Author: chicagoinquirer

by Dan Gelston PHILADELPHIA — James Harden sank the overtime 3-pointer that sent the 76ers to a playoff victory and instantly waved over John Hao, a paralyzed Michigan State shooting survivor who developed a long-distance FaceTime bond with Philadelphia’s star guard. Harden had just scored 42 points, removed his sneakers, signed them and handed them to his new friend. “He brought me good vibes, good energy,” Harden said. Hao was all smiles as he looked on from the court, a needed respite from looming rehabilitation for the international student from China who attended Game 4 as Harden’s guest. Before the…

by Brian Kelley and Sylvia Hui LONDON  — A day after a gilded coronation ceremonywatched by millions, King Charles III and Queen Camilla let others take the center stage Sunday as they took in a star-studded concert featuring Katy Perry, Lionel Richie and others at Windsor Castle. The newly-crowned monarch and his wife appeared to enjoy the show as Richie performed “All Night Long,” at one point getting up on their feet and swaying along to the music. Other members of the royal family, including 8-year-old Princess Charlotte and Prince George, 9, waved Union flags along with a crowd of…

by Mohamed Wagdy and Kareem Chehayeb CAIRO  — The Arab League agreed Sunday to reinstate Syria, ending a 12-year suspension and taking another step toward bringing Syrian President Bashar Assad, a long-time regional pariah, back into the fold. Some influential league members remain opposed to reinstating Syria, chief among them Qatar, which did not send its foreign minister to Sunday’s gathering. Thirteen out of the league’s 22 member states sent their foreign ministers to the meeting in Cairo. The decision represented a victory for Damascus, albeit a largely symbolic one. Given that Western sanctions against Assad’s government remain in place,…

by Ayanna Alexander COLUMBIA, S.C.  — LaJoia Broughton, a 41-year-old small-business owner, considers herself a fan of President Joe Biden. He’s provided opportunities for Black-owned business while bringing integrity to the White House, she said. Her decision for 2024 is not in doubt. “Biden has proven himself in the last few years, and I’ll be voting for him in the next election,” said Broughton, who owns a lobbying and public affairs firm in Columbia, South Carolina’s capital city. Destiny Humphreys is less enthusiastic. The 22-year-old senior at South Carolina State University, the state’s only public historically Black college or university,…

by Valerie Gonzalez Seven people were killed and up to six were injured Sunday after they were struck by a vehicle while waiting at a city bus stop outside of a migrant shelter in the border city of Brownsville, Texas, police said. Brownsville police investigator Martin Sandoval said the crash happened about 8:30 a.m. Shelter director Victor Maldonado of the Bishop Enrique San Pedro Ozanam Center said he reviewed the shelter’s surveillance video on Sunday morning after receiving a call about the crash. The city bus stop is across the street from the shelter and is not marked. There was…

by Zeke Miller WASHINGTON  — Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said Sunday that there are “no good options” for the United States to avoid an economic “calamity” if Congress fails to raise the nation’s borrowing limit of $31.381 trillion in the coming weeks. She did not rule out President Joe Biden bypassing lawmakers and acting on his own to try to avert a first-ever federal default. Her comments added even more urgency to a high-stakes meeting Tuesday between Biden and congressional leaders from both parties. Democrats and Republicans are at loggerheads over whether the debt limit should even be the subject…

by Agency reports CHICAGO  — An off-duty Chicago police officer was shot and killed early Saturday as she headed home on the city’s Southside after her shift. The officer was shot about 1:42 a.m. in the city’s Avalon Park neighborhood, police said. She was found wounded by another officer who responded to an alert from the city’s gunshot detection system, the Chicago Sun-Times reported. The second officer rushed her to a hospital where she was pronounced dead. The slain officer had been with Chicago police about three years. No arrests have been made. Relatives identified the slain officer to the…

by Tim Reynolds MIAMI  — It was one of the worst shooting games of the season for the Miami Heat, by far: 39% from the field, 22% from 3-point range, barely 50% on usually easy shots at the rim. Didn’t matter. Defense — still the Heat staple, even in these high-scoring NBA days — came through, and moved Miami two wins away from another trip to the Eastern Conference finals. Jimmy Butler returned from his sprained right ankle to score 28 points, Max Strus added 19 and the Heat topped the New York Knicks 105-86 on Saturday to take a…

by Greg Beacham LOS ANGELES  — LeBron James didn’t take a shot in the first quarter of Game 3 for the first time in his NBA-record 275 playoff appearances, and the Los Angeles Lakers’ home crowd rumbled with mild uncertainty each time he passed the ball instead. Turns out James and his Lakers were just taking a while to warm up before they steamrolled the Golden State Warriors. Anthony Davis had 25 points and 13 rebounds, a slow-starting James finished with 21 points, eight assists and eight rebounds, and the Lakers took a 2-1 lead in their second-round playoff series…

by Brian Melley LONDON  — In the fairy-tale ending to the ancient pageantry in which King Charles Ill was crowned monarch, he stepped into a gilded horse-drawn carriage with his queen and rode off to his palace. Following closely behind was Prince William, his eldest son and heir, along with his family, including 9-year-old Prince George who is second in line to the throne. The king’s youngest son was nowhere to be seen. On his father’s biggest day, Prince Harry arrived at Westminster Abbey alone and he left alone. The disgruntled Duke of Sussex was assigned to sit two rows…