A pint-sized secret weapon

The GIST: Love it or hate it, the NBA Play-In Tournament delivered with last night’s thrilling Western Conference (WC) tip-off, giving way to tonight’s Eastern Conference (EC) double-header. Nothing like high-stakes hoops.

How it works: The top six teams in each conference already punched their playoff tickets, but the Play-In tourney gives the seventh- through 10th-placed squads a chance to earn a spot.

• The winners of the No. 7 vs. No. 8 games clinch the No. 7 seed in their conference, but the losers face the winners of the No. 9 vs. No. 10 matchups to decide the No. 8 spots. Living for the chaos.

Last night’s WC recap: LeBron James and the No. 8 LA Lakers topped the No. 7 New Orleans Pelicans 110–106, earning the No. 7 seed and a first-round showdown with the No. 2 Denver Nuggets…who swept them in the 2023 Western Conference Finals. *gulp*

• And come Friday, the Pels will face the No. 9 Sacramento Kings for the WC No. 8 spot after the Kings topped the Golden State Warriors 118–94. Revenge is best served in the play-in.

EC Preview — No. 8 Miami Heat vs. No. 7 Philadelphia 76ers — Tonight at 7 p.m. ET: The Sixers’ success hinges on one man’s knee health, but if reigning MVP Joel Embiid (pronounced jo-ELL em-BEAD) plays at full strength, Philly could dominate.

• That said, no one loves to defy the odds as much as the Heat, who fought their way from the 2023 Play-In to the Finals behind Playoff Jimmy Butler.

EC Preview — No. 10 Atlanta Hawks vs. No. 9 Chicago Bulls — Tonight at 9:30 p.m. ET: Chicago’s seen this film before, winning their first 2023 play-in game, but experience aside, the Bulls have struggled with consistency all season, much like…the Hawks.

So despite Chicago’s three regular season wins over Atlanta, this match feels like a toss up, especially with the Hawks’ Trae Young back on the floor. Will Chicago break out their pint-sized secret weapon? Only time will tell.

The GIST: With the men’s first of four majors done and dusted, it’s time for the women to take center stage with The Chevron Championship — the first of five women’s majors — teeing off from The Club at Carlton Woods in Texas tomorrow morning.

The purse: This year’s prize pool is a whopping $7.9M, an increase of $4.8M over the last three years thanks to Chevron’s title sponsorship. Golfers who miss the cut will receive $10K, the highest missed-cut stipend on tour.

• These increases have helped the total season’s prize pool reach a record $118M. Women’s sports is a good investment after all.

Players to watch: All eyes will be on American and world No. 1 Nelly Korda. After winning the Drive On Championship in January, Korda took a seven-week break before winning the last four events.

• Defending champion and fellow American world No. 2 Lilia Vu (who will tee off in a group with Korda) has yet to win an event this season. A two-time major winner last year, Vu can raise the par when it matters most.

• World No. 8 Lydia Ko is never out of the mix. The Kiwi won the opening event of the year and a win would give her Hall of Fame status. As for Ko’s flight mate, Canadian and world No. 12 Brooke Henderson has been a consistent force on the links.

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