The Atlanta Hawks will be looking for a second straight victory against the Washington Wizards tonight. The tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET at State Farm Arena.
Dyson Daniels is dropping dimes lately, and I’m eyeing him to do so again tonight in my Wizards vs. Hawks predictions.
Read more in my NBA picks for Thursday, February 26.
Wizards vs Hawks prediction
Wizards vs Hawks best bet: Dyson Daniels Over 6.5 assists (+100)
Dyson Daniels has been one of the Atlanta Hawks’ top playmakers this season, averaging 6.1 dimes, and with Trae Young gone, his passing has become even more important.
Daniels has cashed the Over in two straight, and he just dished out seven assists against the Washington Wizards earlier this week. The forward also registered eight dimes on Sunday against the Nets.
The 22-year-old is averaging 6.3 assists at homecompared to 5.9 on the road, and he already picked apart Washington. Daniels will replicate that performance.
Wizards vs Hawks same-game parlay
Onyeka Okongwu has been dominating on the boards, cashing the Over in three of his last four outings, grabbing at least 10 rebounds in each game.
CJ McCollum is averaging 2.6 makes on 6.8 triples per game for a 38.2% clip this season. While he was 0-for-6 in Tuesday’s revenge game, CJ did cash the Over in three straight contests before that.
He will bounce back tonight and find a rhythm from deep. With Nickeil Alexander-Walker questionable due to a foot sprain, that could also mean even more shots for McCollum.
Wizards vs Hawks SGP
Dyson Daniels Over 6.5 assists
Onyeka Okongwu Over 8.5 rebounds
CJ McCollum Over 2.5 threes
Our "from downtown" SGP: Downtown train
Okongwu has cashed the Over in triples in two of his last three, and was 2-for-7 from deep on Tuesday against Washington.
Wizards vs Hawks SGP
Dyson Daniels Over 6.5 assists
Onyeka Okongwu Over 8.5 rebounds
CJ McCollum Over 2.5 threes
Onyeka Okongwu Over 1.5 made threes
Wizards vs Hawks odds
Spread: Wizards +10 (-110) | Hawks -10 (-110)
Moneyline: Wizards +400 | Hawks -550
Over/Under: Over 235.5 (-110) | Under 235.5 (-110)
Wizards vs Hawks betting trend to know
The Atlanta Hawks have hit the Game Total Under in 19 of their last 30 games (+6.90 Units / 21% ROI). Find more NBA betting trends for Wizards vs. Hawks.
How to watch Wizards vs Hawks
Location
State Farm Arena, Atlanta, GA
Date
Thursday, February 26, 2026
Tip-off
7:30 p.m. ET
TV
Monumental SN, FDSN SE Atlanta
Wizards vs Hawks latest injuries
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There is no doubt that New York Yankees slugger Giancarlo Stanton will be depended on if the Bronx Bombers want to win their first World Series since 2019.
Stanton has been plagued by injuries in recent years, and his elbow issues limited him to just 77 games last season.
The now 36-year-old Stanton still hit .273 with 24 home runs and 66 RBI when he did play but, even after an offseason of rest, was asked during spring training this week if his elbows would heal.
“That’ll never be the case,” Stanton said (via NJ.com). “Not while I’m in this line of work. “You have your good days and bad days, just like your mood and everything.”
The five-time All-Star then made a stunning admission on how useful his elbows are.
“I can’t open a bottle,” he said. “I can’t open a bag of chips … a bag of anything. That’s the way it is.”
Stanton said he wants to play a full season, though he hasn't played 140 games or more in a campaign since 2021. He will mostly be a designated hitter in 2026, but plans to get some outfield reps as his health allows.
“That’s not going to be fixed in surgery, and I don’t care what any doctor says because they don’t know what’s going on,” Stanton said. “What’s written (about my elbows) is what me and the Yankees give you.”
Stanton is the active MLB home run leader, with 453. He has two more seasons on a 13-year, $325 million contract he signed as a member of the Miami Marlins in 2014, before a 2028 club option — which contains a $10 million buyout — has to be decided.
We continue our trip throughout the diamond with a stop at the hot corner. Officially, the Astros are likely to have three players on the final 26 man roster that can play third base. However, we profiled Isaac Paredes at first base since he is likely to get more time there and Nick Allen will be profiled at shortstop. That leaves Carlos Correa as the primary third baseman, but we will also profile Shay Whitcomb since he is likely to be one of the first guys up in case of injury.
In this series, we are looking at some internal numbers that experts typically look at when they are trying to predict what a hitter might do. Obviously, teams have their own internal numbers and we will likely never have a chance to see those, but Fangraphs.com provides terrific information on each player that can keep us sustained for days or even weeks.
I have selected five such metrics to look at in order to predict what likely might happen in each players’ case. In particular, each number has its league norms as I will profile below, but I like to use three year intervals because it demonstrates a trend in each metric. Those trends are often more important than the league average itself. In Shay Whitcomb’s case we will be looking at his minor league numbers since he has not had enough big league exposure.
Chase rate: This is the percentage of balls a player swings at outside of the zone. The league average normally lives around 30 percent, but we will be looking at three year intervals and we should notice trends more than where a player is in relationship to the league average.
Hard hit percentage: This is simply the percentage of balls that a player hits hard. Hard hit balls become hits and extra base hits more often than softer contact. Typically 35 percent is around the league average in this category.
BABIP: This is batting average on balls in play. Home runs are obviously excluded since they are not in play. The league average tends to hover around .300 but it will largely depend on hard hit percentages and breakdowns between groundballs, flyballs, and line drives.
Contact percentage: This is the percentage of swings that turn into contact. Typically 75 percent is around league average.
HR/FB percentage: This is the percentage of flyballs that result in home runs. Ten percent is typically around the league average.
Carlos Correa
Chase
Hardhit
BABIP
Contact
HR/FB
2023
26.7
45.9
.272
77.3
13.7
2024
24.0
44.5
.343
81.4
14.7
2025
26.9
45.9
.328
79.9
10.6
Aggregate
25.9
45.4
.314
79.5
13.0
At this point in Correa’s career it is fair to expect to start seeing some rot. What we can see is that most of the numbers have remained constant except for the pure power numbers. It is fair to ask whether that is a predictor of things to come or whether that was a blip on the radar. Correa has always seemed like a guy that should hit more home runs than he does and when you look at the hard hit rate that partially explains it. He hits the ball hard routinely. He is not in the very top in the league in that category, but he is easily in the top 20 percent.
When you hit the ball hard you will typically have a good BABIP. This is particularly true if you are hitting more ground balls and line drives than flyballs. Correa is what happens when a player is decidedly above average at every single skill. That has a way of compounding and making a player sneakily good. Believe it or not, seeing a player that does each of the four skills (recognize strikes, hit the ball hard, make consistent contact, and hit for power) at an above average rate. Most players have a hole somewhere.
If we are hoping for growth from Correa then it would come in the power department. It will be interesting to see what happens now that he is in Daikan Park for a full season. Minnesota is not the easiest park in the league for home runs and obviously that short porch in left field might give Correa a boost. He’s not likely to go nuts, but maybe 15 to 20 home runs is in the offing.
Shay Whitcomb
Chase
Hardhit
BABIP
Contact
HR/FB
2023
39.0
41.9
.287
70.1
23.6
2024
29.2
42.5
.320
74.5
21.2
2025
26.9
42.7
.316
72.8
23.1
Aggregate
31.7
42.4
.308
72.5
22.6
At some point, we will need to get Jimmy Price on the line for some of these guys, because I will be fascinated to hear the opinion of someone more connected to the scouting world. Whitcomb is another Astros farmhand that seems to be missing the contact tool. The chase rate in 2023 only includes his AAA at bats because Fangraphs does not track AA and below. So, it is likely that his actual rate was below that.
A reader asked a question about ballpark effects and he was talking mainly about minor league parks. That is the missing piece here. We see some pretty stark home run rates there at the end and that probably is not sustainable at the big league level. He might live between 10 and 15 percent even if he adjusts to big league pitching. That makes Whitcomb suddenly look a lot more normal.
All that being said, no one considers Whitcomb to be a huge prospect, so he is just a good guy for organizational depth. One could imagine the profile above actually working in a lesser MLB city where the stakes aren’t so high like the White Sox, Rockies, Marlins, Nationals, or Angels. Maybe one of those teams have a middling bullpen arm or lottery ticket further away from the big leagues. He could also be a throw in come July. What do you expect from the Correa and Whitcomb this season?
Feb 25, 2026; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers center Jarrett Allen (31) shoots against Milwaukee Bucks center Myles Turner (3) during the first quarter at Fiserv Forum. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images | Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images
The Milwaukee Bucks notched back-to-back wins against Eastern Conference playoff teams, taking down the Cleveland Cavaliers, who were without James Harden, Donovan Mitchell, and Evan Mobley, in a tightly contested 118-116 finish. The victory also breaks Cleveland’s seven-game winning streak over Milwaukee, dating back to January 26, 2024. Read our full summary of the game here and catch a six-minute audio recap on the Bucks+ podcast, Bucks In Six Minutes, below.
Kenny Atkinson called out Rollins’ improved passing pre-game, and he was proven correct. Made some exceptional reads and came up with a couple of clutch layups near the end.
This is the best KPJ has looked as a Buck. He was crashing the glass; he isn’t turning it over as much, and he’s becoming a late-game closer. That mid-range jumper to put Milwaukee up two with 20 seconds to go was exceptional.
The real AJ Green finally stood back up. Doc Rivers told us pre-game that he got after Green for not taking a shot in the first half against Miami, and clearly the message got across. Green took the first shot of the game for the Bucks and was aggressive from there on out.
Kuzma has found a rhythm from beyond the arc in his last two games. Shooting 32.5% from range this season, he’s shot 8/17 (47.1%) against Miami and Cleveland. Not saying this is sustainable, but the Bucks will take these types of performances from Kuz.
Despite scoring nine of his 15 points in the first half, Turner was not playing well. He was getting beaten on the glass by Allen and just looked slow. He seemed to find his legs in the second half, grabbing all three of his rebounds.
While it’s a lower-scoring output than Tuesday night, this was still a solid Bobby game. He didn’t force any bad shots and helped clean up the defensive glass.
Thomas had very similar games in this back-to-back. He had a nice scoring run when he first checked in, but didn’t find the bottom of the basket after that. Also, it was a bad look when Thomas appeared to complain about being taken out in the fourth quarter.
I was wrong when I said on Sunday that the Sims hype train was over. Every time he came into the game, the Bucks looked much better on the glass. Just a fantastic game for Sims.
It was a fairly quiet night for Dieng. He had a three-pointer and had a nice pass to Myles Turner for a dunk. Outside of that, it was a game to forget.
Grade: C-
Doc Rivers
Credit has to go to Doc for running with Sims as much as he did. I would’ve liked to see more of Sims and Turner together, but he made some solid adjustments, limiting the Cavs to 37 shot attempts in the second half (they had 50 in the first).
Grade: B-
DNP-CD: Thanasis Antetokounmpo, Gary Harris, Gary Trent Jr., Andre Jackson Jr., Pete Nance
Inactive: Alex Antetokounmpo, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Taurean Prince
Bonus Bucks Bits
Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley, and James Harden all sat this one out for Cleveland. Harden has a broken thumb. Despite playing on Tuesday night, Mitchell missed due to a right groin strain, and Mobley—who also played Tuesday—was out due to left calf injury maintenance.
Two of the Bucks’ major sticking points this season have been total rebounding and getting to the free-throw line, as they rank 27th and 29th in those areas, respectively. Tonight was no different, as they were out-rebounded by the Cavs 44-36 and outshot at the charity stripe 27-5. Doc credited their three-point shooting as the difference, with the Bucks going 19/45 (42.2%) and the Cavaliers shooting 12/40 (30%).
Ryan Rollins has continued to level up his game since he set foot in Milwaukee. Cavaliers head coach Kenny Atkinson, who was an assistant in Golden State when Rollins was drafted there, talked about how much he’s grown since then:
“He’s really become a good passer and decision maker. He’s much more of a pure point guard than when I first saw him; he was just kind of speed and downhill. But now, I really like his feel watching him. These guys are so young and not used to the professional lifestyle, all that stuff, but I loved the talent, I loved his demeanor, tough as nails. I was just more pro Ryan Rollins, and now to see the passing and playmaking. Doc and them, development-wise, have done a great job with him. They have to recognize it here too, right? Guys like that sometimes, are you going to give them a chance? Are you going to give them an opportunity? You gotta give Doc and that group a lot of credit for saying, here you go.”
Jericho Sims is playing some of the best basketball of his career during the Bucks’ recent run of good form. In the last 10 games, he’s fourth on the team in minutes per game (26.5) and is averaging 7.8 PPG, 8.6 RPG, and 2.3 APG. Doc talked pre-game about Sims’ development as of late, with the help of assistant coach Jason Love, specifically:
“J-Love is phenomenal, and that’s another guy when you look at where he’s (Sims) at now to where he was at the beginning of the year, his passing, his rolling, his catching, and making the secondary decision making has been fantastic. That’s taxing work. Who wants to roll 50 times in a practice, catch it, and then try to read over and over? You gotta want to do that stuff, (and) give Jericho credit, but give J-Love credit because they do it every day. They watch film every day, on when it doesn’t work and when it works, and he enjoys doing it.”
Myles Turner officially crossed the 1,500 block threshold in the first quarter after swatting a shot away from Dean Wade. He becomes the 41st player in NBA history to break into the 1,500 club, and is 17 rejections away from Caldwell Jones.
Up Next
The Bucks will wrap up their four-game homestand with another top-four seed in the Eastern Conference, as the New York Knicks come to town. The tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. Central time and can be watched on FanDuel Sports Network Wisconsin.
PEORIA, ARIZONA - FEBRUARY 25: Michael King #34 of the San Diego Padres pitches during the first inning of a spring training game against the Los Angeles Angels at Peoria Stadium on February 25, 2026 in Peoria, Arizona. (Photo by Mike Christy/Getty Images) | Michael King - Getty Images
San Diego Padres pitcher Michael King was dominant through the first two innings of his Spring Training debut. He made a mistake to start the top of the third inning, allowing a leadoff home run to Christian Moore, but he struck out two of the next three batters and finished 2.2 innings with one run allowed on two hits with four strikeouts. King is hoping the solid debut is a sign of good things to come, adding that he hopes to get back to the pitcher he was during the 2024 season. The Padres offense took some time to get going but after taking the lead with four runs in the bottom of the sixth inning, San Diego never looked back en route to a 7-3 win over the Los Angeles Angels.
Padres News:
Walker Buehler signed a minor league deal with the Padres and seeing him in brown and gold still seems strange, but he is a big-league pitcher with postseason and World Series experience who could be a benefit to the rotation. Gaslamp Ball asked its readers if they would be rooting for Buehler to make the team. Results of the poll will be revealed later in the week.
According to a report from Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune, Sung-Mun Song appears to be completely healed from an oblique injury he sustained earlier in the offseason. With that being the case, he has to get to work quickly to adjust to pitching velocity in MLB. Manager Craig Stammen and hitting coach Steven Souza Jr. have a plan to get him where he needs to be and they believe he will get there. In the same article Acee mentions the Padres are receiving calls on their relievers. They have an abundance of bullpen arms and limited roster space, which could mean a trade occurs sometime before the end of Spring Training.
Ethan Salas missed all but 10 games of the 2025 season due to a stress reaction in his lower back. Jeff Sanders of the San Diego Union-Tribune learned that although Salas could not learn through reps on the field last season, he learned by talking with a host of former catchers in the Padres system.
Baseball News:
Harrison Bader of the San Francisco Giants hit a home run that left a dent in a food truck. He did the only thing a player can do in that situation – he signed it.
New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor had the stitches removed from surgery on his left hand following surgery to repair a hamate injury and is on track to return by Opening Day.
Arizona Diamondbacks Opening Day starter Merrill Kelly is dealing with discomfort in his back and it has yet to be determined what the cause is. He may not be ready for opening day according to MLB Trade Rumors.
The San Antonio Spurs bring a 10-game winning streak to Barclays Center when they visit the Brooklyn Nets.
The Bottom-5 Nets defense will have its hands full tonight, and my Spurs vs. Nets predictions expect a high-scoring contest.
Read on for my NBA picks for Thursday, February 26.
Spurs vs Nets prediction
Spurs vs Nets best bet: Over 224.5 (-110)
This bet isn’t about the Brooklyn Nets suddenly becoming an offensive juggernaut, because they aren’t.
It’s about their Bottom-5 defense and how the San Antonio Spurs are scoring at an elite clip, averaging a league-best 124 points per game during their 10-game winning streak.
Brooklyn is allowing over 50% shooting in its last 10 games and offers very little defensive resistance. San Antonio has given up 110 PPG in that stretch, and Brooklyn has enough shot-makers to help push this one past the game total.
Spurs vs Nets same-game parlay
De’Aaron Fox has made at least two triples in three of his previous five games, and Nets guard Egor Demin is knocking down at least two made threes in five of his past nine contests.
Spurs vs Nets SGP
Over 224.5
De'Aaron Fox Over 1.5 made threes
Egor Demin Over 2.5 made threes
Our "from downtown" SGP: MPJ helps lift the total
Michael Porter Jr. averages over 24 PPG and has scored at least 23 points in two of his last five.
Not intended for use in MA. Affiliate Disclosure: Our team of experts has thoroughly researched and handpicked each product that appears on our website. We may receive compensation if you sign up through our links.
Feb 25, 2026; Denver, Colorado, USA; Boston Celtics guard Jordan Walsh (27) and Denver Nuggets center Jonas Valanciunas (17) battle for a loose ball during the first half at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-Imagn Images | Christopher Hanewinckel-Imagn Images
#1 – A second behind
Sometimes in life, you feel like you’re a step behind. Nothing big, but yet, it creates a difference between where you should be and where you are, and this small difference has consequences. Well, that’s how it felt looking at the Celtics’ off-ball defense last night.
This first bucket from the Nuggets is a great example of the Nuggets being a step ahead. The screen from Cam Johnson causes a bit of chaos as Derrick White and Jaylen Brown don’t switch, leaving a lot of space for Jamal Murray to cut to the rim. A few possessions later, it’s Brown again who is half a second late when Johnson starts moving, and that’s enough for the Nuggets to punish the Celtics.
Denver is a very smart, very well coached team. It isn’t a surprise they involved Jordan Walsh’s matchup in the screen because the young wing has a tendency to overpressure off-ball. Therefore, with all the screens and movement the Nuggets are creating, it is hard for him to keep up.
This game was a great example of what makes a team like Denver so good. They can find a breach in a great defense by targeting players’ tendencies. Like the Celtics, they scout, they learn, and they adapt their approach to the opponent, and it worked out pretty well, even in garbage time.
On offense, the Celtics lost the ball on more than 15% of their possessions. When this happens, the Celtics have a 50% win rate. Taking care of the ball is one of the foundations of that team, and they couldn’t deliver last night. Led by Bruce Brown and Spencer Jones, the Nuggets put a lot of pressure on the Celtics’ ball-handlers.
They also didn’t hesitate to bring a second defender to force a quicker decision and generated some mistakes from Boston. With that appetite for steals and the domination on the offensive glass, the Denver Nuggets were able to generate 10 more field-goal attempts than the Celtics. And when the Celtics lose the possession battle, it becomes a lot harder to compete against the best teams in the league.
#3 – Jokic deep-drop
It was a different sight than usual on defense for the Denver Nuggets. We are used to seeing Jokic hedging on the pick-and-roll to force a pass and put pressure on the ball-handler, but this wasn’t the case last night. The guards put a lot of pressure while the Serbian was commanding from the back.
It was an interesting way to take away the paint from the Celtics while showing bodies beyond the three-point line. While Jokic was in the paint behind the pick-and-roll, the Nuggets’ closest defender next to the screen would come to disrupt the action.
Thanks to that, Jokic had less effort to expend on defense and could compensate on offense. In some possessions, Jokic would come up to surprise the ball-handler and create some chaos, like here:
But overall, the 3-time MVP remained in a drop position, and this explains why the Celtics had so much trouble getting to the paint last night.
#4 – Denver daring Ron Harper Junior to shoot
The young wing is discovering the NBA and what it is like to be scouted by the best teams in the world. After a standout performance against the Suns, he was back on the bench to start the game. Yet, like every other player on the roster, the Nuggets scouted him and had a plan in mind for when he would come onto the court.
As the defensive plan was to protect the paint at all costs, they decided to leave him alone beyond the line to make sure the Celtics touched the paint as little as possible.
The Celtics tried to get him involved in the screening action, hoping he would draw some attention from the defense, but the Nuggets couldn’t care less about his shooting threat.
In the end, that approach worked out pretty well for Denver as Harper shot one for seven from deep in 10 minutes. This also took away part of his offensive impact, and the Celtics had to adapt their rotation.
#5 – Double-big again
Because the Nuggets were willing to leave non-shooters open, the Celtics tried their double-big lineup again. If the opponent isn’t going to respect your shooters, you might as well play big. And the idea makes sense.
Because the Celtics played with two bigs and the non-shooter of the two is Neemias Queta, Vucevic was matched up with a smaller player. Therefore, it was easier for him to get a mismatch in the post. However, it was also easier for Jokic to come help from behind because of Queta’s presence in the paint.
To make this work on offense, I think the Celtics need to work on high-low offense with more movement from the off-ball players around the two centers. Defensively, it brought more rebounding stability and rim protection. The Celtics could target non-shooting threats like Christian Braun so the paint remained stacked.
If the Celtics can build some offensive synergy between Queta and Vucevic, things could be really fun and bring a great balance against big teams like Denver.
#6 – Spread actions
Because Denver was so aggressive when it came to protecting the paint, the Celtics decided to start their actions from the half-court line to stretch the Denver defense.
Here, a zoom action for Derrick White starts from half court, with Sam Hauser screening at the logo and Queta handing off at the three-point line. Because of that space and the distance of the screen, Jones has more difficulty containing White. This created a little bit of chaos in the defense and worked pretty well.
Yet, starting from deep isn’t enough, and using screens correctly remains one of the most important parts of off-ball actions. Here, look how easy it is for the Denver Nuggets defenders to stay connected to their matchup despite the various screens.
The idea was great, the execution not so much. Yet, it gives some perspective on how the Celtics offense can adapt when the spacing is missing.
#7 – More volume for White?
Looking at the stats from cleaningtheglass.com, I’m left with a couple of questions.
First, why didn’t White have more opportunities with the shot? He was really efficient with 1.25 points per shot attempt, created chaos with his speed and passing, and yet his usage was pretty average.
In the meantime, Jaylen Brown’s usage was once again close to 40% despite really low efficiency. When the defense shrinks the space like last night, I would like to see more possessions for White to unlock Jaylen Brown off-ball.
Against such a smart defense, isolation and drives in a crowded paint won’t work as much as usual, and the Celtics need to readjust how JB plays against elite teams to make sure to maximize him next to a great connector like Derrick White. The former Colorado guard scored 18 points in the second quarter but couldn’t get anything going after that.
#8 – More minutes for Hauser?
A second question I would have asked is why Sam Hauser didn’t get more minutes. As we saw earlier, the Nuggets were willing to leave a shooter open to protect the paint – even if that shooter was Sam Hauser.
So, when Sam was the guy next to the ball on the pick-and-roll, it created great things for the Celtics because the help defender couldn’t fully commit. And if he did, the Celtics could swing the ball to the wing.
Even if he didn’t make all the shots, the added value in spacing was so crucial that it was vital for the Celtics to keep him on the court to have the best chance on offense.
It took seven games for someone to raise the question – let’s be patient. And also let’s take a step back and remember that Vucevic isn’t the Celtics’ savior. He never has been an efficient scorer, never been a great interior defender. But he is a smart player with great passing for a 7-footer.
If you are expecting Nikola Vucevic to reach Kristaps Porzingis’ numbers in rim protection and scoring efficiency, well, be prepared to wait for a while because it never was the case. However, Vucevic can bring a push in the possession battle while providing spacing and great secondary passing once he gets more comfortable in the Celtics offense.
Let’s be nice, let’s be patient, this roster isn’t changing anytime soon.
#10 – Out of gas, out of air
Three games in four days, the last one 5280 feet above sea level, and the Celtics were out of gas and out of air.
This month, they played six games on the road, a lot of time away from home. March should be far more comfortable with nine games at TD Garden.
Might be the perfect timing for Jayson Tatum to come back (and for me to book a ticket from France to cover some games from the ground).”
Feb 25, 2026; Denver, Colorado, USA; Boston Celtics guard Jordan Walsh (27) and Denver Nuggets center Jonas Valanciunas (17) battle for a loose ball during the first half at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-Imagn Images | Christopher Hanewinckel-Imagn Images
#1 – A second behind
Sometimes in life, you feel like you’re a step behind. Nothing big, but yet, it creates a difference between where you should be and where you are, and this small difference has consequences. Well, that’s how it felt looking at the Celtics’ off-ball defense last night.
This first bucket from the Nuggets is a great example of the Nuggets being a step ahead. The screen from Cam Johnson causes a bit of chaos as Derrick White and Jaylen Brown don’t switch, leaving a lot of space for Jamal Murray to cut to the rim. A few possessions later, it’s Brown again who is half a second late when Johnson starts moving, and that’s enough for the Nuggets to punish the Celtics.
Denver is a very smart, very well coached team. It isn’t a surprise they involved Jordan Walsh’s matchup in the screen because the young wing has a tendency to overpressure off-ball. Therefore, with all the screens and movement the Nuggets are creating, it is hard for him to keep up.
This game was a great example of what makes a team like Denver so good. They can find a breach in a great defense by targeting players’ tendencies. Like the Celtics, they scout, they learn, and they adapt their approach to the opponent, and it worked out pretty well, even in garbage time.
On offense, the Celtics lost the ball on more than 15% of their possessions. When this happens, the Celtics have a 50% win rate. Taking care of the ball is one of the foundations of that team, and they couldn’t deliver last night. Led by Bruce Brown and Spencer Jones, the Nuggets put a lot of pressure on the Celtics’ ball-handlers.
They also didn’t hesitate to bring a second defender to force a quicker decision and generated some mistakes from Boston. With that appetite for steals and the domination on the offensive glass, the Denver Nuggets were able to generate 10 more field-goal attempts than the Celtics. And when the Celtics lose the possession battle, it becomes a lot harder to compete against the best teams in the league.
#3 – Jokic deep-drop
It was a different sight than usual on defense for the Denver Nuggets. We are used to seeing Jokic hedging on the pick-and-roll to force a pass and put pressure on the ball-handler, but this wasn’t the case last night. The guards put a lot of pressure while the Serbian was commanding from the back.
It was an interesting way to take away the paint from the Celtics while showing bodies beyond the three-point line. While Jokic was in the paint behind the pick-and-roll, the Nuggets’ closest defender next to the screen would come to disrupt the action.
Thanks to that, Jokic had less effort to expend on defense and could compensate on offense. In some possessions, Jokic would come up to surprise the ball-handler and create some chaos, like here:
But overall, the 3-time MVP remained in a drop position, and this explains why the Celtics had so much trouble getting to the paint last night.
#4 – Denver daring Ron Harper Junior to shoot
The young wing is discovering the NBA and what it is like to be scouted by the best teams in the world. After a standout performance against the Suns, he was back on the bench to start the game. Yet, like every other player on the roster, the Nuggets scouted him and had a plan in mind for when he would come onto the court.
As the defensive plan was to protect the paint at all costs, they decided to leave him alone beyond the line to make sure the Celtics touched the paint as little as possible.
The Celtics tried to get him involved in the screening action, hoping he would draw some attention from the defense, but the Nuggets couldn’t care less about his shooting threat.
In the end, that approach worked out pretty well for Denver as Harper shot one for seven from deep in 10 minutes. This also took away part of his offensive impact, and the Celtics had to adapt their rotation.
#5 – Double-big again
Because the Nuggets were willing to leave non-shooters open, the Celtics tried their double-big lineup again. If the opponent isn’t going to respect your shooters, you might as well play big. And the idea makes sense.
Because the Celtics played with two bigs and the non-shooter of the two is Neemias Queta, Vucevic was matched up with a smaller player. Therefore, it was easier for him to get a mismatch in the post. However, it was also easier for Jokic to come help from behind because of Queta’s presence in the paint.
To make this work on offense, I think the Celtics need to work on high-low offense with more movement from the off-ball players around the two centers. Defensively, it brought more rebounding stability and rim protection. The Celtics could target non-shooting threats like Christian Braun so the paint remained stacked.
If the Celtics can build some offensive synergy between Queta and Vucevic, things could be really fun and bring a great balance against big teams like Denver.
#6 – Spread actions
Because Denver was so aggressive when it came to protecting the paint, the Celtics decided to start their actions from the half-court line to stretch the Denver defense.
Here, a zoom action for Derrick White starts from half court, with Sam Hauser screening at the logo and Queta handing off at the three-point line. Because of that space and the distance of the screen, Jones has more difficulty containing White. This created a little bit of chaos in the defense and worked pretty well.
Yet, starting from deep isn’t enough, and using screens correctly remains one of the most important parts of off-ball actions. Here, look how easy it is for the Denver Nuggets defenders to stay connected to their matchup despite the various screens.
The idea was great, the execution not so much. Yet, it gives some perspective on how the Celtics offense can adapt when the spacing is missing.
#7 – More volume for White?
Looking at the stats from cleaningtheglass.com, I’m left with a couple of questions.
First, why didn’t White have more opportunities with the shot? He was really efficient with 1.25 points per shot attempt, created chaos with his speed and passing, and yet his usage was pretty average.
In the meantime, Jaylen Brown’s usage was once again close to 40% despite really low efficiency. When the defense shrinks the space like last night, I would like to see more possessions for White to unlock Jaylen Brown off-ball.
Against such a smart defense, isolation and drives in a crowded paint won’t work as much as usual, and the Celtics need to readjust how JB plays against elite teams to make sure to maximize him next to a great connector like Derrick White. The former Colorado guard scored 18 points in the second quarter but couldn’t get anything going after that.
#8 – More minutes for Hauser?
A second question I would have asked is why Sam Hauser didn’t get more minutes. As we saw earlier, the Nuggets were willing to leave a shooter open to protect the paint – even if that shooter was Sam Hauser.
So, when Sam was the guy next to the ball on the pick-and-roll, it created great things for the Celtics because the help defender couldn’t fully commit. And if he did, the Celtics could swing the ball to the wing.
Even if he didn’t make all the shots, the added value in spacing was so crucial that it was vital for the Celtics to keep him on the court to have the best chance on offense.
It took seven games for someone to raise the question – let’s be patient. And also let’s take a step back and remember that Vucevic isn’t the Celtics’ savior. He never has been an efficient scorer, never been a great interior defender. But he is a smart player with great passing for a 7-footer.
If you are expecting Nikola Vucevic to reach Kristaps Porzingis’ numbers in rim protection and scoring efficiency, well, be prepared to wait for a while because it never was the case. However, Vucevic can bring a push in the possession battle while providing spacing and great secondary passing once he gets more comfortable in the Celtics offense.
Let’s be nice, let’s be patient, this roster isn’t changing anytime soon.
#10 – Out of gas, out of air
Three games in four days, the last one 5280 feet above sea level, and the Celtics were out of gas and out of air.
This month, they played six games on the road, a lot of time away from home. March should be far more comfortable with nine games at TD Garden.
Might be the perfect timing for Jayson Tatum to come back (and for me to book a ticket from France to cover some games from the ground).”
DENVER, COLORADO - FEBRUARY 25: Jaylen Brown #7 of the Boston Celtics dives for a loose ball against Cameron Johnson #23 of the Denver Nuggets in the first half at Ball Arena on February 25, 2026 in Denver, Colorado. 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 Jamie Schwaberow/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Boston Celtics could’ve secured a four-game road trip sweep over the Denver Nuggets on Wednesday night, had it not been for their second-half tumble. Defensive lapses, a no-show from the reserve unit, and countless missed opportunities doomed the Cs.
But instead of sulking in the aftermath, Jaylen Brown took a different, more constructive approach to digesting the team’s 103-84 defeat in Denver.
“I think we’ll be pleased by how many open looks we had,” Brown told reporters, per CLNS Media. “It’s not like our offense didn’t create the advantages we were looking for. We got a bunch of great shots, it felt like. It just didn’t go down tonight.”
Boston fell victim to a collection of factors that snowballed into a storm greater than the blizzard they avoided back in New England this past weekend. Even so, there was a bright side worth pinpointing, as Brown did. The Celtics consistently generated quality looks throughout the second half, which made the result all the more frustrating. Shot creation wasn’t the issue. Shot conversion, however, was.
They finished 12-of-43 from 3-point range (27.9%), with Brown, Sam Hauser, Baylor Scheierman, and Payton Pritchard — all reliable perimeter threats — accounting for 13 of those misses. Of those attempts, 10 came on quality or wide-open looks. Over time, those misses dug a deeper divot, eventually forcing Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla to pull the plug and sit his starters on the bench for the final 5:33 of the fourth quarter.
DENVER, COLORADO – FEBRUARY 25: Nikola Jokic #15 of the Denver Nuggets drives against Ron Harper Jr. #13 of the Boston Celtics in the first half at Ball Arena on February 25, 2026 in Denver, Colorado. 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 Jamie Schwaberow/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Brown doesn’t believe any of that is worth overanalyzing as the team heads back home.
“It’s a long season. It’s a journey,” Brown told reporters. “One game doesn’t make or break us. Tonight, we could’ve played better, we could’ve converted a little bit more — second night of a back-to-back. We don’t hang our heads, though. We move on to the next.”
Leaving regret in the rearview mirror has become one of this season’s greatest strengths for the Celtics. It’s a principle that Mazzulla has preached since the start of the campaign, and one the team has consistently embraced. Whether during their most dominant performances and their ugliest slip-ups, the Celtics have continued to put that short-term memory into practice — pragmatically.
Boston won’t dwell on a single play, no matter how costly, but that doesn’t mean that details are ignored. Film gets reviewed. Mistakes get addressed. There’s a balance, and everyone in the locker room understands it.
Nuggets superstar Nikola Jokić finished scoring 30 points and grabbing 12 rebounds, but it was far from pretty. Jokić opened the night 4-of-11 in the first quarter, and nearly half of his 28 shot attempts came from beyond the arc. The three-time league MVP wasn’t the sole difference-maker responsible for dragging the Celtics and tilting the game, even though his double-double suggests it.
For the most part, Boston’s defense held its own against Jokić.
“I think we did a pretty good job on him,” White told reporters, per CLNS Media. “… He’s really good and does a little bit of everything for them, so I think our big did a pretty good job on him.”
The Celtics have 24 hours to unwind and reassess before hosting the Brooklyn Nets on Friday night. Until then, they’ll roll with the approach that’s brought them this far in moving on from their Denver collapse. They’ll search for whatever opportunities remain in place to improve, make use of their miscues against the Nuggets, and establish the best way to strategize. It’s a collective effort.
“It would’ve been great to finish out strong in the road trip with a win,” Brown told reporters. “But 3-1 on a West Coast swing, coming straight out of the All-Star break, is not half bad. So, we just got to continue to get better little by little. I like where we’re at as a group. I think we’re playing some really good basketball. I think our guys have developed in areas that we continue to push along, so we just got to keep that up.”
Boston still owns the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference, with a one and a ½ game lead over the New York Knicks. The race for the top spot also remains within reach, as the Celtics trail the Detroit Pistons only by five games. So while their 20th loss of the season was a tough one to stomach in real time, Boston remains in a favorable position worth highlighting.
“I like where we’re at as a group,” Brown told reporters. “I like where we’re at as a team.”
DENVER, COLORADO - FEBRUARY 25: Jaylen Brown #7 of the Boston Celtics dives for a loose ball against Cameron Johnson #23 of the Denver Nuggets in the first half at Ball Arena on February 25, 2026 in Denver, Colorado. 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 Jamie Schwaberow/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Boston Celtics could’ve secured a four-game road trip sweep over the Denver Nuggets on Wednesday night, had it not been for their second-half tumble. Defensive lapses, a no-show from the reserve unit, and countless missed opportunities doomed the Cs.
But instead of sulking in the aftermath, Jaylen Brown took a different, more constructive approach to digesting the team’s 103-84 defeat in Denver.
“I think we’ll be pleased by how many open looks we had,” Brown told reporters, per CLNS Media. “It’s not like our offense didn’t create the advantages we were looking for. We got a bunch of great shots, it felt like. It just didn’t go down tonight.”
Boston fell victim to a collection of factors that snowballed into a storm greater than the blizzard they avoided back in New England this past weekend. Even so, there was a bright side worth pinpointing, as Brown did. The Celtics consistently generated quality looks throughout the second half, which made the result all the more frustrating. Shot creation wasn’t the issue. Shot conversion, however, was.
They finished 12-of-43 from 3-point range (27.9%), with Brown, Sam Hauser, Baylor Scheierman, and Payton Pritchard — all reliable perimeter threats — accounting for 13 of those misses. Of those attempts, 10 came on quality or wide-open looks. Over time, those misses dug a deeper divot, eventually forcing Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla to pull the plug and sit his starters on the bench for the final 5:33 of the fourth quarter.
DENVER, COLORADO – FEBRUARY 25: Nikola Jokic #15 of the Denver Nuggets drives against Ron Harper Jr. #13 of the Boston Celtics in the first half at Ball Arena on February 25, 2026 in Denver, Colorado. 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 Jamie Schwaberow/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Brown doesn’t believe any of that is worth overanalyzing as the team heads back home.
“It’s a long season. It’s a journey,” Brown told reporters. “One game doesn’t make or break us. Tonight, we could’ve played better, we could’ve converted a little bit more — second night of a back-to-back. We don’t hang our heads, though. We move on to the next.”
Leaving regret in the rearview mirror has become one of this season’s greatest strengths for the Celtics. It’s a principle that Mazzulla has preached since the start of the campaign, and one the team has consistently embraced. Whether during their most dominant performances and their ugliest slip-ups, the Celtics have continued to put that short-term memory into practice — pragmatically.
Boston won’t dwell on a single play, no matter how costly, but that doesn’t mean that details are ignored. Film gets reviewed. Mistakes get addressed. There’s a balance, and everyone in the locker room understands it.
Nuggets superstar Nikola Jokić finished scoring 30 points and grabbing 12 rebounds, but it was far from pretty. Jokić opened the night 4-of-11 in the first quarter, and nearly half of his 28 shot attempts came from beyond the arc. The three-time league MVP wasn’t the sole difference-maker responsible for dragging the Celtics and tilting the game, even though his double-double suggests it.
For the most part, Boston’s defense held its own against Jokić.
“I think we did a pretty good job on him,” White told reporters, per CLNS Media. “… He’s really good and does a little bit of everything for them, so I think our big did a pretty good job on him.”
The Celtics have 24 hours to unwind and reassess before hosting the Brooklyn Nets on Friday night. Until then, they’ll roll with the approach that’s brought them this far in moving on from their Denver collapse. They’ll search for whatever opportunities remain in place to improve, make use of their miscues against the Nuggets, and establish the best way to strategize. It’s a collective effort.
“It would’ve been great to finish out strong in the road trip with a win,” Brown told reporters. “But 3-1 on a West Coast swing, coming straight out of the All-Star break, is not half bad. So, we just got to continue to get better little by little. I like where we’re at as a group. I think we’re playing some really good basketball. I think our guys have developed in areas that we continue to push along, so we just got to keep that up.”
Boston still owns the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference, with a one and a ½ game lead over the New York Knicks. The race for the top spot also remains within reach, as the Celtics trail the Detroit Pistons only by five games. So while their 20th loss of the season was a tough one to stomach in real time, Boston remains in a favorable position worth highlighting.
“I like where we’re at as a group,” Brown told reporters. “I like where we’re at as a team.”
The knockout playoffs are complete after a whirlwind round of action. Bodø/Glimt’s fairytale continues while the holders struggled again
Bodø/Glimt’s 2-1 defeat of Inter at San Siro continued this season’s miracle. The post-match discussion between Inter coach Cristian Chivu and his opposite number, Kjetil Knutsen, was one of admiration, an acknowledgment the Norwegian team had been too good for the runaway Serie A leaders. Even though Inter were without Lautaro Martínez, their standard bearer, a comeback seemed likely as they dominated the early stages. But they found no way through, eventually falling victim to the high-quality, high-speed attacking that had left them with a 3-1 deficit to overcome from the first leg.
The Vegas Golden Knights picked up a 6-4 win over the Los Angeles Kings on Feb. 25. Former Philadelphia Flyers forward Tanner Laczynski certainly ended up playing a role in Vegas' win over Los Angeles, as he had a strong game offensively.
Laczynski demonstrated his playmaking skills against the Kings, as he recorded his first-career three-assist game at the NHL level. All three of his helpers were primary assists, too, so he helped set up his teammates nicely in this matchup.
With his big performance against the Kings, Laczynski has now set new career highs with five assists and five points in just 10 games this season with the Golden Knights. Thus, this was easily the best offensive performance of the former Flyers forward's career thus far.
Laczynski was selected by the Flyers with the 169th overall pick of the 2016 NHL Entry Draft. In 38 games over three seasons with the Flyers from 2020-21 to 2022-23, Laczynski had two goals, four points, 38 hits, and a minus-5 rating.
Proteas’ Markram leads nine-wicket win over West Indies
A rampant India piled up a record total and handed Zimbabwe a 72-run shellacking in a Super 8s contest to revive their Twenty20 World Cup title defence. Sent in, the hosts blasted 256 for four, the tournament’s highest score this year, after Abhishek Sharma and Hardik Pandya struck blistering half-centuries.
It rained 17 sixes and as many fours at Chennai’s MA Chidambaram Stadium as India’s top order feasted on a modest Zimbabwean attack made even blunter by their sloppy catching.
TAMPA, FLORIDA - FEBRUARY 25: Ben Rice #22 of the New York Yankees forces out Joey Wiemer #21 of the Washington Nationals at first base in the fifth inning during a Grapefruit League spring training game at George M. Steinbrenner Field on February 25, 2026 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Julio Aguilar/Getty Images) | Getty Images
It had been a positive start to the spring for the Washington Nationals, but they got a reality check last night. They suffered their first defeat of the spring, losing 7-0 to the Yankees in a sloppy contest. The Nats were credited with three errors, but that is being generous. It really could have been five or six.
Last season, the Nats were one of the worst defensive teams in baseball. Even while the Nats were winning games early this spring, the defense looked suspect. Last night it ended up costing them. Blake Butera has already made defense an emphasis this spring, but clearly it needs to be an even bigger focus.
One thing Butera is going to really need to focus on is pitchers defense. It has been a consistent problem throughout camp, and it was on display again last night. Clayton Beeter and Andrew Alvarez both made throwing errors last night. In our piece yesterday, we mentioned pitcher defense as an area that had to improve.
The pitchers fielding has been horrific so far this spring
Yesterday the offense was very stagnant as well. The Nats only had one hit. However, offense is a secondary concern to me right now. It is still early in camp right now and guys are still finding their swings. As long as some of the big names on the team show life by the end of spring, it is not a big deal.
The Nats also faced some world class pitching last night. New Yankee Ryan Weathers looked absolutely electric in his spring debut with the team. He was pitching with a point to prove, showing a fastball that reached 100 MPH. Weathers’ stuff looked better than ever and he was hitting all of his spots. The Nats also saw some of the Yankees’ better relief pitchers such as David Bednar and Fernando Cruz.
I care much more about the fielding problems than any offensive concerns. Fundamentals should be the focus of Spring Training, and those have been lacking so far for the Nats. It is still February, but the Nats have a long way to go on the defensive side of the ball.
Keibert Ruiz also had a rough night behind the plate. He was not credited with any errors, but his blocking did not look good and he misplayed a ball hit to him. In an open competition, that is not a great look for Ruiz, who has struggled defensively for years. The Nats traded for Harry Ford this offseason, and he should have a chance to win the job out of camp.
Another player who has really struggled to start camp is Dylan Crews. Last night, he struck out twice and made an ugly error where he just dropped the ball. Crews has not lived up to his pre-draft hype so far, making 2026 a massive year for him. He has not been making the kind of statement you would like to see so far this spring.
There is still a long way to go, but I do not think Crews has done enough to be above starting the season at AAA. If Crews continues to struggle and one of the Nats many outfielders outperforms him badly, there should be a conversation. Crews never truly mastered the AAA level, so maybe going down there would not be the worst thing.
Of course, it would take Crews really struggling and someone else really stepping up for that to happen. However, I do believe that is a conversation worth having. Paul Toboni should be able to start with a clean slate. He was not the guy who drafted these players, so he should not feel any loyalty to them. The best man should win. There is still almost a month of Spring Training left, so Crews has plenty of time to redeem himself.
It is still very early in the spring, and the Nats are 4-1 so far. There were some concerning things on display last night, but I do not want this to be all doom and gloom. We should expect some ugly performances from time to time. This is a young team that is not built to win this year.
The Nats getting shelled or shut out every once in a while is not a big deal to me. However, I want them to control the things they can control. That means cleaning up the defensive mistakes and playing smart baseball. You do not need to be the most talented team in the league to play clean baseball. Hopefully we see defensive improvement as we approach the regular season.
San Jose saw four of its players compete at the 2026 Winter Games in Milan over the last couple of weeks, including forward Pavol Regenda for Slovakia, forward Alexander Wennberg for Sweden, forward Philipp Kurashev for Switzerland and forward Macklin Celebrini for Canada, who won silver.
Now, the full team is back and ready to trek along for the remainder of the season, starting with a six-game homestand beginning Thursday, Feb. 26 against the Calgary Flames.
"It's just the same approach every day, no matter what situation you're in," Celebrini told USA TODAY Sports. "That's what I found at the Olympics. It was the biggest stage I've ever played on, and the biggest games I've ever been a part of. So, I think it was just, come back to my same routine, doing all the same things to get prepared, and then whatever happens on the ice, happens."
The Sharks remain hopeful they'll continue playing into late April.
There has been a lot of buzz generating around the Bay Area over the resurgence of a Sharks team that has been in the draft lottery year in and year out and hasn't sniffed the postseason since 2019.
Still, heading back into the regular season with a 27-24-4 record (58 points), San Jose finds itself on the outskirts of a wild card spot in the Western Conference.
Sharks head coach Ryan Warsofsky told USA TODAY Sports that they aren't overlooking games, or looking too far down the road. The team is focusing its attention not on the last months of the season, but on how to improve every single day.
"When you walk in the building it says on the left side of the wall 'Focus on Today.' That's what we ask of our players and that's what we'll continue to do," Warsofsky told USA TODAY Sports.
"We gotta focus on today and that was our practice," he said. "(Thursday), we'll get ready for the Calgary Flames. We can't get wrapped in 'we have a six-game homestand, we gotta go 6-0'. Can't do that. Mentally, as (a) human being you get overwhelmed."
Warsofsky, 38, is in his second season as head coach of the Sharks.
He was an assistant coach before being promoted, becoming the youngest NHL head coach in June 2024. Although young, Warsofsky is ensuring that the team remains level-headed and focused on little tasks that make a huge impact.
"So, we're going to focus, we're gonna have a morning skate tomorrow, it's gonna feel good. There's meetings and (we'll) prepare our players and making sure we execute it and get excited to play in front of our fans," Warsofsky said. "But we can't get wrapped up in the homestand. Today we had practice, we were focused on that and had a good practice."
Celebrini has been one of the bright spots for the Sharks. He is in his second year after being selected with the first overall pick in the 2024 NHL entry draft. Beyond being an Olympic selection for Team Canada, he finds himself in the top five of the NHL scoring leaderboard.
His production has been a big part of the Sharks' turnaround. In his rookie season, the Sharks went just 20-50-12 (52 points).
The 19-year-old phenom echoed some of the same sentiments as Warsofsky regarding the team's focus on the present, rather than looking too far into the future.
"It's a mentality for every game you want to win," Celebrini said. "Especially how important it is for us. Like I said, we're not going to try to look too far ahead, but, I mean, we know. We know how important all these games are."
That mentality is contagious amongst the entire team, setting up for an interesting finish to the season.
After seven years outside the field, the Sharks feel like now's the time to end their playoff drought. Regenda doubled-down, and said that is the goal.
"Everybody wants to win," Regenda told USA TODAY Sports. "Everybody wants to win. Everybody wants to make the playoff. And that's our goal."
Having an opportunity to play for his home country, Slovakia, provided Regenda with a newfound confidence that he needed as the Sharks lean on him and other players down the stretch.
"(I've gained) a little confident in (myself)," Regenda said. "I can play with the big guys. That's my goal, you know, come to the games, be confident and play my game, and, you know, help the team as much as I can."
Regenda said the team is happy to be back on the ice together after the break and is excited about the next couple of games, adding that "nobody wants to lose."
