The Boston Bruins have interest in acquiring Calgary Flames defenseman Rasmus Andersson, per multiple reports, but they aren’t the only team pursuing him.
Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported an update on the situation during Saturday night’s Hockey Night in Canada broadcast. He noted that the Bruins have been given permission to talk to Andersson about a potential contract extension.
“The Flames have called around to a bunch of teams that were interested, or other teams that maybe they hadn’t heard as much from yet, I heard today, and they said we want to decide if we’re going to proceed with this so we want everybody’s most serious offer. That is happening,” Friedman said.
“The team that appears to be in the driver’s seat, although nothing is done until it’s done, is Boston. Boston is very serious about its offer, and no one is confirming or denying this, but I believe they are the only team that has been given permission to talk to Andersson, and I do believe they’ve done some pretty significant extension talks. Nothing is done until it’s done. Both things have to work out. The Bruins are not believed to be interested in this without an extension.
“Vegas is there. It’s not believed their offer is as strong as Boston’s, but that’s for now, that can always change.”
Trading for Andersson would make no sense for the Bruins if he was a rental. The B’s are not in a position to be dealing assets for players who could walk in the summer. Andersson is in the final year of his contract and would become an unrestricted free agent in July without an extension.
The 29-year-old veteran would be a good fit for the Bruins, at least on paper. They need a top-four d-man who can play the right side, log a ton of minutes and add some offensive punch. He fits that description.
Andersson has tallied 30 points (10 goals, 20 assists) in 48 games for the Flames this season. He has scored nine or more goals in four consecutive seasons. He’s on pace to break the 40-point mark for the third time in his career.
The Bruins have won six straight games after beating the Chicago Blackhawks 5-2 on the road Saturday night. They entered Sunday in the first wild card spot with a 28-19-2 record.
I would not label any game in mid January as a must-win, especially given what the Suns have already done to put themselves in this position. But in the context of this road trip, part of a six-game stretch that started 0-2, a win in New York at Madison Square Garden was badly needed. Not a must-win. A needed one.
You can start with the bench. They flipped this game. Phoenix outscored New York 39-14 from the bench, and after the Knicks ripped off a 16-0 run in the third quarter, it was the second unit that calmed everything down. When Ryan Dunn, Jordan Goodwin, and Oso Ighodaro checked in, the energy shifted immediately. The game tilted back.
It is also worth noting the context. The Knicks entered the night with the third-best offensive rating in the league at 119.8. The Suns held them to 99 points. New York also came in as one of the best three-point shooting teams in the NBA, and they kept firing anyway. It caught up with them. They went 1-of-11 from deep in the fourth quarter.
Credit the Suns’ defense. 9 steals. 17 forced turnovers. Relentless pressure. That effort completed the sweep of the Knicks this season, as Phoenix has now beaten them twice. Sometimes you do not need style points. You need a win that reminds you who you are. This one did exactly that.
Bright Side Baller Season Standings
Back-to-back BSB’s for the Gray Suns, Grayson!
Bright Side Baller Nominees
Game 42 against the Knicks. Here are your nominees:
After last night’s game, when Clutch Sports Hector Ledesma reporter asked Anthony Edwards what makes the Timberwolves play so hard against the Spurs, the “Ant-Man” responded,
“They got Wemby.”
This was the third meeting of the Spurs and Timberwolves, but only the second to include Victor Wembanyama. Wemby wasn’t available last November. Last Sunday, Minnesota came back form a 19-point deficit to steal a one-point win.
Last night, they threatened to do it again.
The Spurs lost three of the four quarters in last night’s game, but it was their 48-point second quarter —the Spurs highest since 1987 — that kept them just out of the Timberwolves reach.
In fact, the Spurs went into the locker room with a 25-point lead only to lose the third and fourth quarter, the lead and scramble to put the toothpaste back in the tube.
Once the Spurs relinquished the lead, it was the back and forth between Victor Wembanyama and Anthony Edwards that kept the fires burning. From hot shooting to the two battling each other one-on-one, their cutthroat style of play on the court and their comments regarding one another reveals mutual respect.
Wemby’s response Edwards candor,
“It’s an honor and it’s the best thing to have the best players go as hard as they can because it makes us better, it makes me better.”
Anthony Edwards scored 55-points, a career high, in their loss. Considering it was the second night of a back-to-back for Minnesota, making it a game down the stretch was impressive, though of little consolation to the team who’s been knocked out of the Western Conference Finals twice over the last two seasons.
Edwards, one of the most adept players of this generation, carried the lion’s share for the Timberwolves. Of ten players who saw time, only six scored. And Edwards, along with Jaden Daniels and Julius Randle, all played over 40 minutes apiece.
For the Spurs, Victor Wembanyama led the team with 39 points, trading baskets with Edwards as the final frame was dwindling down. Fortunately, Wemby got support from all angles. From Fox and Castle’s assists to Champagnie’s rebounds, from Barnes’ timely threes to Luke Kornet’s momentum shifting block, there were highlights from all angles. But none rocked the Frost Bank Center more Keldon Johnson’s clutch three that eventually put the game in the win column.
And a game in the win column is what the Spurs will focus on for the moment. There is film left to analyze, there are edges left to smooth, but as Wembanyama stated after giving up a twenty,
“We’ve got to win no matter what.”
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Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto, throwing during a spring training game last year, became an anomaly in 2025 with two complete games in the postseason. With so much emphasis on velocity, can starters pitch deep into games anymore? One independent league is trying to find out. (Ashley Landis / Associated Press)
The independent minor leagues are baseball’s laboratories.
Baseball’s obsession with velocity has dampened the soul of the sport. The marquee pitching matchup is an endangered species. The oohs and aahs over a 100-mph pitch have been replaced by yawns.
The potential solution, or at least a piece of one, is evident in this job description:
The United Shore Professional Baseball League (USPBL), an independent league based in Michigan, is recruiting for the position of “primary starting pitcher.”
The game isn’t building traditional starters anymore. At the @uspbl, were changing that.
We are actively recruiting Primary Starting Pitchers who want to take the ball every week, pitch deep into games, and become the durable, innings-capable arms MLB organizations need.
The language is intentional. In today’s major leagues, a starting pitcher generally is selected, trained and deployed to throw as hard as he can for as long as he can. Five innings is perfectly acceptable, with a parade of harder-throwing reinforcements in the bullpen.
What the USPBL plans for a primary starting pitcher: “Build the ability to pitch deep into games.”
That used to be self-evident for a starting pitcher, but no longer. Yoshinobu Yamamoto turned into Sandy Koufax last October, with back-to-back complete games during the Dodgers’ championship run.
However, in the regular season, the Dodgers did not throw a complete game, and neither did 12 other teams. The Dodgers’ starters averaged 4.85 innings per game; no team averaged even six innings.
In 2025, three major league pitchers threw 200 innings. In 2010, 45 did.
Buehrle, a five-time All-Star, and Lee, a four-time All-Star, each featured precision rather than power.
Lee, twice a Game 1 World Series starter, did not average 92 mph on his fastball but pitched 200 innings eight times. Buerhle, whose average fastball did not top 90 mph, pitched 200 innings for 14 consecutive years.
Neither might be drafted today. Major league teams crave velocity, and young pitchers train to boost it. The number of players throwing at least 95 mph at the Perfect Game national showcase increased sevenfold from 2014 to 2024, according to a report from Major League Baseball.
The average MLB fastball rose from 91 mph in 2008 to 94 mph in 2024, the report said.
Velocity also is associated with an increased risk of injury. Teams have implemented well-intentioned measures — pitch counts, innings limits, more rest between appearances — that have not mitigated the risks and might well have led to more injuries.
Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Shota Imanaga prepares to pitch in the bullpen (Ashley Landis / Associated Press)
Kyle Boddy, the founder of Driveline, the seminal program for velocity training, said a hard-throwing pitcher is not going to manage his velocity on an inflexible pitch count.
“If he goes 60 or 70 pitches, he’s going to sit 100,” Boddy told Baseball America. “He’s not stupid. And if we tell him, ‘There’s no limits on you,’ but we keep taking him out after 70 pitches every time, he’s going to realize what’s going on.
“If he can’t control the volume, the one lever he can control is the intensity. I personally think that’s worse for his arm, going max effort for shorter stints.”
That ultimately works against developing starting pitchers capable of delivering six innings, the MLB report said.
“Modern workload management strategies — ostensibly intended to prevent overuse, protect pitcher health, and maximize pitcher effectiveness — may actually increase injury risk by allowing and even incentivizing pitchers to throw with maximum effort on every pitch,” the report said, “rather than requiring pitchers to conserve energy and pace themselves in an effort to pitch through longer outings.”
Not only does throwing harder increase the risk of injury, the MLB report said, but the resulting parade of strikeouts runs “counter to contact-oriented approaches that create more balls in play and result in the type of on-field action that fans want to see.”
In the independent Atlantic League, the league has run several years of testing on a “double hook” rule: when a team removes its starting pitcher, it loses its designated hitter. That would incentivize a major league team to use its starter for six or seven innings instead of four or five, but it would not solve the underlying problem: What if the starting pitcher cannot work six or seven innings?
That is where Orenduff and the USPBL come in.
Every general manager says he would love a rotation of five 200-inning starters, if only he could find them. They cannot offer on-the-job training in the majors, lest their team find itself at a competitive disadvantage.
In an independent league, Orenduff need not worry about that. Tough matchup with the bases loaded in the fourth inning? Third time through the order in the sixth inning? Pitch through it.
“It’s not going to be that quick pull,” he said.
This is not about leaving a starting pitcher out there to get crushed just to pitch through it. This is about shaking off the shackles of those one-size-fits-all limitations.
“You basically want to start by showing fans and the industry, for example, that 100 pitches is just a number,” he said. “It’s completely arbitrary.
“Some guys may be able to go 110, 120. We want to be able to show that the game can still produce players that are successful on the mound, most importantly, but are capable of going beyond the fifth inning and beyond 100 pitches if the expectation and the leadership and the structure are there to support it.”
The USPBL will have pretty much the same technology as major league teams do, to measure spin rates and recovery rates and every other rate. If you can maintain command and velocity, if you can get outs without max effort on every pitch, and if you can bounce back between innings and between starts, you may be able to be that primary starting pitcher.
Frankly, Orenduff says, all the velocity in the world cannot help your team if you cannot pitch.
“That has to be a metric too: sustainability and availability,” he said.
He conducted a study evaluating each team’s top three pitching draft picks since 2013. With the caveats that some pitchers were traded and some prospects still are developing, Orenduff found that three in four of those top drafted pitchers never have pitched for the major league team that drafted them, at a combined cost to the 30 MLB teams of $800 million in signing bonuses.
“We just have to have some sort of proof we can help more players have longer careers by being a little more flexible in how we frame things for them,” Orenduff said.
Here’s hoping the USPBL can discover some training methods that major league teams can use. Better that than listening to a major league manager with a 13-man pitching staff say after a game that he ran out of pitchers, as we too often hear. Can you imagine what Tommy Lasorda would have to say about that?
There are now 67 days remaining until Orioles Opening Day. 6 7 is a big meme with the kids, have you heard? If you have, that’s probably because the kids have moved on to something else now that the old people found out about it.
Things have popped off a lot over the last week or so of baseball free agency. The Orioles, as we are aware, have not had anything to do with any of that. A bit of it has shut down their options: Now they’re pretty much down to Framber Valdez or nothing else when it comes to the starting rotation.
That’s not literally true as several other starters remain unsigned, including Zac Gallen and Lucas Giolito. Or even the venerable Justin Verlander, linked vaguely to the Orioles in a recent report that I can’t bring myself to take seriously. The thing is that Valdez is the only guy with some kind of high-end potential and also a track record of durability.
I have thought all offseason that if the Orioles want to get serious about improving their rotation, they’re going to have to give out a big contract. What they’ve done instead is trade for Shane Baz and sign Zach Eflin. It might work. It has a better chance of working if they nail an addition for a playoff-caliber starting pitcher. This could still happen. There just aren’t as many options now as there were a few weeks ago.
Orioles stuff you might have missed
2026 ZiPS projections: Baltimore Orioles (FanGraphs) If you missed it on Friday, one of the big projection systems is out with its take on the Orioles. Some things are positive. Others less so.
Today in 2009, the Orioles acquired Félix Pie from the Cubs. He was popular around here even if he was never good, and that time he hit for the cycle was pretty fun.
There are a number of former Orioles who were born on this day. They are: 2022-23 catcher Anthony Bemboom, 2006-08 infielder Brandon Fahey, 1993 pitcher Kevin McGehee, 1988-2001 outfielder Brady Anderson, 1976-88 pitcher Scott McGregor, 1962/67 infielder Mickey McGuire, and 1956-57 pitcher Mike Fornieles.
Is today your birthday? Happy birthday to you! Your birthday buddies for today include: philosopher Montesquieu (1689), antebellum figure Daniel Webster (1782), Winnie-the-Pooh creator A.A. Milne (1882), and actor Cary Grant (1904).
On this day in history…
In 1486, the warring York and Lancaster factions in England were united when the reigning King Henry VII married Elizabeth of York. Their united house became known as Tudor.
In 1778, British explorer James Cook’s expedition reached the Hawaiian islands, which he dubbed the Sandwich Islands at the time. Cook was the first European explorer known to have visited the islands.
In 1919, the peace conference meant to end the conflict we now know as World War I began in Versailles, France.
In 1993, Martin Luther King Jr. Day was observed in all 50 states for the first time.
A random Orioles trivia question
I received a book of Orioles trivia for Christmas. Each time I have this space, I’ll ask a question until I either run out of questions or forget. The book is multiple choice, but that would make it too easy for us. Today’s question:
Who was the starting pitcher in the one game of the 1983 World Series that the Orioles lost?
Imagine the Orioles winning a World Series! Nope, I can’t do it.
**
And that’s the way it is in Birdland on January 18. Have a safe Sunday.
The Boston Celtics went absolutely nuclear on the Atlanta Hawks, winning 132-106. Boston had an incredible scoring night, especially in the first half. They scored 82 points and 52 of those points came in the second quarter alone. Via Dick Lipe on X, that 52 point second quarter is the 2nd highest quarter in Celtics history, only trailing the 54 point 4th quarter they scored vs. the San Diego Clippers on 2/25/1970. In the first half, Boston shot 30-48 (63%) from the field and 14-24 (58%) from three.
BOSTON: HIGHEST SCORING QUARTERS 54 vs. San Diego, 4th, 2/25/70 52 TONIGHT, 2nd 52 vs. Minn. Lakers, 4th, 2/27/59 51 vs. LA Clippers, 2nd, 11/25/24 50 vs. Denver, 1st, 2/5/82
On the day before this game, Jaylen Brown went back to his old high school, Wheeler High School in Marietta where he got his number retired. Brown was a 5-star recruit coming out of Georgia and in his 2014-2015 senior year, Brown averaged 28 points and 12 rebounds to help lead Wheeler to a 30-2 record and a 6A state title.
This homecoming must have inspired Brown in this game, finishing with 41 points on 14-30 shooting in only 30 minutes.
Brown was automatic from the jump in this game, scoring 18 points in the first quarter. His first basket of the game saw him cutting through the lane for a floater on the fast break. The next bucket came on a switch with Onyeka Okongwu. Brown attacked the basket, initiated contact, and finished over the Hawks big man. The third basket came on a midrange jumper over Nickeil Alexander-Walker similar to his fourth basket which was a midrange jumper over both Jalen Johnson and Mouhaned Gueye. His fifth basket after Jordan Walsh set a nice screen that resulted in a wide open three. The final bucket was his best of the quarter where he drove on Okongwu, got him to jump, and finished the layup for an And-1.
The second quarter is where Brown scored his next 11 points, starting off with another nice layup over Vit Krejci. His second basket was maybe his best play of the night where he got fouled by Krejci on the way up. Brown then blindly threw up a circus shot that went in, looking like Michael Jordan. Brown finished the quarter bullying smaller Hawks defenders. His third basked came on another midrange jumper over Alexander-Walker while his final basket saw him put CJ McCollum in the weight room on a driving layup.
By the third quarter, you could tell Brown was in the zone and he set the tone with his first shot coming from just inside the logo for a deep three. His next basket involved Luka Garza setting a great screen that Brown was able to go around for a reverse layup. Brown continued to attack Gueye for his final two buckets. He went to work in the midrange with a half-spin into a driving layup for an And-1 on his third basket. Then he finished off his homecoming with a beautiful midrange jumper.
Sam Hauser is arguably the best shooter in NBA history to wear number 30. Well, maybe not, but when he is hot, Hauser can turn into prime Steph Curry and completely takeover a game. In this matchup against Atlanta, he finished with 30 points on 10-21 shooting from three. His shooting numbers are a little bit skewed due to the fact that he was shot-chucking in the fourth quarter to try and break the Celtics all time record for threes in a game held by Marcus Smart at 11. Hauser does occupy 3 of the top 10 most three pointers in a game in Celtics history, this being the second time he hit 10 threes in a game, the first coming against the Wizards on 3/17/2024.
Hauser did break an NBA record however, attempting the most threes in NBA history without taking a two-point shot. All 21 of Hauser’s shot attempts came from beyond the arc, breaking the previous record that was originally held by J.R. Smith, Malik Beasly, and Malik Monk at 17.
Sam Hauser took 21 3’s tonight without taking a 2.
After hitting one three in the first quarter, Hauser went on a tear in the second quarter, shooting 6-6 from beyond the arc. The first three of the quarter was a running pull up jumper after relocating on a Gueye attempt. The second one came after running around a Garza screen into a pull up jumper over McCollum. The third was wide open from the corner after some nice ball movement. Hauser was feeling himself by the fourth one where he got a straight away three over a late contest by Jalen Johnson. The fifth came on a wide open three from the wing on a nice pass from White. Finally, he ended the quarter with his best play of the night. After Brown missed a three, Hauser stole the ball from McCollum and all in one motion threw up a heat check over Krejci that had the Celtics bench going crazy.
Something that is going to be lost in Brown’s 41-Point Homecoming performance and Hauser’s 10 Three Pointer Game is how solid Neemias Queta was. Queta finished with 14 points and 7 rebounds on 5-7 shooting but it really felt like he was aggressive on the boards and hunting his shot early on.
This play at the 8:41 mark of the second quarter is a perfect example of what I am talking about. After Simons threw up a lob that Queta couldn’t handle, Gueye got the rebound for the Hawks. Queta didn’t give up on the play however, stealing the ball away and going back up for a thunderous two-handed jam.
The other play I have to show is this vicious poster that Queta had on Vit Krejci. With White handling the ball, Queta was able to slip out of a screen to receive the ball in a wide open lane to the basket. Krejci however wanted to show some defensive effort and paid the ultimate price. Click! Click! Welcome to your Kodak Moment, Vit Krejci.
Derrick White finished this game pretty quite on the scoring front with 7 points on 3-4 shooting but his fingerprints were on every other part of this game. White tied his Celtics career high with 12 assists in this game alongside 5 rebounds, 3 steals, and 1 block. White was able to show off his defense on the opening play of the second half. White intercepted a Jalen Johnson pass and took it all the way back for an easy two points.
I would say his best assist of the night came on his final one in the third quarter. White was around the top of the three point line and fired a cross-court pass to a wide open Hauser in the corner for three.
When Payton Pritchard was ruled out of this game with left ankle soreness, Baylor Scheierman was elevated to the starting lineup for the second time in his last three games and he was a positive contributor. Scheierman filled up the stat shat, finishing with 9 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 steals while shooting 3-6 from beyond the arc. Baylor was showing off early in this game, getting a nice pass from Brown and hitting a no-dip three in the corner.
The 3 steals is the big thing I want to highlight from his game tonight. The first one came when he doubled Jalen Johnson and was able to take it away. This led to a fast break opportunity for the Celtics that resulted in a wide open three from Anfernee Simons. The second steal came when Johnson passed it to Okongwu under neath the basket where Scheierman was able to wrestle the ball away from him and go the other way. The last steal might have been my favorite however, intercepting a pass from McCollum and diving in the floor to get possession of it. Those hustle plays are what I love to see out of Baylor Scheierman.
When I think of the most beautiful plays on a basketball court, somewhere at the top of that list is beautiful ball movement leading to a basket. There is something so soothing about seeing three passes along the perimeter into a wide open three or easy bucket underneath. The Celtics did a great job of this against the Hawks, finishing with 27 assists as a team. My favorite of the night came in the second quarter where the ball started with Scheierman passing it to Queta. Queta passed to Hauser and slipped towards the basket. Hauser then found White wide open in the corner who immediately zipped it to the block for Queta to put in a wide open layup.
Not only did the Celtics go on a scoring barrage in this game, they were also able to stifle the Hawks offense all night long. Atlanta finished the game shooting 38-102 (37%) from the field and 15-46 (33%) from three while committing 11 turnovers. Boston also finished with 9 steals and 8 blocks on the night, really imposing their will on a Hawks team that didn’t even look like they wanted to be there. It felt like Atlanta was playing a preseason game out there and Boston took full advantage of it.
Hawks Shooting Zone Chart (Via NBA.com)<br>
9. Glass Cleaners
The Celtics have done a great job at rebounding the basketball in their win against the Heat on Thursday and that carried over into this game. Boston out-rebounded Atlanta 55-47 and almost every player on the Celtics finished with a minimum of 2 rebounds on the night no matter how many minutes they played. This is the type of energy that Joe Mazzulla looks for when it comes to being dominant on the glass. If Boston can continue to rebound at this rate, I wonder if they don’t look to trade for a center at the deadline and ride with the rotation of Queta and Garza with Jayson Tatum coming back.
10. Maine Celtics Appearances
Anytime there is a blowout of this proportion, by the fourth quarter the two-way players normally get their chance to shine. In this case, Ron Harper Jr. and Amari Williams were able to play and showed some nice flashes. Harper Jr. played 6 minutes in the fourth quarter and finished with 3 points and 3 rebounds on 1-2 shooting. The Celtics ran a nice play that started with Xavier Tillman on the block who passed it back out to Scheierman at the three point line. Baylor then whipped a pass to Harper Jr. where he was able to knock down the wide open three.
Williams played the entire fourth quarter and finished with 3 points, 4 rebounds, and 2 blocks. However, I would say his best play of the night came on his 1 assist. Simons found Williams who was cutting to the middle of the floor. Williams being an excellent facilitator with the ball in his hands, found Hugo Gonzalez back on the wing for a wide open three.
The two blocks that Williams had were also pretty impressive, showing strides in his defensive game. The first one came when Corey Kispert was trying to go coast-to-coast but Williams chased him down the whole way and blocked his shot. It was called a goaltending but the Celtics reviewed it and got it overturned. His second block was also great, meeting his fellow rookie Asa Newell at the summit to send it back.
I love when the Maine Celtics guys get to come up and show off for the big club. Amari Williams impressed me the most since the last time we saw him play. He looked a lot more athletic and didn’t look lost on the court. Granted it came in garbage time, but I wonder if the impressive play he’s shown in Maine this year will get him a spot playing more minutes in Boston at some point this season.
The Week 14 schedule has games more evenly distributed than in Week 14, with every day featuring between seven and nine games. Monday, which is when Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday will be observed, is the busiest day with nine games, while Tuesday, Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday all have seven-game slates. Week 14 means we're one week closer to the February 5 trade deadline, and some teams have already begun making moves to improve their draft lottery odds rather than their win-loss records. Let's look at the Week 14 schedule breakdown and some notable storylines.
Week 14 Games Played
5 Games: MIA
4 Games: BKN, BOS, CLE, DAL, DEN, DET, GSW, LAC, MIL, OKC, PHI, PHX, SAC, SAS, TOR, UTA
- The Heat have the lone five-game week of Week 14.
In Week 13, it was the Lakers who had the loaded game schedule. In Week 14, Miami will play five games, including two back-to-backs that will both occur during the week. And given how crowded the Heat injury reports have been recently, that could make for some interesting lineup decisions for fantasy managers. Tyler Herro and Davion Mitchell did not play in Saturday's win over the Thunder due to injury, resulting in Pelle Larsson and Kasparas Jakučionis moving into the starting lineup.
With Jaime Jaquez Jr. also out, Simone Fontecchio and Myron Gardner played rotation minutes. Kel'el Ware has been in Erik Spoelstra's dog house recently, so who knows how much he'll benefit from a five-game week. The Heat's crowded schedule should lead to some streaming options emerging, especially if Herro and Mitchell aren't available for Monday's game against the Warriors.
- Orlando and Portland won't come into play until Thursday.
The Magic played both of their Week 13 games in Europe, but they'll have an additional day to get back on schedule than the Grizzlies. Orlando doesn't play its first game of Week 14 until Thursday, while Memphis will play its first on Wednesday as part of a three-game week. Orlando and Portland have two-game weeks, and both are off until Thursday. Will the time off be enough to get Jalen Suggs back on the court for Orlando? The good news for them is that they don't have a back-to-back to deal with.
That isn't the case for Portland, which plays its games on Thursday and Friday. With Jrue Holiday and Jerami Grant recently returning from injury, and Deni Avdija out with a back injury, could they be limited to one-game weeks instead of two? That makes those players challenging to rely on in leagues where lineups are set at the beginning of the week. In fact, it may be best to leave the Trail Blazers alone in Week 14.
- Fringe Hawks, Rockets and Pacers will likely be fine to move on from after Friday's games.
In addition to Portland, Atlanta, Houston and Indiana will wrap up their Week 14 schedules on Friday. No fantasy managers will look to move on from a player who's providing consistent fantasy value. But those streamers? They'll likely be back on the waiver wire Saturday morning, and with good reason. Most of the league has one game over the final two days of Week 14, while a few will play on Saturday and Sunday. Looking ahead to Week 15, Atlanta, Houston and Indiana will all play on that Monday. However, while the Hawks and Rockets play four games in Week 14, the Pacers play three. That's something to be mindful of as Week 14 draws to a close.
- The Mavericks and Nuggets have busy schedules to end Week 14.
In addition to the Heat, Dallas and Denver will play three games over the final four days of Week 14. And given the recent injury issues that both teams have dealt with, that could be an issue for fantasy managers. Dallas will have a Saturday/Sunday back-to-back to end Week 14, and how impactful that is on their rotation depends on Cooper Flagg's ankle. He's missed the last two games after spraining it in a loss to the Nuggets, with Caleb Martin moving into the starting lineup. Also missing the Mavericks' most recent game, a win over the Jazz on Saturday, were P.J. Washington and Daniel Gafford, so Dwight Powell found himself in the starting lineup. If they linger, those injuries could put a player like Brandon Williams or Ryan Nembhard back on the fantasy radar after underwhelming recently.
As for the Nuggets, who are still awaiting Nikola Jokić's return, they're also juggling injuries to other players. Christian Braun's ankle injury has put him back on the bench, while Jamal Murray and Aaron Gordon have either missed time or been subject to a minutes restriction recently. Denver's back-to-back during Week 14 is on Thursday and Friday, which could push a Jalen Pickett into streaming relevance, depending on Murray's availability.
- Will Week 14 be a three-game week for Joel Embiid?
The 76ers' center has only missed one of Philadelphia's last ten games, a January 11 loss to the Raptors that was part of a back-to-back. Playing back-to-backs is the final hurdle for Embiid to clear, but it makes little sense for him or the 76ers to push it. With Philadelphia opening Week 14 with a back-to-back on Monday and Tuesday, this will likely be a three-game week for Embiid. Monday's game against the Pacers could be particularly interesting, as the 76ers host a far more formidable Suns squad the following night. The Week 14 schedule also affects Paul George, who also has not played both games of a back-to-back this season.
- How many games will fantasy managers get out of Luka Dončić and Jalen Green?
Dončić was held out of Saturday's loss to the Trail Blazers with a sore groin. The good news is that he's been cleared as day-to-day after undergoing an MRI on Saturday. The Lakers' three-game Week 14 does not include a back-to-back, and it begins with a game in Denver on Tuesday. When Dončić sits, LeBron James has to shoulder a heavier workload, especially with Austin Reaves currently out as well. Hopefully, there will be a clearer idea of Dončić's status for Week 14 after the team's final Week 13 games on Sunday against the Raptors.
As for Green, he appears to be closing in on a return to action after being out for more than two months with another hamstring injury. Since beginning his ramp-up process two weeks ago, he's had three five-on-five sessions, with the most recent on Saturday, ahead of the Suns' win over the Knicks. The Suns begin their four-game Week 14 slate with a back-to-back on Monday and Tuesday against the Nets and 76ers, then don't play again until Friday in Atlanta. Could Green return to the rotation during Week 14? And when would it happen? His availability affects multiple players, most notably Collin Gillespie, who's been a fixture in the starting lineup since late November.
ATLANTA — In the background of a brilliant, overachieving Celtics season, Sam Hauser has quietly become a starter.
The fifth-year Celtics veteran rarely makes the headlines. He’s not one of the team’s shiny young prospects, nor is he one of their established go-to guys. He hardly ever puts up crazy numbers — Hauser has only eclipsed 20 points in a game three times this season — and he’s not so young that Celtics fans gush over his sky-high potential, like they do the more recent draftees.
But that doesn’t mean Hauser hasn’t been exactly what the Celtics have needed this season.
While Jordan Walsh, Josh Minott, and Hugo Gonzalez have all had hyped-up, breakthrough moments this year, Hauser has simply done what everyone’s expected.
He’s defended solidly, and shot the ball well. And, he’s embraced an ever-changing role, unbothered by whether or not he’s coming off the bench or starting: “It really doesn’t matter to me, to be honest with you,” he said on Thursday.
On Saturday night, in a 132-106 Celtics win over the Atlanta Hawks, Hauser was at his very best, exploding for 30 points on 10-21 shooting. It’s a flow state he’s reached many times throughout his Celtics tenure, and one all sharpshooters can resonate with.
“Everything you put up, it just feels like it’s going to go in, or it’s going to feel really good,” Hauser said afterwards. “And that’s just kind of how it was tonight.”
Hauser didn’t end up breaking the Celtics franchise record for most threes in a game; after hitting his 10th three-pointer early in the fourth quarter, he missed six straight three-pointers to close the game. (Marcus Smart currently holds the Celtics’ franchise record for most three-pointers in a game, having made 11 in a 2020 game).
As his pursuit of the record went to the wayside, Hauser’s teammates joked around on the bench.
“It was terrible,” Jaylen Brown said, laughing, while Hauser hovered over Brown’s postgame press conference with a listening ear.
Brown, fresh off a 41-point performance of his own, recalled how the last time Hauser came close to setting the Celtics record for most three-pointers in a game, he sprained his ankle shortly after hitting his 10th three-pointer.
“I didn’t play that game, and I was in the back, and I was like, ‘Bro, you got to get back out there. I need you to get that record,” Brown recalled. “And he was like, ‘Oh, it’s gonna come back to me.‘ That was two years ago…. It might be another two years.”
I asked Jaylen Brown about Sam Hauser for the three-point record and he started laughing:
“It was terrible. I remember when Sam almost had the record when we were in Washington, and he hurt his ankle, and I didn't play that game, and I was in the back, and I was like, ‘Bro, you… https://t.co/lyQkOoDsCWpic.twitter.com/7teciexpdD
“But it was a joy to watch, man,” Brown said. “We was all rooting for him.”
After a slow start, Sam Hauser’s shooting has come back around
Hauser dealt with a shooting slump in the early part of the season, but the numbers are coming back around. Since December 1st, he’s hit 43% of his three-point attempts (in contrast, in November, he shot 27.5% from outside the arc).
When the shot wasn’t falling, Hauser consulted his father, whom he refers to as the ‘Shot Doctor.’ Dave Hauser taught Sam how to shoot as a kid and regularly gives him feedback when the shot is straying.
“He knows me better than anybody else,” Hauser said. “So hearing his thoughts means more than any other word that’s said to me about my shot — just because he knows he seen me from here shoot all the way here [lowers hand] until now.”
Today, despite an ice-cold November, Hauser is shooting 38.9% from three-point range on the season — and he seems well on his way to another 40%+ shooting season. (Famously, he has never shot below 40% from three; not in high school, not in college, and not in the NBA.
Last year, when Hauser was experiencing a shooting slump, his mom, Stephanie, told CelticsBlog that she knew the numbers would come around.
“I just said to him, just keep shooting, because you know, in the end, it will all suddenly end up at around 40% — because your whole life, that’s exactly what’s happened,” Stephanie said.
Hauser continues to be underrated defender
The idea that Hauser is a defensive liability is misguided.
“He’s one of the better defenders that we have,” Joe Mazzulla said plainly last week.
For Hauser, the defensive success oftentimes stems from the fact that he closely studies opposing players’ tendencies.
“The coaches do a good job with sending us personnel edits,” Hauser said. “They send us write-ups of the [opposing players’ shot] percentages, or where they’re driving, or how often they’re driving that way, or what hand they like to drive with.”
Hauser studies those scouting reports, eager to make up for any athleticism deficit he has with meticulous preparation, a process that Mazzulla has lauded.
“I’m not the quickest player laterally, so for me to know that and to try and to anticipate some of these things — it’s big for me to try to keep the guy in front and make it hard for them to try to shoot,” Hauser said. “I try my best. I don’t always do it well, but I try my best.”
Mazzulla pointed to two defensive plays that illustrated Hauser’s defensive preparation: a steal against RJ Barrett last Friday against the Raptors and one against Nikola Jovic against the Heat on Thursday.
The numbers also back up Hauser’s level of discipline; he is in the 98th percentile in defensive fouls, meaning that only 2% of defenders foul less than him, per Cleaning the Glass.
“He knows players’ tendencies; he can take those away in real time,” Mazzulla said. “He’s physical, much more physical than people think, and he’s versatile.”
Hauser has been far from the flashiest story of the season.
But he’s been a key member of a Celtics team that now holds the second-best record in the Eastern Conference — and the second-best net rating in the NBA.
And, Hauser’s contributions have looked like something different every night. Some nights, they’re subtle. Other nights, they’re louder.
On Saturday night, they looked like 10 three-pointers.
Red Auerbach put together a phenomenal dynasty in Boston, starting in 1956 when he schemed and maneuvered to land Bill Russell. But Russell, as great as he was, couldn’t win titles on his own, and so Auerbach put pieces around him to keep his team winning. Bill Sharman and Bob Cousy were already there, but over time, Auerbach got players to help Russell like KC Jones, Sam Jones, John Havlicek and Tom Sanders.
Widely known as Satch, Sanders, a New York native, attended NYU when it was still a basketball power.
Drafted in 1960 in a draft that included Oscar Robertson, Jerry West and Lenny Wilkens, Sanders settled in with the Celtics quickly. He was a very good offensive player with the Violets, but the Celtics asked him to focus on defense, which he did. He won eight rings during his career, which is two more than Michael Jordan got and three more than Magic Johnson.
After his career ended in 1973, Sanders did a number of useful things, including setting up an NBA program to help rookies transition to the league. As Russell says in this video, to lead is to serve and Sanders has never hesitated to serve.
Now 87, along with Cousy, Sanders is one of the last of the Russell-era Celtics. He is universally regarded as a gentleman and one of the best people the league has ever been associated with.
In just 12 minutes, the Boston Celtics outscored their entire second half with a 52-point surge in the second quarter, soaring past the Atlanta Hawks and into the NBA’s record books on Saturday night.
Jaylen Brown and Sam Hauser were the conductors behind a freight-train Boston offense, shooting 19 of 25 from the field and draining 11 3-point attempts, tying an NBA record set by the Oklahoma City Thunder for the most points scored in a quarter. Options were nonexistent for Atlanta from there, as the Hawks faced a 31-point halftime deficit before the Celtics closed out their slaughtering 132-106 win on Saturday night.
“I thought we played with a high level of pace,” head coach Joe Mazzulla told reporters, per NBC Sports Boston.
Brown and Hauser combined to score 30 points in the second quarter, with Hauser going a perfect 6-for-6 from beyond the arc. Off the bench, Anfernee Simons added 11 points, becoming the third Celtic to reach double figures by the end of the frame. Boston outshot Atlanta by 10 field goal makes, committed three fewer turnovers, and saw every player finish with a positive plus-minus — while all Hawks finished in the negative heading into the second half.
Boston’s 52-point barrage is the most ever by a road team in the second quarter, falling just five points short of the all-time record of 57 set by the Phoenix Suns in 1990.
“Obviously, we made every shot, but I think it was our ability to get out and run,” Mazzulla continued. “Get stops, get out and run.”
The Hawks scored 51 points in the first half and weren’t in the same ballpark as the Celtics in terms of efficiency. Atlanta shot 35.4% to Boston’s 62.5%, and the scoreboard didn’t see another lead change after the first quarter, ballooning to a 43-point Celtics advantage by the end of the third quarter.
Mazzulla noted that, as impressive as the second-quarter avalanche was, maintaining the mindset that brought it to life is even more important. Rather than dwell on the highs of reducing Atlanta’s defense down to its smallest form, Boston is looking ahead. There’s no time to pat themselves on the back or scroll through social media to check out all the records they set. Instead, it’s about understanding that the result doesn’t change the approach. That’s the standard.
“It’s just the balance of toughness and grace,” Mazzulla told reporters. “It’s a long season, so just because we played well tonight, that doesn’t mean anything the next day. Or if we had lost tonight, that doesn’t mean anything the next day. You just have to keep it at that. As long as we can come in the next day, not knowing if we won or lost, we can just get better. I think the guys do a great job of — whether we lose a close game or win — coming in the next day, and you can’t tell what the past result was. Just gotta keep that up.”
Brown’s one-man 41-point clinic, as dominant as it was, took a back seat to the team’s second-quarter scoring storm. Everyone who took the floor contributed, even if it didn’t mean putting the ball in the basket. Rookie Hugo González grabbed four rebounds, Derrick White dished out seven of his 12 assists, and the team forced three steals, controlling both ends of the floor for the entire frame.
It was a peak demonstration of the core principles Mazzulla has instilled in the locker room, reinforcing Brown’s trust as an MVP candidate in Boston’s group of unproven contributors.
“That second quarter, when we are playing in sync and in alignment, we’re tough to stop,” Brown told reporters, per CLNS Media.
Meanwhile, the Hawks were out of sync the rest of the way. Atlanta mustered only 55 points in the second half, shooting a slightly better 38.9% on 54 field goal attempts. The divot Brown, Hauser, and the Celtics dug proved to be far too deep for the Hawks to escape from.
Nearly two weeks removed from the franchise’s trade of star guard Trae Young, coupled with the absence of center Kristaps Porziņģis, the Hawks entered the night in an already difficult spot — one that only worsened once both teams met at center court for the opening tip-off.
It was a dilemma Brown chalked up to more than just defensive lapses.
“Sometimes you get tired, physically, and that’s what causes you to miss,” Brown told reporters. “It’s not really the defense sometimes. Sometimes you just have a hard time trying to catch your breath. So I try to just focus on my breathing and just come out and be aggressive.”
Bethune-Cookman Wildcats (6-11, 3-1 SWAC) at Arkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions (6-12, 3-2 SWAC)
Pine Bluff, Arkansas; Monday, 6:30 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: Bethune-Cookman visits UAPB after Jakobi Heady scored 23 points in Bethune-Cookman's 79-63 victory against the Mississippi Valley State Delta Devils.
The Golden Lions are 4-1 on their home court. UAPB is third in the SWAC with 9.2 offensive rebounds per game led by Jaquan Scott averaging 2.4.
The Wildcats are 3-1 in SWAC play. Bethune-Cookman has a 2-9 record against teams over .500.
UAPB's average of 8.0 made 3-pointers per game this season is just 0.2 more made shots on average than the 7.8 per game Bethune-Cookman gives up. Bethune-Cookman has shot at a 45.0% clip from the field this season, 1.7 percentage points fewer than the 46.7% shooting opponents of UAPB have averaged.
The Golden Lions and Wildcats square off Monday for the first time in conference play this season.
TOP PERFORMERS: Quion Williams is averaging 16.8 points, 8.3 rebounds, 5.7 assists and 1.8 steals for the Golden Lions. Alex Mirhosseini is averaging 14.1 points and 2.9 rebounds while shooting 40.5% over the last 10 games.
Heady is shooting 44.0% from beyond the arc with 1.4 made 3-pointers per game for the Wildcats, while averaging 16.6 points. Quentin Heady is averaging 10 points over the last 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Golden Lions: 6-4, averaging 85.8 points, 33.8 rebounds, 18.8 assists, 7.0 steals and 3.7 blocks per game while shooting 49.6% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 76.4 points per game.
Wildcats: 4-6, averaging 71.0 points, 27.7 rebounds, 13.6 assists, 7.1 steals and 4.4 blocks per game while shooting 44.3% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 85.1 points.
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
Washington Capitals (24-19-6, in the Metropolitan Division) vs. Colorado Avalanche (33-5-8, in the Central Division)
Denver; Monday, 4 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: The Washington Capitals visit the Colorado Avalanche after Jakob Chychrun's two-goal game against the Florida Panthers in the Capitals' 5-2 loss.
Colorado has a 19-1-3 record in home games and a 33-5-8 record overall. The Avalanche have gone 19-3-5 in games they serve fewer penalty minutes than their opponents.
Washington is 24-19-6 overall and 10-9-3 in road games. The Capitals are 8-3-0 when they commit fewer penalties than their opponent.
Monday's game is the first time these teams square off this season.
TOP PERFORMERS: Martin Necas has 22 goals and 35 assists for the Avalanche. Brock Nelson has 10 goals and five assists over the last 10 games.
Alexander Ovechkin has 20 goals and 21 assists for the Capitals. Ethen Frank has four goals and one assist over the last 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Avalanche: 6-3-1, averaging 4.2 goals, 7.6 assists, 2.9 penalties and 6.4 penalty minutes while giving up 2.7 goals per game.
Capitals: 4-5-1, averaging 3.3 goals, 5.9 assists, 4.2 penalties and 11 penalty minutes while giving up 2.8 goals per game.
INJURIES: Avalanche: None listed.
Capitals: None listed.
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
Both no 1 seeds, Aryna Sabalenka and Carlos Alcaraz, won in straight sets, with Cameron Norrie, Alexander Bublik and Emma Raducanu also moving on
I’m not sure why, but I can’t get commentary on Bublik v Brooksby, which isn’t helpful, but Bublik leads 3-1; Tiafoe is up a break in set three, so at 4-2 is only two games away from seeing off Kubler; Zheng leads Korda by a break at 4-3 in the fifth; and Norrie is up a set on Bonzi, but serving to stay in the second at 4-5.
We’re away on Laver, Sabalenka in dayglo straight out of 1989 … and Rakotomanga Rajaonah immediately makes 0-30 on her serve. Oh! And when the champ swats a backhand long, she’s down three break points! All three are saved, but then the underdog raises a fourth on advantage, thrashes a deep return, and Sabalenka nets a forehand! Rakotomanga Rajaonah need only hold five times and she’s a set up! Er yeah, let’s see…
Anthony Edwards became the ninth player to pass the 50-point mark this season [Getty Images]
Anthony Edwards scored a career-high 55 points for the Minnesota Timberwolves' Timberwolves but was unable to prevent a 126-123 defeat by the San Antonio Spurs.
Victor Wembanyama scored 39 points for the Spurs, completing a vital rebound in the final seconds, as his side closed out their second successive win.
The Spurs led by 25 points at half-time after producing their highest-scoring quarter in 39 years, before Edwards dragged his side back into contention.
The 24-year-old scored with 3:28 to play to put the Timberwolves 110-108 ahead, before Wembanyama's shot tied the game.
In the late exchanges, Edwards missed one of two free throws, while Wembanyama scored one of his own, and the Timberwolves star couldn't complete a three-pointer attempt from beyond half-court in the last moments.
Edwards is the fifth player to score 55 points in the NBA this season, one of whom, Nikola Jokic, also has the highest individual total with the 56 points he scored against the Timberwolves on Christmas Day.
It is the second time this month Edwards has beaten his personal record, after he scored 53 against the Detroit Pistons on 4 January.
The Pistons hammered the Indiana Pacers 121-78 in their Saturday game, leaving last season's finalists at the foot of the Eastern Conference table, while defending champions the Oklahoma Thunder lost 122-121 to the Miami Heat.
The LA Lakers, who were missing star guard Luka Doncic, fell to a 132-116 defeat by the Portland Trail Blazers, while the Golden State Warriors completed their third win in a row with a 136-116 victory over the Charlotte Hornets.
