MagazinAisle

Blog

  • Last Week Tonight‘s John Oliver says he won‘t placate prediction markets users

    John Oliver, host of HBO’s Last Week Tonight, targeted prediction market platforms on his show’s latest weekly deep dive.

    In Sunday’s airing of the HBO show, Oliver discussed some of the trivial event contracts on platforms such as Kalshi and Polymarket, including betting whether members of the Trump administration would use certain words in public addresses, to the companies’ controversial partnering with news organizations.

    Specifically, the host questioned Donald Trump Jr.’s relationship with both platforms — an adviser to Kalshi and Polymarket — and how the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) “doesn’t even seem to be trying” to block event contracts on terrorism, assassination and war under Chair Michael Selig.

    For much of the show, Oliver discussed how it is “incredibly easy for individuals to manipulate the outcomes,” citing Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong rattling off a list of crypto-related words in his third-quarter 2025 earnings call to cause many Kalshi and Polymarket users to win their bets.

    “I’m going to make you a promise tonight,” said Oliver, echoing Armstrong’s statement. “I will never do anything because someone online placed a bet on it. So you can be confident that if I ever say Bitcoin, Ethereum, blockchain, staking and Web3, it won’t be because I’m trying to move markets — it will be because I’m having a stroke.”

    Source: HBO Last Week Tonight

    While user activity and trading volume on prediction markets have increased exponentially in recent months — expected to reach $1 trillion by 2030 — the platforms’ controversial bets and legal status in US states have raised eyebrows for some experts. Gaming authorities in several states are suing companies like Kalshi over alleged illegal sports betting, with Coinbase chief legal officer Paul Grewal and others expecting the legal fight to end up before the US Supreme Court.

    Related: Senate bill to target sports betting ban on prediction markets: WSJ

    Financial giants looking to expand into prediction markets?

    In addition to previously announced partnerships with media giants like CNN, CNBC, Fox News and Dow Jones, traditional financial companies including Charles Schwab and Citadel Securities recently signaled plans to consider prediction markets.

    Charles Schwab CEO Rick Wurster said on a Thursday investors call that the company would “take a hard look at” prediction markets. In a separate event the same day, Citadel Securities President Jim Esposito said that the company was “absolutely keeping an eye on developments” as part of a potential move into the market.

    Magazine: Adam Back says current demand is ‘almost’ enough to send Bitcoin to $1M

  • Bitcoin Rebounds Strongly — Can Bulls Drive Price Toward $79,000

    Bitcoin Rebounds Strongly — Can Bulls Drive Price Toward $79,000

    Bitcoin is showing renewed strength after a sharp rebound, signaling that buyers are stepping back in at key levels. With momentum building and price pushing higher, attention is now shifting toward the $79,000 resistance zone, where a breakout could confirm continued upside and open the door for a stronger rally.

    Selling Pressure After Initial Reaction

    Bitcoin saw an immediate response to yesterday’s developments, facing notable selling pressure as the market processed the news. Analyst Kamile Uray highlights that while the initial reaction was bearish, the possibility for a continued rally remains on the table, provided the immediate low of $73,371 is successfully defended.

    However, a 4-hour candle close below this mark would likely trigger a deeper correction toward the $68,720 level, which represents the critical 0.618 Fibonacci retracement of the most recent upward wave. Holding this support provides the foundation for a fresh leg up.

    Source: Chart from Kamile Uray on X

    On the bullish side, a decisive close above $79,000 would signal a continuation of the broader uptrend toward much higher targets. Uray identifies a major resistance cluster between $98,000 and $107,000–$109,000. Should the price face a rejection at these elevated levels, traders should expect a return to the previous support zones, ranging from $73,371 to the $66,000 region.

    Examining the daily timeframe, the $65,666 level serves as a pivot point. As long as Bitcoin maintains its position above this threshold, the overall structure remains skewed toward a potential rise.

    A failure to hold the $65,666 level would shift the focus to lower support levels at $63,823, $62,433, and $60,000. The most critical warning comes at the $60,000 mark; a daily close below this psychological and technical barrier would likely extend the corrective phase significantly.

    Bitcoin Bounces Strongly As Week Kicks Off

    In his most recent update, analyst Michaël van de Poppe noted a relatively strong upward bounce for Bitcoin on Monday. This movement is particularly significant as it occurs during a period where markets typically trend toward a risk-off stance ahead of the weekly opening. The ability of Bitcoin to push higher against this cautious backdrop suggests underlying strength in current demand.

    A key factor in this analysis is the recent decoupling from traditional safe-haven assets. While Bitcoin has shown resilience and upward momentum, gold has trended downward. Looking at the weekly outlook, the presence of a price gap at the $77,300 level remains a primary focal point for traders. Given the strength of the recent bounce and the existing technical vacuum toward that higher level, Bitcoin is expected to fill this gap and achieve new highs before the current week concludes.

    $BTC trading at $75,130 on the 1D chart | Source: BTCUSDT on Tradingview.com

  • PYUSD Burned: Staggering 301 Million Stablecoin Erased in Major Supply Shock

    In a significant move for the digital asset ecosystem, blockchain tracking service Whale Alert reported on April 2, 2025, that a colossal 301 million $PYUSD—PayPal’s dollar-pegged stablecoin—was permanently burned from circulation. This event, originating from an unidentified wallet, represents one of the largest single stablecoin burn transactions recorded on the Ethereum blockchain to date, immediately drawing intense scrutiny from market analysts and institutional observers worldwide.

    $PYUSD Burned: Unpacking the Transaction Mechanics

    Blockchain data confirms the burn transaction occurred at 14:37 UTC. Consequently, the action permanently removed the tokens from the available supply. The burn mechanism is a fundamental cryptographic process. Specifically, it involves sending tokens to a verifiably unspendable address, often called a ‘burn address’ or ‘eater address.’ This address has no known private key. Therefore, any assets sent there become irretrievable. The Ethereum network publicly records and immutably verifies this action.

    For context, the total circulating supply of $PYUSD stood at approximately 1.8 billion tokens before this event. As a result, this single burn reduced the total supply by nearly 17%. This percentage is substantial for any major stablecoin. Typically, stablecoin issuers like Paxos, which mints $PYUSD for PayPal, manage supply through minting (creation) and burning (destruction) processes. These processes respond directly to user demand and redemption activity. However, a burn of this magnitude, executed in one transaction, is highly unusual.

    Stablecoin Supply Dynamics and Market Impact

    The immediate market implication revolves around basic supply and demand economics. A reduced supply of a stablecoin, all else being equal, can theoretically increase its scarcity value. However, $PYUSD maintains a strict 1:1 peg to the US Dollar. Therefore, its market price should remain stable at one dollar. The true impact lies in the on-chain liquidity available for trading, lending, and decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols. Major liquidity pools on platforms like Uniswap and Curve Finance may experience temporary imbalances.

    Historically, large stablecoin burns often correlate with decreased trading activity or institutional redemptions. For instance, when Tether (USDT) or USD Coin ($USDC) undergo significant burns, analysts typically interpret it as capital moving off-chain back into traditional banking systems. In this case, the burn could signal several scenarios:

    • Institutional Redemption: A large holder, or ‘whale,’ may have cashed out a significant position, prompting Paxos to burn the corresponding $PYUSD tokens.
    • Supply Management: PayPal and Paxos might be proactively managing the supply to align with lower demand or to maintain optimal reserve ratios.
    • Treasury Operations: The action could be part of internal treasury restructuring or the movement of assets between controlled wallets, with a public burn as the recorded outcome.

    Market data following the burn showed no immediate deviation in $PYUSD’s market peg across major exchanges. This stability demonstrates the robustness of the reserve-backed model.

    Expert Analysis on Reserve Transparency and Trust

    Financial technology experts emphasize that such events test the transparency promises of stablecoin issuers. Paxos, as the issuer, publishes monthly attestation reports from independent accounting firms. These reports verify that the outstanding $PYUSD tokens are fully backed by US dollar deposits, US Treasury bills, and similar cash equivalents. Following a burn of this size, the next monthly attestation will be scrutinized to confirm a corresponding reduction in claimed reserve assets.

    Dr. Anya Sharma, a blockchain economist at the Digital Asset Research Institute, notes, ‘A transparent and verifiable burn reinforces the core value proposition of a regulated stablecoin. It demonstrates that the supply contract is functioning as intended—tokens are destroyed when dollars are returned. This action, while large, is a stress test that passed smoothly. The market’s calm response is a positive signal for the maturity of the asset class.’

    This event occurs within a broader regulatory context. Furthermore, global standards for stablecoins are evolving rapidly. The European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) framework and pending US legislation place strict requirements on reserve management and redemption policies. Proactive supply management through burns may become a standard compliance practice.

    Comparative Analysis with Historical Stablecoin Burns

    To understand the scale, comparing this event to other major stablecoin adjustments is instructive. The table below highlights significant recorded burns.

    As shown, the $PYUSD burn is notable for its high percentage of the total supply. The Binance USD ($BUSD) burns in early 2024 were larger in absolute value but occurred over multiple transactions due to Paxos winding down the token under regulatory guidance. The concentrated nature of this single $PYUSD transaction makes it a unique case study.

    Conclusion

    The burning of 301 million $PYUSD represents a pivotal moment for PayPal’s stablecoin project. It highlights the active, on-chain management of digital dollar supplies. Moreover, it underscores the responsive mechanisms embedded within regulated stablecoin architectures. For investors and the crypto market, the event passed without disrupting the asset’s peg. This stability reinforces confidence in the underlying technology and reserve models. Ultimately, as stablecoins like $PYUSD mature, transparent supply adjustments through burns will likely become normal operational events. They signal a dynamic market responding to real-world demand and sophisticated treasury management. The focus now shifts to subsequent attestation reports and any potential statements from Paxos or PayPal regarding the rationale behind this substantial supply reduction.

    FAQs

    Q1: What does it mean to ‘burn’ a stablecoin like $PYUSD?
    Burning a stablecoin means permanently removing it from circulation by sending it to a cryptographic address from which funds cannot ever be retrieved. This reduces the total supply of the token and is typically done when the issuer redeems the token for its underlying collateral, like US dollars.

    Q2: Why would someone burn 301 million $PYUSD?
    The most likely reason is that a large holder redeemed the tokens for US dollars with the issuer, Paxos. Following the redemption, Paxos would execute the burn to accurately reflect the reduced liability on its balance sheet and maintain the 1:1 reserve backing.

    Q3: Does burning $PYUSD affect its price or dollar peg?
    In a properly functioning system, a burn should not directly affect the market price, which is maintained by arbitrage and redemption mechanisms. The price should remain at $1.00. The burn primarily affects the available on-chain supply for trading and DeFi use.

    Q4: Who is responsible for the $PYUSD burn transaction?
    The transaction was sent from an unidentified wallet. However, the action is almost certainly authorized and executed by Paxos, the regulated issuer of $PYUSD, as part of its treasury and supply management operations following a large redemption.

    Q5: How can the public verify that the burned $PYUSD is truly gone?
    Anyone can verify the transaction on a public Ethereum blockchain explorer like Etherscan. The tokens are sent to a ‘burn address’ (e.g., 0x000…dead). This address is publicly known to have no accessible private key, providing cryptographic proof the assets are permanently locked.

  • ‘Wednesday’ Season 3 First Look Sees Jenna Ortega Arrive in Paris

    It looks like Wednesday Addams is taking a little international vacation from Nevermore Academy.

    On Monday, Netflix released a first look (below) at Wednesday season three. In the photo, Ortega’s Wednesday is spotted in front of the Eiffel Tower in Paris, standing next to Thing (Victor Dorobantu), who is on top of a motorcycle.

    “From Paris, with dread,” Netflix captioned the post.

    Filming for the hit show’s third season is currently underway near Dublin. Season 3 follows “smart, sarcastic and a little dead inside, Wednesday Addams,” as she “investigates twisted mysteries while making new friends — and foes — at Nevermore Academy,” the official logline reads.

    Season three will likely pick up where the season installment left off: Wednesday jumps into her Uncle Fester’s (Fred Armisen) motorcycle sidecar, setting out to track down Enid Sinclair (Emma Myers), who has gone full alpha werewolf.

    Earlier this month, the streamer announced that Lena Headey, Andrew McCarthy and James Lance joined the upcoming season as new guest stars, in addition to season three castmembers Eva Green, Winona Ryder, Chris Sarandon, Noah Taylor, Oscar Morgan and Kennedy Moyer.

    In addition to Ortega, other fan-favorite Addams family members returning are Catherine Zeta-Jones as Morticia Addams, Luis Guzmán as Gomez Addams and Isaac Ordonez as Pugsley Addams.

    Other series mainstays include Myers (Enid Sinclair), Hunter Doohan (Tyler Galpin), Joy Sunday (Bianca Barclay), Moosa Mostafa (Eugene Ottinger), Georgie Farmer (Ajax Petropolus), Isaac Ordonez (Pugsley Addams), Billie Piper (Isadora Capri), Luyanda Unati Lewis-Nyawo (Sheriff Ritchie Santiago), Victor Dorobantu (Thing), Evie Templeton (Agnes DeMille), Joanna Lumley (Grandmama Hester Frump) and Armisen (Uncle Fester).

    A release date for the third season of Netflix’s Wednesday has yet to be announced.

  • Netflix Got More Hits Than Misses From the Obamas Before the Deal Wound Down

    Netflix Got More Hits Than Misses From the Obamas Before the Deal Wound Down

    The coming split of Higher Ground, the production company founded by Barack and Michelle Obama, and Netflix will mark the end of — or at least a sizable change to — what’s been a productive relationship.

    The Obamas founded Higher Ground in 2018 and signed a deal with Netflix to produce both feature films and series projects for the streamer. Their first project made an immediate splash: The company joined Participant Media as a producer of American Factory, a documentary that would win the Oscar for best feature doc in 2020.

    In its eight years at Netflix — the two companies extended their partnership with a first-look deal in 2024 — Higher Ground has produced more than 20 films and series, with a couple more on the way. That’s a good-sized output for most any production company over that span of time. It yielded considerably more finished results than Netflix’s deal with Prince Harry and Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, which the Higher Ground pact is often compared to since the principals were not previously known as creatives (though the former Meghan Markle was an actress prior to marrying into Britain’s royal family).

    In the past couple of years, though, Higher Ground has also set up projects at HBO (Life, Larry and the Pursuit of Unhappiness with Larry David) and Laika (Audition) as the first-look deal allowed it to seek buyers other than Netflix. The company is branching into live theater with the Broadway revival of Proof and has produced a slate of podcasts as well.

    Not every Higher Ground project has hit, of course: Several titles in the list below came and went with little fanfare, and the company has also had some high-profile executive turnover, most recently with the December 2025 departure of company president Vinnie Malhotra. Motion pictures head Tonia Davis left her role in 2024 (though she’s continued to work with the company as a producer), and Priya Swaminathan left as co-head of film and TV in 2021.

    Separating from Netflix doesn’t necessarily mean Higher Ground won’t continue to do business with the streamer — just that it won’t be the first stop for new projects. Here’s a look at what the Netflix-Higher Ground partnership has produced.

    Feature Films

    Leave the World Behind

    Courtesy of Netflix

    The biggest of the four narrative features Higher Ground was involved with — by a long shot — was Leave the World Behind. Starring Julia Roberts, Mahershala Ali and Ethan Hawke, the Sam Esmail-directed thriller released in late 2023 is one of Netflix’s biggest movies ever, based on the streamer’s internal data.

    Higher Ground was also behind Rustin, a biopic about civil rights leader Bayard Rustin that earned Golden Globe and SAG Award nominations for star Colman Domingo; and Fatherhood, a dramedy starring Kevin Hart. Higher Ground aqcuired distribution rights to Worth, which starred Michael Keaton as Kenneth Feinberg, the administrator of a 9/11 victims compensation fund, after its Sundance premiere in 2020.

    Feature Documentaries

    American Factory

    Courtesy of Netflix

    Along with American Factory, Higher Ground was involved with the Oscar-nominated Crip Camp; Becoming, based partly on Michelle Obama’s memoir of the same name; and 2025’s Air Force Elite: Thunderbirds. Higher Ground also acquired 2022’s Descendant and 2023’s American Symphony after their festival premieres.

    Unscripted Series and Specials

    Our Great National Parks

    Netflix

    The former president is a three-time Emmy winner for outstanding narrator for the Higher Ground docuseries Our Great National Parks, Working: What We Do All Day and Our Oceans. Michelle Obama was nominated for an Emmy in 2023 for the special The Light We Carry, a conversation about her 2022 book between the former first lady and Oprah Winfrey.

    Higher Ground also produced The G Word With Adam Conover, which highlights how government agencies intersect with people’s lives; basketball docuseries Starting 5 and Court of Gold; and the reality show The Later Daters, following six people over age 55 re-entering the dating world.

    Scripted Series

    From left: Robyn Cara, Siobhán Cullen and Will Forte in Bodkin.

    Enda Bowe/Netflix

    Higher Ground produced the darkly comic crime show Bodkin, starring Will Forte, which premiered in 2024. That’s the only scripted series the company has backed so far, but two others are on the horizon. All the Sinners Bleed, from showrunner Joe Robert Cole and co-studio Amblin Television, is based on an S.A. Cosby novel about the first Black sheriff (Sope Dirisu) in a small Bible Belt county who is tracking a serial killer. The Altruists is a limited series about the rise and fall of crypto exchange FTX, starring Anthony Boyle and Julia Garner as the key figures in the saga — Sam Bankman-Fried and Caroline Ellison.

    Kids Series

    Waffles + Mochi

    Netflix

    Three kids series produced by Higher Ground premiered in 2021. First up was the food-centric puppet series Waffles + Mochi (followed by a 2022 spinoff, Waffles + Mochi’s Restaurant). Then came We the People, a series of animated shorts about civics; and Ada Twist, Scientist, based on the popular children’s book. The latter two were created by Chris Nee of Doc McStuffins. Ada Twist had the longest run of the three with 41 episodes over four seasons.

  • 3 things to watch in Rockets-Lakers Game 2

    3 things to watch in Rockets-Lakers Game 2

    Luke Kennard hopes to have another big performance to help L.A. take a 2-0 series lead over Houston.

    Whether Houston Rockets All-Star Kevin Durant is available for Game 2 against the Los Angeles Lakers doesn’t alter Houston’s mission.

    The Rockets need improved play offensively and defensively if they want to avoid a 2-0 deficit against the Lakers, who took a 1-0 series lead with a 107-98 victory on Saturday.

    And of course, it will help the Rockets if Durant can play.

    Here are three things to watch for in Game 2 of this first-round Western Conference series between the Rockets and Lakers on Tuesday night (10:30 ET, NBC/Peacock).

    1. Will Durant play in Game 2?

    Remove 26 points, 5.5 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game and nearly 50/40/90 shooting splits from a lineup, and it will have an impact. The Rockets were unable to compensate for Durant’s absence in Game 1.

    Durant injured his right knee during Wednesday’s practice when he bumped knees with a teammate.

    “It’s soreness. It’s very tender,” Rockets coach Ime Udoka said. “It’s tough to bend in certain ways. Not a lot of swelling. He hit it in a very awkward spot … It could’ve been a regular bumped knee, and he would’ve played through that. But it was right above the knee, the patellar tendon area.”

    Will Durant play?

    “Pain tolerance is one thing, but actually limited movement is more the cause,” Udoka said.

    If he plays, some of Houston’s offensive woes will evaporate. If he’s unavailable, Alperen Sengun (6-for-19 shooting in Game 1), Jabari Smith Jr. (5-for-14) and Reed Sheppard (6-for-20, 5-for-14 on 3-pointers) will need much better games.

    The injury also altered Houston’s bench minutes: just one reserve played more than 11 minutes, and starters Amen Thompson and Smith each logged more than 43 minutes. Sheppard had to play 10 more minutes (36) than his season average.

    Houston took 27 more shots, made more 3s than the Lakers and committed seven fewer turnovers – and didn’t reach 100. That’s what happens when a team shoots 37.6% from the field.

    “It’s hard to win with those numbers,” Udoka said.

    2. How much of the load can James carry at 41 years old?

    LeBron James is so old – “how old is he?” – that he played in a playoff game alongside his son, Bronny, making them the first father-son duo to appear in a postseason game. They shared just under four minutes of court time as James directed the Lakers to a victory with 19 points, 13 assists, eight rebounds, two steals and one block.

    The Lakers were also without Luka Dončić (left hamstring) and Austin Reaves (oblique strain). Before Dončić and Reaves sustained injuries in the 77th game, the Lakers had settled into a nice flow offensively with James as the third option – albeit not your average No. 3.

    Now, he has to manage more of the offense, and he produced in Game 1, dominating with his passing in nearly 40 minutes – outlet passes, lobs, drive-and-kicks, underhand deliveries, lasers. It was the type of effort that has become refined art.

    The Lakers will keep counting on him to produce like that.

    3. Who else steps up for Lakers?

    Los Angeles’ Luke Kennard, a February trade deadline acquisition, scored 27 points on 9-for-13 shooting, including 5-for-5 on 3s, in Game 1. The Rockets will try to make sure that doesn’t happen again.

    However, Deandre Ayton also had a solid game (19 points, 11 rebounds), Rui Hachimura added 14 points and savvy veteran Marcus Smart contributed 15 points and eight rebounds. It was a superior performance from the Lakers’ starters as their shortened rotation scored 13 points. Of the four reserves who played, none made more than one field goal.

    “I’m already thinking about ways that I could have been better, putting us in a position to be more successful, both offensively and defensively,” James said. “We’ve got a lot of room for improvement going into Tuesday.”

    * * *

    Jeff Zillgitt has covered the NBA since 2008. You can email him at jzillgitt@nba.com, find his archive here and follow him on X.

  • Ties broken for order of selection in NBA Draft 2026

    Watch the official 2026 NBA Draft lottery tie breaker.

    NEW YORK – Six ties among teams with identical regular-season records were broken today through random drawings to determine the order of selection for NBA Draft 2026. 

    The drawings were conducted by NBA President of League Operations Byron Spruell at the NBA office in Secaucus, New Jersey. The tiebreaker process was overseen by Megan DeCesaris, a partner from the accounting firm of Ernst & Young.

    The results of the drawings:

    • The Utah Jazz (22-60) won a tiebreaker with the Sacramento Kings.
    • The New Orleans Pelicans (26-56) won a tiebreaker with the Dallas Mavericks.
    • The Phoenix Suns (45-37) won a tiebreaker with the Orlando Magic and the Philadelphia 76ers. Second and third place in the tiebreaker drawings went to Philadelphia and Orlando, respectively.
    • The Toronto Raptors (46-36) won a tiebreaker with the Atlanta Hawks.
    • The Houston Rockets (52-30) won a tiebreaker with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
    • The New York Knicks (53-29) won a tiebreaker with the Los Angeles Lakers.

    2026 First Round

    NBA Draft Lottery 2026 will be held on Sunday, May 10 and air live on ABC at 3 p.m. ET. The first round of NBA Draft 2026 will take place on Tuesday, June 23, and the second round will take place on Wednesday, June 24.

    Below is the order of selection for NBA Draft 2026 and the probability of being awarded the first overall draft pick for teams in NBA Draft Lottery 2026.

    TEAM RECORD WIN% LOTTERY ODDS
    Washington 17-65 .207 14.0%
    Indiana* 19-63 .232 14.0%
    Brooklyn 20-62 .244 14.0%
    Utah 22-60 .268 11.5%
    Sacramento 22-60 .268 11.5%
    Memphis 25-57 .305 9.0%
    New Orleans (to Atlanta or Milwaukee) 26-56 .317 6.8%
    Dallas 26-56 .317 6.7%
    Chicago 31-51 .378 4.5%
    Milwaukee^ 32-50 .390 3.0%
    Golden State 37-45 .451 2.0%
    LA Clippers (to Oklahoma City) 42-40 .512 1.5%
    Miami 43-39 .524 1.0%
    Charlotte 44-38 .537 0.5%

    The order for the remainder of the first round picks is as follows:

            TEAM RECORD WIN%
    15. Portland (to Chicago) 42-40 .512
    16. Phoenix (to Memphis via Orlando) 45-37 .549
    17. Philadelphia (to Oklahoma City) 45-37 .549
    18. Orlando (to Charlotte via Phoenix) 45-37 .549
    19. Toronto 46-36 .561
    20. Atlanta (to San Antonio) 46-36 .561
    21. Minnesota (to Detroit) 49-33 .598
    22. Houston (to Philadelphia via Oklahoma City) 52-30 .634
    23. Cleveland (to Atlanta) 52-30 .634
    24. New York 53-29 .646
    25. Los Angeles Lakers 53-29 .646
    26. Denver 54-28 .659
    27. Boston 56-26 .683
    28. Detroit (to Minnesota) 60-22 .732
    29. San Antonio (to Cleveland via Atlanta) 62-20 .756
    30. Oklahoma City (to Dallas via Washington and Philadelphia) 64-18 .780

    Note: The draft order above assumes that a team with the right to swap one pick for another exercises such right only if it is favorable to do so.

    * = This pick may be conveyed to the LA Clippers
    ^ = This pick may be conveyed to Atlanta (via New Orleans)

    2026 Second Round Draft Choice Order

    31. Washington (to New York via Oklahoma City and Houston)
    32. Indiana (to Memphis via Milwaukee)
    33. Brooklyn
    34/35. Sacramento
    34/35. Utah (to San Antonio via Minnesota)
    36. Memphis (to the LA Clippers via Atlanta and Utah)
    37/38. Dallas (to Oklahoma City)
    37/38. New Orleans (to Chicago via Boston, Detroit, and Portland)
    39. Chicago (to Houston via Washington)
    40. Milwaukee (to Boston via Orlando)
    41. Golden State (to Miami via Charlotte, New York, Oklahoma City, and Atlanta)
    42. Portland (to San Antonio via New Orleans)
    43. LA Clippers (to Brooklyn via Houston)
    44. Miami (to San Antonio via Indiana)
    45. Charlotte (to Sacramento via San Antonio, Atlanta, and New York)
    46. Orlando
    47. Philadelphia (to Phoenix via Houston and Oklahoma City)
    48. Phoenix (to Dallas via Washington)
    49. Atlanta (to Denver via Brooklyn and Golden State)
    50. Toronto
    51. Minnesota (to Washington via Detroit and New York)
    52. Cleveland (to the LA Clippers)
    53. Houston
    54. Los Angeles Lakers (to Golden State via Toronto, Miami, and Cleveland)
    55. New York
    56. Denver (to Chicago via Minnesota, Phoenix, Charlotte, and Phoenix)
    57. Boston (to Atlanta)
    58. Detroit (to New Orleans via New York, Brooklyn, Phoenix, Orlando, and the LA Clippers)
    59. San Antonio (to Minnesota via Indiana)
    60. Oklahoma City (to Washington via San Antonio and Miami)

     

    Note: Teams that finished the regular season with identical records will select in the second round in inverse order of the order in which they select in the first round. With respect to ties between Lottery teams, since the order of selection in the first round for these sets of teams may change based on the results of the Lottery, the order of selection in the second round cannot be determined until after the Lottery is conducted (on May 10, 2026). Also note, the draft order above assumes that a team with the right to swap one pick for another exercises such right only if it is favorable to do so.

  • FBI Director Kash Patel sues Atlantic for ‘false’ reporting on drinking

    FBI Director Kash Patel sues Atlantic for ‘false’ reporting on drinking

    Published On 20 Apr 2026

    FBI Director ⁠Kash Patel has filed a defamation lawsuit against The Atlantic and its reporter, Sarah Fitzpatrick, following the publication of an article on Friday alleging the director had a drinking problem that could pose a threat to United States national security.

    The Atlantic said it stood by its reporting and would vigorously defend against the “meritless lawsuit” that was filed on Monday.

    The magazine’s story, initially titled “Kash Patel’s Erratic Behavior Could ⁠Cost Him His Job,” cited more than two dozen anonymous sources expressing concern about Patel’s “conspicuous inebriation and unexplained absences” that “alarmed officials at the FBI and the Department of Justice”.

    The article, which The Atlantic subsequently titled “The FBI Director Is MIA” in its online version, reported that during Patel’s tenure, the FBI had to reschedule ⁠early meetings “as a result of his alcohol-fueled nights” and that Patel “is often away or unreachable, delaying time-sensitive decisions needed to advance investigations”.

    In The Atlantic’s story, the White House, the Department of Justice and Patel denied the allegations. The article included a statement from the FBI attributed to Patel, “Print it, all false, I’ll see you in court—bring your checkbook.”

    Patel, in the lawsuit filed in the District Court in Washington, denied the allegations of his behaviour and criticised the magazine for relying on anonymous sources. Fitzpatrick wrote that she interviewed more than two dozen people and granted them anonymity to “discuss sensitive information and private conversations”.

    “Defendants cannot evade responsibility for their malicious lies by hiding behind sham sources,” the lawsuit said.

    “We stand ‌by our reporting on Kash Patel, and we will vigorously defend The Atlantic and our journalists against this meritless lawsuit,” the magazine said in a statement.

    Reuters could not independently establish the accuracy of the article or why the publication changed the title.

    Patel’s complaint says that while The Atlantic is free to criticise the leadership of the FBI, “they crossed the legal line” by publishing an article “replete with false and obviously fabricated allegations designed to destroy Director Patel’s reputation and drive him from office”.

    The lawsuit, filed in the US District Court for the District of Columbia, seeks $250m in damages.

    The lawsuit alleges The Atlantic ignored the FBI’s denials and did not respond to a Friday letter from Patel’s lawyer Jesse Binnall to senior editors and the Atlantic’s legal department ⁠asking for more time to refute the 19 allegations the reporter told the FBI’s press office she would be ⁠publishing.

    “It is among the strongest possible evidence of actual malice,” it said.

    “The Atlantic’s story is a lie,” Patel said in an interview with Reuters. “They were given the truth before they published, and they chose to print falsehoods anyway.”

    Acting with ‘actual malice’

    The letter, which Reuters has seen, was sent shortly before 4pm (20:00 GMT) on Friday, and The Atlantic published the story at 6:20pm (22:20 GMT), according to the complaint. Reuters could not determine whether or how The Atlantic responded to Binnall’s request.

    The lawsuit alleges the publication acted with “actual malice”, a legal standard that requires public figures such as Patel to show the publisher knowingly printed ⁠false information or recklessly ignored doubts about its accuracy.

    “Defendants’ conscious decision to ignore the detailed, specific, and substantive refutations in the Pre-Publication Letter, and their refusal to give a reasonable amount of time for the FBI and Director Patel to ⁠respond, is among the strongest possible evidence of actual malice,” the lawsuit says.

    Binnall is a prominent Republican ⁠attorney who has represented US President Donald Trump in numerous civil cases, including one brought by US Capitol Police officers over his role in riots in Washington, DC on January 6, 2020. Binnall has represented Trump’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., as well as former national security adviser Mike Flynn, and ran Trump’s challenge to Nevada’s 2020 election results.

    The lawsuit is the latest instance of a Trump administration figure suing a media outlet. A judge ‌dismissed a lawsuit brought by Trump against CNN for describing election denialism as “the big lie”. Judges have also dismissed Trump’s lawsuits against the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal. Trump has refiled his lawsuit against the New York Times and may refile against the Wall Street Journal.

    He has also secured some settlements. ABC News agreed ‌to settle ‌a case for $15m plus $1m in legal fees. Paramount Global agreed to pay $16m to settle a dispute over what the Trump administration called “deceptive editing” of a CBS News interview with his opponent in the 2024 election, Kamala Harris.

  • NSA Is Using Anthropic’s Powerful Claude Mythos AI as CEO Meets With White House: Report

    NSA Is Using Anthropic’s Powerful Claude Mythos AI as CEO Meets With White House: Report

    In brief

    • The NSA is deploying Claude Mythos Preview despite the Pentagon—which oversees the agency—designating Anthropic a supply-chain risk in March, per a report.
    • Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei met with White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on April 17, with both sides calling the discussions “productive.”
    • An administration source told Axios that every federal agency except the Department of Defense wants access to Anthropic’s AI tools.

    The National Security Agency is running Anthropic’s Claude Mythos Preview inside its classified networks, according to two sources cited by Axios—a surprising development given that the NSA falls under the Department of Defense, which declared Anthropic a supply-chain risk in March and is currently fighting the company in federal court.

    Claude Mythos is not a standard enterprise tool. When Anthropic unveiled the model earlier this month, it restricted access to a handful of vetted organizations, arguing that the model poses serious offensive security risks. Anthropic’s own technical documentation found that Mythos was able to identify critical vulnerabilities in every widely used operating system and web browser. The company judged it too dangerous for open release.

    Most organizations with access are using the model defensively, scanning their own infrastructure for weaknesses before adversaries do. The initiative, branded Project Glasswing, includes Microsoft, Google, Apple, Amazon Web Services, JPMorgan Chase, and Nvidia. What the NSA is doing with Mythos is less clear, though the agency’s mission is not purely defensive. A third source told Axios the model is being used more broadly within the intelligence department.

    The Pentagon’s hostility toward Anthropic traces to negotiations that went bad. In July 2025, the two sides signed an agreement making Claude the first frontier AI model cleared for use on classified networks. Talks soured when the Pentagon sought to renegotiate, demanding the military be allowed to use Claude “for all lawful purposes” without restriction. Anthropic refused, drawing two firm lines: no autonomous weapons, and no domestic mass surveillance.

    When negotiations collapsed, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth declared Anthropic a supply-chain risk in late February—an unprecedented designation, and the first ever applied to an American company. A California federal judge blocked the move, but then a D.C. appeals court denied Anthropic’s separate bid to halt the blacklisting while litigation plays out. The two sides remain in court.

    While the legal fight grinds on, the rest of the administration is moving in a different direction. On April 17, Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei met with White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. Anthropic described the session as “productive”, Reuters reported. The White House said the parties “discussed opportunities for collaboration, as well as shared approaches and protocols to address the challenges associated with scaling this technology.”

    President Trump, asked by reporters about the meeting, said he had “no idea” Amodei had been at the White House, after he previously ordered the administration not to use Anthropic’s “woke” models. Bessent and Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell have separately been encouraging major bank CEOs to test Mythos and be prepared for security threats, and an administration source told Axios that every federal agency except the Defense Department wants access to Anthropic’s tools.

    The NSA’s reported use of Mythos comes as questions mount about whether the model’s capabilities can be contained at all. Decrypt reported last week that researchers at Vidoc Security reproduced several of Mythos’s most alarming cybersecurity findings using publicly available models—including OpenAI’s GPT-5.4 and Anthropic’s own Claude Opus 4.6—without any special access to Mythos itself.

    Anthropic did not immediately respond to a request for comment by Decrypt.

    Daily Debrief Newsletter

    Start every day with the top news stories right now, plus original features, a podcast, videos and more.

  • RaveDAO Token Crashes, Sheds $6.6 Billion in Value as Exchanges Probe Alleged Manipulation

    RaveDAO Token Crashes, Sheds $6.6 Billion in Value as Exchanges Probe Alleged Manipulation

    In brief

    • RaveDAO’s little-known token erased $6.6 billion in market cap after ZachXBT called on exchanges to investigate whether RAVE was being manipulated.
    • The token, which people can use to purchase tickets, reached a dizzying valuation over the course of two weeks before plummeting.
    • Executives from Bitget, Binance, and Gate said they would investigate the token’s suspicious rise, but have yet to report back.

    The music stopped abruptly for RaveDAO this weekend after prominent pseudonymous sleuth ZachXBT called on exchanges to investigate trading tied to the little-known entertainment collective’s token—a request that apparently spooked investors, swiftly wiping out billions of dollars in value in the process.

    RAVE’s market cap has plunged more than $6.6 billion since Saturday, almost immediately after the crypto industry’s most recognized blockchain investigator called on exchanges Binance, Bitget, and Gate to investigate whether RAVE’s price was being manipulated.

    Now worth $150 million, according to CoinGecko, the token’s total value has collapsed nearly 98% since ZachXBT vocalized his suspicions in an X post. In less than two weeks, RAVE had become one of the crypto sector’s most valuable tokens, rising seemingly out of nowhere.

    RAVE’s owners can use the token to do things like establish local chapters under RaveDAO’s brand, purchase tickets, and participate in NFT releases. “The result is an economy that grows through real activity and cultural reach, not short-term speculation,” RAVE’s white paper states.

    As the token fell on Saturday, RaveDAO claimed that “is not engaged in, nor responsible for, recent price action.” However, ZachXBT said that he found suspicious activity tied to addresses linked to RaveDAO’s team this month, particularly on Bitget.

    Because RAVE’s fall coincided with $52 million in liquidated positions during a 24-hour period, the sleuth said the token’s once-dizzying valuation pointed to “a manipulated and unsustainable valuation” that warrants faster intervention among exchanges.

    Bitget CEO Tracy Chen, Binance CEO Richard Teng, and Gate Chief Business Officer Kevin Lee all indicated that their respective firms were looking into the token’s recent performance. As of Monday, the exchanges had yet to report back on what they discovered.

    On Sunday, wallets linked to RaveDAO’s team sent RAVE tokens worth $24 million to Bitget, data on blockchain analytics platform Arkham Intelligence showed. The token changed hands around $0.56 on Monday, down from an all-time high of $27.33 on Saturday. 

    Decrypt has reached out to RaveDAO, Bitget, Binance, and Gate for comment.

    The token, which debuted in December, exists on Ethereum, Binance’s BNB Chain, and Base, the Coinbase-launched Ethereum layer-2 scaling network. ZachXBT noted that tokens linked to RAVE’s initial distribution controlled around 95% of the token’s supply.

    In September, RaveDAO announced that it had teamed with World Liberty Financial, the crypto venture backed by U.S. President Donald Trump and his sons. RaveDAO said it would use World Liberty’s USD1 stablecoin for ticketing and consumer purchases in South Korea.

    The project’s official Instagram account advertises upcoming events in Lisbon and Hong Kong. Yet within RaveDAO’s official Discord channel, most members appeared interested in discussing the price that they had bought RAVE at during the token’s surge.

    Daily Debrief Newsletter

    Start every day with the top news stories right now, plus original features, a podcast, videos and more.