Category: Basketball

There are easier (and less surreal) ways to fulfill an NBA dream than the Jose Alvarado route.

Go undrafted and fight your way onto a roster. Develop a reputation as a defensive menace on the court. Spend four and a half seasons in NOLA. Get traded home to New York mid-season. Help your favorite team from childhood win their first championship in more than half a century. Then parade through the streets of the city where you grew up with a few million people screaming at you.

Alvarado sat down with SLAM during his cover shoot for KICKS 29, and the conversation naturally circled back to the improbable route that brought the Brooklyn native here.

Asked to choose one word for the Knicks’ championship run, Alvarado answered:  “Believe. That’s one thing you got to do is believe the way we did it.”

That was especially true in Game Four of the Finals, when New York fell 29 points behind San Antonio and somehow dragged itself all the way back, aided by significant contributions from Alvarado. He said his focus during the comeback was simple: “It was more not really overthinking—like, what can I do to make us win the game regardless if it’s making shots or not.”

The championship would have been a massive achievement anywhere. Winning it in New York meant even more for Jose, who grew up in Brooklyn before playing at Georgia Tech and eventually joining the Pelicans.

Pondering Jose’s experience, there is always something weird about getting a desperately wanted thing. For years, the dream existed at a distance, beyond the next practice, the next contract, the doubt expressed by others about your size or talent. Then one afternoon, you’re dancing on a float in Manhattan as an NBA champion with your hometown passing by, block by block. 

“I almost cried on the float because . . . obviously going through the city that I was raised . . . I know a lot of people that’s in the crowd,” Alvarado told SLAM.

That’s the part of winning a championship nobody can really prepare for, that transition point when the dream stops being something you’re chasing and becomes something that has happened to you. Sounds surreal. And not to get all Jean-Paul Sartre about it all, but it’s natural to wonder: what’s next?

The answer: Your own sneaker and a new contract with the Knicks, naturally. After declining his $4.5 million player option this summer, Alvarado agreed to a new three-year deal with the Knicks worth roughly $14.4 million, with $12 million guaranteed.

Furthermore, Jose recently signed with the streetball brand AND1 and showed off his personalized player-exclusive shoes during the SLAM shoot. The partnership makes sense. Few NBA players have built an identity more closely connected to playground basketball’s particular mixture of hustle, swagger, annoyance, and joy. Thus, the SLAM team drove Alvarado back to an outdoor New York court, a familiar environment to the 28-year-old who is currently playing for Puerto Rico in FIFA’s Basketball World Cup qualifiers.

In March, I spoke to Jose over Zoom. He was connecting from a hotel room in Utah, grinding out NBA life on the road, still getting acclimated to his new team. What struck me in the conversation was how completely disruptive a mid-season trade is on a player with a young family. 

“People don’t understand,” Alvarado told me. “You think, ‘They’ve got millions,’ and don’t get me wrong, the financial security is great. But one day you’re comfortable in your forever home, and overnight you have to go to a different city, leaving your wife and kids behind.”

He explained that even a month after the trade, he hadn’t yet been able to return home to his family in New Orleans. It became clear how much these players—and their families—must sacrifice for an NBA career.

And Jose is not slowing down. Despite the ring, a new contract, and his face on a SLAM cover, Alvarado doesn’t sound particularly interested in staying comfortable.

“The only way to stay in the NBA, or to be in a conversation where I want to be, with my goal, is [I] definitely got to have a chip on my shoulder, no matter what,” he told SLAM.

That chip is mighty durable. Going undrafted didn’t remove it; making an NBA team didn’t shake it; becoming an established rotation player didn’t loosen it; and neither did coming home, getting paid, or getting to pose for glamour shots with the Larry O’Brien trophy.

Asked how he eventually wants people to remember him, Jose went right back to the beginning. “I want them to remember that there was a lot of people that said no to this kid. There was a lot of doubts . . . just remember the doubts and how I overcame all that.”

I can think of worse epitaphs for a basketball career. Congrats, Jose. Knicks in five. 

Alvarado’s AND1 gear is available through AND1 here.

Last season, Victor Wembanyama introduced American basketball to European football fandom. His brainchild, The Jackals, were designed to make the Frost Bank Center the NBA’s most raucous arena. Wemby held auditions, cast a number of rabid fans who committed to attending the majority of home games, and set them loose. His experiment was a huge success, and the Jackals not only raised the level of excitement in the Forst Bank Center, they made special trips to out of town games. Wemby personally invited many along to attend the NBA Cup when the Spurs upset a number of Western Conference teams to make it all the way to the Emirates Final.

The Jackals are returning for the 2026-2027 season and their numbers are increasing. Auditions are being held for prospective members.

Per a Spurs press release:

“The Spurs Jackals will host auditions on Saturday, Sept. 19 at Frost Bank Center, giving passionate Spurs fans the opportunity to join the supporter section for the 2026-27 season. Auditions will begin at 9 a.m., and fans interested can register here.“

This year the Jackals are adding two new areas — Sections 114 and 115 — allowing space for 100 new members.

Fans auditioning should show up in Spurs gear and come ready to bring the energy. If you are interested in learning more can visit Spurs.com/Jackals or text JACKALS to (210) 444-5940.

Go Spurs Go!

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During the years that Red Auerbach ran the Celtics, the organization was a paragon of stability and tradition. First Red coached the Celtics, and then, often, the players he coached coached the Celtics. The uniforms didn’t change, and banner after banner of the same plain type accumulated in the rafters of the old Boston Garden. One by one, player numbers were retired and raised to the same lofty position above the most storied court in the National Basketball Association. From a basketball perspective, the Celtics were about as solid and stable as the rock of Gibraltar.

But that stability was not reflected in team ownership.

After Walter Brown died unexpectedly in the fall of 1964, the Celtics went through a twenty-year period when ten different ownership groups controlled the team.

In 1983, the Celtics were purchased from Harry Mangurian by a consortium led by Don Gaston. Gaston had been an executive with Gulf+Western when they owned the Knicks, having purchased Madison Square Garden and its tenants in 1977.

Gaston’s consortium included Boston native Paul Dupee, and Alan Cohen, who was an executive with the New Jersey Nets at the time—both were also Gulf+Western alumni. The sale price was reported to be $15 million.

Gaston, a Texas native, had left Gulf+Western in 1982 after assembling a group of investors that purchased Providence Capitol International Insurance Ltd., and Famous Players Realty, Ltd. from Gulf+Western for $350 million.

About three years after purchasing the Celtics, Gaston and his partners decided to share the wealth while creating some wealth for themselves.

They sold 40% of the Boston Celtics on the New York Stock Exchange on December 3, 1986.

This was the first—and so far only—time that a sports franchise has been publicly traded.

It provided an opportunity for any number of Celtics fans, including my dad, to claim an ownership stake in what could in a very real sense now be called ‘their’ team.

It was also an excellent move for the wallets of Boston’s ownership group. Having paid around $15 million for the team in the fall of 1983, they recouped about three times that in an IPO that simultaneously lined their pockets with an estimated $48 million in cash and boosted the valuation of their holdings to about $72 million—not a bad return overall. At the close of the first day of trading, the Celtics were valued at $120 million, give or take. This was an astronomical price for a professional sports team at the time.

For the next sixteen years and change, the Celtics were, partially, a publicly traded entity.

The IPO was the brainchild of Charles Weiss at Smith Barney, an investment banking firm that didn’t survive the 2008 financial crisis. His idea was to create a series of “Master Limited Partnerships” in which sports franchise owners could raise a significant amount of capital by selling a minority stake on the market; master limited partnerships would also ease the tax burden that sports teams would face, as income would be distributed to partners who would pay taxes individually. Gaston and his partners, who were always businessmen first, leaped at the opportunity.

The Celtics IPO was a relatively small float of 2.6 million shares.

Those shares ended up in the hands of about 95,000 investors, meaning the average shareholder was sitting on just over 27 shares. This created an enormous headache whenever dividends came due. It cost the Celtics roughly $1 million per year just to print and mail out the quarterly checks. These quarterly dividends, always under a dollar per share, were quickly turned into an annual distribution which saved considerable money in postage and printing. Adding to the headache was the fact that roughly one out of every ten stockholders failed to deposit those dividend checks.

Celtics fans held onto their shares, too. On any given day, fewer than 2,000 Boston Celtics Limited Partnership shares might change hands on the New York Stock Exchange. Far more stock certificates were likely to be found hanging on the walls of offices and dens, and, in the case of particularly tolerant spouses, perhaps even in living rooms.

In exchange for a sudden influx of cash and a boost to the bottom line, trading on the stock exchange required that the Celtics open their books to public scrutiny in a way that no team before or since has had to. In addition to player contracts, which were generally reported on and public knowledge, salaries of front office personnel were revealed. For example, it turned out that Red Auerbach was making a relatively modest $250,000 per year, an amount that had been guaranteed for Red’s lifetime in a contract with the new owners.

In 1998, a ten-year provision that had kept the favorable tax treatment of income under master limited partnerships in place expired. As a result, the Celtics were reorganized into a byzantine structure in which individuals who held more than 100 shares would be eligible to obtain partner status, while smaller investors would receive a share in the new entity along with $20 in subordinated debt per share: basically, they would be given an IOU from the Celtics guaranteeing payment of 6% annual interest (or $1.20), and, in forty years, repayment of the full $20.

This new structure was arranged in an effort to preserve the pass-through treatment of income that had been in place with the master limited partnership.

Under the new arrangement, the Boston Celtics were owned by a partnership, Celtics Basketball, L.P., which, in turn, was owned by Celtics Basketball Holdings, L.P. 48.3123% of Celtics Basketball Holdings, L.P. was owned by Boston Celtics Limited Partnership II, or “BCLP II,” which was, in fact, the original Boston Celtics Limited Partnership. A new Boston Celtics Limited Partnership, “BCLP,” owned 99% of “BCLP II.” BCLP was the entity with publicly traded shares, while BCLP II was the entity that issued the $20 debentures.

Presumably there were tax advantages to having this many tiers of ownership over the Boston Celtics, and it seems likely that such convoluted arrangements are in place with other teams, now that professional sports have become a big business.

In fact, it could be well argued that the Celtics IPO was the beginning of the ‘big business’ era for sports franchise ownership.

At a swoop, the valuation of the Celtics jumped from $15 million to $120 million. Ownership of a basketball franchise, which had been more or less a hobby for the well-heeled up to this point, suddenly became a realm where serious cash was required to buy into the game. With that cash came expectations regarding revenue growth and profitability.

Available documents from the SEC’s EDGAR online database of filings from 2001 and later show that there were still about 58,000 individual stockholders at the time that Wyc Grousbeck’s ownership group put in an offer for the team.

These individuals, many of whom had likely held onto their shares going back to the initial public offering, or a few months afterwards, were paid $27 for their share, which, along with redemption of the $20 debenture, meant a $47 return on an initial investment, if made around the time of the IPO, of about $18. This was about a 261% gain, not counting dividends.

Interestingly, this reflected an approximately even return on investment compared to what Gaston and company had accrued based on the team’s valuation at the time of the IPO. The net sale price of the Celtics in 2002 was $310 million, which was a 258% increase over the IPO’s valuation of around $120 million.

However, Gaston, Dupee and Cohen had bought the team for just $15 million, and the return on their cash outlay amounted to about 2,067% when the team sold in 2002, not counting the $48 million that they had received from the IPO. Grousbeck’s group paid $360 million for the Celtics, which was a record sum for the NBA at the time, but $50 million was used to retire various debt obligations, including the debentures that had been distributed to shareholders in 1998.

This sale marked the end of an interesting experiment in franchise ownership during a period that saw valuations of professional sports teams skyrocket. This trend has only continued with the record sale of the Celtics in 2025 for $6.1 billion, a sale price that was rapidly eclipsed by two different sales of the Los Angeles Lakers, first for $10 billion and then, less than a year later, $12.5 billion.

The irony is that an IPO that marked the transformation of sports into big business also made it possible for ordinary fans of every stripe to own a piece of their favorite team, at least for a time.

Greetings, Panthers fans. Welcome to the weekend.

Feel free to use this thread to chat about (almost) anything you want: video games, food, movies, non-football sports, you name it. As long as it’s allowed by the site’s ToS, it’s fair game here.

You know the drill.

This is now an open thread

On another inauspicious evening in the NBA offseason, Minnesota Timberwolves President of Basketball Operations, Tim Connelly, was wide awake. As first reported by ESPN’s Shams Charania, Minnesota traded Josh Green and cash to the Utah Jazz for Cody Williams and John Konchar.

Charania followed up by sharing that Konchar, a 30-year-old wing rebounding specialist, will see his $6.2 million contract waived-and-stretched, incurring roughly $2 million in dead cap space for the next three years. Konchar could’ve been an interesting end-of-bench option, but alas the Wolves are filled to the brim at his position.

Josh Green, who was just on a team-wide outing in France, was the unfortunate salary dump that needed to happen in order to make the Jonathan Kuminga deal legal per salary cap regulations. Despite being a potential Donte DiVincenzo replacement on the roster, Green’s $14.7 million was the only realistic salary that could be moved to make enough room for Kuminga to join via the tax-payer mid-level exception. Many had theorized if there were no takers for Green, Minnesota could have entertained a waive-and-stretch of his contract, incurring a near $5 million cap hit for three years.

Instead they nearly halved that while taking a flyer on a 21-year-old top 10 draft pick, Cody Williams.

Cody is the little brother of the Oklahoma City Thunder All-NBA wing, Jalen Williams. The younger Williams has spent his last two seasons on a tanking Utah organization who have mostly failed to develop any young talent despite multiple lottery picks.

Cody is included in that bunch.

He was billed as a long (seven-foot wingspan), athletic, triple-threat scorer out of college who knocked down over 40% of his triples in his one year at Colorado. Williams, like his brother, was a late riser during the 2024 draft process, impressing scouts with his defensive tenacity and two-way star potential. Instead of following in Jalen’s footsteps on his journey to stardom, he has fallen flat on his face, becoming one of the worst players in the NBA. Respectfully.

But all is not lost yet! Tim Connelly and his front office have always been believers in finding value in what others perceive as broken toys. Aaron Gordon, Rudy Gobert, Julius Randle, Bones Hyland, LaMelo Ball, Jonathan Kuminga. These are all players that had less than stellar “reputations” among various NBA circles, yet he’s taken a leap of faith to salvage their careers. And they’ve mostly worked out.

Williams is much less of a risk than those aforementioned names, considering he’s likely not even going to figure to be in the rotation. Hell, he’s not even guaranteed to make the opening night roster. He’s on his final two years of his rookie scale contract (~$6.5 million per year). However, Cody did finally show some promise near the end of his sophomore season.

According to our SB Nation sister blog, SLC Dunk, they named Cody their second most improved player of the season. They also included this nugget from Zach Lowe:

I think Cody Williams — who looked like an epic bust of a top-10 pick… has shown enough in the last couple of months that I think there’s a world in which he’s a functional eighth to tenth guy on a good Utah Jazz team. His defense is really improved. He’s a solid defender. He knows how to close out on guys short, he knows how to run guys off the arc, he’s extremely well balanced.

The Wolves now have 14 players under contract, and all three two-way spots filled. That leaves one potential spot to be filled, though many teams often leave a spot open for flexibility. If we know anything about Connelly though, things can change on a dime, but this could be what Minnesota’s roster will look like come opening night.

Discuss.

Late Friday night, Shams Charania reported that the Jazz and Wolves had completed a trade:

One of the most persistent questions in Jazzland over the past two years or so looms large: Is Cody Williams a bust? If you are Justin Zanik and/or Austin Ainge, it appears the answer is yes. After being drafted in the lottery, being out-physicaled for most of his rookie year, showing limited progress in his sophomore year, and struggling this summer in most of his Salt Lake and Vegas Summer League runs, Cody has been shipped north(east). This gives Minnesota a young prospect who still has the ability to turn the corner with a scenery change, a solid “glue guy” in John Konchar and, most importantly, some financial relief:

In return, the Jazz get a 6th-year shooting guard who shoots accurately (career 39% 3PT) but not at high volume. He defends serviceably, posting a career Defensive Rating (points allowed per 100 possessions) of 117. Much like last year’s Colin Sexton/Jusuf Nurkić trade, this may end up being a case of addition by subtraction. There was nothing wrong with Colin Sexton—he is a good basketball player—but he wasn’t a good fit. As a bonus, Nurk turned out to be a fantastic fit. Now the rotations will be even more open for Darryn Peterson, Ace Bailey, and Keyonte George.

The Jazz are not bringing Josh Green in to play 25 minutes per night. He is here a) to make the salaries work and b) to provide a modest boost off the bench as an 8th 0r 9th man. He’s a solid player who knows his role and plays it well:

For their part, Timberwolves fans will point to Cody’s flashes of brilliance over his short career to this point:

We at the Dunk wish Cody and John the best of luck as they each start their new chapters in Minnesota, as so many other Jazz players before them have. Once a Jazzman, always a Jazzman. Despite the unfortunate parting of ways, Utah’s future is brighter than it’s ever been. For now, this trade looks like a “win-win,” something which is rare in the market these days. 53 days remain until we can begin to find out.

After Georgia Amoore’s career night propelled her squad to a 94-84 win in Phoenix on Thursday, the Washington Mystics returned Friday night for a road tilt against the Los Angeles Sparks.

Washington led entering the fourth quarter, but the Sparks’ late surge proved too much as the Mystics lost 88-82. 

The Mystics overcame a 15-2 start in Thursday’s win. Their start to Friday’s contest was much better thanks to Sonia Citron, who tallied 10 points on 4-for-4 FG in the first quarter.

Shakira Austin added seven points as the sides entered the second frame tied at 23. Then Kiki Iriafen got active.

The second-year forward scored seven straight Mystics points, including a 3-pointer, to extend Washington’s lead. An Amoore triple and another Iriafen bucket pushed that advantage to double digits as halftime neared.

Citron closed the half the same way she started it: with a flurry of buckets to give her 15 points on 6-for-10 FG. Washington led 51-40 at halftime.

The Sparks cut into Washington’s lead behind Nneka Ogwumike’s efficient shooting. Halfway through the third quarter, the 11-time All-Star had tallied 24 points on 11-for-15 FG to trim Los Angeles’ deficit to just one.

Crypto.com Arena rose to its feet as Los Angeles briefly took the lead. But like Thursday night, Amoore had the answer. The second-year guard drilled 3-pointers on consecutive possessions to give Washington a 68-65 lead entering the fourth quarter.

Citron continued her strong performance with a triple and a layup to open the fourth. But Los Angeles held firm, answering with an 8-0 run to take an 80-76 lead.

After a Lauren Betts bucket, Rae Burell added five more points to extend the Sparks’ advantage to 85-78 with 2:21 remaining. Burell added three more to ice an impressive win for Los Angeles and snap Washington’s three-game winning streak.

The Mystics fell to 24-16 on the season. Citron finished with a team-high 22 points on 9-for-18 FG. Iriafen and Austin both tallied double-doubles.

Since Jonathan Kuminga chose to sign with the Timberwolves on Wednesday, the question that everybody has been asking is “Why?”

Kuminga’s agent, Aaron Turner, appeared on the Fan Duel show “Run it Back” and explained why they chose the Timberwolves and also what happened with the rumored three-year, $75 million extension with the Warriors.

“With the [three-year, $75 million deal] it was to me, he had to get to a spot to make long-term money, or past this contract, where the basketball was set,” Turner said. “With the basketball comes the money, right? If you understand this business, it’s ‘If it’s a good basketball fit, the money follows.’ The money coming before the basketball is not really how you’re going to continue to make more and more money.”

Turner said if Kuminga took a longer deal, he would no longer have control of his future and insisted that he would have less control. Last season, when he was traded ahead of the NBA trade deadline, Kuminga didn’t have a choice in being moved to the Hawks.

Kuminga’s deal with the Timberwolves is for two years and worth up to $12.4 million, including player options after the 2026-2027 NBA season.

Turner said next year’s free-agency option gives Kuminga higher leverage when looking for the right contract that fits him.

“There’s a lot of teams with money, and if you’ve paid attention to JK’s recruiting saga over the last few years, those teams that have been trying to sign and trade for him, Sacramento, Chicago, these teams have a lot of money next year,” Turner said. “Who knows, but the game board is set very, very well for JK for 2027.”

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After Kuminga chose the Timberwolves, NBA ESPN insider Shams Charania reported the Lakers had a sign-and-trade offer “that would have been in excess of three years for at least $12 million per year.”

Draymond Green gave a warning to Kuminga about the deal he took with Minnesota; as he alluded to, Kuminga could see his role reduced if the team struggles early in the season.

If Kuminga doesn’t perform up to expectations, he and Turner could likely see their high payday go down the drain.

COLLEGE PARK, GA — Atlanta Dream forward Angel Reese picked up her eighth technical foul of the season on Aug.28, triggering an automatic one-game suspension unless the technical is rescinded.

Reese received the technical with 8:45 remaining in the fourth quarter of the Dream's matchup against the Portland Fire after Reese made contact with Carla Leite. Reese appeared to shove Leite while the two were battling for position in the lane.

The play that led to Angel Reese's 8th technical foul and a suspension for Sunday against the Lynx unless it is rescinded:pic.twitter.com/G8wsa09F37

— Underdog WNBA (@UnderdogWNBA) August 29, 2026

Under WNBA rules, a player or coach is automatically suspended for one game upon receiving their eighth technical foul during the regular season. Every additional technical comes with a $1,500 fine, while every two additional technical fouls received during the regular season will result in an additional one-game suspension.

The league has the option to rescind every technical or flagrant foul assessed during each game. But if the technical foul stands, Reese will serve out her suspension for the Dream's matchup against the Minnesota Lynx on Sunday, Aug. 30.

Reese previously exceeded the technical foul limit during the 2025 WNBA season while playing for the Chicago Sky and served out a one-game suspension on Sept. 5, 2025.

More: Caitlin Clark won't be suspended after 8th technical foul rescinded by WNBA

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Angel Reese picks up 8th technical foul, set for 1-game suspension pending review

BOX SCORE 

The Commanders preseason is over.  

All three exhibition games are in the books, capped by Washington’s 41-3 loss on Friday night against the neighboring Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium.  

This was Washington’s last official act with a 91-man offseason, with the NFL mandating it be trimmed to 53 players by Sunday at 6 p.m. ET.  

It’s hard to say how much the preseason finale weighs in overall player evaluation as part of a far larger body of work. This contest was waged between those lower on the depth chart, with few earmarked for the 53-man roster available in this one.  

That still doesn’t excuse how bad the Commanders were in this contest. They couldn’t do anything right in this one and got dominated in all phases that didn’t involved Tress Way punting. I mean, it was awful.  

We still mined this contest for insight. Let’s examine (with a microscope) four takeaways relevant to the 2026 Commanders:  

Luke McCaffrey in trouble? 

We knew the Commanders would hold most major contributors out of the preseason finale. They ended up deeming 41 players inactive. Yeah, you read that right.  

This was a situation where Commanders season-ticket holders should be happy this one was played in Baltimore. That miles-long inactives list included most of the names you’d expect, featuring plenty of star power and folks you see in the box score this fall.  

There might be some clues in those selected to play versus not and their odds of making the 53-man roster. Did it influence my 53-man roster projection, coming out late Friday night? It certainly did. Especially at receiver.  

Luke McCaffrey played — so did Van Jefferson – while Treylon Burks and Dyami Brown sat. 

Let’s read some tea leaves, shall we? 

Did McCaffrey draw the short straw to ensure enough targets with six receivers sitting? Is Washington shopping McCaffrey and wants to give team another look? Or is he firmly on the roster bubble? That last thing might be the case, as surprising as that might’ve sounded a few months back.  

This receiver corps is deeper than it was in 2025, especially with Stefon Diggs on board, Antonio Williams looking really good and Jaylin Lane secure as a punt return man who can handle kickoffs.  

Playing doesn’t mean you’re cut, not by any stretch, but it raises an eyebrow in McCaffrey’s case.  

Tyler Owens brings an edge 

Defensive back Tyler Owens is a thumper. We saw that against the Lions, when he demolished a running back while rushing the passer, but we’ve known that for a while.  

Owens reminded the forgetful on Friday night, with two huge hits early in the contest. That includes one right at the goal line:  

Owens brings a unique energy to the safety position and aggressiveness to his slot play. And let’s not forget his work on special teams play. This is a guy Washington needs deeper on the depth chart. With how he has played, Daronte Jones should be prompted to carve out a role for this physical presence.  

Bubble players don’t show well 

Commanders will form their 53-man roster based on a summer’s worth of work, not one preseason game right at the finish line. Friday’s contest won’t negate an otherwise solid preseason, but several fighting for a final roster spot seemed to falter at the finish.  

Linebackers Ale Kaho and Kain Medrano fit into that group, with struggles tackling and in coverage. Receiver Jaden Bradley, who has made some nice catches this preseason, fumbled returning a kick in the first half. Running back Robert Henry, who fumbled last week, had a misstep in pass protection. Interior linemen Julian Good-Jones was the third center to play, and wasn’t particularly good in that showing.

Running back Kaytron Allen isn’t on the roster bubble, but he lost a fumble on Washington’s opening drive. 

Trash this tape 

The phrasing above is definitely old-fashioned. No one uses actual tape/film anymore. And no one’s throwing a tablet in the trash. You simply select the game file, push the delete button and then hit confirm.  

I mean, the Commanders won’t really do it. There’s always something to teach from, but most of the active Commanders players won’t be making the team. Those who do will largely want to forget what happened on Friday night in Baltimore, which capped a rough week of Ravens dominance in a joint practice and then this game.  

If we are going to spin this segment forward, it only reinforces the fact the offensive line needs help from a depth perspective. There aren’t many reserves who look ready to play a regular-season game at this point. GM Adam Peters is gonna have to make a move a center, and maybe pick up another guard.

Bottom line: Those who continue on to the regular season can’t make the types of mistakes frequent in this contest, where little went right. 

The best part? It’s over. Now on to the regular season.  

The legacy of Stephen Curry hits the big screen in a documentary film titled "Portrait of an Artist: Stephen Curry," which captured the Golden State Warriors' superstar in the moments leading up to and throughout his NBA record-extending milestone of hitting his 4,000th career 3-pointer.

The documentary, distributed by Disney, is directed by Religion of Sports co-founder Gotham Chopra and will be released exclusively in IMAX theaters Oct. 9, 2026.

The film showcases what it was like for the four-time NBA champion and two-time MVP to reach the levels he did. In the film, Curry speaks on his upbringing, mindset and work ethic, explaining a few of the intangible traits that got him to become recognized as one of the greatest basketball players to grace the NBA.

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"We are pumped to show you all something the team has been working on," Curry said in his Instagram caption. "A new documentary that captures the journey to my 4,000th career three-pointer. Coming exclusively to IMAX theaters in October, the film explores the creativity, discipline, and mindset behind the game I’ve dedicated my life to. Basketball is a craft I love deeply, so being compared to an artist is something I take with a lot of humility. But creativity has always been at the heart of how I play."

The project called for 21 IMAX-certified cameras that were used as part of the state-of-the-art production to help capture the moment Curry drained the milestone-setting jumper against the Sacramento Kings during the 2024-25 season.

Curry hit his 4,000th career 3-pointer during a March 13 game at Chase Center in San Francisco in front of thousands of fans. It was the first time in NBA history a player reached 4,000 total 3-pointers made in a career.

He entered the matchup needing just two 3-point baskets to reach the unprecedented milestone. He did so. And the Warriors went on to win the game 130-104.

The film includes special appearances by other artists who have dominated their own respective fields including Viola Davis, Rick Rubin, Patti Smith and Jon Batiste. They all shared their thoughts on Curry's artistry.

"This film is all about capturing Steph Curry, an athlete and artist who is always chasing a new masterpiece,” Chopra said in a news release. “With the court as his canvas, we wanted to show the world the relentless creativity and discipline that drives one of the greatest to ever play the game. We are thrilled to be able to share this film in IMAX with audiences across the country."

It's the second film produced by Curry's multimedia company Unanimous Media, which he co-founded with multi-creative Erick Peyton in 2018. Unanimous Media produced Sony Picture Animation’s hit animated feature film “Goat,” which quickly became the top-movie in America in theatres after its debut in February 2026.

It was highly reviewed by critics and audiences alike, and the group is hoping audiences are fulfilled after watching their latest documentary.

"With ‘Portrait of an Artist,’ we wanted to tell a story that goes beyond breaking a record on the court, while exploring the creativity, discipline and mindset behind the journey,” said Curry and Peyton said in a joint statement. “This film is our way of capturing what it feels like to experience Stephen’s performance in real time, especially for those who haven’t had or may never have the chance. We’re proud to partner with Religion of Sports, IMAX and Disney/ESPN to share this experience with audiences on a global scale."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: IMAX documentary chronicling major Steph Curry milestone set for release

Four-star shooting guard Chase Lumpkin has narrowed his list of offers to six schools, he told Rivals. Moving forward, the 6-foot-4 rising senior out of McEachern (GA) will consider Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisville, Michigan, and USC.

To this point, Lumpkin has completed an official visit to Michigan and unofficially visited Alabama. He’s scheduled to take an official visit to USC this weekend, followed by an official visit to Alabama the weekend of September 19th.

Lumpkin is ranked as the No. 30 overall recruit in the 2027 class and the No. 8 ranked point guard, according to the Rivals Industry Ranking, an average of all three major recruiting media companies (Rivals, ESPN, 247Sports).

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In addition to his finalists, he also received offers from Auburn, Georgia Tech, Florida State, Ole Miss, Georgia, Tennessee, Oregon, Providence, UCLA, Indiana, Miami, Iowa, Vanderbilt, UConn, and others.

This summer on the Nike EYBL Circuit, Lumpkin averaged 17.3 points, 5.7 rebounds, 4.5 assists, and 2.2 steals per game for Jet Academy.

He previously spoke with Rivals about what he’s looking for in a school.

“I really need to go somewhere I can develop the most and get to the next level and become a pro player, where I’ve got belief in the coaching staff and they’ve got belief in me. I just want to get to the next level.”

Scouting Lumpkin

Rivals national recruiting analyst Jamie Shaw has evaluated Lumpkin multiple times in person this summer. Here is what he’s written about the highly regarded guard:

“Lumpkin is very confident on the ball. He has good feet and solid positional size in the 6-foot-4 range. He shot the cover off the ball, stepping into shots and knocking down catch and shoots. Also showed passing acumen, delivering on target and on time as a primary initiator. Lumpkin played a streamlined and confident game. He got to spots and put consistent pressure on the opposing team. Lumpkin finished with 29 points and 8 assists on 8 of 15 shooting in the Jet Academy win.

“Lumpkin was the breakout player of the weekend. The Jet Academy guard did a little bit of everything for his team, initiating offense, finishing plays, and generally creating advantages for his team. He showcased excellent vision on the ball, and he processed quickly and efficiently, whether that was getting the ball to his teammates or making shots on his own accord. Lumpkin got into the paint consistently, and he finished well at the rim.”