Here's a look back at notable sports news on June 13 through the years:
1997: Steve Kerr has coached the "Splash Brothers" — aka Steph Curry and Klay Thompson — and the rest of the Golden State Warriors to three NBA titles over the last five seasons.
But on this date 23 years ago, Kerr made his own splash. He hit the winning shot to give the Bulls a 90-86 victory over the Utah Jazz in Game 6 of the NBA Finals, giving Chicago its fifth championship in seven years.
With the game clock ticking inside seven seconds and the shot clock down to :02, Michael Jordan found Kerr, who was left alone as the Jazz double-teamed His Airness. Kerr hit an 18-foot jumper to break an 86-all tie.
"Michael won Game 1 in the same situation, and we knew they wouldn't let him do it again," Kerr told the Associated Press. "At the last timeout, I was sitting down by Mike, watching him. He sat there for about 30 seconds, and then he turned to me and said, 'Be ready, [John] Stockton's coming off me.' I said 'OK, I'll make it.' "
Kerr's shot evoked memories of John Paxson's three-pointer with 3.9 seconds left that gave Chicago a 99-98 victory in the '93 title-clinching sixth game against the Phoenix Suns. However, in that game, it was Horace Grant — not Jordan — who made the pass for the winning shot.
It was also a second chance of sorts for Kerr, who missed a three-pointer with 29.9 seconds left in Game 4 that would have given the Bulls a 76-73 lead and put them in position to go up three games to one over Utah in the Finals.
"Steve's been fighting himself since Game 4," Jordan told the New York Times. "He missed a three-pointer and went back to his room. He doesn't know this, but his wife told me he buried his head in his pillow for hours because he felt he let us down. He said give him the ball in the timeout."
Once Kerr got the ball, he knew exactly what to with it.
JIM DANDY
1935: In one of the biggest upsets in boxing history, Jim "Cinderella Man" Braddock scored a 15-round unanimous decision over Max Baer in New York to win the world heavyweight title.
To get his title shot against Baer, Braddock had to beat three heavily favored and highly rated foes. As if that weren't enough for Braddock to overcome, Baer's strength and confidence made him a 10-1 favorite entering the fight.
"I'm scared stiff I'll kill Braddock," Baer told reporters before the match. "I dreamed last night I hurt the boy. I woke up in a cold sweat."
Coincidentally, Baer killed a boxer named Frankie Campbell during a 1930 bout, as depicted in the 2005 film "Cinderella Man," which features the Braddock-Baer bout. Campbell's death is used to make Baer look even more imposing.
Legendary sportswriter Damon Runyon is credited with giving Braddock the "Cinderella Man" nickname. Actor Russell Crowe played Braddock in the film that was directed by Ron Howard.
True to form, after being outboxed by a huge underdog, Baer shrugged off the loss.
"Braddock can use the title. He has three kids. I don't know how many I have," Baer said.
THE BABE'S FINAL FAREWELL
1948: Babe Ruth Day at Yankee Stadium drew 49,641 fans who saw the Bambino's No. 3 retired and the Bronx Bombers beat the Cleveland Indians 5-3.
A celebration of the 25th anniversary of the opening of Yankee Stadium, it was also Ruth's final appearance at the house that he built.
As he was introduced with several other members of the Yankees 1923 world championship squad, the Sultan of Swat — who had been in and out of the hospital for the last 12 months while battling cancer — was visibly ill and could hardly speak.
"Thank you very much, ladies and gentlemen," said Ruth, who used a bat as a cane to make his way to the microphone. "You know how bad my voice sounds. Well, it feels just as bad."
Eleven days later, Ruth was back in the hospital. He died on Aug. 16. He was only 53.
BIG BEN RULES
1953: Ben Hogan won the U.S. Open for a record fourth time, beating Sam Snead by six strokes. Willie Anderson, Bobby Jones, Jack Nicklaus and Hogan are the only four-time winners of the U.S. Open.
BASEBALL NUGGETS
2003: Roger Clemens recorded his 300th career win and became the third pitcher with at least 4,000 strikeouts, leading the Yankees over the Cardinals, 5-2. Clemens, who was 40 at the time, joined Nolan Ryan (5,714) and Steve Carlton (4,136) in the 4,000-strikeout club.
2012: Matt Cain pitched the 22nd perfect game in MLB history and the first for the Giants, striking out a career-high 14. He got help from two running catches by outfielders Melky Cabrera and Gregor Blanco to beat the Astros, 10-0.
KINGS CROWNED
2014: Alec Martinez scored 14:43 into the second overtime, and the Los Angeles Kings won the Stanley Cup for the second time in three years with a 3-2 victory over the New York Rangers in Game 5.
LeBRON, KYRIE DOMINATE
2016: Behind 41 points each from LeBron James and Kyrie Irving, the Cleveland Cavaliers staved off NBA Finals elimination with a 112-97 win over Golden State in Game 5. James and Irving became the first teammates to score at least 40 points in an Finals game.
"We had a mindset that we wanted to come here and just extend our period and have another opportunity to fight for another day," James told the Associated Press. "That was our main concern, and we were able to do that." The Cavs won the series in seven games.
Happy birthday...
R.I.P.
2014: Pro Football Hall of Famer Chuck Noll, the first coach in NFL history to win four Super Bowls. In 23 years with the Steelers, Noll went 209-156-1 before retiring after the 1991 campaign. He died of natural causes. He was 82.
2018: Basketball Hall of Famer Anne Donovan, who won a national championship at Old Dominion and Olympic gold medals as a player and a coach. In 2004, Donovan led the Seattle Storm to the WNBA title. She died of heart failure. She was 56.
2019:
Pat Bowlen, the businessman who served as the owner and CEO of the Broncos from 1984 through 2014, when he was diagnosed with Alzheimer's. Under his watch, Denver won Super Bowls after the 1998 and 1999 seasons. He was 75.
June 12: Dock Ellis' wild no-no in San Diego
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While it was once a possibility that his NBA career had come to a sudden close, Malik Beasley is once again free to sign with any NBA team. After knocking down 309 three-pointers in 2024-25 and nearly inking a new three-year, $42 million deal with the Detroit Pistons, Beasley's plans for the future were quickly put on hold. In June, authorities began investigating the sharpshooter before launching an official investigation into allegations of gambling within the league. Now, nearly two months later, Beasley has been officially exonerated from this federal gambling investigation. In some ways, the damage has already been done, though. The contract Beasley once hoped to sign with Detroit is long gone after the team brought in Caris LeVert and Duncan Robinson. But that doesn't mean his time with the Pistons is over. Here are three teams that could sign Beasley now that his professional future is no longer hanging in the balance. Detroit Pistons While it seems likely that the 28-year-old returns to the Pistons after a career renaissance, the most Beasley could sign for 2025-26 is $7.2 million, according to ESPN front-office insider Bobby Marks. Detroit made sure to retain its final roster spot while closely monitoring Beasley's situation. But if he does decide to find a new home, it won't happen because of a massive payday. Beasley's best chance outside of Detroit is joining a bona fide contender on another "prove it" deal. At this point in the summer, free-agency money has already dried up. But that doesn't mean the nine-year veteran isn't a coveted asset for teams with championship aspirations. New York Knicks The New York Knicks are the main known team outside of Detroit that has shown significant interest in Beasley. According to Jake Fischer of The Stein Line, New York has kept close tabs on him since the Knicks' first-round playoff bout with the Pistons. New York already shored up its guard depth in a big way with the signing of Jordan Clarkson. But the team would be delighted to add another capable scorer in Beasley, especially on a veteran's minimum deal. After using the taxpayer portion of the team's mid-level exception on Guerschon Yabusele, New York wouldn't have much to offer Beasley outside of a shot at a title. Following a year that saw him average 16.3 points on a blazing 41.3% from deep, accepting the minimum may be too tough a pill to swallow for Beasley. If not, though, he could be an underrated addition to a Knicks roster with a serious chance to bring home the city's first title in over 50 years. Oklahoma City Thunder Malik Beasley joining the Oklahoma City Thunder would be a classic example of the rich getting richer. After winning the franchise's first title last season, the Thunder don't have any notable weak spots. With reigning MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander leading a talented cast of well-rounded scorers and defenders, a prominent role wouldn't be a guarantee for Beasley. But he would have the opportunity to serve in a unique role as OKC's lone experienced sharpshooter. Beasley would be the third-oldest player on an incredibly youthful Thunder squad. He wouldn't have as flashy a role as he did in Detroit last season, but Beasley would be a strong get with a coveted skill set for the reigning champs.
According to Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk, New York Jets starting quarterback Justin Fields did not throw a pass that traveled 10 yards in the air during his two preseason appearances. Some have voiced concerns about the Jets' passing attack with Fields in the lineup, but he insisted while speaking with reporters on Tuesday that he's "fine with taking eight-yard completions every play." On Wednesday, Jets offensive coordinator Tanner Engstrand addressed Fields' comment. "He's going to play the play the way the defense allows him to play it," Engstrand said about Fields, per Zack Rosenblatt of The Athletic. "So if they're going to allow him to take a shot down the field, he's going to take it. If they don't allow him, he's going to check the ball down, and we'll move on to the next play. We're all good with that." Fields completed just one of five passes for four yards in the Jets' 31-12 loss to the New York Giants on Saturday. According to Fox Sports, he connected on four of nine pass attempts for 46 yards across his first two preseason appearances of the summer. Despite such lackluster numbers, first-year Jets head coach Aaron Glenn suggested on Tuesday that he is ignoring "the noise that happens on the outside" regarding the team's passing offense. On Wednesday, Jets passing game coordinator Scott Turner praised Fields for knowing when to take a checkdown and when to challenge an opposing defense. "I think you've seen a lot of quarterbacks in this league, Josh Allen pops into mind, who really cut down his turnovers last year and won MVP by not always trying to make the big huge play, but make the right play. Justin has done a nice job with that," Turner said. ESPN stats show that Fields averaged 6.9 yards per pass attempt over six starts and 10 appearances with the Pittsburgh Steelers last season. Per Pro Football Reference, 22 qualified quarterbacks had a better yards per pass attempt average for the 2024 campaign. Dan Graziano of ESPN noted Wednesday that the $10M guaranteed that the Jets owe Fields for 2026 "won't prevent them from" looking for an upgrade at the position next year if he doesn't make "a major leap as a passer." It's still early into this experiment, but there's no sign that such a leap is coming anytime soon.
Saturday was not a good day for Shedeur Sanders and Shilo Sanders, two players competing for a spot on the 53-man roster of their respective teams, the Cleveland Browns and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Hours after Shedeur took more sacks (five) than completions (three) and had a heated moment with Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski, Shilo was ejected from the Buccaneers' preseason game against the Buffalo Bills. "Bucs S Shilo Sanders has been ejected from tonight's game following an unnecessary roughness penalty," Scott Smith of the Buccaneers posted on X. Shilo appeared to take exception to Zach Davidson hitting and blocking him after a play had ended before the rookie took a swing at the Bills' tight end. The ejection came at a bad time for Shilo, who was competing with Kaevon Merriweather and Rashad Wisdom for the No. 4 safety spot on the depth chart. Before the game, Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles said that Shilo's output against the Bills would be big in his evaluation before the team has to trim the roster to 53 players by Tuesday. "Shilo's very aggressive, very young, very hungry," Bowles said. "He can make plays in the box and we know he can run down and give us 100% on special teams, so this last week is going to be very important for those guys to show up." Following the ejection, Shilo lost critical playing time to show his strengths on the field. He also showed the coaching staff a short temper and cost Tampa Bay with an unnecessary penalty. Shilo will end his preseason with four total tackles. He has shown he has the talent to be in the league, but Shilo's role will likely be as a practice squad player until his play and mental strength develop.
There are high hopes for Green Bay Packer tight end Tucker Kraft to take another leap in the 2025 NFL season. After improving on his 2023 rookie numbers during the 2024 NFL season, Kraft appears to have the potential to be the first tight end ever in the history of the franchise to amass at least 1,000 yards. It remains to be seen whether he could live up those expectations, but off the field, the former South Dakota State Jackrabbis star tight has recently turned heads when he was honored with the 2025 community service award during Green Bay’s annual Green Bay Chamber of Commerce “Welcome Back Packers Luncheon” on Friday, according to Mike Spofford of the team’s official website. Green Bay Packers TE Tucker Kraft’s charity gets appreciated Kraft earned the award for his charitable gestures in Wisconsin and back home in South Dakota. The 24-year-old tight end has been a supporter of the Cheyenne River Youth Project, a local nonprofit, which has helped give over a thousand toys to kids. After accepting the award, Kraft offered a short but meaningful speech. “Where you’re from can never set a limit on where you want to go,” Kraft said. Meanwhile, Packers head coach Matt LaFleur shared a special message about his appreciation for Kraft. “It’s an honor to work with a guy like that each and every day,” LaFleur said. “To watch the maturity and growth, not only as a person but as a player … he does a great job representing what we want to be about with his actions on the field as well as off the field. “Tuck, we can’t have enough guys like you on our football team.”