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  • Bitcoin pressured by Fed uncertainty, oil, and AI slowdown

    Bitcoin pressured by Fed uncertainty, oil, and AI slowdown

    Bitcoin is down 3% in Asian morning trading, holding near $77,000 as markets brace for a week packed with macro catalysts. The move appears driven more by caution than a shift in sentiment.

    In a note to CoinDesk, Singapore-based Enflux, a market maker, said traders are reluctant to push bitcoin higher ahead of Wednesday’s rate decision and a cluster of data releases later in the week, including GDP, PCE inflation, and the Employment Cost Index. Together, those prints will shape expectations for when, or if, the Fed can begin cutting rates in the second half of the year.

    For now, the biggest constraint is oil. Brent crude remains above $100, complicating the inflation outlook and raising the bar for a dovish signal from Fed Chair Jerome Powell.

    According to Enflux, the market is operating under two competing assumptions: that geopolitical tensions will eventually ease, but any resolution will not arrive quickly enough to influence near-term policy. That combination has effectively priced out rate cuts for June (Polymarket bettors give a 95% chance of ‘no change’) and created a more ambiguous backdrop for risk assets.

    In that environment, bitcoin has struggled to break above key technical levels. The cryptocurrency is trading roughly 4% below its short-term holder cost basis near $80,700, a level often viewed as a proxy for marginal buyer conviction.

    Moving decisively above it would likely require a clear signal from the Fed that oil-driven inflation will prove temporary. Absent that, Enflux expects bitcoin to trade tentatively into Thursday’s data releases, with a sharper move more likely tied to the macro prints than to the Fed statement itself.

    Looking beyond this week, a less visible force may also be shaping bitcoin’s next moves. The Wall Street Journal reported Monday that OpenAI has missed key revenue targets, raising questions about the pace of AI demand.

    Listed $BTC mining companies have taken on significant debt while also selling portions of their treasuries to pivot to hosting AI data centers – a venture believed to be more profitable than mining.

    A slowdown in this pivot could, in theory, slow selling.

    When demand for compute is strong, miners have both the incentive and the financing to keep building, often leading to continued $BTC sales to fund capex and service debt.

    But if OpenAI’s miss signals that AI growth may not keep pace with those expectations, the dynamic becomes more complex. A slowdown in AI expansion could ease that miner-driven selling over time, removing a source of supply.

    The problem is timing: sell pressure on semiconductor and data stocks, because of weaker tech and risk appetite, would likely bring down the crypto market, while any relief from slower miner selling would come later.

    In that sense, the AI story only reinforces Enflux’s broader point. The market is stuck between competing macro forces, and any slowdown in AI demand adds another layer of uncertainty without immediately resolving the ones that matter most for price.

    For now, that keeps bitcoin trading in the same narrow band, waiting for a clearer signal.

  • Japan’s Bitbank rolls out crypto-linked credit card that pays bills in bitcoin

    Japan’s Bitbank rolls out crypto-linked credit card that pays bills in bitcoin

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  • Jimmy Kimmel Defends Melania Trump “Widow” Joke, Refuses to Apologize for It

    Jimmy Kimmel pushed back on the backlash against his “expectant widow” joke, declining to apologize for the joke itself and instead mocking the Trumps’ calls to cancel his show.

    During his Monday night monologue, the Jimmy Kimmel Live! host took the stage in a pitch-black suit and told ABC viewers, “You know how sometimes you wake up in the morning and the first lady puts out a statement demanding you be fired from your job? We’ve all been there, right?”

    Kimmel briefly explained the history of the White House Correspondents’ Dinner and how there used to be a comedian hosting the annual event, but Trump has halted that tradition to avoid being mocked. Kimmel explained that on Thursday’s show, he told jokes as if he were hosting the event, and re-told his joke: “Of course, our first lady, Melania, is here. Look at her, so beautiful. Mrs. Trump, you have a glow like an expectant widow.”

    “There was no big reaction to it until this morning, when I greeted the day facing yet another Twitter vomit storm and a call to fire me from our first lady,” Kimmel said. “Obviously, it was a joke about their age difference and the look of joy we see on her face every time they’re together. It was a very light roast joke about the fact that he’s almost 80 and she’s younger than I am. It was not — by any stretch of the definition — a call to assassination. And they know that. I’ve been very vocal for many years, speaking out against gun violence, in particular.”

    “But I understand that the first lady had a stressful experience over the weekend, and probably every weekend is pretty stressful in that house,” he continued. “And also, I agree that hateful and violent rhetoric is something we should reject. I do, and I think a great place to start to dial that back would be to have a conversation with your husband about it. Donald Trump is allowed to say whatever he wants to say, as are you and as am I. Because under the First Amendment, we have, as Americans, a right to free speech.”

    That said, Kimmel expressed regret for the traumatic experience that everybody in the WHCD ballroom went through. “I am sorry that [Melania] and the president and everyone in that room on Saturday went through that — that I really am,” he said. “Just because no one got killed doesn’t mean it wasn’t traumatic and scary, and we should come together. We really should. But if you want us to believe that a joke I made three days before this dinner had any effect on anything that happened, well then, maybe someone should look into this psychic lady too.”

    Then Kimmel played a clip of White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt saying before the event that “there will be some shots fired tonight.”

    The comments follow both Melania Trump and Donald Trump calling on ABC to cancel his show in the wake of a shooting outside the White House Correspondents’ Dinner ballroom.

    In a twist of fate, the person performing on stage during the WHCD when the shooting broke out, mentalist Oz Pearlman, was scheduled to be a guest on Monday’s show. He was replaced by Pod Save America host Jon Lovett.

    Earlier Monday, Trump wrote on Truth Social, “Wow, Jimmy Kimmel, who is in no way funny as attested to by his terrible Television Ratings, made a statement on his Show that is really shocking,” wrote Trump. “I appreciate that so many people are incensed by Kimmel’s despicable call to violence, and normally would not be responsive to anything that he said but, this is something far beyond the pale. Jimmy Kimmel should be immediately fired by Disney and ABC.”

    While Melania Trump, in a rare dip into the political discourse fray, wrote, “Kimmel’s hateful and violent rhetoric is intended to divide our country. His monologue about my family isn’t comedy—his words are corrosive and deepens the political sickness within America. People like Kimmel shouldn’t have the opportunity to enter our homes each evening to spread hate. A coward, Kimmel hides behind ABC because he knows the network will keep running cover to protect him. Enough is enough. It is time for ABC to take a stand. How many times will ABC’s leadership enable Kimmel’s atrocious behavior at the expense of our community.”

    The move marks the second time in seven months that Kimmel has had to explain and apologize for a joke that became connected to a political assassination headline. The first was after Charlie Kirk’s murder in September, where a Kimmel joke led to ABC briefly suspending his show.

    ABC made no comment on the matter.

    Trump has feuded with Kimmel since 2016 and has called for the talk show’s cancellation several times. While Kimmel has long made mocking Trump a focal point of his monologues. Trump previously was credited — correctly or not — with pushing CBS to cancel another late-night critic of his administration, Stephen Colbert, whose The Late Show ends next month. After the Colbert decision, Trump posted on social media, “I absolutely love that Colbert got fired. His talent was even less than his ratings. I hear Jimmy Kimmel is next. Has even less talent than Colbert!”

    The WHCD shooting marked the third time Trump’s security perimeter has been breached by a man with a gun who intended to cause the president harm during his second term. The first was in July 2024, during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, when Thomas Matthew Crooks opened fire on Trump with a rifle, grazing the president’s ear. The second was in September 2024, when Ryan Wesley Routh was spotted with a rifle at a golf tournament while Trump was playing.

  • Seth Meyers Questions Trump’s Pivot to White House Ballroom After Foiled Assassination Attempt

    Seth Meyers Questions Trump’s Pivot to White House Ballroom After Foiled Assassination Attempt

    The White House Correspondents’ Dinner shooting was the topic of the “Closer Look” segment on Monday night’s episode of NBC’s Late Night with Seth Meyers.

    Host Seth Meyers began the segment by thanking law enforcement and emphasizing he was glad that everyone was safe. He also thanked CNN’s Wolf Blitzer for his reporting from the Washington Hilton bathroom, even though the veteran news anchor was stuck there with 15 other men, a scenario Meyers described as his “actual nightmare.”

    “[If] Wolf is in the room, there must be a situation,” Meyers said, imagining the scene. “Also, what happens if you actually have to use the bathroom? Which I would definitely have to do because even when I hear gunshots in a movie I piss myself. Just make sure you’re in a silent bathroom, no cell service, and then you quietly try to slide into a stall without anyone noticing, and then you do your business while 15 other dudes stand right outside the door. Plus you’re in a tuxedo, so you’ve gotta navigate all the suspenders and everything. Trust me, ladies, it’s no party.”

    Meyers also spent time discussing the breakout meme of the WHCD incident, the man dubbed “Salad Man,” who continued eating as all around him hit the deck and hid under tables. “New meme just dropped,” he said. “Remember that dude mowing his lawn in front of the tornado? We should add the ‘Salad Man.’ Or we could update that everything is fine dog. This is incredible. Everyone’s diving under tables. My man’s just going to town on his burrata salad, not just any burrata salad, a hotel ballroom burrata salad.”

    But much of Meyers’ commentary was reserved for Trump going all-in on using the shooting to justify the still under construction White House ballroom. After showing some news clips of Trump talking up the security features of his ballroom, Meyers quipped, “This is the first I’m hearing that it’s a safe ballroom. All I’ve ever heard is how it’s going to be big and beautiful, but now we’re shifting to safe, and man, I get it. When you want something as badly as you want your ballroom, you do what you can.”

    Meyers also zeroed in on Trump’s insistence in media reports and interviews that the ballroom was “militarily top secret.” “I have to ask, what do you mean by this?” said Meyers. “This event would never have happened with the militarily top secret ballroom. What do you mean it’s top secret? You talk about it all the time. That’s the opposite of top secret. You’ve literally held up poster boards with designs for the ballroom you claim is top secret. This is militarily top secret in the same way a stealth bomber would be if it was pulling a banner that read invisible plane.”

    Meyers also touched on the precarious job security of FBI Director Kash Patel, who is facing ever greater pressure following a series of screwups at the agency and a number of news reports alleging unprofessional behavior and alcohol issues on Patel’s part. “I’ve never been less shocked by potential firing, I was so not shocked that when I heard that I kept eating my burrata salad,” he said.

    He ended the segment by reiterating that events at the WHCD were “unacceptable.” “Political violence is unacceptable. It has no place in a functioning democracy,” Meyers said. “It would be nice if our politicians could lead by example and provide solutions for keeping all Americans safe. Instead, the president and his party seem focused on telling the world about his militarily top secret ballroom.”

  • Jimmy Kimmel Defends ‘Expectant Widow’ Joke After Donald and Melania Trump Demand ABC Fire Him: ‘It Was Not By Any Stretch of the Definition a Call to Assassination. And They Know That’

    Jimmy Kimmel Defends ‘Expectant Widow’ Joke After Donald and Melania Trump Demand ABC Fire Him: ‘It Was Not By Any Stretch of the Definition a Call to Assassination. And They Know That’

    Jimmy Kimmel is responding to calls from Donald and Melania Trump for him to be fired by Disney and ABC. The President and the First Lady of the United States posted separate statements on social media condemning Kimmel for a joke he made at Melania’s expense on the Thursday, April 23 episode of “Jimmy Kimmel Live!,” which featured a mock White House Correspondents Dinner hosted by Kimmel. The host quipped during the sketch that Melania had the glow of an “expectant widow,” which ignited outrage among Trump and his MAGA base a few days later when the real White House Correspondents Dinner on April 25 came to an abrupt end due to a shooter.

    “You know how sometimes you wake up in the morning and the First Lady puts out a statement demanding you be fired from your job?” Kimmel said at the top of Monday night’s episode of “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” “We’ve all been there. Right?”

    The late-night host then explained his “expectant widow” jab was “a joke about their age difference and the look of joy we see on [Melania’s] face” every time the First Lady and the President are together, and was by no means a call for violence.

    “It was a very light roast joke about the fact that he’s almost 80 and she’s younger than I am. It was not by any stretch of the definition a call to assassination. And they know that,” Kimmel said. “I’ve been very vocal for many years speaking out against gun violence, in particular. But I understand that the First Lady had a stressful experience over the weekend. And probably every weekend is pretty stressful in that house. And also, I agree that hateful and violent rhetoric is something we should reject. I do. And I think a great place to start to dial that back would be to have a conversation with your husband about it.”

    “Jimmy Kimmel, who is in no way funny as attested to by his terrible Television Ratings, made a statement on his Show that is really shocking,” Trump posted on Truth Social. “He showed a fake video of the First Lady, Melania, and our son, Barron, like they were actually sitting in his studio, listening to him speak, which they weren’t, and never would be. He then stated, ‘Our First Lady, Melania, is here. Look at Melania, so beautiful. Mrs. Trump, you have a glow like an expectant widow.’ A day later, a lunatic tried entering the ballroom of the White House Correspondents Dinner, loaded up with a shotgun, handgun, and many knives. He was there for a very obvious and sinister reason. I appreciate that so many people are incensed by Kimmel’s despicable call to violence… Jimmy Kimmel should be immediately fired by Disney and ABC.”

    Donald and Melania Trump and many other White House administration officials were quickly evacuated from the White House Correspondent Dinner as the shooter was tackled by law enforcement on a different floor inside the venue. The suspected shooter, Cole Tomas Allen, has charged with attempting to assassinate Donald Trump, per NBC News. 

    “Kimmel’s hateful and violent rhetoric is intended to divide our country. His monologue about my family isn’t comedy — his words are corrosive and deepens the political sickness within America,” Melania Trump posted on X hours before her husband’s own post.

    People like Kimmel shouldn’t have the opportunity to enter our homes each evening to spread hate,” Melania continued. “A coward, Kimmel hides behind ABC because he knows the network will keep running cover to protect him. Enough is enough. It is time for ABC to take a stand. How many times will ABC’s leadership enable Kimmel’s atrocious behavior at the expense of our community.”

  • MARA forms foundation to support Bitcoin network health, adoption

    MARA forms foundation to support Bitcoin network health, adoption

    Bitcoin miner MARA Holdings launched the MARA Foundation on Monday to support the health of the Bitcoin network and the communities that rely on it as a tool for financial sovereignty.

    The MARA Foundation said it plans to implement measures to “harden Bitcoin against security threats,” including quantum computing, while also expanding access to self-custodial Bitcoin (BTC) and offering a range of educational resources, MARA said after announcing the new foundation at the Bitcoin 2026 conference in Las Vegas on Monday.

    It also plans to support the “development of a robust and healthy fee market for Bitcoin transactions,” it said.

    “We believe Bitcoin embodies the most powerful tool for financial sovereignty, economic resilience, and human freedom in the world,” the Bitcoin miner said, explaining its commitment to protect the “core properties that make Bitcoin sound, durable money.”

    Source: MARA Holdings

    MARA’s commitment to Bitcoin comes as corporate Bitcoin miners have expanded into AI and high-performance computing in search of higher-revenue opportunities. Bitcoin hashrate, a measure of the computational power employed by miners to secure the Bitcoin network, has fallen 28.8% since September.

    MARA has a $100,000 contribution to send out

    The newly formed MARA Foundation is set to start with a $100,000 contribution fund and is asking the public to vote on which of three Bitcoin companies should receive the funds.

    The three candidates are the open-source Bitcoin mining platform 256 Foundation, the Latin American Bitcoin education platform Libreria de Satoshi and SafeNet, a Bitcoin-powered, community-operated wireless network serving underprivileged communities.

    MARA said one of the foundation’s missions is to enable “financial sovereignty worldwide,” particularly in the “Global South” — mostly Africa and Latin America — where “Bitcoin is being used as a tool to escape financial oppression in jurisdictions affected by hyperinflation, confiscatory policy, and restrictions on financial freedom.”

    “We are committed to supporting communities using Bitcoin to expand access to sound money and strengthen local economies,” it added.

    MARA also plans to share a range of educational resources with both Bitcoin developers and policymakers.

  • Are NFTs signaling a market shift? THESE indicators say yes

    Are NFTs signaling a market shift? THESE indicators say yes

    Over the years, most crypto sectors have seen strong capital inflows, while one has lagged.

    Looking at the data, whether it’s Real World Assets (RWA), stablecoins, or emerging AI agents, all have seen major capital rotation, with triple-digit growth in under half a decade. NFTs, however, have struggled, with market cap still far below the $15 billion+ levels seen in the 2021–2022 cycle.

    That said, April has started to shift sentiment. As the chart below highlights, total $NFT market capitalization has surged 54% over the past month, bringing the combined market cap of $NFT [Non Fungible Tokens] projects back above the $2 billion level for the first time since early Q1.

    Source: CoinGecko

    Unsurprisingly, traders are split on the market reaction.

    On one side, supporters see this as renewed momentum for a sector that’s been underperforming for a while, pointing to it as a sign of renewed capital flowing back into crypto. On the other hand, skeptics are quick to zoom out and compare it to the 2021-2022 cycle, pointing out that the current move still looks relatively muted, even within the 2024-2026 range.

    Backing this skepticism, critics point out how concentrated the move is. Most of the gains come from blue-chip collections, especially Bored Apes, rather than a broad-based recovery across the market. Naturally, this raises the question: Are these flows into NFTs a bullish bet or just a temporary boost?

    $TON blockchain $NFT volume leads the market

    Looking at $NFT trading volume toward the end of the Q1 cycle, calling it a temporary spike might be too early.

    From a technical standpoint, there’s a clear divergence forming between major chains like Ethereum [ETH] and Toncoin [$TON], highlighting how uneven $NFT activity has become across ecosystems.

    As the chart shows, in March, $TON led $NFT trading volume at $39.8 million, ahead of Ethereum’s $35.9 million, marking a noticeable shift in where $NFT activity concentrates. Breaking it down further, most of $TON’s volume came from Telegram-native NFTs. Telegram Gifts drove $23.09 million (58% of total volume), followed by Telegram Numbers at $11.02 million (27.5%) and Telegram Usernames at $5.28 million (13%).

    Source: X

    Against this backdrop, calling the $NFT market spike too concentrated feels a bit overstated.

    The logic is simple: Trading volume is shifting away from Ethereum dominance and spreading across other chains, so capital now rotates more broadly instead of staying locked into one network. Technically, this surge in $NFT volume has also moved in line with the broader upside in the total crypto market in March.

    Taken together, the current structure therefore looks less like an isolated spike and more like a distributed rotation, with the $NFT market moving back above $2 billion acting as a strong signal of traders stepping in more aggressively. As a result, this positions NFTs as a key signal for tracking capital flows this cycle.

    Final Summary

    • $NFT market cap rebounded above $2 billion with a 54% monthly surge, signaling renewed trader participation.
    • Volume is shifting across chains, suggesting a more distributed $NFT recovery rather than an Ethereum-only spike.
  • Live Updates: 2026 NBA Playoffs, R1 | Thunder look to eliminate Suns

    Live Updates: 2026 NBA Playoffs, R1 | Thunder look to eliminate Suns

    Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Thunder are looking to sweep the Suns and advance to the second round on NBC Sports Network and Peacock.

    We’re bringing you the best of the 2026 NBA Playoffs, presented by Google, with the NBA.com live blog, featuring all of the meaningful moments, performances, observations, news, notes and highlights from Monday’s action.

    The Magic defeated the Pistons 94-88 in a defensive slugfest, led by Desmond Bane (22 pts, 5 3PM), earning a 3-1 lead in the series. They have a chance to become the seventh No. 8 seed to overcome a No. 1 seed on Wednesday.

    What we know about Monday’s games:

    • Teams with a 2-1 lead have historically gone on to win an NBA Playoffs series 80% of the time.
    • With a 3-1 lead, it’s been 95.6% of the time, with 13 teams recovering from such a gap in NBA history.
    • If the series goes to 2-2, the home team for Game 5 has won 73.1% of the time.
    • With a 3-0 lead, NBA teams have won 100% of the time in the Playoffs, with the 2023 Boston Celtics the last to force a seventh game.

    APRIL 28, 2026 / 12:07 ET

    One time for Jamal Cain

    Just a classic posterization here.

    APRIL 27, 2026 / 11:45 ET

    Denver up 60-51 at the break

    Nikola Jokić (13 pts, 6 reb, 10 ast) knocked down a 3-pointer as the second quarter wound down, while Jamal Murray (10 pts) is doing his thing.

    Julius Randle (12 pts, 3 reb) is the top scorer for the Timberwolves, who have committed 14 turnovers so far.

    “It’s a dogfight. That’s just how it’s going to be,” said Spencer Jones (9 pts). “We’re just being really physical.”

    APRIL 27, 2026 / 11:30 ET

    Thunder lead 106-98 after three

    Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (26 pts, 5 ast) has the Thunder on the verge of advancing to the second round, as they lead the Suns with one quarter to go.

    Oklahoma City is 15-of-30 from 3-point range so far, outdoing Phoenix, which is 13-of-29 (44.8%).

    APRIL 27, 2026 / 10:57 ET

    Orlando wins, takes 3-1 lead

    94-88, led by Desmond Bane (22 pts), Franz Wagner (19 pts) and Paolo Banchero (18 pts, 8 reb).

    The Magic shot just 32.8% from the field, but forced 20 turnovers by the Pistons and won the rebounding battle 69-63 to earn 10 more field goal attempts on the night. Detroit shot 39.8% from the field in this defensive struggle.

    Wendell Carter Jr. (12 pts, 11 reb) played Jalen Duren (12 pts, 8 reb) to a standstill, leaving the Pistons searching for a scoring advantage from their secondary players.

    Cade Cunningham (25 pts, 9 reb, 6 ast) fought his way to a reasonable night, but Tobias Harris (20 pts) and Duren were the only other scorers to crack double digits. The Pistons were just 6-of-30 (20%) from 3-point range.

    A No. 8 seed has upset a No. 1 seed six times in NBA history.

    • 2023: Heat over Bucks (4-1)
    • 2012: 76ers over Bulls (4-2)
    • 2011: Grizzlies over Spurs (4-2)
    • 2007: Warriors over Mavericks (4-2)
    • 1999: Knicks over Heat (3-2)
    • 1994: Nuggets over SuperSonics (3-2)

    Can the Pistons become the seventh? The series will reconvene on Wednesday at 7 ET.

    APRIL 27, 2026 / 10:47 ET

    Thunder lead Suns 75-67 at the break

    Phoenix is fighting to stay alive, but Oklahoma City is relentless. The Thunder are outshooting the Suns 61.4% to 59.5% from the field, led by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (17 pts on nine shots).

    Collin Gillespie (17 pts) leads the Suns in scoring.

    APRIL 27, 2026 / 10:45 ET

    ‘The bank is open late’

    Desmond Bane (22 pts) just kissed a 3-pointer off the glass to give the Magic a 92-86 lead with 1:16 to go in the fourth.

    APRIL 27, 2026 / 10:33 ET

    Pistons and Magic going down to the wire

    87-85 with 4:14 to go, as these two tough Eastern Conference squads battle it out.

    The game is getting physical late. Catch the finish on NBC and Peacock!

    APRIL 27, 2026 / 10:21 ET

    Jamal Cain hits the trampoline

    Oh my, Jamal Cain just detonated all over Jalen Duren. A 121.5 on the Dunk Score Scale!

    “He just kept going up,” said Austin Rivers. “The arena is still buzzing.”

    82-77 Magic with 7:41 to go in the fourth quarter.

    APRIL 27, 2026 / 10:05 ET

    Thunder lead Suns early

    30-26 Oklahoma City, but Collin Gillespie (11 pts on 4-of-4 shooting) and Dillon Brooks (9 pts) are going off for Phoenix.

    APRIL 27, 2026 / 9:47 ET

    Pistons start the third on a run

    63-58 Magic with 6:29 to go in the third quarter, after Orlando started the quarter on a 9-2 run.

    APRIL 27, 2026 / 9:30 ET

    Magic lead 54-52 at the break

    It’s been a back-and-forth battle in the Kia Center so far tonight, with both teams holding double-digit leads in the first half.

    Franz Wagner (17 pts on 12 shots) is the lead scorer for Orlando, while Cade Cunningham (16 pts, 3 reb, 4 ast) is the top man for Detroit.

    The Pistons have 12 giveaways so far — nearing their average of 17 for the series. Orlando’s taken advantage to the tune of a 19-3 advantage in points off turnovers.

    APRIL 27, 2026 / 9:05 ET

    Detroit takes a lead

    46-37 Pistons with 4:36 to go in the first half.

    Tobias Harris (10 pts on 4-of-5 shooting) has been crucial early for Detroit, steadying them during Orlando’s early surge and providing consistent scoring.

    APRIL 27, 2026 / 8:44 ET

    Pistons lead after one

    Detroit battled back to take a 27-26 lead at the end of the first quarter.

    Cade Cunningham (10 pts, 3 reb, 2 ast) took command of the Pistons’ attack despite four turnovers, while Franz Wagner (8 pts, 3 stl) leads the Magic in scoring.

    APRIL 27, 2026 / 8:20 ET

    Detroit can’t keep possession

    Seven turnovers in the first six minutes for the Pistons, including on five straight possessions. Orlando has an early 12-3 lead in points of turnovers.

    19-10 Orlando with 6:13 to go in the first.

    APRIL 27, 2026 / 8:13 ET

    Magic force an early timeout

    12-5 Orlando to start the contest on NBC and Peacock, with Wendell Carter Jr. and Desmond Bane knocking down early 3-pointers.

    Bane hit seven 3-pointers in Game 3 — Detroit would like to avoid seeing that again.

    Carter Jr.’s confidence is a bellwether for this series. He’s been threatening to outdo the All-Star Jalen Duren — if that happens, we could have an upset.

    APRIL 27, 2026 / 7:45 ET

    Starting Lineups: Pistons-Magic, Game 4

    Cade Cunningham and the Detroit Pistons look to even their 2026 NBA Playoffs first-round series against the Orlando Magic on NBC and Peacock at 8 ET.

    Detroit:

    • PG Cade Cunningham
    • SG Duncan Robinson
    • SF Ausar Thompson
    • PF Tobias Harris
    • C Jalen Duren

    Orlando:

    • PG Jalen Suggs
    • SG Desmond Bane
    • SF Franz Wagner
    • PF Paolo Banchero
    • C Wendell Carter Jr.

    Watch the matchup between Wendell Carter Jr. and Jalen Duren tonight — Carter had 14 points and 17 rebounds in Game 3, dominating the pivot battle.

    APRIL 27, 2026 / 7:30 ET

    Monday’s injury report

    Kevin Huerter is available for the Pistons, while Jonathan Isaac is out for the Magic.

    Jalen Williams is out for the Thunder. Jordan Goodwin is questionable for the Suns, while Mark Williams is out.

    Donte DiVincenzo and Anthony Edwards are out for the Timberwolves. Aaron Gordon is questionable for the Nuggets, while Peyton Watson is out.

  • India’s First Ray Films Unveils Six-Picture Slate for Cannes Film Market as Banner Enters Second Decade (EXCLUSIVE)

    India’s First Ray Films Unveils Six-Picture Slate for Cannes Film Market as Banner Enters Second Decade (EXCLUSIVE)

    First Ray Films, the Mumbai-based production company founded by actor-filmmaker Anshuman Jha, has set six films covering 2026 to 2028 as the banner heads into its second decade, with the slate set to be presented at the Cannes Film Market this May.

    Two titles are scheduled for Indian theatrical release this year. “Om Ka Hari,” directed by Harish Vyas and starring Jha alongside Raghubir Yadav, Soni Razdan and Ayesha Kapur, is set for June. Jha himself directs “Lakadbaggha 2: The Monkey Business,” expanding the vigilante franchise he launched in 2023, with Adil Hussain and Sarah Jane Dias also on board; it is due in November.

    The 2027 pipeline comprises “Bajrangi,” directed by Parth Saurabh and now in post-production, and “Bhadyaa,” helmed by Pramod Parashar and currently shooting. Two further titles are slated for 2028: “But First, The Burning,” directed by Devashish Makhija as an international co-production alongside Roh Films and Lamas Productions; and “Dhoori,” directed by Rumana Molla.

    First Ray was founded in 2016 with Shashi Sudigala’s “mona_darling,” a social media thriller that sat well outside the mainstream. Over the decade since, it has cultivated a reputation for championing distinct filmmaking voices while simultaneously building distribution muscle; the company says its marketing partnerships have outscaled those of any other Indian independent. Its most recent release, “Lord Curzon Ki Haveli,” presented by marketing firm Max, is set to premiere on streamer JioHotstar next month.

    “The first decade was about discovering our voice. The next decade is about amplifying it, backing stories that matter, filmmakers who take risks, and cinema that can travel across borders without losing its soul. We’re not chasing trends, we’re building a space where authenticity leads. At the heart of this is also the aim to create an ecosystem for young filmmakers – one that empowers and educates them on the importance of marketing and distribution so that great stories don’t just get made, but truly reach audiences. Backing actors like Abhinav Jha and Samta Sudiksha, who bring honesty to their craft, is as important as backing the stories themselves,” Jha said.

    Makhija, whose “But First, The Burning” represents the banner’s most ambitious international play to date, added, “What First Ray stands for in today’s scene is rare – a producer who doesn’t just pull out all stops to protect the filmmaker’s voice, but constructs wings to push it higher and further. Something increasingly difficult to find. Our collaboration is about telling a story that is stubbornly rooted, yet globally resonant.”

    “There’s a certain fearlessness in how First Ray approaches storytelling. It’s not about fitting into a mould, but about building something original. That trust empowers filmmakers to take creative leaps,” said Vyas.

    The Cannes showcase marks the company’s most prominent market push to date, as Indian independents increasingly seek co-production partners and theatrical footholds beyond the subcontinent.

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