SAN FRANCISCO, CA - AUGUST 27: San Francisco Giants pitcher Carson Whisenhunt (88) pitches in the first inning of a MLB game against the Chicago Cubs on August 27, 2025 at Oracle Park in San Francisco, CA. (Photo by Matthew Huang/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
The San Francisco Giants have another doubleheader today, after their eventual 7-2 win over the Atlanta Braves was paused in the second inning on Tuesday, and finished earlier today.
Because of the doubleheader, the teams are given a 27th player for the second game, and that’s exciting for the Giants, because it means the season debut of lefty Carson Whisenhunt, who will make the start. Whisenhunt has pitched in 14 games for AAA Sacramento this year, and is 5-2 with a 3.65 ERA, a 3.61 FIP, and 77 strikeouts to 30 walks in 69 innings. The one thing he’s struggled this year is going deep into games due to a constantly high pitch count, but that’s not as big of an issue today as it sometimes is in doubleheaders, as San Francisco only used two relievers (Dylan Smith and Caleb Kilian) in the first game of the day.
In addition to calling up Whisenhunt, the Giants made a move between games, calling up lefty reliever Matt Gage, while optioning lefty reliever Reiver Sanmartin.
Atlanta is sticking with their scheduled starter, after finishing the first game with a bullpen showing. That means righty JR Ritchie will take the mound. Ritchie is in his debut season, and turns 23 later this month. He’s appeared in six games this year, while making five starts, and is 1-1 with a 3.82 ERA, a 5.15 FIP, and 26 strikeouts to 18 walks in 30.2 innings. He threw five shutout innings against the New York Mets his last time out.
President Donald Trump came to see the Knicks at Madison Square Garden for the NBA Finals.
Now, the champs are returning the favor.
Knicks owner James Dolan confirmed Wednesday during an interview on WFAN that the team will go to the White House to be feted by the president.
The Knicks celebrate their Game 5 win over the Spurs to clinch the NBA title. Charles Wenzelberg / NY PostTrump at NBA Finals Game 3. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post
It will mark the first time an NBA champion is visiting the White House in either of Trump’s two terms.
“We just did receive an invitation from the White House, which we accepted,” Dolan said when asked about a potential visit to the nation’s capital. “We still have to figure out the details, et cetera, but yes, of course. Look, I invited the president to come down for the game. He is a friend. I’ve known him for 30 years and I’m very proud to bring the team to the White House.”
Rumors were floating online that the Knicks had declined a formal visit, but a White House official told Vanity Fair earlier Wednesday that the speculation was far from the truth.
“This is fake news,” the official told the outlet. “The White House congratulates the Knicks on their championship win and looks forward to discussing a visit in the near future.”
UFC Freedom 250 at the White House. KENNY HOLSTON/POOL/EPA/Shutterstock
Trump, a New York native and Knicks fan, became the first sitting president to attend an NBA Finals game when he came to New York for Game 3. He sat in a suite with his granddaughter, Kai, and Dolan. He was shown on the video board during the national anthem.
After the Knicks rallied to win Game 5 in San Antonio, securing their first NBA championship in 53 years, Trump extolled their efforts in a post on social media.
“Congratulations to Jim Dolan and the New York Knicks!!!” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “What incredible playoff wins we have all witnessed, especially the last four — maybe the greatest in the history of basketball.
“Also tonight, a superstar was born. His name is Jalen Brunson, and there are others, including Karl-Anthony Towns, OG Anunoby, and great patriot Mitchell Robinson!”
The Celtics were the last team to visit the White House in 2024 when Joe Biden was still commander in chief.
Turnover in professional sports is common, especially when it's a salary cap sport.
But after the Knicks' generational run culminated with their first NBA Championship in 53 years, is it possible that notable names won't be returning next season?
Well, Knicks owner James Dolan was a guest on WFAN's Carton Show on Wednesday and was asked what the chances are that some players won't be returning, and Dolan was honest.
"If we could bring back the whole team, exactly as is, why wouldn’t you?" he said. "I don’t know if we’ll be able to...
We’re willing to stretch, but there's certain things in the NBA that you'd have to be suicidal to do. One of them is the second apron. Cannot go into the second apron."
The second apron in the NBA is, essentially, a cap that penalizes teams that overspend.
Dolan points out that most of their team is under contract, a few guys aren't, but he'll leave the roster construction to team president Leon Rose and he's willing to spend big, just not go into that second apron.
"I'll write as big of a check as possible, but I can't write a check that goes into the second apron," Dolan said.
"There's certain things in the NBA that you'd have to be suicidal to do. One of them is the second apron. Cannot go into the second apron. I'll write as big of a check as possible, but I can't write a check that goes into the second apron."
So, what does that mean for the Knicks? It's hard to say, but Jonathan Macri of Knicks Film Skool put it succinctly on social media.
The second apron is set at $222 million with the five starters (Jalen Brunson, Mikal Bridges, OG Anunoby, Josh Hart, Karl-Anthony Towns), Miles McBride and Jose Alvarado making $200 million. To fill a 14-player roster, the Knicks will have to make some hard decisions to stay under the second apron.
The biggest question mark is Mitchell Robinson. The longest-tenured Knick is set to be an unrestricted free agent this offseason and will likely get a big payday on the open market. He made nearly $13 million this past season. The big man could be the first casualty of the Knicks' offseason.
Alvarado does have a player option that would pay him $4.5 million next season. If he doesn't exercise it and hits the market, that would free up space, but the assumption is that the guard will stay with the Knicks.
Other notable unrestricted free agents to be are Landry Shamet, Jordan Clarkson and Jeremy Sochan.
Ariel Hukport and Mohamed Diawara are restricted free agents.
The Braves turn to JR Ritchie on the mound as they look to earn a split from a virtual doubleheader on Wednesday night after 7.5 innings of Tuesday’s game played were played Wednesday afternoon.
The vibes are as bad as they’ve been all season for the team, and the lineup for Game 2, which is missing Michael Harris II after he exited Tuesday night with lower back tightness once again, doesn’t help that.
Drake Baldwin moves down to the second spot in the lineup and will DH again, with Mauricio Dubon batting leadoff and playing in center with Sandy Leon behind the plate. The Braves also called up Jair Camargo as their extra roster member and emergency catcher, making sure Baldwin won’t need to catch the nightcap.
The Giants, on the other hand, are keeping their lineup almost exactly the same. The only change is swapping out Eric Haase behind the plate and in the nine spot for Daniel Susac, who hit ninth and caught the first game of the series.
San Francisco will give left-hander Carson Whisenhunt his first start of the season against Ritchie in a matchup of pitchers each making their sixth career major league starts.
Tune in and see if the Braves can avoid dropping a third straight series or if they force a Thursday rubber match.
NEW YORK, NY - JUNE 12: Spencer Strider #99 of the Atlanta Braves pitches during the game between the Atlanta Braves and the New York Mets at Citi Field on Friday, June 12, 2026 in New York, New York. (Photo by Evan Yu/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
Similarly to how it seemed likely that the Braves were going to be without Ronald Acuña Jr. for a bit, it seemed inevitable that Spencer Strider would be put on the longer-term IL eventually once it got out that he’d be shut down for at least a month.
That appears to be the case, as the Braves have gone ahead and moved Strider to the 60-Day IL.
The #Braves today selected RHP Carlos Carrasco to the major league roster and optioned RHP Anthony Molina to Triple-A Gwinnett. To make room on the 40-man roster, the club transferred RHP Spencer Strider to 60-day injured list. Altanta also selected C Jair Camargo to the major…
So while Strider is being shut down for four weeks, that also meant that even if all went well with his future IL, it would take a while for Strider to ramp up and get back into big league pitching shape, so this is simply a way to open up a roster spot for Carlos Carrasco. I’d say that this could be a sign that Cookie might be staying around for a bit longer but it still wouldn’t be shocking if he had to ride the DFA cycle once more in the near future.
Meanwhile, Anthony Molina is back in Triple-A Gwinnett and Hunter Stratton has been designated for assignment, himself. All of this roster shuffling is starting to look similar to what was going on in 2025 and that’s not exactly a positive. Obviously, here’s hoping that we’ve (finally) seen the worst of this bad injury luck for the Braves and that once these guys get healthy, they get healthy for good. It’s been a long, long time since we’ve seen the Braves operate at full strength and as we’ve seen, this could be a special team if the core players could stay healthy.
For now, Spencer Strider will be given all the time in the world to get healthy while the Braves continue to try to figure things out with their pitching staff with the trade deadline in the distance. We’ll see what happens.
The 2026 NHL Draft will take place next Friday. The Chicago Blackhawks currently hold the 4th overall pick, only behind the Toronto Maple Leafs, San Jose Sharks, and Vancouver Canucks.
There is reason to believe that Ivar Stenberg, the consensus second-best player in the draft, will fall to the Blackhawks at 4. That could happen if the Maple Leafs select Gavin McKenna, the Sharks select a defenseman, which is an organizational need, and the Canucks select their head coach's son, Caleb Malhotra.
Although that scenario makes a ton of sense, something happened on Wednesday that could change everything.
The San Jose Sharks acquired defenseman Michael Kesselring and the 27th overall from the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for the 20th overall pick. The Sabres basically gave up Kesselring so that they could move up 7 spots.
Kesselring gives the Sharks another good, young player to work with on the blue line. That could, in theory, feel less pressure to draft one.
If that were the case, they could select Stenberg and add him to their embarrassment of riches at forward. Of course, that would likely eliminate the Blackhawks from getting one of the three top forwards in this year's draft unless they trade up.
San Jose is by no means "set" on defense, but this is another good piece added to their puzzle. They still could stand to add another top prospect at the position, which would be good for the Blackhawks, but this is certainly a wrinkle in the lead-up.
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The New York Knicks will visit the White House to celebrate their NBA championship, an administration official confirmed to NBC News on Wednesday.
President Donald Trump’s hometown team will be the first NBA champions to visit the White House during either of his terms in office.
Knicks owner James Dolan first shared the news in an interview with WFAN sports radio Wednesday.
“We just did receive an invitation from the White House, which we accepted,” Dolan said. “We still have to figure out the details, etc., but yes, of course.”
A White House official told NBC News on Wednesday that administration officials have “been in touch with the Knicks and look forward to hosting the team at a date to be determined in the near future.”
Dolan on Wednesday touted his relationship with Trump, whom he invited to attend Game 3 of the NBA Finals at Madison Square Garden on June 8.
“Look, I invited the president to come down for the game. He is a friend. I’ve known him for 30 years, and I’m very proud to bring the team to the White House,” Dolan said.
Trump was booed at the game, the only one the Knicks lost to the San Antonio Spurs during the five-game series.
He watched the game from Dolan’s box, where he was joined by several administration officials, including Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, White House deputy chief of staff Dan Scavino and Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin.
Trump celebrated the Knicks’ championship early Sunday on Truth Social, congratulating Dolan and top players Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns, OG Anunoby and Mitchell Robinson.
“What a year it has been but, even more so, what incredible playoff wins we have all witnessed, especially the last four — Maybe the greatest in the history of basketball,” he wrote.
The Knicks are expected to visit the White House after NBA championship-winning teams skipped the meeting for years, starting with the Golden State Warriors in 2017.
Star player Stephen Curry said in September 2017 that he was not interested in visiting Trump’s White House, sparking a furious social media post from Trump.
“Going to the White House is considered a great honor for a championship team. Stephen Curry is hesitating, therefore invitation is withdrawn!” Trump wrote on X in September 2017.
The Warriors did not visit the White House the next year after they won the championship again. The Toronto Raptors did not attend the White House after their 2019 win, either.
In 2020, the Los Angeles Lakers’ championship win was delayed by the Covid-19 pandemic, and the team did not visit the White House. However, Trump told reporters in 2018 he would not invite Lakers player LeBron James to the White House after James stood behind Curry’s criticisms.
When Trump returned to office last year, the Oklahoma City Thunder said they would not visit the White House after their championship win because of “timing” issues.
Three teams visited during President Joe Biden’s term — the Milwaukee Bucks, the Warriors and the Boston Celtics in 2021, 2023 and 2024, respectively.
The New York Knicks will visit the White House to celebrate their NBA championship, an administration official confirmed to NBC News on Wednesday.
President Donald Trump’s hometown team will be the first NBA champions to visit the White House during either of his terms in office.
Knicks owner James Dolan first shared the news in an interview with WFAN sports radio Wednesday.
“We just did receive an invitation from the White House, which we accepted,” Dolan said. “We still have to figure out the details, etc., but yes, of course.”
A White House official told NBC News on Wednesday that administration officials have “been in touch with the Knicks and look forward to hosting the team at a date to be determined in the near future.”
Dolan on Wednesday touted his relationship with Trump, whom he invited to attend Game 3 of the NBA Finals at Madison Square Garden on June 8.
“Look, I invited the president to come down for the game. He is a friend. I’ve known him for 30 years, and I’m very proud to bring the team to the White House,” Dolan said.
Trump was booed at the game, the only one the Knicks lost to the San Antonio Spurs during the five-game series.
He watched the game from Dolan’s box, where he was joined by several administration officials, including Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, White House deputy chief of staff Dan Scavino and Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin.
Trump celebrated the Knicks’ championship early Sunday on Truth Social, congratulating Dolan and top players Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns, OG Anunoby and Mitchell Robinson.
“What a year it has been but, even more so, what incredible playoff wins we have all witnessed, especially the last four — Maybe the greatest in the history of basketball,” he wrote.
The Knicks are expected to visit the White House after NBA championship-winning teams skipped the meeting for years, starting with the Golden State Warriors in 2017.
Star player Stephen Curry said in September 2017 that he was not interested in visiting Trump’s White House, sparking a furious social media post from Trump.
“Going to the White House is considered a great honor for a championship team. Stephen Curry is hesitating, therefore invitation is withdrawn!” Trump wrote on X in September 2017.
The Warriors did not visit the White House the next year after they won the championship again. The Toronto Raptors did not attend the White House after their 2019 win, either.
In 2020, the Los Angeles Lakers’ championship win was delayed by the Covid-19 pandemic, and the team did not visit the White House. However, Trump told reporters in 2018 he would not invite Lakers player LeBron James to the White House after James stood behind Curry’s criticisms.
When Trump returned to office last year, the Oklahoma City Thunder said they would not visit the White House after their championship win because of “timing” issues.
Three teams visited during President Joe Biden’s term — the Milwaukee Bucks, the Warriors and the Boston Celtics in 2021, 2023 and 2024, respectively.
May 21, 2026; Bronx, New York, USA; New York Yankees starting pitcher Carlos Rodón (55) is greeted by catcher J.C. Escarra (25) after retiring the side in the fifth inning against the Toronto Blue Jays at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images | Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images
The Yankees emphatically grew their lead in the AL East last night by thrashing the up-and-coming White Sox 12-2 at the Stadium—while the Rays dropped another contest to the Dodgers over on the West Coast. It was about as good of a night as you could hope for the Bombers to start their homestand.
To make the vibes even more immaculate, the NBA champion New York Knicks will be at the stadium to receive their heroes’ welcome from the Bronx crowd. Hey, maybe the nearby presence of newly-minted champs will have a positive residual effect on the Yankees going forward. They’re already rounding back into form, winners of three straight and eight of their last ten.
Gerrit Cole flushed a first-inning homer to complete a six-inning quality start, subduing a White Sox offense which has plenty of pesky young players; even as they lack their new star, Munetaka Murakami. Carlos Rodón, who began his career on the South Side, is tasked with keeping them at bay tonight. He’s begun to hit his stride, finishing the sixth inning in each of his last three starts: all of which were eventual Yankee victories. The last time he saw the Sox was in his final start of the 2025 regular season, in which he also went six innings, striking out five and giving up three runs. He’ll be facing them for the fourth time in his career overall.
The White Sox’ rebuild has centered around their farm system like most teams, but the international market has played a massive role. In addition to Murakami, they signed Anthony Kay to fill their rotation. Kay signed with Yokohama a few years back and succeeded in NPB, earning a free agent deal with Chicago—his results since returning stateside have been mixed. He carries a 4.34 ERA through his first 14 appearances, with low strikeout numbers and an elevated walk rate. Additionally, he’s plunked 12 batters, more than anyone else in baseball.
Paul Goldschmidt will be leading off this evening against the southpaw Kay, with Ben Rice to follow and Amed Rosario hitting third. Jasson Domínguez and Ali Sánchez will draw in for lefties Spencer Jones and J.C. Escarra—Domínguez will play in right field while José Caballero handles left.
How to watch
Location: Yankee Stadium — The Bronx, NY
First pitch: 7:05 pm ET
TV broadcast: Amazon Prime Video, Chicago Sports Network
Apr 18, 2025; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; A view of the warm-up base at third base before a game against the Chicago White Sox at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Eric Canha-Imagn Images | Eric Canha-Imagn Images
Well, Jays, England won, so I’m in a good mood. DO NOT RUIN IT.
No Mad Max tonight, or for the next two weeks plus (at least). Braydon Fisher will be the opener tonight. After that? I’d imagine SWR will have some part of this game. And Spencer Miles.
Today’s Lineups
BLUE JAYS
RED SOX
George Springer – DH
Mickey Gasper – C
Vladimir Guerrero – 1B
Ceddanne Rafaela – CF
Kazuma Okamoto – 3B
Wilyer Abreu – RF
Alejandro Kirk – C
Willson Contreras – 1B
Ernie Clement – 2B
Jarren Duran – LF
Jesus Sanchez – RF
Masataka Yoshida – DH
Davis Schneider – LF
Isiah Kiner-Falefa – 3B
Myles Straw – CF
Andruw Monasterio – 2B
Andres Gimenez – SS
Marcelo Mayer – SS
Chad Dallas – RHP
Jake Bennett – LHP
I just noticed that tomorrow’s Jays game is a 1:30 Eastern start, which means I’m going to miss some of it. But I will be done and likely having a post tennis beer when the Canada soccer game starts. at 6:00 Eastern. It is a good time of year for a sports fan. The NHL playoffs and NBA players have just ended. Before they ended I could spent all day watching sports….now it is only most of the day.
The Dodgers' Freddie Freeman celebrates with Andy Pages after a go-ahead, two-run home run during the sixth inning against the Rays. (Ronaldo Bolanos/Los Angeles Times)
Tampa Bay Rays center fielder Cedric Mullins collided chest first into the blue padding of the center field wall as he made one last-ditch effort to save his team from a Dodgers home run. His glove, though, came up empty.
Not even a leaping Mullins, one of baseball’s veteran home-run robbers, could stop Freddie Freeman from doing what the Dodgers first baseman does best: hitting clutch home runs.
Freeman’s two-run home run in the sixth inning Wednesday, set up by Andy Pages’ double an at-bat earlier, lifted the Dodgers to a 5-4 win that allowed them to maintain a season-high nine-game lead over their closest National League West rival, the San Diego Padres (38-35). For the Dodgers (48-27), it was their sixth sweep of the season — all while surviving a shaky start on the mound by the usually unshakable Shohei Ohtani.
“He’s like a lot of our guys — when they feel good, they get their rest, production follows,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said of Freeman. “He’s been good for quite some time.”
If Ohtani’s left knee inflammation was bothering the four-time MVP, it didn’t seem to pose that great of a threat as he pitched the first four innings, and he pinch-hit in the sixth inning for Miguel Rojas, who had started at designated hitter.
Tampa Bay (41-30) eventually broke through in the fifth inning, scoring four runs on small-ball hits that found just enough grass. No particular pitch seemed particularly off for Ohtani, though the Rays connected more on his four-seam fastball that inning than the others. A bleeding blister that opened up didn’t help either.
“The stuff was good,” Roberts said. “The sweeper wasn’t as lights out, swing and miss as we’ve seen. He still always finds a way to manage innings and make pitches when he needs to, but yeah, I mean, I think that he was still kind of working through some delivery stuff with the knee.”
A handful of unlucky plays in the fifth left the Dodgers vulnerable. Take Mullins’ single to Freeman. Mullins hit the ball hard enough that Freeman, more than a handful of steps away from first base, wouldn’t be able to make the play unassisted. Ohtani tried his hardest to match Mullins’ speed but couldn’t.
“There was a little confusion with the Shohei inning, as far as you know, Freddie going to second, then Shohei thinking that, so giving them an extra out there,” Roberts said.
After a five-hit inning, Ohtani escaped on a bunt that went to Tommy Edman — playing third base in his return from the injured list — who threw to first for the third out. Ohtani’s ERA, after he surrendered a season-worst four earned runs, rose to 1.47 but still is second only to Milwaukee’s Jacob Misiorowski among pitchers with at least 70 innings.
Shohei Ohtani gave up a season-worst four earned runs in the fifth inning Wednesday. (Ronaldo Bolanos / Los Angeles Times)
“I felt good overall,” Ohtani said through interpreter Will Ireton. “It’s just really that inning, that fifth inning, that I wasn’t really too pleased. But aside from that, the stuff was good and felt pretty good overall.”
Rays starter Shane McClanahan also ran into trouble in the fourth inning. Alex Call singled in Mookie Betts for the first run, then stole second base. Call sprinted home on an Alex Freeland single, his helmet popping off and skidding a couple of feet into the grass as he crossed home.
McClanahan left the game with the bases loaded after the left-hander walked Edman — his only time reaching base in an 0-for-3 day — before Pages ended the inning by lining out softly to short against Casey Legumina.
The Dodgers came up short in another bases-loaded opportunity the next inning, squandering a chance to take the lead. Kyle Tucker pushed one run across on a bases-loaded walk. Yet, with no outs, the next three batters — Call, Dalton Rushing and Freeland — went down in order. The Dodgers finished with 11 runners left on base, which nearly cost them.
Alex Vesia put the potential tying run on base with a walk and spent most of his ninth-inning outing with Tampa Bay’s Austin Slater on second. The Dodgers intentionally walked Yandy Díaz with two outs to face Jonathan Aranda, who earned a walk. With the bases loaded, Vesia struck out Mullins swinging to end the game. It capped a stretch of nine scoreless innings by the bullpen in this series after the unit struggled during the team’s recent trip.
“I put myself into that mess,” Vesia said with a small smile while shaking his head. “Rush and I were just — I was leaning on him, to be honest. He had some good words of encouragement during a couple meetings. Just trust my stuff. I felt like I was nibbling around the edge. Overall, I’ll take it. It was a good win for all of us.”
Teoscar Hernández, out with a hamstring injury, is scheduled to take live batting practice Thursday. A simulated game is also in the works for the 33-year-old outfielder before a rehab game early next week, Roberts said.
Will Smith is unlikely to be reinstated Friday when he is eligible to come off the injured list. The Dodgers still are trying to figure out ways to make sure he doesn’t regress once the catcher comes back from a neck injury. He did a full workout Tuesday.
“I don’t want to put a say on when he’s going to play,” Roberts said. “But each day is getting better.”
The Buffalo Sabres made a notable move on Wednesday, trading defenseman Michael Kesselring and the 27th overall pick of this year's NHL Entry Draft to the San Jose Sharks in exchange for this year's 20th overall pick. The move is not surprising, as Kesselring struggled during his only season as a Sabre.
With the Sabres moving on from Kesselring, let's take a look at three more Sabres who have the potential to be traded next.
Devon Levi, G
Devon Levi has been a very popular name in the rumor mill since Buffalo's season has ended. With the Sabres having three other goalies ahead of him on their depth chart, it would not be shocking if the Sabres give Levi a fresh start elsewhere. This is especially so when noting that he did not play in a single NHL game this season.
In 52 games this season for the Rochester Americans, Levi had a 23-20-9 record and a .904 save percentage.
Jordan Greenway, LW
The Sabres need to free up cap space with them having so multiple pending free agents, both unrestricted and restricted. Due to this, it would not be surprising if the Sabres traded Greenway and his $4 million cap hit before July 1. He is simply making too much for his role as a bottom-six forward.
In 40 games this season for the Sabres, Greenway recorded one goal, six points, and 57 hits.
Josh Norris, C
Josh Norris is another Sabres forward who should be watched this off-season. While he is a key part of the Sabres' forward group, his $7.95 million cap hit is definitely high for what he provides. With this, it is fair to wonder if the Sabres could try to flip him in a trade package to land another high-impact forward.
In 44 games this season with the Sabres, Norris had 13 goals, 21 assists, and 34 points.
NEW YORK, NY - JUNE 10: JR Smith and Kevin Love smile after the game between the San Antonio Spurs and the New York Knicks during Game Four of the 2026 NBA Finals on June 10, 2026 at Madison Square Garden in New York, New York. 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 Jim Poorten/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
Several players from the 2016 championship Cleveland Cavaliers, are celebrating the 10th anniversary of that achievement on the golf course. J.R. Smith is among the group that went across the pond. However, according to him, he hasn’t been invited back by the organization he helped bring a championship to.
In a recent episode of The Pivot Podcast, Smith talked about the importance of teams taking care of their former players. He pointed to the New York Knicks as the gold standard of doing this. And in the process, he singled out the Cavs for not being up to snuff in this department.
“I won a whole chip in Cleveland, they haven’t invited me back once, and it’s been 10 years,” Smith said. “This is our 10-year anniversary. They haven’t invited me back once.”
The official Cavs account on X replied to this with a video of Smith being at a game during the 2022-23 season and saying that he “ALWAYS has a home here.”
Anything bought from the links helps support Fear the Sword. You can also shop all of Homage’s Cavs gear HERE. The link to the 2016 championship shirt HERE.
Whether or not Smith was invited back for that appearance is unknown. What we can say is that he hasn’t been among the former players who’ve been asked to pull the sword out during player introductions before recent playoff games. Anderson Varejao, Booby Gibson, and Matthew Dellavedova all did so during the Cavs’ run to the Eastern Conference Finals. Smith didn’t.
It’s worth pointing out that Smith and the Cavs’ relationship didn’t end well. He was a member of the 2018-19 team, the first one that didn’t feature LeBron James after four-straight trips to the NBA Finals. The Cavs struggled at the start of the season, fired head coach Ty Lue, and traded away many of their veteran players before the deadline.
Smith wasn’t among the players dealt, but he wasn’t a part of the team after late November. He and the Cavs agreed to part ways after he played in only 11 games that year. The Cavs weren’t able to find a new home for him with a trade, and ended up waiving him the following summer. Smith played part of one more season as he appeared in six games for the bubble championship Los Angeles Lakers.
We don’t know whether or not the exit still lingers over that relationship. What we do know is that Smith was an indispensable part of the 2016 championship team and played a large role in a group that made four consecutive Finals. He should be celebrated for his role in bringing a championship to Cleveland for decades to come. Hopefully, we see that come to fruition in the coming years.
Knicks owner Jim Dolan being interviewed by Ernie Johnson Jr., during the trophy ceremony after the Knicks defeated the Spurs to win the NBA Championship.
The final seven seconds may have been the hardest of all for James Dolan. There were all those missed free throws, Spurs and Knicks both. There was the surreal transfer, in real time, of Frost Bank Center converting from maybe 60-40 between the fans to 100 percent Knicks, as the locals departed and the invaders crawled lower and lower into the better seats.
There was one more missed free throw, of course.
“The game was still in doubt,” Dolan said, “right to the last seven seconds.”
And even as those last seven seconds played out, even as the clock slow-walked to 0:00 with the Knicks ahead 94-90, even with a world championship occurring in front of his eyes, in living color, Dolan still didn’t believe what he was seeing. Couldn’t believe.
Same as millions of his fellow Knicks fans.
“It was like when you’re in your car on a snowy day,” Dolan said. “When you start skidding down the road and you know you’re going to hit something, but there’s no impact yet, you can’t get out of the way, you can’t move the wheels and you’re just waiting for impact. That’s what it felt like. It was like an out-of-body experience.”
And then it hit. As it surely hit you.
“Oh, my God, this has actually happened!”
It happened, all right, and Thursday, Dolan and his family will be right in the middle of the Knicks parade, in the middle of the Canyon of Heroes. He will be Grandfather of the Year for his six grandchildren, all of whom will be in the procession.
“For a day, anyway,” he said, laughing.
For much longer than that, Dolan will enjoy what the old Mets broadcaster Bob Murphy used to say about baseball, now true about hoops: It’s a game of redeeming features. The same applies to high-profile owners who’ve absorbed their share of Kniocbarbs and slings and arrows through the years (full disclosure: many of them lobbed by your humble narrator).
But as Dolan spoke to The Post from his office on a half-hour Zoom call Wednesday afternoon, he really did seem transformed. So many images of him across the last quarter century have captured a man who looked less than pleased in the moment. Not now.
Now he looked like the owner of an NBA champion.
“How do you know?” Dolan asked, the smile so deep it couldn’t be chiseled off with sculptor’s tools. “Have you ever seen one before?”
We have now. It recalled a moment 14 years ago, after another conversation with Dolan in another Knicks era, one that was about to go wickedly sideways. He was beginning to hear anger oaths aimed at him from fans every time he stepped into the Garden, and he suggested no other owner had ever faced similar venom from his own fans.
“All due respect,” I told him. “Steinbrenner.”
“Steinbrenner? When he died it was like they were burying a king!”
Comedian Ben Stiller and New York Knicks owner James Dolan sit courtside during Game 2 of the NBA Finals. Jason Szenes for the New York Post
By the end, yes. But Steinbrenner had also spent decades listening to his own fans boo him mercilessly, occasionally tossing a few vulgar chants into the mix. Then, at the end, the Yankees started winning and never stopped, although the booing did.
“Maybe they’ll love me when I’m dead!” Dolan roared.
Funny line. But the truth is: Dolan has followed the Steinbrenner blueprint to the letter, learning at age 71 the most basic rule in sports: Winning is the greatest of all deodorants for owners — for years of losing, and petty feuds, and all manner of disputes, for everything. People are happy to move on to Woody Johnson or Steve Cohen or Steve Bob Tisch. They hardly ever talk about you at all when times are good.
“Just the way I like it,” he said.
Besides: nobody ever really had to remind Dolan of the mistakes he’s made across his 27 years in that office. He was as aware of them as anyone. Face it: As easily as you can summon the names of forgotten Knicks like Kelvin Cato and Cleanthony Early and Noah Vonleh, even you spent time — had to — away from the team. When you own the team, you own the bad hires, bad drafts, bad trades. And you die a little with every loss.
“Owning the Knicks,” he said, “is a learning experience.”
He spent years looking for the right guy. And one day, he had him. One day he hired Leon Rose. Seven years later, here we are.
“My ideal operation, like a lot of my other businesses, it’s the same thing: Give me a plan, let’s put together a plan, let’s follow the plan, and I’ll support the plan,” he said. “It’s the same thing with the hockey team. And if you go off plan, come back to me and we’ll talk about it. Once Leon came, he told me in advance what he was going to do and I’d always ask, what can I do to help you? You plan it. I’ll fund it.”
Many of Rose’s deals, he simply nodded. Others, he had to be convinced — “Mostly,” he said, “I was always somewhere in the middle.” But he always landed on the side of trusting a GM who’d earned it unconditionally. It has made all the difference for the Knicks. And for Dolan.
“Did I make mistakes? Of course I did,” he said. “Did I trust people that maybe I shouldn’t have trusted? You go into it as a new owner and if you’re dumb enough, you think you actually know what you’re doing. Believe me, you don’t. And all along, you have everybody whispering in your ear: Do this, do that. You have you guys, the press, telling us where we’re going wrong at every step. And, you can start to feel like a pinball. But …”
He paused.
“The thing is, is to learn. Right? That might be the thing I feel best about is, I felt, I feel, that now after 25 freaking years of doing this, I might actually have learned something.”
Much of the time Rose was building the foundation of what the Knicks became, Dolan was hip deep in the finishing touches on the Sphere, the Las Vegas playpen that has become the must-see stop in the desert. But he and Rose still talked regularly. And a year ago, they made a difficult decision that was divisive in its aggressiveness. They fired Tom Thibodeau.
“We loved Thibs, we really did, I held him in high regard,” Dolan said. “It would not surprise me at all, by the way, if Thibs comes back and coaches a championship team because I think you could still win that way.”
Spike Lee greets New York Knicks owner James Dolan on the floor against Game 4 against the Cavaliers. Charles Wenzelberg/New York Post
Sometimes you can see the “but” coming a mile away.
“Thibs was kind of old style. Right? Like Red Holzman, right, everything comes through me, and I’ll guide us through. He’s very good at that, but that sort of obviated the need for all these other people. Mike Brown had a different view. He had a different approach. And you look at our team, in the Finals. Everyone was healthy.
There is little argument there. One of the little-discussed but essential parts of last Saturday was this: In Game 101 of the season, the Knicks had no injury report. This is a reality of which Dolan takes admitted pride since his son, Quentin, oversees the team’s health and wellness programs.
And also, indisputably, something Brown discussed at length in his interview last summer, and put into practice this season.
“Everybody was in top form for the Finals,” he said. “And that doesn’t happen overnight. That was very carefully orchestrated and monitored every week. And it really paid off. I mean, if you put it together, the year before, we went into the playoffs, we had a lot of injuries. The somewhat old style of relating to the players, and so on. I mean, I think, actually, that was a huge difference.”
It’s impossible to argue. As is the truth Dolan talked about that day 13 years ago: Winning makes owners bulletproof. If we needed further testimony, there was the video the other day of Dolan addressing his team just before the playoffs. Surely that would have been buried if the Knicks had lost to the Hawks. But they didn’t.
“I certainly didn’t want to screw anything up for them,” he said. “I didn’t want to throw them off kilter or to distract them. It was a bit of a risk, having the talk, but I thought it was worth it. You don’t come this close that often. Start now. Start right now. And so you saw what came out.”
In that moment — also when he appeared on stage Saturday night postgame, resplendent in a bright orange blazer, pumped his fist and said, “Sorry it took so long!” — an odd thing happened. James L. Dolan sounded like you, and every Knicks fan you know. When fans boo owners, as they’ve booed Dolan before, the boo-to-English translation is always this: “You don’t care as much as we care!”
The rest of his days, that’s one sling and one arrow James Dolan will never have to hear again.
Ryan Craig has been named the fifth head coach of the Vegas Golden Knights.
Yes, the fifth. Incredibly crazy considering the team has only been around since 2017 and has made it to the Stanley Cup Final three times since inception.
The former Brandon Wheat Kings captain has been handed the keys in Vegas, by a familiar friend, nonetheless. Thus completing a coaching climb through the only NHL organization he has ever known from behind the bench.
Photo by Rusty Barton/Game On Magazine
Craig, 44, joined the Golden Knights as an assistant coach ahead of the franchise’s inaugural 2017-18 season and quickly became part of one of hockey’s greatest expansion stories. He helped guide the team to the Stanley Cup Playoffs in five of his six seasons as an assistant and was behind the bench when Vegas captured its first Stanley Cup championship in 2023.
From there, Craig continued building his resume with the organization’s American Hockey League affiliate, the Henderson Silver Knights.
Over three seasons as Henderson’s head coach, Craig helped the club improve each year, increasing its win total from 28 victories in 2023-24 to 29 in 2024-25 before a franchise-best 39-21-12 record and 90-point campaign in 2025-26. The Silver Knights also advanced to the second round of the Calder Cup Playoffs this spring.
Long before his rise through the Golden Knights' organization, however, Craig’s leadership qualities were on display in Manitoba.
The Abbotsford, B.C. product spent five seasons with the Brandon Wheat Kings from 1998 to 2003, where he played under current Vegas general manager Kelly McCrimmon, who was Brandon’s owner and general manager.
Craig served as the Wheat Kings' captain for two seasons, led the club in scoring twice and was named to the WHL East First All-Star Team during his final junior season. He was also recognized as both the WHL and CHL Humanitarian of the Year.
That leadership followed Craig throughout his professional playing career.
Selected by the Tampa Bay Lightning in the eighth round of the 2002 NHL Draft, Craig went on to play 198 NHL games with Tampa Bay, Pittsburgh and Columbus. He also appeared in 711 AHL games and served as captain of an incredible nine different teams, including the 2015-16 Calder Cup champion Lake Erie Monsters.
Now, after years of leading as a player and developing as a coach, Craig will get his first opportunity running an NHL bench.
For the Wheat Kings, it represents yet another connection between Brandon and one of the NHL’s most successful modern - and sometimes cutthroat - franchises.
More than two decades after McCrimmon watched Craig grow into a leader in Westman, the two are reunited as they look to bring another Stanley Cup to Vegas.
