Youth is served. With the NBA and NHL seasons over, both leagues are looking to the future as they held their drafts last week. The NBA and NHL also gave out their post-season awards, and the NHL’s top player is a pup…only 20 years old.
National Basketball Association (NBA)
Rapper turned actor and Toronto Raptors mega-fan Drake hosted the first annual NBA Awards Monday night. To nobody’s surprise Oklahoma City guard Russell Westbrook took home MVP honors. He averaged a triple-double (double figures in points, rebounds and assists) for the season, something accomplished only once in NBA history.
Source: ESPN
To be 19 and wealthy…The Philadelphia 76ers chose University of Washington’s freshman guard Marquelle Fultz number one overall in last week’s NBA Draft. The Los Angeles Lakers followed by selecting another Freshman UCLA’s Lonzo Ball (an outcome predicted by his outspoken father) while the Boston Celtics picked yet another one-year college player in Duke’s Jayson Tatum.
All in all, 16 of the 30 first round selections (all newly minted millionaires), were college freshman. The future stars showed off their wardrobe skills as well. #LookingGoog #YouthIsServed #OneAndDone
Source: CBS News
National Hockey League (NHL)
The NHL mirrors the NBA this time of year. With the season over, hockey had a busy week awarding its MVP and holding its annual draft. Was there a common theme? Yes. Youth.
Connor McDavid, at the ripe old age of 20, was awarded the NHL MVP. McDavid turned around the fortunes of a struggling Edmonton Oilers franchise and is the youngest MVP since his idol Sidney Crosby won in 2007.
Source: Las Vegas Journal Review
It turns out that the Swiss don’t just make watches and chocolate. You can add hockey players to that list. The New Jersey Devils selected Nico Hischier a center playing in Halifax, Nova Scotia, first overall in the NHL Draft. The 18-year-old is the highest drafted Swiss-born player ever. Rolex or Patek Phillippe as a signing gift to himself?
Hockey in the heat? In an unlikely pairing, professional hockey is expanding to Sin City. The Las Vegas Golden Knights will begin playing this season and started filling out their roster last week via the draft.
Major League Baseball (MLB)
The hottest team in baseball is the Los Angeles Dodgers. La La Land’s squad won 11 games in a row to reclaim the National League West lead. The Dodgers are lead by young stud Corey Seager (age 23) and rookie sensation Cody Bellinger (age 21). #YoungAndYounger
Source: Fan Rag Sports
At only 25, New York Yankees rookie outfielder Aaron Judge continues to amaze. He ranks at the top of the American League “triple crown” categories: Bating Average, Home Runs and Runs Balled In.
In a reminder that there are still some veteran baseball players out there, Miami Marlins’ Ichiro Suzuki, 43, became the oldest player to start a game in center field (one of the more demanding positions in baseball).
Tennis
Wimbledon starts Monday and London will be decked out in white for a couple weeks.
With 22-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams pregnant and sitting this one out (she won the Australian Open in January while prego), the tournament will have a new Women’s singles and doubles champion. Williams is preparing to have her first child but was sucked into a sparring match on social media with former Men’s tennis great John McEnroe.
In the Men’s draw, Andy Murray, the world’s number one ranked player, is the top seed. Roger Federer is still going strong and with another Wimbledon victory, R Fed would pull him ahead of Pete Sampras for a record eighth Wimbledon title.
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