CNN
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Dallas Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison admitted that he miscalculated the popularity of Luka Dončić among the team’s fanbase before the shocking trade with the Los Angeles Lakers in February.

The NBA world was stunned when Dončić was traded from the Mavericks to the Lakers in one of the most shocking transactions in recent history, despite the Slovenian superstar being the face of the Mavs and in his basketball prime.

Harrison has faced vehement backlash from Dallas fans in the aftermath of the trade, with many calling for him to be fired. The 52-year-old has consistently defended the move, but on Monday admitted that the love for Dončić from Mavs fans did come as a surprise to him.

“I did know that Luka was important to the fanbase,” Harrison told reporters during his season-ending news conference. “I didn’t quite know to what level.”

While Dončić went to Los Angeles in the blockbuster trade, the Mavs received 10-time All-Star Anthony Davis as the main piece in return with the hopes of transforming the team into a defensive juggernaut.

But since the transaction, the team has faced severe injury issues, with Davis missing a large portion of the season and Kyrie Irving suffering a torn ACL shortly afterwards.

After the trade and as a result of the slew of injuries, Dallas dropped down the Western Conference standings before just eking into the play-in tournament as the 10th seed. The team would win its first game before being eliminated in its second.

That has only brought even more pressure on Harrison, with fans heard chanting “Fire Nico” at Mavericks home games since the trade.

But Harrison remains staunch in his belief that Dallas has the makings of a winning team despite their season being over.

“We feel that’s a championship-caliber team and we would have been winning at a high level and that would have quieted some of the outrage,” Harrison said, adding that being healthy is the only thing keeping the team from challenging for a title. “And so unfortunately we weren’t able to do that, so it just continued to go on and on.”

The move was made more difficult to swallow for Mavs fans given the Lakers’ success since Dončić moved to California, with the team booking its spot in the playoffs and rounding into a serious title contender.

Dončić was given a hero’s welcome when he returned to American Airlines Center for the first time earlier this month, with fans chanting his name throughout and Dončić himself overcome with emotions at the pre-game tribute video that was played.

The 26-year-old told ESPN recently that he threw and cracked his phone when he first heard about the trade, adding that he felt “sadness mostly” and that he “felt like my heart was broken, honestly.”

CNN
 — 

Kenya’s Sharon Lokedi won a thrilling battle over compatriot and two-time defending champion Hellen Obiri at the Boston Marathon, smashing the course record in the process.

Lokedi surged away from her rival in the closing stages and crossed the line in 2:17:22 – more than two and a half minutes faster than Buzunesh Deba’s previous record from 2014.

It was Lokedi’s second major marathon victory having triumphed in New York in 2022, while also avenging her runner-up finish to Obiri at last year’s race.

“I’m always second to her and today I was like: There’s no way,” the 31-year-old said. “I just have to put it out there and fight till the end and see how it goes. I’m so glad I ran that fast and she was right behind me. We all fought and wanted this so bad.”

Ethiopia’s Yalemzerf Yehualaw was third in 2:18:06, still well inside the old course record.

The lead group set off at a blistering pace, passing through the halfway mark in 1:08:46. The race started to thin out in the hilly latter stages, eventually leaving only Lokedi and Obiri to battle for the victory.

“We went through halfway in 68 minutes and I thought: That’s so fast! We hadn’t got to the hills yet,” said Lokedi. “We just kept the pace honest, but I was worried we were going too fast.”

In the men’s race, Kenyan John Korir pulled clear from the lead pack around mile 20 to take a commanding victory in a time of 2:04:45.

Tanzania’s Alphonce Simbu outsprinted Kenya’s Cyprian Kotut to finish second, crossing the line 19 seconds behind Korir, while American Conner Mantz narrowly missed out on a podium place in fourth.

The 28-year-old Korir follows in the footsteps of his brother Wesley, who took the title in Boston 13 years ago. The pair embraced at the finish line as they celebrated becoming the first siblings ever to win the race.

“I expected him there (at the finish line). I had promised him that I am going to win and I made it,” Korir told ESPN, adding: “Today I will make jokes with him because I am the fastest in the family. He had a title for Boston in the family but now I’ve got it.”

The reigning Chicago Marathon champion had to overcome a difficult start in Boston when he fell in the first 50 meters and lost his race number from the front of his singlet. However, he soon managed to pick himself up and catch up with the lead runners.

The stumble didn’t seem to faze Korir during the race as he built a big lead over the field in the last six miles, not long after defending champion Sisay Lemma of Ethiopia had pulled out.

In the wheelchair races, Switzerland’s seven-time Paralympic champion Marcel Hug won his eighth title in Boston, while USA’s Susannah Scaroni claimed her second having also triumphed in 2023.

This story has been updated with additional reporting.

CNN
 — 

Max Verstappen opted to bite his lip rather than speak his mind following a controversial decision that cost him the win at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix on Sunday.

The four-time world champion finished second behind Australian driver Oscar Piastri after being hit with a five-second time penalty for leaving the track during a dramatic first-corner incident.

Verstappen had started on pole, but Piastri got a far better start and had his nose in front heading to the first corner. As the pair battled for the lead, Verstappen cut across a chicane which the race stewards deemed had given him an unfair advantage.

The Red Bull driver, who gave a sarcastic response over the radio when told about the punishment during the race, was clearly frustrated but said he didn’t want to comment about the incident due to new rules brought in by the sport’s governing body which seeks to prevent drivers from criticising the organization.

“The problem is that I cannot share my opinion about it because I might get penalized,” Verstappen told reporters. “So it’s better not to speak about it.

“I think it’s better not to talk about it. Anything I say or try to say about it, it might get me in trouble.”

When asked whether he was frustrated with having to keep quiet on such issues, Verstappen said “it’s just the world we live in.”

He added: “You can’t share fully your opinion because it’s not appreciated, apparently, or people can’t handle the full truth.

“For me, honestly, it’s better for me if I don’t need to say too much, it also saves my time because we already have to do so much.

“It’s honestly just how everything is becoming. Everyone is super sensitive about everything. And then, of course, what we have currently, we cannot be critical anyway. So, that’s fine, less talking, even better for me.”

Verstappen was referring to FIA’s latest Sporting Code which includes a new rule forbidding: “Any words, deeds or writings that have caused moral injury or loss to the FIA.”

Drivers can be banned 10,000 euros ($11,300) for the first offense, but can be suspended for a month and docked championship points for repeatedly breaching the new rule.

While Verstappen held his tongue, Red Bull’s team principal Christian Horner said the decision was “tough” to take.

“I don’t know where Max was supposed to go in that first corner,” he told Sky Sports.

FIA published its reasons for handing Verstappen a penalty on its website, stating he “left the track and gained a lasting advantage that was not given back.”

It added: “Ordinarily, the baseline penalty for leaving the track and gaining a lasting advantage is 10 seconds. However, given that this was lap one and turn one incident, we considered that to be a mitigating circumstance and imposed a 5 second time penalty instead.”

It’s the latest setback in what has been a turbulent season so far for Red Bull and Verstappen – with the driver having to dismiss rumors that he could leave the team.

The 27-year-old has been openly critical of the car’s performance in recent weeks but was at least buoyed by a distinct improvement in Saudi Arabia which saw him able to compete with his rivals.

Verstappen, though, still sits third in the standings, two points behind Lando Norris and 12 behind the current leader Piastri.