bonds hits his 300th HR (2nd to have 300 HRs & 300 stolen bases).
1980 — Genuine Risk, ridden by Jacinto Vasquez, becomes the second filly to win the Kentucky Derby, beating Rumbo by a length.
1986 — The 54-year-old Bill Shoemaker wins his fourth Kentucky Derby, riding long-shot Ferdinand to a last-to-first dash for a 2¼-length win over Bold Arrangement.
2003 — Funny Cide becomes the first gelding since Clyde Van Dusen in 1929 to win the Kentucky Derby.
2007 — Golden State is the first No. 8 seed to capture a best-of-seven playoff series with a 111-86 victory over the NBA-best Dallas Mavericks in Game 6.
2014 — California Chrome, ridden by Victor Espinoza, pulls away down the stretch for a dominant win at the 140th Kentucky Derby. The 5-2 favorite stretched his winning streak to five and Art Sherman becomes the oldest winning Derby trainer at 77.
2014 — Marian Gaborik scores with seven seconds left in regulation to force overtime, and then scores 12:07 into the extra period to lift the Kings to a 3-2 win against the Ducks in the opener of the first playoff series between the Southern California teams.
2018 — Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan becomes NFL’s first $30m per season player after agreeing to $150m contract extension.
2023 — Angels pitcher Shohei Ohtani joins Yankee legend Babe Ruth as only pitcher to strike out 500 batters and hit over 100 home runs in 6-4 over the Cardinals in St. Louis.
Compiled by the Associated Press
Until next time…
That concludes today’s newsletter. If you have any feedback, ideas for improvement or things you’d like to see, email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com, and follow me on Twitter at @latimeshouston. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.