MARSHALLTOWN, Iowa — The Dale DeFrance Memorial/Bill Davis Memorial race was held Thursday night at Marshalltown Speedway during the Central Iowa Fair and Jeff Aikey made his trip from Cedar Rapids very profitable.

After winning the IMCA modified main from the outside front row, Aikey stated in the post-race interview he had to start last in the IMCA late model 44 lapper. He also claimed he was going to win it.

He was wrong on his starting spot as he gridded 19th in the 21-car field, but accurately called his victory in a dramatic finish to the evening.

The 44 laps matched the number Dale DeFrance ran on his car and it took nearly all of them for Aikey to take the lead. Darrell DeFrance, Dale’s son, led the first 5 laps from his pole start with fifth-starting Richie Gustin putting on the pressure.

But it was Brian Harris who used the high line out of turn two on lap six to take over, but only for a pair of times around the high-banked quarter mile. R. Gustin used a slider in turn four on lap eight to take the lead and soon established a multiple car length gap.

A 35-lap stretch of all green saw R. Gustin stretch his lead while a tremendous battle for 2nd carried on between Harris, Aikey, and Cory Dumpert. After multiple passes, sliders, and side by side racing, it was Aikey who emerged with second place.

He quickly closed on R. Gustin and raced the top line out of turn four to end lap 39 with the lead. A late race yellow allowed R. Gustin another shot at the lead, but Aikey held on for the $1,500 win.

Besides Aikey winning from 19th, Dumpert finished second from his 14th starting spot while DeFrance took third.

In other IMCA divisions, Todd Reitzer won the stock car finale, Brayton Carter took the Northern Sport Mod main, and Eric Satton won his 12th hobby stock trophy of the season. The mod lite main was taken by first-time visitor Dillon Raffurty.

A 126-car field appeared for the Thursday night special.

LAKE ODESSA, Mich. — Brian Shirley became the man to beat during the final weekend of the DIRTcar Summer Nationals with a $5,000 triumph Thursday night at I-96 Speedway.

It was the second victory in as many nights for Shirley and his series-best sixth of this year’s Hell Tour. More importantly, he regained the point lead from Bobby Pierce, who finished 17^thon this night.

Shirley led all 40 laps, holding off several late-race charges from Frank Heckenast Jr.

David Mielke finished third with Ryan VanderVeen and Rusty Schlenk rounding out the top five.

Nick Hoffman picked up another DIRTcar modified triumph.

The finish:

Brian Shirley, Frank Heckenast Jr., David Mielke, Ryan VanderVeen, Rusty Schlenk, Jason Feger, Travis Stemler, Jeep Van Wormer, Scott Fisk, Kyle Roberts, Bryant Dickinson, Jake Rendel, Truck Robertson, Chuck Hummer, Brandon Thirlby, Hillard Miller, Bobby Pierce, Jason Playter Jr., Paul Stubber, Rob Anderzack, Devin Shiels, Brad Harden.

BANKS, Ore. — Mitchell Faccinto became the first driver to repeat victory during the Western Sprint Car Tour when he won the 30-lap feature at Sunset Speedway on Thursday night.

Faccinto was aboard Stan Greenberg’s blue No. 37 sponsored by the Western Metal Co. He picked up $2,000 after starting from second position.

Steven Tiner finished in the second pole after starting on the pole. Justin Sanders, the victor from the night before, wagged a race long battle with Jake Wheeler and came home in the third spot.

Tiner and Faccinto would bring the twenty-car starting field down for the green, but Colby Copeland would spin in the third turn and came a complete restart.  On the restart, Faccinto would use a pass line pass in the first turn to overtake Tiner.

Faccinto then sent sail around the red clay quarter-mile oval. The race would slow again on lap three with a single-car spin in the fourth turn. Once again, Faccinto had a clear track but that would quickly go away as he came up on slower cars.

Faccinto would use caution working lapped traffic allowing Tiner to catch up and at one point got along side of Faccinto as both cars exited the fourth turn. Tiner, however, had the same slower cars to deal with and never had another shot at the leader.

The race would slow again when a car tagged the fourth turn wall on lap 16. The caution left Faccinto a clear track on the restart and he clicked off the remaining laps without a challenge.

Sanders got around Wheeler on lap 26 with a turn one pass. The leaders choose the high groove around the tiny bullring and there were no position changes after that.

DONNELLSON, Iowa — Mason Daniel claimed his first Sprint Invaders victory Thursday night at Lee County Speedway.

The win was worth $1,500 to the Springville, Calif., native and came aboard the Mason Daniel Racing No. 33m.

Ayrton Gennetten, who had dominated the Golden Eagle Distributors Shake-up Dash, took the early lead from outside row on in the 20-lap main event.  Sixteen-year-old Riley Goodno, who was making his first Sprint Invaders appearance, trailed him from the pole, followed by Daniel, Kaley Gharst and Josh Higday.

Colton Fisher spun with a lap in the books, bringing the first of two cautions. The second came on the restart.  Gharst shot from fourth to second on the dry surface, before something went awry in turn three for him, and he spun to the infield and out of the race.

Gennetten led Goodno, Daniel, Higday and Jamie Ball back to green. Daniel quickly ducked under Goodno into second and pursued the leader, while Ball garnered fourth. 2016 series champion, Chris Martin, was on the move as well, having worked from his 14th starting spot to fifth by lap four.

Gennetten entered lapped traffic on the ninth circuit. Two laps later, a lapped car got sideways in front of him. The third-generation driver from Missouri checked up, and Daniel seized the opportunity, exploding into the lead. About the same time, Ball worked his way by Goodno into third.

Daniel pulled away to the checkers ahead of Gennetten, Ball, hard-charger Martin and Goodno.

“Early in the race, I was able to get third, and get to second after a couple yellows,” said Daniel. “It was mainly about saving your tires. Once the rubber came in, I knew if I could stay within somewhat of a distance to him…when we got in lapped traffic, it would be harder for him.  That’s what happened, and once we got the lead, we never looked back. I first came here last year and ran fifth. I came here earlier this year in a 410 and got second. Now, I finally got to get a win here. It’s pretty cool. It’s a very fun race track. It’s up there in my favorites.”

“Both times I’ve been here, the same thing happened,” said Gennetten.  “The last time, (Josh) Schneiderman and I were racing for the lead and a lapped car spun out in front of us and took us out. This time, a lapped car just got shoved up in the loose stuff and came down the track. I thought he was going to the infield, so I sort of checked up. That’s all Mason needed to get by me.  We were fast all night. I can’t say enough about the help we had tonight. It was great to have Jeff (Mitrisin) helping us. We were fast. Sometimes it just doesn’t go that way. We’ll see what’s in store for us Saturday at Knoxville.”

The finish:

Mason Daniel, Ayrton Gennetten, Jamie Ball, Chris Martin, Riley Goodno, Josh Higday, John Schulz, Carson McCarl, Parker Price-Miller, Harold Pohren, Cody Wehrle, Josh Schneiderman, Tanner Gebhardt, Daniel Bergquist, Dustin Selvage, Dustin Clark, Justin Buchholz, Colton Fisher, Kaley Gharst, Jon Agan.

GRANITE CITY, Ill. — Tyler Erb outbattled Jimmy Owens and Mike Marlar to win his fifth Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series event of the season on Thursday night at Tri-City Speedway.

The Hoker Trucking Best in the Business 50 presented by Schoenfeld Headers was also Erb’s second consecutive Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series victory.

Tim McCreadie came on strong to finish third just ahead of Owens and Earl Pearson Jr.

Erb started the day by setting fast time, then went on to earn the PFC Brakes Pole Award for the main event. Owens grabbed the early lead and held the point for the first 22 laps of the race.

The next six laps saw a back-and-forth race for the lead between Owens and Erb. Erb took the lead for the first time on lap 23, but Owens fought back to regain the top spot. The two raced side by side with Erb regaining the lead on the 30th circuit.

Marlar took over the second spot on lap 39 after he and Owens had battled side-by-side for several circuits. A caution came out with five laps to go, which gave Marlar one more opportunity to sneak by Erb.

On the restart, Erb used the clean air in front of him to open up a slight lead and finished three-quarters of a second ahead of Marlar at the finish line for his sixth career LOLMDS victory.

“I really didn’t want to see that last caution because I had gotten into a rhythm,” said Erb. “I was kind of kicking myself when Jimmy got back by me for the lead. I knew when Mikey was behind me that things were going to be tough. I could hear Jimmy under me and then the same thing with Mikey. I just kind of let it go for broke in the last four laps. About a month ago I was in the same position and I wasn’t going to let what happened last time, happen again.”

With the win, the 22-year-old Texan not only keeps his points lead in the rookie-of-the-year chase but also cut into point leader Jonathan Davenport’s championship point lead. Davenport finished 18th after pulling off the track due to heavy damage to his race car.

For Marlar, the runner-up finish continued his strong run of podium finishes since the first of June in the LOLMDS.

“This was an awesome race track tonight, we could run anywhere on it,” Marlar said. “I ran the top, but I felt the car working better on the bottom. I have always enjoyed coming here, but I have never had much success here. Glad to come here tonight and get the monkey off of our back.”

McCreadie stayed in the top five and grabbed the third spot at the finish.

“This was a good run. It’s Phillip’s [Crew Chief Phillip Snellen] birthday today. We are still working on a lot of things and we are getting closer. We started with a new shock company for the team and they had been out of racing for a long time, but we keep making strides and hopefully we can get a win soon.”

The finish:

Tyler Erb, Mike Marlar, Tim McCreadie, Jimmy Owens, Earl Pearson Jr., Devin Moran, Chris Simpson, Hudson O’Neal, Scott Bloomquist, Stormy Scott, Gordy Gundaker, Shannon Babb, Rick Eckert, Josh Richards, Billy Moyer Jr., Austin Rettig, Kyle Bronson, Jonathan Davenport, Jesse Stovall, Tim Manville, Shanon Buckingham, Michael Norris, Billy Moyer, Michael Kloos, Daryn Klein.

India coach Ravi Shastri has acknowledged that the team missed a "solid" middle-order batsman, particularly in the semi-final, where their leading run-scorers Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli were dismissed cheaply. His statements come in the context of the talk - from before the World Cup - focused on the No. 4 spot and the middle order in general, which cropped up again following the 18-run defeat to New Zealand on Tuesday.

The uncertainty in India's batting order was further compounded by injuries. KL Rahul and Vijay Shankar had been seen as No. 4 options when the World Cup squad was picked, and India began the tournament with Rahul at that slot. However, Rahul moved up to open the innings after Shikhar Dhawan was ruled out due to a hand injury. Vijay batted at No. 4 for a couple of games before being ruled out of the tournament due to a toe injury. Vijay's injury meant that Rishabh Pant played at No. 4 in the last four matches. Neither Vijay nor Pant managed a 50-plus score from No. 4 position.

"In hindsight, yes, we did need a solid batsman out there in the middle order. But now, that's something for the future," Shastri told Indian Express. "That's a position that was always giving us problems, but we just couldn't nail it. Rahul was there but then Shikhar Dhawan got injured. Then Vijay Shankar was there, and he got injured. We just couldn't control it."

Another much-debated decision by India's selectors was Mayank Agarwal's selection over Ambati Rayudu as Vijay's replacement. Agarwal, who is yet to make his ODI debut, was not part of the standby list which had only Rayudu and Pant as batsmen. Shastri stated that the team had not thought of picking Agarwal for the semi-final to allow Rahul to drop back to the middle order.

"Not really, because it got too tight. By the time Mayank came to join us, there wasn't much time," Shastri said. "If there was one more game, that is, if this semi-final was a game later, we would have definitely done it. He flew in, and Rahul had just hit a 60, and then a hundred. But I know what you mean; if we had one more game, that could well have been done."

Agarwal's selection and Rayudu's omission - first from the original squad, and then as a replacement option - drew criticism from former India captain Sunil Gavaskar and VVS Laxman.

Another incident that Gavaskar came down heavily on was MS Dhoni's batting position in the semi-final, saying Dhoni should have batted higher up the order. Dhoni came out to bat at No. 7, after India's chase had lurched from 5 for 3 to 21 for 4. Shastri said Dhoni's batting position was a team decision.

"Everyone was in with it -- and it was a simple decision, too. The last thing you wanted was Dhoni coming out to bat early and getting out -- that would have killed the chase. We needed his experience later. He is the greatest finisher of all times -- and it would have been criminal to not make use of him in that way. The whole team was clear on it.

"And Rishabh Pant did look pretty secure when he got out to bat, even against Trent Boult, didn't he? You could then say that if Pant had continued and not got out… but that's sport. You grow up in quick time. He will learn, he already knows it. But I am happy that the team showed spunk. They didn't give up even after losing Pant and Pandya. What a fightback that was.

"He [Dhoni] was magnificent. The composure in the situation. And let me tell you, if not for that unfortunate run-out, I think he had his calculations going inside his head. Which ball to hit, how much to keep for [Jimmy] Neesham's last over. You could see his brain was ticking. He wanted to do it so desperately and it was clear on his face when he came back to the dressing room."

Martin Guptill was at deep backward square leg. And at first he didn't quite catch where the ball was. Then he realised it was dribbling over to him. And that MS Dhoni was looking for a very difficult second run.

Guptill went full sprint at the ball, picked it up with his right hand, took aim while somehow retaining perfect balance and shot down the stumps at the keeper's end to effectively seal New Zealand's spot in the 2019 World Cup final. (It was also only the 16th time in 297 innings that Dhoni has been run out in a one-day international)

"Lucky enough to get a direct hit from out there" - New Zealand's @Martyguptill on his ️throw to dismiss MS Dhoni in the #CWC19 semi-final against India. #BackTheBlackCaps pic.twitter.com/GnerDahQgQ

— ICC (@ICC) July 11, 2019

Until that moment though the New Zealand opener was having a horrible tournament. After an unbeaten 73 against Sri Lanka in New Zealand's opening game, he racked up five single-digit scores in the next eight innings, with a highest score of 35.

"It's bloody tough," Guptill told 1 News. "You try not to read what people are writing and hear what people are saying, but it's hard to tear away from it all.

"I've felt a little bit late on the ball in quite a few games, which is hard to deal with. You don't want to move too early because then you get stuck."

Guptill has one more chance to turn his form around, when New Zealand meet England in the final at Lord's on Sunday.

"The last couple of nets I've probably felt the best I have since I've been here," he said. "I've put a lot of time in and for it not to be working out in the middle, it's frustrating. People can say they're frustrated with me, but no one is more frustrated than what I am.

"I'm just trying to carry on with what I've been doing, work hard in the nets and hopefully in the next game it all comes together."

Ross Taylor, who spoke to the media at the end of the match against India, also backed Guptill to come good.

"Hopefully that's a bit of luck that he takes from his fielding to his batting and maybe he can have a bit of luck and make the most of it.

"Cricket's about small margins. When we came in to the huddle, the boys were joking that Gup always misses the stumps. When there's a run out on, he always missed the stumps. All those misses over the years, he only hits when there's nothing to worry about, but he did it now, and we celebrated accordingly and we're very happy for him."

Kumar Dharmasena will umpire Sunday's World Cup final between England and New Zealand, despite his incorrect decision to give Jason Roy out in yesterday's semi-final.

Dharmasena gave Roy out caught behind on 85 off Pat Cummins, despite replays showing that he had made no contact with the ball.

The umpire appeared to suggest Roy should refer the decision if he didn't think he was out, apparently failing to realise that Jonny Bairstow had already used up England's review after he was trapped in front by Mitchell Starc.

Roy's remonstrations on the field - he was picked up calling the decision "f**king embarrassing" by stump microphones - earned him two demerit points and a fine worth 30 per cent of his match fee, which he accepted at a post-match hearing.

Roy escaped a ban for the final, falling one short of the four-point threshold, but will face a one-Test or two-ODI suspension if he receives another demerit point within the next two years.

Dharmasena has won the ICC's Umpire of the Year award twice - in 2012 and 2018 - but also holds an unwanted record involving England. In 2016, during a Test in Chittagong, eight of his on-field calls were overturned, notably including a streak in which he gave Moeen Ali out three times in six balls, only for the batsman to successfully review each decision.

He will be standing in his second consecutive World Cup final, and also umpired the 2016 World T20 final.

Dharmasena will be joined in the middle by Marais Erasmus, who stood alongside him in Thursday's semi-final.

Rod Tucker will be the sole Australian representative at Lord's in his capacity as third umpire, while Aleem Dar, of Pakistan, will be fourth official. Sri Lankan Ranjan Madugalle will be the match referee.

Rashid Khan has been named Afghanistan's captain across all formats, while former captain Asghar Afghan has been appointed his deputy.

In April, Rashid was made T20I captain with Rahmat Shah and Gulbadin Naib taking the charge of Test and ODI sides respectively. ESPNcricinfo understands Rashid was offered the ODI captaincy as well before the World Cup, but had declined the offer then.

Afghanistan lost all their matches at the World Cup under Naib's leadership, with his decisions on the field during a thriller against Pakistan in particular, coming under the scanner.

More to follow

What's next for the Houston Rockets and Oklahoma City Thunder after agreeing to swap All-Star point guards Russell Westbrook and Chris Paul?

The Rockets are reuniting Westbrook with James Harden in a talented backcourt that has some question marks, while the Thunder continue to stockpile draft assets for the future following the Paul George deal.

How will Harden and Westbrook work? Should OKC hold on to CP3? And what is the best star duo in the league now?

Our NBA Insiders answer the big questions following Thursday's blockbuster trade and look ahead for each franchise.

More: Latest NBA free-agency buzz

1. What's your initial reaction to this trade?

Bobby Marks: Any contract can be traded in the NBA -- even if that player is Chris Paul and he's owed $120 million over the next three seasons.

Andrew Han: It's Wee-Bey's reaction.gif. Paul and Westbrook are household names in the superstar division, but both are on the wrong side of 30. And while Paul is three and a half years older, Westbrook's contract runs one season longer (ending on a $47 million player option in 2022-23). So the age disparity merits two picks and two pick swaps for OKC despite the extra year in salary? The ledger doesn't feel like it completely balances for Daryl Morey.

André Snellings: First: "I love this game!"

Second: The pairing of two record-setting, ball-dominant players initially seemed like a questionable plan for the Rockets. But the more I think about it, the more I can see the upside in this deal for both teams.

Nick Friedell: Two teams are moving around two awful deals. I still can't believe the Rockets gave Paul that max extension. Woof. The lesson here is: Never say any deal is completely untradable. There's always a way.

Tim Bontemps: My initial reaction to the trade was the one that accompanied the pop that went through the crowd at Cox Pavilion during Las Vegas Summer League play: "Wow!"

It's incredible that Westbrook and Paul were flipped for each other, particularly at this cost. Houston needing to include four draft assets here shows how fast things change in the NBA. Meanwhile, seven years after Oklahoma City essentially chose Westbrook over Harden, the two of them are reunited again in Houston in what should be a truly fascinating partnership.

2. How did the Rockets do in this deal?

Marks: Status quo. The Rockets entered the day in the second tier of the Western Conference behind Denver, both teams from Los Angeles, Utah and possibly Portland. Houston will be in the same position even after acquiring Westbrook. One thing you learn from working in a front office is that you often value players because they are not on your team. In this case, Houston clearly had a strong desire to shake up the roster, even if that leads to the same results as last season.

Han: The fulcrum lies in the belief that Westbrook is a more complementary star to Harden than Paul. If so, then the Rockets might have overpaid but successfully secured the younger star. A question of fit remains nebulous at best, especially when the drumbeat of Houston throughout the past season was that it was a hamstring away from defeating a dynastic team in Golden State. In a season where the Hamptons Five reign has ended, dismantling the Harden-Paul duo doesn't merely rest on the hope that a banner will be raised in Clutch City -- it's a mandate.

Bontemps: It was clear that the Harden-Paul combination had run its course, but there are questions about this Westbrook-Harden fit. As one scout in Vegas said, they are arguably the two most ball-dominant players in the league -- and now they are playing in the same backcourt. Westbrook also wouldn't quite seem to fit the way Houston plays, given he is a career 30.8 percent 3-point shooter and has shot under 30 percent in four of the past five seasons. But Rockets general manager Daryl Morey has always believed in getting stars and figuring the rest out later.

Friedell: With Paul flopping all over the floor as his skills continue to diminish, the Rockets would have had little chance to win next season. They're better with Westbrook -- but I'm not sure how much. He really struggled with his shot at times in the postseason. They'd better win next season because -- just like Paul -- Westbrook's skills are only going to diminish from here.

Also, that's a lot of picks and pick swaps to move a guy you never should have extended for max money in the first place.

Snellings: I think the Rockets have potentially hit the jackpot with this trade. The best ability in basketball is availability. Paul has missed 48 regular-season games and a crucial Game 7 during his two seasons with the Rockets. They were a championship-caliber team when he was healthy, but it was difficult to depend on Paul to be available when needed.

Still, this move only works if Harden has fully bought into the idea of playing more off the ball. Westbrook isn't an off-ball threat, but he could be excellent at running the show and creating offense in Houston. Harden should be nigh unguardable as an off-guard who can operate against unbalanced defenses.

3. How did the Thunder do in this deal?

Bontemps: The Thunder continue to have a great week. In a series of trades, they have accumulated eight first-round picks over the next seven seasons to go along with four other pick swaps. Toss in the fact that the Thunder will now all but certainly keep their own protected picks in 2020 and 2022, and one could argue OKC has netted 10 first-round picks in three transactions -- a truly stunning haul.

In surveying people here in Vegas, no one expects Paul to remain in a Thunder uniform for long. The initial thought among league executives was that the Miami Heat -- who also were interested in Westbrook -- are a logical landing spot.

Han: Don't trade with Sam Presti -- at least not in the immediate future. The overseer of OKC has had a run of adroit arbitrage like few others in the past few weeks. With George and now Westbrook, the Thunder front office managed to take distressed stars, send them to preferred destinations and return a trove of assets for their trouble. And while Oklahoma City just accepted a series of picks for Chris Paul, would anyone be surprised if it somehow onboarded even more picks when Paul is sent to an eventual self-styled contender?

Friedell: I like what they got back. That's a lot of assets in return for Westbrook, who was never going to live up to his deal. The Thunder took advantage of Houston's desperation to make some kind of trade happen. There's no reason to keep Paul in OKC -- just move him and get more assets and picks. Hope a star becomes available on the trade market down the line and package a bunch of those assets together and then you can get a real reset going.

Snellings: The Thunder did well, and they should be able to flip Paul to another team for additional value. Paul's contract, while huge, is a year shorter than Westbrook's, and he is still able to compete at a high level when healthy. He would make sense on a team that has All-NBA talent and sees itself as being an impact player away. The Heat, Timberwolves, Pistons and Magic have the assets to put together an attractive offer for him.

Marks: The Thunder get an A-plus for two factors: They turned the $170 million Westbrook contract into four draft assets (two first-rounders and two swap rights) and now have Paul to move in a future trade. Yes, there is not a great appetite for the $120 million left on Paul's contract, but if the Thunder can parlay Paul into expiring contracts (think Miami) and maybe a future draft asset, Oklahoma City could wipe its finances clean and start to rebuild through the draft.

4. Fact or fiction: The Durant/Westbrook/Harden era in OKC was a success

Han: Fact. The OKC trio injected a level of basketball fanaticism where many were unsure of the level of sustainment in the region. And while the foregone conclusion that a Durant-Westbrook-Harden-led Thunder team would be Finals regulars proved naive, to judge success and failure simply by the number of rings one can display seems equally reductive.

Friedell: Fiction. The Thunder didn't win a title. The league has always been a bottom-line business in that regard: Did you win a 'ship or not? They had Russell Westbrook, Kevin Durant, James Harden and Serge Ibaka all in their primes and still couldn't do it. Now they have a boatload of picks while the draft remains unpredictable. They had the stars that teams dream about and still couldn't get it done. Wins are nice but they fade. Championships last forever. The Thunder swung big -- they just missed.

Bontemps: Fact. This one is easy. Would the Thunder have loved to win a title? Sure. But there have been plenty of teams over the years that came close to winning and didn't. You can't look at this run as anything but a massive success. Oklahoma City has been a relevant NBA franchise for more than a decade. The Thunder made it to one Finals and three conference finals, and very easily could've won multiple championships had a few breaks gone their way. In that same period, teams such as the Charlotte Hornets, Minnesota Timberwolves and Sacramento Kings haven't won a single playoff series. Think fans of those teams would switch places with Thunder fans? In a heartbeat.

Marks: Fiction. Someday there will be a 30 for 30 on what could have been in Oklahoma City if it had kept the 2012 NBA Finals team together. Instead, we are left wondering if the tenure of OKC's Big Three was cut prematurely.

Snellings: Fact. The Thunder building a team through the draft that could consistently compete was an accomplishment given where they started. While a championship is the ultimate goal, they made a Finals appearance, famously came within a game of knocking off the only 73-win team in history and had two different players win the MVP and another finish top-3 in the vote while wearing their uniform. They had the potential to do more, but what they did accomplish was a success.

5. What is the best star duo in the NBA now?

Snellings: LeBron James and Anthony Davis. They have the most talent, the most size and their games should mesh best together. But this is not a game of 2-on-2, and at this point there are quite a few teams that absolutely have the potential to beat them out for this season's championship. I love this game!

Marks: Flip a coin between the team two teams in Los Angeles: LeBron James/Anthony Davis vs. Kawhi Leonard/Paul George.

Han: Kawhi Leonard and Paul George. If the league continues to shift toward a wing-oriented game, it would stand to reason that the best two-way wing players for the upcoming season would amount to the best duo. Leonard just proved he's capable of leading a title contender with on-the-fly chemistry and George is coming off of a third-place MVP season despite shoulder woes. An argument can be made for the other duo in Los Angeles, but the perimeter emphasis of the league swings in the favor of the Clippers.

Friedell: Kawhi Leonard and Paul George. If they stay healthy, they complement the rest of that Clippers roster so well. The defensive ability on that team will be fun to watch every night, on top of the fact that Leonard, George and Lou Williams all have the ability to get a bucket when needed. That team is going to be awesome.

Bontemps: LeBron James and Anthony Davis. If Paul George wasn't coming off surgery on both shoulders, he and Kawhi Leonard would be in the conversation, but that's about it. I caught a lot of flack last week for saying James wasn't among the top five players in the league -- but I had Davis fifth and James sixth. Nobody else in the NBA can match having two of the six best players in the sport -- particularly when James and Davis, assuming both are healthy, should be a perfect fit together offensively.