Morning Briefing: Enes Kanter gets an assist from a U.S. senator

Portland Trail Blazers center Enes Kanter is from Turkey and has been outspoken in his criticism of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. So critical that Turkish officials have sought a “red notice” — a sort of international arrest warrant — for Kanter through Interpol. The U.S. has ignored that notice, but this red notice — and the fact that the Turkish government canceled his passport in 2017 — caused Kanter to stay in the U.S. rather than travel to Toronto for a Trail Blazers-Raptors game in March.

Now, with Portland in the Western Conference Finals and the Raptors in the Eastern Conference Finals, there’s a chance the two teams could play in the NBA Finals. What does Kanter do then?

U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) hopes to take care of that problem.

Wyden wrote to Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Tuesday asking that his government facilitate Kanter’s safe passage to and from Canada if the Trail Blazers and Raptors advance to the title series.

“I also urge your government to state publicly that it will not comply with any Interpol red notice meant to interfere with Mr. Kanter’s livelihood and to intimidate him and his family back in Turkey,” Wyden wrote.

“If the Portland Trail Blazers and the Toronto Raptors both reach the NBA Finals, Mr. Kanter will again have to consider the security risks associated with work-related travel outside the United States,” Wyden told Trudeau.

Kanter wants to get a U.S. passport, but doesn’t yet qualify for one.

Mathieu Genest, a spokesman for Canada’s immigration minister, told the Associated Press that his country’s privacy laws prohibited him from commenting on specific cases, but he explained that “we are committed to ensuring that every case is assessed fairly, on its merits, and in accordance with Canada’s laws.”

PGA Championship questions

Finally! The final day of our PGA Championship quiz, to coincide with the start of the tournament today at Bethpage Black in Farmingdale, N.Y. The first person to email me (houston.mitchell@latimes.com) with the correct answers will get their name listed in Friday’s Morning Briefing. We have three lucky winners so far. Could you be the fourth? It’s like winning the lottery, only without the pesky tax implications. And, you also will get a free subscription to our Dodgers and daily Sports Report newsletters.

Here are today’s questions:

1. Who won last year’s PGA Championship?

2. Bethpage Black has hosted two other majors, the 2002 and 2009 U.S. Opens. Which two golfers won those tournaments?

3. Which two golfers are tied for the most career PGA Championship victories with five?

4. Who is the youngest golfer to win the tournament?

No regrets

It was a little less than a year ago when Terrell Owens, who had been passed over twice before, skipped his Pro Football Hall of Fame induction ceremony and had his own celebration at the University of Tennessee Chattanooga, where he played college ball. He said he felt disrespected after not being elected in his first year of eligibility and didn’t want to go to the ceremony.

Many experts, analysts, journalists and fans criticized Owens and said it was a decision he would live to regret.

So, does he?

“I don’t regret it, [but] I hear what you’re saying,” Owens told Yahoo Sports. “Everybody’s like, ‘Oh well, he’s missing one of the greatest moments of his career.’ But the thing is ... how can you miss something that you’ve never experienced?

“So as it relates to the regret … I’ll never regret what I did.”