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Joel Lorenzi: Asked Mark Daigneault how starting Cason Wallace in Game 1 of the Finals informed his decision making with starters since: “I view the starting lineup as a rotation decision. I think the starting lineup — the lights go out and the music starts, and the announcer announces them, and they run out, they get the graphic on TV, everybody lists the starters.It gets, in my opinion — not opinion — it's just overemphasized relative to what I'm thinking about. It's like there's no difference to me between who you start and who the first sub is or the next sub after that.”

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype:It gets, in my opinion — not opinion — it's just …

Neymar will make his fourth World Cup appearance after Brazil named him to their 26-man squad on Monday.

The decision was not a guarantee as questions surrounded Neymar's fitness since his ACL tear more than two years ago.

"(Neymar) has improved his fitness," Brazil coach Carlo Ancelotti said Monday following the squad announcement at a gala in Rio de Janeiro. "He will be an important player in this World Cup."

Brazil's all-time leading goal-scorer (79), Neymar rejoined his boyhood club Santos last year after a stay with Saudi Arabia's Al Hilal.

Neymar has collected eight goals through his three World Cups (2014, 2018, 2022) and will try to guide the Selecao to their first title since 2002.

Chelsea forward Joao Pedro was the most notable omission from the roster. Some expected he would make his first World Cup roster at 24 years old, and he has played for Brazil in international competition in the lead-up to this cycle, but Ancelotti favored Neymar, Real Madrid star Vinicius Junior, Bournemouth's Rayan, Brentford's Igor Thiago and others at that position.

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"It was very difficult to choose these 26 players," said Ancelotti. "Why? Because the competition in this country is very, very high. I know some players who have been with us this year will be unhappy."

BRAZIL WORLD CUP ROSTER

Goalkeepers: Alisson (Liverpool), Ederson (Fenerbahce), Weverton (Gremio)

Defenders: Alex Sandro (Flamengo), Bremer (Juventus), Danilo (Flamengo), Douglas Santos (Zenit Saint Petersburg), Gabriel (Arsenal), Roger Ibanez (Al Ahli), Leo Pereira (Flamengo), Marquinhos (Paris Saint-Germain), Wesley (Roma)

Midfielders: Bruno Guimaraes (Newcastle United), Casemiro (Manchester United), Danilo (Botafogo), Fabinho (Al Ittihad), Lucas Paqueta (Flamengo)

Forwards: Endrick (Lyon), Gabriel Martinelli (Arsenal), Igor Thiago (Brentford), Luiz Henrique (Zenit Saint Petersburg), Matheus Cunha (Manchester United), Neymar (Santos), Raphinha (Barcelona), Rayan (Bournemouth), Vinicius Junior (Real Madrid)

--Field Level Media

By Peter Hobson

Justin Everitt sows wheat at his farm in Brocklesby

BROCKLESBY, Australia, May 19 (Reuters) - Justin Everitt is planting 50% less wheat this year than he thought he would.

Standing in muddy brown boots and jeans by his tractor and 11-metre-wide (36-foot-wide) seeding rig in a bare field, the 44-year-old said a lack of rainfall and rapid increases in fuel and fertiliser prices due to the war in Iran had ripped up his sowing plans.

He is one ‌of thousands of farmers across Australia deciding to plant less wheat and spread less fertiliser.

Their choices – and the likelihood of a dry growing season for many - mean Australia, the third-largest wheat exporting nation, may have as ‌much as 10 million tons less to ship in the upcoming season, an amount equivalent to 5% of annual global exports.

Everitt, whose family has farmed near Brocklesby, 300 km (185 miles) northeast of Melbourne, for six generations, said he had never before made such radical changes to his cropping plans.

"Every indicator ​is pointing towards lower production," he said.

A smaller harvest in Australia would reduce global wheat supply and put upward pressure on prices, which have already begun to rise.

Australia is the first major grain exporter to plant wheat since the beginning of the Iran war, which throttled exports of fuel and fertiliser from Gulf nations. Other countries are also likely to grow less, shrinking food supply further.

Reuters interviewed 18 farmers across Australia. In the driest areas, most were sharply scaling back planting. Nationwide, many were switching from wheat to crops like barley or canola that either need less fertiliser or sell for a higher price.

Forty kilometres west of Everitt's farm, near the town of Corowa, Anthony Black said he would sow 20% less wheat and use one-third less fertiliser than he ‌planned. With dry conditions, he expects to harvest around 40% less wheat.

There isn't money ⁠in his budget to absorb a doubling in the price of urea, a key nitrogen fertiliser, he said. "It's just not there."

WHEAT SUPPLY PRESSURE

Six agricultural analysts said the amount of Australian land planted with wheat would fall by between 7% and 20% from last year, potentially removing the grain from an area nearly the size of Belgium.

The harvest, due towards year-end, could be between 16% ⁠and 41% smaller, the analysts estimated, shrinking from last year's roughly 36 million tons to as low as 21.3 million tons, if the most pessimistic estimate proves correct and dry conditions extend their grip.

The next major wheat exporters to sow crops are Argentina, where the Rosario Grains Exchange said farmers facing high costs would plant 7% less wheat and harvest around 37% - or 11 million tons - less than last year, and Canada, where spring sowing is lagging its usual pace and analysts expect lower output.

The global wheat market will likely shift ​from ​surplus into deficit, drawing down stockpiles and pushing up prices, said an analyst at an international grain trading firm who did not have ​permission to speak publicly. Production of other crops will also fall, he said.

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DRY OUTLOOK DETERS ‌PLANTING

Cropping regions in much of New South Wales and Queensland have had very little rain, and many farmers who would usually sow into dry soil and wait for rainfall are not, because of a grim weather outlook and high costs.

Forecasters predict the formation of an El Nino, a weather phenomenon that typically heats and dries Australia's east coast.

Australia's Bureau of Meteorology expects below-median rainfall for most of the country's cropping zones between June and September.

Planting was just too risky, said one New South Wales grower who did not stock up on fuel or fertiliser before prices rose and had left their entire farm unsown.

Other regions are better off, however. Tim McClelland, who farms near Birchip in Victoria state, said good rainfall had given him the best start to a season he'd ever had.

He has bought all the fertiliser he'll need. "I feel a bit sick about the amount of money it cost," he said. "But positive about the season."

FERTILISER TROUBLE

Many others remain cautious. A farmer in the ‌central wheat belt of Western Australia who asked for anonymity said he had sown his full programme but would cut fertiliser use by ​10% and still expected to lose money unless crop prices rose.

Australia typically imports more than half its nitrogen fertilisers from the Middle East, but ​supply has been choked by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

The country still has 600,000 tons – roughly 20% - ​less urea than it uses in a typical year, said Hamish McIntyre, president of the National Farmers' Federation. Supply chain disruption also means fertiliser could often arrive later than farmers need it, ‌reducing its effect, he said.

In Corowa, farm machinery salesman Joe Gorman said his phone had ​stopped ringing.

In his office beside a row of shining red ​tractors on the road out of town, he said the economic chill would spread.

"When the farmers feel the pinch, there's less blokes at the pub after work," he said. "There's less blokes at the bakery on a Saturday. The supermarkets feel the pinch, the footy clubs feel the pinch. It's a flow-on effect."

As evening fell in Brocklesby, Everitt was sowing vetch and barley – fodder crops he won't harvest but will allow his sheep to eat – and ​using only a half-measure of fertiliser.

Such half-measures save money but are a short-term fix. ‌Next year, Everitt and many others will have to over-fertilise to restore their soil – which will be difficult if prices remain high.

The 2027 season scares him, he said. "We'll be drawing down on a lot of ​soil nutrients this year and we'll have to put them back in next year. If we can't do that, I dare say next year there could be a lot of crop not go in."

(Reporting ​by Peter Hobson; Additional reporting by Maximilian Heath in Buenos Aires and Ed White in Winnipeg; Editing by Sonali Paul)

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth made an unprecedented move to hit the campaign trail in support of a former Navy SEAL who is trying to unseat longtime Republican congressman and Trump antagonist Thomas Massie.

Hegseth joined fifth-generation farmer Ed Gallrein at a campaign event on Monday -- one day before the commonwealth's primary election -- urging voters to support him over incumbent Massie in Kentucky’s 4th Congressional District race.

While Hegseth insisted that his presence at this campaign event was done in a “personal capacity as a private citizen” rather than as an administration official, there is no known precedent for a sitting secretary of defense to campaign for a congressional candidate.

His appearance also came at the U.S. entered its 12th week of war in Iran.

After Hegseth's appearance, President Donald Trump posted to his social media account that he had just postponed a planned attack on Iran set for Tuesday.

Chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said in a statement to ABC News before the event that "no taxpayer dollars will be used to facilitate his visit."

Hegseth was in Fort Campbell, Kentucky, earlier Monday to preside over a Purple Heart ceremony.

“[Hegseth’s] participation has been thoroughly vetted and cleared by lawyers, including the Department of War Office of General Counsel, and does not violate the Hatch Act or any other applicable federal statute,” Parnell added.

Ahead of Tuesday primary, Trump target Massie says billionaires are trying to 'buy' his seat

Throughout the course of his remarks, Hegseth repeatedly stressed Trump’s need to "bolster" the Republican party’s ranks with “reinforcements” that will vote in line with his agenda.

“We need reinforcement from Republicans, and that fight requires a Congress full of warriors, including Ed. This one, ladies and gentlemen, is a no-brainer,” Hegseth said.

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Hegseth echoed Trump in bashing Massie, who has often spoken out against the president's agenda, which has prompted the president to support Gallrein in an effort to oust Massie.

"When President Trump needs backup, Massie wants to debate process. When the movement needs unity, especially at the biggest moments, Massie is willing to vote with Democrats. When conservatives are fighting the most radical left in American history, too often Massie’s instinct is to throw elbows at fellow Republicans,” Hegseth said.

Hegseth compared the two candidates, presenting Kentuckians with the following choice: "You can send a warrior, reinforcements for the president in our shared fight against the radical left, or you can send an obstructionist. In my mind, it's an easy choice."

Hegseth spoke at length about Gallrein’s Navy experience, claiming that his previous rank demonstrates his ability to effectively lead and proves that others are willing to trust him.

Speaking immediately before Hegseth, Gallrein expressed his gratitude for the defense secretary and taking the time to campaign on his behalf.

"Think about where we are in history right now, and you're having the secretary of war coming here to little old Kentucky to see you today. Is that something? That's something to be proud of. That reflects on you. I can't take credit for that. That reflects on you,” Gallrein told the crowd.

Gallrein extensively praised Trump’s vision for America's military and his "peace through strength” agenda, calling this a "matter of our nation's survival."

While stressing the importance of Tuesday’s primary election, Gallrein argued that the outcome will have a far-reaching impact affecting generations to come.

"… President Trump's vision for the strongest military in the world is …. a matter of our nation’s survival," Gallrein said. "And today under President Trump, Pete Hegseth, we're finally moving back in the right direction."

ABC News has reached out to Massie's campaign for comment.

ABC News' Oren Oppenheim and Steve Beynon contributed to this report.

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Jared Weiss:De’Aaron Fox (Right ankle soreness) and Luke Kornet (Left foot soreness) are listed as questionable for Game 1 of the Spurs vs. Thunder Western Conference Finals tomorrow night.Fox was questionable late in the Wolves series but played through it.

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype:De’Aaron Fox (Right ankle soreness) and Luke Kornet …