標籤: leader

Aston Villa And Manchester United Borussia Dortmund remain interested in Waldermar Anton this summer.

BILD reports this Manchester United, Aston Villa and Atletico Madrid are all interested in the 29-year-old, who is set to be handed the role of ‘third captain’ at the German club.

a quiet leader

The newspaper reports that following the departure of Julian Brandt, Dortmund will need to reorganize their leadership hierarchy for the upcoming season.

Coach Niko Kovac already has a clear plan to redistribute responsibility. And according to BILD, Waldermar Anton is the top candidate to replace Brandt as the third captain. He was already the ‘de facto leader’ on the pitch without the armband last season.

This brought praise to Kovač and was a strong endorsement of his importance.

“Waldy is a leader – a quiet leader,” he said.

“Not a guy who wants to be in the spotlight, but someone who does his job both behind the scenes, internally and on the field. He’s a true professional!”

The feeling is that the player has ‘captain’s genes for a long time’. He has not only been a consistent presence in the last three matches but also commands the pitch. And this didn’t go unnoticed by even the ‘top clubs’.

Interest from Aston Villa and Manchester United

Manchester United, Aston Villa and Atletico Madrid are all interested in him. This is not the first time that he has been named as a lover.

Sport Witness covered a report in late March Insisting that the Borussia Dortmund man was on the agenda of both Aston Villa and Manchester United.

According to that report, United had already made contact about a possible move. Aston Villa were only interested and nothing more. Now BILD insists that they remain in the picture, without giving any more details than that.

But it seems both Premier League clubs are watching with interest, perhaps even seeing huge value in Anton’s leadership qualities.

The Cleveland Browns have one of the most intriguing quarterback rooms in the NFL at the moment, making for an interesting position battle that will last all summer. While NFL training camp is still a few months away, it appears the Browns have an early leader in the quarterback competition.

during an appearance on sports center This weekend, ESPN NFL insider Jeremy Fowler reported that Deshaun Watson has “hit it out” with Browns head coach Todd Monken and some around the league believe he could win the starting job.

“He’s already been a factor on the practice field. I’m told he’s worked with Todd Monken, who has an offensive concept, some elements that Watson has run in the past and has gotten the best of them…Talking to people around the league, he believes Watson can ultimately earn this job.”

Jeremy Fowler on Deshaun Watson and the Cleveland Browns QB competition

Watson, who turns 31 in September, last played in the regular season on Oct. 20, 2024. He has recovered from two Achilles tears and it appears his NFL career is in danger of being over by 2025.

This set the stage for Shadure Sanders, who was viewed as the early favorite to be named the Browns’ starting quarterback in 2026. Although he did not play well in his rookie season, posting an 18.9 ESPN QBR with a 7-10 TD-INT line, there was optimism he would improve with a revamped supporting cast in Cleveland.

However, Fowler’s reporting supports what Browns reporter Mary Kay Cabot has said in recent weeks. In late April, she wrote for Cleveland.com that Watson had the “inside track” to winning the contest.

Regardless of who is named the Browns’ starting quarterback for Week 1, we’ll likely see both Watson and Sanders on the field in 2026. Given how both of them have performed in Cleveland, there’s also a real possibility that Dillon Gabriel will get some opportunities this fall.

Matt Johnson is the senior NFL and college football editor for Sportsknot. His work including the weekly NFL and college… More about Matt Johnson

We’re now 13 races through the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series season, with strong performances from Jesse Love and Brent Cruz on Saturday afternoon solidifying their positions near the midway mark. With another race over, we’re taking a look at the NASCAR O’Reilly standings today.

Let’s take a look at the state of the O’Reilly Series right now after Saturday’s race at Watkins Glen. We’ll start with the standings where O’Reilly Series drivers are below the cutoff line for The Chase.

The NASCAR O’Reilly Series is in the lead right now

nascar paddle chase fight

Matt Johnson is the senior NFL and college football editor for SportsKnow. His work including weekly NFL and college… More about Matt Johnson

Caden Honeycutt entered the weekend sitting at the top of the NASCAR Truck standings heading into Friday’s road course race at Watkins Glen. He solidified his position on the leaderboard, scoring his first win in the Truck Series.

Let’s take you to the NASCAR Truck Series points leaders right now after Friday’s race at Watkins Glen.

NASCAR Truck Series Ponts Leaders Today

RELATED: NASCAR predictions for Watkins Glen

NASCAR Truck Series Standings: The Chase Battle

This is what the Chase Cutline looks like now after the Truck Series race at Watkins Glen. Note, Corey Heim (8th in the NASCAR Truck Series standings) is not eligible for The Chase.

RELATED: NASCAR Truck Series results at Watkins Glen

Matt Johnson is the senior NFL and college football editor for SportsKnow. His work including weekly NFL and college… More about Matt Johnson

A surprising number of the points leaders had strong performances in Sunday’s Cup Series race at Texas Motor Speedway, the Wurth 400. However, on a day that also included DNFs for Joey Logano, Christopher Bell and Ty Gibbs, there is still a lot of shakeup in the NASCAR standings.

Let’s take a look at the NASCAR Cup Series points leaders today after Sunday’s race at Texas Motor Speedway. Additionally, we have included a table for The Chase cutline to show how far back drivers are from 16th place in The Chase.

NASCAR Cup Series leads after 11 races

NASCAR Standings: The Chase Cutline

Matt Johnson is the senior NFL and college football editor for Sportsknot. His work including the weekly NFL and college… More about Matt Johnson

It took Kimi Antonelli 19 years, six months and 25 days to become the youngest driver in Formula 1 history to lead the world championship. He did so three weeks earlier at the Japanese Grand Prix in Suzuka. He arrived in Miami this weekend and is still on top.

Let that sink in for a second.

In three races in 2026, the child from Bologna has two wins, two pole positions and 72 points. He is nine points ahead of his teammate George Russell. The record he broke belonged to Lewis Hamilton – the man whose seat he took in the Mercedes. Hamilton led the championship for the first time at the age of 22. Antonelli did this at the age of 19. It’s not close.

WATCH: Miami Grand Prix, exclusively this Sunday on Apple TV+! Check it out!

Getting to Know Kimi Antonelli

Andrea Kimi Antonelli grew up in Bologna, located in the heart of Italy’s Motor Valley – Ferrari, Lamborghini and Ducati are all built within an hour of his hometown. His father, Marco Antonelli, raced professionally and first got him into kart racing at the age of three. Mercedes found him at the age of just 12 and included him in their junior program.

Because he was such a good driver at a young age, Antonelli left Formula 3 altogether. He moved straight from the regional series to F2, where he became the youngest multiple race winner in the series’ history. When Hamilton announced he was leaving for Ferrari, Mercedes handed the seat to a teenager who had not yet taken his road test.

He passed it six weeks before his F1 debut.

Another thing to know: His name is not an homage to Kimi Raikkonen. A family friend suggested it because it matches phonetically well with Andrea Antonelli. He simply shares the name with a world champion. The similarities keep finding him, whether he wants them to or not.

Kimmy Antonelli’s hot start in 2026

The season got off to a good start for Antonelli at the Australian Grand Prix as he had to retire early due to battery problems. He recovered, scored points and moved on. no play.

In Shanghai, Antonelli made a great debut and became the youngest pole-sitter in F1 history. He then won and became the first Italian Grand Prix winner in 20 years since Giancarlo Fisichella won the Malaysian Grand Prix in 2006. Fisichella won that race five months before Antonelli was born.

“When you think that Kimi wasn’t even born when I won 20 years ago, it’s fantastic. I’m happy for him and proud of him,” Fisichella told F1.com. “To be honest, it’s been a long 20 years to see an Italian driver on the top step of the podium again. He’ll get the chance to do it again, not just once, but many times.”

Fast forward to the 2026 Japanese Grand Prix: Antonelli makes bad start. A wheelspin off the line dropped him from pole to sixth. A safety car on lap 22 saved no one – except Antonelli, who had not yet pitted and made the free stop into the lead. He fell nearly 14 seconds short of his second consecutive victory. After China, he held the distinction of being the youngest championship leader in F1 history.

Nothing seems normal about this right now. But, that’s fine for the game’s new superstar.

Why has Antonelli excelled despite F1 regulation glitch?

The 2026 regulations are the biggest technical change F1 has seen in years. This included new power units, active aerodynamics, tires and fuel – it all changed at once. No one came into this season with any relevant experience. Each driver on the grid had to locate a completely new car from the start. It’s a mess, including early season amendments to these regulations.

Kishore was the first to discover this.

📰: Kimi Antonelli issued a bold warning to his 2026 F1 title rivals ahead of Miami, saying his back-to-back wins in China and Japan prove he is on top. “Experience is my biggest weakness compared to drivers like George [Russell]…but my victory showed that I can beat… pic.twitter.com/7mo5Mt5Bda

– F1 Naija (@f1_naija) 26 April 2026

Yes, Mercedes has the best energy recovery system on the grid at the moment. The car is fast. But Antonelli is doing something with it that no one else is doing. Four-time champion Max Verstappen is buried in the standings. Reigning champion Lando Norris could not even start the first two races. Lewis Hamilton – with almost two decades in F1 – is fourth.

The 19 year old youth is leading the way. Without a doubt, this has been the story of this year so far.

Connected: Formula 1 emergency meeting: 6 rule changes by Miami that could fix the 2026 season

Antonelli’s 2026: comparison with other great young drivers

Sebastian Vettel won his first title at the age of 23. Verstappen won his first title at the age of 23. He is the youngest champion in F1 history. Antonelli is 19 years old and the season is three races old. Can he become the first teenager to win a driver’s championship? This is a distinct possibility.

The Vettel comparison comes up most often and is probably the best overall. Both operated major machinery. Both were composed well beyond their years. But Vettel had stable rules to work with. Antonelli is doing so amid maximum technical chaos, in his second full F1 season, on a car that didn’t exist eight months ago.

2026 Miami Grand Prix Coverage: Watch exclusive content on Apple TV+

“His whole demeanor is very refreshing,” said former Austrian driver and F1 executive Helmut Marko. “He was already incredibly fast everywhere in the junior categories, and it’s good to see a young driver like that coming to the fore.”

That’s part of what makes the comparison small – and the story big. Yes, it’s still early, but the gravity of what they’ve done so far isn’t lost on those who follow the game closely.

What to expect from Antonelli at the 2026 Miami Grand Prix

This weekend will be different. Not because of circuits or strategy or championship math. This is unique as Antonelli has never performed as the points leader on a race weekend. He has never walked into the Hard Rock Stadium paddock with a target on his back, in the loudest, most produced, most celebrity-saturated event on the F1 calendar.

The city is designed to be grand. The question is whether it overcomes him.

Through three races, the 19-year-old from Bologna, who passed his driver’s test six weeks before his F1 debut, is leading the world championship. He broke Lewis Hamilton’s record in his old seat. He is still finishing his high school exams between sessions.

Miami is about to find out what he’s made of.

Scott Gulbransen, a quintessential expert in the field of sports journalism, serves as an editor, nfl , mlb , Formula 1 … More about Scott Gulbransen

Sunday’s Cup Series race at Kansas Speedway saw plenty of dominance from the likes of Denny Hamlin, Christopher Bell and Tyler Reddick. Several drivers further solidified their positions at the top of the NASCAR standings today, with Kyle Larson and Bubba Wallace also performing well.

Let’s take you through the NASCAR standings today after Kansas. As always, we’ve noted in our table where the cutline is right now for The Chase through a nine-point run this season. We’ve also covered the biggest movers in NASCAR standings this weekend.

RELATED: AdventHealth 400 Winners, Losers and Analysis

NASCAR points standings now: Cup Series points leaders after Kansas

Official 2026 NASCAR Cup Series results at Kansas Speedway

Matt Johnson is the senior NFL and college football editor for Sportsknot. His work including the weekly NFL and college… More about Matt Johnson

Cup drivers Kyle Larson and Connor Zylisch dominated Saturday night’s NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway. While it took away a lot of points from the full-time O’Reilly drivers, there was still plenty of action in the standings tonight due to strong performances from William Savalich, Sheldon Creed, Brent Cruz, Ryan Sieg, Carson Kvapil and Sam Mayer.

Let’s jump straight into the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series standings after Saturday night’s race at Bristol. It will come as no surprise that Justin Allgaier leads the OARS points leaders at this time.

NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series status after Bristol

Official 2026 NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series results at Bristol Motor Speedway

Matt Johnson is the senior NFL and college football editor for Sportsknot. His work including the weekly NFL and college… More about Matt Johnson

With the Cup Series drivers largely dominating the last two O’Reilly Auto Parts Series races, there hasn’t been as much movement among the points leaders for the second week in a row. However, the Help a Hero 200 still brought some changes to the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series standings and Justin Allgaier made even more breathing room for himself at the top.

Let’s take you straight to the NASCAR OARS standings after Darlington.

NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series Leads Right Now

Here are the current standings of the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series after Darlington.

Complete NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series results tonight at Darlington Raceway

Matt Johnson is the senior NFL and college football editor for Sportsknot. His work including the weekly NFL and college… More about Matt Johnson

The New England Patriots have made a surprise move in NFL free agency. New England is signing free-agent safety Kevin Byard to a one-year, $9 million contract, NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reports. Byrd was the 2025 NFL interception leader with seven takeaways. Six players tied for second with five interceptions.

The 2025 All-Pro safety spent the last two seasons with the Chicago Bears; However, he spent six years with the Tennessee Titans, playing under Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel. Byard had the best campaign by an NFL safety during the 2025-26 season, even though he is 32 years old.

New England left a hole in their secondary with Jaylin Hawkins entering free agency. Rather than re-sign Hawkins, the Patriots will pair Byrd with Craig Woodson for the upcoming season. Barring any injuries or other moves, New England’s secondary is set. Woodson and Byrd will start at safety, while Christian Gonzalez, Carlton Davis and Marcus Jones will man the cornerback positions.

Byard leads the NFL with 36 interceptions since being drafted in 2016. The 32-year-old safety is a big-time impact player who should help lead the defense with his experience. Byrd’s reliability is top-notch, having never missed a game due to injuries in his 10-year NFL career.

The former Bear joins linebacker Dre’Mont Jones as New England’s key additions on the defensive side of the football. The Patriots have also agreed to terms with wide receiver Romeo Doubs, left guard Elijah Vera-Tucker, fullback Reggie Gilliam and linebacker KJ Britt.

New England looks to add new players to its football team as the pursuit of Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver AJ Brown continues after signing Dobbs. The Patriots will have a tough schedule next season; However, the team is much improving and the addition of Byrd to the secondary makes the defense even more dangerous.

READ MORE: NFL Insider gives major update on AJ Brown, New England Patriots trade rumors

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Now that we’re officially four races into the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season, the battle leading up to the 10-race The Chase is only starting to heat up. After a battle at Phoenix that saw some top drivers wrecked while others cracked the top 10, there is still some movement for the Cup Series points leaders.

Let’s take a look at the NASCAR points standings today after the Straight Talk Wireless 500.

RELATED: NASCAR Results Today Phoenix, NASCAR Stage Results Today

NASCAR points standings today: Cup Series playoff picture

Here are the NASCAR points leaders right now after today’s race at Phoenix. For the top 16 drivers who made The Chase, we’ve listed how many points behind Tyler Reddick they are. Below 17th is how many points they are behind the 16th and final Chase position.

Matt Johnson is the senior NFL and college football editor for Sportsknot. His work including the weekly NFL and college… More about Matt Johnson

Some new comments from New York Mets Opening Day starter Freddy Peralta show he is the player and leader this team desperately needs.

The 2025 campaign for the NY Mets was one of the most disappointing in club history. After bringing back most of the roster that reached the NLCS in 2024 and adding MVP contender Juan Soto to the mix, expectations were high. When they looked like one of the best teams in baseball in the first half, it seemed like their grand plan was coming together.

They then lost in the second half and suffered a shocking collapse in the final month of the season. Missing the playoffs and leaving fans stunned. While there has been much discussion about what went wrong, a lack of unity in the locker room seems to be one of the biggest culprits. That is why the organization took several steps with a view to improving the morale of the clubhouse.

One of them was their blockbuster trade for former Milwaukee Brewers ace Freddy Peralta. The primary goal of the deal was to acquire a legitimate ace at the top of the rotation. However, another reason the NY Mets reportedly traded for the two-time All-Star is his reputation as an integrated and high-character player.

Peralta says NY Mets were the team he wanted to be traded to

On Wednesday, Peralta proved that with some great comments during an appearance foul zone podcast. When asked about his thoughts once he knew the trade was close, the 29-year-old revealed that he had a feeling he would be traded to the NY Mets, and “I wanted to come here. I’m not going to lie,” he said with a smile.

When players sign with the New York team, they always say the right things. However, businesses are different. So the fact that he wanted to end up in Gotham, and it brings a lot of his family together, is a huge positive sign about his mindset in his first season in the New York media pressure cooker.

Furthermore, he added some information that proves that he is very excited about becoming a mate in 2026. First, there’s the fact that he arrived early to spring training, which Peralta says he did specifically so he could bond with his new teammates.

Also, although he admits it was difficult, he gave up representing his country, the Dominican Republic, in the World Baseball Classic this month. This is because he is in the last year of his contract and debuting with a new team, so he looks to deliver another excellent season for himself and the NY Mets in 2026.

However, there are rumors that he and the team are getting closer to an extension. Either way, Peralta is already showing why he is the pitcher and leader the team desperately needed and he could be a key part of a huge turnaround this season.

After earning a journalism degree in 2017, Jason Burgos worked as a contributor to several sites, including MMA Sacca… More about Jason Burgos

The third points race of the 2026 NASCAR season has concluded, with Circuit of the Americas holding the first road course race this year. Driving on the road course means we have a slight bump on the Cup Series points leaderboard, as we see in the latest standings.

Here are the NASCAR points standings today after the Duramax Texas Grand Prix at COTA.

RELATED: NASCAR results today COTA, NASCAR Cup Series stage results

NASCAR awards points leaders now: standings after COTA

Along with the NASCAR points leaders, we’ve listed how many points behind Tyler Reddick the top-16 drivers are. For drivers below the cutline (16th), we’ve listed how many points below it they are.

RELATED: Winners, losers of NASCAR races today at COTA

Matt Johnson is the senior NFL and college football editor for Sportsknot. His work including the weekly NFL and college… More about Matt Johnson

NBA great and basketball analyst Dwyane Wade recently wrote an article for athletic Highlighting the three best leaders he has played with in his career. This piece stays true to his Heat roots, as he highlights Pat Riley, Shaquille O’Neal, and Udonis Haslem.

But missing from the list was LeBron James, who is often considered one of the great leaders in the NBA and was Wade’s co-star when the two won two championships in 2012 and 2013. Regarding Pat Riley, Wade talked about Pat’s attention to detail and ability to remain calm under fire.

“Where Pat was great was his attention to detail. That’s something I try to pride myself on, even now… A lot of times, as a player, your mind, your emotions, your anxiety are all over the place. You make some mistakes, and you start thinking too much. He was a cool guy. Whenever I went over to him during the game, he would put his hand on me and give me a calm feeling and reset me.”

Speaking about Shaq, he talked about his defensive ability and the mentor role that O’Neal played in his early career en route to his first championship.

“He showed me tricks. He showed me how to be a superstar on and off the court. He even gave me the nickname “Flash.” He sat down and talked to me about authenticity and making sure my DNA was in everything I did. It changed the way I went into meetings, it changed my brand and the way I thought about myself.

And as for Udonis Haslem, whom Wade often praises when talking about his Heat tenure, he talked about his ability as a leader and his respect for his voice.

“UD was never one of the top guys when it came to stardom, but he still had the loudest voice in the locker room. When he talked, everyone listened because we knew it wasn’t coming from a selfish place at all. It was coming from a guy who would give everything in his body for you in any game. He’d take penalties for you. He was making the least money as an undrafted guy, but he cared. No. He made sure everyone in the locker room followed the rules, even when LeBron James and Chris Bosh came in.

This article was less about the chemistry on the court and more about his unique experience with these locker room leaders. But Wade has spoken highly of James in other places, and James has spoken candidly about how his partnership with Wade was important to his career.

In comments received after Wade and James’ final game against each other in December 2018, LeBron talked about Wade and their successful pairing.

“I personally think I would have been a lot more successful in this league without D-Wade,” LeBron said. “But I really needed him to accomplish what I wanted to accomplish in this league, and that is to win at the highest level. And that’s when I made the jump, and what he did for me when I went to Miami, I appreciate more than I can express in words. You have to think about how I spent the first 25 years of my life in Akron, Ohio. I spent 18 years in high school, and then the first seven years of my professional career I’m still “I was living in Akron, Ohio, so that’s all I knew.”

We’ve officially entered the first two races of the 2026 NASCAR season, with Sunday’s Cup Series race at Atlanta bringing more changes to the points leaderboard early in the year. Every week matters in the months leading up to the 10-race The Chase, so today’s results could determine who is the regular season winner.

Here are the NASCAR points leaders in the Cup Series after the Autotrader 400 at Echopark Speedway.

RELATED: Winners, losers from today’s NASCAR race at Echopark Speedway

NASCAR points standings today: Cup Series points leaders

RELATED: NASCAR results for Cup Series today, NASCAR stage results for Atlanta

Matt Johnson is the senior NFL and college football editor for Sportsknot. His work including the weekly NFL and college… More about Matt Johnson

Wolverhampton Wanderers fans, look away. It seems that leaving Molineux could have quite a transformative effect. Just look at Emmanuel Egbadou.

Hurriyat cover it today And how he soon established himself as the ‘leader’ of the Besiktas defenders. In fact, manager Sergen Yalkin is also calling him that.

Agbadou joined the Turkish side in the January transfer window after a long spell away from Molineux.

Wolves grow out of difficulties

Sport Witness covered the saga extensively since December, reporting on agents’ meetings, flights to Istanbul and everything in between. The clubs sealed the deal on the deadline itself.

Vitor Pereira also joinedSupporting the protest at the request of the Turkish press. The defender was actually the first signing of the Portuguese manager’s reign at Wolves and was a mainstay under him last season.

Fans regarded him as a revelation upon his arrival, helping Pereira’s struggling defense last year.

The statistics also supported this, with some showing that he had not missed a single 50/50 and was in the top 10% for progressive passes among centre-backs. However, this season, that form waned.

By September, some reports described his performances as ‘disastrous’, citing unforgivable mistakes in key games. He was eventually sold to Turkey, where the cycle appears to have started again.

basic positivity

According to Hurriyet, Agbadou has made a very positive impact early on at his new club. The talks with Yalkin came after the defender achieved 82% pass accuracy and won 10/13 duels in games against Alanya N Başakşehir.

The Besiktas manager reportedly told him, “This season, the positions in which we had problems were mainly defence.”

“You largely eliminated this problem with your performances in the Alanyaspor and Baden-Sakeshir matches. You were very successful in duels, timing and pass accuracy. From now on, you are the leader of our defense. I want you to lead the team in the game setup.”

Considering how things ended in England, it’s quite a turnaround for the 28-year-old. However, Wolves fans may just want to wait before getting too disappointed. After all, they have seen such demonstrations before.

The New York Knicks were well represented at this year’s All-Star Game, with Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns competing for Team Stripes and Team World, respectively.

In the end, none of them won the trophy, as Team Stars won the mini tournament. It was the young guns, including Anthony Edwards of the Minnesota Timberwolves and Victor Wembanyama of the San Antonio Spurs, who shone brightest at the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles.

Edwards was named All-Star Game MVP, while Wembanyama almost single-handedly led the team to the World Cup. Edwards acknowledged Vembanyama for setting the tone In the mid-season showdown, and Brunson agreed.

“I think Wembey is a leader. The way he carries himself is great for this game. I think he’s done a great job, and you can see the impact he’s had on and off the court during this game. That’s why he’s doing what he does,” Brunson said.

Jalen Brunson agrees with Anthony Edwards and says Victor Wembanyama has set the tone for the intensity of the All-Star Game.

“I mean, yes. I think Wembey is a leader. The way he carries himself is fantastic for this game. I think he’s done a great job, and you can see the impact he’s had… https://t.co/yOCqsqKPoM pic.twitter.com/DYzrcmrFm1

– ClutchPoints (@clutchpoints) 16 February 2026

The 22-year-old Vembanayama, who played in his second consecutive All-Star Game, scored 33 points on 10-of-13 shooting, eight rebounds and two blocks in two games, although they lost both.

For his part, the 29-year-old Brunson had 13 points, three rebounds, four assists and two steals in three games.

Even before the highly anticipated competition, Vembanyama made it clear that he did not see it as a comfortable exhibition, and stressed the need to work hard to compete.

Team World still had a chance to advance to the finals, but Vembanyama missed a three-pointer, sending the game into overtime against Team Stripes.

Meanwhile, Brunson and the Knicks return to action on Thursday against the Detroit Pistons.