The T'Wolves last night drew a crowd of 8,000 at Target Center for their NBA Draft party, and VP/Client Development Jeff Munneke said that it was "among the top three draft parties in franchise history." Munneke, who has been with the team since its inception in '89, said, “(Thursday) rivals everything” (ST. PAUL PIONEER PRESS, 6/26). T'Wolves President of Basketball Operations and coach Flip Saunders told No. 1 overall pick Karl-Anthony Towns, "We have 10,000 (fans) here, but when you get here on opening night, there are going to be 20,000 here yelling for you." Saunders: "The enthusiasm in the arena was off the charts. I've never seen anything like that for a draft party" (TWINCITIES.com, 6/26).

Team officials "looked as if they had hit the jackpot late Thursday night." Towns "represents an ideal fit in an organizational blueprint that is beginning to take shape" (Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE, 6/26).

One year after leading all agencies with six first-round picks in the NBA Draft, CAA Sports continued to stand out above the rest, this time representing both the No. 1 and No. 2 overall selections in T’Wolves F Karl-Anthony Towns and Lakers G D’Angelo Russell, respectively. CAA and BDA Sports combined to represent more than 50% of the players taken in the top half of last night’s Round 1, with four apiece. ASM and Priority Sports also represented four first-round prospects, while Excel Sports Management, Roc Nation Sports and Wasserman Media Group each represented two of the top 30 players (THE DAILY).

The following lists the top five picks; see today’s issue of THE DAILY for the full first round.

The NFL yesterday "began issuing proposal requests to multiple venues in Southern California – among them the Coliseum and Rose Bowl – with the intent of securing a temporary home for a team (or teams) for the 2016 season in the event of a return to the market." NFL VP/Corporate Development Chris Hardart said, "It is part of the process and an effort to understand all of our options and have a well thought out plan if a team or teams were to be approved to relocate." Hardart "declined to identify sites other than the Coliseum and Rose Bowl that have received" RFPs (LATIMES.com, 6/26).

Meanwhile, attorneys in a St. Louis court yesterday argued a "central point in the fight to build" a new football stadium in the city, contending that the "Edward Jones Dome authority could build its replacement stadium nearly anywhere ... and still call it 'adjacent' to the downtown Dome." The public board that runs the facility "gets to draw the boundaries of the stadium complex." It filed suit against the city in April, challenging an '02 ordinance "requiring a public vote before spending tax money on a new stadium." The attorneys "didn't know when to expect a ruling" (ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH, 6/26).

Sunday's Toyota/Save Mart 350 will mark NASCAR driver Jeff Gordon's "homecoming to Northern California and his final Sprint Cup race at Sonoma Raceway," and attendance "could top 100,000." Track President & GM Steve Page said that ticket sales for the race weekend are "the highest in a decade." Many fans "want to see one more win by Gordon in his No. 24 Chevrolet" before he retires. Page: "He grew up 8 miles from our racetrack and he's had incredible success on our track" (SACRAMENTO BEE, 6/26).

New Mexico State Univ. announced a seven-year deal with Learfield Sports to manage its athletic rights. The agreement starts in '15-16 and includes five additional option years. This marks the first time NMSU sports rights have been outsourced. Learfield will immediately begin staffing its NM State Sports Properties entity to work with AD Mario Moccia's administration. The deal includes signage, digital, corporate sponsorships, hospitality, event marketing, radio and TV (Learfield Sports).

The OHL yesterday "waived its right of first refusal" on the sale of the Erie Otters to retired broadcasting exec James Waters' JAW Hockey Enterprises, a move that "helps pave the way for Waters to close" the $7.2M deal. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Thomas Agresti "also must approve the sale," and a status hearing on the case is scheduled in Erie, Pa. Waters' "assurances that the Otters will remain in Erie might have played a role in the OHL's decision to sanction the sale" (ERIE TIMES-NEWS, 6/26).

Today's Must Read is the WALL STREET JOURNAL's take on George Bodenheimer's book about the history of ESPN, "Every Town Is A Sports Town." For "all the emphasis on fun, the leaders of ESPN were deadly serious about one thing  – growth" (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 6/26).

About 120 people gathered last night outside the Rhode Island State House, "protesting the idea of a new Pawtucket Red Sox stadium in Providence" (PROVIDENCE JOURNAL, 6/26).

Crown Royal announced the name of its July 26th sponsored NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race as the Jeff Kyle 400 At The Brickyard, following the whiskey brand's "Your Hero's Name Here" contest. Kyle is a retired U.S. Marine sergeant (Crown Royal).

"He is not dark. It's been great. He's been very much engaged with us on a lot of different levels. It's been positive" – Cavaliers GM David Griffin, on the perception that LeBron James distances himself from his team during the offseason (Cleveland PLAIN DEALER, 6/26).

"We talked about my comments; he totally understood them. He admitted that the greens weren't what they wanted and he was sorry for that" – Golfer Billy Horschel, on the conversation he had with USGA Exec Dir Mike Davis after making disparaging comments about U.S. Open course conditions at Chambers Bay (Mult., 6/25).

"It wasn't Vivek and George. It was me and George. So I am here to talk with the media, with the agents, and I respect my coach and think he's great. But he has to trust me to do my job" – NBA Kings VP/Basketball & Franchise Operations Vlade Divac, on disagreeing with coach George Karl over the status of F DeMarcus Cousins (SACRAMENTO BEE, 6/26).

"This is fabulous news and music to my ears. In America we have the mind-set to make things happen. It's a huge market. I can't see any negatives" – Former driver Mario Andretti, on news that Dolphins Owner Stephen Ross is pursuing a stake in F1 (THEGUARDIAN.com, 6/24).

USA TODAY's Jeff Gluck: "NASCAR needs to ban the Confederate flag from all of its racetracks. Now. ... Racetracks are private property, and it's within a business' discretion to disallow certain symbols." Meanwhile, the SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS goes with the header, "Sports Blazed Trails For Race Relations."

Under the header, "Athletes Can Help Movies Score, And Vice Versa," the L.A. TIMES notes, "As social media have made stardom an increasingly transferable commodity, the already blurry line between sports and entertainment has become more permeable."

Also:

• Travelers Championship could be golfers' ticket to British Open. 
• How naivety, big business cost USWNT kit man his job.
• Bob Uecker looks back at his minor-league days in Indianapolis.
• Converse initiative gives Boston-area indie bands a head start.
• Late NBA stat man Harvey Pollack was "ageless and tireless."
• Broadcaster attempting to visit 30 MLB ballparks in 30 days.
• U.S. Postal Service exec discusses Special Olympics tie-in.

Last night’s 1:00am ET editions of ESPN’s “SportsCenter” and FS1’s “Fox Sports Live” led with highlights of the NBA Draft. ESPN followed with Yankees-Astros and Braves-Nationals, with the broadcast also featuring an appearance by a fashion expert discussing the suits worn by NBA Draft prospects and the new Hawks and 76ers uniforms. FS1 followed with Yankees-Astros and Dodgers-Cubs.

ESPN’s Adnan Virk filled in for ESPN’s Keith Olbermann last night and did not air a "world’s worst persons in sports" segment.

I used to worry that when the @astros started winning I was still going to watch games on @MLBTV with an empty Minute Maid. I was wrong.

— Ginger Gibson (@GingerGibson) June 26, 2015

Our owners used to be Knicks fans too...we understand. #OwnTheFuture https://t.co/RjYbwMlt3c

— Milwaukee Bucks (@Bucks) June 26, 2015

Raycom guys down the hall all yelled in anger when their Hornets passed up Justise. I'm sure there were similar reactions across the state.

— Jeff Fischel (@JeffFischel) June 26, 2015

The corruption in NY politics is DISGUSTING!!!!

— Dana White (@danawhite) June 25, 2015

The Boston City Council's special committee on the Olympics meets to discuss potential financing for the '24 Summer Games.

Last night’s “Final Jeopardy!” category was “Pop Stars.”

“She won the 1984 Grammy for Best New Artist and in 2013 became the first solo woman to win a Tony Award for Best Score.”

NBC’s Jimmy Fallon said, “The race for the Republican presidential nomination is starting to get pretty serious. In fact, I saw that Jets Owner Woody Johnson was named the national finance chairman for Jeb Bush’s campaign. When asked which campaign he was joining, Johnson was like, ‘J-E-B-S! Jeb’s! Jeb’s! Jeb’s!’” Actor Mark Wahlberg appeared on NBC’s “The Tonight Show” last night where he talked about his hometown team, the Patriots, winning another Super Bowl. Wahlberg said Patriots QB Tom Brady is the “greatest quarterback ever to play the game.” Fallon replied, “He’s also the most good-looking man of all-time. People freak out about that.” Wahlberg: “He’s alright looking. He gets annoyed about the looks thing because he’s football and family. He just happens to be a tall, good-looking guy.” Fallon showed a picture of an excited and happy Wahlberg greeting Brady on the field after the Patriots defeated the Seahawks, with Wahlberg noting he was telling Brady “something about his blue eyes.” Wahlberg said he watched the Super Bowl in the “owner’s box” and “we all started celebrating with (Robert) Kraft and his whole family.” Wahlberg: “I’ve had Super Bowl parties at my house and when they lost, even if people were rooting for the Patriots, I just kicked them out.” Wahlberg said of getting Brady to appear in “Ted 2” in theaters this weekend, “I called him and told what the scene was and when he finally stopped laughing he just said he was in. So we try to steal Tom’s sperm in his sleep because we want to create the ultimate baby for Ted” (“The Tonight Show,” NBC, 6/25).

ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel said of the NBA Draft, “For those who are unfamiliar with this, the NBA Draft is basically a job fair for very tall people. … Can you imagine how stressful it is to be just out of college waiting around to see if you get picked to play in the NBA? Do you remember how awful it was to get picked last in kickball in elementary school? Now put that on television and imagine it. Some people paid more than $300 for tickets to go to the draft, just to sit there and watch the draft, which could have to do with the fact that it’s in New York and the Knicks have the fourth pick but also it’s really your one chance to stand up and shout, ‘Is it me or is there a draft in here?’” (“Jimmy Kimmel Live,” ABC, 6/25).

“Who is Cyndi Lauper?”