Boris Diaw introduced Utah to the magic of coffee

Good morning. Let’s basketball.

SPARK IT UP: The L.A. Sparks won a helluva Game 5 against the Minnesota Lynx to claim the WNBA title. Nneka Owgumike, the league’s MVP, hit the game-winning shot while falling down with three seconds left. Candace Parker proved everyone wrong by coming through when it mattered most, but Owgumike’s emergent MVP season carried L.A. here. A blown call in the Sparks’ favor helped cost Minnesota the title. (Despite getting understandably furious at that, Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve is still the coolest.) Parker dedicated the win to legendary college coach Pat Summitt, who died this year. What a series and 20th anniversary season for the WNBA.

LET’S PREVIEW: Our 2016-17 NBA season preview hit on Thursday. Check it out!

Paul Flannery reports on the next superpower, the Minnesota Timberwolves, who take nothing for granted and will skip no steps.

John Gonzalez wrote about the Clippers, for whom there is no next year.

Tim Cato went to Oklahoma City to write about Russell Westbrook, the peoples’ champ ... for now.

Mike Prada explained (with a snazzy video) how exactly Kevin Durant will ruin the game plan teams have deployed against the Warriors.

And I wrote about The Decade of LeBron, and the imperative of celebrating what he’s doing.

You’ll find all of our team previews there, as well. Check it out!

KEVIN DOES WHAT HE HAS TO DO: Lee Jenkins on Kevin Love’s best stop, which did not come in the form of a shocking defensive stand against the best shooter in the world, but in the form of a tourniquet that saved a friend’s life.

BRAND NAME: Elton Brand announces his retirement. He was so damn good. Those Mike Dunleavy Clippers teams were really effective with Corey Maggette drawing 10 fouls a night, Brand and Chris Kaman controlling the lane defensively, Brand hitting all those short jumpers and getting inside in the post. They needed a point guard, and they got two of them. But Shaun Livingston blew up his knee just as he was becoming a star and Brand bolted within hours of Baron Davis agreeing to join L.A. C’est la vie deux Clippers.

THE UTAH JAZZ COFFEE KLATCH: Ben Cohen with a clutch, fun story about the coffee culture Boris Diaw is bringing to Salt Lake City, the least caffeinated metropolis in America.

HATER ALERT: Patrick Patterson explains why there should not be a sequel to Space Jam.

BUT SERIOUSLY FOLKS, THE WARRIORS ARE GOING TO DESTROY EVERYTHING.

NEW DEAL: Yahoo!‘s Adrian Wojnarowski has details on what the league and players’ union have agreed to so far. The answer: status quo, except for a fatter rookie scale and the salary cap exceptions. Brian Windhorst reports that there may not be a new amnesty clause, either.

THIS WILL GO WELL: Ayesha Curry’s cooking show debuts on Food Network on Saturday. Choose kindness, internet!

WHOA: League Pass includes access to one game in virtual reality per week if you have the right gear.

AND FINALLY: Last weekend before the regular season. Please be sure to go outside, call your non-basketball friends (those exist?), pet a deer, sing with birds, dip your toes in a lake, hit the club, hit the vino bar, hit the museum. Take a preemptive break, because this is going to be a wild season and it’s RIGHT BEHIND YOU.

By the way, the heroes Mike Prada and Ricky O’Donnell will carry GMIB all next week.

Happy Friday. Take care, y’all.