TORONTO -- When the Raptors convened in Vancouver for training camp in September, Pascal Siakam wasn't assured of being the team's starting power forward. Fast-forward eight months, and he was not only starting, but starring for Toronto in the franchise's first NBA Finals game.

Siakam's sensational all-around effort -- he finished with 32 points on 14-for-17 shooting to go along with 8 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal and 2 blocks -- powered a balanced Toronto attack that lifted the Raptors to a 118-109 victory over the Golden State Warriors in Game 1 of the NBA Finals at Scotiabank Arena on Thursday night.

"I think obviously getting some easy buckets in transition, something that I haven't really been able to do all playoffs, and I think just being able to run and getting easy baskets at the rim," Siakam said when asked what keyed his Game 1 performance. "And then, from there, just playing, just playing whatever defense gives me. That's why I always say, kind of play off of that and whatever is open, just taking it with confidence and believing in myself."

With Golden State doing everything it could to try to slow down Kawhi Leonard -- he finished with 23 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists but shot 5-for-14 from the field -- that created room for Siakam to take advantage of the attention directed at Leonard.

That's certainly what he did -- especially in the third quarter. Siakam didn't miss a shot in the period, going 6-for-6 from the field and 2-for-2 from the free throw line to score 14 points, matching a 13-point quarter from Stephen Curry as Toronto parried away the Warriors' typical third-quarter surge and prevented them from reclaiming control of the proceedings.

"I think he played an amazing game obviously, but he got out in transition and our transition D was horrible, and I let him get in a rhythm in the first half, first quarter really," Warriors forward Draymond Green said.

"So I got to do a better job of taking his rhythm away, and I will, but he had a great game. But that's on me."

Siakam's success in that quarter, as well as throughout the game, saw him return to what had made him a breakout star this season, and the likely winner of the league's Most Improved Player Award: his aggression and creativity at both ends.

"The way they played him tonight, they were helping off of him and he was just able to get to his spots and get to his spaces cutting behind them, and made some 3s," Raptors guard Kyle Lowry told ESPN. "One thing about [Siakam] is he's going to keep playing and keep working no matter what.

"He's just going to keep working. He's had a couple games where he didn't play as well against Giannis [Antetokounmpo in the Eastern Conference finals], but tonight he played well."

Siakam did struggle at times against both the Philadelphia 76ers in the Eastern Conference semifinals and the Milwaukee Bucks because of the massive length of Sixers center Joel Embiid and Bucks center Brook Lopez (plus Antetokounmpo).

Golden State, for all of the brilliance Green brings to the court defensively, lacks that same kind of intimidating defensive presence. And Siakam looked like a new man with the freedom to attack, knowing he wasn't in danger of getting his shot blocked or altered.

And, as a result, the Raptors looked like a team more than capable of winning three more games in this series, and winning the team's first NBA title.

"I thought his composure was great," Raptors coach Nick Nurse told ESPN. "He'd get to a spot and he'd wait and get on balance, he'd upfake, he'd turn, get the angle and move it to where he needed to move it.

"He got some cuts, he made some 3s, he did a little bit of everything. When he's hitting the 3-ball he really gets fired up. He banged in a couple early, got out a couple runouts, couple putbacks. That's how you get 30-whatever ... [doing] a little bit of everything."

That phrase -- doing a little bit of everything -- has been what has made Siakam such an integral part of what Toronto has tried to do all season. He has become a jack-of-all-trades at both ends -- shooting, driving and passing offensively, and taking on whatever assignment is necessary defensively -- essentially serving as Nurse's Swiss Army knife at either end of the court.

While he was a nice piece of the bench for the Raptors last season, that he would become this good this soon wasn't something anyone could've predicted when this season began. But ever since that training camp in Vancouver, Nurse has encouraged Siakam to be himself on the court -- to play through mistakes, to try things, to play with confidence at all times.

"It definitely helps a lot," Siakam told ESPN, of the freedom with which Nurse has allowed him to play. "When you get minutes and you have the trust of the coaches and guys just letting you play your game and be yourself, it definitely helps."

SPEEDWAY, Ind. – Kyle Larson is returning to USAC NOS Energy Drink Midget National Championship competition for rounds two and three of the 15th edition of Indiana Midget Week.

Larson will compete on Wednesday at Gas City (Ind.) I-69 Speedway and Thursday at Lincoln Park Speedway in Putnamville, Ind.

Larson, a five-time Monster Energy Cup Series winner and recent victor of the Monster Energy All-Star race at Charlotte Motor Speedway, will drive the Keith Kunz Motorsports/Curb-Agajanian No. 97 in the pair of Midget races.

Larson’s first USAC NOS Energy Drink National Midget feature win came during Indiana Midget Week in 2011 at Bloomington Speedway. He won again in 2012 at Kokomo Speedway and again in 2013 at Gas City. His two most recent Indiana Midget Week victories both came at Montpelier Motor Speedway, in 2016 and ’18.  Larson finished runner-up in the Indiana Midget Week standings in 2011, six points shy of Bryan Clauson.

Larson will be joined on the Indiana Midget Week tour by teammates and series regulars Logan Seavey, the defending USAC NOS Energy Drink National Midget champion, as well as Tucker Klaasmeyer, Tanner Carrick, Jesse Colwell, Holley Hollan and the returning Tanner Thorson.

SPEEDWAY, Ind. – Tanner Thorson, who suffered serious injuries in a highway crash on March 4, will return to the cockpit of a USAC NOS Energy Drink National Midget in time for the start of the 15th annual edition of Indiana Midget Week June 4-9.

Thorson will make his return to the Keith Kunz Motorsports/Curb-Agajanian team for the upcoming six-race mini-series aboard the Walker Filtration-sponsored No. 98.  The team reunites after a successful run that resulted in 12 USAC NOS Energy Drink National Midget feature wins and the 2016 series championship.

Two of Thorson’s 12 series victories came during Indiana Midget Week, including his first triumph in 2015 at Gas City I-69 Speedway and in 2016 at Lincoln Park Speedway in Putnamville, Ind.  Among other notable victories for the Minden, Nev., native are the Turkey Night Grand Prix in 2015 and the Gold Crown Midget Nationals in 2015 and 2016.

Thorson was injured earlier this year in a multi-car incident on Highway 99 in Modesto, Calif.  Thorson underwent surgery for a broken left arm and right foot and also sustained a cracked sternum, broken ribs and a punctured lung.

The accident occurred while Thorson was on his way back home to the Tri-C Motorsports team’s Sacramento, Calif., shop after competing in the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car events at the Dirt Track at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

In the first two events of the 2019 USAC National Midget season, Thorson finished ninth on the opening night of Winter Dirt Games X at Bubba Raceway Park in Ocala, Fla., and seventh in the second event where he charged from 24th to seventh to earn hard charger honors.

“I’m back!  Excited to get back with these guys for my comeback/race week,” Thorson said in an Instagram post earlier Thursday.

I’m Back! Excited to get back with these guys for my come back race/week! @USACNation @KeithKunz pic.twitter.com/J378L4yf00

— Tanner Thorson (@Tanner_Thorson) May 30, 2019

Inter Milan have appointed former Juventus and Chelsea manager Antonio Conte, the club announced on Friday.

Conte's replaces Luciano Spalletti, who was sacked after two seasons with the club. The Nerazzurri finished fourth in the Serie A standings on the final day of the season thanks to a 2-1 win over Empoli, qualifying for the Champions League.

Conte is also reunited with highly regarded former Juventus chief executive Beppe Marotta. The pair worked closely together to lead Juventus to three consecutive league titles between 2011 and 2014 before Conte left to manage Italy and then Chelsea, where he won the Premier League title in his first season and ended his second with triumph in the FA Cup.

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Antonio Conte will be Inter's new Coach!#WelcomeAntonio pic.twitter.com/kFk8tktl7z

— Inter (@Inter_en) May 31, 2019

Conte has been out of work since being sacked by Chelsea last summer, due in large part to a lengthy and acrimonious legal battle which only ended this month with a Premier League manager's arbitration tribunal ruling in his favour.

Chelsea have been ordered to pay Conte around £9 million -- the amount owed for the final unfulfilled year of his contract at Stamford Bridge -- and the Italian, now free to resume his career, has returned to Serie A.

Conte's blend of touchline passion and winning tactics made him hugely popular with the majority of Chelsea supporters, but his relationship with the board became damaged beyond repair, highlighted by his repeated public and private complaints about transfer policy.

He also clashed with Diego Costa and David Luiz, while others began to grow weary of his methods. In the wake of Chelsea's FA Cup win in 2018, Willian obscured Conte in a team celebration photograph posted on his Instagram account.

Conte's refusal to resign unless the final year of his contract was paid in full, coupled with Chelsea's delay in securing Maurizio Sarri from Napoli as his replacement, created an ugly public standoff that resulted in him leading the first few days of preseason before being sacked on July 13.

Chelsea withheld Conte's compensation, claiming that several of his actions -- including his decision to inform Costa by text message that he was no longer in his plans -- had led him to breach his contract.

Meanwhile, sources have told ESPN FC that Conte argued that Chelsea's delay in sacking him resulted in him missing out on potential job opportunities elsewhere, with Paris Saint-Germain appointing Thomas Tuchel and Real Madrid turning to Julen Lopetegui prior to his departure.

ST. LOUIS -- Blues forward Oskar Sundqvist has been suspended for Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final for delivering an elbow to the head of Boston Bruins defenseman Matt Grzelcyk.

The NHL's department of player safety announced the suspension Thursday after a hearing with Sundqvist, who was assessed only a two-minute minor penalty for boarding for the hit that knocked Grzelcyk out of Game 2 and possibly longer.

Sundqvist and Grzelcyk are each out for Game 3 on Saturday. Grzelcyk didn't travel with the Bruins, and coach Bruce Cassidy said the 25-year-old was in concussion protocol and considered day-to-day.

"I know they're trying to get those hits out of the game," Boston coach Bruce Cassidy said. Either Steven Kampfer or John Moore will go in for Grzelcyk.

While some Bruins players were reluctant to weigh in on the hit, former Blues captain David Backes was critical in the aftermath of Wednesday's Game 2.

"It's from behind, elevated, into his head, into the glass," Backes said. "If that's a two-minute penalty, I think there's going to be a shortage of defensemen in this series by the end of it. That's in somebody else's hands. That's something I think if I'm making that hit, I'm probably watching from the bleachers for a few."

Losing Sundqvist is another blow for St. Louis, which had already been without injured forward Robert Thomas and defenseman Vince Dunn.

"He's a big part of our team," captain Alex Pietrangelo said about Sundqvist. "He plays big minutes night in and night out and in every situation."

Blues coach Craig Berube didn't want to elaborate on Thomas' status but said upon landing that Dunn was close to returning after missing five games for a puck to the face. He gave no indication whether Zach Sanford would step in to the vacant forward spot or if St. Louis might instead dress seven defensemen.

After Robby Fabbri stepped in for Thomas in the Blues' Game 2 overtime victory and defensemen who had sat out are now contributing, Berube isn't worried about his team's depth in this situation.

"It's been a big factor, for sure, not only in the playoffs but throughout the last month or two in the season," Berube said. "Our depth is tremendous on the back end and up front. We use everybody. It's been very important."

SEATTLE -- Brad Ausmus disappointed countless Japanese baseball fans Thursday with one decision.

"Japanese baseball fans don't like me right now. Tell them I'm sorry," Ausmus joked.

The first-year Los Angeles Angels manager ruined the potential matchup between Japanese stars Shohei Ohtani and Seattle's Yusei Kikuchi in the series opener with his decision to sit Ohtani. It would have been the first meeting between the pair in the majors. The duo faced each other in five at-bats when they played in Nippon Professional Baseball.

But that first meeting in the majors will have to wait.

"There is a very good chance they will end up facing each other at some point so I wasn't overly concerned about that," Ausmus said.

Ausmus stressed it was strictly a baseball decision and the plan all along was to rest Ohtani at least one day during the Seattle series with the Mariners set to throw three left-handed starters in the four games. Ausmus liked how Ohtani matched up against Tommy Milone and Marco Gonzales better than he did Kikuchi. Milone and Gonzales will start Saturday and Sunday.

Ohtani has played in 19 games and is hitting .237 with two homers and 11 RBI after missing the start of the season while recovering from Tommy John surgery on his right elbow.

Kikuchi got the upper-hand in their limited meetings while playing professionally in Japan, striking out Ohtani three of the five official at-bats. Ohtani did have a single and double in the two other plate appearances.

Ohtani and Kikuchi both attended Hanamaki Higashi High School in Japan but were never teammates. It would have been the second matchup against former Japanese high school teammates in the majors. In 2007, Colorado's Kazuo Matsui and Pittsburgh's Masumi Kuwata faced off in the sixth inning of a game between the Rockies and Pirates. Matsui grounded out. The duo had attended PL Gakuen High School in Osaka.

Seattle manager Scott Servais deadpanned he would have preferred a different name being left out of the Angels lineup.

"He left (Mike) Trout in there," Servais joked.