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Both teams bowled out on day one in Melbourne
Cook: ‘It’s been too heavily weighted towards the bowlers’
Some of the biggest names in Ashes cricket have attacked the state of the MCG pitch after a record crowd saw 20 wickets fall on a Boxing Day blowout in Melbourne.
An official crowd of 94,199 broke the attendance record at the country’s biggest sporting venue, eclipsing the 2015 World Cup final and setting a new high watermark for this historic rivalry.
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JJ Redick repeats the same key words after every loss: effort and execution. The Lakers found none of either at Crypto.com Arena on Thursday in a 119-96 loss to the Houston Rockets that played out with a plot as familiar as a Hallmark holiday movie.
Getting outhustled by a team that simply played harder with more energy, the Lakers (19-10) dropped their third consecutive game. It’s their longest losing streak of the season and left the team questioning its identity.
“I don't know what has to change,” said guard Luka Doncic, who led the Lakers with 25 points and seven assists, but had six turnovers. “But definitely something needs to change.”
Here are three takeaways from the loss:
When the Lakers were climbing up the Western Conference standings, improbably winning games with LeBron James and Luka Doncic injured and celebrating Austin Reaves’ 51-point performance and ascent into stardom, the vibes were high. Players jumped off the bench to cheer for each other. They championed team bonding exercises such as slideshow presentations that introduced themselves to each other and a field trip to a Porsche driving experience. It all felt surprisingly easy, especially for a team that had several new additions.
“We had it,” Redick said wistfully Thursday. “We had it. I always say this about culture, I always say this about a good team being a functioning organism.”
Redick snapped his fingers.
“It can change like that,” he continued. “We don’t have it right now.”
Read more:Lakers lose Austin Reaves, then get called out by JJ Redick after loss to Rockets
All three of the Lakers’ most recent losses have been blowouts. With an average margin of defeat of 20.7 points, their total point differential has dropped to minus-15 on the season, which ranks 16th in the NBA.
Forward Jake LaRavia said in the locker room that there felt like a “disconnect” on the team, but couldn’t verbalize more about how things had turned so suddenly. The team’s seven-game winning streak at the end of November feels like a distant memory, although it should serve as a constant reminder of how a team shouldn’t let its guard down, especially when it was just collecting wins off teams with losing records.
“This [has] kind of been the trending thing even when we were winning,” forward Jarred Vanderbilt said. “Obviously wins kinda shadow a lot of stuff. But it's been the same pretty much all year of how we finished games, lose games: transition defense, rebounding and stuff like that. It's been a trend all year."
LeBron James, who played in his 13th game this season after missing the first 14 games because of sciatica, had 18 points and five assists and declined to speak with reporters after the game, along with Marcus Smart (six points, two rebounds) and Rui Hachimura (zero points, two assists).
To further exasperate the lingering injury bug, Reaves left the game after the first half because of left calf soreness. It was the same calf that sidelined him for three games last week.
Vanderbilt was one of the few bright spots for the Lakers, finishing with eight points, four rebounds, two assists and one steal. His energy off the bench in the second quarter, especially when playing with Smart, who fought through a right shoulder injury, helped the Lakers force four turnovers in a five-minute stretch. Vanderbilt’s three-pointer with 4:16 remaining in the second that trimmed the lead to four was one of the few moments that made the mostly apathetic holiday crowd roar.
Vanderbilt’s offensive deficiencies were the primary reason he fell out of the rotation for 10 games, but since returning to the lineup regularly against Phoenix on Dec. 14, Vanderbilt has made seven of 13 three-pointers in five games, including three for four on Thursday. It was his first game as a Laker with three made threes.
Outside of LaRavia, who stayed on the court after both teams had otherwise emptied the bench, Vanderbilt was the only Laker who had a positive plus-minus. The Lakers outscored the Rockets by five in Vanderbilt’s 26 minutes and 23 seconds on the floor.
“I feel like I try to come in the game and bring that energy and hoping guys could feed off it,” Vanderbilt said. “But we need to play [like] that for 48 minutes. … We just got to dig deep and want to do it.”
The Rockets (18-10) are not just the NBA’s best rebounding team, but they could be the best in a generation. The team’s 55.6% rebounding rate is the best in the NBA on record since at least the 1996-97 season.
Houston’s dominance on the boards was at the top of Redick’s mind before the game when he estimated the Rockets were the best rebounding team since the 1994-95 Mavericks. He emphasized the importance of gang rebounding against a team known for its physically imposing double-big lineup and athletic wings.
Read more:Amid injury 'chaos' for Lakers, LeBron James is starting to look like his old self
Then the Rockets grabbed two offensive rebounds in their first two possessions. The Rockets outrebounded the Lakers 48-25, the Lakers’ largest rebounding deficit since Nov. 8, 2023, which was also against Houston. Houston had 17 offensive rebounds, only one fewer than the Lakers’ defensive rebounding total, and with 12 rebounds, center Alpren Sengun matched the Lakers’ entire starting lineup on the boards.
“Everybody gotta give better effort,” Doncic said, “starting with me.”
Doncic had five rebounds, tied with Vanderbilt for the team lead. Center Deandre Ayton had just two boards and 10 points in 36 minutes and 17 seconds. It was the 7-footer’s lowet rebounding total of the season.
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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Untold riches awaited Adrian Kempe as one of the NHL’s top unrestricted free agents next summer.
Mitch Marner, among last summer’s top targets, got $12 million a season from Vegas in a sign-and-trade deal with Toronto hours before he would have hit the open market. With more goals than Marner over the last four full seasons, how much could Kempe — in his prime at 29 — have demanded?
We’ll never know. Because whatever amount it might have been, Kempe decided it wasn’t worth more than his happiness. So last month he signed an eight-year contract extension worth a reported $85 million with the Kings that figures to keep him with the only organization he’s ever known for the rest of his career.
“There’s probably some teams that would have given me offers. But I never really got to the part where that was something that I wanted,” he said. “I’m really happy here. Always have been. Family-wise, the same.
“So there was never anything else in my mind.”
Read more:Kings searching for answers after sixth loss in seven games: 'It’s a difficult time'
That’s a mind that is apparently at ease now that Kempe’s hockey future has been determined. With 13 goals and a team-high 17 assists, he leads the offensively challenged Kings with 30 points and seven of those goals have come in the 17 games since he signed his extension.
But that’s done little to lift the team, which has lost six of their last seven heading into Saturday’s game with the Ducks. The last time the Kings had a seven-game stretch this bad it cost coach Todd McLellan his job.
“I'm not happy, but I really believe in this group,” said winger Kevin Fiala, who shares the team goal-scoring lead with Kempe. “I really believe this is a great team, great players. We just have to kind of find the game. And not just for some minutes, not even for one game, 60 minutes.
“We have to go for a stretch here, get some wins in a row. Start feeling good, start playing good.”
That might be tough given how the Kings will finish 2025. After Saturday’s home game with the resurgent Ducks, the team travels to Colorado to face the Avalanche, who lead the NHL in points.
If the Kings are to turn things around, they will have to jump start an offense which is second-to-last in the NHL, averaging 2.52 goals a game, and a power play that has converted on less than 14% of its chances, also 31st in the 32-team league. And the responsibility for making that happen probably will fall to Kempe, who has scored as many goals over the past four full seasons as Sidney Crosby and has just six fewer assists than Alex Ovechkin, keeping the Swedish Olympian in heady company.
“Adrian is a bit of a streaky scorer,” coach Jim Hiller said. “A lot of his recent goals are goals that we’ve seen him score before, where he’s either beating someone with speed, a nice deke.
“So to me it’s the type of goals he’s scoring right now that’s got me encouraged.”
That’s not all that’s encouraging. Kempe, a quick and physical two-way forward, is averaging a career-high 19:18 of ice time per game and is on pace to score 30 goals and top 68 points for a second straight season.
With captain Anze Kopitar retiring at the end of the season and defenseman Drew Doughty in the penultimate year of his contract, re-signing Kempe, the team’s future leader on and off the ice, was at the top of Ken Holland’s to-do list when he took over as general manager last spring. And while the length of the contract he offered Kempe never wavered, the price did.
In the end, media reports said Kempe blinked first, telling agent J.P. Berry to lower his salary demands to get a deal done, eventually accepting an average annual value of $10.625 million beginning next season. That nearly doubles the $5.5 million he’ll earn this season and makes him the fifth-best-paid Swede in the NHL, according to the Sweden Herald. But it’s less than he would have gotten on the open market.
“I think it says two things,” Hiller said of the deal. “What it says about the franchise is that the player was known, was drafted here, was developed here.”
What it says about Kempe, he continued, is that he values that loyalty more than money.
“I think he probably appreciates the time and energy spent on his career, getting him to where he was,” Hiller said. “Now it’s his choice and he says, ‘You know what? I want to stay in place.'"
He’s not alone. A number of the Kings’ recent cornerstone players — among them Dustin Brown, Kopitar and Doughty — spent their entire NHL careers with the team. If he avoids serious injury and a major dropoff in play, Kempe will almost certainly rank among the top five in franchise history in games, goals and points when his contract runs out.
That’s the long-term return on investment Holland and the Kings are hoping for. For the time being, however, they’re counting on Kempe to save a season that seems in danger of spiraling.
Like Fiala, Kempe believes in the Kings.
“If I weren’t happy here, obviously I would consider not playing here,” Kempe said. “We have a good core. We have a good group of younger guys coming up. I think we’re in a good spot.
“Obviously you have to take that in consideration, too, when you sign a new deal. You want to play on a good team, you want to win cups.”
And it’s hard to put a price tag on that.
This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Three bowl matchups comprise the college football schedule for the final Friday of the year. We break down each of the contests on Dec. 26.
It's a tripleheader of Central Michigan vs. Northwestern, New Mexico vs. Minnesota and FIU vs. UTSA.
Central Michigan looks to finish its season with a bowl win over Northwestern at Ford Field.
Nikola Jokic recorded a 56-point triple-double and broke a record set by Steph Curry as the Denver Nuggets beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 142-138 on Christmas Day.
The Serb hit 56 points, recorded 16 rebounds and 15 assists - becoming the first player in NBA history to hit at least 55 points, 15 rebounds and 15 assists in a triple-double.
Three-time MVP Jokic hit 18 of his 56 points in overtime, breaking Curry's record of 17 overtime points from 2016.
The Timberwolves took the game in Denver to overtime after clawing back a 15-point deficit in the final five minutes of the game.
Anthony Edwards top-scored for the Timberwolves with 44 points, including the game-tying three that took the game to overtime.
But the 24-year-old was ejected in the extra period for arguing over foul calls as the Nuggets clamed the win.
The Nuggets are third in the Western Conference, with the Timberwolves in fifth.
Jannik Sinner dominated for three hours and 43 minutes, but the Spaniard somehow prevailed in an adrenaline-filled fifth set and all-time classic
It was not until what appeared to be the dying moments of the French Open final between Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz that I realised it could be worth taking a photo of such a monumental occasion. This was, after all, the first grand slam final between the two players who seemed set to lead men’s tennis for many years to come.
For three hours and 43 minutes Sinner had dominated Alcaraz and he earned three championship points while leading 5-3 in set four. Just before the Italian’s second championship point, I thrust up my phone and took a quick photo before my hand returned to my laptop, ready to file immediately an article that hailed his third consecutive major title and first triumph in Paris.
Continue reading...At halftime in Minnesota on Tuesday night, Knicks head coach Mike Brown lit into Tyler Kolek. The coach watched Kolek miss seven of his 10 shots in the first half and he wasn’t happy about it.
“You’ve taken 10 shots, the second most on the team, only made three; three or four of those shots were airballs,” the coach said. “If you want to take that many f------ shots, you gotta make (them).”
Kolek didn’t wilt from the criticism. He embraced it, going 6-for-12 in the second half of the Knicks’ loss.
At one point in the second half, he knocked down a three-pointer that led to a Timberwolves timeout. Walking over to the bench, Kolek looked Brown in the eye and delivered a message.
“I’m gonna knock that m---------er down,” he said to his coach.
Kolek carried that confidence with him back to New York. He entered the fourth quarter of a nationally televised game with the Knicks down 12 and 7:42 to play.
Five minutes and three Kolek three-pointers later, the Garden crowd was engaged in long, loud ‘Ty-ler Kol-ek’ chants.
Every fan in the building seemed to be stunned watching the Kolek show.
His teammates weren’t surprised though.
“It’s a testament to his mental strength, his mental fortitude and the work that he puts in,” Karl-Anthony Towns said.
Kolek’s 11 points in the fourth quarter were pivotal in the Knicks coming back from 17 down with 10:26 to play.
What you saw on Christmas Day was consistent with how Kolek has been playing of late.
He entered Christmas Day averaging nine points, five rebounds and five assists in his previous five regular season games. Those numbers don’t include Kolek’s 14-point, five-rebound, five-assist night in the NBA Cup title game against San Antonio.
You wonder how this run from Kolek will impact the Knicks’ approach at the trade deadline. Based on his recent playing time, logic tells you that Guerschon Yabusele is a candidate to be moved. The Knicks have also had interest in backup guards like New Orleans’ Jose Alvarado – an NYC native.
But does Kolek’s recent surge change how they view the backup point guard position? Does it make the team less inclined to spend assets on a backup guard? We’ll find out answers to those questions over the next six weeks or so. Right now, sit back and enjoy the Tyler Kolek show.
Kolek and the Knicks showed remarkable resilience and fortitude against Cleveland on Christmas Day. They trailed by 15 points with six minutes to go in the first quarter. They were down 17 with 10:26 to play.
The Christmas comeback featured strong play from all rotation players, but it doesn’t happen at all without Jordan Clarkson.
The veteran had 25 points off the bench, hitting five three-pointers on 10 attempts. Kolek (16 points, nine assists) and Mitchell Robinson had four huge offensive rebounds in a three minute span of the fourth quarter. He assisted on two threes off of offensive rebounds in that stretch, which saw the Knicks cut Cleveland’s lead from 13 to three.
Josh Hart had challenged the bench after the Minnesota game to play aggressively. They obviously responded well on Thursday.
“Our group is extremely, extremely connected,” Brown said after the Christmas Day comeback. “Everybody believes in each other no matter who is out on the floor. When you feel that type of belief from your teammates, from your peers, the sky’s the limit.”
Hart exited the game in the fourth quarter with a leg injury. It’s rare to see Hart leave a game due to injury. The Knicks had no update on Hart after Thursday’s game. Losing Hart for any period of time would be difficult for New York. The club is already playing without Miles McBride (ankle) and Landry Shamet (shoulder).
Dec 25, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Houston Rockets guard Amen Thompson (1) dunks for the basket against the Los Angeles Lakers during the first half at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images
Gary A. Vasquez/Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images
Amen Thompson scored 26 points to lead six players in double figures and the Houston Rockets never trailed in beating Luka Doncic and the Los Angeles Lakers 117-96 on Thursday night.
Kevin Durant added 25 points and nine assists for the Rockets, who ended a two-game skid while improving to 7-7 on the road. Thompson had seven rebounds and five assists.
Doncic scored 25 points and LeBron James added 18 points for the Lakers, who fell to 25-27 in their 27th consecutive appearance on Christmas and 52nd overall in a tradition that began in 1949. They’ve dropped three in a row overall.
Doncic and James were a combined 4 of 11 from 3-point range. They also combined for nine of the Lakers’ 16 turnovers. Doncic returned after missing a loss at Phoenix after injuring his left leg in a loss to the Los Angeles Clippers last weekend.
James and Durant squared off in the highest-scoring matchup in NBA history. No two opposing players ever entered a game with more combined career points.
Alperen Sengun had 12 rebounds in helping the Rockets dominate the boards, 48-25. He had as many as the Lakers’ entire starting lineup combined.
The Rockets led by 14 points in the first quarter and were up 63-53 at halftime, when James had just eight points. Durant and Thompson had 16 each in the half.
Houston opened the third with an 18-5 run that extended its lead to 23.
The Lakers got no points from starter Rui Hachimura while losing starter Austin Reaves to a sore left calf. He had 12 points and didn’t return after halftime.
Rockets: Host Cleveland on Saturday.
Lakers: Host Sacramento on Sunday.
The Lakers felt good about their starting lineup Thursday when Luka Doncic and Rui Hachimura returned from injury to restore their normal starting unit for only the seventh time this season.
But the good times didn't last long. Coming out of halftime down 10 points to the Houston Rockets, the Lakers announced Austin Reaves wouldn't play in the second half because of left calf soreness.
With another apparent setback for Reaves adding to the Lakers' desperate search for continuity, the team put up another inconsistent performance on defense in a 119-96 loss to the Rockets at Crypto.com Arena.
Read more:Austin Reaves' return can't save Lakers from dismal defensive effort in loss to Suns
The Lakers, who've lost three in a row for the first time this season, allowed the Rockets to shoot 53% from the field. Amen Thompson led the way with 26 points and Kevin Durant scored 25 as the Rockets out-rebounded the Lakers 48-25.
Reaves missed three games with a left calf strain before returning against Phoenix on Tuesday. He scored 17 points off the bench in the Lakers’ loss to the Suns.
Against the Rockets, Reaves started and played 15 minutes in the first half, scoring 12 points on five-for-eight shooting.
Reaves entered Thursday averaging 27.3 points per game, ranking him 11th in league scoring.
Doncic, who had been out with a lower left leg contusion, had 25 points and seven assists and LeBron James had 18 points. Hachimura (right groin injury management) didn’t score in his 28 minutes.
With so many players rotating through the lineup because of injuries, the Lakers have struggled to find solutions to their defensive issues.
They entered Thursday allowing 117.4 points per game, 19th most in the league. They were allowing the 26th highest field-goal percentage (48.4) and the highest three-point shooting percentage (40.1). They were next-to-last in rebounds, averaging 40.1 per game.
That was a real issue against the Rockets team that entered the game first in offensive rebounds (16.1).
And in this game, the Rockets got 17 offensive rebounds.
The Lakers didn’t have key role players Jaxson Hayes (left ankle soreness) and Gabe Vincent (lumbar back strain), adding to their woes.
“It’s the modern NBA where there’s injuries and then there’s not a lot of time to practice," Lakers coach JJ Redick said. "So, when you have continuity, you can kind of capture what you’re trying to do and you feel comfortable and good about it."
Read more:Jalen Brunson leads Knicks past Bucks in Christmas Day opener
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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Dec 25, 2025; San Francisco, California, USA; Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) shoots against Dallas Mavericks guard Ryan Nembhard (left) during the third quarter at Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images
Darren Yamashita/Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images
Stephen Curry scored 23 points and knocked down a key 3-pointer with 3:45 left to help seal it, Jimmy Butler added 14 points, nine assists and nine rebounds, and the Golden State Warriors beat the Dallas Mavericks 126-116 on Thursday.
Mavericks rookie star Cooper Flagg had 27 points on 13-for-21 shooting, six rebounds and five assists in his Christmas Day debut, while Brandon Williams scored 26 off the bench.
Klay Thompson returned to face his former Warriors team in the holiday matinee after missing Tuesday’s home game against the Nuggets with soreness in his left knee.
And former Splash Brother Curry kept sneaking a peek at Thompson’s warmup before they met at midcourt for a greeting and embrace. Thompson received a warm ovation when he entered the game for the first time with 5:51 remaining in the opening quarter.
Mavericks center Anthony Davis didn’t return after exiting in the second quarter with groin spasms. Davis had three points, three rebounds and two blocked shots in 11 minutes.
Draymond Green started and contributed seven points and five rebounds playing in foul trouble two days after he and coach Steve Kerr had a heated exchange during a third-quarter timeout against Orlando — with both later apologizing to each other.
Golden State started 0 for 6 from 3-point range before the Mavericks even attempted their first shot from deep. Moses Moody connected at the 6:05 mark of the first quarter and that helped the Warriors get going — along with Al Horford.
Horford returned from a seven-game absence because of sciatica in his right leg. He came in at the 5:27 mark of the first and made all four of his 3-pointers as the Warriors led 40-28 after one quarter. He finished with 14 points, De’Anthony Melton scored 16 and Brandin Podziemski contributed 13 points, eight rebounds and four assists off the bench.
The Mavericks play at Sacramento on Saturday, while the Warriors hit the road to face Toronto on Sunday.
The Colorado Avalanche (27-2-7) aim for their seventh consecutive win when they visit the Vegas Golden Knights (17-8-10) at T-Mobile Arena on Saturday night.
Nathan MacKinnon’s eight-game point streak came to an end during Colorado’s 1-0 victory over the Utah Mammoth on Tuesday. Still, the Avalanche reached an NHL-leading 61 points, becoming just the fourth team in league history to reach 60 points in their first 36 games. They also extended their overall point streak to nine games (8-0-1).
The Golden Knights snapped a three-game losing streak with a 7-2 victory over the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday. It was a full-team effort, as seven Vegas players recorded two-point nights. Mitch Marner led the charge with two goals, while Mark Stone, Reilly Smith, Brent Howden, Colton Sissons, and Tomáš Hertl all contributed to the scoring.
Martin Nečas strikes just 41 seconds in! 🏔️ pic.twitter.com/Zbmk5qEqF9
— SleeperNHL (@SleeperNHL) October 31, 2025
Looking at head-to-head stats, the Avalanche have won three of their last five matchups against the Golden Knights, including their most recent game on Halloween night, which Colorado won 4-2. In that contest, the Avs saw four goals and all from different players, including Martin Nečas, Cale Makar, Brent Burns, and Brock Nelson.
Cale Makar has been particularly effective against the Golden Knights, recording six points over his last five games against Vegas. Nathan MacKinnon has also contributed significantly, tallying five points in the same stretch.
Samuel Girard has quietly emerged as a dark horse for the Avalanche. He scored the lone goal in Tuesday’s 1-0 win over the Mammoth, marking his second goal of the season. Over his last six games, Girard has been a point-per-game player, collecting six points.
The previously mentioned Nelson didn’t register a point against Utah, but he has been a key contributor to Colorado’s depth over the past month. The 6-foot-4 center has tallied six goals and three assists in his last 11 games, including a stretch in which he scored in three consecutive contests.
When Nečas last faced the Golden Knights, it was his first game following the signing of an eight-year extension with the Avalanche. He scored just 41 seconds into the contest and added two assists on the way to the win.
Colorado has built a reputation for quick strikes this season, but such fast starts have been rare lately. If there’s anyone capable of delivering one, it’s Nečas. The 26-year-old is currently on pace to finish the season with 36 goals and 71 assists for 107 points, which would mark career highs in both categories.
Mitch Marner has racked up nine points (three goals, six assists) over his past five games and ranks second on the Golden Knights with 38 points (nine goals, 29 assists) in 35 games. He also scored twice in Vegas’ most recent victory.
Ivan Barbashev has been equally impressive, pairing production with physicality. The 30-year-old Russian has collected six points in his last five games against the Avalanche and is known for his bone crushing hits.
Jack Eichel has recorded five points in his last five games against Colorado, while William Karlsson has contributed three points over the same stretch.
The Avalanche square off against the Golden Knights on Saturday. Coverage begins at 8 p.m. local time.
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The San Jose Sharks have a long way to go to become true championship contenders.
Over the past several seasons, the Sharks have established an unenviable reputation as one of the NHL’s weakest clubs, missing the postseason in each of the last six years.
While the organization boasts an impressive collection of top-end talent, its lack of a reliable supporting cast has forced an unsustainable dependence on its stars.
When those players fail to deliver at an exceptional level, the structural deficiencies of the roster are exposed, often resulting in embarrassing losses.
The Sharks opened the season on a rough note, stumbling to a 0–3–2 record through their first five games. The growing frustration came to a head when head coach Ryan Warsofsky remarked that he would give up one of his children for a win—a comment he later acknowledged was inappropriate and apologized for.
"I'd give up one of my children for a fu**ing win," Warsofky said following a shutout loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins on October 18.
Two days later, Warsofky apologized.
“I love my kids. I would never give them up,” Warsofsky said. “I love my wife. Obviously, I’m a passionate, emotional person, and probably got ahead of me there, and so I apologize for those comments.”
The Sharks are still mathematically in the playoff hunt, but their position is far more fragile than it may appear. One stabilizing force has been Macklin Celebrini. The 19-year-old is producing at a blistering pace, recording 55 points (19 goals, 36 assists) in 37 games this season.
Even in Tuesday’s 7–2 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights at T-Mobile Arena, Celebrini found the scoresheet with a goal. That lone point carried added significance, as it allowed him to tie Sidney Crosby’s record for the most points by a teenager before the Christmas break.
On one hand, that’s encouraging. Collin Graff has also emerged as a solid contributor. The 23-year-old went undrafted, but he has come into his own this season, posting 10 goals and 10 assists for a career-high 20 points in 36 games. After appearing in 33 games for the Sharks last year, Graff has already surpassed those totals, clear evidence of his continued development.
But herein lies the problem: when the Sharks’ top line isn’t on the ice, they are often giving up goals—and a lot of them. San Jose has allowed 129 goals this season, the second-most in the NHL. Only the St. Louis Blues have been worse, surrendering 131 goals as their historically rough season continues.
Erratic goaltending has been a persistent issue this season. From Yaroslav Askarov’s ill-advised attempts at a Dominik Hasek–style approach to more routine struggles, the instability in net has often overshadowed the efforts of the team’s stars to steer the Sharks in a better direction.
In Tuesday's game, Askarov didn't even last a full period as he allowed four goals on 16 shots, forcing the team to pull him in favor of Alex Nedeljkovic, who didn't fare any better, as he allowed three goals on 10 shots. It's been an absolute circus between the pipes. And for Nedeljkovic, he's allowed at least three goals in seven straight games.
The message is unmistakable: the Sharks have significant work ahead. While they are not the worst team in the league, they are perilously close to that threshold.
Goaltending remains a glaring weakness. Neither Yaroslav Askarov nor Alex Nedeljkovic appears capable of anchoring the position long-term, leaving San Jose with little choice but to pursue upgrades—whether via trades or the draft.
Additionally, the trade deadline offers an opportunity to add depth and bolster the roster. Even so, this rebuilding project is likely several years from fruition before the Sharks can genuinely be considered legitimate contenders.
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OKLAHOMA CITY, OK - DECEMBER 25: De’Aaron Fox #4 of the San Antonio Spurs drives to the basket during the game against the Oklahoma City Thunder on December, 25, 2025 at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2025 NBAE (Photo by David Sherman/NBAE via Getty Images)
David Sherman/NBAE via Getty Images
De’Aaron Fox scored 29 points, and the San Antonio Spurs defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder 117-102 on Thursday for their third win over the defending NBA champs in the past two weeks.
The Spurs also defeated the Thunder in an NBA Cup semifinal on Dec. 13 and in San Antonio on Tuesday. The teams meet again on Jan. 13 in Oklahoma City.
Victor Wembanyama had 19 points and 11 rebounds and Stephon Castle had 19 points and seven assists for the Spurs (23-7). San Antonio shot 53.6% from the field and held the Thunder to 38.9% shooting.
It was San Antonio’s eighth straight win and Oklahoma City’s second home loss of the season. The Thunder entered the day at the top of the Western Conference standings, with the Spurs in second.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 22 points, but the reigning league MVP made just 7 of 19 field goals. He scored at least 20 points for the 102nd consecutive game.
Isaiah Hartenstein had 13 points and 12 rebounds and Chet Holmgren added 10 points and 12 rebounds for the Thunder.
Oklahoma City started the season 24-1, tied for the league’s best record through 25 games. The Thunder are 2-4 since, including the three losses to the Spurs.
The Thunder made their first seven field goals and went up 18-12 before Fox helped the Spurs fight back. His 21 points in the first half helped San Antonio head into the break with a 69-60 lead.
The Spurs pushed the lead to 85-68 midway through the third quarter, and a dunk by Dylan Harper late in the third quarter put the Spurs up 91-74. The Spurs led 95-79 at the end of the period and maintained control from there.
Spurs: Host the Utah Jazz on Saturday.
Thunder: Host the Philadelphia 76ers on Sunday.
