2024 British Open will be a thriller; Russell Westbrook to join Nuggets

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Good morning to everyone but especially …

GOLF FANS

The first round of the British Open delivered, and the next three rounds will, too. Royal Troon proved a stern test — the average score on the par-71 course was north of 74 — and we got the wind and rain that make The Open a unique, grueling test of the mind, body and spirit.

For each of the last 24 Opens, the eventual winner has been within five strokes of the 18-hole leader. This year, that group included major winners Shane Lowry, Justin Thomas, Xander Schauffele, Justin Rose, Adam Scott, Brooks Koepka, Matt Fitzpatrick and Scottie Scheffler — all looking up at Daniel Brown, who has just professional win.

As Kyle Porter writes in his takeaways, The Open is simply awesome.

• Porter: “Adam Scott offered this warning: “It’s sometimes easy to scrap it around the links, but you’re not going to hole a lot of 40-footers. So, at some point, you’re going to need to hit some really quality iron shots from the fairway to get it in close to some tucked pins and give yourself more realistic chances. They’re the guys who are going to be up there at the end of the week.” … Sometimes, though, you just need a sliver of hope. Still, it will be hitters only come Saturday and Sunday. “

The second round is well underway, as is our live blog and live leaderboard.

Honorable mentions

• Bronny James continues to improve after a tough start to Summer League.
• Alabama will name the field at Bryant-Denny Stadium after Nick Saban.
• Arch Manning is willing to wait.
• Mike Elko has Texas A&M moving as quietly as ever … and that’s a good thing.
• Like Jalen Brunson, Mikal Bridges is expected to take a pay cut on his extension. Sam Quinn looked at what exactly that might mean.
• The Athletics are calling up Jacob Wilson.
• The 2025 MLB schedule is here! The Dodgers and Cubs will begin things March 18 in Japan.
• Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo swam in the Seine on Wednesday, attempting to prove it’s clean enough for Olympic swimming.

And not such a good morning for …

RORY McILROY

Just a month and three days ago, Rory McIlroy let go of a golden opportunity to win the U.S. Open, missing a pair of short putts and falling by one to Bryson DeChambeau. More heartbreak for a man who has had plenty of it since his last major win in 2014.

McIlroy arrived at the British Open in good form and in a good headspace. Then he played some very bad golf, shooting a shocking 7-over 78. It’s McIlroy’s fourth-highest score in his Open career.

DeChambeau similarly struggled with a 5-over 76, but he won’t be quite as despondent. Links golf hasn’t ever suited DeChambeau’s game — he has one top-10 at six last British Open starts — and if he does get down, he can think of happy memories and the big trophy earned at Pinehurst just a few weeks ago.

McIlroy, on the other hand, has no such memories to fall back on. He entered the week with the second-shortest odds in the field, behind only Scheffler. He grew up playing these types of courses, and he has seven top-10s and a Claret Jug on his British Open resume. They say you can’t win a major on the first day, but you can certainly lose it; McIlroy has put himself in the latter position and will have to play well to even make the cut. He tees off at 10:10 a.m. ET.

McIlroy and DeChambeau weren’t the only big names to struggle:

• Tiger Woods shot a 79 despite a good start.
• Cam Smith, who stunned McIlroy at the 2022 Open, shot an 80.
• Sahith Theegala shot 77, while Max Homa, Tom Kim, Will Zalatoris and Tommy Fleetwood joined DeChambeau at 76.

Not so honorable mentions

• Utah State officially fired Blake Anderson for violations regarding noncompliance to the university’s Title IX policies.
• Clark and Sabrina Ionescu aren’t participating in the 3-Point Contest.
• Willie Anderson blamed “The Blind Side” for him not getting into the Hall of Fame.
• Jason Wright is out as Commanders president.
• Sam Pittman is a Media Day favorite, but his team needs to start winning.

Russell Westbrook traded to Jazz, will end up with Nuggets

For a second straight year, Russell Westbrook has been traded to the Jazz, and for a second straight year, he will not play a single minute for them. The Clippers dealt Westbrook to Utah in a sign-and-trade, and the Jazz will buy out Westbrook; he will then head to the Nuggets. Here are the details:

• Jazz receive: Russell Westbrook, draft rights to Balsa Koprivica, second-round pick swap, cash
• Clippers receive: Kris Dunn (who signed three-year, $17-million deal)

This will be Westbrook’s sixth team in the last seven years, and it’s the fifth time he’s been traded — most ever by a former MVP. 

While he’s a big name, Westbrook’s impact has declined drastically. He shot 27% from 3-point range last year, an aspect that has become ever more problematic as his athleticism has declined. In the playoffs, things were even worse: He shot 26% (13 for 50) from the field, the fourth-worst shooting postseason (min. 50 attempts) in the 21st century. However, Westbrook still brings his trademark energy and — in flashes — can be a positive contributor.

He’s also the biggest addition in what’s been a brutal offseason for the Nuggets. The 2023 champs lost Kentavious Caldwell-Pope to the Magic in free agency, and first-round pick DaRon Holmes tore his Achilles and is out for the season. While there are some good aspects to Westbrook’s game, Sam Quinn writes, the well-traveled point guard actually exacerbates the team’s biggest weakness.

• Quinn: “Part of the logic of Westbrook’s theoretical Clippers fit was that they had so much shooting that he could, at times, function like a center off of the ball. Sure, he’s not getting guarded on the perimeter, but you can stick him in the dunker’s spot (that’s where Aaron Gordon lives), weaponize him as a cutter (always a dubious proposition where Westbrook is concerned) and just generally find ways to work around those spacing woes when there’s shooting coming from everywhere else. Denver can’t exactly do that. At the very least it’s hard to imagine him ever coexisting in lineups with Gordon unless he’s playing on the ball in every possession.”

MLB Power Rankings: Which teams could make a run?

The MLB All-Star break is over, and the stretch run is upon us. That means new MLB Power Rankings are live. Here’s Matt Snyder’s top five:

1. Phillies (previous: 1)
2. Guardians (3)
3. Yankees (7)
4. Orioles (2)
5. Dodgers (4)

But the theme of this week’s rankings isn’t so much what’s going on now but what could change. At this time last year, the Marlins were second in the NL, for example. Some teams will fall off. Some teams will surge. Among the contenders for that latter category are …

• Snyder: “Astros — It might seem obvious, but that doesn’t mean I’m wrong. The Astros started 12-24 but have climbed all the way back to 50-46. They are only one game back of a Mariners team with an atrocious offense. The Astros need pitching amid all their injuries and could use an upgrade at first base, but they are fully in win-now mode and I expect some big swings in the next two weeks. They are good enough to win the division without those swings, too.”

As for teams that could fall off, some managers’ seats will get awfully hot, Dayn Perry writes.

What we’re watching this weekend

We’re watching the British Open all weekend. Here’s how.

All times Eastern

Friday

Hawks vs. Knicks, 6 p.m. on NBA TV
Knicks vs. Pistons, 7 p.m. on ESPN
WNBA All-Star Friday Night, 9 p.m. on ESPN
Warriors vs. Thunder, 10:30 p.m. on NBA TV

Saturday

Knicks vs. Hawks, 6 p.m. on ESPN
Bulls vs. Lakers, 7 p.m. on NBA TV
Red Sox at Dodgers OR Diamondbacks at Cubs, 7:15 p.m. on Fox
WNBA All-Star Game: Team USA vs. Team All Stars, 8:30 p.m. on ABC

Sunday

NBA Summer League playoffs, 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. on ESPN
Red Sox at Dodgers, 7 p.m. on ESPN