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From Bill Plaschke: This is crazy. This could work.
This is loud and turbulent and fraught with unending drama and unceasing peril. This could work.
I was stunned by the Thursday morning news that the Lakers have targeted college basketball’s best coach to become their next coach.
I also really, really, really loved it.
Danny Hurley? The UConn coach who just led his team to college basketball’s first back-to-back championship in 17 years?
No brainer. No question. No more looking. If the Lakers really think they can get him, they need to go get him.
A hardscrabble gym rat who could develop a new culture, instill a timeless work ethic, and shape a complete team that would thrive around Anthony Davis and excel long after LeBron James?
What’s not to like? What are they waiting for?
In a stunner, Lakers set to pursue UConn’s Dan Hurley for head coaching position
Who is Dan Hurley? Everything you need to know about the Lakers coaching candidate
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DODGERS
From Jack Harris: The question was inevitable, even if Dave Roberts found the narrative overly convenient.
After a blistering start to the season offensively, Dodgers star Mookie Betts had cooled in recent weeks. Entering Thursday, Betts was in a one-for-25 slump. He was batting .236 with a mediocre .685 OPS in his last 32 games since April 29. His underrated power had disappeared, too, after hitting only four home runs in his previous 54 games.
So, Roberts was asked Thursday afternoon, was Betts’ workload as an everyday shortstop — the position he switched to this spring for the first time in his MLB career — affecting his production at the plate?
No, the manager claimed, adamantly.
“I think the lazy, easy answer is [that his recent struggles are] because of his workload at shortstop,” Roberts bemoaned. “I think this is one of those situations where the world would wait for Mookie to start not staying hot, and say that’s why.”
A few hours later, Betts quieted that narrative — for one night, at least.
In an 11-7 win that kept the Dodgers from getting swept by the Pittsburgh Pirates, Betts led the way offensively by recording two hits, reaching base four times and, most of all, smacking a three-run home run in a six-run fifth inning, helping the Dodgers pull away in what was a back-and-forth battle early on
ANGELS
From Steve Henson: It’s been nearly five years since Angels pitcher Tyler Skaggs died of an accidental overdose of oxycodone pills laced with fentanyl in a Texas hotel room. Yet the impact of the tragedy and revelations during the ensuing trial of Angels employee Eric Kay that Skaggs and several other players were supplied with opioids is still being felt.
Major League Baseball announced this week that its emergency medical procedures now require that naloxone be stored in clubhouses, weight rooms, dugouts and umpire dressing rooms at all major league and minor league ballparks. Also, all certified athletic trainers will be equipped with naloxone when teams travel.
Naloxone, also known by the brand name Narcan, is an antidote for opioid poisoning. Most often administered as a nasal spray, naloxone finds and replaces opioid receptors, binding stronger than the opioid and effectively blocking it.
NBA FINALS
Jaylen Brown scored 22 points, Kristaps Porzingis added 20 in his first game in more than a month and the Boston Celtics powered past the Dallas Mavericks 107-89 on Thursday night in Game 1 of the NBA Finals.
Derrick White finished with 15 points for Boston, which led by 29 points in the first half and connected on 16 three-pointers as it began its quest for an 18th NBA title.
Porzingis, who had been sidelined since April 29 with a strained right calf, came off the bench and provided an immediate spark, adding six rebounds and three blocks in 21 minutes. Six Celtics finished in double figures.
Schedule and results
All times Pacific
Boston Celtics vs. Dallas Mavericks
at Boston 107, Dallas 89 (box score)
Sunday at Boston, 5 p.m., ABC
Wednesday at Dallas, 5:30 p.m., ABC
Friday at Dallas, 5:30 p.m., ABC
*Monday, June 17 at Boston, 5:30 p.m., ABC
*Thursday, June 20 at Dallas, 5:30 p.m., ABC
*Sunday, June 23, at Boston, 5 p.m., ABC
*-if necessary
NFL
From Sam Farmer: Did the NFL conspire to put the squeeze on its biggest fans, driving up the price of DirecTV’s Sunday Ticket package so subscribers would be forced to pay top dollar to watch the full array of Sunday games?
That’s what the plaintiffs contend in a class-action lawsuit that got underway Thursday in a federal courtroom in Los Angeles, the culmination of a nine-year legal odyssey. The case began in 2015 when a San Francisco pub called the Mucky Duck filed a complaint about how the league handles its out-of-market broadcasts.
The allegation is the NFL colluded with network partners CBS and Fox, along with DirecTV, and controlled the pricing of Sunday Ticket to ensure it remained expensive, thereby violating antitrust law.
The class action was filed on behalf of more than 2.4 million residential subscribers and more than 48,000 restaurants, bars and other commercial establishments that show the games.
Among those expected to testify either in person or virtually are NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones and New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft.
Shaikin: An NFL trial kicks off today. How it could impact baseball’s streaming future
TV SERIES ABOUT CLIPPERS
The new Hulu series “Clipped” offers a dramatic look back at the Donald Sterling scandal, during which recordings by V. Stiviano exposed the former Clippers owner’s racist remarks and triggered explosive fallout.
Times writers Ben Bolch, Bill Plaschke and Dan Woike covered the Sterling saga and help us fact check the new show. Plaschke had a brief cameo in the show, which was based on Ramona Shelburne’s ESPN podcast series.
NHL PLAYOFFS SCHEDULE
All times Pacific
Stanley Cup Final
Florida Panthers vs. Edmonton Oilers
Saturday at Florida, 5 p.m., ESPN
Monday at Florida, 5 p.m., ESPN
Thursday at Edmonton, 5 p.m., ESPN,
Saturday June 15 at Edmonton, 5 p.m., ESPN
*Tuesday, June 18 at Florida, 5 p.m., ESPN
*Friday, June 21 at Edmonton, 5 p.m., ESPN
*Monday, June 24 at Florida, TB5 p.m.D, ESPN
*-if necessary
THIS DATE IN SPORTS
1930 — Gallant Fox, ridden by Earle Sande, wins the Belmont Stakes by three lengths over Whichone, becoming the second horse to capture the Triple Crown.
1941 — Whirlaway, ridden by Eddie Arcaro, becomes the fifth horse to win the Triple Crown by capturing the Belmont Stakes by 2½ lengths over Robert Morris.
1978 — The Washington Bullets beat the Seattle SuperSonics 105-99 in Game 7 to win the NBA Championship.
1989 — Wayne Gretzky wins his 9th NHL Hart (MVP) Trophy in 10 years.
1997 — Stanley Cup Final, Joe Louis Arena, Detroit, MI: Detroit Red Wings edge Philadelphia Flyers, 2-1 for a 4-0 series sweep; 8th title in Wings’ franchise history and first since 1955.
1998 — Utah breaks the record for fewest points in an NBA game since the inception of the shot clock, losing 96-54 to Chicago in Game 3 of the NBA Finals. It’s the highest margin of victory in NBA Finals history. Utah’s 54 points break the NBA-record of 55 set earlier in the season by Indiana.
2004 — Ruslan Fedotenko scores twice, including the critical first goal, and the resilient Tampa Bay Lightning hold off the Calgary Flames 2-1 in Game 7 to win their first Stanley Cup.
2009 — Roger Federer completes a career Grand Slam, winning his first French Open title. Federer wins his 14th major title to tie Pete Sampras’ record by sweeping surprise finalist Robin Soderling 6-1, 7-6 (1), 6-4.
2014 — French Open Women’s Tennis: Maria Sharapova of Russia wins her 5th Grand Slam singles title; beats Romanian Simona Halep 6-4, 6-7, 6-4.
2014 — Miguel Cotto becomes the first Puerto Rican fighter to win world championships in four weight divisions, stopping Sergio Martinez in their WBC world middleweight title fight. Martinez doesn’t get off the stool when the bell rings for the 10th round.
2018 — The Washington Capitals raise the Stanley Cup for the first time in franchise history after a 4-3 victory over the Vegas Golden Knights in Game 5 of the finals.
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.