META MAG

The 31st Major League Soccer season will begin this weekend, andthere are more storylines than everheading into another exciting campaign.

Lionel Messi helped Inter Miami win the club's first MLS title in 2025, recording two assists in Inter Miami's 3-1 MLS Cup win over the Vancouver Whitecaps. Inter Miami opens the season as the +400 betting favorite atBetMGMsportsbooks, just ahead of Los Angeles FC at +600.

LAFC has plenty of appeal as well, adding former Tottenham star Son Heung-min in the middle of last season. The franchise won its first — and only — MLS Cup back in 2022. LAFC opens its season Saturday in Los Angeles against Messi and the defending champs. LAFC is a +110 favorite on the three-way line, with Inter Miami at +210 and a draw at +270.

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San Diego FC and the Vancouver Whitecaps — 2025 MLS Cup runner-ups — have the next-best odds at +900, followed by the Philadelphia Union and FC Cincinnati at 14-1.

Sporting Kansas City and original MLS franchise DC United have the longest odds of any team to win this year's title at 80-1.

It's a unique season for MLS as well, with the 2026 World Cup taking place in the United States, Canada and Mexico. The league will take a break from May 25 to July 16, in the middle of the season, to accommodate players participating on their international teams.

The NBA's anti-tanking plans are coming into focus.

The league has informed its 30 general managers it plans to make anti-tanking rule changes for next season,according to ESPN's Shams Charania. Possible changes reportedly include:

• First-round pick protections being limited to top four or top 14;

• Freezing lottery odds after the NBA trade deadline or later;

• Preventing teams from picking in the top four in consecutive years and/or after consecutive bottom-three finishes;

• Forbidding teams from picking in the top four after making the conference finals;

• Basing lottery odds on two-year records;

• Expanding the lottery to play-in teams;

• And flattening the lottery odds for all teams involved.

To be clear, the NBA wouldn't be pursuing all of those options. But even one or two of them could mark a sea change for how the league's less competitive teams do business.

The idea of locking teams out of the top four if they made it the previous year has already been implemented in Major League Baseball's draft lottery, and the popularity of the measure depends on which fan base you're talking to.

Former Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski, currently working as a senior adviser to basketball operations for the NBA, was reportedly present at the league's GM meeting Thursday and called for an "attack" on the problem that the executives should be prepared for in the coming year.

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NBA teams are tanking hard this season, for a reason

These changes are being discussed amid one of the most tank-heavy seasons in living memory, in whichthe Utah Jazz and Indiana Pacers have already been fined six-figure sums for "overt" tanking behavior, as described by NBA commissioner Adam Silver.

Tanking has been an accepted cost of doing business in the NBA for decades, buta litany of teams have been racing to the bottom this year, and a spate of injuries have left them unlikely to be any better for the rest of the regular season.

The Sacramento Kings, current owners of the worst record in the league,have now lost Domantas Sabonis and Zach LaVine to season-ending surgeries. The Washington Wizards, with the second-worst record,are still without trade acquisitions Anthony Davis and Trae Young, and no one is expecting them to be rushed back. The Dallas Mavericks won't be seeing Kyrie Irving or Dereck Lively again this season, and Cooper Flagg also remains out. Ja Morant is still out for the Memphis Grizzlies, who sent away Jaren Jackson Jr. at the trade deadline.

The reason why teams would be so committed this year is one of the most loaded draft classes in NBA history, with a remarkable collection of freshman currently making an impact at the college level. Darryn Peterson of Kansas, AJ Dybantsa of BYU and Cameron Boozer of Duke all stand out, but this is also a class where a franchise-changing talent could easily be found anywhere in the top 10, and maybe beyond.

The situation has proven controversial, all the way up to the NBA's ownership.Phoenix Suns owner Mat Ishbia was ranting about "losing behavior done by losers" hours before the possible anti-tanking measure were reported, whileMavericks minority owner Mark Cuban was telling his peers to embrace the tank earlier this week.

Hello from Milan and Cortina, where American figure skaterAlysa Liusummed up today's events quite succinctly. After her nearly flawless performance in the women's free skate, cameras caught Liu saying, "That's what I'm f---ing talking about!"

Liu wonthe gold medalin women's singles figure skating, the first for an American woman since 2002, before Liu was born. And the U.S. women's hockey team beat rival Canada, 2-1, in overtime to win its first gold medal since 2018.

Our correspondents have it all covered below and atNBC News. Catch it all streaming onPeacock.

Live from Milan Cortina

During her free skate today,Alysa Liuseemed to be smiling the whole time, as she moved gracefully across the ice. When she finished, she smiled again, stuck out her tongue and raised her hands. Liu had left figure skating after the 2022 Beijing Games, only to return, on her own terms, and fall back in love with the sport.

Then Liu had to wait for two more skaters to go before she learned:She had won gold. Soon, she was being guided through a back hallway toward the medal ceremony. In that quiet moment, NBC cameras caught her reflecting on her performance.

"I just, like, can't process this," Liu said. "There's no way. I really liked my skate a lot."

On Tuesday, Liu had ended the short program in third place. Then she scored a 150.20 during today's free skate, giving her a total score of 226.79, vaulting her into first place.

Fellow AmericanAmber Glennhad started the day in 13th, after a mistake cost her points during the short program. But she made a spectacular recovery today, scoring a season-best 147.52 in the free skate, which helped her finish in fifth.

After she finished her routine, she appeared to mouth the words "So close."

About an hour earlier, theU.S. women's hockey teamhad its own chance at glory.

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For about 57 minutes today, Team USA couldn't break through. After scoring more than 30 goals in the tournament, the U.S. had been held scoreless and trailed Canada 1-0. All the U.S. needed,Hilary Knightsaid afterward, was to "put one good shot on net."

With just over two minutes left to play,Laila Edwardsfired toward the goal, where Knight had camped out in front of the goalie. Knight deflected the puck into the net, tying the game.

Then, in overtime, Team USA'sMegan Kellermade an incredible individual play, maneuvering around a defender and then chipping the puck past the goalie.

"We knew it was a matter of time, just leaning on them, slowly, slowly," Knight said in an interview with NBC. "But you can also run out of time against a great team. Fortunate that we have an amazing squad to be able to get the job done."

This marked Team USA's third gold medal and first since 2018. The Americans finished these Olympics 7-0 and outscored their opponents 33-2. With that goal,Knight also became the all-time leading scorerfor U.S. women's hockey at the Olympics.

"I'm just happy to have a gold medal," she said. "Oh, my gosh, this feels amazing."

Speedskating Corner

AfterJordan Stolzcrossed the finish line of the 1,500-meter speedskating final, he bent over, put his hands on his legs and breathed heavily.Stolz had finished secondbehind China'sZhongyan Ning, by only 0.77 seconds, and took silver.

"Ning's time was a surprise. He had the race of his life," Stolz told reporters after the race. "I didn't know much about placings until I crossed the finish line. But I was hoping if it wasn't going to be gold, I hoped I could get a silver."

Stolz got off to a slow start and admitted he "didn't have one of [his] best" races. He still has a chance to secure his third gold of these Games: He'll compete in the speedskating mass start event Saturday.

Photo of the Day

When to Watch

In the quarterfinals of the men's hockey tournament, three of the four games went to overtime. The semifinals should be appointment viewing. Are the USA and Canada on a collision course for the gold medal game? Or can Finland or Slovakia pull off an upset? Tune in to find out.

All times are in Eastern, and an asterisk signifies a medal event:

Friday, Feb. 20

• 4:30 a.m.: Freestyle skiing, men's aerials qualification 1

• 4:30 a.m.: Freestyle skiing, men's freeski halfpipe qualification 1

• 5:15 a.m.: Freestyle skiing, men's aerials qualification 2

• 5:27 a.m.: Freestyle skiing, men's freeski halfpipe qualification 2

• 6 a.m.: Freestyle skiing, women's ski cross 1/8 finals

• 6:35 a.m.: Freestyle skiing, women's ski cross quarterfinals

• 6:54 a.m.: Freestyle skiing, women's ski cross semifinals

• 7:10 a.m.: Freestyle skiing, women's ski cross finals*

• 7:30 a.m.: Freestyle skiing, men's aerials finals*

• 8:05 a.m.: Curling, women's semifinals

• 8:15 a.m.: Biathlon, men's 15 km mass start*

• 10:30 a.m.: Speedskating, women's 1,500-meter*

• 10:40 a.m.: Men's hockey, semifinals, Canada vs. Finland

• 12 p.m.: Bobsled, two-woman heat 1

• 1:05 p.m.: Curling, men's bronze medal game*

• 1:30 p.m.: Freestyle skiing, men's freeski halfpipe final*

• 1:50 p.m.: Bobsled, two-woman heat 2

• 2:15 p.m.: Short track speedskating, women's 1,500-meter quarterfinals

• 3:02 p.m.: Short track speedskating, women's 1,500-meter semifinals

• 3:10 p.m.: Men's hockey, semifinals, USA vs. Slovakia

• 3:30 p.m.: Short track speedskating, men's 5,000-meter relay finals*

• 4:07 p.m.: Short track speedskating, women's 1,500-meter finals*

That's it for now! We'll be back tomorrow.

By Heejin Kim and Joyce Lee

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un speaks during the Ninth Congress of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) in Pyongyang

SEOUL, Feb 20 (Reuters) - North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said his reclusive country had overcome stagnation and accomplished major economic goals over the past five years, as he opened the Ninth Party Congress, state media ‌KCNA reported on Friday.

The congress, which opened on Thursday, is the country's biggest political event. Held every five years, it can ‌bring changes in leadership roles beneath supreme commander Kim.

In his opening speech, Kim said the last five years had been "a proud period", citing North Korea's accomplishments in politics, economy, defence, ​culture and diplomacy, in addition to enhancing self-reliance.

For the outside world, North Korea has brought a "big change" in relations with other countries and the global geopolitical landscape, he said.

Kim did not mention relations with the United States or South Korea in his speech, nor refer to his country's efforts to develop a stockpile of nuclear weapons.

At the meeting, attended by 5,000 members of the ruling Workers' Party, new goals and plans in various sectors for the next five ‌years were submitted, KCNA reported.

North Korea is expected ⁠to showcase military capabilities at a parade and weapons development goals as part of the meeting.

FOCUS ON DAUGHTER JU AE

Analysts are monitoring whether Kim will be given the title of "president" and if his teenage daughter, Ju Ae, makes ⁠an appearance or receives some form of official post.

There has been increasing speculation among analysts and from South Korea's spy agency that Kim is grooming Ju Ae to succeed him.

When the previous Eighth Congress was convened, the circumstances surrounding North Korea were "literally so harsh that we could hardly maintain our own existence", Kim said. The ​country's ​economy and industries were antiquated, he added.

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North Korea's economy suffered its biggest contraction in ​23 years in 2020 as it was battered by ‌continued U.N. sanctions, COVID-19 lockdown measures and bad weather, South Korea's central bank has said.

But more recently there have been signs of recovery and the economy grew 3.7% in 2024, the fastest annual pace in eight years, backed by expanded economic ties with Russia, according to Bank of Korea estimates.

"Everything has changed fundamentally for the past five years," Kim said.

In a speech that focused mostly on economic development and promoting party leadership, Kim said the country was "faced with heavy and urgent historic tasks of boosting economic construction and the people's standard of living."

Earlier this week, Kim marked the completion ‌of 10,000 new houses in Pyongyang, achieving the goal of building 50,000 homes set ​during the Eighth Congress.

Kim also said, however, the country should "review shortcomings" in development, without ​providing details.

MILITARY PARADE

It is unclear how long the gathering will run, ​but the Seventh Congress lasted four days and the Eighth Congress ran for eight days.

Satellite images showed thousands of ‌North Koreans spelling out the slogan 'Ninth Party Congress' in large ​Korean characters in central Pyongyang last ​week, NK News reported, citing it as possible evidence of plans for a military parade.

Kim may have toned down his speech to avoid international or military issues, said Jeong Eun-mee, a research fellow at the Korea Institute for National Unification, a state-run think tank.

"He appears ​to be refraining from making public comments about ‌sensitive issues," she said, especially ahead of U.S. President Donald Trump's visit to China in April.

Kang Dong-wan, a political science professor ​at Dong-A University in Busan, said Kim may revise rules to formalise the "hostile two states" rhetoric guiding policy toward South Korea.

(Reporting ​by Heejin Kim; Editing by Ed Davies, Lincoln Feast and Stephen Coates)

SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) — The kindergarten and first grade students in Linda Davis' classes sobbed and shed tears after being told their teacher, who greeted them most mornings with an infectious smile, wouldn't be coming back.

Immigration Enforcement Fatal Crash

Davis, 52, was killed during her morning commute Monday, less than a half mile (0.8 kilometers) from the school where she taught students with special needs. Local and federal authorities say a Guatemalan man crashed his pickup truck into Davis' car as he was fleeing a traffic stop by immigration officers.

"It was extremely difficult to tell 5 and 6 year olds that the teacher they loved and cherished will not be returning to see them," said Alonna McMullen, principal of Herman W. Hesse K-8 School in Savannah's southside suburbs. "To see the looks on their faces, it broke my heart."

Teachers at Hesse were trying Thursday to create a normal routine for the students, but their grief remained fresh.

Many on their drives to and from school every day pass the crash site where a cross made from red roses and several bouquets of flowers have been left in the median. A paper sign on the ground reads: "Rest In Peace & Power, Dr. Davis."

Students in Davis' two special education classes drew pictures of her to help deal with news of her death. And faculty crafted banners in her memory to display at the school's home basketball game Thursday.

'A vacuum of compounded grief'

Davis began teaching at Hesse in September after the school year had begun. Her upbeat personality and her dedication to helping students with special needs thrive soon endeared her to fellow teachers and students alike.

"Even the most difficult students, she knew how to make them shine," McMullen told reporters.

Davis had been teaching in the Savannah area since 2022. Outside of work, she was raising four children of her own and was guardian to a fifth, according to her sister, Felicia Jackson.

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"The preventable, sudden, and violent loss of her presence and love has created a vacuum of compounded grief so vast it feels as though it fills the Mariana Trench," Jackson said in a social media post.

Standing nearly 6 feet tall, Davis "filled her house with laughter and music," Jackson said, recalling how her sister loved singing Disney songs and show tunes with her children "at the tops of their lungs."

"That was Linda: fully alive, engaged, and loving," Jackson wrote.

Local officials question whether ICE pursuit was necessary

Federal immigration officers have faced increased scrutiny for their aggressive tactics during the Trump administration's nationwide crackdown on illegal immigration, especially since they shot and killed Renee Good and Alex Prettiin Minneapolis.

Savannah Mayor Van Johnson and Chester Ellis, chairman of the Chatham County Board of Commissioners, have questioned whether the pursuit that ended in Davis' death was necessary.

A spokesperson for U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement, Lindsay Williams, said the fleeing driver had no criminal history but was in the U.S. illegally.

Security camera video from outside the school Monday morning shows a red pickup truck speeding past the school, followed several seconds later by two law enforcement vehicles with flashing lights.

Authorities identified the driver of the truck as Oscar Vasquez Lopez, 38. He suffered minor injuries, according to police, and has been jailed on charges including vehicular homicide and driving without a valid license.

ICE officers pulled over Lopez to enforce an immigration judge's 2024 deportation order, Williams said, and Lopez drove away as the officers approached his vehicle. ICE said in a news release that Lopez crashed into Davis' car after making a U-turn and running a stop light.

"He is presumed innocent, and the court process will determine the outcome," said Don Plummer, a spokesman for the Georgia Public Defender Council, which has an attorney representing Lopez.

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Golden State star Stephen Curry had a second MRI on his troublesome right knee that revealed no structural damage, although the two-time NBA MVP is expected to miss at least another five games before being re-evaluated.

NBA All-Star Game Basketball

The 37-year-old guard last played Jan. 30. He has been diagnosed with patella-femoral pain syndrome/bone bruising, otherwise referred to as runner's knee.

Warriors coach Steve Kerr said Curry will be re-evaluated in 10 days.

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"It's just lingering soreness," Kerr said Thursday before a game against Boston. "We were hoping, obviously, that he'd be ready for tonight after getting the All-Star break but wasn't the case. He just needs more time."

AP NBA:https://apnews.com/NBA

Alysa Liuwon agold medalin women's individual figure skating on Thursday, making her the first U.S. woman to take the Olympic podium in the event since 2006. Japan's Kaori Sakamoto took silver and Ami Nakai, also of Japan, took the bronze.

The last American woman to earn a medal in individual figure skating was Sasha Cohen, who took home silver in 2006. Sarah Hughes was the last American woman to take home a gold medal, in 2002 — four years before Liu was even born. Michelle Kwan also won a bronze medal at those Olympics. This is Liu's second gold medal.

"I just like, can't process this. There's no way," Liu could be heard telling her coaches as she walked down the hallway after winning.

Liu, 20, started the free skate in third place, behind Japan's Nakai and Sakamoto, following the short program on Tuesday. Isabeau Levito, 18, was in eighth place, while Amber Glenn, 26, was in 13th place after an error in her short program.

Glenn was the first U.S. skater to take the ice for her free skate. Afterfailing to complete a triple loop on Tuesday, her score going into the free skate was 67.39. During Thursday's skate, she nailed a triple axel, though she had to catch herself with her hand after nearly falling during her final loop. She scored 147.52, for a total score of 214.91.

Photos captured Glenn embracing her coach after her skate. Glenn looked visibly thrilled, smiling and jumping for joy. Despite entering the free skate in 13th place, she was at the top of the leaderboard for much of the event, finally being unseated by Japanese skater Mone Chiba. Glenn ended the competition in fifth place, and Chiba took fourth place.

Liu praised Glenn's pop-scored comeback in a brief interview with an NBC Olympics correspondent.

"She did so good. I watched it on the bus on the way here, and aw, she killed it, and I'm really happy for her," Liu said.

Levito was the next American woman to skate. She took the ice with a score of 70.84 from her short program. She fell on the landing of her opening triple flip, losing nine points, but recovered to skate through the rest of her routine.

Levito looked disappointed after leaving the ice, even as Glenn cheered for her. She also appeared emotional as her score of 131.96 was read out. Levito racked up a total score of 202.80 and came in 12th overall.

Liu was the final U.S. competitor and the third-to-last skater to take the ice. She looked at ease during her warmup, waving to spectators as she rehearsed. She entered the rink with a score of 76.59 after her carefree short program. Liu looked casual and energetic during her free skate, sailing through a triple lutz and triple salchow. She had a broad smile on her face throughout the event, and the crowd roared every time she landed a jump.

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Liu looked particularly at ease during her choreographic step sequences, and ended the routine triumphantly as her family rose for a standing ovation.

Liu's score was 150.20, for a total score of 226.79.

"That's what the f*** I'm talking about!" she shouted to the camera after finishing her skate. She bounced off the ice to hug her coaches and could be heard saying, "That was so great!" as they handed her her skate guards. Glenn and Liu were also seen hugging.

"I was so calm when I started," Liu said following the competition. "I have this breathing technique that I use throughout this program, and I was just making sure to lock in on that, be as smooth as I can and look out into the crowd during all my transitions."

"I did that, and I felt everyone's energy. I felt my energy," she said, adding that she felt she "put it all out there."

On whether she is glad to have returned to the sport in 2024, after having retired at 16 following the Beijing 2022 Winter Games, Liu said: "It was just right."

Sakamoto earned silver for her skate to a medley of Edith Piaf songs. She missed a triple jump, but otherwise skated cleanly, and embraced Liu after she came off the ice.

Nakai struggled with some of her jumps, but the high difficulty score of her routine meant she still took home the bronze medal. Liu and Nakai also hugged after Nakai's score was read out.

The United States also took gold in the team skating event earlier in the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Games.

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