TORONTO, CANADA - JANUARY 28: Landry Shamet #44, Karl-Anthony Towns #32, Tyler Kolek #13, and Mikal Bridges #25 of the New York Knicks celebrate during the game against the Toronto Raptors on January 28, 2026 at the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. 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 Mark Blinch/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
The pendulum swings back and forth, as the Knicks have now won four games in a row after a brutal start to the new year.
The team’s post-Thibodeau hangover looked real, as Mike Brown hung his hat on the offensive side of things. The strategy worked – until it didn’t. After another brutal loss at home to the Dallas Mavericks, Captain Brunson called a players-only meeting.
This was the state of affairs just 10 days ago. Bleak.
Are tensions rising for the New York Knicks? 🤔 @ramonashelburne gives us an inside look on what happened after their loss against the Mavericks 👀 pic.twitter.com/1MDEIk0pwG
Since then, the tide has truly turned. New York has rattled off four straight, and encouragingly, it’s been New York’s defense leading the charge. The team has held their last four opponents to 66, 109, 87, and 92 points, respectively.
Knicks defensive rating rankings this year:
First 15 games: 18th (114.8 DEF RTG) Next 10 games: 3rd (110.9) Next 16 games: 29th (120.6) Last 6 games: 1st (98.3)
Average offensive rating ranking of their last 6 opponents is 22nd, but still…progress. We know they can do it.
Yes, it’s a small sample size, and yes, the four games weren’t against championship contenders, but the Knicks hadn’t shown the ability to win games this way until now. Defense had been the biggest issue so far this season, but a new identity could be taking shape. They’ve been killing it on the glass. They’ve shown toughness on both sides of the floor. It feels like a relic of seasons prior.
What’s changed? Well, it’s no coincidence that Landry Shamet replacing Jordan Clarkson in the rotation has led to tangible change in the bench unit. Similarly, KAT has been averaging less than 25 minutes a contest across these last four games. And OG Anunoby has been locked back in, averaging three stocks per game across the same stretch.
It’s trade deadline season, and if the new year slide continued, we’d be having much different conversations right now. Yet as a whole, the Knicks’ mindset seems to have shifted. This has been a uniform shift from the bottom to the top, with both players and coaches changing their approach to gameday.
With the Blazers on tap tonight at home, New York is in a good position to stretch their streak to five as they battle for the two seed in the East. Let’s see if they can keep the good vibes going tonight.
Apr 5, 2023; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Celtics center Mike Muscala (57) makes the basket against Toronto Raptors forward Precious Achiuwa (5) in the second half at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-Imagn Images
Welcome back to the second and final part of Finding the Muscala, where we search for low-cost backup big options in response to the larger trade rumors surrounding the Celtics in the weeks leading up to the trade deadline.
As a refresher, we’re not explicitly in the search for the next Mike Muscala specifically, but rather a trade that reaches high on the Muscala Meter (not real or quantifiable) of being low-cost and significantly lower-risk than, say, any trade involving the contract of Anfernee Simons and a selection of first round picks.
The first part featuring Marvin Bagley, Jalen Smith and Nick Richards, led to some productive and engaging conversations in the comments, so thank you to all the MuscalApologists (working title) for contributing to this short series.
This wasn’t done in the previous Muscala piece, but with today’s three bigs, we’re ordering their contract values in descending order, starting with a higher-priced backup big that might require a slightly bigger deal to acquire.
Let’s jump in and talk backups.
Goga Bitadze
Entering the season on Year 2 of his 3-year, $25 million deal signed with Orlando, Goga Bitadze has been a valued bench piece for the Magic since he signed there in February 2023. The Magic have been stuck in neutral during that time under head coach Jamahl Mosley, and something tells me they’re a smart pick for a roster shakeup during the deadline.
Bitadze, only 26 and in his eighth NBA season, is a hulking 6’10”, 250-pound center that may not impose his will on offense as much as you’d envision from a player of his size and mobility, but he has still carved out a career as a rock solid rim protector and rebounder.
His game isn’t without its caveats though. He’s a non-shooter, a surprisingly unimpactful screener and a non-factor as a playmaker/ball-mover.
Bitadze’s rim protecting ability has held serious weight to his time on the floor these past few seasons for the defensive-minded Magic, but it seems his offensive limitations are factoring into his way out the door.
On Monday and Wednesday this week, he was a coach’s decision DNP, with Orlando instead opting for the recently-returned Mo Wagner’s offensive skillset behind Wendell Carter Jr.
For Boston, while not the perfect fit for his lack of versatility, Bitadze does fill a need and does so on a reasonable contract (though one that gives him significantly more than current starter Neemias Queta).
When it comes to actually considering a hypothetical trade, we had a similar discussion in the last part in regards to Bulls big man Jalen Smith, who has a comparable contract to Bitadze’s that would require a conversation that goes a little further than a package surrounding Xavier Tillman or Chris Boucher’s expiring deals.
To acquire Goga in a two-team deal, it would take giving up Sam Hauser, and that’s a hard sell for a large majority of the fanbase, and probably Brad Stevens, even if it brings in a helpful player at a position of need. For Orlando, a team that is 28th in 3-point shooting efficiency this season, that’d be a pretty major boon for them.
But to add even further to the discussion, that one-for-one swap wouldn’t be possible on Orlando’s end since they are a hard-capped first apron team. They’d need to add a little something extra to get that deal over the hump, something like the rookie-scale contract of second-round French prospect Noah Penda, who has impressed in limited minutes as a capable shooting threat and versatile 6’7” defender.
This would be an interesting proposition for both sides, filling needs for both teams in a mid-sized trade that sends off two talented veterans and one prospect to new homes.
Andre Drummond
Outside of a Jalen Springer-sized trade or a draft day pick swap, would the Philadelphia 76ers really be looking to deal directly with a conference rival concerning their best rebounder?
Probably not, however, according to 76ers beat writer Keith Pompey, they are at least open to the idea of moving their valued backup big. The Sixers are $7 million above the allowable threshold to avoid being taxed and around $1 million away from being a first-apron team according to Pompey, and a move off Drummond’s expiring $5 million contract without a player in return would certain aid in their quest to avoid that tax.
Could the right draft asset cocktail be enough to sway the Sixers? Unlikely, but it’s worth exploring because Drummond’s skillset and extremely favorable expiring contract is about as close to an ideal deadline acquisition as Boston is going to find in its search through the lower-level marketplace.
Drummond is, and has always been, a phenomenal rebounder, and this season has been no different. He’s been the ideal spot starter for Joel Embiid, a very solid backup when Embiid is available, and, surprisingly, a capable 3-point shooter for the first time in his career (36% on 1.3 attempts per game). In 20 minutes a night, Drummond gives Philly 7 points on 50% shooting, 9 rebounds and a block per game.
This season, the data backs up the eye test, Drummond is simply outstanding on the glass, rating near the very top of most rebounding metrics on both ends of the floor
Defensively, Drummond’s strength and size gives the team a primary defender for the game’s more physically imposing interior bullies that Boston has struggled with up to this point in the season.
Drummond is an excellent backup center, and the Sixers know that. Philly currently enlists second-year UCLA product Adem Bona as their third center, meaning they’d be sacrificing some serious depth unless they take a player back or make another move (Kelly Oubre Jr. was also mentioned by Pompey as a possible trade candidate).
Is the tax-evading effort worth it to provide Boston with the exact type of backup big they’d want to add to their frontcourt stable? It’d take some convincing, and some valued second round draft capital, but the fact that Brad Stevens and Daryl Morey have come to an agreement before at least means a conversation is possible, and worth the 406 words it took to discuss it.
Kevin Love
We didn’t use the word “scrounging” in the first Muscala headline just for fun.
We are foraging across the NBA big man marketplace here, and this is the trade equivalent to sticking our hand in the bottom of a Walmart DVD bargain bin. We shouldn’t be surprised to pull out something we may not find sense or value in. But even if it’s some obscure John Wayne western we’ve never heard of, the price tag says $2, so what’s the harm in talking about it?
And I’ll say it, even at the ripe old age of 37, Kevin Love is still a pretty interesting player to watch. And dare I say, a contributor in certain facets.
Love is sort of the NBA equivalent to George Clooney. Once a bankable star, Clooney is rarely seen and hardly mentioned these days, yet you’ll randomly spot him grizzled and gray in a Nespresso Super Bowl commercial and think “Yep, Clooney’s still got it.”
You watch a few current K-Love clips at his best and tell me you don’t see at least a fundamentally sound past-his-prime star that’s career is on the cusp of fading out into a planetary nebula.
Love is spending the season in Utah surrounded by one of the league’s younger rosters embarking on a patient rebuild, yet he is still finding his way into minutes. Consider this, on a team that has modest frontcourt depth despite the early-season loss of Walker Kessler, Love’s 457 minutes on the floor double the minutes of Chris Boucher and Xavier Tillman combined.
So while we’re not talking about a sizable upgrade, we are talking about a 17-year vet that is still finding a spot in an NBA rotation. That’s not nothing.That’s a playable deep bench addition.
Love is at his best when the ball is touching and leaving his hand in one fell swoop. His 40% 3-point catch-and-shoot efficiency on 3.3 attempts per game is his best since the 2017-18 season in Cleveland where he shot 41% on five attempts.
The current version of Love does two things particularly well: he’s a capable movement shooter and a productive rebounder. All other impact areas are either neutral or outright negatives, but in those two areas, he can help an NBA team in some capacity.
We’ve seen Luka Garza take a leap in confidence and efficiency as a pick-and-pop threat, giving Boston one big that can actually stretch the floor. For a team that loves active screeners, Spain pick-and-rolls and flare screens, an additional shooter with size would add some value to the deep bench options at Joe Mazzulla’s disposal, while also adding another energetic fighter on the glass.
Love has implemented himself well into Utah’s roster this season, a far cry from his final days in Cleveland when their Big 3 disbanded, and it seems he’s embraced his veteran role in a way that makes him an unlikely buyout candidate.
It’s funny to think how the 2014 “Summer of Love” set social media ablaze when Love was spotted at a Red Sox game shaking hands with Rajon Rondo, indicating hope of another major star acquisition heading to Boston. That never materialized, but maybe before the Feb. 5 trade deadline, just nine days before Valentine’s Day, the Celtics will finally get their shot at Love.
Miguel Rojas of the Dodgers won't be able to represent his home country, Venezuela, in the World Baseball Classic. Blame insurance. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
Rojas, 37, will not represent his native Venezuela because of difficulty obtaining insurance. The versatile World Series star expressed regret that he cannot play in an Instagram story that included a photo of himself with the Venezuelan flag draped over his shoulders.
"Today I am very sad," he wrote in Spanish. "A real pity to not be able to represent my country and wear that flag on my chest. On this occasion, age wasn’t just a number.”
Insurance was required to guarantee his $5.5-million salary in case he missed Dodgers games because of injuries incurred during the WBC, which will take place from March 5-17 in Tokyo, Miami, Houston and San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Rojas' situation is similar to that of Clayton Kershaw ahead of the 2023 WBC. The pitcher was disappointed that he couldn't play for Team USA because his injury history made obtaining insurance impossible. The Dodgers declined to waive his insurance requirement and assume financial risk in case Kershaw got hurt during the tournament.
“I’m frustrated,” Kershaw said at the time. “They should make it easy for guys that want to play to play.”
Insurance coverage protects teams from having to pay a player for time missed because of an injury stemming from the WBC, which requires participants to undergo entrance and exit physicals to document injury information.
Players can be deemed uninsurable for several reasons, a source told The Times in 2023. Included are players who finished the previous season on the injured list or spent considerable time on the injured list. Also uninsurable are players diagnosed with a “chronic condition.”
Rojas, who has said this will be his last season major league season as a player, has sustained a succession of lower-body injuries in recent years. The 12-year veteran utility infielder began his career with the Dodgers in 2014 then played for the Miami Marlins for eight years before rejoining the Dodgers in 2023.
He will always be remembered by Dodgers fans for his game-tying home run in the ninth inning of Game 7 of the 2025 World Series against the Toronto Blue Jays. The baseball Rojas struck sold for $156,000 at auction.
This will mark the second WBC in a row that Rojas has missed. He was on Venezuela’s 2023 roster but withdrew after fellow infielder Gavin Lux tore his ACL during spring training, increasing Rojas' role with the Dodgers.
Hernández has elected not to play for the Dominican Republic while Pages and Ibáñez — who signed a one-year, $1.2-million contract with the Dodgers this offseason — won't suit up for Cuba. It is unclear whether insurance concerns were factors in their decisions.
However, Houston Astros stars Jose Altuve and Carlos Correa were forced to withdraw because of their inability to obtain insurance. Altuve would have played for Venezuela and Correa for Puerto Rico.
Dodgers who plan to play in the WBC include World Series heroes Will Smith of Team USA and pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto of Team Japan. Shohei Ohtani announced in November that he would play for Japan, although the two-way superstar has not decided whether he will pitch.
Smith will be a teammate of Kershaw, who because he retired from the Dodgers doesn't need insurance now to participate in the WBC. In fact, he's gone from needing insurance to being insurance.
“I just want to be the insurance policy,” Kershaw told MLB Network. “If anybody needs a breather, or if they need me to pitch back-to-back-to-back, or if they don’t need me to pitch at all, I’m just there to be there. I just want to be a part of this group.
“I learned a long time ago, you just want to be a part of great things.”
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - JANUARY 24: Coby White #0 of the Chicago Bulls celebrates his teams win against the Boston Celtics at the United Center on January 24, 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 Geoff Stellfox/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Houston Rockets could use an on-ball facilitating guard. Everybody talks about it.
By all intents and purposes, Rafael Stone and co. are trying to address that need by the trade deadline.
It seems clear that they’ve been working the phones, at the very least. Lately they’ve been engaged in trade talks with the Chicago Bulls for point guard Coby White.
White is an obvious target on the trade market. White becomes an unrestricted free agent in four months and the Bulls tried to extend him last offseason, but made no such progress, as he turned down an $87 million extension.
They’d rather get something for him than see him walk without getting anything in return.
Except they’ve got a specific asking price.
They’re hoping to land a young, rising talent, who is on the same timeline as Josh Giddey and Matas Buzelis.
Understandable. Buzelis and Giddey are their future.
Pillars. Cornerstones.
Whatever noun you want to use.
They’re also 21-years-old and 23-years-old, respectively.
Which is an obvious no-go. Houston has neither the guard depth nor wing depth to withstand losing either.
Especially not for White.
Again, he’s going to be a free agent in the summer.
But his $12.8 million salary will be impossible to match if the Hawks are set on a young player to that degree. Even those guys don’t make enough individually.
The obvious salary matching would come by way of Dorian Finney-Smith ($12.7 million) or Steven Adams.
(It’s a cold world sometimes, I know. But Adams’ $14.1 million works mathematically).
But again, if we are to believe Chicago wants a young prospect, neither DFS nor Adams would sway them.
And even if the Rockets and Bulls are able to agree on compensation, would Houston realistically be able to afford White long-term? They’ve got looming deals with Eason and Amen Thompson in consecutive years (the latter of which will be far more costly).
White is a good player. But the situation doesn’t quite align, especially considering what Chicago is seeking in return.
ATLANTA, GEORGIA - AUGUST 24: Sean Murphy #12 of the Atlanta Braves hits an RBI single during the sixth inning against the New York Mets at Truist Park on August 24, 2025 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Todd Kirkland/Getty Images) | Getty Images
There is no sugar coating it: The Atlanta Braves largely underperformed last season. There were unforeseen circumstances like injuries and a suspension, but pure underperformance played a role for some players on the roster.
There are some players on the roster that also fell victim to some bad luck with the bat. What is meant by that is based on the underlying metrics if they were to continue to swing the bat the exact same way, their numbers would have positive regression to the mean over time.
You could spend hours digging deep into a player’s profile and identifying reasons why they have good fortune or bad fortune, but in this article, we are going to look at a high-level view of three players. There are few areas you can look right off the bat on to help determine if a player has had bad fortune at the plate. First you can look at a player’s weighted on base average (wOBA) versus their expected wOBA (xwOBA). In a nutshell wOBA is a better version of OPS because it values each method of reaching base rather than just reaching base. A good example is that it recognizes that a walk is not worth quite as much as a single in terms of run creation.
If there is a noticeable gap where a player’s xwOBA is higher than their wOBA then that is a good indicator to look deeper into their metrics because they are likely a good candidate for a bounce back.
Another number to look at is a player’s batting average of balls in play (BABIP). The key here is to look at a player’s history, not compare them to other players across the league. For example, if a player has a five-year career and they average a BABIP of .302, but last year they had a .260, odds are it was poor luck in terms of having balls drop for hits.
These stats alone do not mean a player will have a breakout but they are tools in a toolbox to dig deeper into their numbers and see what is going on.
It just so happens that the Atlanta Braves have three players that stand out as hitters who have a good chance of having a positive regression to the mean. This exercise won’t be perfect, but it will highlight players to keep an eye on.
The Braves made a splash when they brought in Yastrzemski. He had a solid year last season by his standards with a wRC+ of 106, which was slightly lower than his career average of 111.
One of the reasons the front office may have signed him is because he shows some signs of positive regression to the mean. Last season he had a wOBA of .321, but his xwOBA was a .329. Not a massive gap, but it is notable. His biggest gap was among fastballs. His wOBA on fastballs in 2025 was .322, but his xwOBA was much higher at .344.
If you combine that with the fact that he had terrible luck in the BABIP department, it points even more to a leap forward. Last season his BABIP luck was poor with a measly .263 against his career average of .282. We can make an educated guess that he will have better luck with balls dropping for hits in 2026. His walk rate of 12.9 percent was his best in a season since the COVID shortened 2020. It should be noted that his walk rate was in the top ten percent of qualified hitters.
This grandson of HOFer Carl Yastrzemski has many signs to a better year offensively than last.
Murphy is injured and won’t start the season playing, so there is always the chance of a lingering injury, but to be fair his offensive drop-off last year could have been from a lingering injury too.
That being said, he had some terrible luck with BABIP. He has never had a BABIP that is close to league average and is a good example of why you should not use the league average as a measuring tool for trying to predict the future when looking at a single player. Depending on the season, the league average BABIP hovers around .302, Murphy has a career .268. 2025 was much lower than that with a .243. His walk rate has stayed steady. His 10.4 percent last season is right on track with his career 10.3, showing that an increase in BABIP could result in a considerable jump in wRC+.
From a high level view we can also look and see his wOBA of .309 was lower than his xwOBA of .314. Not a massive difference, but it is absolutely a variable to consider. He only saw off speed 10.0 percent of the time, but he had terrible luck. He had a wOBA of .282, but an xwOBA of .378. against fastballs, his most seen pitch, the difference was minimal but was .341 wOBA to .346 xwOBA.
A lot will depend on how his injury plays into his performance, but from a pure numbers perspective, look for an offensive jump forward in Murphy.
Saving the most obvious for last, Harris easily is primed for better numbers this season. Beyond hearing his teammates talk about his raw talent, the numbers paint a picture too. Harris struggled last year, and he had to make adjustments to his swing midway through the season. Harris underperformed by his standards, but he also had poor luck. When looking at all the players on the roster, he stuck out as easily the unluckiest.
Harris had the largest gap of all starting players for the Braves between his wOBA and xwOBA. To put it in perspective Ozzie Albies and Eli White both had lower wOBA than xwOBA, yet Harris’ wOBA of .289 was lower than both of theirs yet his xwOBA of .315 was higher than both of theirs. In other words, a massive gap. Harris had terrible BABIP luck. He has a career BABIP of .315, but last season he had a .281.
We can see by his expected batting average (xBA) further evidence that his BABIP will likely go up next season even if he swings the bat the exact same way as he did in 2025. When we look at fastballs he had an xBA of .289, but his actual average was a much lower .252. Considering he saw fastballs 54.9 percent of the time, this is notable. It is a similar story with off speed. He had an xBA of .249, but actual batting average of .227. Odds favor some serious positive to regression to the mean on these pitch types.
In Summary
Just looking at wOBA, xwOBA, and BABIP does not tell the whole story of a player’s fortune, but it does give a good thirty-thousand-foot view. With our binoculars we can see some good signs that Michael Harris, Sean Murphy, and Mike Yastrzemski will have better seasons with the bat than they did in 2025.
NEW YORK - MAY 16: Mariano Rivera #42 of the New York Yankees pitches against the Minnesota Twins at Yankee Stadium on May 16, 2010 in the Bronx borough of Manhattan. The Twins defeated the Yankees 6 to 3. (Photo by Rob Tringali/SportsChrome/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Everything comes down to winning. This is something we hear constantly in the world of sports—the sacrifices to win, the ability to do so, all of it. But, in some instances, one might argue there are bigger things than winning, and for the Yankees in the 2010 offseason, bringing back Mariano Rivera meant more than just improving their chances at a World Series in 2011 and beyond. It meant keeping intact a part of history, a part that’s now looked back on fondly by the player, the fans, and the organization. Rivera stayed a Yankee his whole career, like it was meant to be, and you can’t put a price on that.
Mariano Rivera Signing Date: December 14, 2010 Contract: 2 years, $30,000,000
The man with the single most lethal pitch in the history of the sport, Mariano Rivera, had already built an entire career as the best closer ever when he reached the open market at the end of the 2010 season. Already into his 40s, Rivera hadn’t missed a beat, having pitched to the tune of a sub-2.00 ERA in each of the past three seasons, accumulating over 110 saves during that period.
Reviewing the Yankees bullpen in 2010, it was particularly reliant on Rivera’s outstanding performance as Joba Chamberlain and Chad Gaudin severely underwhelmed as two of the team’s top setup options, leaving it to the resurgent Kerry Wood to carry a decent chunk of the load. Losing Wood in free agency, the Yankees didn’t have many options, and as we know now, Rivera came much closer to potentially leaving than it originally appeared. An example of these teams’ shortcomings on the pitching side of things came in the 2010 ALCS, when Yankee pitchers accumulated an ERA of 6.57 as they were eliminated by the Texas Rangers in six games. Rivera, as it was customary, did his thing, tossing three scoreless frames, but Phil Hughes struggled as a starter, and a few blowups by the bullpen were enough to kill the Yankees’ chances.
Having spent over 15 years with the Yankees, still pitching at the highest level and for a contender with the biggest pockets in the league, and one that needed him quite desperately, all the pieces seemed to be there for a return without fuss. The only problem was that the rest of the league was also very aware of Rivera’s outstanding abilities, even as a 40-year-old. Previously having spoken about a desire to take things one year at a time, Rivera was entertaining multiyear offers, and while the Yankees topped out at two years, some other teams offered him a three-year commitment.
One can never fully tell what’s exactly going on in a player’s head, and the reasons are there to choose any path they’d like, but there is a certain disconnect in the story of how these events unfolded. While Rivera did receive offers for a longer contract to sign elsewhere, the whole narrative after he re-signed was that he felt compelled to stay with the Yankees, given his long history with the club and all that came with it. Then again, speaking on it shortly thereafter, the Hall of Fame closer was rather open about how close he came to signing with the Red Sox, who—according to Jon Heyman—gave him a three-year offer.
#redsox tried to steal rivera with 3-year offer, im hearing. 2 more teams also offered 3. but rivera is close to $30-mil deal with #yankees
Having already re-signed with the Yankees, Rivera could’ve easily been dismissive about his possibilities of ever leaving, yet he chose to be upfront about discussing the possibility of a contract that wouldn’t have been just any other contract. Rivera pitching for the Red Sox, for however long it could’ve been, would be the type of thing etched in baseball history, given the magnitude of this rivalry, not to mention the impact on the field for that particular period, as he was still the best in the business.
Remember that classic image of Rivera striking out Chris Parmelee looking on a backdoor 0-2 cutter to isolate himself atop the all-time saves leaderboard with 602?
Imagine not only not having that moment but also seeing Rivera set this historic mark in a Boston Red Sox uniform. Thankfully, it didn’t come to pass.
Back for the 2011 season, Rivera wasn’t able to help the Yankees get over the hump through no fault of his own, once again delivering an outstanding campaign. This time, the Yankees were knocked out earlier in the postseason, losing the ALDS to the Tigers in five games. Rivera recorded 44 of the team’s 47 saves, tying a season-high since his 53 saves back in 2004, all of it with a 1.91 ERA, the last of his 11 seasons with a sub-2.00 ERA. What was different from the 2010 season was that Rivera had a superior supporting relief cast, propelled by David Robertson’s breakout campaign, with the then-young right-hander even earning MVP votes with a 1.08 ERA in over 60 innings.
During the second year of his two-year deal, Rivera looked set for another dominant campaign, when a freak injury in Kansas City ended his season early and even threatened his career, given he was already 42 at the time of it. Before a game on the road against the Royals, Rivera was playing around in the outfield tracking fly balls when he felt something in his knee, suffering a torn ACL, ruling him out for the remainder of the campaign. In his early 40s, the all-time saves leader, Rivera, could’ve walked away with nothing left to prove, but the right-hander wouldn’t be denied one more season. Speaking on the subject later on, Rivera made it clear he didn’t want to go out like that, with an injury, instead attempting to return and be able to leave on his own terms.
While the Yankees ultimately dealt quite well with Rivera’s absence in 2012, having Rafael Soriano bounce back from a solid albeit unspectacular 2011 campaign to put up outstanding numbers in 2012, he was a free agent in his own right. Before Soriano signed with the Nationals on a two-year deal, the Yankees had already inked Rivera to a one-year contract to return as the team’s closer this time without all the fuss of other potential suitors. Even in his age-43 season, Rivera drastically outperformed Soriano in 2013, pitching to a 2.11 ERA, a full run lower than Soriano’s 3.11 mark.
Sadly, despite a 13th All-Star campaign, Rivera couldn’t make one final postseason appearance with the Yankees, as the injury-riddled and aging club missed the playoffs in 2013 for only the second time in the 21st century. Still, that return in 2010 lives on as one of the more fortunate, correct, and whatever other adjective you can sum up, decisions the Yankees have made on the open market. At the same time, regardless of the specifics, it’s equally fortunate that Rivera decided to stick around. These free-agent negotiations were, and always are, a two-way street.
See more of the “50 Most Notable Yankees Free Agent Signings in 50 Years” series here.
LOS ANGELES, CA - OCTOBER 09: Harrison Bader #2 of the Philadelphia Phillies bats in the eleventh inning during Game Four of the National League Division Series presented by Booking.com between the Philadelphia Phillies and the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium on Thursday, October 9, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Katelyn Mulcahy/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
Players who are good every year end up getting a giant bag of cash when they hit free agency. Now, that range can be pretty wide, but it’s not uncommon for these players to sign multi-year contracts worth eight figures a year.
The supply of these players is not very high, so some of those players end up inking deals that bring their total free agent compensation into the nine-figure range. Those that don’t may not be worse so much as they are less reliable.”
When less reliable players hit the free agent market, they are usually one of two types. The first type of player had been good, but most recently was not. The second type of player is the opposite: they had some seasons in the not-so-distant past of mediocre performance, but most recently they were good.
Which one would you rather have?
We don’t have to look very far to find a perfect example of this. New Royals outfielder Lane Thomas had a recent season in which he hit .268/.315/.468 and accrued 2.9 Wins Above Replacement per Fangraphs. Former Phillies and Twins outfielder Harrison Bader just signed a free agent contract; he had a recent season in which he hit .277/.347/.449 and accrued 3.3 WAR.
The Royals chose Thomas. That 2.9 WAR season was in 2023; Thomas followed that up with a significantly less successful 2024 and suffered through an injury-filled 2025 season that’s better just to be forgotten. That history secured Thomas a one-year, $6 million deal.
The Giants, on the other hand, chose Bader. From 2022 through 2024, Bader was a right-handed Kyle Isbel who hit a rather abysmal .239/.284/.360. But Bader’s breakthrough season was just last year, when he was effective for Minnesota and Philadelphia alike. That history secured Bader a two-year, $20.5 million deal.
“What have you done for me lately?” is the motto for professional sports in general, and so it makes sense that Bader would be the one who ended up with that contract instead of Thomas. It also helps that Bader’s best year of the last three was better than that of Thomas; to go back to supply and demand, there just aren’t a lot of true center fielders with the offensive talent to put up a wRC+ of 122.
But while Bader is getting paid roughly twice what Thomas will this year, I’m not sure that I’d be willing to wager that Bader will certainly be twice as good. I think Bader will probably be better than Thomas. For what it’s worth, the ZiPS projection system has Bader at 2.1 WAR next year and Thomas at 0.8 WAR, and ZiPS is smarter than me.
Still, I’m spooked by Bader’s extended run as a light-hitting center fielder. I’m also spooked by Thomas only being able to play 39 games last year, and that he turns 31 this August. I might just be spooked by a lot of things these days. Who knows.
If you’re expecting a grand argument or a definitive opinion on this particular issue, prepare to be disappointed. Most recently, Bader has been the better player, and at a two-year contract, that’s probably a gamble the Royals should have made. And yet, Bader is primed for a fall back to earth, and the Royals could have had to eat $20 million of mostly dead money, which screams “Hunter Renfroe.” Meanwhile, while Thomas has less upside, the Royals aren’t relying on a $6 million guy in the same way they’d be relying on a $10.25 million guy for twice as long.
At any rate, it’ll be interesting to see if the Royals made the right decision here. Wake me up in about five months to see how we’re doing.
MILWAUKEE, WI - OCTOBER 14: Tobias Myers #36 of the Milwaukee Brewers looks on in the eighth inning during Game Two of the National League Championship Series presented by loanDepot between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Milwaukee Brewers at American Family Field on Tuesday, October 14, 2025 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. (Photo by Aaron Gash/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
Most Mets fans know Tobias Myers from his time with the Brewers, which the Mets have been on the unfortunate end of at times. But his career has been a long, winding road to his major league success in Milwaukee. Hailing from Winter Haven, Florida, he was drafted out of high school by the Baltimore Orioles in the sixth round of the draft. After a little over a year in the Orioles organization he was traded to the Tampa Bay Rays in exchange for Tim Beckham.
From 2017 to 2021, Myers climbed through the Rays system, making it to Triple-A before being traded once again to the Cleveland Guardians in exchange for Junior Caminero. He struggled when on the Guardians Triple-A team in 2022, with a 6.00 ERA in 60 innings, with 40 strikeouts and 33 walks. He was designated for assignment and subsequently traded to the Giants, where he made only two appearances, with a 9.00 ERA in just three innings with the Sacramento River Cats. After being designated for assignment a second time, he spent most of the rest of the season on the Chicago White Sox Triple-A team, putting up a 15.92 ERA in 13 innings.
He was released by the White Sox at the end of September 2022, and in November 2022 was signed to a minor league contract by the Brewers. After putting up alright stats across both Double-A and Triple-A in 2023, he had a great stint in Triple-A in 204, putting up a 1.45 ERA in 18.2 innings across five games (three of them starts). He bounced back and forth between the majors and Triple-A at the start of 2024, before being called up to the majors for good on June 5, 2024.
In 27 games with the Brewers in 2024, Myers had a 3.00 ERA across 138 innings. He had 127 strikeouts to 36 walks, with a 8.3 K/9, 138 ERA+, and he accumulated 2.7 bWAR. Of his 27 games with Milwaukee in 2024, 25 of them were starts. He also made a postseason start, starting the third game of the Wild Card series against the Mets. He went five innings with just two hits and five strikeouts, and when he was on the mound it wasn’t looking good for the Mets chances of advancing (and it didn’t look good until fellow future Met Devin Williams took the mound).
2025 was a bit more of a struggle for Myers. He suffered a left oblique strain that caused him to miss most of the first month of the season. After that, he bounced back and forth several times between Triple-A and the major league team. In 22 games with the Brewers, he had a 3.55 ERA across 50.2 innings, with 38 strikeouts to 15 walks, a 6.8 K/9, 117 ERA+, and accumulated only 0.7 bWAR. Of his 22 games, only six were starts, and he finished eight games, though he didn’t get any saves. His Triple-A stats were similar, with a 3.77 ERA in twelve games (all starts), 55 strikeouts and 17 walks in 59.2 innings, with a K/9 of 8.3, matching his 2024 major league average.
Now that he’s with the Mets, there’s some versatility in his role. They lost some bullpen options to injury, including Reed Garrett and Dedniel Núñez. They traded Brandon Sproat in the very trade that got them Tobias Myers, and Tylor Megill is also out for the season, so there’s also some more opportunity for rotation depth. And Myers could find use in the in between, a long reliever in the bullpen with rotational flexibility. And there’s time for him to grow into a more defined role in New York, since he’s under team control until 2031.
Freddy Peralta may have headlined the trade with the Brewers, but in acquiring Tobias Myers they got a very good pitcher with tons of flexibility and control. Even with a few more struggles last season, he’s a good starter and relief option, and should he be more like the pitcher he was in 2024 he could very easily find himself in the Mets rotation at some point in the next five years.
Sixth in the series.Today we look at the Cubs’veteran shortstop.
Dansby Swanson will turn 32 on February 11. His skills have yet to diminish appreciably but it’s a matter of time until they do. This will be his 11th year in the major leagues, after being drafted first overall by the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2015. The Vanderbilt grad has had a decent career, amassing a lifetime total of 28.4 bWAR (also 28.4 fWAR). His power numbers have trended up since 2021, from roughly 10 homers per season to about 20 — 2021 was his peak at 27. His batting average seems to have suffered from his attempts to put more lift on the ball, as his Cubs numbers cluster around .244, where he had previously averaged around 10 points higher. This could also be due to the fabled ‘Wrigley Field Effect,’ which tends to flatten those numbers, instead of enhancing them, as before climate change’s negative effects.
Swanson is still a superb fielder, and he has four years left on his seven-year deal, which runs through 2029. The Cubs will have to figure out what to do when his decline comes, but he is hopefully good to go this year.
He’s a postseason veteran, though his lifetime .233 average is unimpressive over the ten playoff series he’s been involved in.
Still, he’s seen as a team leader by Cubs players, despite fans’ misgivings, and his contract virtually guarantees that he’ll be in the lineup for a couple of years still. The Cubs could do worse — Swanson’s 2026 slash of .244/.300./.417, with 24 home runs, 2o stolen bases, and 77 RBI isn’t all that bad, and neither is his 4.5 bWAR. It’s just that his paycheck outweighs those numbers.
Jan 20, 2026; Denver, Colorado, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward Drew Timme (17) reacts with forward LeBron James (23) in the second quarter against the Denver Nuggets at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images | Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images
NBA All-Star Weekend is almost here, and Gonzaga has a brief breather before Saturday’s clash with Saint Mary’s, so the pause offers a natural moment to check in on the program’s NBA presence. As of this writing, 12 former Zags sit on active NBA rosters, with a couple more still grinding for call-ups in the G League, a level of representation that continues to place Gonzaga alongside Duke and Kentucky as one of the sport’s most reliable pro pipelines. The season has unfolded unevenly for that group, shaped by injuries, shifting roles, and a few long-awaited opportunities finally breaking through. Some veterans have spent stretches managing their bodies, some younger players have begun earning real minutes, and others are making the most of every window they get. With the NBA drifting towards its midseason break, here’s where some Gonzaga alums stand right now.
At this point, Brandon Clarke’s NBA career reads like a running battle with his own body. After missing the second half of last season with a PCL sprain suffered in March, Clarke clawed his way back in time for the 2025–26 opener, only to log roughly a game and a half before a calf strain shut him down again. He has been sidelined since December 20, extending a frustrating pattern for a player whose impact has consistently outweighed his availability. The latest setback follows a career already interrupted by a torn Achilles, repeated lower-body issues, and a knee synovitis procedure last fall, yet the outlook remains cautiously optimistic, with league sources indicating a likely return roughly a month from now and no long-term concern attached to the current injury
Collins’ season in Chicago has unfolded in fits and starts, with injuries consistently interrupting any chance at continuity. He missed the opening stretch of the year with a broken left wrist, returned in early December, and briefly settled into a rotation role before another setback arrived. Over the 10 games he played in December, Collins averaged 9.7 points and 5.6 rebounds in just under 20 minutes per night, offering efficient interior scoring before a sprained right big toe sidelined him again late in the month. As of late January, he remained in a walking boot, though the Bulls have indicated he is expected to return to practice around the All-Star break, with a game return hoped to follow shortly after.
Rui Hachimura – Los Angeles Lakers
Rui Hachimura passes Magic & Kareem for the 2nd most games in Lakers history with:
Hachimura has settled into a steady role with the Lakers, averaging around 30 minutes per night while bouncing between the starting lineup and a recent move to a sixth-man role. He’s scoring about 12 points per game and knocking down 43.4 percent of his threes, providing reliable spacing and secondary offense. The highs and lows have been visible: a season-high 28 against Portland back in November, followed by a scoreless 18-minute outing on 0-for-7 shooting against Cleveland. Overall, he remains a trusted rotation piece whose minutes and role continue to fluctuate with lineup needs. If rumors are true and what that lineup ultimately needs is a first-round 2026 draft pick instead of Hachimura, we’ll find out in the next week.
Drew Timme – Los Angeles Lakers
DREW TIMME! Los Angeles Lakers two-way contract big man & NCAA legend Drew Timme BALLED OUT in their 132-116 LOSS vs. Portland! 🪣
📊 21 PTS, 2 REB, 4 AST, 2 STL, 9/12 FGM, 3/4 3PM, 29 MIN. LOSS
After getting cut by Brooklyn, Timme once again played his way back onto an NBA roster with a dominant G League stint, this time earning a two-way deal with the Lakers. The NBA production has been modest so far at just over three points per game, though the upside has shown through in flashes, including a 21-point night against Portland. Gonzaga’s all-time leading scorer remains in a tenuous spot on a two-way contract, but his continued G League dominance, paired with public praise from LeBron James, suggests he has done everything within his control to keep the door open.
After spending four and a half seasons as Mr. Reliable on a Washington Wizards team stuck in perpetual rebuilding mode, Corey Kispert was blessedly dealt to Atlanta in November alongside CJ McCollum as part of the Trae Young trade and has stepped directly into the Hawks’ starting lineup. Since arriving, he’s shooting about 33 percent from three and averaging just under nine points per game. Atlanta sits 3rd in the Southeast Division with a season record of 24-26. They’re 4-5 since Kispert’s arrival, but the move has already given him something he rarely had in Washington: meaningful minutes on a team still trying to win games.
Strawther’s third year in Denver has turned into a constant shuffle. His minutes have dropped to around 10 per game after averaging 21 last season, and his place in the rotation has rarely felt secure, tied closely to whether the shot is falling and if the guys ahead of him on the depth chart are healthy. The numbers have been uncharacteristically rough for a guy who made a college career off his three-point shot. He’s just 8-for-37 from three on the season, but the flashes of offensive greatness have occasionally shown through. When injuries ripped through the Nuggets’ lineup, Strawther finally got runway and delivered a season-high 20 points in 27 minutes against Milwaukee, staying on the floor despite a 1-for-6 mark from outside by attacking off the bounce and applying foul pressure. With Denver suddenly thin, a player who looked like trade bait a few weeks ago now sits one bad ankle or hamstring injury away from a starting role, a reminder of how fast things change on a title contender
Olynyk’s latest stop has him in San Antonio, his eighth team in 13 seasons, and very much in a veteran support role. Playing behind Victor Wembanyama (a legit superstar) and fellow journeyman Luke Kornet has pushed his minutes down to a career-low 9.5 per night across 28 games, but the impact still shows up in quieter ways. He steadies lineups, keeps the ball moving, and brings a level of professionalism that young teams tend to lean on, especially one built around a generational centerpiece. At this stage, Olynyk feels closer to the end than the beginning, the kind of long-tenured pro who may bounce once more or may simply have found a final landing spot as a trusted locker-room presence who still knows how to help teams function.
Domantas Sabonis – Sacramento Kings
Some important recent Kings rumors that have come out:
– At least 10 teams have called about Keon Ellis, with the expectation of him being traded before the deadline, per @sam_amick.
– Domantas Sabonis is a legitimate candidate to be a Toronto Raptor by the deadline,… pic.twitter.com/uYNkO0Iq47
It has been a brutal season in Sacramento, with the Kings sitting at 12-37 and buried near the bottom of the Western Conference, a context that has pushed Sabonis back into the center of the trade rumor mill. Miami, Toronto, Phoenix, and Chicago have all surfaced as possible landing spots in recent weeks. Despite missing 27 games earlier in the year with a torn meniscus, Sabonis has been productive when available, averaging 15.4 points and 11.2 rebounds and recording double-doubles in 11 of the 18 games he has played. He has been back on the floor over the past couple weeks, steady as ever, even as the losses pile up. Wherever he lands next, the hope is simple: a roster sturdy enough to let Sabonis amplify winning rather than shoulder it alone.
Injuries have again shaped Suggs’ season, but he has managed to appear in 26 games for Orlando despite missing time with an MCL contusion. When healthy, his role remains substantial, logging around 26 minutes per night while averaging 14.4 points and 4.7 assists. The offense has come back in bursts, but the defensive impact has never wavered, with Suggs continuing to operate as a full-court irritant who changes games with pressure and anticipation. Orlando sits at 24–22, hovering just above .500, and their margin remains thin enough that a fully settled version of Suggs, available and decisive, could meaningfully swing the final months of the season.
Ryan Nembhard – Dallas Mavericks
Ryan Nembhard being this good, this early, makes you wonder what NBA Front offices are looking for when drafting
This is 28 pts, 10 Assists, and 0 Turnovers as Rookie
Undersized and undrafted, Nembhard has carved out real minutes anyway, appearing in 35 games for a young Dallas roster built around the league’s newest cornerstone in Cooper Flagg. Gonzaga’s imprint shows up clearly in his adaptability and poise, traits that have helped him earn trust in a guard rotation that shifts almost nightly. Nembhard is doing what he has always done best, organizing offense and keeping teammates fed, averaging just under five assists in 19 minutes per game while knocking down nearly 38 percent of his threes. The ceiling flashes remain there too, most memorably in a 28-point outburst against Denver on December 1, when he went 12-for-14 from the floor and 5-for-7 from deep. The role remains fluid, but Nembhard continues to justify his place by fitting whatever shape the moment requires.
With Tyrese Haliburton sidelined by a torn Achilles and Myles Turner gone after a failed contract resolution, Indiana’s season has unraveled quickly, but Nembhard has gone the opposite direction. Thrust into the lead guard role full time, he is putting together the best year of his career, averaging 17.4 points, 7.4 assists, and shooting 35.8 percent from three while starting all 38 games he has played. The Pacers no longer resemble the contender they were a year ago, and the burden on Nembhard has grown heavier by the week, reflected in career highs across points, assists, and minutes. Indiana sits well off the pace in the East, and with the trade deadline approaching, the front office is expected to look for backcourt help, ideally an off-ball guard who can ease the load and let Nembhard continue doing what he has proven he can do: run a team.
Chet Holmgren – Oklahoma City Thunder
Chet Holmgren Defense 1/27 vs NOP ~ 8 Points Allowed ~ Held Opponents to 4/11 FG (as primary def) – 5 Blocks – 33 Minutes
Thoughts on his defense last night?
*Not every clip included goes towards the Opp FG%, but I included all relevant clips of his defense from the game* pic.twitter.com/xnimEG0lZz
While nearly everyone else on this list has dealt with injuries or role volatility, Holmgren has been the constant for Oklahoma City all season. The Thunder have shuffled bodies around him, losing time from Isaiah Hartenstein and Jaylin Williams among others, yet Holmgren’s availability and production have anchored a team sitting at 38–11 alongside reigning MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. He has already played 11 more games than he managed all of last season and is averaging nearly 18 points and a career-best 8.6 rebounds while shooting 57 percent from the field and 37.7 percent from three. The efficiency spikes showed early with a 31-point, 11-rebound night against Atlanta in October, but the steadiness has been just as striking. Holmgren has gone the entire month of January without committing more than two turnovers in a game despite playing roughly 34 minutes per night. A fully healthy Thunder roster sits as the odds-on favorite to win another league title, and if Oklahoma City pulls off a repeat, Gonzaga’s Chet Holmgren will be at the center of it.
Taken together, this group reflects both the breadth and the staying power of Gonzaga’s NBA presence. There are stars carrying franchises, role players adapting to new contexts, veterans extending long careers through feel and professionalism, and young guards fighting daily for minutes in crowded rotations. The paths look different, the situations change fast, and the margins remain thin, but the through line holds: Gonzaga continues to send players into the league who find ways to matter. As the NBA season turns toward its stretch run and the Zags refocus on Saint Mary’s and March, the program’s imprint at the highest level remains as visible, varied, and resilient as ever.
It's a question that many fantasy managers have already been asking themselves: which players are worth targeting for the post-trade deadline portion of the season? By then, the ambitions of most teams will be clear. While the Play-In Tournament has kept some teams from shifting into "tank mode," there are still some that will go all-out to improve their draft lottery odds.
And trades open the door for others to step up, especially if we're talking about a young player whose opportunities increase once a veteran player is moved elsewhere. Below are some players who are worth using a transaction on to stash ahead of the February 5 trade deadline.
PF/C Collin Murray-Boyles, Toronto Raptors
Murray-Boyles is one of the few players on this list playing for teams that still harbor legitimate postseason ambitions. At the time of publishing, the Raptors were 29-20, sitting in fourth place in the Eastern Conference. However, due to the uncertainty surrounding Jakob Poeltl and his lingering back injury, the rookie out of South Carolina has been given a role more critical than many anticipated when training camp opened.
Murray-Boyles, who returned from a left thumb injury in a January 28 loss to the Knicks, has started the last 10 games he's appeared in, averaging 9.9 points, 7.5 rebounds, 3.7 assists, 1.2 steals and 1.6 blocks in 30.5 minutes while shooting 56.8 percent from the field. While category-league managers won't get any three-point production from CMB, he does just about everything else. And given the current role, Murray-Boyles is a much safer option than stashing a player with the hope that minutes will be freed up after the trade deadline.
SG/SF Max Christie, Dallas Mavericks
Sure, it has been reported that the Mavericks want to see Cooper Flagg, Anthony Davis and Kyrie Irving on the court together at some point this season. But the reality of the situation is this: they trail the scalding hot Clippers by five games in the loss column for the final play-in spot in the Western Conference, and the 2026 first-round pick is the last that Dallas has complete control over until 2031. Adding a promising young talent who would be on Flagg's timeline should be the priority, but we'll see.
Christie, who turns 23 just a few days after the trade deadline, should be safe from having the plug pulled on his season if the Mavericks decide to prioritize their draft lottery odds. And he's been productive when on the floor, averaging 17.0 points, 3.7 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 2.9 three-pointers in 32.2 minutes since New Year's Day. Age-wise, he's closer to aligning with Flagg's timeline than Davis or Irving, and the same can also be said for Dallas' 2026 draft pick.
C Moussa Diabaté, Charlotte Hornets
Given how well they've played recently, the Hornets have no reason not to try to make a run at a postseason spot. Charlotte has won its last five games and now trails 10th-place Chicago by three games in the loss column. Diabaté, who played well enough last season to earn a standard contract, has been a factor in the middle, holding onto the starting job after rookie Ryan Kalkbrenner returned from a left elbow injury.
Diabaté has started every game that he's been available for since December 23, averaging 9.5 points, 9.8 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 0.6 steals and 1.2 blocks in 29.6 minutes, shooting 68.8 percent from the field. The energy that he brings to the floor has made a difference for Charlotte, and playing time should not be an issue for Diabaté as the Hornets look to earn a play-in spot.
PG/SG Bub Carrington, SF/PF Justin Champagnie and SG/SF Tre Johnson, Washington Wizards
Given how young the Wizards' roster is, multiple players stand to gain value in the post-deadline portion of the schedule. Of the three listed here, Johnson offers the highest upside for managers seeking scoring. The rookie out of Texas, who sprained his left ankle during a January 29 win over the Bucks, entered that game having averaged 16.1 points and 2.8 three-pointers in his previous ten games.
Carrington's case is an interesting one, in that his fantasy prospects did not look good in the immediate aftermath of Washington acquiring Trae Young from the Hawks. However, Young has yet to appear in a game as he continues to recover from knee and quad injuries, and his playing time may be limited once he's cleared to play. Carrington's production hasn't been the best, but he'll continue to have opportunities to play rotation minutes. Also, he started the second half of that win over Milwaukee following Johnson's ankle injury. As for Champagnie, he has been close to a top-100 player over the past two weeks and can fill multiple roles for the Wizards.
SG/SF/PF Ace Bailey and SF/PF Brice Sensabaugh, Utah Jazz
Like the Wizards, the Jazz are in a position where the clear priority during the post-deadline portion of the season will be to get their young players as much playing time as possible. Bailey has been in the starting lineup since mid-November, with the only two non-starts in his last 32 appearances being games in which his playing time was restricted for injury management reasons. He's averaged 12.8 points, 3.5 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 0.8 steals and 1.8 three-pointers during this stretch, shooting 47.5 percent from the field. Hopefully, Bailey will bring more consistent production in categories other than points.
Sensabaugh has been used mainly in a reserve role since mid-January, but that hasn't stopped him from putting up some gaudy numbers. His 43-point outburst in a January 14 loss to the Bulls began a three-game stretch in which he scored 95 points on 61.4 percent shooting. Unfortunately, he would miss the next two games, but the Jazz forward has averaged 19.3 points and 3.0 three-pointers over his last three. Like Bailey, category league managers will want to see more from Sensabaugh in the other categories, but there's no denying that he can put up points and three-pointers.
PG Egor Dëmin, PF/C Noah Clowney and C Day’Ron Sharpe, Brooklyn Nets
Brooklyn made its priorities clear before the season began, with team governor Joe Tsai saying in October that the team hoped to get a good pick in the 2026 draft. Of the five players the Nets selected in the first round of the 2025 draft, Dëmin has been the most valuable to fantasy managers and the only one able to lock down a spot in the starting lineup. While back-to-backs are a concern due to the foot injury that limited him during the preseason, the guard out of BYU has averaged 11.6 points, 2.8 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 0.8 steals and 3.0 three-pointers since the beginning of January.
Clowney had been a fixture in the Nets' starting lineup since the beginning of the season, but he's missed the last three games with a back injury. That said, he's averaging career-highs in points, rebounds, assists, steals, blocks and three-pointers. With there still being plenty of room for Clowney to grow, however, he should be safe from a late-season shutdown. Last but not least is Sharpe, who could benefit immensely if the Nets were to lighten starting center Nic Claxton's workload. He has averaged 9.3 points, 7.7 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.5 steals in 21.9 minutes since New Year's Day, shooting nearly 60 percent from the field.
SG/SF Nique Clifford and C Maxime Raynaud, Sacramento Kings
If the Kings were to move a few of their veterans before the deadline, 2025 draft picks Clifford and Raynaud would be first in line to benefit in terms of playing time. With Zach LaVine missing two games with a back injury, Clifford has started the Kings' last three games. While the production hasn't been great, the opportunity is what stands out. As for Raynaud, he's returned to the bench after starting for well over a month as the Kings were without Domantas Sabonis. The 7-foot-1 center recorded six double-doubles as a starter, averaging 11.0 points, 8.0 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 27.2 minutes while shooting 55.2 percent from the field.
SF/PF Saddiq Bey, New Orleans Pelicans
The Pelicans trail the Clippers by 13 games in the loss column for the final play-in spot; it's not impossible, but it's doubtful the Pelicans get into the mix. Bey, who missed all of last season with a torn ACL, has started every game that he's been available for since November 5. During this stretch, he's averaged 17.2 points, 6.3 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 1.0 steals and 1.8 three-pointers in 31.3 minutes, shooting 44.8 percent from the field. And given the pecking order in New Orleans, the team may prioritize lightening the workloads of players like Zion Williamson, Trey Murphy and Herb Jones down the stretch rather than Bey.
SF/PF Jarace Walker, Indiana Pacers
While Walker's first three seasons have been mainly underwhelming, his production and opportunities have increased in recent weeks. A double-digit scorer in four straight and five of his last six appearances, the Pacers' forward has averaged 11.7 points, 3.4 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 1.3 steals and 2.1 three-pointers since January 1, shooting 48.7 percent from the field and 5.18 percent from three. Also, Walker has averaged 26.7 minutes per game over his last six appearances, making four starts. Even if Obi Toppin were to return from foot surgery at some point, that should not hurt Walker's opportunities to earn minutes.
BRADENTON, FL - FEBRUARY 14: Minnesota Twins President, Baseball Operations Derek Falvey talks to the media during the 2025 Grapefruit League Spring Training Media Day at Pirate City on Friday, February 14, 2025 in Bradenton, Florida. (Photo by Mike Carlson/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
After nearly a decade running the Twins’ baseball operations and a year of managing the business side, the Twins and Derek Falvey announced they agreed to a “mutual parting of ways.” The Twins, Falvey, and owner Tom Pohlad all released statements which can be read below.
It’s hard to overstate how major of a change this is just weeks before Spring Training begins. There was a legitimate argument to move on from Falvey back in November when former manager Rocco Baldelli was fired, a leadership change was underway, and the roster was in a transition period after selling off the entire bullpen at the trade deadline. This agreement also seems like something that has come together very recently, given that Falvey was the lead speaker at Twins Fest less than a week ago.
In the meantime, General Manager Jeremy Zoll will take over the baseball operations side of the Twins while Tom Pohlad himself will run the business side while they search for a new leader for that portion of the organization. It’s unclear if Zoll will run baseball ops permanently or if they will look for a new, outside voice to take over.
I am not a reporter and I have no inside information, but reading between the lines, I think this was truly a mutual arrangement though probably not as nice as the statements would like you to believe. In the last 6 months, Falvey was forced to dump Carlos Correa’s contract for nothing, not given the freedom to reinvest those savings back into the roster, then had a new boss forced on him who appears to be taking a much more active role in the organization Joe Pohlad did. From the ownership end, the Twins have repeatedly underperformed expectations and have seen numerous top prospects fizzle out after holding on to them for too long and ruining their trade value (see the Edouard Julien trade from Wednesday as an example).
Now, two weeks before Spring Training, the Twins are somehow even more directionless than they were before. The move itself isn’t that shocking, but the sequence of events leading here was arguably the oddest possible timing imaginable. Winning fixes everything and the Twins still have a very talented roster (for now). Let’s see what Zoll can do with six weeks to shore up a few major holes.
The Vancouver Canucks are the worst team in the National Hockey League as they currently have a record of 18-31-5 with 41 points. The franchise is currently in disarray and they have fully committed to a full on rebuild by trading away superstar Quinn Hughes and forward Kiefer Sherwood. Vancouver is expected to keep tearing down their roster and it's clear that Evander Kane is one of the names that will not finish the season as a Canuck.
Kane has seemingly drawn interest from a handful of teams looking for some added depth for a playoff push. Included in that handful is the Los Angeles Kings. However, pursuing the 34-year-old may not be a move that moves the needle for the Kings.
Why the Kings Should Steer Clear
As of Friday, January 30th, the Los Angeles Kings are 10th in the Western Conference and sit two points out of the second wild card spot. It has been an extremely up and down year for the Kings. Would acquiring a player who is well past his prime like Kane really change anything?
In 53 games with Vancouver this season, Kane has registered nine goals and 14 assists for 23 points. His 23 points would rank him 7th on Los Angeles in points, a team that struggles mightily to score. He is on the NHL's worst team, but those aren't numbers that should make a team want to give up an asset or two to acquire.
Kane is being paid $5.125M this season and is an unrestricted free agent this summer, so it's expected that Vancouver wouldn't be asking for a 'Kings' ransom in any deal for the veteran forward. However, that AAV isn't low by any means and would make a sizeable dent in the Kings current $13.2M in cap space. That money could be spent elsewhere if L.A. is a team that's serious about a playoff push, and based off of these rumors, it seems that they are.
If Ken Holland and the Kings are acting as buyers at this year's trade deadline, they should be very cautious when it comes to trading assets, especially for players who are expected be rentals.
It's evident that the Los Angeles Kings need to add to the current roster if they want to make a playoff push, but acquiring Evander Kane would be a move that changes virtually nothing.
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Before transfer deadline day, Guardian football writer Ed Aarons gives his top five moves of the 2026 January transfer window and what they mean for the 25-26 Premier League season.
With Golden State rumored to be in serious discussions with the Milwaukee Bucks for Giannis Antetokounmpo, the Warriors (27-22) host Cade Cunningham and the Detroit Pistons (34-12) tonight.
Minus Jimmy Butler (knee) for the rest of the season and looking to make another title run with Stephen Curry and Draymond Green, Golden State is said to be one of the favorites to land Giannis. They sit eighth in the West. On the court, Curry and co. have won two of their last three. Wednesday, they won in Utah, 140-124. The Warriors jumped out to an early lead, made 23 3-pointers in the game, and rolled to their 27th win of the campaign.
The leaders in the Eastern Conference, the Pistons sit 5.5 games ahead of the Knicks and the Celtics. That said, they lost in Phoenix last night. The Suns smacked Detroit, 114-96. Dillon Brooks scored a career-high 40 points to pace the Suns. Cade Cunningham had 26 points in the loss.
This is the first meeting of the season between these teams. They will meet again in a couple months on March 20 in Detroit.
Lets take a closer look at the matchup and take into consideration lineups, injuries, and other factors affecting the line and total.
We’ve got all the info and analysis you need to know ahead of the game, including the latest info on how to catch tipoff, odds courtesy of DraftKings recent team performance, player stats, and of course, our predictions, picks best bets for the game from our modeling tools and staff of experts.
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Game Details and How to Watch Live: Pistons at Warriors
Date: Friday, January 30, 2026
Time: 10PM EST
Site: Chase Center
City: San Francisco, CA
Network/Streaming: ESPN
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Game Odds: Pistons at Warriors
The latest odds as of Friday courtesy of DraftKings:
Moneyline: Detroit Pistons (+120), Golden State Warriors (-142)
Spread: Warriors -2.5
Total: 224.5 points
This game opened Pistons -1.5 with the Total set at 226.5.
Be sure to check out DraftKings for all the latest game odds & player props for every matchup this week on the NBA schedule!
Expected Starting Lineups: Pistons at Warriors
Detroit Pistons
PG Cade Cunningham
SG Duncan Robinson
SF Ausar Thompson
PF Tobias Harris
C Jalen Duren
Golden State Warriors
PG Stephen Curry
SG Brandin Podziemski
SF Moses Moody
PF Draymond Green
C Al Horford
Injury Report: Pistons at Warriors
Detroit Pistons
Caris LeVert (illness) is listed as questionable for tonight’s game
Golden State Warriors
Jonathan Kuminga (knee) has been declared OUT for tonight’s game
Gui Santos (calf) is listed as questionable for tonight’s game
Seth Curry (back) has been declared OUT for tonight’s game
LJ Cryer (hamstring) has been declared OUT for tonight’s game
Important stats, trends and insights: Pistons at Warriors
The Warriors are 17-7 at home this season
The Pistons are 15-7 on the road this season
The Pistons are 23-23 ATS this season
The Warriors are 24-25 ATS this season
The OVER has cashed in 19 of the Pistons’ 46 games this season (19-26-1)
The OVER has cashed in 29 of the Warriors’ 49 games this season (29-20)
Cade Cunningham has recorded double digit assists in 3 of his last 5 games
Stephen Curry has missed just 3 FTs this month (53-56)
Draymond Green has recorded 5 or more assists in 5 straight games
Rotoworld Best Bet
Please bet responsibly. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, call the National Gambling Helpline at 1-800-522-4700.
Our model calculates projections around each moneyline, spread and over/under bet for every game on the NBA calendar based on data points like recent performance, head-to-head player matchups, trends information and projected game totals.
Once the model is finished running, we put its projections next to the latest betting lines for the game to arrive at a relative confidence level for each wager.
Here are the best bets our model is projecting for tonight’s Pistons and Warriors’ game:
Moneyline: Rotoworld Bet is recommending a play on the Pistons on the Moneyline
Spread: Rotoworld Bet is recommending a play on the Pistons +2.5
Total: Rotoworld Bet is staying away from a play on the Game Total of 224.5
Want even more NBA best bets and predictions from our expert staff & tools? Check out the Expert NBA Predictions page from NBC Sports for money line, spread and over/under picks for every game on today’s calendar!
If you’re looking for more key trends and stats around the spread, moneyline and total for every single game on the schedule today, check out our NBA Top Trends tool on NBC Sports!
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Eric Samulski
