Andy Reid is reconnecting with the offensive coordinator who made his Kansas City Chiefs offense hum. The Chiefs have agreed to terms with Eric Bieniemy, the team officially announced Friday.
Bieniemy will reclaim his post as Kansas City’s OC, taking over for Matt Nagy.
Coming off his three-year stint in Kansas City, Nagy interviewed for the Philadelphia Eagles’ offensive coordinator opening Wednesday, per NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo.
As for Bieniemy, he previously served as the Chiefs’ OC from 2018-22, helping two-time NFL MVP quarterback Patrick Mahomes win the first two of his three Super Bowls.
Bieniemy was part of Reid’s inaugural Chiefs staff in 2013, first working as the team’s running backs coach for five seasons before getting the promotion to OC.
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Bieniemy coordinated Kansas City’s offense the first five seasons Mahomes was the team’s full-time starter. In the process, the Chiefs averaged 35.3 points per game in 2018, 28.2 points per game in 2019, 29.6 points per game in 2020, 28.2 points per game in 2021 and 29.2 points per game in 2022. They were top six in the league in scoring in each of those seasons, twice clocking out first.
For reference, Kansas City hasn’t averaged more than 22.6 points per game in a season since.
Under Bieniemy’s watch, Mahomes hit the ground running. In his first full season, he tossed a career-high 50 touchdowns. In addition to winning the Super Bowl during the 2019 and 2022 seasons, the Chiefs also made it in the 2020 campaign before the Tampa Bay Buccaneers stifled them.
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Despite generating yearly buzz when the NFL’s coaching carousel spun, Bieniemy never landed a head-coaching job. He left Kansas City in 2023 to run the Washington Commanders’ offense. But his stay in D.C. was short-lived, as the Ron Rivera staff largely turned over when Dan Quinn took the reins the following season.
Bieniemy headed to UCLA, but he was fired after one season, as the Bruins averaged a mere 18.4 points per game and went 5-7, including only 3-6 in Big Ten competition. He returned to the NFL in the lead-up to this season, joining the Chicago Bears as their running backs coach. Bieniemy oversaw a backfield that produced a 1,000-yard rusher in D’Andre Swift and featured an intriguing rookie in Kyle Monangai, who picked up 783 yards and five touchdowns on the ground while the Bears returned to relevance.
As a whole, Chicago averaged the third-most rushing yards per game (144.5) this season.
Bieniemy will now take what he learned from Ben Johnson’s system and be tasked with helping a Chiefs offense that desperately needs to innovate again.
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Kansas City ranked 25th in rushing, and, for the third straight go-round, Mahomes averaged fewer than 265 passing yards per game. The Chiefs are due for some upgrades at the receiver position.
But cutting down on penalties and finding new ways to catch defenses off guard will also be key for Bieniemy in assisting Reid, with an eye toward Kansas City recreating offensive fireworks.
Each week during the 2025-26 NBA season, we will take a deeper dive into some of the league’s biggest storylines in an attempt to determine whether trends are based more in fact or fiction moving forward.
Fact or Fiction: The Lakers can build a champion around Luka Dončić’s defense
Every time you type “JJ Redick” into a search engine, you’re hit with some headline like, Lakers coach blasts team’s effort, or, The latest attempt to solve Los Angeles’ defense!
We are at the season’s midwaypoint. (In fact, we are nearing the one-year anniversary of Luka Dončić’s trade to the Los Angeles Lakers, who face his former team on Saturday!)
This is an improvement from December, when Redick seemed to think there was no tactical adjustment to cure what ailed his defense, other than more effort from his players.
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“We practice this stuff enough,” he said after a loss to the Phoenix Suns. “We review this stuff enough. We show film on this stuff enough that to me it comes down to … just making the choice. It’s making the choice. There are shortcuts you can take, or you can do the hard thing, and you can make the second effort, or you can sprint back, or you can’t.”
Whether it is the coaching staff’s scheme or their players’ intention, the fact of the matter is: The Lakers’ defense is bad. On the season, they rate 25th out of 30 teams, allowing 117.3 points per 100 possessions. Since the start of December, when the Lakers are 11-13, they have allowed 119.2 points per 100 possessions, rating 29th on the defensive end. Only the Utah Jazz, who own the worst defensive rating in NBA history, have been worse than L.A.
One reason they are terrible at defense: Nobody gets hunted more than Dončić.
(Hassan Ahmad/Yahoo Sports Illustration)
According to Synergy’s play-type statistics, teams complete 2.2 possessions per game opposite Dončić’s isolation defense, the most of anyone in the league. Granted, this only accounts for how many plays opponents finish against Dončić, not necessarily how many times he gets hunted throughout a game, but it gives us a good portrait of the problem.
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(Tyler Herro ranks second behind Dončić in that regard, to give you an idea of its accuracy.)
Of course, another reason they are terrible at defense: They failed to surround Dončić with anyone capable of stopping the ball. Dončić’s co-stars, LeBron James and Austin Reaves, are far from defensive stoppers. And Deandre Ayton is hardly a rim protector.
Marcus Smart might be the Lakers’ best option at the point of attack, but the 31-year-old is four years and several injuries removed from being the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year.
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“There’s really no defense, no scheme we can do when we’re giving up offensive rebounds in crucial moments like we are, or guys are getting wherever they want on the court,” Smart conceded in December. “And there’s no help, there’s no resistance, there’s no urgency. So, it’s tough. And JJ is right: There’s really nothing he can do. It’s on us.“
And us isn’t good enough, defensively, to win a championship.
Which begs the same question Dallas Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison answered in the negative at this time last year: Can you build a champion around Dončić’s defense?
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The short answer: Of course. (Spoiler alert: Nico was not right.)
A 24-year-old Dončić led the Mavericks to the 2024 NBA Finals with Kyrie Irving as his co-star. Daniel Gafford, Derrick Jones Jr. and P.J. Washington were the other three starters. That roster rated 18th on the defensive end during the regular season, hardly a juggernaut, and they came within three wins of a championship. Build the right team around Dončić — a roster full of two-way contributors — and obviously you can win a championship with him.
He is, after all, one in the handful of best basketball players in the world, averaging a league-leading 33.4 points per game, to go along with 8.7 assists and 7.8 rebounds a night.
All of which now leads us to the question at hand: Can the Lakers build a champion around Dončić? That is a far more complicated question to answer, and not just because their front office has made a series of missteps since winning the 2020 title. Then again, they did win that championship, they did acquire Dončić, and they did develop Reaves.
The presence of James and Reaves, along with Dončić, is a defensive problem. They are three of the most talented scorers in the game, and the team’s three best players, and the Lakers want them all on the floor together, only they are being outscored by 7.4 points per 100 possessions, almost as bad as this year’s Washington Wizards, when that is the case.
Even if James, the 41-year-old phenom, who has lost several steps defensively, has a frosty relationship with Lakers leadership — a report he did not flatly deny on Thursday — it would be awfully difficult for them to piece together a trade by the Feb. 5 trade deadline, especially one that returns them enough help defensively to patch together a contender.
He is, however, a free agent at season’s end, and it is becoming increasingly less surprising that James and the Lakers may mutually part ways this summer. In fact, the franchise can clear as much as $54 million in salary cap space in July, according to Spotrac’s Keith Smith.
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That gives the Lakers one chance — this summer — to spend on the roster around Dončić, before Reaves (assuming he opts out of his $15 million contract for next season) signs what could be something close to a maximum extension of his own. Then our question becomes: Can the Lakers build a champion around the defense of Dončić and Reaves?
Right now, the Lakers, when Dončić and Reaves are on the court without James, are outscoring opponents by 14.2 points per 100 meaningful possessions, according to Cleaning the Glass, operating at a historic level offensively and a top-three level defensively.
That is beyond encouraging. The idea, then: Use the Mavericks’ blueprint, only with Reaves in the Irving role as Dončić’s co-star, and find three two-way forces to play along with them.
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Problem is: The 2026 free-agency class is a dud, at least in terms of defensive stalwarts. Might a 36-year-old Draymond Green decline his $27.7 million option for next season if more money awaited in L.A.? Does the oft-injured Robert Williams III interest the Lakers?
More likely, the Lakers will have to get creative, trying to trade players into their cap space, using their far-out future draft picks as bait, and possibly even dangling Reaves if a return is right. Can they get someone like Trey Murphy III or Herb Jones, or both, from the New Orleans Pelicans? Every other team in the league is in search of the same 3-and-D wings.
Our final question, then — another to come back to on another day — if we think we have sufficiently answered the one at hand (and of course the Lakers can build a champion around Dončić; any team can): Is Rob Pelinka the executive the Lakers want doing the job?
The Lakers are under new ownership, a group that did not hire Pelinka, and they will be both motivated to win and to spend, especially after investing $10 billion in the team.
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Determination: Fact. The Lakers can build a champion around Dončić. Just not this season. It will take time — perhaps years’ worth — but the good news is they have it. Dončić is 26 years old and under contract through the 2028-29 season. (Thanksagain, Nico.)
The fantasy football season isn’t over until the NFL season is over. Fantasy analyst Joel Smyth goes over his favorite Yahoo Daily Fantasy plays for the Championship Round.
QB – Matthew Stafford $32
In their last matchup, Matthew Stafford threw for 457 yards against the Seahawks, without Davante Adams. Even with that in mind, Seattle isn’t the best matchup, ranking fifth-best against passing fantasy points this season. The issue with Championship Round DFS is that no quarterback has a great matchup. I trust both Sean McVay and Stafford to find ways to move the ball downfield in their third matchup against the Seahawks defense.
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If the Rams struggle against the Seahawks’ rushing defense again, Stafford should eclipse 40 attempts once more. When thinking of DFS correlation, Stafford is also the easiest to stack with his weapons.
RB – Kenneth Walker III $29
After inconsistent volume throughout the season, Kenneth Walker III will be relied on heavily with Zach Charbonnet out for the season. Walker saw a season-high 22 touches versus San Francisco last week, capitalizing on his opportunity with three touchdowns.
Walker didn’t have many notable performances in the regular season, but when he did, there was a good chance it was versus Los Angeles. The Seattle RB handled 33 touches for 275 scrimmage yards on his way to 21.3 PPG against his division rival. The projected volume at his price is easily the best on the slate.
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RB – TreVeyon Henderson $25
Not a confident play, but a contrarian one. You need uncommon plays in DFS, and after his recent disappointments, Henderson should be lower-rostered compared to other top RBs. The obvious ceiling comes with a low floor as the rookie RB takes on Denver’s run defense. Henderson has still handled 45% of the carries in the playoffs, but has lacked the efficiency of Rhamondre Stevenson. In Henderson’s regular-season games with 10-15 touches, he averaged 11.8 half-PPR PPG. His two performances in January have totaled 3.5 PPG. I believe it’s a risk worth taking, given the limited options.
WR – Puka Nacua $37
The last time Puka Nacua played the Seahawks, he scored 40.5 fantasy points — not bad. Adams is back, but I still prefer stacking Nacua with Stafford than pairing Jaxon Smith-Njigba with Sam Darnold. The Rams have moved away from their heavy TE sets, resulting in an 89% route share for Nacua, considerably higher than his regular-season rate of 75%.
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WR – Pat Bryant $13
In the last five games of the season, Pat Bryant averaged 6.0 targets per game and 45.8 yards per game as he overtook Troy Franklin. Bryant is the Broncos’ best WR versus zone coverage this season and can be utilized more than ever in the AFC Championship. As the primary slot receiver, he should avoid shutdown CB Christian Gonzalez on the majority of his routes. With Jarrett Stidham entering this matchup, a high-volume, quick-passing attack could equal a big day for the rookie WR at a major value.
TE – Terrance Ferguson $11
No matter where you go for tight end, it’s going to be a shot in the dark this Sunday. One of the cheapest and most contrarian options that I believe in is Terrance Ferguson, the Rams rookie who has slowly come on as another option in L.A.’s offense. Ferguson more than doubled Tyler Higbee’s routes after returning from injury ahead of the Divisional Round. After five targets versus the Bears, he has now had 4+ (and a career high) in three straight games. I’d say the rookie is mispriced compared to the other TEs, and has higher TD upside than non-Ram TEs.
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D/ST – New England Patriots $12
With Bo Nix missing the Championship game, the Patriots are the easiest choice at defense for me. Not only are they cheap, but they have the clear best QB matchup and are coming off two dominant performances. This will be the third straight time I’ve chosen the Patriots defense, and it has worked wonders so far.
And guess what — even with these picks, you still have budget left for the final two players in your lineup: $41 ($20.5 per player)!
Some of the best figure skaters from 17 countries around the world will compete at the ISU Figure Skating Four Continents Championships 2026 this week, which is the last major figure skating competition before the 2026 Winter Games. Athletes from Team USA who are expected to compete at the Four Continents include Starr Andrews, Bradie Tennell, Sarah Everhardt, Alisa Efimova, Misha Mitrofanov, Emilea Zingas and Vadym Kolesnik.
You can watch the entirety of the ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships on Peacock this week, select events will also air on E!, and NBC will broadcast a post-tournament Exhibition Gala on Feb. 1. NBC announcer Bill Spaulding will handle play-by-play throughout the competition, and he’ll be joined by Olympic gold medalist Tara Lipinski and three-time U.S. champion Johnny Weir. Here’s everything you need to know about the ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships this year including a complete schedule of events and how to watch.
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How to watch the 2026 ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships
Where can I stream the 2026 ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships?
The 2026 ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships will stream entirely on Peacock. That includes every skater in every discipline throughout the duration of the championship event.
For $17 monthly you can upgrade to an ad-free subscription which includes live access to your local NBC affiliate (not just during designated sports and events) and the ability to download select titles to watch offline.
Where to watch the 2026 ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships on TV:
While you’ll find the most comprehensive coverage of the 2026 ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships on Peacock, select events will also be broadcast on E! and NBC which you can stream on DirecTV, Hulu + Live TV and more.
How to watch the ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships without cable:
Who is competing at the ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships?
The 2026 ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships is the last major international figure skating event before the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics, featuring athletes from 17 nations across Africa, Asia, North America and Oceania. Among this year’s competitors are U.S. pairs duo Alisa Efimova and Misha Mitrofanov, China’s renowned pairs duo, Sui Wenjing and Han Cong, and U.S. Olympian ice dancers Emilea Zingas and Vadym Kolesnik.
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How to watch the 2026 ISU Four Continents Exhibition Gala TV Special
While the 2026 ISU Four Continents tournament will be broadcast live from Jan. 21 through Jan. 24, you can also tune in to encores of its best figure skating and ice dancing performances when NBC airs the ISU Four Continents Exhibition Gala on Sunday, Feb. 1 at 12 p.m. ET on NBC. This program will not be live but will include performances from the tournament.
2026 ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships Schedule:
All times Eastern
Wednesday, January 21
Women’s Short: 11:45 p.m. (Peacock)
Thursday, January 22
Rhythm Dance: 3:30 a.m. (Peacock)
Pairs’ Short: 7 a.m. (E!, Peacock)
Free Dance: 11:15 p.m. (Peacock)
Friday, January 23
Women’s Free: 5 a.m. (Peacock)
Women’s Free: 7 a.m. (E!, Peacock)
Men’s Short: 11:15 p.m. (Peacock)
Saturday, January 24
Pairs’ Free: 6:45 a.m. (Peacock)
Pairs’ Free: 7 a.m. (E!, Peacock)
Men’s Short: 9 a.m. (E!, Peacock)
Men’s Free: 11 p.m. ET (Peacock)
Sunday, February 1
Exhibition Gala: 12 p.m. (NBC)
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More ways to watch the 2026 ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships:
Charles Bediako appears to have found his way back to Alabama.
The former Crimson Tide center filed a lawsuit against the NCAA on Tuesday in an effort to gain immediate reinstatement to join the team for the rest of the 2025-26 season. The school had already filed an appeal for his eligibility, but it was denied.
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Bediako, 23, last played for Alabama during the 2022-23 season. The 7-footer entered the NBA Draft after that season, but was not selected. He’s since played in the G League, including 34 games for the Grand Rapids Gold last season and six for the Motor City Cruise this season. He averaged 10.4 points and 9.3 rebounds per game last year with the Gold.
Then on Wednesday, a judge granted a temporary restraining order to allow Bediako to return to Alabama and college basketball. Bediako is “immediately eligible,” judge James H. Roberts Jr. ruled, and the NCAA is “restrained from threatening, imposing, attempting to impose, suggesting or implying any penalties or sanctions” against Bediako, Alabama, its coaches or players, according to ESPN.
The order is valid for 10 days. A full hearing is scheduled for Tuesday morning.
“The University of Alabama supports Charles and his ongoing efforts to be reinstated for competition while he works to complete his degree,” Alabama said in a statement after the ruling.
In his initial lawsuit, Bediako cited multiple other G League players who have been granted eligibility by the NCAA. He also named Baylor center James Nnaji, who was granted eligibility to play for the Bears last month. Nnaji was the No. 31 overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, and he played professionally in Europe before returning to the United States.
“The NCAA’s recent reinstatement of James Nnaji, along with other European professional players, has shown that its current application of eligibility rules favor players who have competed internationally over athletes who have pursued domestic opportunities,” the complaint states, via ESPN. “Despite being selected 31st overall in the NBA Draft, Nnaji was recently reinstated and will have four seasons of NCAA eligibility. This, despite Nnaji playing professionally for at least three seasons in Europe, including two for powerhouse FC Barcelona. The NCAA’s rules also create an entirely arbitrary distinction between student athletes who go directly from high school to professional competition and those who initially enroll in college, later leave for the draft, and then seek to return.”
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Bediako averaged 6.6 points and 5.2 rebounds per game in his two seasons at Alabama. He helped the team reach the NCAA tournament in each of his two seasons, too. He is currently enrolled at Alabama, and would have the rest of this season left in eligibility had he not left for the NBA Draft when he did, as he started his college career in 2021. In his lawsuit, Bediako called the NCAA’s rules “draconian” and said that he wouldn’t have left college when he did had he known about current revenue sharing and NIL opportunities that are now available.
While Bediako wouldn’t be the first professional player to be allowed back into the college ranks, his case is unique and would mark a massive change for the NCAA. Bediako signed a two-way contract with the San Antonio Spurs in 2023 after he went undrafted, and no two-way player has ever been granted eligibility to play college basketball. Should Bediako take the court again, he would be the first.
“These attempts to sidestep NCAA rules and recruit individuals who have finished their time in college or signed NBA contracts are taking away opportunities from high school students,” the NCAA said. “A judge ordering the NCAA let a former NBA player take the court Saturday against actual college student-athletes is exactly why Congress must step in and empower college sports to enforce our eligibility rules.”
No. 17 Alabama holds a 13-5 record this season. The Crimson Tide will host Tennessee next on Saturday, where Bediako will presumably make his return.
We have a fun episode of The Dunker Spot coming your way!
The New York Knicks have struggled since their NBA Cup win over the Spurs; Nekias Duncan and Steve Jones assess their concern level, talk through what’s wrong, and discuss potential fixes to turn things around.
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From there, the guys continue their mid-season award check-ins by talking through their Rookie of the Year, All-Rookie Team, and Coach of the Year selections. Finally, they close by previewing the upcoming slate of Unrivaled games.
If you ever have NBA or WNBA questions, email us at dunkerspot@yahoo.com.
1:37 — New York Knicks discussion 35:20 — Rookie awards 01:31:02— Coach of the Year 01:37:05 — Unrivaled weekend preview
Jan 21, 2026; New York, New York, USA; New York Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns (32) reacts after geting called for an offensive foul in the second quarter against the Brooklyn Nets at Madison Square Garden. Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images
The first time the Dallas Mavericks played the Miami Heat this season, Cooper Flagg started out slowly: just six points through three quarters, making only three of the nine shots he took, with three turnovers in 24 minutes. And then, with the Mavs down by seven and about nine and a half minutes to go in the fourth quarter, the 2025 NBA Draft’s No. 1 overall pick checked back in … and, suddenly, he was damn near everywhere.
Dallas’ comeback effort came up short, but the then-18-year-old’s closing kick — six points, four boards, two assists, a steal and relentless activity in those final nine-and-a-half minutes — made an impression.
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“He’s not scared of the moment,” star Heat center Bam Adebayo told Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press. “A lot of guys would move to the corner when there’s two minutes left in a close ball game … he was going to get the ball. He’s growing up faster than people think.”
Including, maybe, the Heat. When the two teams played again a week and a half later, Flagg scored a team-high 22 on 9-for-13 shooting in a 10-point Mavericks win.
Trading Luka for Anthony Davis removed the cornerstone on which the Mavericks franchise was built, precipitating Dallas’ downfall as a putative championship contender and beginning Nico Harrison’s slow march to the exit at the American Airlines Center. It also created a need for a new cornerstone — one better positioned for the task than Davis or Kyrie Irving, both on the wrong side of 30 and often (andcurrently) on the wrong side of the injury report.
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That vacuum has been filled, thanks to a staggering amount of draft-lottery luck, by Flagg: one of the most highly touted prospects in a generation, one of the most productive teenagers the NBA has ever seen, and a preternatural talent that, as Adebayo put it, is growing up a hell of a lot faster than it would’ve seemed reasonable to expect.
Flagg’s arrival can only do so much to abate and ameliorate the pain and trauma of the Dončić deal for a number of reasons, not least of which is the basic point that it’s really hard to replace an All-Star starter without downgrading. But even as the Mavs scuffle below .500 and near the bottom of the NBA in offensive efficiency, the presence of Flagg — rising up to the top of the rookie class, jousting with former Duke teammate Kon Knueppel and 76ers ace VJ Edgecombe in consideration for Rookie of the Year honors at the season’s midway point — gives Dallas fans something to grab hold of, a reason to believe that better days are ahead, sooner rather than later.
Flagg enters Saturday’s tilt against the Lakers averaging 18.8 points, 6.4 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game, with a true shooting percentage (which factors in 2-point, 3-point and free-throw accuracy) of .554. Here is the list of rookies to average 18-6-4 on .550 TS% in NBA history:
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I am not saying that Flagg is guaranteed to be one of the 10 best players in NBA history. I am just saying that what he has done so far puts him on a pretty cool friggin’ list. (And, for whatever it’s worth: None of those guys was doing that as a teenager.)
The only rookies this century to score as much, as efficiently and with as high a usage rate as Flagg has this season were Karl-Anthony Towns a decade ago and Victor Wembanyama two years back. The last two to do it before them: Tim Duncan and Shaquille O’Neal.
Landing among such all-time elite offensive company would be impressive enough. Reaching that level on a team nearly denuded of high-level complementary offensive talent capable of deflecting defensive attention away from you is downright exceptional. (Not you, Naji Marshall. I think you’re high-level complementary offensive talent, and I always have.)
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With Davis once again sidelined, still no timeline for Irving’s return, third-year center Dereck Lively II lost for the season and plenty of other contributors missing time, leaving the Mavericks as one of the most injury-ravaged teams in the NBA, Flagg — the youngest player in the NBA — has gotten a crash course in doing damn near everything there is to do on the basketball court. His introduction to the pro game saw him suddenly tasked with masquerading as a point guard; that, um, didn’t go so hot. Being thrown into the fire, though, gave the über-prospect an up-close-and-personal brush with failure the likes of which he never experienced — an encounter that Flagg says has paid dividends as he works his way through his maiden voyage through the senior circuit.
“I don’t know if I was ready for that or if I was ready to handle that right off the bat,” he told ESPN’s Tim MacMahon. “I tried my best, and I mean, that’s not to say I can’t go back to it and can’t work on it and get better, but I think it’s just worked out where it’s been better to have somebody else helping out, relieving pressure. … It wasn’t perfect, but I think I learned a lot through that.”
Playing more frequently with fellow rookie Ryan Nembhard or reserve ball-handler Brandon Williams, Flagg has blossomed on the other side of the experiment, averaging more than 20 points and nearly 4.5 assists per game over the last 30 games while making 55% of his 2-point shots. The list of players doing that over the course of the full season looks like an All-NBA ballot.
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And while shifting from the point back to the wing reduces his responsibility for bringing the ball up the floor and initiating offensive sets, it hasn’t exactly meant the kid’s suddenly getting spoon-fed. Flagg’s still shouldering a massive burden when it comes to generating his own scoring chances; according to NBA Advanced Stats, 56% of his baskets this season have been unassisted. Only 30 players in the NBA (minimum 20 games played and 20 minutes per game) are creating for themselves that often — a list that, when you filter for high-minute players like Flagg, is almost exclusively populated by All-Star-level lead guards and No. 1 offensive options.
Flagg generates those looks for himself the hard way: by doing the engine-room work of lowering his head and his shoulder and bulldozing his way to the basket.
While Flagg’s ability to steamroll downhill to create for himself is impressive enough, one area of growth as he moves through the early stages of his career is getting more comfortable facilitating while handling the ball in the two-man game. Including possessions where he passes to a teammate who shoots, Flagg’s pick-and-rolls are producing 0.951 points per possession, according to Synergy. That’s not a particularly exceptional number in and of itself — about league average overall, and 68th out of 93 players finishing at least five plays per game out of the pick-and-roll.
On the other hand, though — and it’s really worth hammering this point home — “about league average at generating points out of the pick-and-roll” is pretty damn good for a just-turned-19-year-old stepping immediately into a primary shot creation role that he’d never played before. And it’s also worth noting that, as with so much else about his game, Flagg seems to be getting better at it as the season goes along.
Over the past month, Dallas has scored 1.063 points per possession out of Flagg’s pick-and-rolls — a mark that would rank between what Mitchell and Jaylen Brown are generating out of the two-man game this season. The reads and passes are rarely breathtaking, but the court vision that he flashed in his fits-and-starts point guard days continues to produce good looks — either for himself after keeping a defender in jail and probing the paint, or for a teammate after the help leans too far in his direction — for an offense that desperately needs them:
Due in part to the relative lack of offensive threats around him, especially with Davis back on the shelf and Irving still in street clothes, teams have been sending more defensive attention at Flagg — loading the coverage toward him, trapping him as he comes off a ball screen, trying to heat him up and force the ball out of his hands. Learning how to patiently play through that kind of pressure takes time and repetition, with today’s pain bringing the promise of more efficient production tomorrow.
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“He’s going each and every night,” Davis said last month, according to Christian Clark of The Athletic. “Each possession. They are trying to put their toughest defender on him every night. Try to take away his ability to put the ball on the floor and score. But he’s handling it very well. Making plays out of the double teams. It’s our job to capitalize when he makes the right play.”
The Mavs haven’t done that often enough this season, shooting just 39.7% off his passes, including a dismal 30.6% on 3-point looks, according to NBA Advanced Stats — in keeping with the sour overall flavor of an attack that ranks 25th or worse in 3-point attempts, makes and percentage, 28th in points per half-court possession, and 27th in overall offensive efficiency. It’s easy to imagine future Dallas rosters built around Flagg prioritizing perimeter shooting, looking to leverage the way that his size and skill enables him to penetrate into the teeth of the defense by flanking him with marksmen capable of cashing out after he drives, reads and kicks.
“The biggest thing that stands out to me is his athleticism,” a Western Conference scout recently told MacMahon of ESPN. “If I’m the GM here, I’m adding as much shooting as possible and building around him for a long time.”
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Flank Flagg with floor-spacers and give him the green light to get downhill, and it seems like you’ve got the recipe for a damn good offense. The only fly in the ointment is Flagg’s own jumper: just 33.5% outside the paint and 28.3% from 3-point land, including a surprising 24.2% on supposedly easier catch-and-shoot triple tries. If he can’t iron out the wrinkles in his J, defenses will be able to duck under ball screens, sag off him and crowd the paint, clogging up driving lanes and making it more difficult for him to create for himself and others.
For what it’s worth, though, at least one pretty reliable source when it comes to shooting the ball isn’t too worried about the kid’s overall outlook …
… which seems smart, considering Flagg’s up to 36% from deep on nearly four attempts per game over the past month — yet another area in which he just continues to improve, night after night, game after game.
Flagg pulled down a season-high 11 boards in Thursday’s win over the Warriors. You don’t need that much time when you’re growing up faster than people think.
Get ready for sponsors to have patches on college teams’ jerseys.
After months of discussion, the NCAA announced Friday that Division I schools are allowed to sell ad space on uniforms, equipment and apparel starting Aug. 1 after the idea was approved by the NCAA’s Division I cabinet.
“College sports are in an exciting new era of increased financial benefits for student-athletes, and the cabinet’s vote [Friday] reflects the ongoing commitment of Division I members to drive additional revenues and fully fund those benefits,” Illinois athletic director and DI cabinet chair Josh Whitman said in a statement. “This also continues the NCAA’s efforts to expand flexibility in areas of NCAA rules, thereby allowing schools and conferences to set standards that reflect their values and serve their unique needs. This important policy change is another step forward in advancing that philosophy and providing members with increased flexibility.”
Schools will not be able to have sponsored apparel or equipment in NCAA championships, such as the men’s and women’s NCAA tournaments. The NCAA does not govern the College Football Playoff.
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Teams will be “permitted up to two additional commercial logos on their uniforms and apparel and one additional commercial logo on equipment during the preseason and regular season” and can have an additional logo for conference championships. All patches must be no larger than four square inches, and the placement of sponsor logos will be legislated by rules subcommittees for each sport.
The NCAA also left open the possibility that “NCAA corporate marketing” partners could obtain jersey space during NCAA championships.
The long-expected addition of jersey patches comes less than two years after the NCAA allowed sponsors to buy ad space on football fields. In July, NCAA schools began revenue sharing with athletes as part of the House settlement. Power four schools are distributing roughly $20 million to their athletes this school year.
This MLB offseason has given onlookers a little bit of everything. We’ve seen blockbuster trades, massive free-agent contracts and all sorts of transactions in between. And after a lull in December, there has been a late-January flurry of action.
Here are the winners and losers of the MLB offseason so far.
Winner: Jed Hoyer and the Chicago Cubs
Since Jed Hoyer took over as the Cubs’ president of baseball operations in 2020, the sport has been waiting for the moment when Hoyer and the Cubs would put their foot down and use their resources to take hold of the division. They’d made some moves over the years, but a big offseason had eluded them, with Hoyer taking his lumps while following a strict budget set by team ownership.
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Coming into this offseason, after the team got back to the NLDS for the first time since 2017, there was a need to do something to carry the momentum into 2026. And this winter, Hoyer finally got to do things his way.
Some wondered if Hoyer deserved his extension after whiffing at last year’s trade deadline, but he has now put together Chicago’s best team in nearly a decade. With those two big moves plus several additions in the bullpen, the Cubs not only improved their roster significantly but also solidified themselves as serious contenders in the National League and the leaders of the pack in the NL Central.
Loser: Philadelphia Phillies
It’s not like the Phillies haven’t made moves this offseason. They kicked things off in a big way at the winter meetings, re-signing clubhouse leader Kyle Schwarber to a five-year, $150 million deal. They added Adolís Garcia to their outfield mix, signed Brad Keller for their bullpen and brought back catcher J.T. Realmutto. Yet their offseason feels like a bit of a disappointment.
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Philly has been involved with several free agents at the top of the market, the latest being Bo Bichette. The Phillies believed they were on the precipice of signing Bichette to a seven-year, $200 million deal. Instead, they were left standing at the altar, watching what would’ve been their biggest acquisition of the offseason land with the division-rival New York Mets. Plus, southpaw Ranger Suárez signed in Boston, leaving a hole in Philadelphia’s rotation.
Now, the Phillies still have a strong starting rotation, and with Schwarber, Bryce Harper and Trea Turner anchoring their lineup, they’ll always have some thump and a chance to win. But their offseason is ending on a sour note, their outfield still has some major questions, and they’ve yet to resolve the Nick Castellanos situation.
But just adding to the rotation wasn’t going to be enough, so while they already had a lengthy lineup, the Jays also signed Japanese star third baseman Kazuma Okamoto. Adding the 29-year-old boosts Toronto’s ability to produce runs and support the newly renovated rotation.
Had the Blue Jays landed their biggest target, free-agent outfielder Kyle Tucker, they would be the unquestioned biggest winners of this offseason. But even coming in as the runners-up for Tucker, they’ve done more than enough to be proud of their winter and put themselves in position to be the American League’s best team in 2026.
Loser: Boston Red Sox
There was a path for the Red Sox to come out of this winter as big winners. But at this point, it doesn’t feel like that is going to happen. Sure, a starter such as Ranger Suárez is a strong addition to the rotation, which also added Sonny Gray early in the offseason. And after missing out on Kyle Schwarber and Pete Alonso, the Sox acquired first baseman Willson Contreras from the St. Louis Cardinals. But all together, Boston’s moves this offseason feel just “fine.”
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Worse, Boston hasn’t addressed its offense in a meaningful way or resolved the log jam in the outfield, with Jarren Duran, Ceddane Rafaela, Wilyer Abreu, Roman Anthony and Masataka Yoshida all still there.
But the biggest miss of this offseason for the Red Sox is undoubtedly letting Alex Bregman leave and sign with the Cubs. Bregman was Boston’s highest priority this winter, yet the team failed to do what was necessary to keep him around and now is left looking to replace him after just one season at Fenway. There’s still a little time left for chief baseball officer Craig Breslow to make a move, but it’s getting a little late to salvage this winter.
Winner: New York Mets
“Slow and steady wins the race” is the mantra Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns must have been telling himself all offseason when it came to New York’s additions. There wasn’t a team under more pressure than the Mets this winter, after they missed the postseason following their $765 million investment in superstar Juan Soto.
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The Mets started the offseason by moving longtime outfielder Brandon Nimmo to the Texas Rangers and landing second baseman Marcus Semien in the deal. Then they signed infielder Jorge Polanco and relievers Devin Williams and Luke Weaver. But those moves weren’t enough to move the needle, especially not with the free-agent departures of Pete Alonso and Edwin Diaz.
Still, the Mets’ biggest need this winter was starting pitching, and as names continued to come off the board, they were in danger of being left without a dance partner. But with just weeks left before the start of spring training, Stearns finally made his biggest move, acquiring ace Freddy Peralta in a trade with the Milwaukee Brewers.
Much like the Cubs, in just a matter of days, the Mets turned a relatively quiet offseason into a big one. Having accomplished many of their goals for this winter, they can now go into the spring feeling as good as anybody about their roster.
Winner: Scott Boras
Scott Boras is having himself a monster offseason, and as we reach the end of January, baseball’s most famous agent has a lot to smile about. Boras was tasked this winter with finding long-term homes for Pete Alonso and Alex Bregman after both essentially signed one-year deals ahead of the 2025 season. One year later, Boras got both what they were looking for, with Alonso signing a five-year, $155 million deal with the Orioles and Bregman landing a five-year, $175 million deal with the Cubs.
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As a collective, Boras’ clients, including Alonso, Bregman, Cody Bellinger, Dylan Cease, Kazuma Okamoto, Tatsuya Imai, Ranger Suárez and Ha-Seong Kim, have signed $966.5 million worth of contracts this offseason. With a few more Boras players still on the market, that number could reach a billion.
Boras certainly has his detractors around the game, but you can’t deny that the super-agent has delivered for his clients and accomplished what he set out to do this offseason.
Loser: Detroit Tigers
The Tigers are wasting a prime opportunity. In what is the worst division in baseball, Detroit has yet to make any significant additions to its roster, and with one year remaining before the best pitcher on the planet, Tarik Skubal, becomes a free agent, that’s a huge miss. The Tigers have made the postseason in back-to-back seasons, and going into this offseason, with the clock ticking on Skubal, it seemed like the perfect time to go for it.
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Instead, president of baseball operations Scott Harris and the Tigers have appeared to be caught in between. Besides re-signing reliever Kyle Finnegan, adding veteran closer Kenley Jansen and keeping second baseman Gleyber Torres via the qualifying offer, they’re basically the same team they’ve been for the past two seasons. And now they’re going to arbitration with Skubal in what will be a monumental case after the two sides were unable to come to an agreement.
If all this leads to a Skubal trade at the deadline, this winter will go down as a huge whiff for Detroit. And even with the prospects they have on the horizon, if they don’t improve the big-league club while Skubal is still around, it’s going to be really difficult to convince a fan base that endured a tough rebuild that things are still getting better.
Kyle Tucker and the Dodgers are among this offseason’s biggest winners, thanks to his $240 million deal to join the back-to-back defending champs.
(Davis Long/Yahoo Sports)
Winner: Los Angeles Dodgers
It would be tough to argue the biggest winners this offseason aren’t the back-to-back World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers. Yes, the rich do indeed get richer, and president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman found a way to fill his 26-man roster with even more star power heading into the 2026 season.
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The Dodgers filled two needs they’d been trying to address for a few years now: closer and corner outfielder. And not only did they fill those needs, but in both cases they did it in grand fashion, signing All-Star closer Edwin Díaz and this winter’s No. 1 free agent, Kyle Tucker.
For a few years, there has been a sense around baseball that a lockout is coming after the current collective bargaining agreement expires on Dec. 1, 2026. Much of that feeling has to do with the growing financial disparity across the sport. While it’s easy for some to blame a high-spending team such as the Dodgers for “ruining baseball,” the situation is more complex than that, with the low-spending teams very much part of the problem. Still, it’s not unrealistic to say the Dodgers’ financial dominance over the rest of the sport is going to make what was already set to be a difficult fight an even uglier one.
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Major League Baseball has a lot of great things going on right now. Young stars continue to emerge each season, attendance and viewership numbers have been strong, and two of the greatest players to ever play, Shohei Ohtani and Aaron Judge, are in the middle of their primes at the same time with big-market teams.
There are plenty of reasons the game of baseball should continue to thrive moving forward. But with the chatter about baseball’s haves and have-nots only growing louder, there’s a dark cloud looming at the end of the 2026 season, with the industry and fans bracing for an unknown that could include lost games. Unfortunately, that dark cloud now feels unavoidable, and we have no idea how long the storm will last.
Fresh off a second stint in the NFL, Philip Rivers interviewed for the open Buffalo Bills head-coaching job, the team announced on Friday.
The Bills are casting a wide net in their search for Sean McDermott’s replacement. Also interviewing on Friday is former Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel, who is expected to land with the Los Angeles Chargers as the team’s offensive coordinator if he doesn’t get another head-coaching job. Washington Commanders run game coordinator Anthony Lynn and Dolphins defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver are scheduled for Saturday, while Jacksonville Jaguars offensive coordinator Grant Udinski will get his chance on Sunday.
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All interviewees this weekend will meet with a group in Florida that will include owner Terry Pegula, president of football operations and general manager Brandon Beane and quarterback Josh Allen.
Bills offensive coordinator Joe Brady, former New York Giants head coach Brian Daboll and Indianapolis Colts defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo have already interviewed.
Rivers, who first retired following the 2020 season with the Colts, played his final playoff game that season during a 27-24 defeat to Allen and the Bills. He spent his first 16 NFL seasons with the Chargers.
Prior to returning to the NFL, Rivers was head coach at St. Michael Catholic High School in Alabama.
