COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — England captain Harry Brook won his first toss of the series and elected to bat in the third and final ODI against Sri Lanka on Tuesday.
Brook criticized the track in the second ODI as the “worst pitch” he’s ever played on despite the visitors winning the game by five wickets and levelling the series 1-1.
England retained the same spin-heavy XI that troubled Sri Lanka in the second game. Zak Crawley couldn’t recover from his knee injury, which means Rehan Ahmed will once again open the batting with Ben Duckett.
Sri Lanka, which hasn’t lost a bilateral home series over the last five years, brought in ace spinner Wanindu Hasaranga in place of fast bowler Pramod Madushan as the wicket is expected to help slow bowlers.
Hasaranga was rested for the first two games with the T20 World Cup starting on Feb. 7.
England: Rehan Ahmed, Ben Duckett, Joe Root, Jacob Bethell, Harry Brook (captain), Jos Buttler, Sam Curran, Will Jacks, Jamie Overton, Liam Dawson, Adil Rashid.
Luka Doncic had 17 points and eight assists in the first half of Monday's game [Getty Images]
Luka Doncic put on another scoring masterclass with 46 points as the Los Angeles Lakers claimed a 129-118 victory at the Chicago Bulls.
The Slovenia guard's haul included eight three-pointers, and he also registered seven rebounds and 12 assists at the United Center to end the Bulls' four-game unbeaten run.
Doncic becomes the quickest Laker to reach 2,000 points - achieving the feat in his 65th game since he was traded by the Dallas Mavericks last February.
It was the fourth match in a row that the 26-year-old has finished with more than 30 points and he tops the NBA scoring charts with an average of 33.8 points per game.
He joins Kobe Bryant as the only players in Lakers history with at least 45 points, 10 assists and five three-pointers in a single game.
LeBron James added 24 points, five rebounds and three assists for the Lakers with Rui Hachimura hitting 23 points off the bench.
Despite Doncic's achievements, Lakers coach JJ Redick admitted after the game that the superstar still gives him some anxious moments on the sidelines.
"He's an engine that's fully on and he likes to create out there and that's part of what makes him a great player," he said.
"Because I played with him, I have a pretty good understanding of that - not to say it doesn't test your patience at times.
"You have to be willing to live with some of the stuff he tries because more often than not you will get a great result."
The Boston Bruins had the third-worst record in the Eastern Conference standings on Dec. 30, which was the product of a six-game losing streak. They were in danger of digging themselves a hole that would be tough to climb out of.
But since then, they have won 10 of their last 13 games (10-2-1 record), and as a result the B’s enter Tuesday in the second wild card playoff spot.
What’s behind the Bruins’ impressive turnaround in January?
Let’s look at some of the key factors.
Charlie McAvoy’s fantastic two-way play
McAvoy had a tough start to the season after suffering a jaw injury in mid-November that kept him sidelined for about a month. But he has kicked it into high gear in January with 14 points (three goals, 11 assists). He had just 20 points in the previous three months combined.
He’s making more of an impact than just scoring, though. McAvoy defends at a high level, he blocks shots, he dishes out huge hits, he kills penalties — everything you’d expect from a true No. 1 defenseman.
“He’s been outstanding as of late, for a while now,” Bruins head coach Marco Sturm said after a win over the Vegas Golden Knights last week. “He’s like a horse out there. It’s almost like you want to play him for 60 minutes because he does everything. Blocking shots is part of his game, too. I’m just very happy with the way he’s playing right now, especially in those crucial moments in the game where we need to stay calm and be in the right spot. He’s been there for us all year long.”
McAvoy logs a lot of tough minutes against the opposing team’s top forwards, and yet the B’s still have a positive goal differential and an edge in scoring chances during his even-strength minutes this month.
Whether it’s 5-on-5, the power play or the penalty kill, McAvoy is making a positive impact all over the ice, and that’s what you expect from a player who is top 10 at his position when healthy.
Morgan Geekie is back
After going 12 straight games without scoring a goal from Dec. 21 through Jan. 17, Geekie has tallied six points (four goals, two assists) in the last four matchups.
Geekie scored twice against the Canadiens on Saturday night, including the game-winning tally with 5:53 left in the third period.
Geekie RIPPED it so hard it got lodged in the back of the net, BUT NO ONE KNEW HE SCORED BESIDES HIMSELF AT FIRST!!!! 😱🚨 pic.twitter.com/FtOvdx18df
Geekie was shooting 28.2 percent right before that 12-game goalless drought began. He wasn’t going to maintain that percentage forever — some kind of regression was coming. But Geekie’s success is no fluke. He’s a tremendous goal scorer with an excellent shot and a high hockey IQ without the puck.
If the Bruins are going to remain in the playoff race past the Winter Olympics, they’ll need Geekie to be a consistent goal scorer at even strength and the power play.
Power play is much improved
One of the primary reasons why the Bruins finished with the fifth-worst record in the league last season was their horrendous power play, which ranked 29th with a 15.2 percent success rate.
The power play has been much improved this season, and one man who has been influential in that turnaround is assistant coach Steve Spott. He was brought in after Marco Sturm was hired as head coach, and one of his main responsibilities was fixing the power play.
It’s hard to argue with the results.
The puck movement is more crisp. There’s more traffic in front of the net and the zone entries are cleaner.
The Bruins have the NHL’s third-best power play right now at 27.5 percent. The only teams ahead of them are the Edmonton Oilers (31.8) and Dallas Stars (29.1) — two squads with loads more elite offensive talent than Boston.
The Bruins scored three times on the power play versus the Canadiens on Saturday, and in January they’re scoring on a league-best 37.5 percent of their opportunities with the man advantage.
Korpisalo’s inability to give the Bruins quality outings as the backup goalie for much of the season was a huge burden on the team’s playoff chances. He posted a sub-.900 save percentage in October, November and December.
But to his credit, Korpisalo has been awesome in January with a 4-0-1 record, a .931 save percentage and a 1.89 GAA in six appearances (five starts).
If Korpisalo can be more consistent and allow Jeremy Swayman to get some much-needed rest in the second half of the season, that would be a huge boost for the Bruins.
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Fraser Minten making Maple Leafs look foolish
The Toronto Maple Leafs included Fraser Minten as part of the Brandon Carlo trade with the Bruins last season, and it’s a decision they probably regret.
Minten has been a key player for Boston with a career-high 25 points (13 goals, 12 assists) in 53 games. His 13 goals would be the fifth-most on the Leafs roster and one more than 23-year-old forward Matthew Knies, who has a $7.75 million salary cap hit.
Minten has really started to hit his stride in January with 10 points — including a team-leading seven goals — in 12 games this month.
The Bruins have a plus-10 goal differential and a plus-22 edge in scoring chances during Minten’s 5-on-5 ice time this season. His two-way skill set, including an ability to kill penalties (third-most shorthanded ice time per game among B’s forwards), has given the Bruins much-needed depth.
David Pastrnak quietly having another elite season
Pastrnak has been a force all season, especially in January. He has tallied 23 points (four goals, 19 assists) in 12 games this month. For the full season, he leads the team with 67 points (21 goals, 46 assists) in 48 games. No one else on the roster has more than 48 points.
The veteran right wing currently is on pace for 101 points, which would get him past the century mark for four consecutive seasons.
Pastrnak is one of the league’s most talented goal scorers, but he’s also a superb passer. His playmaking skills have been on full display this season, evidenced by his 2.87 assists per 60 minutes, which would easily be a new career high. Pastrnak set up a Geekie goal on Saturday with a brilliant assist.
Australian white-ball superstar Adam Zampa is in no rush to decide on his Big Bash future, as the T20 league’s player movement window opens on Wednesday.
The Leicester City chair plays down talk of another relegation but knows the mood among fans is fraught
Leicester City are hurting but Aiyawatt “Top” Srivaddhanaprabha, looking towards the pitch at the King Power Stadium, insists he shares supporters’ frustrations. He acknowledges the warm glow of their extraordinary Premier League title win almost a decade ago has long faded. He watches every game, which sometimes means tuning in from Thailand in the early hours. An 8pm kick-off in England is a 3am start in Bangkok.
“I want to see the real passion of the players and the performance,” the chair says. “When it is not there, I can’t sleep, so it’s love and pain. Leicester is like my son. So I have to do it right. Of course, a son can be naughty, a son can fail the exam, a pain in your head. The son can be top of the class, graduate, have a bad girlfriend or good wife, you never know. So I feel the same, but the love is there. The responsibility is there. The first thing for me is to identify the problem and fix it.”
Friday afternoon, a massive "ICE Out" rally in downtown Minneapolis ended at the Target Center, a gathering so large that more than half the people attending the march could not get in the door of the arena. Then Saturday saw more protests and the fatal shooting of 37-year-old Alex Pretti by a federal officer, which in turn sparked even larger protests and an outpouring of grief and anger in the city and around the nation. The NBA wisely postponed the Timberwolves game at the Target Center that night.
Sunday, that game was played, but Warriors coach Steve Kerr described it as one of the "most bizarre, sad games I've ever been a part of." The Timberwolves' hearts were clearly not in it, they scored just 85 points (their first time under 100 this season) and the Warriors picked up an easy win.
Monday, life and the NBA kept moving on. The Warriors and Timberwolves played again, and people at the Target Center Monday night said things were still "quiet," the vibe was a bit somber and "weird."
However, maybe things looked and felt slightly better by the time the game ended. The Timberwolves looked distracted again at the start, but got a spark off the bench from Bones Hyland that seemed to turn things around. Minnespota went on to pick up a win against a shorthanded Golden State squad behind 17 from Hyland and 18 from Julius Randle. It snapped the Timberwolves' five-game losing streak— right now, Minnesota will take all the wins it can get. On and off the court.
"It's a lot, a lot…" Rudy Gobert said after the win during an interview on Peacock. "We are here doing what we love, give people joy and distract them from the bad things that are happening. That's all we can do. Stay safe, send love to the people that are affected, and keep doing what we do. Try to lead by example. People need some joy in these times."
This is still a city and a state reeling from the killing of Pretti over the weekend, and Renee Good a couple of weeks before. Protests still fill the streets in Minneapolis, and that vibe certainly was still in the air at the Target Center — there were "f*** Ice" chants during the game (including at the end of a moment of silence for Pretti. Even the Timberwolves trampoline dunk team was wearing "ICE Out" shirts Sunday.
Monday, during one break in play, as the cameras panned the crowd and showed fans on the jumbotron, a couple of fans held up “ICE Out Now!” signs, and a huge cheer rose from the crowd.
It wasn't just inside the Target Center where players were making their voices heard. There was former Timberwolves star Karl-Anthony Towns, for one.
What is happening in the Twin Cities and the Great North Star State is heartbreaking to witness. These events have cost lives and shaken families — and we must call for accountability, transparency, and protections for all people. This moment demands that we reflect honestly on…
There were other players around the league making comments or voicing their opinions.
"There's a lot of change that needs to happen, and when you're here, you feel it..." Stephen Curry said after the Warriors win Sunday. "It was amazing to watch the turnout and the peaceful protests and the unified voice that was there. You feel that would kind of turn the tide into a more positive direction … and then you wake up and see what happened."
"Knowing what my values are and what I stand for really all day yesterday I was disgusted," Brianna Stewart said after an Unrivaled game in Miami. "Everything you see on IG and in the news, we're so fueled by hate right now instead of love. I wanted to have a simple message of 'abolish ICE,' which means to uplift families and communities, having policies to uplift families and communities instead of fueling fear and violence. When human lives are at stake, it's bigger than anything else."
Breanna Stewart with an important message ahead of today’s matchup with Vinyl BC: pic.twitter.com/aetUQv1OAH
"For the second time in less than three weeks, we've lost another beloved member of our community in the most unimaginable way," Timberwolves coach Chris Finch said pregame Sunday. "As an organization, we are heartbroken for what we are having to witness and endure and watch, and we just want to extend our thoughts, prayers, and concern for Mr. Pretti's family, all the loved ones, and everyone involved in such a unconscionable situation in a community that we really love, full of people who are by nature, peaceful, and prideful…
"I'm more than a resident. This is my home. I love living here. I love being a part of this community. I've been embraced from day one. People have been amazing. It's sad to watch what is happening. On the human level, certainly as somebody who takes great pride in being here, I know a lot of our players feel the same. They all love being here, and it's just hard to watch what we're going through."
Maybe Monday night's win was a small step toward bringing some joy and starting to help a community heal.
Chicago Bulls (23-23, ninth in the Eastern Conference) vs. Indiana Pacers (11-36, 14th in the Eastern Conference)
Indianapolis; Wednesday, 7 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: Pascal Siakam and the Indiana Pacers host Nikola Vucevic and the Chicago Bulls.
The Pacers are 7-24 in Eastern Conference games. Indiana is 5-28 against opponents with a winning record.
The Bulls are 3-7 against the rest of the division. Chicago allows 119.9 points to opponents while being outscored by 2.0 points per game.
The Pacers score 110.2 points per game, 9.7 fewer points than the 119.9 the Bulls allow. The Bulls are shooting 47.7% from the field, 0.6% lower than the 48.3% the Pacers' opponents have shot this season.
The teams play for the third time this season. In the last meeting on Dec. 6 the Pacers won 120-105 led by 36 points from Siakam, while Coby White scored 22 points for the Bulls.
TOP PERFORMERS: Jay Huff is scoring 8.3 points per game and averaging 3.7 rebounds for the Pacers. Siakam is averaging 21.8 points and 7.6 rebounds over the last 10 games.
Vucevic is averaging 16.8 points, 9.1 rebounds and 3.8 assists for the Bulls. White is averaging 16.3 points over the last 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Pacers: 5-5, averaging 108.2 points, 44.7 rebounds, 29.2 assists, 8.0 steals and 4.8 blocks per game while shooting 44.8% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 114.0 points per game.
Bulls: 6-4, averaging 118.2 points, 43.4 rebounds, 31.8 assists, 7.2 steals and 5.6 blocks per game while shooting 49.3% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 113.9 points.
INJURIES: Pacers: Obi Toppin: out (foot), Tyrese Haliburton: out for season (achilles).
Bulls: Noa Essengue: out for season (shoulder), Zach Collins: out (toe), Tre Jones: out (hamstring).
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
BOTTOM LINE: Ryan Rollins and the Milwaukee Bucks visit Tyrese Maxey and the Philadelphia 76ers in Eastern Conference action.
The 76ers are 18-17 in conference play. Philadelphia has a 12-6 record in games decided by at least 10 points.
The Bucks are 14-14 against Eastern Conference opponents. Milwaukee allows 115.5 points to opponents and has been outscored by 3.6 points per game.
The 76ers average 116.1 points per game, 0.6 more points than the 115.5 the Bucks allow. The Bucks average 111.9 points per game, 3.9 fewer than the 115.8 the 76ers allow.
The teams play for the third time this season. The 76ers won the last matchup 116-101 on Dec. 6. Quentin Grimes scored 22 points to help lead the 76ers to the victory.
TOP PERFORMERS: Grimes is scoring 13.3 points per game and averaging 3.8 rebounds for the 76ers. Maxey is averaging 24.9 points and 2.9 rebounds over the last 10 games.
Rollins is scoring 16.1 points per game and averaging 4.5 rebounds for the Bucks. AJ Green is averaging 2.8 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: 76ers: 4-6, averaging 110.8 points, 41.6 rebounds, 23.0 assists, 10.9 steals and 5.4 blocks per game while shooting 45.9% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 114.3 points per game.
Bucks: 4-6, averaging 108.0 points, 41.4 rebounds, 26.6 assists, 6.8 steals and 3.9 blocks per game while shooting 46.9% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 114.0 points.
INJURIES: 76ers: Charles Bassey: day to day (personal), Paul George: day to day (knee), Joel Embiid: day to day (knee).
Bucks: Giannis Antetokounmpo: out (calf), Kevin Porter Jr.: out (oblique), Taurean Prince: out (neck).
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
Atlanta Hawks (23-25, 10th in the Eastern Conference) vs. Boston Celtics (29-17, second in the Eastern Conference)
Boston; Wednesday, 7:30 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: Atlanta looks to keep its three-game win streak alive when the Hawks take on Boston.
The Celtics are 21-11 in conference play. Boston is 13-11 against opponents with a winning record.
The Hawks are 11-17 against Eastern Conference opponents. Atlanta is 5-6 in games decided by 3 points or fewer.
The Celtics average 15.7 made 3-pointers per game this season, 2.4 more made shots on average than the 13.3 per game the Hawks give up. The Hawks average 14.6 made 3-pointers per game this season, 0.3 more makes per game than the Celtics give up.
The teams play for the second time this season. The Celtics won the last matchup 132-106 on Jan. 18. Jaylen Brown scored 41 points to help lead the Celtics to the victory.
TOP PERFORMERS: Derrick White is shooting 39.1% and averaging 17.6 points for the Celtics. Brown is averaging 26.2 points over the last 10 games.
Jalen Johnson is averaging 23 points, 10.4 rebounds and 7.9 assists for the Hawks. Nickeil Alexander-Walker is averaging 3.5 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Celtics: 6-4, averaging 113.2 points, 46.3 rebounds, 24.5 assists, 7.5 steals and 4.8 blocks per game while shooting 45.6% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 107.7 points per game.
Hawks: 6-4, averaging 115.0 points, 44.1 rebounds, 30.6 assists, 10.1 steals and 5.3 blocks per game while shooting 45.9% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 114.1 points.
INJURIES: Celtics: Jayson Tatum: out (achilles), Luka Garza: out (illness).
Hawks: Kristaps Porzingis: out (achilles), Zaccharie Risacher: day to day (knee), N'Faly Dante: out for season (knee).
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
Every few years, Major League Baseball rolls out a rule change that reshapes how the game is played.
In 2020, MLB implemented the three-batter minimum for relievers and introduced the automatic runner in extra innings.
Three years later, the league rolled out another wave of changes — adding the pitch clock, limiting pickoff attempts, and restricting defensive shifts — all in an effort to speed up play, encourage action on the bases and restore more balance between hitters and pitchers.
Now, another shift is on the way.
In just under two months, the automated ball-strike (ABS) challenge system will officially become part of regular-season Major League games. The system has been tested extensively in the Minors and made its Spring Training debut at the big-league level last year. In 2026, it becomes real.
For Phillies manager Rob Thomson, a baseball lifer who has seen the game evolve in cycles, the key factor is simple: whether the players buy in or not.
“I think it’s great,” Thomson said. “When we tried it in spring training last year, a lot of the guys liked it — not everybody — but most did. And I think the umpires liked it as well. As long as somebody doesn’t get embarrassed, I like it. And if the players like it, I think it’s fair for everybody.”
The system itself is straightforward. Each team is allowed two challenges per game, initiated by the hitter, pitcher, or catcher. Challenges are immediate and binary — either the call is overturned or it isn’t — which keeps the pace intact.
One concern often raised is whether ABS diminishes the value of pitch framing. Thomson, a former catcher himself, doesn’t see it that way.
“They talk about whether it’s going to make receiving less important,” he said. “That’s not really true, because you only get two challenges. Framing still comes into play.”
That balance matters for a club like Philadelphia, especially with J.T. Realmuto back behind the plate. While Realmuto hasn’t graded as an elite framer in recent seasons, his feel for the strike zone — and willingness to challenge calls — stood out during last spring’s trial run.
Left-hander Tanner Banks saw that firsthand.
“I know J.T. was excited about it,” Banks said. “There were times in spring when he’d catch a pitch and immediately know it was a strike. You see guys like Bryce [Harper] or Kyle [Schwarber] get rung up on pitches that are balls — the hitter knows the zone better than anybody.”
From the pitching side, Banks acknowledged there’s an adjustment.
“There’s a human element pitchers like with umpires,” he said. “Maybe you steal something because the catcher does a great job. But at the end of the day, you want consistency. The umpires I’ve talked to are for it if it helps make the right call. It’s not a jab at anyone — it’s a matter of game integrity.”
Accuracy, of course, remains another big question. Strike zones differ by hitter stance, height, and approach, and every ballpark presents its own quirks. Whether ABS can apply that consistently across 30 stadiums is something the league will continue monitoring.
Phillies ace Cristopher Sánchez views it as another adaptation point.
“It changes the game and you have to adjust,” Sánchez said through an interpreter. “There are a few things that I don’t necessarily like or agree with, but I just try to adapt and keep going.
That perspective carries weight. Sánchez was on the mound for one of the most scrutinized ball-strike calls of the entire 2025 postseason — a missed call in Game 4 of the NLDS that altered the inning and, ultimately, the series.
Cristopher Sánchez said the umpire apologized to him for missing this call.
Alex Call went on to score the tying run after he walked on the next pitch.
Rule changes tend to be judged in hindsight. When they help, they’re praised. When they don’t, they’re criticized.
But MLB’s intent has remained consistent: get the calls right.
Instant replay paired with managers’ challenges, introduced in 2014, once felt intrusive. Now it’s expected. ABS will likely follow a similar path — an adjustment period, some early friction, and then normalization.
When the ball hits the catcher’s mitt in 2026, the margin for error will be smaller. For players and teams built on precision and strategy, that may be exactly the point.
This is the sort of game the Rockets should win going away. The Memphis Grizzlies, shorthanded as almost always, and without Ja Morant, as per usual, should be the sort of team the Rockets beat. Not that they’re a bad team, or have bad players, they’re one of the deeper teams in the NBA, full of generally good players. They’re just always injured, and usually missing at least one of their two stars. The draft picks they got for Desmond Bane will no doubt help them draft still more good, but constantly injured players, but that doesn’t help them much in the present.
To which I say, aw, that’s too bad.
Meanwhile the Rockets were as full strength as they’re likely to be for a while, though I suspect a fair few of them are battling illness. Jabari Smith in particular had that “I’ve got to choose to when to expend energy.” look tonight, and was sometimes out of the game, and not on the bench.
Meanwhile, Alperen Sengun and Amen Thompson looked great, while Kevin Durant seems to be The Terminator of Mid Range Shots.
The Rockets have a problem of playing down to their competition, and they knew Memphis wasn’t really on their level, too. Memphis, for its part, seemed to have ignored that part, and played hard, and to win. They fielded a really small team overall, and that caused the Rockets a lot of problems defensively. Or seemed to, anyway.
What I mean by that is, Memphis scored a lot of easy seeming points, and grabbed a bunch of offensive boards by taking advantage of being smaller and quicker and getting to long rebounds more often. But what did all that add up to in the end? 99 points. So did the Rockets play bad defense? You can’t tell by the scoreboard, and that, after all, is what matters. For all the seemingly easy looks, Memphis shot 37% overall, and 19% from three point range on high volume. They scored 30 points in the second quarter, and never broke 24 in any other.
Maybe we’ve all been infected by Ime Udoka? He seems to regard any points scored on the Rockets as a deep insult, and likely a character flaw on the part of the defender. It’s an impossible standard, and when you look at a point total under 100 points, it’s hard to see what exactly the Rockets did so poorly overall.
The Rockets offense faltered a bit, too, until the fourth quarter when the Rockets stopped messing around, and put the Grizzlies away, 32-22.
There were three notable things tonight from Rockets players. One was a return to inside dominance for Alperen Sengun. As Memphis could only send Santi Aldama and Jaren Jackson Jr at Sengun. (I think JJJ is defensively an overrated player. He does stuff that looks great, but apart from highlights, he doesn’t seem do all that much overall, for a max player). Anyway, those two weren’t close to enough. Alperen Sengun went for 33pts/9rbs/6ast/1stl. He went 15-17 shooting. One of his misses was a late clock 3pt grenade thrown to him by Tari Eason. He shot 3-4 on FTs, and simply dominated inside on offense.
The second thing is that Amen has been generally excellent as a point guard lately. It helps that his teammates now occasionally indulge in the vice known as “Offense” from time to time, but this is mainly thanks to Amen playing the position better all the time, it seems. Tonight Amen had 14 assists to 4 turnovers, to go with 8pts, 8rbs and 1stl. He also played some really good defense.
A brief word about turnovers. For me, they come in different flavors. Some are careless, some are the result of panic, some are because a player is bad at dribbling, or passing, and some are bad judgment or as is often the case with the Rockets, from over passing, forcing a pass, rather than just taking a decent shot opportunity. Those are a problem. Some turnovers are a result of useful aggression, of attempting to break a defense, to find and involve teammates, that fail. Just as every missed shot isn’t the same, every turnover isn’t the same. The second group aren’t turnovers that bother me. Most of Amen’s 4 tonight were of that variety. He’s not panicking when he’s trapped or picks up his dribble anymore.
The third thing is Kevin Durant. It must be dispiriting to play against him. Well, it was certainly dispiriting to watch him play against the Rockets, most nights. A defense can do everything well against him, and it just won’t matter. Tonight he scored 33pts on 11-24 shooting, went 4-9 from three point range, and grabbed 8 boards, dished a couple of assists, and had a block. He does turn the ball over in odd, and frustrating ways, but since a high in Philly, he seems to have become much more careful. Some turnovers you’re just going to have to live with if you make Durant a play initiator, rather than just a scorer and finisher. As long as the number stays low, that’s fine.
Kevin Durant, however, truly shouldn’t be one of the highest minutes per game players in the NBA. There’s enough talent on the Rockets roster that if used properly can prevent this. But we’re seeing what every coach seems to see with KD. It’s just so easy to have him just fix all the offensive weaknesses, simply by being Kevin Durant. And so the minutes, and points pile up. Until they don’t.
Anyhow, a solid, if slightly concerning win. For all the gloom and doom, the Rockets are 16-3 at home. OKC is 20-4, Detroit is 18-4. The Rockets have played 19 at home, to 25 on the road. Next up, a sterner test against San Antonio on Wednesday, in Houston.
The New York Rangers’ 4-3 overtime win over the Boston Bruins on Monday night may not mean a whole lot when it comes to the standings and playoff chances, but there’s a lot to be encouraged about, specifically when it comes to the young players.
Entering this matchup, the Rangers had lost three straight games and were without Carson Soucy, who was held out for roster management reasons as a trade between the Rangers and the New York Islanders was on the verge of being completed, which was made official after the game.
With Rangers president and general manager Chris Drury releasing a letter last week outlining the team’s intentions to retool the roster, this win in the grand scheme of things doesn't hold much significance.
The focus now shifts from making the playoffs with a clearly depleting roster to fully developing the young core and giving them opportunities to thrive.
In Monday night’s victory, the young core served as the driving force to securing these two points.
It was Will Cuylle who scored the Rangers’ first goal in the first period to set the tone. Cuylle, Noah Laba, and Brennan Othmann form a prominent third line, built on youth, physicality, and grit.
“Lobs (Laba) is continuing to grow and develop,” Sullivan said. “He brings a speed game. I think when he plays with Will Cuylle, I think they have a pretty good north-south game, a speed game there. They're fairly reliable defensively, so they can play on both sides of the puck. We have no issues playing them against anyone.”
Gabe Perreault set up the Blueshirts’ second goal with a pinpoint pass to J.T. Miller, who capitalized to give the Rangers a 2-1 lead.
As of late, Perreault has been playing his best hockey. From seeming to be overwhelmed by the pace of NHL play when he was originally called up, Perreault is now generating offense at a high rate.
The 20-year-old forward’s vision allows him to slow down the game and create for his teammates, while his offensive prowess is providing the Rangers with some much-needed explosiveness on a roster mostly barren of high-end skill.
Perreault has thrived in a top-six role playing on a line alongside Mika Zibanejad and J.T. Miller, and he’s certainly deserving of a larger role given that he didn’t even touch the ice for the entirety of overtime.
“I think Gabe has done a great job playing with Mika and J.T. You can see his offensive instincts. I think he's getting more comfortable with the game, with each game that he plays and the experience that he gets, but he has the instincts to play with those guys, and I think it's evident,” Sullivan said of Perreault.
“That pass he made to J.T., that's an elite play. There are a lot of guys that don't have the vision or the skillset to execute the play, and it was a really smart play on his part, but just the vision to see it. We're really excited about the progress he's made.”
It was Matthew Roberston, who delivered the overtime-winning goal, going coast to coast and finishing with a nifty move to get the puck past Joonas Korpisalo.
It’s been a long journey for Robertson, who spent four full seasons in the American Hockey League playing for the Hartford Wolf Pack, and quite frankly, it didn’t appear as if he would make the jump to the NHL, at least not with the Rangers.
This season, Robertson not only made the Rangers’ opening-night roster out of training camp, but he has carved out a consistent role for himself, making for a real feel-good story.
The 24-year-old defenseman had his shining moment on Monday night, and admitted that he thinks that this was his only overtime goal that he could remember.
“Honestly, I just blacked out and just smiled,” Roberston emphasized. “I was excited.”
Roberston also took time to reflect on the mountain he had to climb to be able to experience that moment and knows he can’t take anything for granted.
“I remind myself, honestly as much as I can, just how hard it is to get here and just to keep pushing,” Robertson said. “You can go back to where I was easily. You can get sent down at any time.”
At the end of the day, it’s just one game, and the Rangers have a long way to go in the retooling process, as we have yet to see the true implications of Drury’s letter outside of the minor Soucy trade.
However, it’s all about the young talent, and for the Rangers’ sake, hopefully Monday night’s emotional victory is a sign of what is to come in the future.
Ironically, on a night when the Bulls seemingly could not miss from three, the Lakers had one of their best defensive performances of the season. The box score does not bear it out too much, but that felt as locked in as the team has been defensively in some time.
It tailed off a bit in the fourth, but LA was creating turnovers and finishing stops with rebounds to end the possession. It was a strong showing on that end and even when Chicago opened the second half with a barrage of baskets, LA stayed focused and had a response that kept the game from resembling Saturday’s in Dallas.
So, let’s dive into the win. As always, grades are based on expectations for each player. A “B” grade represents the average performance for that player.
One thing I really appreciate about LaRavia is how often he is just running around the court. He’s really the perfect glue guy type.
The perfect sequence of that saw him chase a long rebound into the corner only to be beaten to the ball by a Bull. He hustled back, got in front of Nikola Vučević after an early three and boxed him out to secure the board on the other end.
It’s probably an aspect I don’t give him enough credit for.
A great three quarters for LeBron before a relatively quiet close. He had some ugly misses, but also some big fastbreak dunks. Another strong defensive night from him as well.
This is the fourth straight game that Ayton has not closed. One of those games was the Nuggets game when he got poked in the ye, but it’s still an interesting development.
This was about as steady a game as you could expect from Smart. Hig biggest contribution to Bulls fans, though, were the two missed freebies at the end.
This was as easy as it’s looked for Luka in a long time. It was perhaps his best performance from three this season. It also featured Luka closing a game out with some big threes, which hasn’t happened too often this year. That could be a sign of him and Redick finding better ways to pace things throughout the first three periods.
That was both cool and terrifying at the same time as he seemed to barely pull it off. Outside of that, I thought Hayes was actually really good defensively as he was part of some switching units that led to him needing to fly out to close outs on the perimeter which he did well.
After a strong fourth quarter in Dallas, Rui put together four great quarters in Chicago. He was red hot from the jump and gave the Lakers a huge boost off the bench, something they’ve rarely had this season.
The Golden State Warriors got their butts kicked on Monday night, and who can blame them? In addition to the standard absence of Jimmy Butler III, they were also playing without Steph Curry, Draymond Green, Al Horford, De’Anthony Melton, Jonathan Kuminga, and Seth Curry. Even against a Minnesota Timberwolves team that’s on quite a skid, a win just wasn’t realistic.
Golden State gave it a good run for a while, but ran out of steam late in the first half and never recovered, ultimately losing 108-83 in their lowest-scoring game of the year. So let’s grade the players who played bigger roles than usual in a scheduled loss. As always, grades are based on my expectations for each player, with a “B” grade representing the average performance for that player.
Note: True-shooting percentage (TS) is a scoring efficiency metric that accounts for threes and free throws. Entering Monday’s games, league average TS was 58.0%.
I’ll talk about this again when we get to another player, but one of the things I’ve been noticing lately when the Warriors rest their starters is that the team really doesn’t seem to view Moody as being an offensive threat. He’s a quality role player, but even with all of their go-to scorers sidelined, the Dubs just don’t turn to Moody to be a scoring option.
Sure, he was only one field goal attempt shy of the team lead, but they were almost all rhythm shots, set up by teammates or by the flow of the offense. There was no sense of Okay, Moses, Steph’s out and everyone else is out, have the rock and feast.
That’s not necessarily a bad thing, it just feels like a little bit of a peek behind the curtain for the team. While some players on the Warriors feel like role players because they share the court with future Hall of Famers, Moody feels more like a role player because he’s a role player. He’s often a very good role player, but in games where he doesn’t have that star cast around him, he doesn’t look very good. He also got taken off the dribble by Rudy Gobert a few times, which can’t happen.
Congrats to Santos on his first career double-double! He was all over the court in this one, and a big part of why the Warriors almost held their own on the glass against a team with Gobert and Julius Randle. He also showed off some seriously crafty moves, particularly with a slick reverse post move early in the contest.
He wasn’t efficient, though that’s a theme for the night. And he had more turnovers than you’d like, though that comes with being forced into more of a playmaking role than he’s supposed to have. It was a flawed game, certainly, but it felt like he played well and showed a lot.
Grade: B+ Post-game bonus: Led the team in rebounds, best plus/minus on the team.
A bit of a hot-and-cold game for Post. He showed some really nice stuff on offense, though ultimately wasn’t too inefficient. He got worked a bit on defense and the glass (Gobert had 17 boards), but had a few eye-opening plays.
Not his best work, but not his worst, either.
Grade: B- Post-game bonus: Led the team in points.
Leave it to Spencer to always bring the toughness. No one played harder in this game than Pat and, despite being mostly out of the rotation these days, he was counted on to lead the team in minutes and didn’t look at all exhausted despite moving at full speed.
Despite the poor shooting night for the team (the Warriors shot 34.7% from the field and 23.1% from deep), the offense often flowed beautifully … until the shot went up. And more often than not, the offense flowed beautifully because Spencer was getting the team into their sets and motions and keeping the ball moving. Sure, that resulted in more turnovers than is ideal, but the Wolves have a top-five defense and Spencer was playing the unexpected role of leading the offense. It happens. He played well.
Grade: A- Post-game bonus: Led the team in assists.
So, let’s revisit what I wrote about Moody, because there was a distinct difference with Podziemski. It was clear from the plays the team ran, and the way Podziemski’s number was called, that they wanted him to be the go-to scorer in this game. He flashed some potential, as he had a few brilliant plays on offense.
Overall, though, he struggled to score, but again: the takeaway here is less about the results, and more about the process, and seeing what the Warriors wanted and how they value different players. Podz is less steady and less reliable than Moody, but it’s also pretty clear that Golden State views him as potentially being an impact scorer in a way that they don’t with Moses.
His hustle was great in this game. He was the team’s second-highest rebounder and, as he always does, drew some charges.
No, you’re not reading that incorrectly: Richard really did have six steals in this game. It was a masterclass of defensive engagement and activity. He was everywhere on that end of the court, with stunningly disruptive hands.
The offense? Not so much. But as with everyone here, he gets something of a pass given the situation. Gotta love the defense.
Hield shot 20% from the field, 0% from the free throw line, and got put in the spin cycle by Gobert 25 feet from the hoop. That’s all I have to say about that.
Grade: D Post-game bonus: Tied for the worst plus/minus on the team.
TJD gets an “A” for unintentional humor. Twice he came to the free throw line in the fourth quarter of a game that had long since been decided. The Wolves have a “Bricken for Chicken” special, where everyone gets free Chick-fil-A if an opposing player misses a pair of free throws in the second half. Both times, Jackson-Davis missed the front half of his free throws, turning the arena into a frenzy. Both times he made the second, resulting in an audible “awwww” from the crowd. It was pretty funny.
Other than that … well, he played pretty decently, I thought.
Leons entered the game having scored just two points in his short NBA career. He not only quadrupled that mark, but was the only Warriors player to shoot with above-average efficiency. And he ripped down five boards in nine minutes! Quite a nice showing for the two-way contract.
Grade: A+
Monday’s inactives: Jimmy Butler III, LJ Cryer, Seth Curry, Steph Curry, Draymond Green, Al Horford, Jonathan Kuminga, De’Anthony Melton
NBA legend Paul Pierce is facing a paternity lawsuit from a woman claiming he is the father of her unborn son.
Princess Santiago, an event director in Los Angeles, filed the suit on Jan. 12, according to TMZ Sports. She is demanding DNA testing from the 48-year-old former Celtics and Nets star to prove whether Pierce is the father.
Santiago, in a statement to TMZ, said the case is not about “drama or attention” but accountability and “doing what’s right for my child” after she claimed attempts to keep it out of court failed.
Paul Pierce speaks during Tony Allen’s jersey retirement ceremony on March 15, 2025. NBAE via Getty Images
“I filed for paternity papers after multiple attempts to resolve this privately,” Santiago said in a statement. “Paul Pierce is the father of my son, King, and I am simply asking for a paternity test so the truth can be confirmed.”
Santiago has posted multiple photos of her baby bump to her Instagram account startng in November 2025. Her latest post features her in a satin, blue robe with the caption: “It’s only up from here.”
Pierce’s lawyer had no comment when reached by TMZ.
Pierce has three children with his former wife Julie Landrum. The couple had been together since 2010 before divorcing in 2023.
The former Kansas star was drafted No. 10 overall in the 1998 draft and played 19 years in the NBA, ending his career with the Wizards and Clippers.
Pierce, a basketball Hall of Famer and former FS1 contributor, won his only NBA championship with the Celtics in 2008 and was the MVP of the Finals. He was a 10-time All-Star
Princess Santiago, pregnant and posing in front of a Christmas arch. Princess Santiago/Instagram
