Sports Minute for Thursday, July 2, 2026

Recently, Boston Celtics guard Jaylen Brown was traded to his rival Philadelphia 76ers for Paul George, along with two first-round picks (2028, 2031) and two second-round selections (2028, 2030). This deal can't be officially announced until Monday. 

"I'm still processing how this all went down. I'm excited and disappointed at the same time," Brown said in a statement on social media. "I earned my respect from this city. I never asked for shortcuts or special treatment. I simply showed up every day, put my head down, and accepted every challenge". 

Last season, Brown had a career season in which he finished sixth in MVP voting and was a second-team All-NBA selection after averaging 28.7 points, 6.9 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game. The five-time All-Star was the 2024 Eastern Conference finals and NBA Finals MVP while leading the Celtics to the 18th title in franchise history. 

One of the all-time greats Alex Ovechkin, the NHL's career leader in goals, has decided to return for the 2026-27 season, his 22nd with the Washington Capitals. 

Ovechkin's new deal carries a $1 million base salary and a $3.25 million signing bonus. He could earn an additional $4.75 million dollar bonus if he plays at least 10 games, which would increase his total salary to $9 million dollars. 

Last year, Ovechkin had 32 goals and 32 assists while playing in all 82 games. He finished the season with 929 career goals in 1,573 games, passing Wayne Gretzky for the most regular-season goals in NHL history.

The United States men's soccer team defeated Bosnia and Herzegovina by the final score of 2-0. This win will move the Americans to the round of 16 to play against Belgium on Monday evening from Seattle. United States now have three wins and one loss in World Cup Play. It was the Americans' first knockout stage victory in a World Cup since 2002. 

United States played a portion of the second half shorthanded after Folarin Balogun picked up a red card in the sixty-fourth minute during a controversial petty call by the officials. Now, Balogun has to sit out of the next game against Belgium on Monday. Belgium made a huge comeback against Senegal earlier in the day, going to extra time, winning by the final score of 3-2. 

A goal was scored by the United States coming from Balogun in the forty-fifth minute to give the Americans a 1-0 advantage at the halftime break. In the sixty-fourth minute, Balogun received a red card and had to leave the game. This then left the United States one player short, down to ten men for the remainder of the game. 

The Americans fought down the stretch being a man short on the field. During the eighty-second minute, Malik Tillman scored the teams second goal of the game. This helped put the contest out of reach, advancing the Americans to the next round of the knockout stage.  

LeBron James has his short list down to the Golden State Warriors, Cleveland Cavaliers and Miami Heat. There are possibly other known suitors for James, who is expected to take his time before deciding on the next destination to continue his historic 23-year career. Since the Jaylen Brown trade, James all of a sudden wants to join the 76ers as well.  

Wherever James decides to go, it will be determined on where he can win. History has shown that James can't win a NBA Championship without a team of All-Stars. 

Past players like Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, and Larry Bird won their championships spending most if not all of their NBA careers with the same team along with key role players. Those three did not jump ship and go to multiple clubs to get a championship. They won with the team that drafted them.