🌅Personal Briefing - Thursday, June 25, 2026

The home World Cup reaches its first true knockouts this weekend, and a wild 48 hours in the NBA reshaped a franchise.

The 48-team tournament (USA/Canada/Mexico co-hosts) is closing out the group stage, and the knockouts are nearly here.

• The USA is through as Group D winners, sitting on 6 points after the 4-1 rout of Paraguay and the 2-0 win over Australia. The Americans play their group finale tonight (Thu, June 25) vs. Türkiye - but it's effectively a dead rubber: the USA has already clinched the group and Türkiye is out of contention, so Pochettino is expected to rotate heavily.
• The Round of 32 begins Sunday, June 28 (South Africa vs. Canada in Los Angeles) - the first elimination games of the tournament. The USA's knockout match is set for Wednesday, July 1 at Levi's Stadium in the Bay Area, against a third-place qualifier still to be determined.
• Context: no true giants fell in the group stage - Brazil, Argentina, France, Germany, Spain, Mexico and the USA all advanced. The biggest name eliminated is Türkiye (out in its first World Cup in 24 years), along with South Korea. The lasting Cinderella story remains Cape Verde, the 525,000-population debutant that held reigning Euro champion Spain to a 0-0 draw.

The draft went chalk at the top - Washington took BYU forward AJ Dybantsa No. 1 (25.5 ppg as a freshman), followed by Kansas guard Darryn Peterson to Utah at No. 2, Duke's Cameron Boozer to Memphis at No. 3, and UNC's Caleb Wilson to Chicago at No. 4. But the real earthquake landed the night before: Giannis Antetokounmpo was traded from Milwaukee to the Miami Heat, ending his 13-year Bucks run (Milwaukee also sent Bobby Portis to Miami in the deal). In return, the Bucks landed a massive haul - Tyler Herro, Kel'el Ware, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Kasparas Jakucionis and multiple first-round picks. The deal officially executes July 6.

• College World Series - Oklahoma are champions. The Sooners won their third national title (and first since 1994), routing North Carolina 13-2 in the decisive Game 3 (June 22); shortstop Jaxon Willits was Most Outstanding Player.
• Tennis: Wimbledon begins Monday, June 29 (draw out June 26). Jannik Sinner is the men's top seed and defending champ; the big absence is Carlos Alcaraz, out with a wrist injury. Aryna Sabalenka headlines the women's field.
• NHL: the offseason is live - Round 1 of the draft is Friday, June 26 in Buffalo, and free agency opens July 1 (Carolina won the Stanley Cup earlier this month).
• Golf: the Travelers Championship, a signature event, is underway at TPC River Highlands (June 25-28).
• MLB: past the season's midpoint, the Dodgers still own baseball's best record as they chase a three-peat.

The cinephile pick of the week is on streaming: India Donaldson's Good One - one of the most assured American debuts in recent memory (Sundance 2024, Cannes Directors' Fortnight) - arrives on MUBI this Friday, June 26. It's a quiet, precisely observed Catskills camping drama about a teenage girl, her father, and his oldest friend; prioritize it.

In theaters, the wide release is Supergirl (June 26), Craig Gillespie's entry in James Gunn's DCU with Milly Alcock. Early reviews single out Alcock's performance while finding the film around her uneven - more interesting as a showcase than a movie. At the box office, Toy Story 5 is projected to hold No. 1 in its second weekend (~$90M), while Supergirl is tracking to a soft ~$45M open, well below last summer's Superman.

Two festival threads reward the cinephile lens. In Bologna, Il Cinema Ritrovato closes its 40th-anniversary edition (through June 28) with world premieres of restored Chaplin shorts - A Dog's Life and Shoulder Arms - capping a run that opened with the definitive 4K Sunrise restoration. Annecy's Cristal winners are due as that festival closes June 27.

The next major stop is already coming into view: the Karlovy Vary IFF (July 3-11) announced its honorees - Crystal Globes for Dustin Hoffman (opening night) and Juliette Binoche (closing), legendary cinematographer Robert Richardson, and a President's Award for Jeffrey Wright. The opener is The Match, an Argentine-Spanish documentary.

• MUBI (June 26): Good One (India Donaldson) - the month's essential arthouse pick.
• Criterion Channel (July): a Harry Dean Stanton centennial retrospective (18 films), a Jonathan Demme set, and all 17 episodes of The Prisoner.
• MUBI (July): Julian Radlmaier's Phantoms of July, plus library additions The Deer Hunter, The Third Man and Amores Perros.
• Repertory now: restored Chaplin shorts and the 4K Sunrise at Il Cinema Ritrovato, Bologna (through June 28).

Currently reading:

• 1776 - David McCullough (386 pp)
• Battles That Changed History - D.K. Publishing (256 pp)
• Time Chart of World History - John B. Sparks
• Mental Floss - Jennifer M. Wood (272 pp)
• The Shortest History of England - James Hawes (272 pp)
• Thunder at the Gates - Douglas R. Egerton (448 pp)

Recently finished:

• Hampton Court Palace - Brett Dolman · Jun 10 Your rating: ★★★★☆ - you were cooler on it than the crowd (avg 4.50)
• Everyone on This Train Is a Suspect - Benjamin Stevenson · Jun 6 Your rating: ★★★★★ - you loved it far more than the crowd (avg 3.79)
• Death at the Chateau - Ian Moore · May 15 Your rating: ★★★★★ - you loved it far more than the crowd (avg 3.75)

Pace: 2 books in the last 30 days (400 pages) · 6 in the last 90 (≈ 2.0/month).

Next up - from your to-read shelf:

• Moriarty - Charles Kindinger (crowd 3.86)
• Tree and Leaf - J.R.R. Tolkien (crowd 4.09)
• The God Engines - John Scalzi (crowd 3.60)
• 💡 Crowd favorite waiting: To Wake the Giant - Jeff Shaara (4.34)