USA TODAY

Biggest winners and losers of 2018 NBA draft

It's nearly impossible to declare outright winners and losers hours after the draft has concluded (if not years until players have fully developed), but there are stories and themes within the draft that qualify as positives and negatives.<p>What the Atlanta Hawks were able to pull off, with three …

Spurs acknowledge relationship with Leonard is fractured

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — General manager R.C. Buford is acknowledging star Kawhi Leonard is unhappy with the San Antonio Spurs.<p>He says the team remains optimistic it can salvage the relationship.<p>Leonard has reportedly requested a trade from San Antonio because he is unhappy with how the team handled a …

Spurs draft Miami guard Lonnie Walker, USC big man Metu

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Lonnie Walker IV has simple goals for his rookie season in the NBA.<p>Walker wants to work hard, do whatever Gregg Popovich asks of him, win and learn about the world outside of basketball.<p>The 6-foot-4 shooting guard out of Miami found the perfect landing spot with San Antonio and …

Rockets get USC's Melton, Purdue's Edwards on draft night

HOUSTON (AP) — The Houston Rockets believe they got a steal by adding Southern California's De'Anthony Melton with the 46th pick in the NBA Draft on Thursday night — and they aren't worried about his off-court headlines.<p>Melton was drafted by the Rockets following a season in which he was ruled …

Steal of the draft? Nuggets may have hit the jackpot with Michael Porter Jr.

NEW YORK – Michael Porter Jr. has top-5 talent. But as the picks were unveiled Thursday at the NBA draft – No. 1, No. 2, No. 3. No. 4, No. 5 – Porter didn’t hear his name, slipping deeper and deeper into the middle of the first round.<p>On Wednesday, Porter said, “If I get drafted 15th, it’s going to …

Puma, pizza and suit shorts: Best soundbites from the NBA draft

Explore four scenic distilleries in the U.K.

Rachel Barrie, master blender for Scotch distilleries BenRiach, The GlenDronach and Glenglassaugh, leads a tasting in what is quite possibly the most perfect setting imaginable for such a thing. She stands just outside of the Glenglassaugh stillhouse on a grassy lawn overlooking the northeastern …

Brown-Forman's Scotch distilleries and Speyside Cooperage

The BenRiach distillery is in Scotland’s Speyside region, an area that’s home to many of the country’s distilleries, as well as a great deal of farmland. Jonah Flicker, for USA TODAY<p>BenRiach is more of a working distillery than a tourist destination, and there is no real visitor center, but whisky …

Slane Irish Whiskey

The historic Slane Castle has been in the Conyngham family since the early 1700s. The castle is open to tours, and private events like weddings can be booked there. Jonah Flicker, for USA TODAY<p>The grounds behind the castle along the River Boyne are where the Slane Concert Series takes place once a …

Thunder take Hall with 53rd pick, Hervey with 57th

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — The Oklahoma City Thunder took Virginia's Devon Hall with the 53rd overall selection in the NBA Draft on Thursday night and Texas-Arlington forward Kevin Hervey four picks later.<p>Hall, a 6-foot-5 guard, averaged 11.7 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game last season for …

Orlando drafts 7-footer Bamba out of Texas with sixth pick

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — The NBA draft featured several big men on Thursday night, and the biggest was Mohamed Bamba.<p>The Orlando Magic drafted the 20-year-old center with the sixth overall pick. The young man from New York City who played one year at Texas joins a team that went 25-57 last season and …

Michael Porter Jr. drops in NBA draft, picked up by Nuggets

NEW YORK (AP) — The first time Michael Porter Jr. actually talked to anyone from the Denver Nuggets was Thursday at the NBA draft. He didn't think there was any need, and neither did the Nuggets.<p>The fact that he was available at No. 14 surprised both parties, regardless of Porter's well-documented …

Knicks select Kentucky's Kevin Knox with No. 9 pick

GREENBURGH, N.Y. (AP) — When New York Knicks president Steve Mills and the basketball operations department studied their roster and the players available to them in the NBA draft, they came to the same conclusions.<p>The Knicks lacked talent, and needed a player with the flexibility to play in …

LEADING OFF: Herrera on home run roll, D-backs bashing Bucs

A look at what's happening around the majors Friday:<p>PACKING A PUNCH<p>Odubel Herrera tries to homer in his fifth straight game when the Phillies begin a three-game series at Washington. "What he's doing is special," Philadelphia manager Gabe Kapler said. "It's elite." Herrera is batting .419 (13 for …

Pistons draft Miami's Brown, trade for Creighton's Thomas

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. (AP) — With their first-round pick gone after the trade for Blake Griffin, the Detroit Pistons tried to make the best of a tough situation on draft night.<p>The Pistons selected Bruce Brown of Miami in the second round Thursday and traded for the rights to second-round pick Khyri …

Kings select Duke's Marvin Bagley III with 2nd overall pick

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Marvin Bagley III was adamant that he was the best player going into the draft and was quick to share that opinion when asked. The former Duke star wasn't backing down after being taken by the Sacramento Kings with the second overall selection, either.<p>"That's just the type …

Celtics pick Texas A&M's Robert Williams in NBA draft

BOSTON (AP) — Power forward Robert Williams was projected to be a lottery pick — and that was last year, after his freshman year at Texas A&M.<p>But there he was, sliding down to the Boston Celtics at the 27th pick in the NBA draft Thursday night.<p>"It's not my job to know what the other 26 teams are …

Suter goes 7, Brewers beat error-prone Cardinals 11-3

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Brent Suter turned a quick mistake into a big win over the St. Louis Cardinals.<p>The left-hander pitched seven strong innings, Manny Pina homered and the Milwaukee Brewers capitalized on a season-high four errors by St. Louis in an 11-3 victory Thursday night.<p>Suter (8-4) retired 12 …

Today in History for June 22nd

Nets go abroad, grab Musa and Kurucs in NBA draft

NEW YORK (AP) — The Brooklyn Nets have been creative in their attempt to start from scratch after selling away the future of the franchise five years ago hunting for a championship that never came.<p>Two months after capping a third straight losing season, the Nets hope their latest acquisitions might …

Netflix grants fans' wish by renewing 'Dear White People' for Season 3

"Dear White People" fans will get to return to Winchester University for another year, as Netflix Thursday renewed the satirical series for a third season.<p>Fittingly, the news arrived via video from the series narrator, Giancarlo Esposito.<p>First, text filled the gray screen: "Incoming transmission …

Warriors take Cincinnati's Jacob Evans with 28th pick

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Jacob Evans drew the attention of the Golden State Warriors as much for his defense as his versatility.<p>"He's a serious player," Warriors GM Bob Myers said Thursday night after making the 6-foot-6 Cincinnati wing player their first-round pick with the 28th overall selection. …

Blazers take guard Anfernee Simons with 24th pick

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — The Portland Trail Blazers acquired two guards during Thursday's NBA draft, landing IMG Academy's Anfernee Simons and Duke's Gary Trent Jr.<p>Simons was the 24th pick of the draft. Portland got Trent after acquiring the rights to the 37th pick by trading two future second-round …

'Womp, womp': Speaker's bureau dumps Lewandowski after he mocks migrant with Down syndrome

Former Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski suffered some financial fallout for appearing to snidely dismiss a migrant girl with Down syndrome during an appearance on Fox News.<p>Leading Authorities Inc., a Washington, D.C., firm that specializes in landing political figures speaking gigs, dropped …

Donovan Mitchell gave his new Jazz teammate Grayson Allen a huge hug

While Grayson Allen was talking to <i>ESPN</i> after the Jazz picked him at No. 21 in the 2018 NBA draft, Donovan Mitchell approached the new rookie to welcome him to the team with a huge hug.<p>Oh, how things have changed within the past year. In January of 2017, Allen got smacked in the face by Mitchell …

Marte, Avila power Diamondbacks over Pirates 9-3

PITTSBURGH (AP) — The Arizona Diamondbacks didn't waste any time breaking this game open.<p>Ketel Marte and Alex Avila each hit two-run homers and the Diamondbacks scored eight runs in the first three innings to power their way to a 9-3 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Thursday night.<p>"We just …

Extinct gibbon discovered in an ancient tomb. It might have been a pet.

A previously unknown genus of gibbon may be the first ape species to be driven to extinction by humans, according to a new report published in <i>Science</i> magazine.<p>The publication says the tomb of a Chinese noblewoman contained the skull and jaw of gibbon unlike any species previously known.<p>That has led …

Lakers land German big man Moritz Wagner with 1st-round pick

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. (AP) — Moritz Wagner grew up in Berlin dreaming of an NBA career, and he went all the way to Michigan to chase it.<p>The German big man will get his chance with the Los Angeles Lakers.<p>The Lakers chose Wagner with the 25th pick in the NBA draft Thursday night, adding the versatile …

Timberwolves take Georgia Tech G Josh Okogie with 20th pick

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The Minnesota Timberwolves could have used their draft picks in deals to help clear space under the salary cap for potential free agent additions next month.<p>They needed some high-ceiling young players just as much.<p>Opting against any deals, the Timberwolves selected Georgia Tech …

WikiLeaks says it published ICE employees' LinkedIn profiles

Professional information and LinkedIn profiles of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement employees were published in a searchable online database by WikiLeaks, the organization said Thursday.<p>"ICEPatrol" appeared to provide professional information and profiles from the professional social …