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Tour de France 2024: TV and streaming, schedule, stages, route, and what to watch for tour,de,france,tv,and,streaming,schedule,stages,route,and,what,to,watch,for,sbnation,com,front-page

On: June 29, 2024 By: admin

Cycling’s premier event is about to get underway.

And it will look a little different than in year’s past.

The 2024 Tour de France, the 111th in history, begins on Saturday June 29. However, the starting point for this year’s Tour de France, as well as the finish line, will mark a series of firsts for the event.

To mark 100 years since Ottavio Bottecchia became the first Italian rider to win the Tour de France, this year’s race will begin in Italy, with riders setting off in Florence. The first three stages of this year’s Tour de France will keep riders in Italy, before the Tour’s fourth stage sees riders make the journey from Pinerolo in Italy, to Valloire in France.

In addition, this year’s Tour de France schedule coincides with the 2024 Paris Summer Games, which begin in Paris at the end of July. As such the Tour de France will conclude in Nice, with the final stage of the 2024 Tour de France bringing riders from Monaco to Nice.

This year’s Tour de France also concludes with an individual time trial, the first time the event has concluded with an ITT since 1989. That year saw the legendary duel on the final day between Greg LeMond and Laurent Fignon.

This year’s event has no shortage of storylines, starting with the battle between Dane Jonas Vingegaard, riding for Visma—Lease a Bike, and Slovenian Tadej Pogačar of UAE Team Emirates.

Vingegaard is the reigning Tour de France champion, winning in both 2022 and 2023 ahead of his rival Pogačar. But his status for this year’s Tour de France is a huge question mark, as Vingegaard endured a horrific crash at the Tour of Basque Country in April. The Danish cyclist suffered a broken collarbone, several broken ribs, a pulmonary contusion and a pneumothorax as a result of the crash, and spent 12 days in the hospital.

Vingegaard’s questionable form has opened the door for Pogačar to perhaps claim another title. The Slovenian took home the prestigious yellow jersey, the maillot jaune, in both 2020 and 2021; his victory in 2020 at the age of 21 made him the second-youngest winner in race history.

The two are the odds-on favorites to compete for the top spot on the podium again in 2024, but Vingegaard’s recent crash has made his rival the favorite.

Beyond the two favorites, there are some other riders in the field who could challenge for the yellow jersey. Primož Roglič from Slovenia, riding for Red Bull-Bora-hansgrohe, is one of the older riders in the field but might have some unfinished business after losing out to fellow Slovenian Pogačar in 2020. Roglič failed to finish in both 2021 and 2022, but won the Critérium du Dauphiné at the start of the month, fending off a late challenge from Matteo Jorgenson from Visma—Lease a Bike.

Remco Evenepoel from Soudal Quick-Step is another rider to watch. The Belgian cyclist suffered a crash of his own at Basque Country, but seemed back in form during the Critérium du Dauphiné when he was part of the chasing pack that put Roglič under pressure in the final stage. Considered one of the sport’s premier time trialists, the schedule sets up well for him with the 2024 Tour de France containing a pair of time trials, including the one on the final day previously mentioned.

For American fans Jorgenson represents your best hope for Tour de France glory. However, his role this year might best be described as “undetermined,” given Vingegaard’s questionable form. Should Vingegaard be healthy Jorgenson may serve as an auxiliary leader for Visma, and one of the sport’s premier domestiques. But if Vingegaard struggles with his health as a result of his recent crash, the 24-year-old could be thrust into a major role. And given his recent performance — including finishing just eight seconds behind Roglič at Dauphiné — he is certainly worth keeping an eye on.

For more on the favorites in the 2024 Tour de France field Bernd Buchmasser has you covered here.

Here is how to watch, a look at each stage, and more.

How to watch the 2024 Tour de France

NBC Sports is your home for every stage of the 110th Tour de France, with the bulk of the coverage airing live each day on Peacock. NBC and USA Network will also air live coverage during of three stages of the 2024 Tour de France: Stage 8, Stage 14, and Stage 20.

All NBC and USA Network coverage also streams on NBCSports.com/live, as well as the NBC Sports app.

Here is the full broadcast schedule:

2023 Tour de France Broadcast Information

Date	Time (ET)	Stage	Route	Platform
Date	Time (ET)	Stage	Route	Platform
June 29	6:30 a.m.	1	Florence to Rimini	Peacock
June 30	6:05 a.m.	2	Cesenatico to Bologna	Peacock
July 1	6:50 a.m.	3	Piacenza – Turin	Peacock
July 2	7:00 a.m.	4	Pinerolo to Vallorie	Peacock
July 3	6:55 a.m.	5	Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne to Saint-Vulbas	Peacock
July 4	7:00 a.m.	6	Mâcon to Dijon	Peacock
July 5	7:10 a.m.	7	Nuits-Saint-Georges to Gevrey-Chambertin	Peacock
July 6	6:00 a.m.	8	Semur-en-Auxois to Colombey-les-Deux-Églises	Peacock
July 6	8:00 a.m.	8	Semur-en-Auxois to Colombey-les-Deux-Églises	NBC
July 7	7:05 a.m.	9	Troys to Troys	Peacock
July 9	6:55 a.m.	10	Orléans to Saint-Amand-Montrond	Peacock
July 10	6:55 a.m.	11	Evaux-les-Bains to Le Lioran	Peacock
July 11	6:55 a.m.	12	Aurillac to Villeneuve-sur-Lot	Peacock
July 12	7:30 a.m.	13	Agen – Pau	Peacock
July 13	6:30 a.m.	14	Pau – Pla d’Adet	Peacock
July 13	8:00 a.m.	14	Pau – Pla d’Adet	NBC
July 14	6:55 a.m.	15	Loudenvielle to Plateau de Beille	Peacock
July 16	6:50 a.m.	16	Gruissan to Nîmes	Peacock
July 17	6:05 a.m.	17	Saint-Paul-Trois-Châteaus to Superdévoluy	Peacock
July 18	6:55 a.m.	18	Gap to Barcelonnette	Peacock
July 19	7:05 a.m.	19	Embrun to Isola 2000	Peacock
July 20	7:35 a.m.	20	Nice to Col de la Couillole	Peacock
July 20	4:00 p.m.	20	Nice to Col de la Couillole	NBC (replay)
July 21	10:10 a.m.	21	Monaco to Nice	Peacock

What teams are competing in the 2024 Tour de France

22 teams are competing in the 2024 Tour de France: That includes all 18 UCI WorldTeams, and 4 UCI ProTeams.

18 UCI WorldTeams

Alpecin-Deceuninck
Arkéa-B&B Hotels
Astana Qazaqstan Team
Cofidis
Decathalon-AG2R La Mondiale
EF Education-EasyPost
Groupama-FDJ
Ineos Grenadiers
Intermarché-Wanty
Lidl-Trek
Movistar Team
Red Bull—Bora—Hansgrohe
Soudal—Quick-Step
Team Bahrain Victorious
Team dsm—firmenich PostNL
Team Jayco-AlUla
Visma—Lease a Bike
UAE Team Emirates

UCI ProTeams

Israel—Premier Tech
Lotto—Dstny
Team TotalEnergies
Uno-X Pro Mobility

The 2024 Tour de France map

Here is the official map of the 2024 Tour de France:

You can also view the map on the official Tour de France website.

Stages, dates, and distances for the 2024 Tour de France

Here are the stages for the 2024 Tour de France. According to the official website there are eight stages classified as flat, four stages classified as hilly, seven mountain stages (including four summit finishes: Saint-Lary-Soulan Pla d’Adet in Stage 14, Plateau de Beille in Stage 15, Isola 2000 in Stage 19, and Col de la Couillole in Stage 20). There are also two individual time trials, along with a pair of rest days.

2024 Tour de France Stages

Stage	Date	Distance (Miles)	Route	Stage Type
Stage	Date	Distance (Miles)	Route	Stage Type
1	June 29	128	Florence to Rimini	Hilly
2	June 30	123.8	Cesenatico to Bologna	Hilly
3	July 1	143.4	Piacenza – Turin	Flat
4	July 2	86.7	Pinerolo to Vallorie	Mountain
5	July 3	110.2	Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne to Saint-Vulbas	Flat
6	July 4	101.6	Mâcon to Dijon	Flat
7	July 5	15.7	Nuits-Saint-Georges to Gevrey-Chambertin	ITT
8	July 6	114	Semur-en-Auxois to Colombey-les-Deux-Églises	Flat
9	July 7	124	Troys to Troys	Hilly
	July 8		Rest Day
10	July 9	116.4	Orléans to Saint-Amand-Montrond	Flat
11	July 10	131	Evaux-les-Bains to Le Lioran	Mountain
12	July 11	126.5	Aurillac to Villeneuve-sur-Lot	Flat
13	July 12	102.7	Agen – Pau	Flat
14	July 13	94.4	Pau – Pla d’Adet	Mountain
15	July 14	122.8	Loudenvielle to Plateau de Beille	Mountain
	July 15		Rest Day
16	July 16	117.2	Gruissan to Nîmes	Flat
17	July 17	110.5	Saint-Paul-Trois-Châteaus to Superdévoluy	Mountain
18	July 18	111.5	Gap to Barcelonnette	Hilly
19	July 19	89.9	Embrun to Isola 2000	Mountain
20	July 20	82.5	Nice to Col de la Couillole	Mountain
21	July 21	20.9	Monaco to Nice	ITT

Overall, the 2024 Tour e France route covers 3,498 kilometers (2,174 miles) and contains 52,230 meters (171,358 feet) of total vertical climb.

If riders were hoping to ease into the 2024 Tour de France, they have another thing coming. The opening stage of this year’s Tour not only marks the first time the race has started in Italy, but it might be the toughest opening stage in history, featuring 3,600 meters (11,811 feet) of climbing. The final climb into San Marino, featuring over seven kilometers (4.35 miles) of climb at nearly five degrees.

The two toughest stretches are likely Stages 14 and 15, as well as Stages 19 and 20. Not only are all four stages mountain stages — meaning riders will have to conquer the mountains on back-to-back days — but all four stages contain a summit finish: Saint-Lary-Soulan Pla d’Adet in Stage 14, Plateau de Beille in Stage 15, Isola 2000 in Stage 19, and Col de la Couillole in Stage 20.

Stage 9 is a very intriguing stage. While it is classified as “hilly” Stage 9, which sees riders start and finish in Troyes, it also contains 14 “white road” sectors. White roads on the Tour de France are dusty, gravel roads that have been a feature of this event.

In addition, the 2024 Tour de France concludes with an Individual Time Trial, the second ITT of this year’s race and the first time the Tour de France will finish in such fashion since the legendary LeMond-Fignon duel in 1989.

2024 Tour de France results

Stage 1: Florence to Rimini

Stage Winner: Romain Bardet, Team dsm-firmenich PostNL
Overall Leader: Romain Bardet, Team dsm-firmenich PostNL

Romain Bardet, aided in large part by his Team dsm-firmenich PostNL teammate Frank Van den Broek, captured the difficult first stage of the 2024 Tour de France on Saturday. For Bardet, who is competing in his final Tour de France after announcing his upcoming retirement following next year’s Critérium du Dauphiné before a switch to gravel. This stage win was his first in seven years, and he’s the first Frenchman to don the famous yellow jersey since Julian Alaphilippe in the 2021 race.

Men’s College World Series Finals: Texas A&M-Tennessee statistics, schedule, and prediction men,s,college,world,series,finals,texas,a,m,tennessee,statistics,schedule,and,prediction,sbnation,com,front-page,college-baseball,college-world-series,ncaa-baseball-tournament

On: June 21, 2024 By: admin

At the end of May 64 college baseball teams began a journey, with Omaha as their dream destination.

Now just two teams are left standing in Omaha, with dreams of NCAA baseball immortality alive.

The Men’s College World Series Finals begin on Saturday, with SEC rivals Tennessee and Texas A&M set to begin a best-of-three series to determine this season’s National Champion. When this tournament began the Volunteers and the Aggies were viewed as two of the top teams in the field, as the Aggies were the third-seeded team heading into the tournament, while the Volunteers were the top team in the field.

If history is to be our guide, the Aggies might be in a better position to win the Finals. Since the NCAA expanded to the current format the top-overall seed has won the Men’s College World Series just once, and that was Miami back in 1999, the first season with a 64-team field. More often than not the top seed comes up short, as the Volunteers did back in 2022 when they were the top-seeded team and did not even advance to Omaha.

As for teams seeded No. 3, like Texas A&M, they have won the Men’s College World Series three times. Most recently Oregon State won as a No. 3 seed back in 2018.

Ahead of the Finals getting underway, let’s take a look at each team’s path to this point, a statistical matchup between the two teams, revisit what happened the one time they played this season, and finish it off with a prediction sure to be wrong.

Tennessee’s path to the Finals

The Volunteers enter the Men’s College World Series Finals with a 58-12 overall record, and went 22-8 this season in SEC play.

The Volunteers have lost just once in the entire Men’s College World Series.

Knoxville Regional

Defeated Northern Kentucky, 9-3
Defeated Indiana 12-6
Defeated Southern Miss 12-3

Knoxville Super Regional

Defeated Evansville 11-6
Lost to Evansville 10-8
Defeated Evansville 12-1

Men’s College World Series Double Elimination Round

Defeated Florida State 12-11
Defeated North Carolina 6-1
Defeated Florida State 7-2

Texas A&M’s path to the Finals

The Aggies enter the Men’s College World Series Finals with a 52-13 overall record, while they finished with a 19-11 record in SEC play.

They have yet to lose since the Men’s College World Series began.

Bryan-College Station Regional

Defeated Grambling 8-0
Defeated Texas 4-2
Defeated Louisiana 9-4

Bryan-College Station Super Regional

Defeated Oregon 10-6
Defeated Oregon 15-9

Men’s College World Series Double Elimination Round

Defeated Florida 3-2
Defeated Kentucky 5-1
Defeated Florida 6-0

Men’s College World Series Final schedule

Saturday, June 22

Game 1: Tennessee vs. Texas A&M | 7:30 p.m. ET | ESPN/ESPN+

Sunday, June 23

Game 2: Tennessee vs. Texas A&M | 2:00 p.m. ET | ABC/ESPN+

Monday, June 24

Game 3 (if necessary): Tennessee vs. Texas A&M | 7 p.m. ET | ESPN/ESPN+

Statistical matchup

Here is how these two teams matchup in a number of key statistics, provided by both D1Baseball.com and NCAA.com:

Head-to-head

These teams have met just once this season, back in SEC Tournament play.

In that game, back on May 23, the Aggies took an early 1-0 lead thanks to a solo home run from leadoff hitter Gavin Grahovac in the third inning. But the Volunteers chipped away over the next few innings, tying the game in the bottom of the third on a sacrifice fly from outfielder Dylan Dreiling. They took the lead in the fourth on a Fielder’s Choice off the bat of Christian Moore, with Dean Curley scoring from third.

In the bottom of the fifth a double from Kavares Tears brought Dreiling around to score, giving the Volunteers a 3-1 lead. Texas A&M cut that lead to just one with a solo shot off the bat of catcher Jackson Appell in the sixth.

Tears came through again for Tennessee in the seventh, with a three-run blast to left pushed the Volunteers’ lead to 6-2. The teams traded runs in the eighth, and Grahovac added another run for the Aggies in the ninth on a solo shot, but it was not enough as the Volunteers advanced by the final score of 7-4.

A prediction sure to be wrong

What is a preview piece without a prediction that is sure to be wrong?

As the old adage goes, good pitching beats good hitting. As you can see above, the Aggies have a solid staff to call on for this series, and that staff is rested and ready to go.

But the college game is a bit different these days. Watching the entire Men’s College World Series this year, you get the sense that today’s game is about what you can do at the plate. While both teams have potent lineups, Tennessee does have an advantage at the dish.

This is likely a series that goes the entire three games, and when all is said and done, the Volunteers will take home the title.

3 ways the NFL can make an 18-game schedule work ways,the,nfl,can,make,an,game,schedule,work,sbnation,com,front-page,nfl,dot-com-grid-coverage

On: June 19, 2024 By: admin

The NFL is inching closer and closer to an expanded schedule, which will likely mean an 18th game is coming in the not-so-distant future.

In an April interview with ESPN’s Pat McAfee, commissioner Roger Goodell said the conversation surrounding an extra game has already begun.

“If we got to 18 (regular season) and 2 (preseason games), that’s not an unreasonable thing,” Goodell said. “The other thing it does, [Super Bowl Sunday] ends on up Presidents’ Day weekend, which is a three-day weekend, which makes it Sunday night and then you have Monday off.”

When the league moved from 16 games to 17 in 2021, it gave the owners some leeway in trying to push for 18. However, the players pushed back and a compromise of 17 was agreed upon. But it’s only a matter of time before 18 is the new norm.

Once again, if the league adds another game, the players will need some type of compromise. There’s already pushback from players saying that a 17-game schedule is grueling enough, so some changes will have to be made if and when the league adds another game.

The NFL can also get creative when expanding to 18 games, so here are three ways the league’s schedule can change by adding an additional contest:

Labor Day Weekend Kickoff

Obviously, a week or two will have to be added in order to expand the schedule, and the easiest way is by starting the season a week earlier.

Let’s take this year’s calendar as an example: Labor Day is Sept. 2 on a Monday. But with a big kickoff weekend, let’s stretch this out as much as possible and get teams on national TV.

We can start with the annual Thursday night kickoff on Aug. 29 between the defending Super Bowl champions hosting an opponent of intrigue. Then, as seen with this year’s Friday night kickoff game, this turns into more of a weekend.

Saturday is for college football, as always. So the NFL takes a rest.

There are 14 remaining games up for grabs for Sunday and Monday, but these games can and should be spread out as much as possible. Let’s have a mere four games on in the early window, two games late, one for CBS and another for FOX, and a Sunday Night Football matchup on NBC in primetime.

And then, let’s repeat that on Monday. After all, it is a holiday, so football should be part of it.

This gives each fan base a chance to not only see their team on in a (mostly) uninterrupted setting, but it gives the national base a chance to see a bunch of games to kick off the season when there already is the added anticipation from preseason and training camp.

Add a second bye for all teams

Before 2002 when the NFL had 31 teams, it was customary for teams to have multiple bye weeks. So that should also be the case if the league adds one more game.

Teams should have a bye in October during Weeks 7-10, and another in December between Weeks 13-17.

In each bye week, two divisions, one from the AFC and one from the NFC, will all be totally off. Then they will each play a division rival the following week. This will eliminate any advantage with each team coming off a bye, and it also allows these teams to be as healthy as possible going into a divisional matchup.

With two bye weeks and 18 games, this means there will be 20 weeks of play during the regular season. The final week of games would take place on the third Sunday of January.

President’s Day Weekend Becomes Super Bowl Weekend

Every year, workers say that Super Bowl Monday should be a holiday, and this schedule change would (sort of) make that a thing — at least for people who don’t have to work on President’s Day.

If the playoffs didn’t start until the end of January, we’re looking at Conference Championships going into February and the Super Bowl would take place two weeks later on the Sunday of President’s Day Weekend.

Perhaps a schedule change like this would move the country one step closer to officially making Super Bowl Monday a national holiday.

Men’s College World Series: Bracket, scores, schedule, how to watch, and more men,s,college,world,series,bracket,scores,schedule,how,to,watch,and,more,sbnation,com,front-page,college-baseball,college-world-series,ncaa-baseball-tournament

On: June 15, 2024 By: admin

Eight teams are on their way to Omaha for the 2024 Men’s College World Series.

Only one will earn the right to be called a National Champion.

A field that began with 64 teams in pursuit of a dream has been trimmed to eight, and now those final teams have been split into two brackets. On one side of the tournament you have North Carolina, Virginia, Tennessee, and Florida State. The other finds NC State, Tennessee, Kentucky, and Texas A&M.

That’s right, eight teams representing just two conferences, the SEC and the ACC.

Later this week the eight teams will head to Omaha to begin the final two stages of the Men’s College World Series, starting with a pair of double elimination tournaments to trim the field to the final two, and then a best-of-three series to crown a champion.

Here are the teams, the brackets, the full schedule, how to watch, and more.

Finalists

Here are the eight finalists, listed in order of their ranking heading into the NCAA Men’s Baseball Tournament.

(1) Tennessee
(2) Kentucky
(3) Texas A&M
(4) North Carolina
(8) Florida State
(10) NC State
(12) Virginia
Florida

As you can see, seven of the eight teams were among the ranked 16 teams when the field of 64 began play. Only one team — Florida — survived to this point as an unranked team.

Format and Brackets

The NCAA Men’s Baseball Tournament follows something of a hybrid model, beginning with a double-elimination tournament (the Regionals) and then a best-of-three series (the Super Regionals).

The Men’s College World Series uses both over the final two segments. In the Men’s College World Series the eight teams are divided into two brackets, and play a double-elimination tournament. A winner emerges from each bracket, and those two teams meet in the Men’s College World Series Final, which is a best-of-three series.

Bracket 1

The first bracket consists of North Carolina, Virginia, Tennessee, and Florida State.

Bracket 2

The second bracket consists of Florida, Kentucky, Texas A&M, and NC State.

You can see the full bracket here:

Men’s College World Series schedule and results

Friday, June 14

Game 1: North Carolina 3, Virginia 2
Game 2: Tennessee 12, Florida State 11

Saturday, June 15

Game 3: Kentucky vs. NC State | 2 p.m. ET | ESPN/ESPN+
Game 4: Texas A&M vs. Florida | 7 p.m. ET | ESPN/ESPN+

Sunday, June 16

Game 5: Virginia vs. Florida State | 2 p.m. ET | ESPN/ESPN+
Game 6: UNC vs. Tennessee | 7 p.m. ET | ESPN/ESPN+

Monday, June 17

Game 7: Loser of Game 3 vs. Loser of Game 4 | 2 p.m. ET | ESPN/ESPN+
Game 8: Winner of Game 3 vs. Winner of Game 4 | 7 p.m. ET | ESPN/ESPN+

Tuesday, June 18

Game 9: TBD vs. TBD | 2 p.m. ET | ESPN/ESPN+
Game 10: TBD vs. TBD | 7 p.m. ET | ESPN/ESPN+

Wednesday June 19

Game 11: TBD vs. TBD | 2 p.m. ET | ESPN/ESPN+
Game 12: TBD vs. TBD | 7 p.m. ET | ESPN/ESPN+

Thursday, June 20

Game 13 (if necessary): TBD vs. TBD | 2 p.m. ET | TBD
Game 14 (if necessary): TBD vs. TBD | 7 p.m. ET | TBD

Men’s College World Series Final schedule and results

Saturday, June 22

Game 1: TBD vs. TBS | 7:30 p.m. ET | ESPN/ESPN+

Sunday, June 23

Game 2: TBD vs. TBS | 2:00 p.m. ET | ABC/ESPN+

Monday, June 24

Game 3 (if necessary): TBD vs. TBS | 7 p.m. ET | ESPN/ESPN+

NBA Finals 2024: Schedule, TV, streaming, scores, and more for Celtics-Mavericks nba,finals,schedule,tv,streaming,scores,and,more,for,celtics,mavericks,sbnation,com,front-page,nba,nba-playoffs,nba-finals,draftkings

On: June 15, 2024 By: admin

The 2024 NBA Finals are here.

The Boston Celtics are back in the Finals, making a return trip after losing to the Golden State Warriors back in 2022. For the bulk of the season the Celtics were the class of the Eastern Conference, finishing with a 64-18 record — the best in the NBA — and 14 games ahead of the New York Knicks in the East.

That led many to wonder if the Celtics would be ready for the playoff run, and to many neutral observers, Boston’s path to the Finals was a little easier than expected. Boston squared off with the Miami Heat in the first round, but without Jimmy Butler who was lost with an MCL sprain, Miami struggled against Boston.

Then came the Cleveland Cavaliers, who began the series against the Celtics without rim protector Jarrett Allen, who missed the entire series with broken ribs. Add in a knee injury for Donovan Mitchell and you have a 4-1 series win for Boston, who moved on to face the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference Finals.

Who were without Tyrese Haliburton for the final two games of that series, as the guard entered the Conference Finals with a groin injury that hampered him in the first two games, and saw him shut down for the final two.

Now they’ll take on the Dallas Mavericks, who stormed to the NBA Finals thanks to a tremendous playoff run from Kyrie Irving and Luka Dončić. Dončić might be playing the best basketball on the planet right now, and in our ranking of the top 15 players in this series, he was a fairly easy choice for the top spot. He has averaged almost a triple-double in the playoffs, averaging 28.8 ppg, 9.6 rpg, and 8.8 apg over Dallas’ 17 postseason games. With him, the Mavericks have the best player left standing, even if he is doing it on just one healthy leg as he deals with a knee sprain.

They also could pose some problems for the Celtics, given their length and athleticism. As outlined above Boston has seen a somewhat easier path to the Finals, but that will change starting Thursday night. Around Dončić and Irving the Mavericks have players who can frustrate the Boston offense, including P.J. Washington and Derrick Jones Jr.

Washington is big with a massive wingspan, and expect to see him on Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum for most of the series. Jones Jr. is one of the better athletes in the league, who can pose problems both near the rim and around the arc.

Down low Dallas can turn to the combination of Dereck Lively II and Daniel Gafford. The rookie Lively is 7’1, has a massive wingspan, and has been Dallas’ third best player on this run. Gafford is another springy rim protector who can disrupt shots and harrass Boston’s scorers near the tin.

Those players will need to step up if Dallas has a shot at pulling this off, but in the NBA Finals, anything can happen.

It all gets started this Thursday. Here is how to watch.

2024 NBA Finals Schedule

Game 1: Boston 107, Dallas 89 (Boston leads series 1-0)
Game 2: Boston 105, Dallas 98 (Boston leads series 2-0)
Game 3: Boston 106, Mavericks 99 (Boston leads series 3-0)
Game 4: Dallas 122, Boston 84 (Boston leads series 3-1)
Game 5: Dallas at Boston | Monday, June 17 | 8:30 p.m. ET | ABC/ESPN+
Game 6: Boston at Dallas | Thursday, June 20 | 8:30 p.m. ET | ABC/ESPN+*
Game 7: Dallas at Boston | Sunday, June 23 | 8:00 p.m. ET | ABC/ESPN+*

*If necessary