The Mets reinstated infielder Ronny Mauricio from the 10-day IL and optioned him to Triple-A Syracuse on Saturday after he completed a rehab assignment, the team announced.
Mauricio, who missed all of the 2024 season due to a torn ACL suffered during winter ball in December 2023, played 10 games with Single-A St. Lucie and Double-A Binghamton during his rehab stint.
The 24-year-old recorded four hits over 32 at-bats, including two doubles. Defensively, he's seen action at 3B (three games), SS (two games), and 2B (two games), in addition to three games as DH.
“Ronny continues to progress. He’s still in Double-A. We’ll get him up to Triple-A here pretty soon, and then it’s just play all three [positions] on the infield, continue to build up volume,” Stearns said. “He’s still got, I think, a little ways to go to get – he’s a healthy player, but to get back into that true baseball shape, ready to compete art a high level at the big leagues, I think we’ve still got a little bit of a ways to go. So, it’s continue to get him at-bats, continue to get him reps in the minor leagues.
“He’s a player who has options, so he’s going to stay in the minor leagues until we have a need.”
Over 26 major league games during the 2023 season, Mauricio hit .248 with two home runs and four doubles for nine RBI. He also stolen seven bases.
Manager Carlos Mendoza also spoke about expectations for Mauricio on Saturday ahead of the team's game against the Yankees, saying that he needs to get reps at multiple positions across the infield.
"I think it's that, become a normal baseball player," Mendoza said. "Getting used to playing every day without the restrictions, 'Hey, you're only playing five innings, you're only playing seven.' Just continue to play full games, continue to play back-to-back, three, four games in a row. And he's not there yet, so we got to get him there.
"I think it's more getting every day at-bats, every day reps. And then we'll go from there."
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There are several reasons why this is the case. For starter’s, 100-point players don’t grow on trees. You want your team to have as much firepower as possible. So, having players that can put the puck in the net or create the plays that make that possible are extremely vital.
Marner is an elite playmaker who can provide a solid volume of secondary scoring. Over the past four seasons he has scored 35, 30, 26, and 27 goals.
Playmaking is really the highlight of his game, shown by his penchant for racking up assists. Marner has collected 62, 69, 59, and 75 assists in the last four years.
In the 2024-25 regular season he led the Toronto Maple Leafs in points (102), assists (75), even-strength points (67), and powerplay points (33). Marner was first among Maple Leafs forwards with total time on ice per game (21:19) and shorthanded time on ice per game (2:09).
Toronto goal!
Scored by Auston Matthews with 13:40 remaining in the 3rd period.
The one knock against Marner right now is that he doesn’t have the same level of production in the playoffs as he does in the regular season.
In my opinion, this is an unfair assessment of Marner. He has collected 13 points in 12 playoff games this season, and recorded 14 points in 11 games two postseasons ago.
It’s easy to argue that over his career he hasn’t been as successful as Rantanen in the playoffs. Rantanen has 120 points in 93 career playoff games to Marner’s 63 points in 69 games.
But, you can always change your narrative.
One former Leafs forward, Zach Hyman, changed his narrative when he signed with the Edmonton Oilers. In 32 playoff games with the Leafs, he recorded 13 points. He’s played 64 postseason games with the Oilers and has put up 57 points.
Sometimes a change of scenery does a player wonders. Could Marner replace Rantanen? In the regular season, he probably could. The playoffs would offer him an opportunity to change the narrative surrounding him.
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Like a lot of us, NHL players are proud people. Their on-ice careers are their life’s work, and their ability to control what happens on the ice tends to carry over to their lives off the ice.
That means, whenever possible, NHL players want to be the author of their exit from hockey’s best league in the world.
Of course, for the grand majority of NHLers, the end of their playing days comes too soon. A major injury, a series of minor injuries or a drop-off in overall skill level eventually catches up with them, and they’re forced to call it quits. Only for a precious few does this reality differ from the rest. And this is why we occasionally see NHL stars attempting to defy the odds and stage their own departure from the sporting scene.
Longtime Chicago Blackhawks star center Jonathan Toews seems to want to defy the odds. The 37-year-old former Hawks captain last played in the 2022-23 season, before taking time off to deal with his own significant health challenges. But rumors are beginning to swirl that he intends to return to action, with a Sportsnet report suggesting that Toews may be targeting a return to the NHL next season. And while the Sportsnet speculation has the Anaheim Ducks – and Toews’ former Blackhawks coach and new Ducks bench boss Joel Quenneville – being a possible destination for Toews, there may be a different market that could prove to be a better fit for him.
For instance, would Toews’ hometown team, the Winnipeg Jets, want to extend an opportunity to him? The Jets are surely going to be a better team than Anaheim will be next season, and the chance to perhaps finish his NHL career in front of friends and family may be exceedingly attractive to him.
Winnipeg’s excellent depth also means Toews could come in and serve as the Jets’ third-or-fourth-line center, and the ensuing lack of pressure to play big minutes right away and start putting up major points may also be a determinant in his decision on where to resume playing. And the chance to play perhaps one final season with a team that has a solid shot at winning a Stanley Cup for the three-time Cup-winner might be its best selling point for him.
In that 2022-23 campaign with Chicago, Toews generated 15 goals and 31 points in 53 games, so teams need to adjust their expectations accordingly for him if he does stage a comeback next year. And maybe Toews doesn’t want the glare of a harsh spotlight and a heavy media contingent to deal with in a potential return, so a market like Anaheim could be a better fit for him.
In any case, Toews has earned the right to call his own shot when it comes to saying goodbye to the game. He may ultimately choose to stay retired and have a guaranteed induction in the Hockey Hall of Fame come sooner than later. But if he does give it one more try as a player, no one could fault him for it. Toews has nothing to prove to anyone, but taking one last stab at being an NHL player might be the one challenge he has left as an elite athlete.
Countless veterans before him have had their NHL exit authored for them, and Toews now has the opportunity to seize the moment and stage his own exit his own way. And no one should blame him for doing his utmost to stick around the world’s biggest hockey stage, even if only for the short term. Toews wouldn’t be the first top NHL performer to want to end things for himself, and getting the chance to play a handful more games may be too alluring to turn down.
After the Warriors’ 2024-25 NBA season came to a heartbreaking end with a Game 5 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves in the Western Conference semifinals on Wednesday night, Draymond Green received a savage text message from his mother that he has yet to respond to.
“Well, you got your fishing stuff out of storage?” Green said as he read his mom’s text message aloud on the latest “The Draymond Green Show with Baron Davis.” “It’s time for you to go fishing.”
Davis instantly burst into laughter, and Green couldn’t help but chuckle himself despite the ruthless message.
“Gone fishin” was started by TNT’s “Inside the NBA” crew and refers to when a team is knocked out of the playoffs — or a team outright failed to make the playoffs — and is usually accompanied by doctored photos of players on the team, and notable figures from the team’s home city, on fishing boats with analyst Kenny Smith.
To make room for lefty reliever Jose Castillo, the Mets have optioned Dedniel Núñez back to Triple-A Syracuse, league sources say.
Núñez, who emerged as a high leverage arm last season before suffering an elbow injury, made his season debut on May 5. The Mets planned for Núñez to remain with the team long term, but he walked has six batters in 3.2 innings.
The Mets had been looking for another lefty reliever since losing both A.J. Minter and Danny Young for the season. In making the move for Castillo, it was easier to option Núñez than designate Genesis Cabrera for assignment and risk losing him.
Star Philadelphia Flyers forward Matvei Michkov has only been in the NHL for one season, but he's already tired of all the losing.
As far as Michkov is concerned, it's time to win.
In the 20-year-old's first season in North America, he finished second only to Travis Konecny in scoring and led the Flyers in goals with 26. Michkov, however, would trade individual accolades for team success anytime.
"The most important thing is for the team to reach the playoffs. If I have fewer points, but the team makes the playoffs, I’ll take that over having more points and missing the playoffs," Michkov told RG in a recent interview. "I’m tired of losing. I want to win.”
League-worst goaltending, injuries, and trades doomed the Flyers to a 33-39-10 record and a last-place finish in the Eastern Conference. Head coach John Tortorella was fired on March 27 after some off-ice clashes and a 28-36-9 record through 73 games.
“For my first NHL season, Tortorella was probably the best coach I could’ve had. From day one, he explained everything clearly and was always honest with me,” Michkov said of Tortorella.
With interim head coach Brad Shaw electing to step away from the Flyers entirely, Michkov will technically be playing under his third head coach in two seasons, with Philadelphia hiring franchise icon Rick Tocchet as the 25th head coach in team history.
“A new coach always means a fresh start. I don’t know him personally, so I can’t say much yet,” Michkov told RG of Tocchet.
The Flyers' franchise player did subtly note, however, something he hopes improves during life under Tocchet.
"I just hope I’ll have freedom on the ice. When I feel limited, I start focusing on the wrong things. I just want to have ice time and not feel restricted. That's when I play my best.
“The main thing is that the team improves and makes the playoffs."
Michkov will be happy to know that Tocchet previously coached stars like Elias Pettersson, J.T. Miller, and Quinn Hughes to their most productive seasons in the NHL.
That kind of development is exactly what the Flyers want out of Tocchet, and if Michkov is to take the same leap, team success will come in lockstep.
"I think it was a great season," Michkov said of his rookie year. "But I really want to make the playoffs every year and fight for the Stanley Cup."
Juan Soto of the New York Mets bats during his first game back at Yankee Stadium on Friday night.Photograph: Mary DeCicco/MLB Photos/Getty Images
During the last game of the 2024 baseball season – as the Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the New York Yankees in Game 5 of the World Series to clinch a championship in front of a sold-out crowd of disappointed New Yorkers – there were still Yankees fans buying No 22 Juan Soto jerseys at the ballpark. This was noteworthy because as soon as the game ended, Soto was a free agent.
He had been traded to New York from the San Diego Padres – where he landed after a bombshell trade from the Washington National team that drafted him and with whom he won a World Series in 2019 – just ahead of his walk year. But Soto had endeared himself to the fervent fanbase quickly. In 2024, he was 80% better than average at the plate according to wRC+ and, with the towering Aaron Judge hitting behind him, led the American League in runs scored. And it seemed his swagger fit with the famous franchise that brought him back to the Fall Classic for the first time since he was 20 years old.
And so, even as the season dwindled around them, Yankees fans sprang for the pricey pinstripes sold in team stores. Some of them were Dominicans who vowed to root for their countryman wherever he went. Some of them simply wanted a souvenir from a summer in the Bronx worth commemorating. Some of them assumed he would be back.
On Friday night, he was. Soto roaming right field at Yankee Stadium. Soto sauntering to the plate and doffing his cap to the crowd. But now the gesture was cheeky, a joke with his new teammates who had tittered in the dugout about how funny it would be, and the crowd met it with resounding boos.
Over the winter, the New York Mets made Soto the richest professional athlete in North America, signing him to a 15-year, $765 million contract. It was the capstone of an evolution several years in the making for the Mets from charmingly hapless to heavy hitters that coincided with über-billionaire Steve Cohen buying the club. Of course, Soto could have been the richest professional athlete in North America who still played for the Yankees – reportedly he rejected their offer of a 16-year deal worth $760m. Whatever affinity he felt for the Yankees was worth less than $5m. Or maybe it was just New York that he loved.
Friday night was the start of a Subway Series between the Mets and the Yankees that might have been the best matchup of MLB’s debut ‘Rivalry Weekend’ even without the Soto of it all. For just the third time since the debut of the Subway Series in 1997, both teams have sole possession of first place in their respective divisions. Both entered the season with skyscraper-high expectations and have thus far lived up to them.
There was reason to believe Yankee Stadium might be evenly split. Even-ish, anyway. However far Yankees fans traveled to be at the game Friday night, Mets fans couldn’t have traveled much further. And yet, Soto’s reception left no doubt which fanbase dominated the 47,400-strong crowd. They booed him at every at-bat. As he ran out to right field in the bottom of the first, the entire section of seats turned their back on him. When they turned around it was to hurl profanity at him. Soto met their middle fingers with a wry salute.
As for the No 22 jerseys bought back when he was one of their own, some Yankees fans made their own alterations – one added a choice four-letter word scrawled on tape atop the nameplate, another wrote “Arroz” over the number, a nod to the newest Yankee No 22, Ben Rice.
At one point, Soto tossed a ball into the stands as he jogged off the field at the end of a half inning on defense. The Yankees fans around there roared with cheers when whoever caught it threw it back rather than relish a keepsake tainted by an ex.
“It’s New York, it’s what you sign up for,” said Clay Holmes before the game about the raucous atmosphere. An All-Star reliever with the Yankees, he, too, only went as far as a borough away in the offseason. He signed with the Mets, who have since turned him into a capable starter. “It’s what you want. You can feel the energy, the buzz. It’s a lot more fun to show up to the park.”
To underscore that this is a clash of true baseball titans, we should say that the Yankees, scorned by Soto, did not go on to wallow away the offseason. The money that could have gone to a single preternaturally gifted young star instead was instead used to plug holes around the roster with additions from baseball’s B list: lefty pitcher Max Fried, closer Devin Williams, and a couple of post-peak former MVPs in Paul Goldschmidt and Cody Bellinger. Fried, in particular, has proven essential and ascendant – he currently owns the lowest ERA in baseball, especially necessary on a contending Yankee club that has lost Cy Young award winner Gerrit Cole for the season and has thus far been without Cole’s worthy replacement from last year and reigning Rookie of the Year, Luis Gil.
Cohen, for all his largess, never would have sprung for Fried, whose eight-year, $218m contract is the largest ever for a lefty. Under new general manager David Stearns, the Mets philosophy has favored splurging on position players and finding value on the margins when it comes to pitching. The converted Holmes, for example.
It’s ironic, then, that the Yankees, who lost a player most often compared to Ted Williams, have started the season with perhaps the strongest offense in the sport. And the Mets, who eschewed top-of-the-line starters to budget for a $700m hitter, have the best starting rotation ERA.
Ultimately, the Yankees bats overpowered the Mets pitching in a 6-2 trouncing that almost got exciting in the ninth inning before Soto flied out with the bases loaded. It sent the Yankees fans who booed him home happy, but it elides the otherwise perfectly acceptable day he had at the plate: three walks, a stolen base, a run scored.
In the lead up to the Subway Series, both sides were asked about the presumed impending boos that would rain down on Soto specifically. Which is to say, it was no surprise.
“I was ready for it,” Soto said after the game, confirming that it was likely the loudest he’d ever been booed in his career. “You’ve got to embrace it at the end of the day.”
If his new union with the Mets works out the way both sides hope, the Yankees will be the last team Soto leaves on bad terms. The dynamic has added spice to a rivalry that was heating up anyway. The era of the must-see Subway Series has just begun.
A new nickname is being dubbed for Toronto Maple Leafs forward Max Pacioretty: Mr. Game 6.
After scoring the series-clinching goal in Game 6 against the Ottawa Senators in the first round, the veteran forward provided another massive goal on Friday for the Toronto Maple Leafs in an all-or-nothing Game 6 against the Florida Panthers.
Bobby McMann sprang down the wing in the third period, finding Pacioretty in front of the net. It was already a 1-0 game with captain Auston Matthews scoring his first goal of the series, but another goal would force a Game 7 at home in Toronto.
Pacioretty smacked the puck on the backhand, beating Sergei Bobrovsky for his third goal of the playoffs. After slotting it under the right arm of the Panthers' goaltender, the 36-year-old let out a thunderous, "Yeah baby!"
It was yet another moment where the Pacioretty signing paid off for the Maple Leafs.
"It's big time," McMann, who registered his first point since Game 1 against Ottawa, said on Friday night.
Pacioretty has been through incredibly tumultuous times in the last two years after rupturing his Achilles tendon twice. Drafted 22nd overall in the 2007 NHL Draft by the Montreal Canadiens, he wasn't ready to call it quits.
After playing 47 games with the Washington Capitals last season, Pacioretty joined the Maple Leafs on a professional tryout before signing a one-year, $873,770 contract two days before the season opener against the Canadiens.
Many questioned whether choosing the number 67 would bring a bad omen to the team after, well, their history. Pacioretty even laughed when he fielded questions about it during the opening days of training camp, saying, "I hope to bring the team good luck with that number."
In 10 playoff games with the Maple Leafs, Pacioretty has three goals and five assists for eight points, ranking him fourth in team scoring in the postseason. He's doing plenty of things right, especially with the number sewn on his back.
As he stood in front of the cameras after Game 6 against the Panthers, though, something unique occurred.
If you're superstitious or think the stars align for certain moments, you'll appreciate this: The sixth question fielded to Pacioretty on Friday was about his thoughts when he hears the words, "Game 7."
Sixth question, Game 7, see what I mean? Sixty-seven?
Many questioned whether Friday's Game 6 would be the final game of this era of the Maple Leafs. But they live to fight another day, now heading back home with a chance to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since 2002.
The "war" with Florida began on May 5, with Toronto taking the series opener, 5-4. The "war" will conclude on Sunday, with the Carolina Hurricanes waiting after eliminating the Washington Capitals.
"The job's only going to get harder," Mitch Marner said, "so don't be satisfied, got to take care of yourself, take the rest you need, and get ready for a hard game."
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Pete Rose hits a line drive to break Ty Cobb's all-time hit record while playing for the Reds in 1985. (Associated Press)
Rather than stew over whether Pete Rose and “Shoeless" Joe Jackson should be admitted, the Baseball Hall of Fame should open a special wing for miscreants. Rose, the Black Sox members who are HOF-worthy, and PED users like Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens, whose accomplishments before they started using would have earned them plaques, would all be welcome.
Brian Lipson Beverly Hills
So MLB has reinstated Pete Rose, months after his death. What a major league error to Pete Rose and his family, the fans and the Hall of Fame.
I understand that he violated the rules and bet while a player/manager, but his numbers, which make him a Hall of Famer, had nothing to do with bets. He didn't cheat, he violated a rule. The Astros cheated and still kept the World Series title.
Russell Morgan Carson
On the field a great player and fun to watch. Off the field bad news. His character a complete disaster. I hope he does not get in the Hall of Fame.
Phil Schneider Marina del Rey
Was that a bit of ironic humor from Bill Shaikin saying he checked with bookies to see what the odds are on Pete Rose getting into the Hall of Fame?
Sports betting is now at epidemic levels and appears in various commercials and program commentary throughout sports media as a display of odds changing throughout many games. It’s so out of control that it’s become normalized.
As for Rose, he brazenly and obsessively bet on baseball, including games involving his own team when he was a manager. That has always been considered a cardinal sin in the sport. He lied about it for decades, then came clean half-heartedly to make money on a book, then tried to play the aggrieved victim being denied his rightful place in the Hall. It was a nauseating spectacle that went on for years.
Rose was an exceptional player. But character and certain violations matter, otherwise there's no point in trying to protect the integrity of the game.
T.R. Jahns Hemet
I understand the steroid thing with Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens, and maybe they too will be honored in the Hall of Fame someday, but this "integrity, sportsmanship and character" purity test is nonsense! Look at Ty Cobb! What matters is what happened on the field. Let the all-time hits leader in ASAP.
Kennedy Gammage San Diego
Not again
After reading Bill Plaschke's column, I can't disagree that Austin Reaves might have to be traded in order to obtain a legitimate center. (I remember way back when we actually had one … seems like his initials were AD.) But whether the Lakers can "build around Luka Doncic" and whether JJ Redick is the carpenter for the job are huge questions.
In the Timberwolves series, Redick was outcoached and Minnesota's favorite target was Doncic. They pressured him in the backcourt and then doubled and line-trapped him in the front. By halftime, Luka was panting like an old dog in August.
The buzz on Doncic at Dallas was that he was lazy, chronically out of shape and self-unaware. That sounds like a shaky foundation to me.
Thomas Bailey Long Beach
Here we go again. Tossing a great player like Austin Reaves early in his career while we keep the worn-out old guys. Yes, I mean LeBron James. Why trade away Reaves in the prime of his career and keep a broken-down LeBron James? 2025-2026 will probably be his last season. Let him go back to Cleveland for free. We need the Lakers to be younger and coachable so we can get back to winning titles.
Dave Newman Brea
Normally I agree with Mr. Plaschke and enjoy his articles, but trading another future star and hitching their wagon to an aged LeBron James appears, to me, to be a big mistake. There are plenty of examples of young talent that the Lakers let go with the lost hope of winning with the “older” guys. Granted LBJ is an anomaly and a truly spectacular athlete. A sure first-ballot Hall of Famer but, come on man, its time to move on.
Paul D. Ventura Mission Viejo
They all count
In regards to a comment from comment that baseball standings from April to July are one of the most meaningless stats in sports, I disagree somewhat. The Dodgers and Padres are on top of the NL West, the Mets lead the NL East, the Yankees are pacing the AL East and the Tigers are on top of the AL Central. Barring major injuries, all these teams will be in their current positions in September. So, the current standings reflect the future.
Mark Heffernan Bakersfield
A reader wrote that one of the most meaningless stats in sports is the MLB standings from April to July. That's good news for the Chicago White Sox and the Colorado Rockies.
Brad Nelson Oxnard
Dollars and sense
The USC football program has not met the expectations of past years to any degree under head coach Lincoln Riley. Yet USC paid Riley more than $11.5 million in 2023. His base salary is a mere $10.2 million. So the school paid an additional $100,000 listed under bonus and incentive compensation. The bonus must have been for showing up for work. Who needs incentive compensation with a base salary of $10.2 million? How much is tuition at USC now? Unbelievable!
Wayne Muramatsu Cerritos
Winning the lottery
Dallas GM Nico Harrison: “If I trade Luka the fans will run me out of town.”
NBA commissioner Adam Silver: “Don’t worry. I got you.”
Russell Hosaka Torrance
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Mark Delgado will be doing his part to help LAFC beat the Galaxy in the latest installment of the El Tráfico rivalry even if it'll feel strange playing against his former team.
But one thing is for sure: Steve Kerr will return as head coach next season. And for as long as he wants to.
“At this point, just year to year,” Kerr said of his Warriors future while speaking to reporters Friday during end-of-the-season exit interviews. “I love my job. It’s so much fun. I loved this season. This was a really gratifying year in terms of the players, the commitment to each other, their ability to get through individual adversity. … I just think up and down the roster, we had guys who were committed, and when you’re a coach, that’s all you can really ask for.
“So I loved every second of this year. I love my job. But I know where the team is. I know where the organization is. So I’m perfectly comfortable going year by year at this point.”
Warriors general manager Mike Dunleavy appears to be on the same page.
“Yeah, for sure. He’s as big a part of this as anyone,” Dunleavy said. “He’s been great. I love him as a partner in this profession. I think it’s one of those things where we want him here as long as he wants to be here. And if that means going year to year, or doing an extension, I think we can figure stuff out.
“Of the things on my radar and agenda, no offense to Steve Kerr, but it’s not the highest thing up there because I know Steve will be around for a while.”
NEW YORK — The end is never as fun as the start. And yet it just doesn’t seem right that the end was this unsightly.
When Brad Stevens built a championship roster, acquiring Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday after a disappointing early exit in the 2023 Eastern Conference Finals, we all knew there was a short window for this current group. The Celtics put together a historic season that culminated with Banner 18, then had maybe the quietest offseason in NBA history while deciding to basically run it back this year.
But the 2024-25 season ended badly. Boston never quite found the same mojo from a season ago, even while piling up 60-plus wins and showing glimpses of that title squad. The Celtics reverted to some bad habits — blown leads, turnovers, cold shooting — and couldn’t get out of their own way against the New York Knicks in Round 2 of the Eastern Conference semifinals.
What seemed so certain last summer is so very murky now. Tatum could miss the entirety of the 2025-26 season while rehabbing from Achilles surgery, as the Celtics have set no timetable on his return. A team hovering $20 million over the second apron must cut costs to ensure it can reliably chase titles deep into the future.
A new owner will take the reins during the offseason and hear some grumbles about Boston’s cost-cutting ways, even if it was inevitable regardless of who was writing the checks.
For the first time in years, it doesn’t feel like there’s an immediate pathway to Banner 19. The Celtics, depending exactly on what pieces return, will be too good to tank but not quite good enough to fully contend until Tatum is back at full health. What the roster will look like when that happens is truly a mystery.
Which left the Celtics in a weird spot after Friday’s Game 6 loss. Even with their long odds to advance, Boston players never fully entertained the idea that the end was near. After the lopsided loss, they were asked to reflect on the two-year run of this title core and ponder what might come next. Most players politely declined to do either.
They raved about the locker room. They admitted it wasn’t fun to think about the changes ahead. But they were still processing the reality. Jaylen Brown, who very well might be the central figure in a potential bridge season, tried his best to balance the emotions.
“Losing to the Knicks feels like death,” said Brown. “But I was always taught that there’s life after death. We’ll get ready for whatever is next. Whatever is next in the journey, I’ll be ready for.”
So what exactly comes next? We laid out the financial hurdles ahead in the aftermath of Tatum’s injury. The Celtics are committed to $228 million in contracts next season, already $20 million over the second apron, and that’s before decisions on free-agents-to-be in Al Horford and Luke Kornet.
Changes are inevitable. The difficult part is that there are no easy answers to trimming costs while trying to maintain talent around the desired core of this team. Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens has the daunting task of figuring out how all these puzzle pieces fit together.
We feel pretty confident that next year’s roster will feature Tatum, as he rehabs, along with Derrick White, Payton Pritchard, Baylor Scheierman, and Jordan Walsh. We’re not sure anything else is certain.
Brown should be back as the focal point in the leading role. But the Celtics do have to at least consider all options to trim costs, and his $53.1 million salary — in Year 2 of a five-year, $286 million contract — is a gaudy number. Porzingis and Holiday were luxuries acquired to chase a title but their $30-plus million price tags could force the team to explore cheaper options at those spots.
Would a young team in need of a proven champ splurge to take on the three years and $104.4 million left on Holiday’s deal? What is Porzingis’ trade value after a mystery ailment sapped his energy at the finish line of the season?
Porzingis said he hopes a brief downturn in activity will jumpstart his body. He still hopes to compete in FIBA play with his native Latvia later this summer, which might offer answers to whether he’s able to reboot his body before the NBA season starts. He’ll have value as an expiring contract, but the Celtics would be rolling the dice a bit if they waited until next year’s trade deadline to potentially move off his money and his trade value feels diminished at the moment given his health woes.
Sam Hauser’s four-year, $45 million extension kicks in this summer. His 3-point shooting was vital in Boston’s title march, but the team might need to ride cheaper shooting threats if it can’t otherwise trim salary.
Does Horford, who will turn 39 next month, want to be back if Boston isn’t an immediate title threat? And at what price? Can the Celtics do some maneuvering to free up enough cash to reward backup big man Luke Kornet, who continues to blossom and came back on the cheap this season to keep the band together?
All decisions must be done through the lens of what puts this team in the best position to compete when Tatum is back on the floor. If Tatum misses all of next season, the calculus changes a little bit from whatever the team might have planned previously.
In Brad we trust. Stevens made the bold decisions to ship out core pieces in Marcus Smart and Robert Williams III in order to acquire Porzingis and Holiday. Even the most ardent Smart/Williams fans (this writer’s hand is raised high) can’t help but admit those deals elevated Boston’s ceiling and delivered the title that will cement the short legacy of this core.
Now Stevens has to do it again. The moves, in the moment, will almost certainly feel painful. But it also seems fair to suggest that Boston needed some tweaks after this season, particularly as familiar issues returned. The new acquisitions might not be as immediately talented as what goes out, but their fit and cost could aid this team in building the next version of a championship roster.
It’s unsavory that the collective bargaining agreement is what will prevent this team from trying to preserve more of the core moving forward. But it’s also the reality. The Celtics knew this crossroads was coming when they got ahead of the curve two summers ago. The interest on Banner 18 is coming due.
In this moment, everything feels uncertain. Which is simply jarring because everything felt so secure for the past 20 months. That’s life in the NBA. Things change quickly. You can’t sit around feeling sorry for yourself. You have to dust yourself off and put the focus on the next challenge.
All eyes turn to Stevens and his front office staff. Much like in the summer of 2023, they must work their magic.
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