The Starting Lineup

Turn on the game!

Three must-see events this week:

1. IIHF World Championship gold medal game (Noon Sunday, NHL Network) — Former Denver Pioneers star Zeev Buium has four tournament assists to help the United States skate for gold.

2. The Memorial (Noon-4 p.m. Thursday, Golf Channel) — No one’s gone back-to-back at The Memorial since Tiger Woods in 1999-2001. But defending champ Scottie Scheffler’s on a heater.

3. Yankees at Dodgers (5:15 p.m. Saturday, Fox) — Shohei Ohtani pitched to live hitters Saturday for the first time since 2023. Will he return to the rotation vs. the Yankees — and for the Dodgers’ June 24-26 visit to Coors Field?

Numbers game

126 — votes separated Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Nikola Jokic on MVP ballots, a tighter race than the 241-vote difference between Joel Embiid and Jokic in 2023 — the other time Jokic was robbed. Hoops historians will be incredulous Jokic wasn’t awarded five straight MVPs.

Box office

New York Yankees at Rockies, 1:10 p.m. Sunday — Can Colorado win a second series in 2025? Score a $50 seat in Section 108 under the awning in case it rains (Gametime app).

They said it

“I got really happy after I was let go from the Broncos. I was just happy to get out.”

—A former Broncos player and the subject of a must-read profile from Chris Tomasson publishing in The Denver Gazette on Monday

The final word

An ownership group that’s willing to pay for talent on the court while skimping elsewhere, Kroenke Sports is already on the hook for $20 million-plus to fired coach Michael Malone. The smart money’s on the Nuggets promoting from within for the next general manager.

—Paul Klee, The Denver Gazette