NEW YORK (AP) — It was mother's day at the NBA draft Wednesday night.
The moms of the NBA draftees took centerstage, receiving hugs and wiping away tears as they heard their offspring's names called.
Kelly Flagg, whose son Cooper went first to the Dallas Mavericks, was a strong player in her own right. She starred for the University of Maine in the late 1990s. The 1998-99 team she was on made school history when it won the program's first NCAA Tournament game, upsetting Stanford.
Asked what she helped instill in her son, Kelly Flagg said: “I just hoped that he loved the game as much as we always have, and we’re just thrilled that he did love it and he got to this moment. It’s incredible.”
As far as the last time they played one-on-one, mom said the outcome wasn't a victory by her son.
“It’s not a loss. It was a timeout in a game. It’s just been an extended timeout," she said.
Maria Harper also got the first hug from Dylan Harper after being taken at No. 2 by San Antonio. Appropriate because she coached his first AAU team and was an assistant on his high school team. She played Division I basketball herself with New Orleans between 1993 and 1996.
“She means the world to me, coaching me from first grade to senior year,” Dylan Harper said. “For her to see this moment, probably means the world to her. I love my mom and everything I do is definitely for her.”
Maria Harper echoed Kelly Flagg's sentiments.
“His flat-out love for the game, his determination, his humility and his hard work day in and day out,” she said.
VJ Edgecombe’s mom was wiping at tears when they talked to ESPN.
“Bimini to the world,” Bendra Rolle said after her son went No. 3 to Philadelphia and capped the family’s journey from the Bahamas to the NBA.
Thomas Sorber's mom had a much longer journey. Tenneh Sorber held a Liberian flag when she and her son were talking on TV after he was drafted by Oklahoma City. The pair shared a long embrace when his name was called.
“It’s all for you Mama. It’s all for you Mama,” he said.
Tenneh Sorber escaped the Liberian civil war in 1999 when she was 28.
“I’m a mom ... I worked to get him where he is today,” she said.
It wasn't just the moms of the lottery picks who were ecstatic hearing their sons name called.
Danny Wolf, who went 27th to the Brooklyn Nets, had mother Tina jumping for joy during his interview on ESPN. She buried her face in her hands when he was drafted.
AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA
Cooper Flagg hugs family members after being selected first overall by the Dallas Mavericks In the first round of the NBA basketball draft, Wednesday, June 25, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)
Khaman Maluach reacts after being selected 10th by the Houston Rockets in the first round of the NBA basketball draft, Wednesday, June 25, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)
Jeremiah Fears celebrates with family after being selected seventh by the New Orleans Pelicans in the first round of the NBA basketball draft, Wednesday, June 25, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is meeting with oil executives at the White House on Friday in hopes of securing $100 billion in investments to revive Venezuela’s ability to fully tap into its expansive reserves of petroleum — a plan that rides on their comfort in making commitments in a country plagued by instability, inflation and uncertainty.
Since the U.S. military raid to capture former Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro on Saturday, Trump has quickly pivoted to portraying the move as a newfound economic opportunity for the U.S., seizing tankers carrying Venezuelan oil, saying the U.S. is taking over the sales of 30 million to 50 million barrels of previously sanctioned Venezuelan oil and will be controlling sales worldwide indefinitely.
On Friday, U.S. forces seized their fifth tanker over the past month that has been linked to Venezuelan oil. The action reflected the determination of the U.S. to fully control the exporting, refining and production of Venezuelan petroleum, a sign of the Trump administration's plans for ongoing involvement in the sector as it seeks commitments from private companies.
It's all part of a broader push by Trump to keep gasoline prices low. At a time when many Americans are concerned about affordability, the incursion in Venezuela melds Trump’s assertive use of presidential powers with an optical spectacle meant to convince Americans that he can bring down energy prices.
The meeting, set for 2:30 p.m. EST, will be open to the news media, according to an update to the president's daily schedule. “At least 100 Billion Dollars will be invested by BIG OIL, all of whom I will be meeting with today at The White House,” Trump said Friday in a pre-dawn social media post.
Trump is set to meet with executives from 17 oil companies, according to the White House. Among the companies attending are Chevron, which still operates in Venezuela, and ExxonMobil and ConocoPhillips, which both had oil projects in the country that were lost as part of a 2007 nationalization of private businesses under Maduro’s predecessor, Hugo Chávez.
The president is meeting with a wide swath of domestic and international companies with interests ranging from construction to the commodity markets. Other companies slated to be at the meeting include Halliburton, Valero, Marathon, Shell, Singapore-based Trafigura, Italy-based Eni and Spain-based Repsol.
Large U.S. oil companies have so far largely refrained from affirming investments in Venezuela as contracts and guarantees need to be in place. Trump has suggested on social media that America would help to backstop any investments.
Venezuela’s oil production has slumped below one million barrels a day. Part of Trump's challenge to turn that around will be to convince oil companies that his administration has a stable relationship with Venezuela’s interim President Delcy Rodríguez, as well as protections for companies entering the market.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum are slated to attend the oil executives meeting, according to the White House.
Meanwhile, the United States and Venezuelan governments said Friday they were exploring the possibility of r estoring diplomatic relations between the two countries, and that a delegation from the Trump administration arrived to the South American nation on Friday.
The small team of U.S. diplomats and diplomatic security officials traveled to Venezuela to make a preliminary assessment about the potential re-opening of the U.S. Embassy in Caracas, the State Department said in a statement.
Trump also announced on Friday he’d meet with President Gustavo Petro in early February, but called on the Colombian leader to make quick progress on stemming flow of cocaine into the U.S.
Trump, following the ouster of Maduro, had made vague threats to take similar action against Petro. Trump abruptly changed his tone Wednesday about his Colombian counterpart after a friendly phone call in which he invited Petro to visit the White House.
President Donald Trump waves as he walks off stage after speaking to House Republican lawmakers during their annual policy retreat, Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
