PHOENIX, ARIZONA - AUGUST 11: Paul Sewald #38 of the Arizona Diamondbacks reacts after the Diamondbacks defeated the Philadelphia Phillies 12-5 at Chase Field on August 11, 2024 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Photo by Chris Coduto/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Well, this is certainly something. Former D-backs’ closer Paul Sewald, an integral part of the bullpen which reached the 2023 World Series, is apparently coming back to the team. Steve Gilbert was the first to report the deal, confirming it is a major-league contract, rather than a minor-league one with an invite to spring training. Nick Piecoro subsequently added that it’s a one-year deal at a cost of $1.5 million.
Sewald’s first stint with the Diamondbacks began at the trade deadline in 2023, when he came over from the Seattle Mariners. He picked up thirteen saves with a 3.57 ERA down the stretch in Arizona, but really came into his own during the post-season. On the way to the National League pennant, he pitched eight scoreless innings and notched six saves, with a 11:1 K:BB ratio. Everything went pear-shaped (to put it mildly) in the World Series against Texas, and that was a portent of things to come. For in 2024, his ERA was a mediocre 4.31, and he lost the closer’s job at the beginning of August.
Last year, he split time between Cleveland and Detroit, though the results were not brilliant with either team. Overall he had a 4.58 ERA across 22 games, spending most of the year on the injured list with a strained shoulder. He earned $6 million that year: there was an option for 2026, but at $10 million was an easy decline. He was therefore able to return to Arizona on a considerably cheaper deal. I will make no comment more predictive about his performance than “We’ll see…” But I would be quite surprised if he gets any significant high-leverage situations out of the gate.
Send in your questions now for this week’s episode of The Pindown: A Detroit Pistons Podcast to discuss everything Pistons. Submit your question to the comments section here or on X/Twitter to @TheRealWesD3 and/or @blakesilverman.
Join us live on Saturday afternoon for the show where we’ll recap this week’s games as we head into the All-Star break. Forty whole wins before the break, how are we feeling? What did you make of the suspensions to Isaiah Stewart and Jalen Duren? Too harsh or just right? What are you looking for from Cade Cunningham and Duren during All-Star festivities?
Plus, The Pindown has a phone line where you can leave a message and hear your voice on the show. Call (313) 355-2717 and leave us a voicemail with your question. Please try to keep the message around 45 seconds or less so we can fit everyone into the show.
The podcast will be uploaded to all audio platforms the following morning.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - FEBRUARY 10: Jake LaRavia #12 of the Los Angeles Lakers gets the loose ball in front of De'aaron Fox #4 of the San Antonio Spurs in the first half at Crypto.com Arena on February 10, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Add it all up, and you get a 2-2 week and a team that needs some rest and time away from the game before the most important stretch of the season.
Luckily, the Lakers have the All-Star break coming up. Hopefully, they use it to reset and get healthy so they can finish the season strong.
5 things I liked and didn’t like
1. Failing the test
The Lakers competed hard against the Thunder, but still lost 119-110. It was a harsh reminder that even when they are playing hard, they don’t measure up to the cream of the crop in the NBA.As mentioned before, LeBron put it bluntly after the game, saying that OKC was a championship team and LA is not.
Lebron on the Thunder:
"You want me to compare us to them? That's a championship team right there we're not. We can't sustain energy and effort for 48 minutes and they can. That's why they won a championship" 👀 pic.twitter.com/j59NF4uAcS
With 53 games played, the Lakers are as good as their record states. At 32-21, the Lakers are not a great team and dreams of a championship this season are just that.
2. Luka’s injury
It may be up for debate how good the Lakers can be this season, but the one thing that’s clear is they need Luka healthy to maximize their chances of success.
Which is why Luka injuring his hamstring against the Sixers was such a bummer. He’s now missed four straight games, and it is very much up in the air whether he plays at the All-Star Game.
If he keeps missing games, it could also make him ineligible for All-NBA and other NBA awards. After being ruled out against the Mavs, Luka can only miss five more games the rest of this season.
It would be a shame if Luka loses his All-NBA spot due to a few injuries, but those are the rules, at least for now.
Kennard ended the game with 10 points, going 4-7 from the field and knocking down a pair of threes. LA went on to beat Golden State and will continue to benefit from Kennard’s ability to make 49% of his 3-point attempts.
The trade to acquire Kennard may not rock the NBA world, but it was an improvement on the margins that in no way jeopardizes their future. So, while the move might be sexy, it sure was sensible and the Lakers are a better team for it.
4. Austin Reaves is back
Reaves missed 19 games due to a calf strain, but he returned this week, and boy was he missed. He’s been on a minutes restriction and has come off the bench, but was marvelous against the Sixers.
It was a vintage Reaves performance featuring jaw-dropping 3-pointers, incredible playmaking near the rim and some gaudy production mixed in with his unmistakable charm.
Reaves scored 35 points in the win and reminded everyone just how good he is.
5. Lakers still need a center
When the Lakers signed Deandre Ayton, the thought was that they got the center they needed, upgrading from Jaxson Hayes. Well, Ayton might be better, but he’s not good enough.
He is averaging 13.2 points, 8.5 rebounds and 0.9 assists, which are all career lows. Recently, it’s become commonplace for him to sit out during the fourth quarter of games, and with injuries keeping him out of contests, it’s not looking like he is the long-term fix for the five spot in LA.
Ayton will have to do for now, but another change will be necessary in the summer.
Stat of the Week
This week’s stat is 30, the number of assists LeBron had across the Lakers’ three games this week.
As the season has progressed, LeBron has gotten better. An aspect of his game that’s been much sharper is his passing. This is also the first time LeBron has been LA’s assist leader for three consecutive games since early April of last year.
Luka, as the team’s primary ballhandler, will often be dominant in this category, but James still has the vision and basketball IQ to put his teammates in advantageous scenarios. And this week, no Lakers were moving the ball better.
Play of the Week
Not all threes are created equal. The one Reaves hit in the fourth against the Sixers was sensational.
The play started with LeBron driving to the paint. As James got near the rim, Joel Embiid helped, and Trendon Watford dropped down to cover Jarred Vanderbilt, freeing up Maxi Kleber.
LeBron saw this and kicked it to Maxi, but so did VJ Edgecombe as he rotated out to the wing, forcing a pass to Austin. The problem was that Reaves had just one second to get his shot off and was closer to the logo than the 3-point line.
Luckily, none of that made a difference, as he knocked down the deep three to give LA the lead.
The Sixers played solid defense, but Reaves was just too good for it to matter.
Once Reaves starts, the Lakers will be able to field the best lineup possible, and his career year can pick up where it left off in December when he was fully healthy.
I prefer the basketball far more than the drama that comes with it, but even I must admit I can’t look away from something as spicy as the Jonathan Kuminga-Warriors saga. Was Kuminga good enough to warrant all this attention? No. But was it entertaining to hear just how bad the breakup in Golden State was? Absolutely.
He knew management wanted to ding him for missing a team-requested event and alert him that someone around him was taking too much food from the family room. The gripes between player and organization, as multiple sources said, had become “petty” in the fifth year of a relationship many believed should’ve ended years before.
Kerr never had much success reaching Kuminga on a deeper level, typically one of his coaching superpowers. He’d given him handwritten notes, sent long text messages, tried to connect. But Kuminga rarely reciprocated. Kuminga normally responded dispassionately and sporadically.
Klay Thompson and Mychal Thompson are one of the great father-son NBA duos in NBA history. In this feature, we learn more about them and how a father who never shot threes raised one who is among the best to ever do it.
In a brief interview, Klay told The Athletic it was his dad who taught him how to shoot. Whether he was young and too small to shoot from over his head, or as he matured into a teenager and young adult, Klay was taught to start his workouts under the basket and gradually step back, keeping his elbows in with each shot.
Mychal, meanwhile, insists his son learned all on his own. Klay came to be such a great shooter, and he is unarguably in the rarest of company when it comes to knocking down 3s.
But Klay’s dad is also in exclusive company among NBA players.
Representing one of the greatest ironies in league history, Mychal Thompson, father of one of the greatest 3-point shooters ever, is one of a handful of players to have played at least one full NBA season and made only one 3 since the league instituted the 3-point line in October 1979.
NEW YORK (AP) — Phoenix Suns forward Dillon Brooks has been suspended for one game without pay by the NBA after receiving his 16th technical foul of the season in a loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday night.
The league made the announcement on Thursday.
According to NBA rules, a player or coach is automatically suspended for one game after receiving their 16th technical foul. Brooks will miss another game for every two additional technicals he receives this season.
Brooks will miss the Suns' game against the San Antonio Spurs on Feb. 19.
The 30-year-old Brooks is in the midst of a breakout year in his first season with the Suns. The 6-foot-7 forward is averaging a career-high 21.2 points per game and his brash personality has been a driving force for the team's surprising 32-23 record.
ATLANTA, GA - JUNE 13: Colorado Rockies first baseman Keston Hiura (7) during the MLB game between the Colorado Rockies and Atlanta Braves on June 13, 2025, at Truist Park in Atlanta, GA. (Photo by John Adams/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
The 29-year-old who went to Valencia High School in Santa Clarita and played college baseball at UC Irvine has played parts of six seasons in the major leagues. But most of his time in the last three seasons has been in Triple-A for the Brewers, Angels, Tigers, and Rockies, with a total of 18 games in the majors during that time with the Angels in 2024 and Rockies in 2025.
Hiura in the bulk of his time in the majors, mostly with the Brewers from 2019-22, came at second base. But over the last three years in the minors and majors combined, Hiura started 166 games at first base, 28 games at third base, and 24 games at second base.
For Triple-A Albuquerque in 2025, Hiura hit .272/.369/.507 with a 107 wRC+ and 21 home runs in 100 games, and had four hits in 18 at-bats, including a double in eight games with the Rockies.
LAS VEGAS, NV - JULY 19: Amari Bailey #24 of the Minnesota Timberwolves drives to the basket during the game against the Houston Rockets during the 2025 NBA Summer League game on July 19, 2025 at the 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 2025 NBAE (Photo by Logan Riely/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
On Christmas Eve, Baylor sent shockwaves around NCAA by signing 7-foot center James Nnaji, the No. 31 overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft who never actually signed an NBA contract. His rights were originally owned by the Detroit Pistons before getting moved to Charlotte. But Nnaji spent time overseas in Spain and, most recently, played with Merkezefendi in Turkey.
However, that opened floodgates for an unprecedented situation: Players who have declared for the NBA Draft … returning back to play college basketball?! Charles Bediako, a 2023 undraftee, soon followed, joining Alabama.
This epidemic even bled into the Mountain West, with former UCLA guard Amari Bailey — who has played 10 NBA games with the Hornets after being a second-round pick in 2023 — scheduled his first recruiting visit to Grand Canyon, even though he will need to receive a waiver granted by the NCAA.
In Bediako’s case, a Tuscaloosa judge recently denied his eligibility. So the NCAA has some guard rails as to who it’s letting in, and evidently shoving out.
But it’s still a big problem, where players are still toeing the line and attempting to revive their careers in an NIL-centric entity.
There are simple solutions to this issue:
For one, the NCAA will have to collectively bargain this eligibility crisis — as well as employ and enforce a modicum of NIL guardrails. When there’s no structure, all direction is lost. And when all direction is lost, all bets are off.
Therein lies the problem: There’s zero leadership. NCAA president Charlie Baker’s just a figurehead. Until there’s real leadership, these problems will persist.
A few of the immediate solutions should be fairly straightforward:
Don’t allow any player back in the NCAA if they declare for the NBA Draft past the college (if they’re in college) or the international deadline
Those dates are two separate dates; Last year’s, for example, the Early Entry deadline for collegiate athletes was May 28, while it was June 15 for international players.
That automatically makes players who were drafted (Nnaji), players who have signed NBA contracts and, thus, who have played NBA games automatically ineligible to return to the NCAA.
If players — like Bailey or Nnaji — are allowed to go through that process while still returning to the NCAA, those Early Entrant deadlines mean absolutely nothing. Nada. Zilch. Zero. And thus, an incredibly poor precedent is set.
Bailey should not be allowed to return to the NCAA; if you exhaust your eligibility in any way, you shouldn’t be given a second-chance just because your NBA career momentarily flamed out. The same applies to should Nnaji, who literally heard his name called on draft night before playing twice in Summer League.
The NCAA set up some guard rails regarding Bediako. But that’s not enough, and any gray area will likely have to be collectively bargained in the near future. At the end of the day, the NCAA can run, but it can’t hide.
Jeremy Hefner spoke to the media for the first time as the Braves’ pitching coach – and refused to name the Mets, where he spent two years as a player and six years coaching.
“Yeah, a lot of respect for this organization,” Hefner said when asked about what it was like to be with the Braves after leaving the Mets. “Grew up watching the Braves on TBS, watching [John] Smoltz, [Greg] Maddux, and [Tom] Glavine — all those guys do their thing.
“And then obviously been with that other team up north for a number of years, both as a player and as a coach. A lot of admiration and respect for this group. And just super grateful to be here and looking forward to continuing to work with these guys.”
Jeremy Hefner speaks to reporters for the first time with the Braves.
Hefner was one of several coaches let go by the Mets after a highly disappointing 2025 season, where they had a league-best 45-24 record as of June 12, before collapsing and missing the playoffs.
He is not the only Mets coach to hint at bad blood with the organization; hitting coach Eric Chavez has also been very vocal about how he was given his walking papers by Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns.
Hefner was let go by the Mets in favor of new pitching coach Justin Willard, who was previously the director of pitching for the Boston Red Sox.
David Stearns cleaned house for the Mets coaching staff. Corey Sipkin for the NY POST
The Mets also unceremoniously parted ways with first base coach Antoan Richardson, who was integral in helping Juan Soto become a legitimate stolen base threat for the first time in his career.
For Hefner, he will have his work cut out for him in Atlanta.
The Braves are already down one of their top starters, Spencer Schwellenbach, who was immediately put on the 60-day IL after experiencing forearm tightness to begin spring training.
Braves pitching coach Jeremy Hefner said “that other team up north” in reference to his former employer pic.twitter.com/FC5u3twoA6
The ominous sign could point to the Braves needing some fill-in starting pitching help, as Bryce Elder may be forced to take on the fifth starter role.
Elder pitched to a 5.30 ERA last season and a 6.52 ERA the year prior.
The Jazz are giving NBA fans plenty of reason to tank — sorry, we meant think — that perhaps there are ulterior motives for why they shut down the superstar they just acquired.
Jaren Jackson Jr., who played 48 games with the Grizzlies before being traded to Utah earlier this month, has been shut down for the rest of the season due to upcoming surgery to remove a pigmented villonodular synovitis (PVNS) growth in his left knee, the team announced Thursday.
He is expected to make a fully recovery and be cleared far in advance of training camp, per ESPN.
Jaren Jackson Jr.’s season is over. AP
As you can imagine, this caused many folks to roll their eyes since the Jazz have little reason to be competitive for the remainder of the season.
They have a top-eight protected pick for what is considered a deep 2026 NBA Draft, and they own the sixth-worst record entering Thursday.
The Jazz still split the two games, and coach Will Hardy said he had no plans to reinsert them.
Utah is not the only team to be tanking, with the Pacers, Wizards and Kings’ tactics causing some frustration, but Utah isn’t doing much to be beat the allegations.
Jaren Jackson Jr. will be watching games from the bench going forward. NBAE via Getty Images
Jackson played in three games with the team before being shut down, and the Jazz said they discovered the growth during a post-trade MRI exam.
He averaged 24.0 minutes — down from the 30.7 he averaged with the Grizzlies — along with 22.3 points and 4.3 rebounds while guiding the Jazz to a 2-1 record in his two appearances.
Jackson tallied 23 points in 22 minutes in Wednesday’s 121-93 win over the Kings.
“You just have to make an impact when you’re in the game,” Jackson said, according to ESPN. “That’s what you have to focus on. If you focus on when you’re not out there, you’re gonna struggle as a player.”
India tuned up for their blockbuster showdown with Pakistan at the T20 World Cup with a 93-run hammering of Namibia at New Delhi’s Arun Jaitley Stadium.
MLB commissioner Rob Manfred says the league's negotiations over MLB players competing at the 2028 Olympics are with "the institution of the Olympics" and not LA28 chairman Casey Wasserman. (Ashley Landis / Associated Press)
As Major League Baseball closes in on an agreement for its players to participate in the 2028 Olympics, Commissioner Rob Manfred said the controversy surrounding LA28 chief Casey Wasserman would not impact the league’s final decision.
“Our dealings are not with Casey,” Manfred said Thursday at the MLB owners’ meetings. "Our dealings are with the institution of the Olympics.”
In recently released emails, Wasserman was linked to Jeffrey Epstein and his associate, Ghislaine Maxwell. The board retained a law firm to investigate, the statement said, and the review did not uncover any behavior beyond what was already known: a “single interaction with Epstein” on a plane flight for a humanitarian mission and raunchy emails with Maxwell, both two decades ago, before the “deplorable crimes” of both became public.
“Based on these facts, as well as the strong leadership he has exhibited over the past ten years, Mr. Wasserman should continue to lead LA28 and deliver a safe and successful Games,” the committee statement said.
Epstein died by suicide after his indictment on sex trafficking charges in 2019. Maxwell was convicted of sex trafficking in 2021.
Manfred declined to say whether he was concerned that an association with Wasserman could be detrimental for baseball.
“I’m going to pass on that one,” Manfred said. “People much closer to that situation are better to opine on that.”
Mark Attanasio, the Los Angeles-based owner of the Milwaukee Brewers, is a member of the LA28 executive committee. Attanasio said he would let the statement speak for itself.
While baseball is not new to the Olympics, the participation of major leaguers would be. In past Olympics, MLB declined to interrupt its season so its players could travel halfway around the world, and Team USA featured minor leaguers and college players.
MLB players already travel to Los Angeles every summer, and Wasserman has pitched Manfred and MLB owners in a variety of meetings on the benefit of using major leaguers at a time the league is focused on broadening its international appeal.
“What an incredible opportunity to elevate the sport in a city where you have one of the great cathedrals of the sport,” Wasserman told The Times last year. “There is no better chance to tell the global story of baseball than from the Olympics in Los Angeles.
“They understand that. We could have another Dream Team, or two, depending on the countries. That is a vehicle to tell the story of baseball around the world, and that is really powerful.”
MLB and LA28 officials have worked out a tentative timeline under which the All-Star Game would be played in its usual mid-July spot in 2028, most likely in San Francisco, followed by a six-day, six-team Olympic baseball tournament at Dodger Stadium.
“I think people have come to appreciate that the Olympics on U.S. soil is a unique marketing opportunity for the game,” Manfred said Thursday. “We’ve got a lot of players interested in doing it, and I feel pretty good about the idea we’ll get there.”
Are the Dodgers good for baseball?
Outfielder Kyle Tucker adjusts his Dodgers cap during his introductory news conference at Dodger Stadium on Jan. 21. (Ronaldo Bolaños/Los Angeles Times)
“I think great teams are always good for baseball,” Manfred said. “I think, with respect to this particular great team, it added to what we have been hearing from fans in a lot of markets for a long time about the competitiveness of the game. But great teams are always good for baseball.”
MLB officials have cited that fan concern repeatedly over the last year, prelude to an expected push for a salary cap. Manfred declined to discuss the owners’ labor strategy but said he expected negotiations on a new collective bargaining agreement to begin after opening day and said he would not talk about MLB proposals until they are presented to the players’ union.
The current agreement expires Dec. 1, and a lockout is widely expected.
Where can you watch the Angels?
Angels star Mike Trout celebrates after hitting a solo home run against the Houston Astros on Sept. 28 in Anaheim. (Wally Skalij / Associated Press)
The Angels already are in spring training, and yet their fans have no idea where to watch their games on television this season.
The Angels have agreed that MLB will provide a streaming option, and a team official confirmed they are still deciding whether to let MLB sell their telecasts to cable and satellite distributors or reinvent what remains of the FanDuel Sports channel already part-owned by the team, with the Kings joining the Angels.
The Angels’ situation is not unique. Three years ago, MLB did not provide broadcast services to any team. Today, amid the collapse of the cable and satellite universe, MLB provides broadcast services to 14 of its 30 teams — 15, if the Angels go that way.
In 2028, Manfred would like to sell national streaming packages, in the hope that more bidders would mean more revenue, a particularly acute need for the teams losing revenue as guaranteed rights fees are cut or eliminated altogether. The challenge: how to convince the Dodgers and other big-market teams to sacrifice their still-lucrative local rights so MLB can sell a 30-team package.
“Ideally, I’d love to get there,” Manfred said. “I don’t need to get all the way there to accomplish most of what I am thinking about.”
On Thursday, Manfred cited one way he could get close enough: have rival owners vote to expand the number of games — for the Dodgers or anyone else — that would be classified as national rather than local.
“We can take as many games as we want from any club in a national package,” Manfred said, “with a majority vote of the clubs.”
Earlier this week, ESPN released its post-trade-deadline updated power rankings. Houston came in at the number seven spot, slipping one spot from their previously held sixth spot. This puts Houston behind the Thunder, Spurs, and Nuggets in the Western Conference and behind the Pistons, Knicks, and Celtics in the Eastern Conference.
NBA.com cited Houston’s very close win versus the Pacers and two consecutive home losses (Feb 4 versus Boston and February 5 versus Charlotte) as a reason for the demotion in the rankings. Additonally, the inactivity at the trade deadline also played a part as fans and media alike were left confused. Despite this, head coach Ime Udoka and General Manager Rafael Stone still feel confident in this team despite the lack of a traditional starting point guard.
Houston likely would have been ranked lower if not for their win Saturday versus the OKC Thunder, a game where Alperen Sengun had his second tripple-double of the season, and Tari Eason had his best performance of the season, scoring 26 points and grabbing 8 rebounds.
Looking at the stats, the ranking does make sense. Houston ranks ninth in offensive rating at 117.1 and fourth in defense rating at 112.0, according to NBA.com. Houston also still ranks first in offensive rebound percentage, but that may change with the absence of center Steven Adams for the remainder of the season.
It is unclear what will happen after the All-Star Break, as Houston will hopefully get some much-deserved rest. If you want to catch your Houston Rockets during All-Star weekend, make sure to tune into Peacock for Friday’s events along with NBA League Pass, and NBC for Saturday and Sunday’s events. Reed Sheppard will be competing Friday in the Rising Stars game, and Alperen Sengun and Kevin Durant will be competing Sunday in the All-Star game, with Sengun playing on Team World and Durant on Team USA
Dec 2, 2025; San Antonio, Texas, USA; San Antonio Spurs guard De’Aaron Fox (4) reacts after scoring a three point basket during the second half against the Memphis Grizzlies at Frost Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Scott Wachter-Imagn Images | Scott Wachter-Imagn Images
The Spurs’ reach at All-Star weekend keeps getting wider. With Giannis Antetokounmpo ruled out with a calf strain, Commissioner Adam Silver has selected Spurs guard De’Aaron Fox as his injury replacement. In one of the quirks from this USA vs. World format, Fox will replace Norman Powell on Team Stars, and Norman Powell will be moved to Team World to replace Giannis thanks to his Jamaican roots.
San Antonio Spurs guard De’Aaron Fox has been named by NBA Commissioner Adam Silver to replace injured Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo in the 2026 NBA All-Star Game (Sunday, 2/15, 5pm/et, NBC & Peacock). Fox will join USA Stripes, while Miami Heat guard Norman… pic.twitter.com/Pn98bB69p5
This will be Fox’s second All-Star appearance and first since 2022-23, when he made it as a Sacramento King. This season, he has averaged 19.4 points, 3.8 rebounds, 6.3 assists and 1.3 steals in 45 games. After questions about his fit in the offseason, he has done a wonderful job of finding a balance between dominating and deferring, knowing when to feed the hot hand and when to take over himself, especially in the clutch.
Joining Fox in the All-Star game will be Victor Wembanyama as a starter for Team World and Mitch Johnson (who just yesterday spoke out about the Spurs only have one All-Star despite having the third best record in the league) as the coach of Team Stripes. Stephon Castle and Dylan Harper will be representing the Spurs in the Rising Stars Challenge, and Harper will join his father and brother — Ron Harper, Sr. and Jr., respectively — in the Shooting Stars Challenge. Finally, Carter Bryant will be in the Slam Dunk Contest. The only event the Spurs are not represented in is the Three-Point Contest.
All-Star weekend will take place this weekend at the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles. You can check out the entire schedule here. Rising Stars will be on Friday, February 13 beginning at 8:00 PM CT on ESPN. Saturday will feature Shooting Stars starting at 4:00 PM CT, followed by the 3-point Shootout and Slam Dunk Contest, and finally the All-Star Game on Sunday, beginning at 4:00 PM CT.
Congrats to Fox, and even though it’s as an injury replacement, it’s more than deserved!
The Knicks are completing their roster with an athletic prospect for frontcourt depth.
Jeremy Sochan, a 22-year-old forward, is signing with the team for the remainder of the season, league sources confirm, a move the team believes will provide athletic insurance for their push to the NBA Finals.
At 6-foot-8 and a former ninth-overall pick, Sochan was considered a top prospect while starting as a 2023 All-Rookie selection for the Spurs and carving out an important role during his first three NBA seasons. But Sochan fell out of favor with the team this season, at least partially because of the emergence of rookie forward Carter Bryant, and was waived Wednesday — opening the door for his Knicks arrival.
Jeremy Sochan Getty Images
A league source said Sochan is expected to arrive in New York on Monday and will be available for the first game after the All-Star break, which is Thursday at home against the Pistons. The idea of playing for a contender with veteran leadership was an important factor toward choosing the Knicks, per a league source.
The hope is that he provides two-way depth on the wing and frontcourt.
However, there are questions of why it didn’t work in San Antonio. A league source familiar with the situation explained Sochan was neither good enough as a shooter or defender this season, and expressed skepticism the Baylor product would figure it out.
The Knicks certainly believe he will. They targeted Sochan before the trade deadline last week but couldn’t convince the Spurs to take Guerschon Yabusele in exchange.
And in the end, it worked for team president Leon Rose.
Spurs forward Jeremy Sochan (10) drives in against Dallas Mavericks guard AJ Johnson. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
The Knicks essentially swapped out Yabusele for Jose Alvarado, largely because Yabusele surprisingly agreed to drop his $5.8 million player option for next season. There’s speculation that Yabusele, who is from France, has already secured a lucrative deal overseas, offsetting at least some of the money he gave up to facilitate a trade away from the Knicks.
Shedding Yabusele for Alvarado freed up enough cap space for the Knicks to immediately sign a free agent, which Thursday became Sochan on a minimum contract.
Born in Oklahoma to a Polish mother, Sochan became the youngest member of Poland’s national team during the 2022 EuroBasket qualifiers. He showed early promise with the Spurs — along with colorful hair dye choices — and averaged over 11 points in each of his first three seasons, starting in 149 of his first 184 appearances.
But there wasn’t much growth on his 3-point shot — he’s shooting just 25.7 percent from deep this season — and he reportedly desired an opportunity for more playing time.
When the Knicks are healthy, there aren’t many minutes available — at least not the 25-plus that Sochan averaged his first three seasons in San Antonio. New York has OG Anunoby and Josh Hart eating up the most among the forwards, with Mitchell Robinson and rookie Mo Diawara as the frontcourt backups.
But there is room for another big forward, especially when there are injuries involved. Anunoby, for instance, has missed four consecutive games with a toe injury, which pushed Diawara into a larger role while averaging 21.5 minutes during that stretch before the All-Star break.
Diawara has been tremendous in his 3-and-D role — better than most expected from a second-round rookie — but Sochan does carry more experience with greater ballhandling capabilities. He also further removes disappointing first-round pick Pacôme Dadiet from the possibility of playing.
With that said, it’s hard to imagine Diawara being supplanted in the rotation while he’s stacking up such positive performances. The Frenchman has nailed treys at a 41.3 percent clip this season.
“He’s young, he’s raw, he needs the experience. But he’s someone who’s good defensively. And he’s an even better shooter than I thought,” Hart said Wednesday about Diawara, who had just scored 14 points with five boards in a blowout win over the Sixers. “I always thought it looked good, but now it’s going in. Being able to get him in the pocket, he’s a good decision maker in the pocket, athletic, can finish at the rim, get guys involved. So I love where he’s at. He’s continuing to work. I think he can be really good.”
Sochan also has upside. He’s just two years older than Diawara with three more years of NBA experience. His addition gives the Knicks a full roster of 15 players with standard contracts and a new look in the frontcourt.
This isn't a surprise, Giannis Antetokounmpo has missed the last eight Milwaukee Bucks games with a strained calf. However, he had hoped to make it back for the All-Star Game in Los Angeles and play for the World Team, where fans had voted him a starter.
It's officially not happening, Antetokounmpo has been ruled out for the All-Star Game. San Antonio guard De'Aaron Fox has been named as his replacement, the league announced.
Fox will play for the USA Stars team. Because Antetokounmpo was to play for the World Team, Miami's Norman Powell, who has ties to Jamaica, has been moved to the World Team.
This is Fox's second All-Star Game appearance. He is averaging 19.4 points and 6.3 assists per game for the Spurs, who sit as the No. 2 seed in the West. Fox will join Victor Wembanyama and coach Mitch Johnson in representing the Spurs during All-Star weekend.
Antetokounmpo was the third player voted a starter by fans, but is now out of the All-Star Game due to injuries, joining Stephen Curry (knee) and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (abdominal strain).
The 2026 NBA All-Star Game tips off at 5 p.m. ET on Sunday, Feb. 15, on both NBC and Peacock.
All-Star Game format
This year, the NBA All-Star Game returns to NBC and debuts on Peacock — and it falls right in the middle of the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics. That was a perfect setup for the first-of-its-kind All-Star Game format, a USA vs. World showdown that fans and players have been asking for.
The 24 All-Star players have been divided into three teams, two USA teams — USA Stripes and USA Stars — and one World Team. Those three teams will compete in a round-robin tournament of four 12-minute games, each team playing at least two games.
At the end of the round-robin, the two top teams will play a championship game (the fourth 12-minute game of the day) for the title. (If there is a tie, it comes down to point differential.)
The 75th NBA All-Star Game will take place on Sunday, Feb. 15, at 5 p.m. Eastern, an earlier time than in previous years, leading into more coverage of the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics.
Every moment of All-Star Weekend — the Rising Stars challenge on Friday. (Feb. 13), All-Star Saturday Night with the 3-Point Contest and Dunk Contest (Feb. 14), as well as the All-Star Game on Sunday, Feb. 15 — will be broadcast on NBC and Peacock.
The 75th NBA All-Star Game will take place on Sunday, Feb. 15, at 5 p.m. Eastern, a time earlier than in previous years, leading into more coverage of the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics.
Peacock NBA Monday will stream up to three Monday night games each week throughout the regular season. Coast 2 Coast Tuesday presents doubleheaders on Tuesday nights throughout the regular season on NBC and Peacock. On most Tuesdays, an 8 p.m. ET game will be on NBC stations in the Eastern and Central time zones, and an 8 p.m. PT game on NBC stations in the Pacific and often Mountain time zones.
Check local listings each week. Both games will stream live nationwide on Peacock. NBC Sports will launch Sunday Night Basketball across NBC and Peacock on Feb. 1, 2026. For a full schedule of the NBA on NBC and Peacock, click here.
The Dodgers' Kiké Hernández throws to second base to complete a double play to close out Game 6 of the World Series. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
Kiké Hernández agreed to a one-year, $4.5-million deal with the Dodgers Thursday, with the popular utilityman taking to his Instagram account to announce his return.
“What else did you expect?!!! 3 in a row has a nice ring to it,” he wrote, accompanied by a picture of him at the parade celebration last year.
In a video posted on the Dodgers' Instagram account, the three-time World Series champion apologized to fans for taking so long to re-sign, and jokingly put the blame on Andrew Freidman, the team's president of baseball operations.
“There’s no other place I would rather be than here,” he added.
Hernández repaired a torn extensor tender in his left elbow after the season, which will cause him to miss next month's World Baseball Classic and the start of the 2026 season. In order to clear a spot on the 40-man roster, right-hander Evan Phillips — whom the Dodgers signed to a one-year deal on Wednesday — was placed on the 60-day injured list as he continues to rehab from the Tommy John surgery he had last June.
The 34-year-old Hernández hit .203 with an on-base percentage of .255 and .366 slugging percentage in 256 regular season plate appearances, with 10 home runs in 92 games last season.
His splits between regular season and the postseason, however, are significantly different. In 103 career playoff games, Hernández carries a .826 on-base plus slugging percentage, a .272 batting average and a .486 slugging percentage.
During the 2025 World Series against the Toronto Blue Jays, he played every game, mostly in left field. In Game 6, Hernández’s catch and throw to Miguel Rojas at second sealed the Dodgers' 3-1 victory to force a Game 7.
During DodgerFest, Rojas spoke to reporters about the importance of Hernández’s presence in the Dodgers' pursuit to become the first back-to-back-to-back champions since the New York Yankees in 2000. He compared his impact on the team to Scottie Pippen with the Michael Jordan Chicago Bulls.
In other moves, the team announced third baseman Max Muncy received a one-year contract extension that will pay him $7 million in 2027 and has a $10-million club option for 2028. Muncy, whose current deal was set to expire after the 2026 season, is the Dodgers' longest-tenured player and enters his ninth season with the team. And Anthony Banda, who was designated for assignment last week by the Dodgers, was traded to the Minnesota Twins for international bonus pool money.
