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The first dominant big man of professional basketball has died. Basketball Hall of Famer George Mikan, who led the Minneapolis Lakers to five championships, was 80. Melissa Block talks to Tom Heinsohn, currently a commentator for Boston Celtics broadcasts and a former NBA All-Star player and coach.

Thomas Jefferson High School in south Los Angeles recently has been the scene of three huge brawls, involving hundreds of black and Latino students and police in riot gear. Racial tensions plague the massive urban high school, which is also faces overcrowding and lack of resources.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is investigating 33 reports that Toyota's popular hybrid cars have stalled without warning. Toyota has also started its own inquiry into the Prius.

The White House is trying to contain possible damage from a Pentagon report on abuse of the Quran at the U.S. prison camp at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Presidential spokesman Scott McClellan says the media is blowing "isolated incidents" out of proportion.

Scientists say the arthritis drug Bextra may pose increased risk of cardiovascular troubles. Bextra is related to Vioxx, which was pulled off the market in September for the same reason. Now, doctors worry that all related drugs could cause similar problems. Hear NPR's Richard Knox.

U.S. first lady Jill Biden spent Mother's Day in Slovakia, meeting Ukrainian mothers who have been displaced by Russia's war and assuring them that the "hearts of the American people" are behind them.

The school was sheltering about 90 people in the village of Bilohorivka.

In 1932, The New York Times' Walter Duranty won a Pulitzer for stories defending Soviet policies that led to the deaths of millions of Ukrainians. The Times disavows his work but not the prize.

It's Mother's Day weekend. Prepare to make the day special with NPR's handy guide — filled with reads, listens and gift ideas that celebrate the highs and lows of parenthood.

Lily Tuck's novel of 19th century Paraguay wins the National Book Award for fiction. Tuck, awarded the prize for her novel The News From Paraguay, was one of five New York women authors nominated for the fiction award. Kevin Boyle won the nonfiction prize for Arc of Justice and Jean Valentine's Door in the Mountain won in the poetry category. Hear NPR's Lynn Neary.