Boston, MA
How To Watch ‘Battle Tested’ Payton Pritchard, Boston Celtics in NBA Finals
Oregon men’s basketball star (2016-20) Payton Pritchard looks at his run to the NBA Finals with Boston as one of lessons learned.
“We wanna hang a championship banner. We’ve done this before so the next step is winning a championship.”
– Payton Pritchard
The fourth-year Celtic has helped his team to a second NBA Finals appearance in three seasons. This time around, Boston is 12-2 with identical 4-1 series wins over the Miami Heat and Cleveland Cavaliers before sweeping the Indiana Pacers.
But that path of success has some discounting whether or not the Celtics have been pushed enough to finally get over the hump with an NBA championship.
“I think we’ve been battled-tested,” Pritchard told NBC Sports Boston. “I just think it’s something the media and other people always want to throw out there about us. We’ve been going through this whole year and years in the past, we’ve gone through a lot. So, I think we’re ready for this moment.”
Boston’s margin of victory has decreased each series in these playoffs, from an average of 22 points in the Miami series and 15 points against Cleveland, down to just 6.75 points against Indiana.
“Guys fought to the end,” Pritchard said after the series-clinching win over the Pacers. “We came back from being down again and made the right plays, hit big shots, and showed championship DNA again.”
After last season, Pritchard requested a trade, but in October he and the team agreed on a fully guaranteed four-year, $30 million contract extension. He has turned that faith from the franchise into his best professional season yet in nearly every statistical category, including minutes and points.
“It’s special,” Pritchard said. “Just seeing what everybody’s been through to be here—all the hard times,—just to get to this point… a lot of dark times but it’s special.”
The Celtics meet the Dallas Mavericks in the NBA Finals, a best-of-seven series, beginning this week. Every game will be simulcast on ABC and ESPN. The full list of game times (PDT) is below.
*If necessary
Boston, MA
What a World Cup ‘fan zone’ is and what Boston fans can expect in 2026
FIFA World Cup host cities lay out security plans ahead of matches
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The FIFA World Cup is coming to Massachusetts, and when it comes to having a place for people to hang out together, there will be a free fan zone where everyone can celebrate the big event.
Seven World Cup matches will take place at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, MA this summer, and the first one is right around the corner, to be played on June 13, with Scotland taking on Haiti.
Fan Zones are a public space to watch the game for people who don’t have tickets to the actual game. Held in public places, they broadcast the mach on giant screens to offer an immersive experience to watch the game, according to FIFA>
“At the heart of FIFA Fan Festival Boston, (a) Cultural Showcase will ignite the stage with a vibrant celebration of the spirit, creativity, and cultural heartbeat of Boston and communities across the Commonwealth of Massachusetts,” FIFA said.
Where will the fan zone be located when the World Cup games start in just 11 days?
Where is the World Cup fan zone going to be in Massachusetts?
The official FIFA Fan Festival for the 2026 World Cup in Boston will be located at Boston City Hall Plaza at 1 City Hall Sq. Boston, MA.
“The festival will run daily from June 12 through June 27, offering live match broadcasts, cultural showcases, food vendors, and entertainment,” according to FIFA.
The fan zone will open between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. and will stay open until after dark, between 8:30 p.m. and 12:30 a.m. according to reports.
Activities at the fan zone
Here are some of the offerings at the fan zone in Boston, according to the FIFA website:
- Live broadcasts: Giant outdoor screens that broadcast tournament matches in high-definition.
- Entertainment & music: Live concerts, DJ sets, and performances celebrating global culture.
- Interactive activations: Skills challenges, mini-pitches, inflatable games, and sponsor booths.
- Food & merch: International food stalls, local beverage offerings, and official tournament merchandise.
How to go to the fan zone
While the game is free, you do need to register in advance.
“You can select which days and matches you plan to attend through the FIFA World Cup Boston 2026 website or the Meet Boston events page. Up to six people can register on a single application,” the World Cup Boston website says.
Boston, MA
Who Will Form the Boston Bruins’ Future Core?
Boston, MA
Updating Red Sox’s Playoff Chances: Numbers Never Lie | NESN
So you’re saying there’s a chance? Despite an abysmal start to the 2026 season, the Boston Red Sox remain in the mix for a playoff spot. At least according to FanGraphs, who gives the club a 27.1% chance of reaching the postseason.
Boston’s likely path to October means winning the wild card. FanGraphs gives the Red Sox a 26.1% chance of winning an American League wild card. The team currently sits threes games back of the third and final wild card, despite a record of 25-33.
Don’t look for a division title this year in Beantown. FanGraphs gives the Red Sox a 1% chance of winning the AL East. Which makes sense, since the team currently sits in last place, 11.5 games behind the first-place Tampa Bay Rays.
But SI’s Tom Verducci and Will Laws thinks Boston has a much tougher chance of making the playoffs. In their deep dive of the postseason, the pair came up with what they call the “Line of Doom.” According to their research, a team that starts “no better than 23–31 and your season is almost over only one-third of the way through the schedule.” Here’s why.
“In the wild card era (since 1995), only one team made the postseason starting with less than 22 wins in the first 54 games, the 2005 Astros (20–34). Of the 231 teams to start 23–31 or worse, only seven made the playoffs—once every 33 times,” Verducci and Laws note.
“Since the postseason field expanded in 2022, 31 teams began 23–31 or worse. Only one, the 2024 Mets (22–32), made the playoffs. That leaves such slow starters with a 1 in 31 chance—virtually the same as the larger sample size,” the pair add.
“The fact is one-third of the season does a good job separating pretenders from contenders. And as the calendar flips to June, understand that the playoff spots won’t change very much. In the four seasons with 12 playoff spots up for grabs, teams in playoff position when May ended kept a playoff spot 73% of the time—35 of 48 teams,” Verducci and Laws conclude.
So what does this have to do with the Red Sox, you ask? It’s Boston’s record after 54 games: 23-31. The “Line of Doom.”
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