Cote’s Hot Button Top 10: U.S. soccer and New York Knicks fans partying and more
GREG COTE’S HOT BUTTON TOP 10 (JUNE 14): WHAT IN SPORTS HAS GRABBED US THIS WEEK: Huge U.S. win opens World Cup, Knicks ends NBA title drought, Carolina on win from Stanley Cup, UFC at White House tonight, hot Marlins toy with .500, U.S., Open week in golf and more. Welcome to 153rd edition of HB10, bringing you what’s on our minds through a Miami lens and accentuating stuff that’s big, weird, damnable, funny or worth needling as the sports week past pivots to the week ahead:
1. May we introduce ourselves? Hello, World Cup. We are the U-S-A: The United States’ resounding 4-1 Group D opener over Paraguay in L.A. Saturday night -- now that is how a lightly-regarded home team introduces itself to the World Cup with force. Look out! Striker Folarin Balogun led the assault with a pair of goals. “A dreamy night,” he called it. And American soccer fans have begun to dream. Our matches of the day for coming week: Today/Sunday--Cote d’Ivoire (official team of the Greg Cote Show podcast), debuts vs. Ecuador; Monday--First game in Miami with Saudi Arabia vs. Uruguay; Tuesday--Messi and Argentina debut vs. Algeria; Wednesday--Colombia opens vs. Uzbekistan; Thursday--Mexico vs. South Korea; Friday--U.S. vs. Australia (also 1-0) in America’s second group match; and next Saturday--Cote d’Ivoire takes on Germany.
▪ The Greg Cote Show podcast has a live World Cup contest among myself, Chris and Yeti with results based upon teams each of us drafted. Go here to track continuous live updates: cotecup.thegregcoteshow.com
2. NBA: Knicks win NBA crown; New York partying like it’s 1973: The Knicks rallied from 10 down with 8:21 left Saturday night to win in San Antonio 94-90 and cap a 4-1 NBA Finals domination for New York’s first league title since 1973. Jalen Brunson had 45 points to grand-marshal the parade as thousands who made the trip chanted, “Let’s go Knicks!” Knicks had overcome a record 29-pooint deficit in the previous game as the Spurs in this series blew more leads than a blind detective. New York outscored opponents by 283 combined points this postseason, an NBA record.
3. NHL: Staal-led Carolina can win Stanley Cup in Game 6 tonight: Carolina leads the Stanley Cup Final 3-2 entering Game 6 tonight/Sunday in Vegas. Hurricanes trailed early in Game 5 Thursday but tied it on a goal by Jordan Staal (of course) to lead four straight scores. If Golden Knights hold home ice tonight, a Game 7 would be Wednesday night in Raleigh. Each team is chasing its second Cup; Vegas won in 2023 and Carolina in 2006.
4. UFC: Fight card disgraces White House tonight: At a cost of $60 million and involving seven federal agencies and tier-1 security, the White House hosts a less-than-illustrious UFC fight card on its South Lawn tonight/Sunday to celebrate Donald Trump’s 80th birthday and (ostensibly) America’s 250th. Because nothing says patriotism and “America” quite like a bunch of guys punching and kicking each other. It promises to be a monstrosity of a spectacle jarringly out of place at the White House. On the plus side, there is a fair chance Trump won’t be booed by the crowd, although all bets are off on his falling asleep.
5. MARLINS: Meyer vs. Skenes today as hot Fish seek .500: It’s Miami’s 6-0 Max Meyer vs. Pittsburgh ace Paul Skenes in a Sunday matinee today as hot Marlins continue a six-game road trip. A 3-2 loss Saturday ended Miami’s season-best six-game winning streak and a 9-1 run overall. Fish are now 35-36 and only two games back in the NL wild-card chase. After today Miami travels for three at NL East rival Philadelphia before heading home.
6. GOLF: Men’s U.S. Open tees off this week in New York: World No. 1 Nelly Korda won the Women’s U.S. Open for first time, now it’s the guys’ turn as the 126th edition of the golf major is this coming Thursday through next Sunday at Shinnecock Hills, New York. Last year little-known J.J. Spaun stunned the golf world by winning, but expect a more starry leaderboard this time. Betting faves per DraftKings are Scottie Scheffler (unless that went without saying) at +450 followed by Rory McIlroy and Jon Rahm.
7. MEDIA: Farewell, Dave Hyde: I rarely criticize another media outlet, especially one in my own backyard, but respected veteran sports columnist Dave Hyde deserved so much better than to be suddenly laid-off by the South Florida Sun-Sentinel in a cost-cutting move. Dave has been a friend and a friendly rival for decades, and deserved to fashion his own departure on his terms and timetable. Thanks to Dave for what he has meant in this market for 36 years. And shame on you, Sentinel.
8. TENNIS: Sorry, Serena, but doubles won’t hold our interest: Racket G.O.A.T. Serena Williams, back at age 44, won a first match with her doubles partner in a tournament in London in her first competitive play in almost four years. She is slated to play at Wimbledon starting June 29 as a wildcard entry, but has been noncommital on whether she will enter the singles draw or continue in doubles. Our opinion: Doubles won’t hold our interest. Singles -- now that’s when the comeback really begins.
9. BASKETBALL: BIG3 league, Miami team back with new format: BIG3, the pro hoops league for NBA retirees founded by rapper Ice Cube, is back for an eighth year with eight teams in a new city-based format. Mario Chalmers and Michael Beasley lead the Miami 305 team in the 3-on-3 league. Other BIG3 stars (there aren’t a ton) include Dwight Howard, Gary Payton, Joe Johnson and Lance Stephenson. Season opens June 20 in L.A. Schedule plays in Miami (well, at the Panthers’ Sunrise arena) July 5 and 31.
10. FOOTBALL: Louisville wins UFL championship. (Yes, spring football is still around...): Spring football wheezes on in America as a minor niche pro sport and on Saturday the Louisville Kings beat the reigning champ DC Defenders 27-20 in Washington, D.C., to win the United Football League crown. I’d share highlights from the game but it involved nobody you’ve likely heard of, so what would be the point.
THE LIST: MOST MEN’S U.S. OPEN GOLF WINS THIS CENTURY: The men’s U.S. Open golf major begins this week in New York. Most times winning the event since 2000:
Wins Golfer (Years)
3 Tiger Woods (2000, ‘02, ‘08)
2 Retief Goosen (2001, ‘04)
2 Brooks Koepka (2017, ‘18)
2 Bryson DeChambeau (2020, ‘24)
Other select most recent stuff from me: Poll Dance: Who’ll win World Cup? // Ugly buildup to World Cup, but now the beautiful game and the magic take over // Trump intrudes on NBA Finals, New York’s epic night // Podcast: Chris Wittyngham, World Cup // Previous HB10 // World Cup is upon us and here are top 6 storylines // Serena, Jen Pawol and continuing fight for women’s equality in sports // As we lose ‘72 Perfect Season Dolphins 1 by 1, time to cherish Miami’s family heirloom // Heat needs Giannis to reverse slide to irrelevance // Dolphins will be better than you think in ‘26. Here’s why // Perfect? No. But Messi is godsend who has exceeded all hopes // Florida’s escalated fight with NFL mirrors larger war on DEI // One month out, tickets are pricey. No duh. Savor World Cup anyway // Stephen Ross takes last big swing to rescue legacy as Dolphins owner // Heat’s Pat Riley still fighting for career finish Shula never got // Dolphins’ new GM earns trust on Proctor, draft. But he better be right // Heat end season valiantly, but effort and almost are not enough // State of Miami Sports; Grading Fins, Heat, Cats, Fish, Inter Miami & more // U.S. team struggles, doubts grow as men’s World Cup nears // Sandy shines, Marlins win to launch latest season of budget-ball // Baseball, politics, emotion lift Venezuela past U.S. to WBC championship // Dolphins’ major rebuild is on -- and it’s about damned time // Dolphins’ new coach, GM take on 25 years of franchise torpor and a QB mess // Canes title-game loss does not erase success of watershed season // Step aside, other cities: Why 2026 in sports belongs to Miami // And my latest podcast:
