by Zak Drapeau and Matt Hylen Sportz Nation - 5/22/2026 Graphic by UFC via galaxymacau.com In our FN Allen vs Costa Predictions which you can find here, Zak went 3-3 in picks with 1 method for 4 points. Matt went 3-3 in picks with 2 methods right for 5 points. Points To Date: Zak: 89 (61-38) Matt: 94 (61-38) *All odds courtesy of Caesar's Sportsbook on 5/27 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 5Song Yadong vs 7Deiveson Figueiredo (Yadong -600) Zak Drapeau - Figueiredo had a ru

Photo: Isaiah White-Getty The NBA Draft is usually viewed as the finish line for college basketball, and for most players, getting called as soon as possible is the ultimate dream. For others, that dream can wait until they're ready, and we've witnessed a handful of legit talent withdraw from the 2026 NBA draft in favor of the campus grounds. Some of these players were already on NBA radars. Some had first-round buzz. Some could have stayed in the draft and taken their chance

by Zak Drapeau Sportz Nation - 5/28/2026 Photo Credits to Bill Streicher via Imagn Images Who is A.J. Brown? A.J. Brown is a supremely talented Wide Receiver who has proven he can be a #1 option on a Super Bowl winning team. 6 seasons over 1,000 yards in 7 years and at his peak 3 years ago, was around 100 catches, 1,500 yards and 10 TDs. He started his career on the Tennessee Titans from 2019 to 2021. In his tenure as a Titan his per season averages were 14 games, 62 catches,

by William Gilhooly Sportz Nation - 5/28/2026 Photo Credits to Brandon Badraoui/Lumen via Getty Images 0.0233 seconds. He could have sat in his car for 10 straight minutes replaying it over and over again and who could blame him? Team Penske driver David Malukas had just lost the 110th running of the Indianapolis 500 in the closest finish in 500 history. Malukas who started 2nd following a caution on lap 197 that started the race back up with one lap to go. When the white f

by Zak Drapeau Sportz Nation - 5/27/2026 Photo Credits to Robert Alam/ISI Photos via Getty images 10. Christian Pulisic - United States The host countries for the 2026 World Cup are the United States, Mexico and Canada and of the 78 players on those rosters, none have the star power of AC Milan's and United States' Forward Christian Pulisic. Pulisic will be competing in his 2nd World Cup as a member of the United States team that was bounced out in the Round of 16 in 2022. Pu

by Zak Drapeau Sportz Nation - 5/26/2026 Photo Credits to Sue Ogrocki via Associated Press Playoff Run After 27 long years for New York basketball fans, the Knicks are in the NBA Finals again. After last night's Game 4 in the Eastern Conference Championship finished off their sweep of the Cavaliers, the Knicks are not only heading to the Finals but look poised to win it too. With a date set against either the Thunder or Spurs, who are in the midst of a generational series, th

Photo: Sarah Stier-Getty The Western Conference Finals are heating up. After four games, the Thunder and Spurs are deadlocked at 2-2, and now the series shifts back to Oklahoma City for a Game 5 that could change everything. For OKC, home court has been a fortress all season long. The Thunder have only suffered one home loss in the playoffs so far, and interestingly enough, that loss came at the hands of these very Spurs in a double-overtime thriller. In other words, San Anto

by Zak Drapeau Sportz Nation - 5/25/2026 Photo by Jeff Dean via Getty Images Buyers or Sellers? As of writing this article on May 25th, the Red Sox are 22-30 with 60 games left until the Trade Deadline on August 3rd. They sit in the basement of the AL East but only 2.5 games behind the 3rd place Blue Jays. Even after the notorious start that the Red Sox have gotten off to this season, there is still hope for a Playoff finish thanks to the lackadaisical American League this se

Photo graphic by Full Send GP via youtube.com After another long and grueling break, round 5 of the 2026 Formula One season has officially begun, with chaos already hitting the track for what is Canada's first sprint weekend. The weekend kicked off with a bang, as Mercedes claimed yet another 1-2 in Sprint Qualifying. With Kimi Antonelli only a few hundredths of a second behind his teammate and pole sitter George Russell, things seemed to be lined up for another dominant week

Photo: Lucas Boland-ImagnImages The playoffs are halfway through, and it's getting intense. As we know, every championship team needs star power, but even the greatest superstars can't do it alone. Behind every deep playoff run are the players who defend the toughest matchups, crash the glass, move the ball, take charges, and keep possessions alive when the game gets ugly. These aren't the names that light up the box score, but their impact is undeniable. The best role player

by William Gilhooly Sportz Nation - 5/22/2026 Photo by K.C. Alfred via The San Diego Union-Tribune Manny Machado already knew what the reporters were going to ask him following the Padres 4-0 rubber match loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers, going 0-4 with one strikeout. Machado’s batting average (has now) dropped to .178 and now has a negative WAR on the year, currently at -0.2 When asked about his offensive struggles postgame by a San Diego reporter, Machado responded very pass

by Zak Drapeau Sportz Nation - 5/21/2026 *All odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook TM as of 5/21 Most Valueable Player Photo by Michael Owens via Getty Images Joe Burrow (+950) 2026 is Burrow's year I can feel it. The Bengals' investments on defense seem to have paid off with one of the better rosters on paper heading into the season. We've seen what Joe Burrow can do with an average roster but this may be the first time we get to see what he can do surrounded by a pretty good

Photo: Nate Billings/AP Every MVP award takes us back to an era. Since 2000, we’ve seen legends rise in little time, dynasties cemented, archetypes we never dreamed of and stars rewriting the history books. From Allen Iverson dragging Philly to the top, to Derrick Rose becoming the youngest MVP ever, to Steph Curry changing basketball forever, to Nikola Jokic turning the center position into a cheat code, every MVP left a different impression. With Shai Gilgeous-Alexander sec

by Zak Drapeau Sportz Nation - 5/18/2026 Photo by NFL via draftcountdown.com Quarterback Joe Burrow - CIN Let's get the big one out of the way first; IF JOE BURROW CAN STAY HEALTHY, I believe he can have the best season of any QB in the league. Flanked by Ja'Marr Chase, Tee Higgins, Chase Brown and a much improve offensive line, Burrow could easily throw for 5,000 yards and 40 TDs. Burrow has been a Top-3 thrower in the league for years now but hampered by injuries and bad O-

by Zak Drapeau and Matt Hylen Sportz Nation - 5/18/2026 Photo by Ed Mulholland via Zuffa LLC 7Arnold Allen vs 10Kevin Vallejos Matt Hylen - Sure, it might be weird to see Arnold Allen not getting a fight up the rankings, but with the top so clogged, a win against one of the best prospects in the entire UFC might do just as much for him. Allen looked fantastic on Saturday. He completely shut down Costa's striking and controlled him on the ground for most of the fight. So, whil

by Zak Drapeau Sportz Nation - 5/19/2026 Photo by Ken Blaze via Imagn Images Overview Different from the Western Conference Finals, the final Series out of the East won't feature either of it's Top 2 seeds. The Knicks come into the series as the 3-seed and winners of their last 7 games in a row. Meanwhile, the Cavaliers are entering their first ECF without Lebron since 1992 and have already been through 2 grueling, 7-game series this postseason. The series will start tonight

by Zak Drapeau Sportz Nation - 5/18/2026 Photo by Daniel Dunn via Imagn Images 1Thunder vs 2Spurs (Thunder -250) Overview Before the NBA Playoffs even started, we all looked at this hypothetical matchup as the "Real Finals Series" and it's not hypothetical anymore. Ready to start tonight at 8:30 ET, this series will pit the bet two regular season teams and players this season. Shai may have won his 2nd MVP award this season but Wembanyama was arguably just as worthy and led h

by Zak Drapeau and Matt Hylen Sportz Nation - 5/15/2026 Graphic by UFC via UFC.com In our UFC 328 Predictions which you can find here, Zak went 3-3 in picks with 2 method for 5 points. Matt went 2-4 in picks with 0 methods for 2 points. Points To Date: Zak: 85 (58-35) Matt: 89 (58-35) *All odds courtesy of Caesar's Sportsbook on 5/11 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 8Arnold Allen vs 12Melquizael Costa (Allen -140) Zak Drapeau - Costa is taller, younger, has a bigg

by Zak Drapeau Sportz Nation - 5/15/2026 Quarterback Fernando Mendoza - LV This one's easy, Mendoza may not get the start until a few weeks into the season but either way he'll easily be the #1 Quarterback in the class' first year and possibly the only one that sees actual playing time HM: Carson Beck - ARI Running Backs Jeremiyah Love - ARI Jadarian Price - SEA Photo by Mark J. Rebilas via Imagn Images Another group that was easy for me, Love is the only Day 1 starter I see

Photo: Kristen Lee/AP The Boston Celtics achieved what many thought was impossible. After Jayson Tatum went down at Madison Square Garden in 2025, this season was supposed to be a survival year at best—a fluke season where Boston tried to resemble its two years, accepted the limitations of life without its star, and waited patiently for Tatum’s recovery. Instead, they won 56 games, had the best record in the Eastern Conference at one point, and watched Tatum make an early ret