ST PETERSBURG, FLORIDA - JULY 07: Ben Rice #22 of the New York Yankees reacts after hitting a three-run home run in the third inning against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field on July 07, 2026 in St Petersburg, Florida. (Photo by Julio Aguilar/Getty Images) | Getty Images
It’s Sunday once more, and you know what that means — it’s time for our weekly social media roundup! Earlier today, the first half of the season wrapped up, but before we turn our attention to the All-Star Break and beyond, let’s take a look back at this week’s social media spotlight. How has the squad been spending their time online? Let’s find out!
All-Star Invitations
Last week, Major League Baseball announced that a quartet of Yankees — Aaron Judge, Cody Bellinger, Ben Rice, and Cam Schlittler — were headed to Philadelphia for the 2026 All-Star Game. Here’s the moment they found out:
Yankees radio broadcaster Suzyn Waldman went back to her roots and caught Death of a Salesman and Oh Mary — and even got a chance to take a snap a picture of the sound board!
Jul 12, 2026; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; Atlanta Braves catcher Drake Baldwin (30) hits a one run single against the St. Louis Cardinals during the fourth inning at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images | Jeff Curry-Imagn Images
The Atlanta Braves took a 4-3 win against the St. Louis Cardinals, and though they didn’t win the battle, they’ve won the war… or at least avoided being swept after dropping the series. Does that still count?
The sunny days just might be here again.
The Cardinals kicked off their bid on the scoreboard after an RBI double from Alec Burleson to bring Jordan Walker in. The Braves would drive in three of their own soon after.
The most impressive one was from Brewer Hicklen, knocking in a 109.1 MPH double for the first RBI of his career to drive in Jim Jarvis to give the Braves a two-run lead.
Danny Young, who was slated to start for the Braves at the last minute, only saw the first inning after allowing the first run and a walk from Lars Nootbaar right after. JR Ritchie, who was the original starter, went in for him before the end of the first inning and stayed until the bottom of the sixth inning (4.1 IP/ 1 H/ 0 ER/ 2 BB/ 2 K).
Pitching is what almost got the Braves in trouble as the Bullpen gave up two more runs later in the bottom of the sixth inning, tying the two teams until the top of the ninth where the Braves got a run off a throwing error by Cardinals’ Masyn Winn from a Mauricio Dubón RBI single to bring Ozzie Albies in.
And with that, ladies and gentlemen, that concludes the first half of the 2026 season. Lots of positives, ran into struggles, but what team doesn’t? Now, it’s a matter of how they’ll get back on top in the second half, in the race to October.
The Mets' Double-A affiliate, the Binghamton Rumble Ponies, won 10-5 today, and rehabbing big-leaguers Marcus Semien and Luis Robert Jr. both had big days at the dish.
This was Semien's first in-game action since he was placed on the IL nearly three weeks ago with a hip flexor strain. Meanwhile, Robert has been ramping up his workload since his minor-league assignment began at the start of July, having hit the IL in late April with lower back disc herniation.
Semien clobbered a three-run homer to left-center field in the top of the fourth inning. He was removed from the game midway through the game, having earlier smacked a single. He finished 2-for-3 with a strikeout swinging.
Robert played the whole game, taking six at-bats and recording two hits, including an RBI single, but also struck out three times.
Mets interim manager Andy Green, speaking before Sunday's game, explained the team's expectations for Semien and Robert moving forward, including the three-day MLB All-Star break between Monday, July 13 and Wednesday, July 15.
Green explained that the plan for Semien during that time is for him to "get some live at-bats against Clay Holmes... more rehab games is the most likely scenario starting on Friday."
When asked about how soon the Mets could see Robert's return to the lineup, Green responded, "We'll see how he feels. He'll also get some live at-bats against Clay during the [All-Star] break... then, there's a good chance he will play in a couple of more games [in the minor leagues]."
"Hopefully, at that point in time, [Robert] will be ready to go," the interim skipper concluded.
BALTIMORE, MARYLAND - JULY 12: Gunnar Henderson #2 and Leody Taveras #30 of the Baltimore Orioles celebrate after a 8-2 victory against the Kansas City Royals at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on July 12, 2026 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Greg Fiume/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Orioles finally did it. They finally won a fourth straight game in the 2026 season. It was long past ridiculous that they hadn’t, as the team had seven three-game winning streaks that they did not manage to turn into a four-or-more-game winning streak. The eighth time was the charm. They took out 96 games worth of frustration on the woeful Royals and came away with a convincing 8-2 win to sweep their final series heading into the All-Star break.
Although the final margin of victory was six runs, this game had a lot in common with games that the Orioles have lost earlier in the season. Starting pitcher Shane Baz was not able to complete the fifth inning due to an elevated pitch count. The Royals got their first run and a prolonged rally following a throwing error by Blaze Alexander at third base. This gave the Royals an early lead in the game. The Orioles offense wasted a couple of promising scoring chances in the early innings. There was a second O’s error later in the game.
They overcame all of that. One reason that they were able to do this is Baz. You’d always rather see the starting pitcher complete at least five innings, but this was a decent enough game from him. Baz’s 4.2 innings saw him strike out nine Royals batters and he did not issue any walks. That helped him mostly scatter the seven hits allowed without too much damage. Even the one earned run charged to Baz was a cheap chopper that cleared an inexplicably drawn-in infield.
Kansas City struck first, with a triple following Alexander’s error to score the game’s first run in the top of the second. Baz handled that one in a way that Orioles pitchers often haven’t this season, getting a strikeout for the third out to strand the runner on third base. The O’s did not stay in the hole for long. Alexander atoned a bit for the error by leading off the next inning with a single. With one out, Alexander was still on base for Leody Taveras’s fourth homer of the season, a convincing bomb to deep center field that gave the Orioles a 2-1 lead.
The lead did not last. As Royals starter Seth Lugo failed at the shutdown inning when his offense gave him the 1-0 lead, Baz couldn’t deliver one in the top of the third after the offense put him on top. KC’s star, Bobby Witt Jr., led off the next inning with a double, advanced on a groundout, then scored on a single. Baz held the line again, even after giving up another single to put men on first and third with only one out. He limited the damage and stopped a disaster before it could move any farther along.
The score stayed tied at 2-2 until the Orioles broke it open in the sixth inning. Both starting pitchers were out early. Lugo pitched just four innings and took 89 pitches to do it. Baz’s 4.2 inning outing saw him throw 104. After he gave up a two-out double in the fifth inning, that was all for him. Anthony Nunez was brought in to finish the fifth inning. He’s had some rough outings recently. This one went fine. Nunez struck out Vinnie Pasquantino to end that inning.
With both starters out by the end of the fifth inning, it was a battle of the bullpens from there. Kansas City came up short when the day went badly for their pitcher Matt Strahm. Many days this season have gone poorly for Strahm, who entered the game with a 5.81 ERA. Many days have gone poorly for many Royals relievers.
Strahm struck out Samuel Basallo, the first batter he faced, and then things went off the rails. He walked Alexander, allowed a single to pinch hitter Tyler O’Neill, then another single to Taveras, easily scoring Alexander from second base to put the Orioles ahead for good at 3-2. They kept pouring on the hits for good measure: Another pinch hitter, Jeremiah Jackson, delivered an RBI double. Strahm balked in another run, then couldn’t stop Jackson from scoring from third as Gunnar Henderson hit an infield chopper off the back tip of home plate.
That was the end of the line for Strahm. His replacement only ended the inning after Pete Alonso hit an RBI single and made an ill-advised decision to try to stretch it into a double. That happened a lot in this series.
Because this is still the 2026 Orioles, there must be a cruel barb even in this moment of modest triumph where the team has achieved something positive. In the seventh inning, immediately following Basallo hitting a homer (his 16th of the year!) to make the game 8-2, Alexander was hit by a pitch by Royals reliever Lucas Erceg. The 1-2 pitch was inside and appeared to bounce off of Alexander’s arm before hitting one of his hands.
Alexander started shouting at Erceg, who shouted back, and the benches emptied, bullpens trotted in, and warnings were issued. No one punched or shoved anyone and the incident subsided without escalation.
The damage, however, was done. Alexander was lifted for a pinch runner, and after the game, manager Craig Albernaz revealed that the Orioles infielder has a non-displaced fracture in his left hand. It’s not immediately clear how much time he will miss as a result of this injury. The team has the next few days off to figure out what to do about that bad news. Orioles fans have one more grievance to lay at the feet of the Royals franchise.
Nunez, Grant Wolfram, Yennier Cano, Rico Garcia, and Andrew Kittredge combined for 4.1 scoreless innings across the bunch of them. This parade from the bullpen allowed only two hits and did not walk anyone. It sucks that even this feel-good win has had bad news come out of it.
It’ll be Friday at 8:10 Eastern before this show resumes. The Orioles will be in Houston after the break, the first part of a two city road trip. If they can keep the good feelings going through that road trip, this season might end up staying in a good direction at last. If not, well, that’s a familiar 2026 feeling.
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It is a longtime tradition on Camden Chat to nominate a Most Birdland Player of the game after each victory. What is “Most Birdland”? Each person must decide for themselves. Sometimes, this is the game’s most valuable player. Other times, it is not. Let us know your pick in the comments below.
ST LOUIS, MISSOURI - JULY 12: Alec Burleson #41 of the St. Louis Cardinals hits an RBI double against the Atlanta Braves in the first inning at Busch Stadium on July 12, 2026 in St Louis, Missouri. (Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Dustin May did not have the kind of start that Chaim Bloom would likely have wanted him to have as the St. Louis Cardinals approach the upcoming trade deadline, however he kept the team in the game despite walks and a costly wild pitch. The St. Louis Cardinals would eventually make a game of it, but it would slip away in the 9th inning.
Jordan Walker showed off his defense skills that are now borderline elite as he tumbled into the netting for the final out in the top of the 1st inning.
The St. Louis Cardinals offense had a decent start to Sunday’s game versus the Braves before the bats went silent. In the top of the 1st inning, After his fine defensive play in the top of the 1st, All-Star Jordan Walker drew a two-out walk and stole second to get into scoring position. Alec Burleson made that pay off when he drove a 94 mph sinker off the left field wall for a double scoring Walker and giving St. Louis an early 1-0 lead.
The Atlanta Braves would pull even in the top of the 2nd inning as Dustin May would be punished by walks to the first two batters of the inning, Smith and Riley. Jarvis laid down a sacrifice bunt to move both runners into scoring position. May struck out Hicklen for the second out, but then threw a wild pitch past catcher Jimmy Crooks scoring Smith and tying the game at 1-1.
While the St. Louis Cardinals bats went quiet during the middle innings, Atlanta took the lead in the top of the 4th inning when Dustin May hit Austin Riley with a pitch. Two batters later, Hicklen singled moving Riley up to scoring position at second. He would then score on a single by Drake Baldwin giving the Braves a 2-1 lead. That would end Dustin May’s outing as he only lasted 4 innings while walking 4, striking out 4 giving up just 2 hits and 2 earned runs.
Justin Bruihl would enter the game in the 5th inning when he would keep Atlanta from scoring, but that would not be true of his time in the 6th inning when he would give up back-to-back doubles to Jarvis and Hicklen increasing the Braves lead to 3-1. The fact that the Cardinals only had one hit through the first 5 1/2 innings didn’t help the St. Louis cause.
The Cardinals second hit of the game would be a screaming single off of the bat of Jordan Walker two pitches after he was knocked down by Braves reliever Dylan Dodd in the bottom of the 6th inning. Alec Burleson flied out to right for the first out, but then Lars Nootbaar walked and Masyn Winn singled to load the bases for St. Louis with just one out. Oli Marmol chose to pinch-hit Bryan Torres for Blaze Jordan, but he unfortunately struck out on 4 pitches. That left José Fermín as the man with the make-or-break at-bat and fortunately he chose “make” with a clutch 2-strike single into center driving in Walker and Nootbaar tying the game 3-3 after 6 innings.
Gordon Graceffo had entered the game to get the last out of the top of the 6th inning and also handled the top of the 7th inning against Atlanta. It would take him a grand total of 5 pitches to get three groundouts and shut down the Braves in the 6th. Can’t ask for anything more efficient than that. Ryne Stanek was handed top of the 8th inning responsibilities. He gave up a two-strike hit to White who hit one of the end of his bat barely landing past JJ Wetherholt in right-centerfield. Ryne then coaxed a harmless pop-out from slumping, but still dangerous Austin Riley. Stanek then struck out Jarvis and got a weak groundout from Hicklin to end the Braves 8th keeping the score tied.
After the Cardinals failed to grab the lead in the bottom of the 8th inning, it was JoJo Romero brought in to keep the game tied in the top of the 9th inning. He faced the top of the Braves lineup and got Drake Baldwin to fly out to deep center. Ozzie Albies turned on a 93 mph Romero sinker that didn’t sink enough and drove it into the left field corner for a one-out double. JoJo was able to nurse a weak groundout from Matt Olson for the second ou t, but Albies advanced to third on the play. Michael Harris II sold the umpire that he was hit by an 0-2 Romero pitch which was somehow upheld on a challenge even though the replay looked like the ball clearly did not hit Harris II. Great acting job, though. Oli Marmol got tossed for giving the umpires an earful. The replay officials saw something, so I guess we have to trust that they saw something many of us didn’t. Unfortunately, Dubon grounded out to Masyn Winn who’s errant throw sailed past Alec Burleson that allowed Albies to score giving (literally) the Braves a 4-3 lead in the top of the 9th. Romero walked White which loaded the bases for Austin Riley who flew out to Nootbaar in center to end a top of the 9th that could have been worse, but sure should have been better.
The Cardinals could manage nothing in the bottom of the 9th inning which resulted in a very disappointing way to enter the All-Star break even though it was a series win against the NL division-leading Atlanta Braves. There will be plenty of Cardinals to keep track of early this week as Jordan Walker will participate in the Home Run Derby on Monday night and three Cardinals are on the NL All-Star roster for Tuesday’s game.
Cameron Johnson got to celebrate an NCAA title in 2026, although he hoped to play a bigger role in the championship run. | (Photo by Jamie Schwaberow/NCAA Photos via Getty Images)
In all my time at South Side Sox, this is the sort of draft I’ve been waiting to cover for the White Sox, one where the club just kept digging up quality picks even late in the draft, as opposed to going completely off of the MLB board by, like, the fourth round. The South Siders struck once more in the 15th (!) round, taking a flier on MLB’s No. 250 talent, high-powered lefthander Cameron Johnson of the University of Oklahoma, with the No. 435 pick in the 2026 MLB draft.
The hits really do just keep coming for the White Sox this year, as Johnson brings a massive fastball that touches 99 mph and sits mid-90s.
But (c’mon, it’s the 15th round, there’s gotta be a but) Johnson has had some issues with control, so much so that despite an improved regular season in 2026 he sat out nearly all of the postseason as the Sooners made their run to the NCAA title.
I mean, Johnson is a bit of a mess. He had never before even been allowed to see regular starter’s innings in his career until 2026 — and that really is the crux of his improvement. But over 15 starts for the Sooners, he remained all over the place: a 6-1 record but 43 walks against 72 Ks, and still putting himself in enough compromising counts to get hit pretty hard (4.36 ERA, 1.547 WHIP).
Still, Johnson’s raw makeup is to dream on. As a 15th round gamble, he’s absolute gold.
BATON ROUGE, LOUISIANA - MARCH 20: Santiago Garcia #34 of the LSU Tigers in action against the Oklahoma Sooners at the Alex Box Stadium on March 20, 2026 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. (Photo by Mitchell Scaglione/LSU/University Images via Getty Images)
LSU has seen it’s 5th player drafted in the 2026 MLB Draft as Santiago Garcia goes to the Toronto Blue Jays in the 12th round at #372 overall.
The LHP transferred from Oregon after the first to years of his career and became the top lefty option for the Tigers out of the bullpen. He threw 22.2 innings with a 5.96 ERA, striking out 35.
There was slight hope that he could return to Baton Rouge and improve his stock with an extra year of eligibility under the new 5-for-5 rule, but left-handed pitchers that throw in the mid 90s typically don’t get passed on very much.
Garcia is the 5th player drafted from the 2026 LSU roster.
The Chicago Blackhawks traded three players to the Edmonton Oilers at the 2026 NHL Trade Deadline. Jason Dickinson, Connor Murphy, and Colton Dach all moved their hockey lives to Edmonton in exchange for future assets.
The Oilers were shockingly defeated by the Anaheim Ducks in round one of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, ending their season much sooner than expected after two straight trips to the Stanley Cup Final in 2024 and 2025.
After the season ended, the Oilers took very little time to extend both Murphy and Dickinson. They see each of them as great complementary pieces for a team led by superstars like Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, and Evan Bouchard.
If everyone stays healthy, it's a core good enough to continue making deep postseason runs after a disappointing finish in 2026.
On Sunday, the Oilers announced the extension of Colton Dach, making it so that all three players that the Blackhawks traded there are sticking around.
Dacher 👊
The #Oilers have signed forward Colton Dach to a two-year contract extension with an AAV of $1.2 million. pic.twitter.com/29pjRSs3eo
For Dach, it's a two-year deal with a cap hit of $1.2 million. He has the potential to be a part of a solid bottom-six forward group, likely in the same group as Jason Dickinson.
The Oilers are hoping to get a physical forward who can contribute some toughness and a bit of offense from Dach, as he has in the past. Health has been his biggest challenge, but he's a great player when he is able to get out onto the ice.
Through 86 games played, Dach has 7 career goals and 13 assists for 20 points, mostly in a depth role. Finding good forwards to fill out their lineup has been a key for Edmonton in the McDavid era, and Dach will be a part of it for at least the next two years on a fair deal.
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Former Chicago Blackhawks forward Colton Dach is staying put with the Edmonton Oilers.
The Oilers have announced that they have signed Dach to a two-year, $2.4 million contract. Starting next season, Dach will have a $1.2 million AAV.
This is a bit of a raise for Dach, as he had an $825,000 AAV during his entry-level contract. Now, he will be making slightly over $1 million per season on his new deal with Edmonton.
Dach was traded by the Blackhawks with Jason Dickinson to the Oilers ahead of this year's deadline in exchange for Andrew Mangiapane and a 2027 conditional first-round pick. In eight regular-season games with the Oilers following the move, Dach posted two goals and four points. He also had an assist in five playoff games for Edmonton this spring.
Dach was selected by the Blackhawks with the 62nd overall pick of the 2021 NHL Entry Draft. In 78 games over two seasons with Chicago from 2024-25 to 2025-26, the 6-foot-4 forward posted five goals, 11 assists, 16 points, and 275 hits.
Dach will now be looking to hit a new level with the Oilers after landing his new multi-year contract. It will be interesting to see how the former Blackhawks forward continues to develop from here.
LAS VEGAS, NV - JULY 9: Morez Johnson #14 of the Dallas Mavericks dribbles the ball during the game against the Golden State Warriors during the 2026 NBA Summer League game on July 9, 2026 at Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2026 NBAE (Photo by Ryan Stetz/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
LAS VEGAS, NV — Morez was on everyone’s mind who made the trek from the DFW area to the desert for the first weekend of NBA Summer League play.
It was our first chance to see Morez Johnson Jr., the Dallas Mavericks’ first-round draft pick, play against some NBA-level talent, while surrounded by some far-fringe NBA talent.
Some of us were convinced on draft night that the Mavericks had reached for Johnson at the No. 9 overall pick. Others, notably including my MMB colleague David Sanchez, who went on the Vegas trip with us, were immediately sold on Johnson’s fit and worth at No. 9, especially in light of the fact that none of the top guards fell that far.
Should the Mavericks have stayed with the more popular logic of “best guard available” with Arizona’s Brayden Burries widely projected as Dallas’ pick and still on the board at No. 9? Or will Johnson, the exact prototype of a Masai Ujiri draft pick, prove out as the better selection? Time will tell, and the irrationality of fandom means it’s never too early to start drawing conclusions.
Six of us, including Mavs Moneyball’s fearless leader Kirk Henderson, participated in our own Basketball Dessert Storm this season. As I write on Sunday afternoon, Kirk and our resident gambling aficionado Tyler Edsel are all that is left of us on The Strip. Truly the sickest of sickos.
Here are some general thoughts on the weekend, with the disclaimer that although we had tickets to Day 3, when the Mavericks played their second game against theLos Angeles Lakers, most of us sat that day out. There was just too much to gamble on, with a pair of World Cup quarterfinals, what ended up being a mere popcorn fart of a fight night at UFC 329, where both the main event and co-main event ended in 1:09 or less, and the ponies. Oh, those most majestic of hooved professional athletes running at tracks all across this great land, delivered live to stream to any interested in placing an honest wager on not just who’s the fastest, but who can get going fast the fastest.
Most of us were posted up at the Westgate Sportsbook all day Saturday, while our resident Mavericks optimist, Michael Harris, flew solo as MMB correspondent at UNLV’s Thomas & Mack Arena that day. Fun fact — his daughter Fynnleagh got her NBA Summer League program signed by Kyrie Irving after Saturday’s 91-70 loss to the Lakers.
Fynnleagh Harris with her NBA Summer League program signed by Mavericks’ star guard Kyrie Irving | COURTESY PHOTO
There were many such brushes with greatness throughout the weekend. We saw Alabama basketball coach Nate Oates at Eataly in the Park MGM. Kirk saw Arkansas coach John Calipari at the gym at the Aria. We brushed past former Maverick and current Los Angeles Clipper forward Derrick Jones Jr. on the way to the two-story Whataburger attached to the Waldorf Astoria, giving us one more opportunity to reminisce about the incredible smothered fadeaway he hit over Chet Holmgren in Game Six of the 2024 Western Conference semifinals against the Oklahoma City Thunder to put the Mavs ahead 115-110 with less than two minutes remaining.
There is no event or time of year when NBA sickos get to rub shoulders with basketball royalty like they do at Summer League. It really is something to behold. If you’re reading about basketball in the summer months, you qualify. You need to make it a point to get to Summer League in the next couple of years. Not even the food poisoning David and I both got from that trip to Whataburger on The Strip could turn the weekend sour. It was a great time.
Here are some general (mostly) basketball-related highlights and thoughts from the weekend:
Saturday’s game against the Lakers was a big nothing burger. Johnson’s minutes declined slightly and his production did as well. We’ll get to his spectacular night in Thursday’s 91-80 loss to the Golden State Warriors separately below. This kind of erratic chaos is to be expected in Summer League play, and we’re not taking much of anything away about this.
Sergio de Larrea is proving to be quite raw. Michael said he liked what he saw from de Larrea in Saturday’s game, but the numbers don’t give you much to be optimistic about. He did shoot the ball better on Saturday, going 2-of-4 from the field, but dished four assists and turned the ball over four times, after going 3-for-14 from the field while dishing five dimes on Thursday. This is a guy who needs to get a hell of a lot stronger with the basketball in his hands if he’s going to realize anything close to being the “steal of the first round”.
Vsevolod “Seva” Ishchenko has achieved Mavs Moneyball Vibes Darling status after two games. On Thursday, he just had the look of a guy who might be able to survive the transition from ball in the Russian VTB United League. Here’s what our MMB correspondent back home, Bryan Porter, had to say about Ishchenko’s game after Thursday’s loss to the Warriors: “Seva is not yet physically ready for NBA games, but that kid attacks the basket with zero fear, has some craftiness and pace to his drives, and is unafraid to whip risky kick-outs to shooters. Seva’s game and physique both clearly need some fine-tuning, but the bones (and I do mean bones) of a truly intriguing Swiss Army knife role player are there for those with the eyes to see.”
Johnson looked like the real deal for much of the team’s first Summer League game, even getting the better of his Michigan teammate Yaxel Lendeborg on several occasions along the way. He’s a beast. He did the things you wanted to see him do. He dominated the fringe talent in front of him. He made a living going to the basket and cleaning up the glass. He kept shooting 3-pointers until he made one, as if just to prove to everyone watching that he’s going to put in the work to become at least a league-average shooter after showing some development on that front in his second and final year in the college game. He finished with 27 points on a sizzling 12-of-17 shooting from the field, to go along with eight boards, in 32 minutes on the floor. We’ve seen all we need to see. The hype train’s engines are rumbling.
Lendeborg on the other end of that game was nearly equally as impressive, though. It’s going to be interesting to see which one of those two former Michigan big men has the better NBA career. Lendeborg finished with 21 points, 10 rebounds and six assists on 8-0f-13 shooting, including 2-of-4 from 3-point range.
On Friday, we got there in the third quarter of the New York Knicks vs. Brooklyn Nets game to snag good seats for the game between the Memphis Grizzlies and Chicago Bulls, which immediately followed. Mikel Brown Jr. had four points when we got there, but he erupted midway through the third to finish with 20, including three 3-pointers in the game’s final 16 minutes, each more difficult than the last. As good as Johnson was the night before, lamenting that Brown Jr. didn’t fall to the ninth overall pick, as some thought he might before the draft, was a definite talking point in the Uber ride back to The Strip.
Friday’s main event was Caleb Wilson and the Summer Bulls vs. Cameron Boozer and the Summer Grizz. Both were incredible. Wilson made himself into an immediate Summer League Legend, going unconscious from 3-point range for 21 of his 35 points. He was fading away. He had hands in his face. He recorded five stocks, exactly as many as the much bigger Johnson had the night before for the Mavericks. He looked like a killer. Boozer, though he finished with 23 points and six boards, looked ready to compete for Rookie of the Year in a crowded field as well. He was strong and polished, shooting 7-of-12 from the field and 5-for-5 from the free throw line in the Grizzlies’ 97-96 win.
The value of a $72 day crammed full of basketball may have been offset by heavy losses at the games of chance, but we still netted a great time. The realization dawned on us as we were cashing betting slips at Westgate for England-Norway UNDER 2.5 goals scored, paired with Max Holloway to win the UFC Main Event, that the real wins, perhaps, were the friends we made along the way. NBA Summer League should be on the basketball bucket list of every NBA fan. Make plans for next year. You may even catch a glimpse of a Mavs MoneyBrunch in the wild at Hash House A-Go-Go.
The Pittsburgh Penguins have made multiple additions this off-season. Could they make another one before the start of the 2026-27 season?
In a recent article for TheScore, Josh Wegman named the Penguins as the "best fit" for free agent defenseman Logan Stanley.
"Stanley, who joined the Sabres at the deadline as part of a deal with the Winnipeg Jets, didn't fare well in Buffalo, as he was a healthy scratch for five of the team's 13 playoff games. But the monstrous 6-foot-7 blue-liner would be the second-best left-shot defenseman for a Penguins squad that's looking to remain competitive next season," Wegman wrote.
With the Penguins needing more depth on the left side of their blueline, it would make sense if they tried to sign Stanley this off-season. If they signed him, he would provide their blueline with more size and toughness, which is never a bad thing.
While Stanley had a tough finish to the season after being traded to the Sabres, he still had a career year in 2025-26. This is because he set new career highs with nine goals, 17 assists, and 26 points in 76 games split between the Jets and Sabres. He also recorded 110 hits and 128 penalty minutes, so he made an impact with physicality.
On a short-term deal, it would make sense for the Penguins to take a gamble on Stanley. Even if he did not replicate the offensive numbers he had last season, he would still provide Pittsburgh's blueline with more depth. This is a real need for the Metropolitan Division club right now.
South Korean finishes two shots clear of Min Woo Lee
McIlroy closes with 64 for tied seventh before the Open
Tom Kim produced a bogey-free final round to win at the Scottish Open on Sunday. The 24-year-old South Korean became a Rolex Series winner for the first time and picked up a victory for the first time in 1,001 days.
Kim was in fine form at the Renaissance Club with an impressive final round of 64 to put his name at the top of the leaderboard and two shots in front of Min Woo Lee in second. Kim also finished four shots ahead of England’s Matt Fitzpatrick and Scotland’s Robert MacIntyre, who had a share of third with Johnny Keefer and Keita Nakajima.
An overall view of the Thomas & Mack Center before the game between the San Antonio Spurs against the Atlanta Hawks on July 9, 2026 at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. | NBAE via Getty Images
LAS VEGAS — A quintet of former Cyclones are taking part in the NBA Summer League, Joshua Jefferson (Nets), Tamin Lipsey (Pacers), Keshon Gilbert (Hawks), Curtis Jones (Celtics) and Tristan Enaruna (Cleveland).
The schedule for each of the former cagers is the following:
Atlanta Hawks
July 9 – vs. Spurs – 3:30 p.m. (CDT) – ESPN2 July 11 – vs. Nets – 7 p.m. – ESPN July 13 – vs. Celtics – 5 p.m. – Amazon Prime July 16 – vs. Grizzlies – 7 p.m. – Amazon Prime
In a 99-63 win against the Spurs on July 9, Gilbert played 20 minutes off the bench. He scored 10 points, pulled down five rebounds, dished out five assists and recorded two steals. He did not play in the Hawks’ 83-76 win against Joshua Jefferson and the Brooklyn Nets.
Brooklyn Nets
July 10 – vs. Knicks – 5 p.m. (CDT) – Amazon Prime July 11 – vs. Hawks – 7 p.m. – ESPN July 14 – vs. Kings- 5 p.m. – Amazon Prime July 16 – vs. Rockets- 3:30 p.m. – ESPNU
Jefferson did not play in the Nets’ 91-65 win against the New York Knicks. He made his Summer League debut as a starter in the Nets’ 83-76 loss to Atlanta, scoring nine points, recording a rebound, an assist and two steals.
Boston Celtics
July 10 – vs. Raptors – 8 p.m. (CDT) – ESPN July 12 – vs. Hornets – 4 p.m. – ESPN2 July 13 – vs. Hawks – 5 p.m. – Amazon Prime July 15 – vs. Kings – 7 p.m. – ESPN2
In the 83-80 overtime victory against Toronto, Jones tallied two rebounds, one assist and one steal in 10 minutes of play. His second game is Sunday (today) at 4 p.m against the Hornets.
Cleveland Cavaliers
July 10 – vs. Indiana – 3:30 p.m. (CDT) – ESPN2 July 12 – vs. Detroit – 3 p.m. – Prime July 13 – vs. Miami – 7 p.m. – Prime July 15 – vs. New Orleans – 3:30 p.m. – Prime
A member of T.J. Otzelberger’s first team in Ames, the Almere, Netherlands, native scored two points, had three rebounds and one steal to his name in a 99-93 loss to Indiana on July 10.
Indiana Pacers
July 10 – vs. Cavaliers – 3:30 p.m. (CDT) – ESPN2 July 11 – vs. 76ers – 4:30 p.m. – Amazon Prime July 13 – vs. Raptors – 3:30 p.m. – ESPN2 July 15 – vs. Timberwolves – 2:30 p.m. – Amazon Prime
As a starter in the Pacers 99-93 victory over Cleveland, the Ames native recorded four points, four rebounds and one steal. In a 100-93 overtime loss to Philadelphia, Lipsey again started, and scored three points, dished out two assists and pulled down two rebounds.
LAS VEGAS, NV - AUGUST 8: President of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens of the Boston Celtics talks to Jaylen Brown #7 of the Boston Celtics during Day 1 of the 2021 Las Vegas Summer League on August 8, 2021 at the Cox Pavilion in Las Vegas, Nevada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2021 NBAE (Photo by David Dow/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
Thanks again for the awesome questions everyone. I’m pushing these out pretty quickly for a couple of reasons. A. I have time this afternoon and B. I wanted to clear the deck for summer league content. So let’s just jump right into it.
johnnymost
Can you help me compare the Isaiah and brown trades? The emotional reactions were similar, but other than Thomas’s injury, were the analytics similar? Brad certainly can be cold, but ultimately, he gambled. He got that from Danny. I yield the floor
Good topic. I would say that they are a little bit the opposite in that JB is more of the Kyrie in this scenario (not making a 1 for 1 comparison, remember that “comparison is the thief of joy!). The Cavs felt like they had to move on from Kyrie and the Celtics sent Isaiah and picks for him. It made basketball sense but not emotional sense. Ultimately both sides lost on that one. Time will tell with this one.
I do worry about the cumulative effect of sending out franchise icons (Pierce, Garnett, Isaiah, Jaylen) in cold hearted moves. As much as we all want to believe that Jayson Tatum will retire a Celtic, there’s at least a little bit of doubt now, and that’s sad.
CGREEN34
Should Scheierman start this season at the 3? He looked very solid in a lot of games last year both on offense and defense. He also has a creative streak that I hope we get to see more of this season.
I have never known what to make of Baylor. I set my expectations low early on and in year two he exceeded them, so already he’s a pleasant surprise to me. I’m circling him as a guy that could see an additional leap as a 3rd year guy. On one hand, there are minutes to be had on the wing (George won’t play a full 82 games). On the other hand, there’s a glut of wings that are all competing for minutes. This will be one of the big storylines in training camp to watch. I might actually expand this topic into a “who should start?” discussion post.
New England Guy
Jeff, if we could have world peace, but the trade-off is that the Celtics vs Sixers games this year would not be televised or recorded in anyway, and fans would not be allowed to attend them, would it be worth it?
Wait, you mean we don’t have to watch Jaylen in a Sixers uniform AND there’s peace on Earth? What’s the catch?
PontiacDream
What would have to happen this season for the Jaylen trade to not loom over everything the whole time?
“Just win baby.“ – Al Davis
(Note: While wins in the regular season will help a bit, I think the general consensus will be that this team (and The Trade) will be judged by the playoffs. So yeah, the trade will loom over everything unless they somehow flip George and picks for a few more impactful long term solutions.
Maye The Force Be With You
I’ve read that around the league, the Volume 3 era is being viewed more critically—that rim pressure and shot creation are proving more valuable than simply taking more threes. We may have just seen that when the Knicks closed out the Finals shooting 35% overall and 32% from three. Brad has echoed wanting to attack the rim more, yet The Trade seems to push Boston even further in the opposite direction. Beyond Tatum, who on this roster replaces Jaylen’s shot creation?
Part of me wonders how much Brad was focused on Giannis with those “rim pressure” comments. Like he was setting the stage for that to be the big move. There aren’t a lot of Giannis level rim pressure guys out there, so I guess the answer was to double down on offensive rebounding type bigs (Robinson, Cenac, etc.)
The thing with the analytics era is that there’s no one all-encompassing stat or overarching rule. It is reductive to define it as “shoot lots of 3’s” because sometimes you need to attack the paint. Sometimes, especially in the playoffs, teams take away your best options and you just need a guy that can take and make tough, midrange shots. Jaylen Brown is one of those guys. Maybe Pritchard can fill that role sometimes. Paul George (to an extent) as well. Maybe one of the young wings can develop that as well.
BostonForEva
Regarding Jaylen Brown and not the Celtics. Sixers seem to me to have to many mouths to feed. Embiid, Brown, Maxey, and maybe Edgecombe if he gets better. This seems to me like a disaster in the making.
Knicks had Brunson as the engine and KAT as the supporting cast on offense. Then a LOT of good defensive pieces that were above average on offense.
Sixers have Maxey, Embiid as engines and Brown as the supporting cast on offense. Maxey is above average on defense. Barlow is above average on defense. And that’s it based on analytics. This seems like too many mouths to feed and not enough defense. I think Brown’s game is a horrible fit for the Sixers and I’m not sure why they did it other than wanting more Stars.
Thoughts on the new Sixers team and specifically on the impact to Brown? Also, how happy are the Sixers media and Sixers fans about the trade?
I think they’ll be fine, but you are right that they’ll have to figure things out. Maxey is too good to be the 1B so I hope Philly fans are ready for several seasons of debates over who the 1A guy is (despite it being pretty clear).
I do worry a bit for Edgecomb’s development, but he’s still young and can be fungible for a while. And yeah, you have to factor in Embiid missing at least a third of any season, which makes for some interesting lineup decisions.
Jaylen increases their ceiling, but there’s still a floor to consider as well.
ZeroGame
If you could give Brad truth serum what do you think the answer to the following question would be? “If you knew at the start of the offseason that this would be the outcome if you tried to trade Jaylon Brown, would you still do it?”
I have a feeling that the option to trade Jaylen Brown has been in the back of their minds for years. They would have done it for Durant. It sounds like they at least listened to offers last year. I think the finance math has been staring at them since the CBA was signed and they finally decided that the time was right.
357Dust
Is this the opening day roster?
Could Murphy still be in play?
Will Hauser still be here?
It might very well be. We’re below the tax with 14 players and they have the “optionality” to make more moves at the deadline and next offseason. This might be it.
I think Murphy is a long shot at this point. I also can’t begin to understand what New Orleans is trying to do.
Hauser seems like the most likely to be moved at some point. But he’s also valuable to us and it might make more sense to see how the season plays out and use him as a chip in February at the deadline.
scue
How many years of elite play do you expect from Tatum? He is currently 28, we are trying to clean cap, reset tax penalties, to load up for a future run which could put him on the wrong side of 30.
What do you see as the desired team structure in the future in support of 30 year old Tatum?
Good question. He has a very adaptable playing style. He can do a little bit of everything, but he seems to go up another level when he’s attacking downhill and not shying away from contact. I think he’ll still be in his prime for 3 to 4 more years before he has to start transitioning his game to more of a perimeter style. Ironically enough, one comp would be the current verison of Paul George.
cpelham
The narrative has been that JB didn’t want to return to being 1B in Boston, but he’s acting like he’s really unhappy he was traded. Which is it? Was it his fervent wish to remain in Boston with JT being demoted to 1B or traded? Was his unhappiness invented by the media? Is Brown just defending his pride, folllowing the perception that there was little demand for him? Can you make sense of it?
I don’t want to pretend to know what is or was going on inside of Jaylen Brown’s mind or what his motivations and private thoughts are.
I will, however, use this space to offer up some dot-connecting thoughts I had recently.
We heard Jaylen himself say that there was open communication with the front office at first but then it went sideways (paraphrasing).
We also got reporting recently that Jaylen got a chance to tell a couple of teams that he wasn’t interested in playing there.
I wonder if at first they were keeping him in the loop, but with him reaching out to teams and scaring them off they decided to start excluding him from talks. Might also be why there was so much noise around this (was Jaylen’s camp one of the leaks to the media?). At some point the Celtics might have been like ‘we’re shutting down communication and we will just going to trade him and the team will have 3 years to convince him to be ok with it.‘ And the Sixers were willing. Just a guess.
The Lakers announced the signing of free agent guard Collin Sexton on Sunday, July 12 after originally agreeing to terms on a two-year, $19 million contract on July 1. The news comes days after the Lakers officially announced the Walker Kessler trade and their other notable free agent acquisitions of Quentin Grimes and Sandro Mamukelashvili.
Sexton, originally drafted with the eighth overall pick by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2018 NBA Draft, split time between the Charlotte Hornets and the Chicago Bulls last season. He averaged 15.4 points, 3.3 assists, 2.3 rebounds and 1.1 steals per game. In his eight seasons in the league, Sexton has averaged 18.3 points, 3.6 assists and 2.7 rebounds per game.
Projected to be the lead guard off the bench, Sexton should provide plenty of athleticism and efficient scoring as a career 47% shooter for the Lakers, especially at the rim. Those are areas that LA has lacked for in the last few years. He's not a great defender or playmaker, but Sexton does have three years of experience playing alongside Kessler in Utah, which may have factored into Rob Pelinka's thinking amid the Lakers' roster overhaul this summer as they begin the post-LeBron James era.
Sexton posted a hype video on July 1 shortly after agreeing to sign with the Lakers set to "No Child Left Behind" by Kanye West with just two words in the caption: "It's ON."
