For three glorious games, the Lakers looked like they had discovered the secret to winning basketball in 2026: score so many points on offense that nobody notices you can’t stop anybody on defense.
Through their first three games of the NBA season, Luka Doncic was putting up MVP numbers. Austin Reaves was playing like an All-Star and the perfect No. 2 scoring option alongside Doncic. Walker Kessler looked like the trade of the century, catching alley-oops, protecting the rim and putting up numbers at center the Lakers haven’t seen since Wilt Chamberlain and Shaquille O’Neal.
Damian Lillard (0) of the Portland Trail Blazers shoots a 3-point basket during a game against the Los Angeles Lakers at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2026. NBAE via Getty Images
The Lakers still can’t defend the perimeter, and no amount of offensive fireworks can hide that fact forever.
Portland shot a ridiculous 59% from the field, buried 18 of 36 3-pointers and scored at least 32 points in every quarter. The Blazers didn’t just exploit the Lakers’ defense, they made them look like traffic cones on the court during a shootaround.
“We got broken down a lot,” Lakers coach JJ Redick admitted afterward. “The game-plan discipline, KYP [Know Your Personnel] discipline wasn’t where it needs to be.”
Ja Morant repeatedly sliced through Los Angeles’ perimeter defenders, forcing help rotations that left shooters open. Deni Avdija scored at will, including behind the arc for 23 points. Jrue Holiday added 22. Damian Lillard reminded everyone in attendance at Crypto.com Arena that “Dame Time” is still alive and well, delivering dagger after dagger in the fourth quarter, including the game-clinching basket with 43 seconds remaining.
Portland Trail Blazers forward Deni Avdija (8) reacts after scoring a three-pointer during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Los Angeles Lakers, Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2026, in Los Angeles. AP Photo/Caroline Brehman
Frankly, the Lakers had no answers for the Trail Blazers’ offense.
And that should concern Redick considerably more than his team’s first loss.
Through four games, Los Angeles averaged 128.2 points, second in the NBA, with an offensive rating of 126.8. But its defensive rating of 118.8 ranks 23rd.
Those numbers tell the story of a team capable of winning 50 games while possessing the same defensive vulnerability that could send them home early in the playoffs for the fourth straight year.
Ja Morant #1 and Damian Lillard #0 of the Portland Trail Blazers celebrate a Lillard three pointer during a 136-129 Blazers win over the Los Angeles Lakers at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2026. Getty Images
Make no mistake, these Lakers are going to win plenty of basketball games this season. Assuming reasonable health, another 50-win season and a top-four seed in the Western Conference is entirely realistic.
But there’s a drastic difference between being an entertaining team throughout the season and being an actual threat to compete for a championship.
Doncic scored 41 points against Portland, following his spectacular 52-point performance in Utah. Reaves contributed 26. Yet the Lakers still lost because their opponents were getting whatever shots they wanted.
“We had a lot of blown assignments. It was everybody, it wasn’t just one person,” Reaves said. “I made some bad defensive mistakes. You could go around the room. So, [we] gotta be better.”
You cannot ask Doncic to score 40 every night just to compensate for teammates who cannot stay in front of their assignments.
Last season, Redick did his best with the roster he had by increasing energy and effort and switching to a zone defense at various points during the year. Honestly, it was amazing the Lakers won their first-round matchup in the playoffs with the Rockets considering their defensive inefficiencies and being without Doncic and Reaves.
This season, the problem isn’t effort alone. It’s once again about personnel.
Austin Reaves (15) of the Los Angeles Lakers and Ja Morant (1) of the Portland Trail Blazers smile during a game at Crypto.Com Arena in Los Angeles, Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2026. NBAE via Getty Images
The Lakers lack sufficient lateral quickness along the perimeter. When opposing guards penetrate, defenders collapse, rotations become scrambled and shooters find themselves with enough daylight to start a vegetable garden.
The 7-footer has been outstanding, but he’s being asked to protect the rim, contest drives, cover defensive breakdowns and somehow recover quickly enough to secure rebounds.
Even the best defensive centers cannot be in two places on the court simultaneously.
“We were breaking down and giving up corner 3s, pull-to-break 3s,” Kessler said. “I pride myself on being the leader on the defense, and I didn’t perform tonight.”
And the Lakers have another problem when it comes to Kessler: Who replaces him when he comes out of the game for a much-needed rest?
Kevon Looney has struggled to provide dependable minutes, leaving Los Angeles dangerously thin behind Kessler. For a center with an injury history, carrying this much defensive responsibility over 82 games is asking for trouble.
Rob Pelinka should already be exploring the trade market for a legitimate backup center rather than waiting until Kessler’s workload becomes a medical concern.
Redick deserves credit for experimenting with defensive schemes, including zone looks last season, but coaching adjustments cannot manufacture foot speed.
First-round pick Cameron Carr, once healthy, possesses the youth, athleticism and defensive potential that this roster desperately needs.
The Baylor product won’t magically solve everything, but he deserves an opportunity to demonstrate whether he can defend NBA guards without requiring three teammates to rescue him.
The Lakers don’t need another scorer. They need somebody who takes pride in preventing one.
Redick said it best after Tuesday’s loss.
“If we score 129 points at home, we should be able to get enough stops to win.”
He’s right. Los Angeles can score with anybody in the NBA. The question is whether it can stop anybody when it matters most.
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The Phoenix Suns are last in the NBA in defensive rating early in the 2026-27 season, and their offense over three games has not been anything to celebrate either.
You can point the finger at a lot of different people as to why this season has started slowly, and that there are too many fatal flaws on this roster to overcome. Devin Booker, Brian Gregory, Mat Ishbia, and injuries at center all share some level of blame, but it is Miles Bridges who sits at -17.0 in net rating this season, only trailing Booker with a -17.7 net rating on the Suns.
When Bridges was brought in this offseason, the hope was for him to be a 6’8” version of Jordan Goodwin in the starting lineup. A guy who plays with an elite motor, defends and rebounds at an elite level, and is capable of knocking down open threes. That has not materialized early on defense at all, while the rebounding has been fine at 6.3 per game, but not where it needs to be for this Suns team to win. The entire team shares the blame for their inability to rebound and defend on the defensive end this season, but Bridges’ athleticism was supposed to give that group a boost, and instead, it’s dragged them down to the bottom.
Because of the injuries to Oso Ighodaro and Mark Williams, Bridges has been called upon to be a small-ball center, which has not gone smoothly for anyone, especially Bridges.
‘Offensively, it has gone as poorly as anyone could have imagined so far for the Suns this season, with no Suns starter shooting above 33% from three. Bridges is the worst shooter on the Suns right now; he is taking 6.7 long-distance attempts (second on the team) and connecting on only 20% of them. Many of those attempts are late into the shot clock, heaves that have even less of a chance at going in. The hope for Bridges this season was that he could at least make teams pay when opposing teams left him wide open, but that has backfired.
It would be easy for us as a Suns community to declare this trade a catastrophic failure. We gave up Royce O’Neale and Grayson Allen, plus an unprotected first-round pick, for someone playing this poorly. And if this trend continues from Bridges, Mat Ishbia and Brian Gregory’s management of this roster has to be examined under the microscope because it has Bradley Beal levels of stink to it right now.
But before I make any certain claims about this trade, we should give the Suns more time. Bridges is one of three new rotation players on this roster, and he missed a significant portion of the preseason with an ankle sprain. It has only been three games, and a week of good shooting and better defense from Bridges will turn his season around in a hurry. He is a better player, or at least has been a better player than what he has shown so far, but the level of patience for him to figure things out is dwindling fast because of the price the Suns paid to get him, on top of the off-the-floor issues he has to overcome to be accepted by Suns fans.
The nonnegotiable for Bridges to win Suns fans over and help the team win is that he has to play with incredible effort. He has to be the spark plug for the starting unit as the guy who creates extra possessions for the Suns and sets the tone with toughness and physicality. If he brings that consistently, the Suns can work through the rest of their mess and survive if he fills that role this starting unit desperately needs. On top of the motivation to win games, Bridges is also playing for a contract extension this season and is in prove-it mode on a new team, so there are no excuses for not getting his best effort on a nightly basis.
However, if Bridges and the Suns’ play does not improve before the calendar turns to December, then this season, which is quickly spiraling out of control, is only going to get messier, and Bridges’ time in the Valley will be extremely short. That would be another F on Mat Ishbia’s report card during his short time as owner of the Phoenix Suns.
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - OCTOBER 28: Jordan Clarkson #00 of the New York Knicks celebrates a three point basket against the Chicago Bulls during the second half at the United Center on October 28, 2026 in Chicago, Illinois. 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. (Photo by Jessie Alcheh/Getty Images) | Getty Images
It was always going to be that way, just like Ewings_Finger_Roll joked in the Postgame Thread. There seemed to be nothing the New York Knicks could have done in last night’s road game against the lowly Chicago Bulls that would have made many in their fanbase jump out of their wonderful plushy seats from which they watched a championship just half a year ago. But man, Jordan Clarkson and his friends surely tried nonetheless.
To make things a little interesting, the reigning champs went by the playbook of last year’s early-season game at Chicago on October 31, 2025, even if that Cup contest wasn’t on the second night of a back-to-back like this one. They still sleepwalked through it against a young, inexperienced outfit of bull calves which bears no resemblance to the mighty teams of the Windy City’s past—let me know if that sounds familiar. Then, in the end, your Knickerbockers made a furious comeback only to have it fall short just before the finish line.
When Norman Powell put Chicago up by 19 midway through the third quarter, that looked like it would be a good bet to happen again. I’m sure you could have found a parlay or something with one of the many bloodthirsty gambling companies that populate our sports world these days. But as is so often the case, that money would have been gone.
Knicks play around and still win
Would it have been nice if the Knicks hadn’t played with their food so much but rather gulped it down immediately, just like my young Labrador does with anything edible (and not edible) that gets within a mile of his jaws? I’d guess so. Letting a young and, in parts, actually talented team like the Bulls gain confidence is a dangerous proposition. It can quickly turn a game into a mess that it just shouldn’t be, not even on the second night of a back-to-back. It can get players benched, too, as Mikal Bridges can confirm after getting just 13 minutes in this one. But while there are plenty of gripes to be had about how the first two and a half quarters went this time around, nobody can argue with the final result.
Josh Hart interrupts Benny The Bull’s dark magic ritual and squares up on him pic.twitter.com/kqNfLt93Jo
In large part, we can thank the Knicks reserves for that, especially Jordan Clarkson, Landry Shamet and Tyler Kolek. They all took turns scoring, defending, passing and fighting; their energy, especially on the offensive end, was palpable. With better and, most notably, quicker ball movement initiated by Kolek (9 assists) came more and more open opportunities from downtown, and the Knicks capitalized (48 percent from three). What a game like this means for Kolek going forward is hard to say, especially once Jose Alvarado comes back from his injury. But even with a more than crowded backcourt, there is probably always room for classy, heads-up point guard play.
Jalen Brunson’s wrist looked pretty solid
It’s not really how Jalen Brunson interprets his role at the one, but we’ll take the alternative for now. The captain was his vintage self in his former home state, going for 38 big points in a game where his team needed each one of them. Fourteen of those came in the fourth quarter, when there was nothing the Bulls could do to stop the reigning Finals MVP. Word on the street is that Norman Powell is still looking for his ankles around the United Center; considering how he is an old buddy of OG Anunoby from their Toronto days, we surely wish him the best.
The most welcome sign from Brunson’s game was that he finally had his three-pointer going (6 of 10 from beyond the arc). Wrist surgeries can be a tricky thing for shooters, and quite a few people were at least slightly concerned when Brunson started the season ice cold from the floor. Worry no more, my friends: our captain is still our captain, and the wrist looked fine. Just like the Knicks did in the end when they pulled out a game that easily could have been one of those dreaded schedule losses that we’ve luckily grown accustomed to over the last few years.
I mention “luckily” because you basically can only have these types of losses when you are a good team. When people expect you to win, when they expect you to walk over the bottom feeders of the Association. There’s a temptation to chalk these games up as business as usual no matter the result, especially if you’ve partied up and down the Canyon of Heroes in June. But winning them more often than not points to a certain quality a team possesses. And witnessing that never gets boring, does it?
PITTSBURGH, PA - DECEMBER 14: Rickard Rakell #67 of the Pittsburgh Penguins battles against Mikhail Sergachev #98 of the Utah Mammoth at PPG PAINTS Arena on December 14, 2025 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Joe Sargent/NHLI via Getty Images) | NHLI via Getty Images
Who:Utah Mammoth (8-5-0, 16 points, 2nd place Central Division) @ Pittsburgh Penguins (5-6-1, 11 points, 6th place Metropolitan Division)
When: 7:00 p.m. ET
How to Watch: Locally televised game on Sportsnet Pittsburgh and Utah16, broadcast in Canada on SN and TVA, streaming for out of market at ESPN+
Pens’ Path Ahead: The Penguins are hitting the road Saturday for a game against the Montreal Canadiens before returning home next week for a Tuesday game against the Vegas Golden Knights and Thursday game against the Boston Bruins.
Opponent Track: This is the first matchup of a six-game road trip for the Mammoth, which most recently conceded a 3-1 loss to the visiting Minnesota Wild. After starting the season 7-3, Utah hasn’t won in regulation since beating the Penguins back on Oct. 19 (they’re 1-2-0 with an overtime victory since).
Season Series: This will mark the last time the Penguins see the Mammoth this regular season. Pittsburgh is looking to spit the series for a second straight year.
Hidden Stat: Two fights took place in a 90-second span of the Mammoth’s Tuesday loss to the Wild, a game that marked the first Utah game in history featuring three fights. The Mammoth now lead the league with eight fights in 13 games this season.
Potential scratches: John Marino (week-to-week), Daniil But, Artem Duda
Injured Reserve: Michael Carcone (upper body), Maverick Lamoureux
Former Penguins defenseman John Marino is considered week-to-week with an upper-body injury.
Liam O’Brien could be making his season debut against the Penguins after appearing in his first game of the campaign against the Wild. He was one of three players who dropped the gloves Tuesday against the Wild.
Special teams notes
The Mammoth have seen very different results from their different special teams through this early stretch of the season.
Utah is heading into the matchup ranked 29th in the league with a 67.4 percent penalty kill success rate.
Head coach André Tourigny said after his team gave up two power-play goals against in Tuesday’s 3-1 loss his team learning more “discipline” would be key going forward.
The Mammoth are meanwhile overall averaging 3.62 goals per game, a number that is good for the sixth-most in the NHL and that has been inflated by the team’s success on the power play.
Utah ranks second in the NHL with a 34.8 percent power play success rate, although the unit went 0-for-4 Tuesday against the Wild. Nick Schmaltz’s five man-advantage goals in 13 games are still tied for the second most in the NHL.
On the other hand, the Mammoth are tied with the Penguins and two other teams for 11th in 5v5 scoring. Utah is also looking for a rebound performance offensively after being most recently held to just one extra-attacker goal in the final two minutes of regulation in their loss to the Wild.
The Mammoth rank third in the NHL with a 54.8 percent face-off rate so far this season, while the Penguins rank 30th after going 45.6 from the dot. Vincent Trocheck has won an impressive 62.8 percent of his face-offs over this early stretch.
Mikhail Sergachev, who is tied with Clayton Keller for the points lead in Utah, is riding a five-game point streak (1-5—6) into tonight’s matchup. Logan Cooley meanwhile has three goals in two games.
Goaltending uncertainty
It hasn’t been a particularly strong start to the season for either Mammoth goaltender. Only the Vancouver Canucks have recorded a lower team save percentage than Utah’s mark of .866. Both Karel Vejmelka and Sebastian Cossa rank bottom-11 in the league (out of 71 goaltenders) in goals saved above expected, per HockeyStats.com.
Sportsnet’s Nick Kypreos said last week the Mammoth are not “sold on Karel Vejmelka being the No. 1” who could lead his team on a playoff run (h/t NHL Rumor Report), although Tourigny said after the Tuesday loss to the Wild he felt Vejmelka was “back on track.”
Utah was tied to an interest in Connor Hellebuyck before he was traded to the New Jersey Devils in exchange for a haul including four players and two draft picks. How Vejmelka performs as this early stretch of the season continues could impact whether the Mammoth eventually take a swing at upgrading their goaltending ahead of the deadline.
And now for the Pens
Projected lines
FORWARDS
Tommy Novak – Sidney Crosby – Rickard Rakell
Egor Chinakhov – Ben Kindel – Evgeni Malkin
Andrei Kuzmenko – Hendrix Lapierre – Ville Koivunen
The Penguins could be getting a few players back from health issues after their four-day break. Sam Girard and Egor Chinakhov are back at practice after missing three and two games, respectively. Ben Kindel looks ready to slot back into the lineup for the first time since the Penguins’ last game against the Mammoth.
It's important for Ben Kindel to shift his focus ahead after what he experienced last week.
"I'm definitely not dwelling on anything or have anything holding me back coming into this weekend."
More roster updates: Rutger McGroarty was absent from Wednesday’s session and could be a scratch. Avery Hayes and Chase Pietila were re-assigned to the AHL on Wednesday. Justin Brazeau has also been sent to Wilkes/Barre on a conditioning stint after getting activated from IR, while Elmer Soderblom replaced him on the list.
Forward Justin Brazeau has been activated from Injured Reserve and assigned to @WBSPenguins (AHL) on a conditioning loan.
Forward Elmer Soderblom has been placed on IR.
Forward Avery Hayes and defenseman Chase Pietila have been re-assigned to WBS. pic.twitter.com/JIjtKM9eXM
The Penguins were running a top power-play unit of Sidney Crosby, Erik Karlsson, Ville Koivunen, Tommy Novak and Rickard Rakell, while slotting Chinakhov and Kindel alongside Andrei Kuzmenko, Kris Letang and Evgeni Malkin on the second unit at Wednesday’s practice.
SCOTTSDALE, ARIZONA - MARCH 21: Cristian Arguelles #26 of the Colorado Rockies catches a fly ball during the sixth inning of the Spring Breakout game against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick on March 21, 2026 in Scottsdale, Arizona. (Photo by Chris Bernacchi/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Good morning, Purple Row!
Here’s what’s going on with the Colorado Rockies and the rest of Major League Baseball.
Cristian Arguelles (No. 5 PuRP) made a name for himself in the Rockies farm system in 2026. As it turns out, however, he’s had another Rockies name on his mind since he was a kid when Carlos González was his favorite player. The 19-year-old outfielder has modeled his game after former All-Star and is starting to see results reminiscent of a young CarGo with high a high batting average and a mixture of speed and power. If you weren’t already excited to watch Arguelles progression through the minors, this piece from Thomas Harding will make you a fan.
If you want a comprehensive, one-stop-shop overview of the current state of the Rockies roster needs and possible goals this offseason, Tyler Paddor has you covered. This lengthy piece digs into the current state of the roster as well as sorting through all the different avenues the front office could take in order to address its biggest needs. It’s a bird’s-eye view but one that provides a wonderfully all-encompassing view of the Rockies goals and options this winter.
The 2026 MLB season is officially over with the Milwaukee Brewers having earned their first championship in franchise history. Do yourself a favor and take a moment to soak in the joy and relief present in the recap and game thread comments over at Brew Crew Ball. That feeling of decades of waiting culminating in a triumphant moment of celebration is what all sports fans are in search of and it’s remarkably easy to lose sight of the goal when mired in the day-to-day minutae.
With the AFL in full swing, prospect evaluators have assembled enough data to start making adjustments to the reports on players that are showing changes to their skillsets. Eric Longenhagen does just that in this piece that combs through the most notable prospects present in the AFL and gives updates on how their stock has shifted. No Rockies made the cut for inclusion in the piece, but it’s still a useful glimpse at the state of prospects across the game.
As is tradition, Jim Bowden over at the Athletic has released his free agent contract predictions. The former GM has historically had a knack for getting the dollar figures pretty close to where they end up, though in recent seasons other publications may have caught up to his accuracy. Interestingly, Bowden lists the Rockies among the best team fits for two free agents: outfielder Taylor Ward and NPB starting pitcher Kaima Taira.
WASHINGTON, DC - SEPTEMBER 25: CJ Abrams #5 of the Washington Nationals warms up before a game against the New York Mets at Nationals Park on September 25, 2026 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Jamie Sabau/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Welcome to a new series that I will occasionally run between the free agent profiles and random nonsense: plugging holes in the roster with trades. These trades might be unlikely because the Cardinals won’t pay the price, they may be unlikely because the other team is not actually interested in trading them, or a much more depressing possibility is the Cardinals are not actually that interested in improving the team this offseason.
My stance this offseason, which I don’t believe the Cardinals share, is that the Cardinals should try to actually win in 2027. I will bring up a past example, unfortunately a rival, but in 2014, the Cubs won 73 games. They had an emerging core with Jake Arrieta turning into an ace, Kris Byrant about to have his service time manipulated, Anthony Rizzo standing on top of the plate on the way to multiple All-Star appearances, and a very good farm system not very far away (led by Bryant, Baez, and Contreras). They signed Jon Lester, Jason Hammel, and traded for Dexter Fowler. They won 97 games.
So yes, I am going to spend most of this offseason acting like the Cardinals may make moves, both because it gives me something to write about and also to get it out there that some Cardinals fans want the Cardinals to make moves. Don’t sit on your ass. Please. Abrams is just one possibility, but please do something this offseason to show you care about winning. Rant over.
Let’s get the difficult part of this trade out of the way. I saw Abrams as a name that might be traded on the em el bee website and the rationale was that Abrams wanted to stay at SS and the Nationals are trying to move him away from SS. Which would obviously present a problem for the Cardinals if Abrams really is hung up on playing SS. The problem is that he’s one of the worst defenders in baseball at SS. He legitimately has no range defensively. He was 1st percentile in range this year, 2nd percentile last year, 1st percentile the year before, 3rd percentile in his first two seasons – like he just can’t play SS. He has never at any point looked like can play SS.
I feel like if I am delusional about my ability to play my position and then I’m traded specifically because of my stubborness about playing that position and I go to a team where the position I want to play is manned by a back-to-back Gold Glove winner – okay fine I’ll change positions. Abrams is going to face that reality at some point, probably next year quite frankly, and the Cardinals situation is about as smooth as you can ask for – it would be impossible to argue that no, actually, I deserve to play over the Gold Glover. So big hurdle, but should be the kind of thing you can figure out before you agree to a trade.
The bad news is that he has zero professional games at 3B – I hate that I keep proposing players with no experience at 3B, 3B is not in a good place right now across the league. The good news is that it’s hard to see how he could have much worse of a defensive impact than is already baked into his value. Range is less important at 3B than it is at SS or even at 2B and he has a strong enough arm for 3B, with 53rd percentile arm strength. Hardly a strength but he throws harder than either Blaze Jordan and Thomas Saggese. I think even without the presence of JJ Wetherholt, 3B might be the better move for him.
I don’t even think I have to do much work to figure out his value. He was worth 3 fWAR in 2025 and 3.7 fWAR last year. Last year came with what looks to me a bit of an elevated offensive line from what I would expect. He had a 17.6 HR/FB% (career 11.6%) and a much lower xwOBA than actual wOBA (.333 compared to .358). So he’s an above average hitter, but I think the current 109 wRC+ Fangraphs has projected for “rest of season” is basically right. He derives a lot of value from his baserunning too – 143 stolen bases to 25 caught stealing in his last four seasons (average of 35 a season). So he might be worth half a win from his baserunning.
So terrible defender, great baserunner, above average hitter – again I’ll defer to the Fangraphs rest of season projection, which is actually just a full season, but it has him with 3 WAR. That seems right to me. He will be 26 next year and has two years of team control. Because he’s 26, I’m relatively comfortable saying he’s a 3 WAR player in 2028 too. Even if that’s not what the projections will say, that’s probably his trade value. How much is he getting paid? According to MLB trade rumors, $10.2 million in 2027. Which means his 2028 value should be around $15.3 million.
That means in prospect value, valued at 6 wins across two years while getting paid $25.5 million, Abrams will be valued at $34.5 million. Fangraphs has posted an updated evaluation of prospects and that is almost exactly what a 50 future value pitcher is worth. The other option, at least by this system, is to give the Nats a 45+ future value pitcher ($15 million) and a 45+ FV hitter ($18.5 million). The numbers work out weirdly well.
Okay what do the Nationals need? Probably not a catcher. Keibert Ruiz is going to be in year 5 of an eight-year-deal and he was actually decent for the first time since 2022 last season. Top 100 prospect Harry Ford is behind him. They already traded for a big catching prospect, they probably are going to let Ford sink or swim before trying the next solution.
Look no further than the Nationals actually if you want to throw some cold water on relying on prospects. Dylan Crews sure looks like a bust. Daylen Lile had a promising rookie year and… then had a below average season in his first full season. Brady House took some big steps in his second year and was worth 0.6 fWAR in 95 games. Both Ruiz and Ford haven’t really justified their prospect ranking at all yet. Josiah Gray has been pretty underwhelming five years in.
Anyway, to answer the question of what they need? It’s kind of complicated, because of the above paragraph. You can never go wrong with pitchers and outfielders though and the Nationals could definitely use a 1B. Alec Burleson makes no sense on either side quite frankly, because the Cardinals would give up all the gains they made by getting Abrams and the Nats would presumably not want someone with two years of team control, cause if they thought they were close, they wouldn’t trade Abrams.
In theory, Blaze Jordan is perfect, except I don’t know if the Nationals are actually interested in him. He’s largely not expected to be able to play 3B (I know the small sample said he could, I am skeptical), and I’m not sure his bat is good enough for 1B. The Nationals probably think the exact same thing. Jack Gurevitch is also an option. If you’re wondering the Nats do have two top 100 prospects in the middle infield in AA, but maybe they’d be interested in one of the Cardinals utility players to replace Abrams in the short term. So with my two premises and a few possible proposals within that premise, here is what I came up with
50 FV Pitcher Proposal
CJ Abrams andRiley Cornelio for Jurrangelo Cjntje and Blaze Jordan
Yeah I tried to justify a different pitcher, but this is the prompt. I’m using Fangraphs, and of course other sources may think other pitchers are 50 FV, but the two options given by Fangraphs are Cjintje and Liam Doyle. There is just about no way Brandon Clarke or Tekoah Roby or Cooper Hjerpe have the value of a 50 FV prospect at this point. Tanner Franklin might but he’s no easier to stomach than Cjintje to be honest. I wanted to put Daniel Eagen here because I don’t have an attachment to him, but I don’t think he’s a 50 FV pitcher either.
Because Jordan is a bit too much technically, I wanted the Nats to throw in a reliever too. But holy hell are their relief options terrible. They had a worse bullpen than the Cardinals. Cornelio struck out 37% of batters in AAA and had a very strong September (31.3 K%), so maybe there’s something here. Clayton Beeter is a possibility too. Luis Perales would effectively be a Rule 5 guy, but he’s going to be 24 with no options and according to Fangraphs has a 65 fastball, 60 slider, and 70 cutter… with 30 command.
The specific relief pitcher is not important. Pick your most promising guy. And if the Nats aren’t interested in Jordan, I’ll give them Bryan Torres.
I already know most of you are saying no to this.
45+ FV Hitter and Pitcher Proposal
CJ Abrams for Brandon Clarke and Jesus Baez
I’m not setting out to trade Clarke or Baez… but if an opportunity presents itself, I’m cashing in my chips. I think most Cardinals fans are vastly overrating the likelihood that Baez is going to be good, which is funny because I was definitely the high man on him entering the year. But he was not good in High A for half the year before destroying the ball in Springfield, he doesn’t walk, he has always had low BABIPs, and the home run ball in the minors makes his numbers untrustworthy. Clarke speaks for itself, to the point that I’m not sure he’s actually considered a 45+ prospect at this point.
If Clarke is a no go in a trade, sorry Daniel Eagen, I have no attachment to you, you’re found money at this point. If you work out, I don’t think I’d care in the same way as the other 45+ FV guys.
Conclusion
Yeah I largely expect a pretty healthy dose of nos in response to my article. Just for the record, this is what it would take. If you theoretically want Abrams, but not any of these trades, you don’t want Abrams. You aren’t going to get Abrams for prospects that don’t hurt to give up. And granted, I’m sure a lot of nos are going to be of the “doesn’t make sense where this team is at right now” and yeah fair enough. I’m actually not crazy about making these trades either. I just thought it was interesting to explore.
Book Corner
One of my first comments about Alexander Hamilton by Ron Chernow was that I was simultaneously listening to a history podcast on Aaron Burr. The contrast was interesting. The podcast was more or less from the Burr perspective. Obviously, the book was from the Hamilton perspective. I suppose this had a negative effect on the book, because I kind of don’t buy into the book’s take on Burr or the duel itself. I have my own issues with the podcast, but this is the book corner.
I want to say this delicately but Chernow is clearly a Hamilton fanboy and I don’t think people who love the book would disagree with that. But I think the duel is a lot less clear than he portrays it. I happen to think it’s very possible Hamilton accidentally made a really bad shot, I think it’s very possible if he ended up dying, he knew he would come out looking the best if he acted like he would miss on purpose. Both sides agreed they fired at very similar times. I think Nathan Pendleton’s account is straight up unreliable because he wanted Hamilton to look good and Burr to look bad.
I just am making the point that the picture we get of the duel, and not just from this book to be fair, is almost entirely one-sided in Hamilton’s favor and it’s because he died. Everything Burr had ever done at that point was completely erased or colored with that fact. People with no ill thoughts of Burr prior to the duel suddenly might have bad things to say about things Burr did in the 1790s.
And I’m aware Hamilton is not the only one with negative things to say about Burr, but given the time period and the animosity of the Federalists and Republicans, it’s so incredibly easy to find negative quotes. I realize he never got along with Thomas Jefferson, but Burr was able to be vice president for a reason. He was reasonably well-liked. It’s tricky because I know his bias and overwhelming love of Hamilton is part of why people love the book, but when it came to Burr, it genuinely felt like Hamilton rose from the dead and inhabited his body to write those passages, which kind of just made me not trust anything he said about Burr.
Fundamentally, I believe both entered the duel for political reasons. I don’t agree with dueling of course, but if both parties agree to it, then I can’t view either side as the “villain” but Chernow so clearly portrays him as one. Like yeah he probably had murderous intent, kind of the whole point, kill or be killed and all? If Hamilton missed on purpose, how the hell was Burr supposed to know that? Both sides agreed both shot within a few seconds of each other.
Anyway just my two cents, I enjoyed reading it, didn’t love the Burr stuff. (I am aware he was later accused of treason, but that’s a combination of trusting the slimeball James Wilkinson and being an opponent of Jefferson, cause there was no real evidence for it)
I will be on vacation the next two weeks. I want to thank Al, Ashley and Josh who will be filling in for me.
I just love small ball! What a great game!
I’m someone that is just watching the series for fun, not cheering for either team. I’m of course missing the emotional stress, but the general excitement was extremely contagious for Tampa Bay’s extra-inning comeback win in an elimination game Tuesday.
A 22-year-old rookie, Cooper Pratt, hit the go-ahead home run for Milwaukee in the top of the 12th, his fourth hit of the game. And in one of the great things about baseball, the Rays one-uppped the Brewers in the bottom of the inning. After a Brewer error, a single to left and a single to right tied the game. After a single to center loaded the bases, pinch-hitter Ben Williamson’s first-pitch single to right drove in the winning run. Four singles after an error, two runs, and it was beautiful.
I appreciate your reading. See y’all in a couple of weeks!
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PCA Fully Kicks Off the Award Season in a Big Way:
Jordan Bastian (MLB.com): Which Cubs can take home hardware? “Happ is the only outfielder in Cubs history with more than two career Gold Gloves.” (I didn’t know that — guess I missed that fact and thought I’d share)
Jason Ross (North Side Baseball): Offseason Primer: A State of the Union on the Cubs’ Bullpen. “As the offseason prepares to kick off, what is the State of the Union in the Cub’s bullpen? Will it be a strength or a weakness of the 2027 club?“
Carson Wolf (Just Baseball): Cubs Free Agents: Who Stays and Who Goes? “The Chicago Cubs face several free-agent decisions this winter. Here’s who they should bring back and who’s more likely to move on.”
Brett Taylor (Bleacher Nation): How Active Will the Chicago Cubs Be Before the Lockout Begins? “Will the Chicago Cubs be aggressive early in the offseason, given their robust set of needs on the pitching side (plus some questions in the corner outfield spots and behind the plate)? Let history be our guide.”
Matthew Trueblood (North Side Baseball): As Cubs Consider Buying Low on a Bat, These 5 Names Stand Out. “The Cubs have a lot of work to do on their lineup as they look toward 2027, but much of their money and prospect capital will need to be spent on pitching. That could leave them shopping for bats in the bargain bin.”
Paul Niemiec (North Side Baseball): Corner Outfield Conundrum: What to Do with Ian Happ and Seiya Suzuki. “The Cubs have decisions to make regarding their outfield, with both of Seiya Suzuki and Ian Happ set to become free agents. There’s no obvious, easy way forward, so which path should they take?”
Samuel John “Lightnin'” Hopkins (March 15, 1912 – January 30, 1982) was an American country blues singer, songwriter, guitarist and occasional pianist from Centerville, Texas. In 2010, Rolling Stone magazine ranked him No. 71 on its list of the 100 greatest guitarists of all time. The musicologist Robert “Mack” McCormick opined that Hopkins is “the embodiment of the jazz-and-poetry spirit, representing its ancient form in the single creator whose words and music are one act”. He influenced Townes Van Zandt, Hank Williams, Jr., and a generation of blues musicians such as Stevie Ray Vaughan, whose Grammy-nominated song “Rude Mood” was directly inspired by the Texan’s song “Hopkins’ Sky Hop”. In his own lifetime, Hopkins was one of the initial inductees in 1980 to the Blues Hall of Fame.
As a child, Hopkins was immersed in the sounds of the blues. He developed a deep appreciation for the music at the age of eight, when he met Blind Lemon Jefferson at a church picnic in Buffalo, Texas. Hopkins began accompanying Jefferson on guitar at informal church gatherings. Jefferson reputedly never let anyone play with him except Hopkins, and Hopkins learned much from Jefferson at these gatherings. In the mid-1930s, Hopkins was sent to Houston County Prison Farm, but why he was imprisoned is unknown.
Please be reminded that Cub Tracks and Bleed Cubbie Blue do not necessarily endorse the content of articles, podcasts, or videos that are linked to in this series.
INGLEWOOD, CA — Darius Garland and the Los Angeles Clippers continue to struggle with turnovers to start the season.
The turnovers happened early and often for the Clippers, who fell to 1-3 on the season after losing to the Lakers on Wednesday, Oct. 28.
Isaiah Jackson won the tip-off against Lakers center Walker Kessler to start the game, but Garland was caught off guard and didn't recover the ball as he was still tying his hair while the ball rolled out of bounds.
Garland was responsible for five of the team's 24 turnovers on Wednesday. Rookie Keaton Wagler was one of four players to have three turnovers.
Coach Tyronn Lue expressed the importance of his team taking care of the ball before the game, but that didn’t come to fruition.
The Lakers managed to capitalize on these turnovers and scored 31 points. The Clippers are also the first team since 2002 to have recorded three consecutive games with 24+ turnovers.
The Lakers managed to produce a 17-0 scoring run in the second quarter and outscored the Clippers 26-6 on fastbreak points, but Lue directed that result to the turnovers.
“I wouldn’t say fastbreak, I'd say turnovers that led to easy 3-on-1s or 1-on-0,” Lue said. “As far as transition, I don't think we did a bad job with that; I think our transition hurt us when we turn the ball over because nobody can get back when that happens.”
With Luka Dončić out, the Clippers managed to limit the Lakers' best available scoring option, Austin Reaves, with their defense.
Reaves was 6-of-16 from the field and finished with 16 points and six rebounds while turning the ball over eight times.
"I think over the four games defensively we've done a lot of good things and we are causing turnovers, but we are just giving it back,” Clippers guard Kris Dunn said. “If we can execute when we do cause turnovers or when we are in the half-court offense and execute, we give ourselves more than a great chance to win these ball games. ... If we can cut down the turnovers, what could the record look like?"
When do Clippers play next?
The Clippers can snap their three-game losing streak with a road win against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday, Oct. 30.
Lendeborg was a bright spot for Golden State against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday night, scoring 26 points and being one of only three Warriors players to score in double figures. But he did commit seven turnovers, and speaking with reporters after the game, he did not mince words when assessing his performance.
Ya el Lendeborg on his seven turnovers: “I played hella soft today. Draymond told me that as well.”
He said Draymond instructed him to drive through their chest later in game
“I played hella soft today,” Lendeborg said. “Draymond told me as well, but seeing it from everybody else’s perspective, I know I was playing super soft. I gave in to all the fake pressure that they were applying, all the grabbing and all the pulling.
“I was playing a little timid, and I wasn’t decisive in any of my moves. So that’s where I would say five of my turnovers came from. The other two are just stupid on my part, and I’m going to know next time I watch film on it. Next time I’m going to just attack it and forget the play.”
Lendeborg is playing well through five games this season, averaging over 22 points and nine rebounds, and has been a seamless fit for Golden State. But the adjustment to the NBA is not easy, and forming a close bond with Draymond Green, Lendeborg has taken the opportunity to learn from him. After one of his turnovers, Green offered the rookie advice that he made sure to apply.
“It was right after the play where I lost it out of bounds next to our bench, and he told me, ‘Next time you get it, drive through somebody’s f—king chest,’” Lendeborg shared. “And I was like ‘OK, I got you.’ So, I got the ball, they gave me a little backswing and I just ran down there. If they stop me at the rim, they do if not, then I score. So that worked out. Then coach Kerr gave me another opportunity with a little keep play. I drove through [Jonathan] Kuminga’s chest, just tried to be a little more physical …”
The Warriors entered this season with several questions, while dealing with injuries to key players such as Jimmy Butler, Moses Moody and Kristaps Porziņģis. But Lendeborg’s success early in the year has allowed the team to get by being short-handed and provides optimism for the future.
Steph Curry is nearing the twilight of his career, and if Lendeborg keeps playing at a high level, the franchise might have its next cornerstone player to build around.
MIAMI, FL - OCTOBER 26: Zaccharie Risacher #10 of the Dallas Mavericks drives to the basket during the game against the Miami Heat on October 26, 2026 at Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida. 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 2026 NBAE (Photo by Joe Murphy/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
Just four games into the Zaccharie Risacher Experience, the Dallas Mavericks seem to be having a good time.
A good enough time that the team announced on Wednesday, before the team’s 120-96 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder, that they would pick up the fourth-year team option on Risacher’s rookie deal. After the announcement, Dallas is on the hook for just over $17.4 million for Risacher next year, or just over nine percent of the salary cap. His $13.8 million this season accounts for just over 8.3 percent of the cap.
The deadline to extend Risacher at that number was Friday.
It’s just your standard rookie scale fourth-year extension, but it shows that the Mavericks have confidence that Risacher is worth developing. He’s in his third year in the NBA, so he may feel like more of a finished product than he really is, but it’s important to remember that he’s still just 21 years old. It’s certainly possible that a huge leap in production is in the cards for the Frenchman picked No. 1 overall in the 2024 NBA Draft by the Atlanta Hawks.
The offensive production entering Wednesday’s game was hit-or-miss through the first four games of Risacher’s tenure with the Mavs, but his defensive presence has been undeniable. He averaged eight points, six rebounds, two steals and two blocked shots per game in the small sample to begin the year. His career averages entering this season were 11.1 points and 3.8 boards per game.
“It’s his motor and his conditioning,” Mavericks head coach Dusty May said in his pregame comments before the matchup against the Thunder, when asked what makes Risacher a good fit alongside Cooper Flagg. “The guy never gets tired. He’s a cyborg. … As his intensity and motor [have] improved, his defensive rebounding — the extra possessions he gives us just by getting a fingertip on the ball. Obviously, the weak-side blocks — there’s a residual effect of those. So he’s kind of reinventing himself where, even though he’s not shooting nearly as well as he always has, he’s found a lot of value in other parts of the game.”
There's the once a game Risacher play that makes me laugh out loud with joy
It’s true. His shooting splits have been abysmal to start the season. Risacher shot just over 30% from the field and just 17.6% from 3-point range in the team’s first four games, but he’s still found ways to affect winning. He’s been a cumulative plus-26 through the first five games of the season. On Wednesday, he had his best offensive outing in his brief tenure with Dallas, finishing with 13 points on 5-of-6 shooting (2-of-3 from 3-point land) and six rebounds in 29 minutes in the win over OKC.
Risacher was acquired by the Mavericks alongside a top-55 protected 2027 second-round draft pick from the Hawks in a three-team trade that sent Ryan Nembhard to Atlanta and a Mavericks-owned 2027 second-round pick to the Thunder. He was an All-Rookie First-Teamer for the 2024-25 season.
Here’s what Risacher had to say about the rookie-scale extension following the Mavericks’ win over Oklahoma City:
“I was super happy, super — great news. Just, I’m feeling grateful to be in this organization, this environment, with those people — I’m talking about front office, teammates — everybody’s been great, and everybody wants to win, and everybody does the right thing to make sure we get into this position — win games and compete. And I feel like, as a young player, that’s the best position I can get in, and I’m grateful to be able to be in that environment for two years, at least. I’m just super grateful.”
Games would be first held in Africa if bid successful
East-coast city preferred to Johannesburg and Cape Town
South Africa on Thursday announced the east coast city of Durban as its preferred candidate to host the first Olympics in Africa.
South Africa is bidding to host the 2036 or 2040 Summer Olympics and Paralympics. The International Olympic Committee will choose the host city for 2036 in mid-2029.
It’s fair to say that Jacob Fowler has taken the NHL by storm since being called up from the Laval Rocket. The rookie netminder has gone 6-1-0 since then, including two shutouts and six straight wins. He became just the third Montreal Canadiens goaltender to record at least six consecutive wins before turning 22, after Rogie Vachon and Patrick Roy.
Fowler has also become a road warrior; in three road games, he ranks third in the league in both goals-against average (0.67) and save percentage (.980). Only Colten Ellis, who has played one game, and Jake Oettinger, who has played three games, have better numbers. As things stand, he has well and truly grabbed the number-one role with the Canadiens, and make no mistake: the only reason Jakub Fowler is getting the start on Thursday is that he’s been sitting for over a week. When the Sainte-Flanelle takes on the Pittsburgh Penguins in the Mecca of hockey on Saturday night, Fowler will be back between the posts.
Many have earmarked him as the Canadiens’ goaltender of the future, but few expected him to climb that high, that fast. Dobes himself may be wondering how he went from leading the team to the Eastern Conference Final last season to getting a front-row seat so quickly, but it’s a results-based business, and the Americans’ recent work speaks for itself.
One man may not be all that surprised, though. After Fowler’s stellar shutout performance against the St. Louis Blues, an excerpt from the team’s 2023 draft documentary started circulating on social media, featuring then-amateur scout Billy Ryan explaining to the Canadiens’ extended brain trust why they need to select Fowler in no uncertain terms.
It’s a good thing the Habs hired Ryan in August 2022 to run their amateur scouting department in the USA, but the Canadiens didn't update their website to include him until April 12, 2023 and back then he was simply listed as a scout, but that appears to have been an oversight which was fixed in mid-July 2023. It means that he hadn’t even been in the role for a full year when he defended his stance on Fowler in front of a room full of people.
Fast forward three years, and the Canadiens must be oh so very glad they not only hired Ryan, a former amateur scout with the Florida Panthers for seven seasons, but also listened to him back then. Five netminders were picked before Fowler in 2023: Adam Gajan, Michael Hrabal, Trey Augustine, Carson Bjarnason and Damian Clara. Clara and Bjarnason are in the AHL; Gajan is in the ECHL; Augustine and Hrabal are in their first full AHL season. Fowler is ahead of the curve and slowly but surely making his way into early Calder Trophy discussions.
PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA - SEPTEMBER 22: Zack Wheeler #45 of the Philadelphia Phillies pitches in the first inning against the Milwaukee Brewers at Citizens Bank Park on September 22, 2026 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Emilee Chinn/Getty Images) | Getty Images
This post was written before we knew the outcome of Game 5 of the World Series. Did the Brewers close it out for their first championship? Did the Rays stave off elimination for one more day? Do we still have baseball to watch, or is the encroaching dread of the lockout the only thing on the horizon? You, dear future reader, know the answers to all of these questions and more! Lucky you.
BALTIMORE, MD - AUGUST 23: A general view as Shane Baz #34 of the Baltimore Orioles pitches against the Tampa Bay Rays during the third inning at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on August 23, 2026 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Hello, friends.
There are now 146 days remaining until the next scheduled Orioles game. In a bit more than a month, the owner lockout will hit and things will be uncertain until a labor agreement is reached.
There will be no more MLB games to divert us in the meantime. The World Series is over as of last night. The Brewers weren’t able to close out the Rays with a sweep on Tuesday night, but they still were plenty able to end the thing before there was much in the way of suspense. Behind their hard-throwing ace Jacob Misiorowski, Milwaukee finished off a dominant romp through the playoffs by taking Game 5 of the World Series and with it, this season’s championship. It’s the first time in Brewers franchise history that the team has won it all.
The Brewers, in a lot of ways, are a demonstration of the importance of getting as many bites at the postseason apple as you can. They made it into the postseason all but one year going back to the 2018 season. After a hard-fought seven-game NLCS against the Dodgers that year, they had a whole lot of early exits while waiting for a year where everything broke their way. That finally happened in 2026.
It’s not like it was a surprise to have things break Milwaukee’s way. This was not a fluke team that snuck into the postseason. The Brewers had the best regular season record, with more wins even than the two-time defending champion Dodgers. They showed how this year was going to be different by sweeping those Dodgers, the same team that swept them in the NLCS a year ago. They faced the AL’s best regular season team in the World Series and they trashed those guys.
Still, this wasn’t guaranteed. Even regular season success doesn’t guarantee postseason success. The Brewers had to do a lot of things right once they got into October, and for the duration of this month, that’s what they’ve done. They earned this title. And now the Orioles have the fifth-longest championship drought among MLB teams, behind the Guardians, Padres, Mariners, and Pirates.
In the meantime in Birdland, it’s been all new general manager Jared Banner all the time over the course of this week. That’s not so much because Banner is everywhere as it is that Banner had his introductory press conference earlier in the week and there are no other new inputs, so reading the tea leaves from that presser is all that there is to do.
I think it would be better for the Orioles if something like this had happened a year ago, if Mike Elias had recognized his 2025 plan was flawed and he was going to need to make some changes to get better outcomes. To be at least a little fair to Elias, he did try different things last offseason. The signing of Pete Alonso, the trade for Shane Baz, even the trade of Grayson Rodriguez were all breaks from how he’d done things before. It was not enough.
In the waning weeks of the regular season, there were signs that more changes were coming. Front office personnel were shuffled around or out of the organization entirely. We’d heard the story before about the Orioles looking into hiring a general manager and they didn’t do it. This time, they’ve done it.
Banner and Elias both are saying all the right things so far. There’s no guarantee that it’s going to work. I do think that at a minimum, we can say that it will fail while trying something different. In a few more days, we’ll start to see what kind of roster plan they try to put into place in the month of November before the lockout hits.
Elias admitted his faults. Can Jared Banner fix them? (The Baltimore Sun) Elias ate a big serving of humble pie in making this hire. Everybody has nice things to say about Banner. On the other hand, everybody had nice things to say about Craig Albernaz, and look where that got us.
Banner day: Jared Banner aced his first press conference. Now comes the hard part. (Steve on Baseball) While not making any specific promises about Gunnar Henderson, one thing Banner brought up is how the presumptive NL MVP, Pete Crow-Armstrong, was pretty good last year but still not satisfied, and the Cubs helped him ascend to a new high level. Sounds like a nice concept.
The Orioles must decide if Colton Cowser is their everyday center fielder (The Baltimore Banner) The outfield free agent market sucks. I have to figure Cowser is the center fielder for 2027 if he is healthy to play. He is another guy who Banner will hopefully be able to help institute some processes that will improve him.
Birthdays and Orioles anniversaries
Today in 2013, three Orioles received Gold Glove awards as the winners were announced: Shortstop J.J. Hardy, center fielder Adam Jones, and third baseman Manny Machado. There were three Orioles Gold Glove winners the next year as well, but there hasn’t been multiple winners since then. No Oriole has won a Gold Glove at all since Ramón Urías received one four years ago.
There are a few former Orioles who were born on this day. They are: 2021 pitcher Shaun Anderson, 2012 pitcher Dana Eveland, 2000/2004 outfielder Karim García, 1973-74 infielder Frank Baker, and 1967-71 pitcher Pete Richert.
Is today your birthday? Happy birthday to you! Your birthday buddies for today include: painter Bob Ross (1942), Homer Simpson voice actor Dan Castellaneta (1957), actor Rufus Sewell (1967), and actress Winona Ryder (1971).
On this day in history…
In 1888, a treaty signed in Constantinople proclaimed that passage through the Suez Canal would be guaranteed regardless of war or peace. Egypt, which is home to the canal and was then ruled by the Ottoman Empire, was not party to the treaty talks, nor did it sign the treaty. Today, the effects of this treaty are still in force with one exception: Egypt may forbid passage to ships from countries with which it is at war.
In 1914, the conflict we now know as World War I had another escalation, with the Ottoman Empire joining the war on the side of Germany and Austria-Hungary. Exactly five years later, the empire dissolved with the proclamation of the Republic of Turkey, today known as the Republic of Türkiye.
In 1929, a crash on the New York Stock Exchange became what is now recognized as “Black Tuesday,” triggering the beginning of the Great Depression.
**
And that’s the way it is in Birdland on October 29. Have a safe Thursday.
On Tuesday, Julian Champagnie came into the Spurs game against the Sacramento Kings and dropped eight three-pointers in thirteen minutes, tying his own franchise record. He dropped eight in the first half against the New York Knicks on New Year’s Eve last year, then came back in the second half and hit three more.
Through my Spurs-colored glasses, Champagnie looks to be one of the best in the league. But this Venn Diagram I found through StatMuse lays it out clearly.
Of current NBA players, Champagnie is one of seven players who tally 3+ made three-pointers per game while shooting at 45% or better. Here’s the kicker — Julian isn’t succeeding solely on offense, he is also one of twenty-two players who are recording three or more “stocks” per game. “Stocks” is a portmanteau for steals and blocks. In other words, Champagnie is killing it on both ends of the court.
His shooting benefits from the attention given to Victor Wembanyama. At any time, Wemby is being doubled, leaving an open man. Champagnie is often that lone man, and he has found that he can hit from anywhere beyond the arc. When he gets hot…watch out.
Defensively speaking, Julian is sneaky, quick, and agile. His athleticism allows him to get to pull boards, often times against larger opponents. He is the 3-and-D guy that the Spurs needed to expose weaknesses in opposition.
When you put the three-point shooting prowess in the diagram with the stocks, Champagnie is in a category all his own. A one-man wolf pack, if you will.
Spurs are off Thursday and Friday after two sets of back-to-backs involving travel. They play on Halloween against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Unfortunately, the T-wolves are without Anthony Edwards for the next couple of months as he tends to his right knee. It is an unfortunate turn for Minnesota who just brought in LaMelo Ball to partner with Edwards. There have been a rash of early season injuries plaguing the league.
Light your Spurs candles to ward off the mischief acquainted with the holiday.
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