Today's NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints, Answers for May 17 #236

Looking for the most recent regular Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzles.

Connections: Sports Edition has one pretty simple category, especially if you’re a fan of horses. The other ones aren’t terrible, though there are a couple of very long words that barely fit in the grid. Read on for hints and the answers.

Connections: Sports Edition is out of beta now, making its debut on Super Bowl Sunday, Feb. 9. That’s a sign that the game has earned enough loyal players that The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by the Times, will continue to publish it. It doesn’t show up in the NYT Games app but now appears in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can continue to play it free online.  

Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta

Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: NFL division.

Green group hint: Sport of kings.

Blue group hint: Laverne and Shirley’s hometown.

Purple group hint: Hoops coach.

Answers for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Yellow group: An AFC South player.

Green group: First words of famous horse races.

Blue group: Milwaukee sporting greats.

Purple group: Teams coached by Rick Pitino.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections: Sports Edition answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is an AFC South player. The four answers are Colt, Jaguar, Texan and Titan.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is first words of famous horse races. The four answers are Belmont, Breeders’, Kentucky and Preakness.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is Milwaukee sporting greats. The four answers are Abdul-Jabbar, Antetokounmpo, Molitor and Yount.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is teams coached by Rick Pitino. The four answers are Celtics, Iona, Panathinaikos and St. John’s.