The Flyers wrapped up the preseason Saturday night with a 5-1 loss to the Capitals at Xfinity Mobile Arena.
Jamie Drysdale scored the club’s lone goal. It gave the Flyers a 1-0 second-period lead, which lasted for only 4:01 minutes.
“Ugly, that’s the only way to talk about that game,” Drysdale said. “It was bad, but that’s not how we’re going to play hockey. That’s just not a winning brand, whichever way you chop it up. We’ll be better.”
Rick Tocchet’s club outshot Washington 37-24 on the night.
“We had a bunch of chances, we don’t score,” Tocchet said. “Then all of a sudden they get a couple. Every time they shot, they scored. And then guys get frustrated. I’m actually glad we lost 5-1. It’s a little humbling, which is good for us. … Sometimes you’re not as good as you think you are.”
“I don’t think that was a great effort by us tonight,” Owen Tippett said. “I think we let it get away from us. We could have definitely made it look a little less ugly. But we’re super confident, especially coming off the year we had last year. Morale is high, we’ve had a good camp and it’s great to be back with all the guys.”
• Aleksei Kolosov was not sharp in net. The 24-year-old prospect surrendered the five goals on 24 shots.
The fourth came early in the third period on a stoppable shot from Theodor Niederbach.
The Flyers gave up three goals in the second period.
At first intermission, Danny Briere said he thought David Jiricek “played OK” in training camp and the preseason.
“He didn’t get beat by anyone to lose his job,” the Flyers’ general manager said. … “He’s going to start on the roster and it’s going to be up to him to show us that he deserves the minutes and he deserves to stay in the lineup.”
The 22-year-old defenseman had a rough second period. He committed a turnover that led directly to the Capitals’ go-ahead 2-1 goal from Maxim Schafer. Under five minutes later, Washington scored on a power play after Jiricek was whistled for high-sticking. He finished as a minus-3.
“He had a tough night,” Tocchet said. “Three or four guys had a tough night, but being a pro, you’ve got to bounce back. We’ll get to him, get some video, make him understand some things. You’re going to have a tough night. You’ve just got to make sure you stay consistent.”
Jiricek, a product of last season’s Bobby Brink trade, is no longer exempt from waivers. That likely factored into the Flyers’ decision to keep him on the big club’s roster right now. He’ll have pressure to show he’s ready to help the Flyers on the power play and that he won’t be a liability defensively.
• The Flyers went 0 for 4 on the power play.
They had eight minutes of power play time in the first period, but couldn’t convert. They did have some good looks, though.
“We’ve got to bury,” Drysdale said. “Honestly, we had a lot of looks. It’s just putting the puck in the net. That’s kind of all we’ve got to focus on now.”
• Briere had good news on Dan Vladar’s upper-body injury. He said the goaltender’s status looks “very promising” and that Vladar “should be ready” for the regular-season opener.
“He probably could have played if we played the regular season tonight,” Briere said. “But we just wanted to play it safe and let him get as close to 100 percent for the start of the regular season.”
“He’s going to miss a little bit of time,” Briere said. “It shouldn’t be too, too long. I don’t know if he’s going to be ready for the first game. If not, it shouldn’t be very long after that.”
The Flyers’ season-opening roster is pretty much set. Cole Knuble and Jett Luchanko were among the team’s cuts Friday. Both prospects had strong performances and should have big roles with AHL affiliate Lehigh Valley.
“You’re in a situation where there are not many jobs open,” Tocchet said Saturday morning. “But that doesn’t mean they’re not pushing, that doesn’t mean something can’t happen in a week. You have to be ready. They obviously had a really good camp, I thought both had very good camps. I mean, Cole is pushing people.”
• The Flyers are scheduled to practice Sunday and Tuesday before hosting the Penguins in the opener Wednesday at Xfinity Mobile Arena (7:30 p.m. ET/TNT).
Flyers Pregame Live will be on NBC Sports Philadelphia at 6:30 p.m. ET.
Jonah Tong | (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images)
The Mets failed to score in the first six innings of their game against the Nationals this afternoon, but with the team trailing 1-0 in the top of the seventh, A.J. Ewing’s three-run home run turned the game on its head. And Ronny Mauricio made it back-to-back home runs right after that, giving the Mets a 4-1 lead.
Brett Baty, who notably started at shortstop today while Francisco Lindor served as the team’s designated hitter, single in the top of the eighth, prompting an error by Nationals shortstop Nasim Nuñez that allowed Carson Benge to score the team’s fifth run of the day.
Mauricio hit another home run, a two-run shot in the top of the ninth while hitting right-handed after hitting his first home run while batting left-handed. Those two home runs weren’t enough to salvage his major league stat line for the season, but if that’s how he ends the season, it’s a good note on which to do so.
Jonah Tong fared very well in his final start of the season, as he gave up just the one aforementioned run, struck out nine, walked one, gave up three hits, and threw 87 pitches in five innings of work. It’s a small sample, certainly, but Tong finishes the major league portion of his season with a 3.82 ERA and a 3.30 FIP in 30.2 innings. And while Mets manager Andy Green made it clear before the game that Tong is not guaranteed a spot in the rotation heading into the 2027 season, as a fan, you’d much rather see Tong put up the numbers that he did this year than the ones he did when he was called up late in the 2025 season.
The Mets’ bullpen was great, too, with Dedniel Nuñez striking out three in a scoreless sixth inning before Nate Lavender, Devin Williams, and Tobias Myers threw one scoreless inning each. And none of them allowed a hit.
With that, the Mets’ disappointing, underwhelming, last-place-in-the-division season comes to its conclusion tomorrow afternoon at 3:05 PM EDT. And as bad as things have gone, we’ll be longing for more Mets baseball—and better results—very soon after that game ends.
Big Mets winner: A.J. Ewing, +44% WPA Big Mets loser: Brett Baty, -12% WPA Mets pitchers: +27% WPA Mets hitters: +23% WPA Teh aw3s0mest play: A.J. Ewing hits a three-run home run in the top of the seventh, +49% WPA Teh sux0rest play: Brett Baty strikes out in the top of the fourth, -8% WPA
TORONTO (AP) — Toronto Blue Jays right-hander Max Scherzer said Saturday he will wait until the offseason to decide whether he wants to play a 20th major league season in 2027.
Scherzer is expected to start on short rest against Cincinnati in Sunday’s season finale, a chance to pitch in front of his family for the final time this year.
A two-time World Series champion and three-time Cy Young Award winner, Scherzer is 3-9 with a career-worst 6.14 ERA in 17 starts this season. He went 5-5 with a 5.19 ERA in 17 starts with the Blue Jays in 2025.
The 42-year-old has a career record of 224-126 in 500 games, including 491 starts. He started at Baltimore in the first game of a doubleheader last Wednesday, allowing four runs in five innings. Scherzer struck out seven, boosting his career total to 3,550.
Last month, Scherzer moved into ninth place on the career strikeout list with a 10-strikeout game against Seattle, passing Hall of Famer Gaylord Perry. It was the first time this season and 115th time in his career that Scherzer had fanned 10 or more in a game.
Scherzer’s former teammate Justin Verlander is the only other active pitcher with more than 3,500 strikeouts. Verlander had 3,554 heading into his final career start against Pittsburgh on Saturday. The 43-year-old Verlander announced in July that this would be his final year.
Arizona’s first-round pick in the 2006 draft, Scherzer debuted with the Diamondbacks in 2008. He has also pitched for Detroit, Washington, the Los Angeles Dodgers, the New York Mets and Texas.
An eight-time All-Star, Scherzer won his first World Series title with the Nationals in 2019. He got another ring with the Rangers in 2023.
Scherzer started Game 7 of the World Series against the Dodgers last November, the 33rd postseason appearance of his career. He pitched 4 1/3 innings of one-run ball and left to a rousing ovation from Toronto fans, but the Blue Jays lost 5-4 in 11 innings.
The Mets homered three times to defeat the Nationals 7-1 on Saturday afternoon in D.C.
Here are some takeaways..
-- First pitch was bumped from 4:05 p.m. to 12:35 p.m. due to inclement weather in the forecast. There was some rain falling during the early innings, and the wind was whipping at Nationals Park from the get-go, as numerous balls hit in the air were blown back to the infield dirt from the outfield grass.
-- Jonah Tong struck out four batters over the first two innings before running into trouble in the third. A HBP, single, and wild pitch put two in scoring position with nobody out, but Carson Benge made another tremendous catch and Tong's fifth and sixth K's helping him escape with just one run against.
The young right-hander allowed a leadoff single in the fourth then settled into a groove to end his day strong. Tong retired the next six hitters he faced through the fifth, closing his line with just the one run allowed on three hits and a walk while striking out a career-high nine batters on 85 pitches.
Tong pitched to a 3.81 ERA across seven big-league outings this season.
-- The Mets' offense was held in check by Connelly Early and Jake Irvin over the first six innings, but they were finally able to jump in front in the seventh. New York saw their eight and nine hitters, A.J. Ewing and Ronny Mauricio, go back-to-back with two out blasts to make it a 4-1 ballgame.
-- Mauricio wasn't done there, as he left the yard again in the ninth, this time lifting a two-run shot from the right-side of the plate. It was just the 25 year old's third homer in the majors this season, and his first career multi-homer game.
-- The bullpen was solid working behind Tong. Dedniel Nunez earned the victory after striking out the side in his scoreless inning, Nate Lavender followed that with a perfect inning of his own, then Devin Williams had a strong second outing back from injury, before Tobias Myers put on the finishing touches.
Mets pitchers retired 16 consecutive Nats in order from the fourth to one out in the ninth.
-- Brett Baty had to wait seven innings before getting an opportunity in his first start at shortstop, but he handled it smoothly, cleanly fielding a routine grounder before throwing Keibert Ruiz out at first. Baty botched his second opportunity, booting a grounder on the backhand in the ninth.
-- Benge not only continued building his Rookie of the Year case in the field, he also did so with the bat. The sweet-swinging lefty has three more hits on the afternoon -- singling in the fourth, singling again leading off the seventh, then busting out of the box a hustle double in the eighth.
-- It wasn't all good news for the Mets in this one, as Juan Soto was forced to leave the game in the top of the ninth after being hit by a Richard Lovelady pitch on the right hand. Soto was in some clear discomfort before making his way off the field alongside the Mets' trainers.
Soto reached base three times before leaving, singling twice to go along with the HBP.
Game MVP: Ronny Mauricio
Mauricio took full advantage of the rare big-league start, recording his first multi-homer game.
Los Angeles Lakers president of basketball operations and general manager Rob Pelinka speaks to the media during a press conference at the UCLA Health Training Center in Los Angeles, Sept. 24, 2026. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
“I think Luka has been amazing. I said today, I feel like we’re co-creators with him. That’s kind of because he’s a very creative basketball mind. Ultimately, I have the final responsibility to make calls on the roster. And Luka is very clear, like, ‘I want you to do your job. I don’t want to be the GM. I don’t want to be the head coach. JJ [Redick], you’re the coach. Rob, you’re the GM and president. Do your jobs,'” Pelinka said, quoting Dončić.
“‘But we can co-create. Let’s share ideas. Let’s break down pros and cons and look at all aspects of a potential decision point before we make it,'” Pelinka continued, quoting what Dončić told him.
Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic reacts on the court during the second quarter of a game against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden in New York, Sunday, Feb. 1, 2026. JASON SZENES/ NY POST
Much of the basketball community has criticized that the Lakers haven’t done enough to improve their roster this offseason.
Los Angeles will prove whether that’s true once the season begins on Oct. 21.
Luka Doncic of the Los Angeles Lakers drives down court as Ziaire Williams of the Brooklyn Nets gives chase during the second half at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y., Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2026. Corey Sipkin for NY Post
MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA - SEPTEMBER 25: Jacob Degrom #48 and Danny Jansen #9 of the Texas Rangers look on against the Minnesota Twins in the second inning at Target Field on September 25, 2026 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by David Berding/Getty Images) | Getty Images
First Pitch: 3:10 pm CDT TV: Twins.TV Radio: TIBN / WCCO 830 / The Wolf 102.9 FM / Audacy
Last night, you got Joe Ryan and Jacob deGrom. This afternoon, you get Bailey Ober and Nathan Eovaldi. After another full season of Saturday previews, all I can tell you is that after last night’s veteran matchup resulted in whatever competitive remnants of the Twins lineup whomping a multi-time Cy Young Award winner, I throw up my hands in telling you what to expect out of today’s game.
In his final start of 2026 (unless a half-dozen American League teams are erased from our timeline before the postseason starts), Bailey Ober will attempt to keep his ERA+ at 100 or better in order to statistically cement a cobbled-together, league-average season of 25 starts. This year, Ober crossed double-digit career bWAR in his sixth season with the Twins, and proved that maybe there’s a little X-factor involved in being a proven mid-rotation starter.
There is also reason to believe that this winter’s roster crunch could see the physically-declining Ober non-tendered if the Twins deem his short-term outlook not optimistic enough to warrant the price tag on a final year of arbitration. If true, it calls to mind the feeling of last September, when the Twins’ organizational direction was an enormous question mark, and every game felt like it could be the last time you saw [insert Twin here.]
For now, though, we get to enjoy the Bearded Nightmare as he takes the bump on a gloomy final Saturday of the 2026 season.
Jun 14, 2026; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Texas Rangers pitcher Nathan Eovaldi (17) talks to his teammate during the eighth inning against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
NEW YORK, NY - NOVEMBER 01: General view of the Barclay Center during the Miami Heat vs Brooklyn Nets game at Barclays Center on November 1, 2013 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. (Photo by Jerritt Clark/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Another summer has come and gone with another Nets season about to begin under the harvest moon. Media Day is on Monday and Training Camp begins on Tuesday. The Nets ought to hope the seeds planted in the dark over this long rebuild are finally ready to bear fruit in the light.
We’re calling it a new era in Nets basketball after an offseason filled with noise — both good and bad. We’ve said that plenty of times before, but this one is different and here’s why…
The Knicks won the NBA Finals and in less than a month will raise a banner or two (they won the Emirates Cup as well.). It broke a cycle for Nets fans that might’ve been necessary in order for the organization to move on. Maybe not. I’ll get to that shortly.
Brooklyn’s offseason began inauspiously with the NBA lottery. You may not want to remember it, but afterwards, Joe Tsai’s son was seen hugging his dad, consoling him. But then they used the sixth pick to take Mikel Brown Jr. already a fan favorite after the Summer League. Days earlier, they traded Nicolas Claxton and the No. 33 pick for three-time All-Star Julius Randle and the No. 28 pick which became Joshua Jefferson.
Brooklyn added other system fits with marginal moves by signing Moritz Wagner and Keon Ellis, choosing a trio of young players, including the No. 43 pick, Tyler Bilodeau, for two-way slots. They enter training camp in a (so-far) peaceful stalemate with Michael Porter Jr. Then again, Egor Demin looked great at Summer League adding both muscle and confidence.
Off the court, the team is embracing its history more than ever. In 2020, we asked for these things and they’re doing them and more. We still don’t know what the next iteration of the Brooklyn Brigade will look like, however.
So where do we stand less than a month before Opening Night at Barclays Center and two days before Media Day? I’ve been getting questions regarding how I feel about the Knicks winning a Championship, among other things. It isn’t an easy question to answer because the timing was tinged by the personal as well as feelings far beyond the baselines.
My first Nets game was when I was five. My father bought season tickets in 2001 when Jason Kidd was traded to the team from the Suns. I watched the team my entire life, and the good people with the Nets gave me a credential to cover the team after one season with NetsDaily — I was 18. (We’ve had three younger fans cover the team since.)
I’m no seer, but I see the way the community talks to one another and engages and can get a sense of things. Experience does that to you. Some fans are more vocal than others, more opinionated, and sometimes more nasty. There’s purity taken out of being a Nets fan when you’re being told how you should be a fan, especially when it encourages losing. It’s annoying.
Then, it always feels like there’s a disconnect, an up-and-down wave moving fans from highs to lows, more shock than awe. The Nets ended the 2018-19 season as a surprise sixth seed, which led to the Clean Sweep, then the so-called Big 3 and then … oh never mind. We’re still dealing with that pain.
Now, after the tank, it’s a new era, but uncertain nonetheless. You have to hope this next chapter leaves Nets fans more optimistic and encouraging when there’s discourse. Still…
Rock Bottom, Real Life, and Reevaluating the Rivalry
There’s a reason I say this. For those of you who have followed me, agreed, disagreed, liked or disliked — I am opening up about this past year as a basketball fan rooted in fandom from New Jersey. But firstly I’m opening up as a human being here for the same reason as the rest of you all.
Personally, this past season was tough. I was working at a major social media company and NetsDaily when I started feeling pain that was debilitating and worse: it went undiagnosed for 3+ months. On January 9, 2026, I ended up in the hospital for four days with a projected three-month recovery period. When I returned, the job had disappeared. I watched the Nets, but they were well out of it at that point, so there was no relief there. They weren’t fun to watch and they weren’t good. And neither was I.
Truthfully, after the Winter Olympics wrapped up and my recovery dragged on, I just wanted to watch something good on TV.
The Nets weren’t that. The Flatbush 5 didn’t look great outside Egor Demin, and Michael Porter Jr. wasn’t much of a sell either. There was the issue of his baggage, which I felt compelled to write about. Of course, I watched! Just like 12-70 and every other Nets season. But this past year was just so blah. There was little about the present, all about the future. Again, toxic fan discourse mixed with losing and slow rebuilding just felt so unbecoming.
So did a Knicks playoffs run… at first.
I watched the Knicks prance through the playoffs, and at first it felt like salt in the wound! But no, it was not just salty. That’s a different feeling. It was downright grueling. I wasn’t alive for the ABA days, so there wasn’t much of a reference point but my pride as a Nets fan with all that up-and-down emotion was assaulted by what was happening at MSG.
The Nets and its fans have gotten totally hosed by the Knicks since the beginning. The reason the Nets lost Dr. J was because the Knicks gave them an expensive ultimatum once the NBA-ABA merger took place. Pay the Knicks a fee beyond what the other ABA teams had to pay or no NBA Since that very day, the teams have been competing for a championship even if the rivalry was absolutely dead in the water for decades! The Knicks won it because they built it the right way. No need to be jealous, just envious.
They did it the exact way the Nets would love to do it.
Something happened around playoff time. I was in a bar in North Carolina when I realized that nobody else in the bar was rooting for the Knicks. Mostly the opposite. So, for that night, I was a proud New York fan. I stopped allowing the division of the Nets-Knicks, Giants-Jets, Rangers-Islanders, and Mets-Yankees geographic rivalries. I dropped the nickname and colors of the teams. I just wanted New York sports fans to feel good about something.
When they won and I saw the video below, I knew the city I grew up in had finally gotten the trophy it deserved. I wouldn’t — couldn’t — claim it as my own. In fact, I wasn’t exactly thrilled to see it — but I’m a proud New Yorker who grew up there playing ball in those streets, worked my first job there, etc. I’ve seen so many people online debate “What makes a New Yorker a New Yorker?” The answer is someone who doesn’t need to f—ing tell you they’re from New York. It’s obvious!
Even with that being said, it wasn’t about the city or state pride. I was just happy that humanity had something positive that we were all focusing on. A rare flash of collective monoculture we’d seemingly lost sight of in recent years.
Private Equity, Surveillance, and the Cost of Modern Fandom
There was a harsh reality in America that I couldn’t ignore either watching the Knicks parade and later this offseason. Like so many others, I was fighting for health insurance particularly after the Big Beautiful Bill kicked in. I was fighting unemployment and paying hospital bills. Basketball rivalries became quite secondary.
While I watched the Knicks win the championship, I couldn’t stop thinking about how hard it had become to afford basic necessities. My personal issues seemed in sync with those of New York Knick fans! I couldn’t believe diehard Knicks fans couldn’t afford playoff tickets — not just “low income” folks, but those middle-class diehards who have carried that franchise through FIVE inglorious decades of losing.
The media focused on Timothée Chalamet and Taylor Swift in the celebrity row seats, but those star-studded courtsides weren’t the cause of the price hikes, they were the billboard for MSG’s executive strategy. Dynamic pricing models, corporate seating allocations, and secondary broker markups transformed iconic arenas into luxury networking lounges, pricing out the very working-class culture that gave New York basketball its soul and its history. My father got a ticket for both Game 6 of the 1986 Mets World Series and Game 7 of the 1994 Rangers by chance. Back then, you could do that. These days, you’d get jumped for a free ticket.
Maybe those stories made me cynical. Times are different. Apples and oranges, you could argue, but it’s still insulting and it should be!
Seeing viral clips of celebrity fans like Chalamet lightheartedly joking that Nets fans belong on a “government watch list“ just highlighted how surreal and alienating the discourse had become. If the Knicks are so superior, why stoop so low to say such a thing? Chalamet of course wasn’t alone. And while he might have engaged in good-natured ribbing, there was a lot of others who were just plain mean.
Meanwhile, reports surfaced showing MSG using facial recognition surveillance to target and turn away attorneys for those in litigation with Dolan, critics, and unwanted spectators. This summer, more telling news of the franchise’s arrogance: the Knicks initially planned to charge $2,000 for the worst seats in the house on the night the team will finally raise its long-sought banner. Later they claimed it was a glitch. No one believed that.
And in the afterglow of Jalen Brunson and O.G. Anunoby’s great games, there was Dolan on TV saying he would not go over the second apron, not pay the money needed to key players while MSG Sports revenue jumped 37% and Dolan announced plans to spin off the Knicks and in all likelihood sell a big piece based on a valuation of a little less than $12 billion.
There are certain types of people who are hurting the game right now — and it’s happening across the entire league.
Look at Los Angeles. Mark Walter bought controlling interest in the Lakers at a $10 billion valuation, stripped away sentimentality, let LeBron walk, and then, under criminal investigation for fraud, flipped the franchise to Bob Iger and Josh Kushner for $12.5 billion. The Buss family is in court, fighting over who gets what for their remaining stake.
Down the road, Steve Ballmer’s Clippers got hit with a $30 million fine, lost five first-round picks, and Ballmer was suspended for a year over an off-the-books salary cap circumvention scandal with Kawhi Leonard (who because of a strong union and star power escaped virtually unscathed and wound up with a two-year, $115 million contract in Toronto.)
It’s hardly about basketball or civic pride anymore. It’s private equity, flip-and-profit portfolio management, and billionaires treating league rules like optional suggestions while everyday fans pay the bill financially and maybe more importantly, psychically.
Sure there have been controversies about Tsai, but as one insider said, they’re boring compared to what’s happening elsewhere, particularly in L.A. And you won’t find facial recognition equipment at Barclays Center.
Embracing Brooklyn’s Blank Slate
As noted, on a personal level, this macro shift hits against the backdrop of a brutal, humbling year. After facing sudden health scares, hospitalizations, and job loss while battling the harsh realities of the “system” , the escape of basketball took on a different meaning. While Nets fans have endured a long, cynical and cyclical rebuild — complete with toxic online discourse — watching the Knicks win a championship and see two million New Yorkers flood the streets triggered a moment of clarity.
Even as corporate interests, surveillance, and record-high ticket prices squeeze the working-class fan out of the arena, the core reason people love basketball remains human, and rooted in local pride.
That brings me back to the Nets. The Big 3 is over, the race to a championship and fighting with Knicks fans over it — it’s all done. Over. Finished. There is no race, nor does it seem there ever was one.
The Knicks winning the championship didn’t make Nets fans more bitter. It just made the rivalry feel less important.
But maybe the hostility amongst Nets fans can finally end. Maybe fans can come into Barclays Center, the new “ecosystem” for the Nets and Liberty, as basketball fans with an open mind. When the Nets are good and/or have a star who has a base, you can guarantee they’ll be back and they’ll be loud. For now, new fans and young fans are the target of the marketing guys.
It’s no diss to the Knicks or by any means, expensive tickets aren’t just inevitable, they’re permanent. Live events are luxury events. Jokes from TV commentators, social media, WFAN radio — wherever — can call them irrelevant and they are absolutely correct, at the moment. But there’s an uncomfortable fact for all of them: The Nets don’t really care. Sure, Joe Tsai famously and frankly said the Knicks win was “embarrassing” but in the same conversation with NetsDaily, he also said this:
“It doesn’t make us feel very good. It irritates our fan base and it is embarrassing but in business or in competition, in sports, or in anything, you shouldn’t let the embarrassment factor affect how you perform…[We] had a plan and we’re rebuilding and I think right now we are on a positive trajectory. So it doesn’t change my thinking at all.”
Those people who say the Nets should relocate — “go back to Jersey” — are also undermining the value of their own market, the New York market. Yes, even when their team is oversaturating the media ahead of ring night and 34 national television games — that’s exactly when a team like the Nets will sell. They are no longer running from it, they are embracing it. Whenever the Nets get there, it’ll be special. And hopefully it won’t be hijacked by billionaires or politicians.
The Knicks run gave me an appreciation for what matters most about the game — not the cap, corporate posturing, or arguing online over what constitutes a “real” fan, but the pure, simple ability to watch a young team grow from scratch. The past doesn’t matter because rock bottom already happened back in 2022 and 2023. They did that and they deserved their W. Maybe Brooklyn is next in a day that’s not so far away.
Nothing to Lose: Looking Ahead to the Games
This hasn’t been a perfect offseason. How could it be after the team next door just won the ultimate prize? The reality is harsh and the Nets are projected to win 24.5 games by the books in Las Vegas and 18 by ESPN. Rebuilding is never easy nor is it guaranteed to work.
At this point, it’s nice to see the Nets doing the things that matter to fans. They’re dedicating six nights to history, including a Swamp Dragons Night. I went to a Liberty game this summer (my first!) and I noticed the banners are almost all red, white, blue. The organization is embracing the ABA days with an alternative logo and a night dedicated to it. They’re also reportedly bringing back a fan-favorite: the coogi-trim uniforms.
There is some humility in the summer and in the offseason. There were lessons learned as a Nets fan, whether you cared about the Knicks winning or not. Whether you were pro-tank or anti-tank. We all want to feel that joy. As New Yorkers, as basketball fans, and more specifically fans within the Nets community. It won’t be an easy season but a positive perspective can change so much.
If they can build something fun this year behind a group of young players, specifically Brown Jr. and Demin, then fans will feel good again. The line, “Been down so long, it looks up to me” is literally the Nets fan getting up and watching the team this year.
HOUSTON, TEXAS - SEPTEMBER 20: Mauricio Dubon #14, Ozzie Albies #1 and Mike Yastrzemski #18 of the Atlanta Braves celebrate a three-run home run during the sixth inning against the Houston Astros at Daikin Park on September 20, 2026 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Joe Buvid/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Join us and discuss today’s game in the comments below!
Game Info
Game Date/Time: Saturday, September 26, 4:10 p.m. ET
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - MAY 11: Dillon Brooks attends Game Four of the Second Round of the NBA Western Conference Playoffs between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Oklahoma City Thunder at Crypto.com Arena on May 11, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. 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 Allen Berezovsky/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Every day, we’ll take a closer look at another member of the 2026-27 Phoenix Suns, examining what they bring to the roster and what their role could mean for the season ahead as we count down to training camp and the preseason.
Dillon Brooks
Guard-Forward, 6’7”, 225lb, 30 years old, 9-year veteran
The Phoenix Suns struck gold last season when they acquired Dillon Brooks in the Kevin Durant trade. He was and still is the tone setter and culture driver for the entire organization. Not only was he the culture driver, but he was unquestionably the Suns’ second-best player and had a career year.
Brooks earned a contract extension this offseason because of his value on and off the floor, and many people took notice of what he did last year. He was recognized as the 76th best player in the NBA according to ESPN’s Top 100 Player Rankings ahead of this upcoming season.
But that was last season, and while Brooks played his best basketball then, his game still has flaws. He is a shoot-first, shoot-second, and probably shoot-third player, with a very low assist rate. With the addition of Miles Bridges this offseason, and Jalen Green’s strong scoring finish last season, the roles behind Devin Booker are up for grabs. How well will Brooks mesh with the other starters, and can he keep pace with the close-to-All-Star version of himself he was last season?
Last Season
GP
MIN
PPG
RPG
APG
STL
FG%
3PT%
FT%
OFFRTG
DEFRTG
+/- (TOTAL)
56
30.4
20.2
3.6
1.8
1.0
43.5%
34.4%
84.2%
113.7
114.8
-49
In the 2025-26 season, Brooks took a major step forward in production and usage from his time in Houston. His 20.2 points on 17.1 field goal attempts per game were both career highs. His best season before was in the 2021-22 season with the Memphis Grizzlies when he averaged 18.4 points on 16.4 field goal attempts, but that was in just 32 games played. Last season, Brooks shot 34.4% from three but a career-high 49.2% from inside the arc.
While Brooks was not the most efficient scorer last season, part of it was that he was asked to do more than ever before in his career. He was relied on to be an isolation scorer and was often the one taking the desperation shots at the end of the shot clock. One area the Suns used Brooks was posting up; according to NBA tracking data, Brooks shot 53.2% in post-up situations. Despite his high-usage season, Brooks averaged only 1.8 assists, and his tunnel vision contributed to the Suns’ second-half drop-off at the end of the regular season.
The other reason for the Suns’ struggles in the second half of the season was simply the absence of Brooks from the lineup. He missed 26 games last season, with the majority of those games missed coming after the All-Star break with a broken hand. It was his first time playing below 70 games since his 2021-22 campaign with the Grizzlies.
As valuable as Brooks scoring contributions were to the Suns last season, his most important contribution to the team was changing the culture. Jordan Ott, Jordan Goodwin, Devin Booker, and others deserve credit for that as well, but it was Brooks’ competitive fire and unabashed confidence that caused his teammates and Suns fans to quickly fall in love with him.
The ‘Villain” certainly left his mark in just one season with the Suns so far. His beefs with LeBron James and other star players create an extra layer of intrigue for many matchups. And while we might want to see Brooks avoid getting suspended this year for getting too many technical fouls, it is a trade-off worth making to get all the positive intangibles Brooks provides to the locker room and the organization.
Contract and Roster Context
Over the offseason, Brooks signed a three-year extension worth $73 million, a little over $24 million a year annually. He will be a Phoenix Sun until the summer of 2030 unless something goes horribly wrong, or the Suns go big game hunting. The good news for Phoenix is that they got Brooks, who is still in his prime at a bargain for someone who averaged 20.2 points on a team that made the playoffs. Even in the final years of his contract, he should still be a valuable player on a team-friendly contract.
Even though Brooks is on the wrong side of 30, his game should age gracefully because he is not reliant on his speed and quickness, and more on his strength and power.
What He Brings
Dillon Brooks brings a lot to the table, but what makes him special is his physicality. His scoring, defense, and leadership are all positive attributes; it is his physicality that makes him a high-level player. Brooks is a savvy veteran who can play physical defense on other teams’ best players without getting into foul trouble consistently. Offensively, he is a bulldozer, and when he gets his shoulders into an opposing player, he can create separation for his jump shot, draw fouls, or get to the rim.
His toughness and grit defensively led the Suns to being one of the top defenses in the league last year after it was one of the worst the previous season. It is no coincidence that Brooks has been a part of top-10 defenses no matter where he’s played: Memphis, Houston, and Phoenix have had top-10 defenses in the NBA, with Brooks being a main reason why. One of the main concerns coming into this season is that the Suns lost two of their most prolific shooters in Grayson Allen and Royce O’Neale, but the defense should be even better, and Brooks will still be the head of the snake for an even better defense this season.
Offensively, Brooks provides a scoring punch, especially in isolation. Brooks carried the Suns offensively last season when they needed him, especially in games where Devin Booker did not play. He is not a consistent enough scorer to be on the very best players in the NBA, but as we saw last season, there are some nights that Brooks has an unbelievable heater and cannot miss no matter how insane a heat check he takes. As mentioned above, his efficiency in post-ups was where Brooks can excel and should be featured as a scorer, especially when Booker is off the floor.
What Needs to Improve
I could make an argument here that Brooks needs to do less complaining to the officials, but I believe it is his edge that makes him and this Suns team good. So if that means he flirts with suspensions for technical fouls this year, it is just part of the experience worth the benefits of all the other things his edge provides.
What Brooks has to get better at this season is being deferential. Is Brooks going to go out and average 4-to-5 assists this season? Definitely not. But Brooks can dial back the aggressiveness on offense to help the flow by getting off the ball more and making extra passes on offense. He has proven he is capable of that during his other NBA stops, and he will be asked to do that again this season. Dialing back that aggressiveness will also help with his shot selection as well. Brooks shot over 36% on catch-and-shoot threes last season, and the season prior he shot over 39% from three for the Houston Rockets.
If Brooks takes better shots, he is going to have an efficient season and will make the offense more functional than it looks on paper going into this season.
Prediction
My prediction for the Villain this year is that he continues to be an annoying pest to opposing teams and makes the Suns a competitive team every night. As for his role on the team, I think he will take a step back as the Suns’ second-leading scorer and drop below Jalen Green and/or Miles Bridges. However, his value will remain the same because of all his winning intangibles. He will have a more efficient season than last year and be the veteran leader this team needs, especially in nurturing the Suns’ young and talented wings.
It is going to take some time for the starting lineup to gel together, if it ever happens at all. Brooks is going to have to sacrifice more this year than anyone on the team not named Collin Gillespie. I believe Brooks is smart enough to understand his place on the roster, especially now that he signed a long-term extension with the Suns. He will do whatever it takes to win, even if that means his stats take a hit.
For Brooks to have a successful season, it will be how he fits next to Jalen Green and Miles Bridges more than anything else. If those three players can figure out how to be a functional offensive group around Devin Booker, it raises the low ceiling that this team has. If Brooks hits the same numbers as he had last season, it might not be as impactful because it likely means Green or Bridges are not impacting games at a high level. If his counting stats decline but he is taking better shots and moving the ball quicker, it could be the best season of his career.
If Brooks can acclimate to this new group and help this Suns team get to the next level and win a playoff series or two, then he will be on the trajectory to be an All-time fan favorite in Phoenix because of his antics and bringing a winning culture back to a team that lacked it before he became a Valley native.
SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 12: Julio Rodríguez #44 of the Seattle Mariners looks on from the dugout between innings against the Athletics at Sutter Health Park on September 12, 2026 in Sacramento, California. (Photo by Scott Marshall/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Julio Rodríguez has a new favorite phrase in English, one he said a couple of times at a pregame media availability on Friday: the devil’s in the details. Interestingly, it’s a newer phrase, not appearing in Bartlett’s until the latter half of the 20th century, likely as a permutation on a saying most notably linked to the fussy, fastidious German architect Mies van der Rohe that “God is in the details.”
Today, “the devil’s in the details” is a cautionary phrase, warning against how seemingly insignificant details can mushroom in importance and ruin an enterprise. It’s not an inapt way to look at the 2026 Seattle Mariners season.
While there were disappointments up and down the roster – Julio’s loss of roughly half the wins he accrued last year wasn’t even the biggest delta change on the roster, a dubious distinction belonging to Cal Raleigh – it was still a huge step back for Seattle’s 25-year-old centerfielder, who posted his worst season by wRC+ and lowest power numbers since 2024, when he lost over two weeks to an ankle sprain.
This year it was a concussion that zapped Julio’s value, holding him back from his typical late-season push. Julio has finished the second half strong his entire career:
Obviously, the pre- and post- concussion numbers are essentially baked into that data, since the injury occurred on July 3, but just to break them out specifically:
Julio pre-concussion: .259 average, .424 slugging, 21% K, 117 wRC+ Julio post-concussion: .239 average, .383 slugging, 24% K, 93 wRC+
Julio declined to divulge all the details of how the concussion affected him, but said it was a “new and different” experience that he had to adjust to on the fly.
“It’s something that —when you play a game where you have to react, be sharp, and that has to do a lot with balance and your eyes and all that, it’s definitely different.”
“Being through that process has shown me how much I actually use my brain to hit, and how much my body actually goes through while I’m playing baseball. It made me appreciate the things I do a little bit more, grateful for the talent and all the things I get to do on the baseball field. Because what we do is not normal, and it’s not normal for the human body to be doing it at this level. And I’m just grateful that I got back on the field, and that I got to play again.”
What professional athletes do is not normal, but Julio is adamant this won’t be his new normal. While he’s pleased with his preparation and ability to stay healthy overall – the concussion notwithstanding, and certainly not his fault – he’s not happy with the results, saying his big takeaway from this season is learning to pay attention to details.
“There’s a lot of little things I could have done better, personally…Results-wise, I feel like I could have done more. I could have done more, I could have impacted the team a little bit more.”
“I know we cannot control results. This is a game of process and all that, but I believe in my talent. I believe in the the way that I play the game, and I just think I have more in the tank. I feel I have more, and that’s something that I’m gonna try to bring more of next year.”
One thing that has been a constant for Rodríguez even when his bat is slower to heat up is his defense. Once tagged as a big-bodied corner outfielder/DH type, Julio dedicated himself to improving his speed and defense. While his stolen base numbers did decline slightly this season – also a career-worst but still over 20, giving him his fifth consecutive 20-20 season and making him the first player in MLB history to start his career with five consecutive 20-20 seasons – his defense, for the first time, looked porous. In each of his four previous seasons, Rodríguez ranked in the top 10% or better for center field defense by Statcast’s Fielding Run Value; this year, he’s fallen below the 40th percentile. The eye test has agreed with his poor defensive numbers: there have been multiple instances this season where Rodríguez’s play in center hasn’t looked anything like his past self. He’s been tentative on certain fly balls, overly aggressive on others, and other times has just flat out lost the ball while trying to track it, plays he would have made easily in other years.
Reading over his comments about the concussion, specifically the ones about reaction time and using your eyes, points toward the fact that even when returned from the concussion IL, his ability to process and track balls and MLB speeds was negatively impacted. But Rodríguez also says he got away from his defensive approach – maybe leading to him being caught in-between on some of those fly balls – and needs to refocus this off-season on what he knows works for him.
“Just getting back to the basics,” he said when asked about how he – and the team as a whole – can improve defensively. “I feel like that’s what it is for me. I tried some things, didn’t work out, and then I got back to my basics, the things I do really well on defense, and feel like that helped me to even it out a little bit.”
“Team-wise, we need to continue to bring the focus in, continue to take care of the little things. We all know that we’re better than this. We all know it, and it didn’t show. Now, it’s about how we respond. Progress isn’t linear, and I do believe you have to struggle in order to realize who you are, and then what do you do about that?”
Those devilish details again. In addition to the defense, Rodríguez also noted what went wrong for him offensively, and how he tried to turn his season around.
“I wish I had the answer right right then and there. But I feel like with time, you know, it kind of showed me. I started being a little bit more late. I started chasing a little bit around the zone. Little things here and there. I feel like that’s what got me away [from my approach].”
“But like I said, we had a lot of lessons [as a team], and I’m looking forward to putting things in motion. The things I learned this year to try to be better for next year.”
Like his teammates, Julio looks forward to starting fresh next year and putting this miserable season behind them. One of the biggest lessons he and his teammates learned? Past success doesn’t guarantee future results. Maybe the pre-season noise about how winnable the AL West was caused the team as a whole to look too far in advance, take things for granted.
“At the end of the day, you can be as good as you were like last year, but each year is a new year. I have learned this,” said Rodríguez. “This this is my fifth season. I have learned that it doesn’t matter what you did the year before, the game is gonna touch you differently. It doesn’t matter how you prepare; the game is always gonna have a new a new question for you.”
“You know, when you focus so far ahead, you can miss some little details. There’s a saying that the devil’s in the details, and I think that’s true. It’s something that I had to learn personally for myself too, and we all should continue to focus on and get better.“
Even with the disappointing season, Rodríguez says he believes in the team and their talent level. The job now is to pick themselves up and understand why this happened and how to stop it from happening again.
“When you get hit in the mouth, you either cover up or you do something about it. That’s what happened to us. We got hit in the mouth. So how do we respond to that? And I do believe we have the pieces. I do believe we’re gonna be doing the right things to to ascend from this. But it’s all about that response.”
“Nobody can avoid getting hit, in life or in baseball. It doesn’t matter where it’s at. But it’s how you take that hit and continue to move forward. That’s what sets people apart.”
As for how this can this team move forward and fix its lackluster execution, Julio has his new mantra in mind.
“The devil’s in the details,” he repeated, taking care to emphasize each word.
“Take care of the details, and I feel like everything is going to be fixed. Stop waiting for things to happen. Actually do the things I live for that creates those those opportunities. Take care of the little details, and you’re gonna be fine.”
The devil’s in the details. Maybe, as Van der Rohe was fond of saying, God is, too.
The Knicks spent a summer soaking in the adulation, appearing at more events and national TV shows than any team in NBA history. At least that’s the way it felt the past three months. They don’t have a Basketball Reference page to track these things.
Josh Hart and Jose Alvarado attend the 2026 US Open Tennis Championships in New York, Sunday, September 13, 2026. ZUMAPRESS.com
Back to basketball.
“Is it cliché if I say it’s 0-0 again?” Towns said. “That’s kind of the same thing we said every playoff game, and when we won and kept winning it was great. But this season is about us going out there and starting again at 0-0. Bringing that same hungry team, that team that’s hungry to prove everyone wrong. The underdogs.”
Towns was speaking Thursday on “The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon,” perhaps his last national TV appearance before training camp starts this week. Perhaps not? Brunson also had “Saturday Night Live” to host ahead of Monday’s Media Day at the training facility.
None of these appearances are detrimental to basketball. It’s better than partying and drinking for a summer. This collection of Knicks players, as multiple people around the organization have explained, are more mature and responsible than any previous roster incarnation. There was one shaky incident involving Clarkson in July, when he was escorted out of a club by police, and that was it.
New York Knicks’ Jalen Brunson greets fans during the Roommates Show Block Party live podcast at Randalls Island in New York, Thursday, Sept. 24, 2026. Corey Sipkin for the NY POST
But the amount of widespread attention and adulation does beg some questions: Can the Knicks avoid complacency? Can they maintain the edge that pushed them through a historic playoff run?
Brunson, whose profile is higher than any current New York athlete, understands the assignment.
“We’ve done something that everyone has wanted us to do for 53 years now. And now people are going around saying, You guys are the champs, you guys are the best thing ever. It’s been said to us all summer. God knows how long it’s going to continue,” the point guard told The Post last month. “When people say that, can we let that go through one ear and out the other? Can we just focus on what we can do this year? Because last year was last year.
Karl-Anthony Towns talked about life as an NBA champion with NBC late night host Seth Meyers in June. Lloyd Bishop/NBC via Getty Image
“It’s OK for people to talk to us about it, and say, ‘Oh that was great.’ But we’re moving on. So it cannot be in our mindset. It cannot be our focal point if we want to get better. So I think that’s the question we need to ask. And if we can do that, we’re going to be in good shape to be able to be in a better mindset. If not, then we’re going to be behind the eight ball.”
It’s an overarching theme in training camp, when the progress is supposed to start but it’s hard to find motivation — especially for accomplished vets — because real games are still weeks away.
One of the self-motivating tactics clearly being implemented by the Knicks is focusing on the doubters. For instance, they are not the betting favorites to win the title (they are tied for third and below the Thunder and Spurs, according to FanDuel). They have zero players in ESPN’s recently released top-five ranking (Brunson is sixth). They are hearing a lot about the new threats of Philadelphia, Miami, Toronto.
There’s more to prove, in other words.
“I don’t think we have a big target because I don’t think anyone is picking us to win again,” Hart said on ESPN’s U.S. Open broadcast. “We’re using it as fuel, we’re still the hunters, we’re not satisfied with one.
WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 29: A general view of the Nike sneakers worn by Kazuma Okamoto #7 of the Toronto Blue Jays against the Washington Nationals during the eighth inning at Nationals Park on July 29, 2026 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Game 161. Are there any other sports that play 162 games in a season? Can you imagine if MLB played just 17 games a season? It would be a whole different spot.
So, I had a night last night. Men’s Night Out, a charity thing for my wife’s church. I’m the least religious person you’ll ever meet, but this is for a very worthy charity. And there are drinks. I’ve gone with friends for the last few years. They put on a very good meal, and silent auction, door prizes and raffles.
All was good, until I had a cigar, along with my scotch. I have one cigar a year, and it has never bothered me before. But, last night, i had to sit for awhile. It is possible I’m getting old. I always thought that only happened to other people.
It has been that sort of year. Hurt my back playing squash, I’ve never hurt my back before. Tore ligaments in my foot playing tennis, never done that. Thought it was all healed, then played squash last week and found out otherwise.
Anyway, enough complaining.
Today’s lineups:
Today’s Lineups
REDS
BLUE JAYS
Carlos Jorge – CF
Brett Bateman – CF
Elly De La Cruz – SS
Nathan Lukes – RF
Sal Stewart – 1B
Vladimir Guerrero – DH
Eugenio Suarez – DH
Alejandro Kirk – C
JJ Bleday – LF
Kazuma Okamoto – 3B
Tyler Stephenson – C
Sean Keys – 1B
Hector Rodriguez – RF
Josh Smith – LF
Juan Brito – 3B
Andres Gimenez – SS
Matt McLain – 2B
Ernie Clement – 2B
Rhett Lowder – RHP
Trey Yesavage – RHP
Go Jays Go.
"There's just nothing better than that. That’s baseball at its pinnacle… That's just a lifelong memory. That's a baseball memory."
BUFFALO, NEW YORK - FEBRUARY 05: Alex Lyon #34 of the Buffalo Sabres makes the save against Rutger McGroarty #2 of the Pittsburgh Penguins during the third period of an NHL game on February 05, 2026 at KeyBank Center in Buffalo, New York. (Photo by Ben Ludeman/NHLI via Getty Images) | NHLI via Getty Images
Talk about the last preseason game with Pens fans here!
The game will be broadcast locally on Sportsnet Pittsburgh+ and MSG-B in the respective local areas for Pittsburgh and Buffalo. Nationally, it will be carried on NHL Network. It will be available via audio on the internet/radio from 105.9 The X.
The Tour de France Femmes champion, Demi Vollering, won the longest-ever edition of the women’s UCI world road race championship in a brutal and compelling sprint finale in Montreal.
The 29-year-old’s success climaxed a remarkable season in which she has also won a second Tour de France title, the Giro women, Liège-Bastogne-Liège and the Tour of Flanders.
