Friday Roundup: Thunder advance, Knicks stay alive, Stanley Cup rematch, and more
By Tyler Reed
I hate to be the old guy with the terrible icebreaker, but can you believe we are already in the last week of May in 2025?
Yes, we've already hit the unofficial start to summer, and the sports calendar is blessing us before we're stuck watching baseball all summer.
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We've got plenty to discuss as it comes to the NBA postseason and a familiar Stanley Cup matchup. Here is your Friday Roundup.
Superior Favorite
It was clear when the Western Conference Finals began that the Oklahoma City Thunder were better than the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Five games later, and the Thunder are flexing their muscles as champions of the Western Conference. This team has been the superior team all postseason, and it may not even matter who wins the Eastern Conference Finals. The Thunder are on a mission.
It Ain't Over
There was a chance that the Eastern Conference Finals would also end in five games; however, the New York Knicks were not ready to go to Cancun.
The Knicks put up a dominating performance in Game 5, meaning they will now head back to Indianapolis on Saturday in hopes of bringing this classic series back to Madison Square Garden for an all-time Game 7.
Here We Go Again
NHL fans are being treated to a rematch of last year's Stanley Cup Final between the Edmonton Oilers and the Florida Panthers.
The Panthers got the best of the Oilers last season. However, with the entire nation of Canada on their back once again this season, can Conor McDavid and the explosive Oilers offense bring the cup back to a nation starving to see it once again?
Can I also just point out how hilarious it is that hockey in Florida has been beyond dominant this past decade? Get yourself together, Canada!
Year Two
This past week, EA Sports gave fans a taste of College Football 26 with a trailer release and a first look at the cover of the game.
It's hard to believe that it has almost been a year since I turned the Marshall Thundering Herd into a national powerhouse. Maybe it is time to take my talents elsewhere when the game is released on July 10th.
It's A No From Me Dawg
NCAA president Charlie Baker got all of college basketball's attention with his comments that the league is more than likely expanding the Men's NCAA Tournament.
The NCAA's quest to ruin college sports continues to march on. However, for someone like Jon Rothstein, who loves the sport of college basketball, isn't ready to go down without a fight.
Rothstein is ready to protest the move to expand the tournament if the conversations continue to happen. I've never been to New York City, but this news has me ready to take the next bus from Kentucky, if that's a thing.
A Gift To Sports Media
The NBA on TNT will finish up its long run of covering the sport at the end of the Eastern Conference Finals.
However, Charles Barkley and the gang are continuing to pump out viral moments. While covering Game 5 of the ECF, Barkley could not believe where the TNT gang was seated for the big game.
After the Knicks' impressive Game 5 victory over the Pacers, Karl-Anthony Towns went on the chopping block with Barkley and Shaquille O'Neal.
The TNT duo were pretty stern with Towns on his ability to pick up pointless fouls in every game. Of course, in typical Barkley fashion, this conversation turned to Towns having the best-looking feet in the NBA. Please don't ruin this crew, ESPN.
New Look Luka
It's been rumored, mainly because the Dallas Mavericks can't officially call a former player fat, that one of the reasons the team traded Luka Doncic was because of his conditioning.
However, if recent photos are any indication, Doncic may have heard the noise surrounding that issue. I think I speak for everyone when I say Doncic winning a title with the Los Angeles Lakers would be one of the most satisfying watches for any sports fan.
Would You Look At That
It may have taken five rounds for Shedeur Sanders to hear his name called during the 2025 NFL Draft. However, no one can deny his popularity.
In what is probably the first time in history that a fifth-round pick has led rookie jersey sales, Sanders leads all players from the 2025 class. A top jersey seller that may not even dress for Week 1, this is a win no matter how you look at it.
Little Ditty About Pat McAfee
The series between the Pacers and Knicks has been absolute cinema. Fans have watched Oscar-worthy actor Timothee Chalamet turn into a New York version of Jack Nicholson, and Ben Stiller have a little beef with Indiana's top darling, Pat McAfee.
McAfee was given the mic during Game 4, and the big dog let his WWE side come out, as he dropped a scathing promo on Stiller and the Knicks fans in attendance. Evidently, John Mellencamp doesn't like fun, and allowed his comments to blow out of proportion.
Making this a big deal is just as bad as the conversations we all had over Caitlin Clark's foul on Angel Reese. What happened to the games we loved?
Tis The Season
It's one of the best times of the year for someone like me who cannot take their shirt off this summer due to their stomach bursting out of the bottom of their shirt.
Restaurants are unveiling all of their peach-flavored goodness as we enter the summer months. Chick-fil-A recently announced that their Peach Milkshake and Peach Frosted Lemonade will be available on June 9th.
I prayed for times like these.
That's it for your Friday Roundup. However, I wanted to melt your mind before we part on what is hopefully a glorious weekend for everyone.
Listen, I don't make the rules for what becomes the song of any summer. Most of the time, it is a song that makes me want to slam my head against a wall.
This summer, my Spidey Senses are giving me that strange feeling once again. If you told any millennial 15 years ago that Rascal Flatts lead singer Gary LeVox and Akon would drop a song called 'Hold The Umbrella', and it would have the nation in a stranglehold, they would call you crazy.
However, this is what is happening in the year of 2025. I hate listened to the song a time or two. Now, I could see myself drinking cocktails by a pool in Key West, loving every minute of this disaster that my ears are hearing. I'm sorry to announce this, but we have a front-runner for song of the summer. Have a good one, folks!