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An opening holding penalty — one of 12 in a messy 2025 opener — didn’t stop Arizona State wide receiver Jordyn Tyson from producing an ESPN top-10 type of touchdown catch on a late drive in the fourth quarter on Saturday.
Have a night @tyson_jordyn š
šŗ ESPN+ pic.twitter.com/QMHZdx4HHT
— Sun Devil Football (@ASUFootball) August 31, 2025
It was among Tyson’s 12 receptions (141 yards) in a 38-19 win over Northern Arizona, where he accounted for all but two by the Sun Devils’ wide receiving core.
The blind, drop-in-the-basket catch from 16 yards out got due attention from the one who threw it, quarterback Sam Leavitt.
“I was pretty shocked he caught that. That was a hell of a catch,” Leavitt said postgame. “Probably one of the best catches I’ve seen in a while. So, props to him for that.”
With 2:46 left in the game, Leavitt was forced to get the ball away quickly, as two Lumberjacks defenders wrapped around the edges largely untouched.
The instinct to reach for the ball when Tyson did was impressive enough, but his pro-level awareness of the sideline enabled him to tap his left foot down in bounds before his momentum carried him too far.
For the star receivers’ part, he said the catch was something he “mastered” as a kid.
“I feel like I mastered that catch when I was a kid and I just never had the opportunity to really do it on the field until now,” Tyson said. “My trainer (and I), we work on ball skills. That’s all we work on.”
Tyson’s first score — a 19-yard catch-and-run check throw from Leavitt a yard behind the line of scrimmage — was not as much as a display of his ball-handling as it was of his acceleration and speed in the open field.
The last time the 6-foot-2 junior didn’t register at least 100 receiving yards or one touchdown was on Sept. 21 last season versus Texas Tech (two catches for 33 yards).
With a boatload of grabs and looks, why didn’t NAU double up coverage on Tyson?
According to coach Kenny Dillingham, it was due to the diverse, or “exotic,” nature of the Lumberjacks’ defensive scheme.
“When you’re an exotic team like (NAU), you don’t double players, right? Because you’re so exotic,” Dillingham said. “If that’s not their plan to double, then we should probably just keep getting him the ball. … I think (favoring Tyson) is going to happen naturally throughout the season. I don’t think it’s going to be forced.”
Dillingham said he fully understands his position in coaching “special players” but that didn’t necessarily prepare him for Tyson’s fourth-quarter gem.
In fact, he admitted he couldn’t even witness the play as it happened.
“You’re constantly amazed,” Dillingham said. “I honestly couldn’t see it. I saw the throw. I didn’t actually see him come down with it with my angles, so I’m excited to go watch it on tape and see the catch.”
ASU’s Tyson has averaged 146.3 yards per game over his last four games, and also has four touchdowns in that span.
On Saturday, the Sun Devils will be at Mississippi State (1-0), a team that ASU also played for Week 2 in 2024.
Tyson will be looking to avenge his worst performance of the year last season, where he hauled in just two balls for seven yards.
Arizona Cardinals cornerback Will Johnson was listed by ESPN’s Matt Miller as a rookie of the year candidate ahead of the 2025 NFL season.
Miller has Johnson fourth on his list, behind New York Giants EDGE Abdul Carter, Denver Broncos corner Jahdae Barron and Baltimore Ravens safety Malaki Starks. He said that Johnson has the skills to be a key contributor for the Cardinals this season.
One of the biggest surprises in the draft was when Johnson fell to the 47th pick. Injuries during his final season at Michigan and throughout the predraft process affected his stock, but his talent and tools were enough to have him ranked as my No. 1 pure cornerback in the class (Travis Hunter not included). Johnson fills a need in Arizona as an outside corner who has the height (6-foot-2), speed and instincts to be a playmaker.
Johnson had a solid college career in three seasons at Michigan, registering 68 total tackles and nine interceptions. He won a national championship with the Wolverines in 2023 and was named the defensive MVP in the College Football Playoff title game against Washington.
In his final season with Michigan, Johnson registered two interceptions but was limited to just six games due to a turf toe and shoulder injuries. Some speculated that Johnson had a knee issue in 2024 that might have played a part in him falling to the second round in this year’s draft. However, Johnson debunked that theory in an article on The Player’s Tribune, saying he had knee cartilage removed in 2023 and the turf toe injury made him miss time.
Johnson joins a youthful cornerback room in Arizona that includes third-year pros Garrett Williams and Kei’Trel Clark, second-year corner Max Melton and rookie Denzel Burke. He will look to be a key player in a cornerback room that has already been dealt a few blows before Week 1, including Sean Murphy-Bunting and Starling Thomas V being put on the injured reserve with season-ending injuries.
The Cardinals start their season on the road against the New Orleans Saints on Sept. 7.
The Arizona State Sun Devils football team will open next season with a matchup against Morgan State, according to SunDevilSource.com’s Chris Karpman.
Morgan State will replace Bowling Green on ASU’s schedule after the program backed out of the game.
Kickoff times and a TV network have yet to be announced.
Next season’s matchup will mark the first time ASU and Morgan State have faced off in football.
ASU will kick off their 2025 campaign against NAU at Mountain America Stadium on Saturday. Kickoff is at 7 p.m. MST and can be listened on the Arizona Sports app, ESPN 620 AM 98.7 FM HD-2. The game can be seen on ESPN+.
The NBA offseason has come and gone! Mostly!
Outside of some restricted free agency nonsense, we know the shape the league is headed in next season. With that, it is time for our annual revisiting of the pecking order in the Phoenix Suns’ Western Conference heading into next season.
After covering where they land and how it could shake up in the mid-tier, it’s as stacked a top-four as the conference has ever seen.
Behold, The ‘Unction.
The oldest roster in NBA history, according to Yahoo! Sports’ Tom Haberstroh, is led by two stars who toggle between inconsistent and unavailable. Their two biggest additions of the offseason toggle between inconsistent and unavailable.
This makes it easy to discard the Clippers. I would advise against that.
Ty Lue’s pedigree has been instilled into this franchise, with last year’s iteration becoming a wonderful surprise thanks to an All-NBA-caliber jump from Ivica Zubac, an All-NBA revival from James Harden, an All-Star-caliber jump from Norman Powell and program-defining role players like Nicolas Batum, Kris Dunn and Derrick Jones Jr. filling in all sorts of gaps.
Powell got shipped out for John Collins, an acquisition that will either be a shrug or the move of the summer. While it will likely be the former for a blah defensive player and above average offensive player, Collins has never been in a situation as good as this, and replacing Powell’s minutes with Bradley Beal, Chris Paul and last year’s trade deadline acquisition Bogdan Bogdanovic is a net win.
The homecoming for Paul will transform the Clippers, because even if he’s 40 and nothing more than an effective backup at this point, he’s still going to do Chris Paul things and is a giant upgrade over what L.A. had in the past. Harden’s backups since arriving have been Russell Westbrook and Kevin Porter Jr., two incredibly volatile players who are now replaced by one of the steadiest ball-handlers the game has ever seen.
Paul gets to go about those scattering minutes running two-man game with the outstanding Zubac and Brook Lopez, a duo that has all the intricacies down Paul usually has to teach his bigs. Lopez, in particular, is a basketball nirvana level of match for Paul. Can’t wait to watch him with those centers. Mirror Paul with Dunn and/or Jones so he can be hidden on defense and you’re golden. Guess who knows how to do that way better than the basketball blog boy? Lue.
Beal’s going to be great. The effectiveness will vary based on how consistently he will stay on the court, but players like him need a proper ecosystem. And as long as he’s going there with an understanding of his role and the Clippers aren’t coddling him by foolishly putting Dunn on the bench, they should be in business. Beal just needs to be the fourth- or fifth-best player on this team. Should be easy enough, and even if it isn’t, L.A. can still be an elite team without him. A no-brainer add.
Kawhi Leonard has just about faded out of his prime, a prime where he’d reach a peak in-game of a, “Oh, wait, we forgot Kawhi is the best player in the world sometimes” type of reaction. But he’s still pretty awesome. And remember, he played 37 games and the Clippers still won 50. That was aided by Zubac, who in my opinion is a top-five center in the game, and I’d go as far as saying Nikola Jokic and Anthony Davis are the only two that are definitively better than him right now. He will be set up by Harden and Paul all season, by the way.
As long as Leonard is good for April and Harden keeps up his durability the last two years, this is a top-4 seed that will be a postseason matchup nightmare for anyone with legitimate title equity.
As previously covered in this space, I got a theory on this Kevin Durant fella. The best way to set him up for success is have your culture and identity set before he arrives. Instead of building it around him, have him instead assimilate into what you’ve already got cooking. This is why it tail-spinned in Phoenix and why it is going to work in Houston.
Durant only has two responsibilities on this team: fit in and fix the offense. The latter should take care of itself. It will take some time for the Rockets’ young players to figure out his tempo, how to play off him and so on, but Houston’s offensive incompetency was a consistent ceiling-limiter that was a disasterclass to watch in crunch time. Durant will get that sorted so it’s at the very least not losing the Rockets games, and then the next step will be freeing up Amen Thompson and Alperen Sengun so that duo can eventually command the offense in spurts too.
That part of the equation and the fitting in is unfortunately just going to have to be a “we’ll see” after what we watched here in Phoenix. Durant looked poised to make a run at an All-Defense team a few weeks into the season before the team’s despondent vibes were matched on the floor by no one more than him, with his frequent propensity for not making an extra defensive rotation, boxing out his man or getting back in transition. Those are non-negotiables in Houston, a standard he knows he will have to meet.
It’s been over two months and the trade is still incredibly ridiculous from the Houston side. The NBA’s best wing unit of Durant, Thompson, Tari Eason, Jabari Smith Jr. and “Oh Yeah, They Signed Him” First-Teamer Dorian Finney-Smith will more than cover the minutes out the door from Jalen Green and Dillon Brooks. It’s inarguable that the minutes are in fact much more effective now. Green’s departure naturally opens up playing time for Reed Sheppard, the No. 3 overall pick last year, who can take some of that time while spelling Fred VanVleet more frequently as well.
It’s not even clear where the No. 10 overall pick sent to Phoenix in the Durant trade could have even contributed this year or next. Backup center? Steven Adams got re-signed and Clint Capela was brought in too. More wings for some reason? The third-string depth also includes Josh Okogie, Jae’Sean Tate and Jeff Green. You could make an argument for another ball-handler, but remember that Thompson handles a decent chunk of playmaking and so does Sengun. If Sheppard is ready at all, he’s the fifth playmaker behind Durant, Thompson, VanVleet and Sengun.
Thompson is the biggest swing player in the league. Yep, the whole NBA. January was a, “Holy @*#& have you watched him?!” breakout that suggested he would end the year as a top-25 player. That jet-fueled blast off sort of fizzled out, backlogging his future stardom for the time being, especially after an expectedly inconsistent playoff debut. No one is more athletic than him right now, and some long-time experts will tell you that’s the case, like, ever, that they’ve never seen someone move like Thompson before. Because of that, he can make that All-Star jump even without a jumper.
If that happens, Thompson and Eason, affectionately known as “The Terror Twins,” will dominate the margins on a nightly basis in a culture-driving type of way that every other team is going to groan at the thought of having to face. That’s already happening in some ways, but Thompson doing so as a threat for All-NBA-type or recognition would take that into overdrive. It would make the Rockets much better, and more importantly, Durant. In turn, that would shift the entire conversation on who is the favorite in the conference.
Denver has had back-to-back regular seasons emanating flaws that crumble championship aspirations, only for back-to-back postseasons of incredible defiance, including nearly taking out the champs last May with no depth, Michael Porter Jr. averaging 7.4 PPG through an injury and Aaron Gordon hardly being able to move sometimes. This was all while there was major internal turmoil resulting in a coach/general manager combo-platter firing before the season even ended.
The depth from ’23 that was eradicated due to the front office being scawed, wittle cheapskates has been replenished. Bruce Brown returns and could regain most of his form from that run. Tim Hardaway Jr. brings much-needed moxie and shot-making to the secondary wing rotation. The Nuggets finally landed a competent Nikola Jokic backup in Jonas Valanciunas, while the best development to come from the failed attempt at unproven youngsters replacing those guys was Christian Braun, who is legitimately good now.
Perhaps this is the year Zeke Nnaji, Jalen Pickett, Hunter Tyson or Peyton Watson nail down roles through competency, but it’s not necessary this time. And keep an eye on Arizona high school product DaRon Holmes II, a stretch big who missed all of last year due to injury after going in the first round of the 2024 draft. He could usurp Valanciunas by the end of the year.
The upgrade from Porter to Cam Johnson is immense. Porter deserves a ton of credit for embracing his role for a ring and was absolute nails across that time. But it was always a challenge to maximize a scoring wing sandwiched by Jokic and Jamal Murray, one that really had to be brought along from an effort and floor sense standpoint. Johnson, as you lot know, has had that from Day 1.
He’s also a better, smarter defender, as well as the type of perfect basketball IQ match for Jokic, like Gordon is with the off-ball movement and cutting. Getting to know how Johnson thinks about the game, expect him to really hone in on mastering his spacing and finding gaps early in the year, knowing Jokic is always going to find him all over the court and developing a two-man rapport for relocation kick-outs. One of the many reasons why basketball is so incredible is when you get to watch two guys play together with seamless synergy. That’ll be Johnson and Jokic.
The only hesitation is replacing Russell Westbrook. Yeah, I said it! Confidently too! Brown, in theory, should pick up where he left off as the “backup point guard” to handle offense when it isn’t Murray or Jokic. But if it isn’t Brown, a guy who is a wing most of the time and is under a different head coach in Denver now, there isn’t another trustworthy option. Murray more or less got back on track last season, but Denver still can’t position itself to be relying on him too much before the playoffs roll around and he goes supernova as usual.
This is the best team Jokic has had, assuming Gordon, Johnson and Murray can stay healthy. He is still the best player on the planet, so those two things together are quite relevant.
This should be a cookie-cutter, 65-win result minimum. But let’s look for any potential regression indicators.
Injury luck? Eh. While Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (76 games played), Jalen Williams (69) and Luguentz Dort (71) avoided lengthy absences, the starting big duo of Isaiah Hartenstein (57) and Chet Holmgren (32) did not.
Individual drop-off? Eh. Gilgeous-Alexander is the best ball-handler in the world. Holmgren and Williams both rode an aggressive roller coaster of up-and-downs in the postseason but the highs showed the potential they still have left to meet. Williams, in particular, feels like a safe bet to solidify himself as a top-20 guy this year. Holmgren has the more tantalizing upside, so a big jump from an already very good player is a possibility, too. Hartenstein is only 27 years old. Dort’s 26. Alex Caruso is just 31. All three should still be ultra-dependable.
The next few guys on the depth chart are where some variance could lie. Isaiah Joe, Cason Wallace and Aaron Wiggins were all integral to the success in the regular season before playing a part in OKC’s reliable rotation, cutting in half from 12 guys to six by the conference finals. Wiggins, 26, looks like a Sixth Man of the Year candidate at his best and Wallace was a lottery pick in 2023. Joe’s too pure of a sniper to see any real shift one way or the other. They should still be rock solid but have to be better in May and beyond.
Even if there’s more volatility there that carries over from the playoffs, the reinforcements are arriving.
Nikola Topic, the No. 12 pick in last year’s draft, was out all year due to injury and could have potentially gone top-five without that ailment. As a 6-foot-6 playmaker, he and 2024 second-round pick Ajay Mitchell will factor into the rotation this year. Mitchell already showed flashes as a rookie and a whole lot will come for Topic as the third ball-handler behind Gilgeous-Alexander and Williams if he can beat out Mitchell for that job.
I’m a big fan of this draft class. OKC’s first-round pick, at 15th overall of course because of prior trades, was Georgetown center Thomas Sorber. He’s a throwback with 90s elements to his game around the basket, while his ridiculous wingspan and solid feel let him affect the game defensively. Sorber’s passing will fit in nicely and has decent mobility as a diving threat with a skillset that’s slightly different (in a good way) than the other bigs. There’s a real good shot we see some of the second-round pick Brooks Barnhizer as well. He was one of the best players in the Big Ten each of the last two years, and if his high-end intangibles on both ends would get carved into an effective role player shape anywhere, it would be here.
OKC will be the big favorite to repeat, and rightfully so. At the same time, those such as myself who were weary of treating them as such last summer were proven correct, with close calls in two different series. The Thunder were the first champion since 2013 (Miami) to have two series go at least seven games. They’ve got three teams behind them that are good enough to test them to that degree again, but those are also three teams with notable changes across the roster, while OKC can just ride the same continuity.
A fun wrinkle: Here are the teams to repeat since 1984 when the playoffs became a 16-team bracket — Lakers (1987-88), Pistons (1989-90), Bulls (1991-93), Rockets (1994-95), Bulls (1996-98), Lakers (2000-02), Lakers (2009-10), Heat (2012-13) and Warriors (2017-18). All of them were led by generational all-timers — Magic, Kareem, Isiah, MJ, Hakeem, Shaq, Kobe, LeBron, Wade, Curry and Durant.
Is SGA eventually going to be of that caliber, and it’s just sneaking up on us quickly? It’s worth considering if he runs the table again.
Two minority owners of the Phoenix Suns have sued the team and its controlling owner Mat Ishbia, demanding to see records in order to investigate the status of the team’s business and financial condition.
According to a redacted copy of the lawsuit that was filed last week in Delaware Court and obtained by The Associated Press, Kisco WC Sports II, LLC, and Kent Circle Investments, LLC, allege that Ishbia and Suns Capital Group are depriving other members of ownership with basic information about the management of the team.
“Our clients sued to obtain records to which they are entitled as minority owners of the Suns,” Michael Carlinsky, a co-managing partner of Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan and attorney for the plaintiffs, said in a statement. “They are concerned by the manager’s approach towards minority owners, and want more information about certain spending and capital raises in which the manager has engaged. Transparency with minority owners is not optional, and our clients think it is critical to the success of the Suns.”
In the lawsuit, the plaintiffs say they’re making their demand for records in search of information that could reveal possible breaches of the partnership agreement, mismanagement of the company and conflicts of interests.
The plaintiffs also cite a belief that Ishbia may have “entered into multiple undisclosed side deals with other investor members” on things including the funding of the team’s practice facility.
The Suns declined to comment.
Earlier this week, attorneys representing Ishbia sent a letter to the attorneys representing the two minority owners. The letter was obtained by The Associated Press.
The letter says that Andrew Kohlberg and Scott Seldin are seeking $825 million for their share of the team, which would put the valuation of the franchise around $6 billion. That would be about a 60% increase from the time the franchise was purchased in 2022.
Ishbia, a mortgage executive, bought a majority stake of the Phoenix Suns and Phoenix Mercury from the embattled owner Robert Sarver for $4 billion. Ishbia and his brother Justin said then that they would be acquiring more than 50% of the franchises, which includes the entirety of Sarver’s share as well as some holdings from minority partners.
The sale was officially approved in February 2023. Kohlberg and Seldin were among the only minority owners who did not sell their shares when Ishbia purchased the team.
“Kohlberg and Seldin chose not to sell, and instead decided to remain limited partners knowing full well that ISH Suns intended to invest heavily,” the letter states. “Your clients should be thrilled with that decision and the performance of their investment.”
The letter goes on to state that Ishbia “does not intend to reduce or slow its investments in the Company and its teams. To the contrary, ISH Suns will continue doing whatever it takes to position the Suns and Mercury to win championships, ensure a positive team culture, create a lasting impact on the greater Phoenix community and improve the fan experience.”
Last week’s lawsuit marked the latest in a string of multiple legal actions against the Suns and Mercury.
Last month, the Suns confirmed it fired Gene Traylor, a former security manager who filed a lawsuit against the team in May alleging discrimination, harassment and unlawful retaliation. The team said at the time that Traylor was terminated after an outside investigation found he’d violated company policies regarding confidential information.
Earlier in July, former Mercury interim coach Nikki Blue filed a lawsuit against the organization, alleging unequal treatment based on race and gender, unequal pay based on race and that her employment was terminated in retaliation for complaints about unequal treatment.
In November, Andrea Trischan sued the team, alleging racial discrimination and unlawful retaliation that led to her termination. Trischan was the team’s former manager of diversity, equity and inclusion for about 10 months in 2022 and 2023.
Northern Arizona Lumberjacks kicker Samuel Hunsaker knew what he was doing when he posted a practice kick on Monday with the text: “5 days away from NAU making history vs ASU.”
nau kicker samuel hunsaker, who played his high school ball at ala queen creek, seems to have given asu some extra juice on instagram.
sam leavitt happy to take it, it appears pic.twitter.com/hBlqyHRccS
— Damon Allred (@iamdamonallred) August 28, 2025
The bold prediction of his Big West team upsetting No. 11 ASU is still living on Instagram with more than 1,600 likes and 134,000 views.
If attention is what Hunsaker is seeking, he got it. Among those viewers is another man who could impact the outcome of the Saturday game in Tempe between the Sun Devils and Lumberjacks, ASU quarterback Sam Leavitt.
He replied with one word: “Bet.”
Leavitt is not allowed to bet and he is using slang, to be clear. But fans who are allowed to bet would find that NAU is currently a 28.5-point underdog, according to the FanDuel Sportsbook.
That puts into perspective how bold of a claim it is by Hunsaker, an ALA-Queen Creek product who is 4 for 7 in his career on field goals.
Leavitt, we’ll guess, will have more opportunities than Hunsaker to dictate how the game will go considering his position.
Arizona State head coach Kenny Dillingham has already at least said out loud that his team will use the full playbook against NAU — whether that’s coach-speak or not we won’t be able to say. Still, it seems the Sun Devils are taking an upset possibility quite seriously despite their status as reigning Big 12 champions.
Hunsaker’s public prediction certainly reminds us of the time that former Michigan center Hunter Dickinson — on a podcast before his basketball team faced ASU — said the Wolverines were about to win by 20 points.
Arizona State ended up winning by 25 instead.
The Arizona Cardinals have added former Desert Mountain High School quarterback Kedon Slovis to the practice squad as their third-stringer behind Kyler Murray and Jacoby Brissett, Arizona Sports’ Tyler Drake confirmed.
He fills the void left by Clayton Tune, who was waived at the 53-man roster cut deadline and joined the Green Bay Packers on Wednesday.
Slovis played for the practice squads of the Indianapolis Colts and Houston Texans in the past year after he went undrafted in 2024 out of BYU. He was waived by Houston on Tuesday.
This preseason with the Texans, Slovis completed 27 of 43 passes (62.8%) for 233 yards, a touchdown and an interception.
His college career began on a high at USC, when then-starter JT Daniels went down with a season-ending injury. Slovis appeared in 12 games that year and set an NCAA freshman record completion percentage of 71.8%, passing for 3,502 yards and 30 touchdowns to nine interceptions in an Air Raid style offense.
The numbers fell off as he struggled with injuries the next two years, playing a combined 13 games for the Trojans. Slovis spent a year at Pittsburgh in 2022 and then closed his college career at BYU in 2023, throwing for 1,716 yards with 12 touchdowns and six interceptions over eight starts.
Tune, 26, was a fifth-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft and went on to be Arizona’s third-string quarterback that year before getting elevated to the backup role last season behind Kyler Murray.
Tune made his one lone start as a rookie and has 23 total pass attempts to his name.
His most relevant role was in quarterback sneak packages, Arizona’s version of “The Tush Push” in Philly, which ultimately was not nearly as successful.
The NBA offseason has come and gone! Mostly!
Outside of some restricted free agency nonsense, we know the shape the league is headed in next season, and we know the shape of the Phoenix Suns. With that, it is time for our annual revisiting of the pecking order in the Western Conference heading into next season, starting from the bottom up.
Spoiler: It will not take us long to get to the local team.
Utah belligerently tanked last year. It was astounding. The Jazz had a game in Phoenix at one point in the season that was absolutely winnable and the lack of desire in going after it was blatant.
Svi Mykhailiuk relished the freedom of an ultra-green light he had, hurting his team more than helping to a degree I have rarely seen. How he played usually gets a guy subbed out. Instead, he kept playing, all while the fourth quarter was trickling down and both Lauri Markkanen and Collin Sexton sat on the bench with minute totals in the low 20s. They didn’t check in until midway through it, and by then, the damage had been done.
That made it easy to take solace in Will Hardy getting a contract extension this summer, a nod to a good head coach having to suffer through an effort he was surely told was going to yield Cooper Flagg. Instead, the league’s worst record landed the No. 5 overall pick, as the new lottery odds are designed to do.
That was a major, major problem for the Jazz, because all their post-Donovan Mitchell/Rudy Gobert era rebuild has yielded is young players who are “fine.” Keyonte George is fine. Walker Kessler is fine. Isaiah Collier is fine. Kyle Filipowski is fine. Taylor Hendricks is fine (if he can ever stay healthy).
Cody Williams is very not fine, coming off an awful rookie season in which he was selected one pick before Matas Buzelis, two before Nikola Topic, four before Bub Carrington, five before Ke’lel Ware and six before Jared McCain. McCain is a stud, Buzelis and Ware show flashes to become one, Topic could do the same this year and Carrington should at least be solid. Whoops.
The Jazz need a star, which is why taking Ace Bailey at No. 5 — even through the “I could not care less about this NBA offseason subplot” award winner of him trying to force his way to another team and then acting like he totally did not do that and is stoked about Utah — was a win for them. Walter Clayton Jr. has a shot too, and coming from someone who likes Collier, they need to find Clayton playing time right away. He’s legit.
Markkanen was a true star two years ago, but there’s some combination of under-the-radar injuries and the tank affecting that ascension from being maintained. While he’s still a trade chip, his value has now entered a strange paradigm, which will surely make it super easy and chill to negotiate with Danny Ainge, right?
In the meantime, Utah has continued to stockpile picks, so it will get this right eventually. It’s just going to take a while, and the Jazz are probably fine with biding their time in the basement.
As listeners and readers will be familiar with by now, I land rather low on this iteration of the Suns. When simply taking a tally of the talent on the roster, it’s threatening for 40 wins. But just about none of it comes together.
The way in which this Phoenix team exceeds expectations is by getting the absolute most out of Devin Booker, and that doesn’t seem possible while sharing a backcourt with Jalen Green, a player with plenty of upside left to untap that the Suns would be wise to explore. That now becomes part of Booker’s responsibility, and a shoot-first two-guard isn’t a snug fit to say the least.
The large drop-off in playmaking ability from Booker to Green, and then Green to backup point guard Collin Gillespie, is a massive concern. Booker and Green have to manage that load while playing defense on the other end, by the way.
The Suns’ second-best player is either Green or Mark Williams, who has missed more games than he has played through three injury-riddled seasons so far. The wing rotation is actually fairly strong, but Dillon Brooks, Grayson Allen and Royce O’Neale are not the type of bigger wings (like Ryan Dunn) you’d want alongside that backcourt, as Phoenix will be an undersized team for the third straight year. Juggling playing time for those vets will become a chore at times.
Nigel Hayes-Davis being a successful NBA reclamation project would be a big-time help, as would either rookies Khaman Maluach or Rasheer Fleming being ready right away and providing some pop off the bench. Oso Ighodaro should solidify himself as a solid piece for Phoenix’s future, assuming the Suns can find him playing time.
That is on the floor. Off it, there should be angst about where the future is going, and that usually has a way of trickling its way back onto said floor.
In a “typing this out to make sure we all fully soak in what’s going on here” manuever, this offseason has included an internal letter getting out that has the owner of the team stating he will now be far more directly involved in the basketball operations elements of the organization, doing so by hiring a general manager he’s tight with and one who has one year of official front office experience and then that GM conducting a head-coaching search littered with question marks.
If that wasn’t happening and the Western Conference wasn’t a war field, this could be a surprisingly plucky bunch to vie for a play-in spot. But it is happening. And this conference is a war field.
New Orleans drew the most ire of any team this offseason for its moves. And yet, on paper (there he goes with this shtick again), this team could actually be really good. If the franchise wasn’t hexed by an evil spirit from the 1600s, buying the squad would make sense.
Zion Williamson is a top-30 guy when healthy. Trey Murphy II has emerged during this curse as a premier shooter and potential All-Star in the future. Herb Jones keeps getting better as an elite 3-and-D support player, while Yves Missi might go as high as the top-5 in a redraft of last year’s class. That’s a tantalizing quartet, and that’s before you remember Dejounte Murray should make it a fivesome if he wasn’t out for the year.
But we know how this is going to go. Williamson will get hurt, leaving New Orleans compromised from a lead playmaking situation, and then more unfortunate injuries will follow, like the last few seasons. That is why the Pelicans traded for Jordan Poole and drafted lead guard Jeremiah Fears and center Derik Queen.
The issue is the Pelicans acquired Poole in a C.J. McCollum trade that turned his expiring into another year of a $30-plus million salary, and to get Queen, they traded up in the draft using an unprotected 2026 first-round pick.
Poole further became a walking meme in Washington, but heat-check guards with ultra confidence that are efficient enough generally get underrated. Golden State does not win a ring without him in 2022, but he’s regressed since, albeit in poor situations. An interesting, under-the-radar crossroads year is coming up for him.
The Pelicans as a fit for Queen is fascinating because they drafted the prospect with the most conditioning concerns after going through that nightmare for this whole decade, all while acing yet another draft pick last year in Missi, another 5. But Queen as a playmaking hub would be a bountiful relief of pressure off Williamson and the wings. Sometimes spacing isn’t everything, and watching him work two-man game with Williamson will be one of those qualifiers.
Bizarrely, New Orleans tripled down on 5s by signing Kevon Looney, so that’s another odd wrinkle for Queen and Missi that suggests these whackos really think those guys can play together for legitimate stretches. Queen’s jumper is unproven and a mystery but maybe the Pelicans, who once again have crushed on a lot of scouting work the last handful of years, identified something crucial there.
Fears will swing how the next three years go for New Orleans. He has arguably the largest gap between his ceiling and floor, armed with a lightning handle and the ability to get to the basket. If the ancillary pieces, such as his pull-up shooting and ball-screen game, come together around that tremendous base, he’s got All-NBA nods in his future.
Minor leaguewide subplot to watch: The next two seasons on Williamson’s contract beyond this year are not guaranteed.
Per The Athletic’s Will Guillory, Williamson has 20% guaranteed for next year if “he passes all six of his weigh-in checkpoints during the prior season,” 40% if he plays at least 41 games this year and then two more chunks of 20% for a 51-game and 61-game threshold. It has been a sad career to watch, drowned out under the weight of “if’s” as soon as it started.
And he just turned 25. (Side note, think about that type of contract structuring as inspo for the Suns with Mark Williams next summer).
What in the Sam Hill is going on here?
After winning 48 and 46 games the two years prior to last season, the Kings started 13-18 and fired Mike Brown. They traded De’Aaron Fox in only the way they could, bringing back Zach LaVine as the primary return, and subsequently went 14-18 with him in the lineup. That is despite having Domantas Sabonis, arguably a top-five center when it was inarguable two years ago, and the criminally underrated DeMar DeRozan.
Losing Fox, playing without a point guard and pushing fit concerns to the extreme submarined what was 50 wins on paper. Suns fans should be either violently nodding along, trembling or both.
To fix that, the Kings … overpaid for Dennis Schroder? That solves the point guard problem in a way, but is still a clunky fit. Meanwhile, they are still going through the laborious restricted free agency dance with Malik Monk, who tried his best to run offense once Fox left. It’s now tough to expect what Year 2 for Devin Carter could bring. He spent most of his rookie season injured after getting tons of pre-draft hype as an explosive two-way combo guard.
Carter being a contributor would go a long way because the depth is in a tough spot beyond him and Keon Ellis, which again is ringing Suns fans’ alarm bells seeing such an unbalanced roster. A strong 2025 draft class comprised of Nique Clifford and Maxime Raynaud, two prospects raved about in this space as possible Phoenix targets, could help change that. Keegan Murray has been poised for a breakout for long enough that we can now confidently say that possibility has fizzled.
You are not crazy if you talk yourself into this team. Because, as previously stated, all the talent is there. You just need a friend to give you a lil’ smack to remind you that this is the Kings and this is what happened last year. I needed that friend last year before placing them sixth but will be that friend for you this time around.
I want to preface that I can see 5-11 finishing in any order. Tiers are helpful in creating the distinction of a gap between certain teams, but the size of the gap from later Tiers 3 to 2 is larger than the tiny one between 3 and 5.
Dallas is a tough read. Kyrie Irving is out until at least the turn of the new year, and probably longer. Until then, it is a D’Angelo Russell and Cooper Flagg vehicle running the show to maximize a superb trio of bigs in Anthony Davis, Dereck Lively II and Daniel Gafford.
Flagg’s got a ton of hype, anointed by many as the best No. 1 pick to come out of college in at least a decade. As a reminder, 2020-22 featured Anthony Edwards, Cade Cunningham and Paolo Banchero. That’s pretty lofty company to surpass! As you can tell, I’m not quite there. In the tiring “player comp” exercise, I’m pegging Flagg somewhere around a more offensive-minded Andre Iguodala, which is a pretty awesome basketball player but never a guy who will be a top-5 player and probably even top-10.
If that’s wrong and Flagg is indeed him, it’s exactly what the Mavericks require. Russell unlocking his Brooklyn form would probably be the only other way this ship is steered, and saying this as someone who has been a fan of his game, he’s past that now. Davis will miss a large stretch of games at some point, while Lively is having the not-so-chill development for young 7-footers of a surgery getting completed on his foot.
The depth is great, but it will only matter if the top-end production is there while Irving heals up. Naji Marshall was terrific to close the year, P.J. Washington should settle back into a complementary role and Max Christie has a good shot to be the best wing out of these three. We didn’t even cover Klay Thompson, Caleb Martin or Dante Exum yet, winning players in different ways.
That was purposefully presented to you in that way because it’s six solid-to-good wings for a team with three starting-caliber centers that needs another ball-handler. There’s a trade to find here surely, right? It’s late August, so enough time has passed to make you believe that’s not happening anymore.
Building a tower of “if’s” will take the shape less of a magnificent skyline skyscraper and more of a harrowing red flag, but if Flagg is Dallas’ second prince that was promised, if the bigs stay healthy, if Russell can be dependable and if Irving looks like himself when he comes back toward the end of the year, this should be a fantastic team at full strength.
Instinctively, you are supposed to see a team trade someone for four first-round picks and believe that team is going to be bad the next season. That is almost always how it works.
Memphis has a good chance to be the exception. Four first-round picks and a swap would always be the height of Desmond Bane’s value. He was a vital part of what the Grizzlies did, but they needed a shakeup. Even though some of the motivation here was money-related to keep the tax bill in order, the core of this team is still in its mid-20s with more young talent coming as well. All in all, good work done.
A noteworthy stat for you: Since the year Ja Morant made his first All-Star team (four years ago), Memphis’ record when he plays is 112-65. That is a .633 win percentage, akin to a 52-win pace. Morant did not look like the same guy last year, but Memphis went 30-20 when he was out there and outscored teams by 6.8 points per 100 possessions, a solid number for a star on a playoff team.
Jaren Jackson Jr. is coming off an excellent year. He’s got his faults, with the fouling and rebounding alongside the unconventional way he gets his offense being unavoidable, but he’s solidified himself as a top-30 guy and worthwhile No. 2 to Morant if he can get back in form this season.
The contributions beyond those two should be healthy as always. Year 2 for Jaylen Wells and Zach Edey could take that into overdrive.
Wells immediately established himself as a winning player and is already just a good, all-around, two-way wing with more room to grow. Edey is someone the team drafting him had to know how to utilize properly, and the Grizzlies’ complete dysfunction behind the scenes with the coaching staff probably played a role in them clearly not getting the most out of his skillset. The playoffs were also telling with how much more difficult it will be for him to score individually and finish around the rim, so keep an eye on his production this go-around.
In no surprise, those net rating stats for Morant were topped by Brandon Clarke, who continues to be a luxury of a backup big. Ty Jerome was an excellent signing to take the reigns voided by Bane’s departure as the secondary ball-handler, while Scottie Pippen Jr. can keep helping out there too as he did through injuries. Santi Aldama is a crucial piece of the puzzle to provide shooting, especially as a big. He and Jerome will really need to carry that catch-and-shoot/supplementary scoring part of the equation that Bane handled previously.
The wild card is the wing group beyond Wells. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope was rough in Orlando. He might be hitting a wall hard at 32. GG Jackson and Vince Williams Jr., two great finds that boded well for the future after the 2023-24 season, were unable to get healthy, with Jackson fading out of the rotation toward the end of the year. Cedric Coward was playing in the Big Sky Conference two years ago, played six games at Washington State last season and then went 11th in this year’s draft. His collegiate track record does not match how many front offices absolutely loved him, so something’s off here (in a good way). Expect him on First Team All-Rookie.
An infestation of the injury bug has plagued Memphis for a few years now. If it can get a reasonable outcome on that end, plus Morant resuming his ascension, this has the feel of everything getting back on track to sniffing around 50 wins again. But until the injuries relent and Morant proves he can stay on the court without nonsense off it, it’s difficult to fully trust this bunch.
The new accommodations to replace the FanDuel Sportsbook space in PHX Arena have been revealed.
The Phoenix Suns announced Wednesday they have partnered with FanDuel to create the FanDuel Lounge. The 6,000-square foot space will be available at the first Suns home preseason game on Oct. 14. The lounge will also be open to Mercury season ticket holders at the start of the 2026 season.
Club members will have early access to the lounge prior to arena doors opening on game days. The club includes an outdoor terrace, full-service kitchen with food and beverages not offered within the arena and a marketplace for fans to purchase prepackaged snacks and drinks.
“We are always looking for new ways to add value for our dedicated season ticket members,” Phoenix Suns and Phoenix Mercury CEO Josh Bartelstein said in a press release. “The FanDuel Lounge is another investment in our membership experience and provides a premium space for all members to enjoy together on gamedays.”
Like the $2 value menu and Ra Ra Room that have been created in the past year, the lounge is another effort by Suns and Mercury ownership to elevate the arena experience outside of the game.
The Big 12 announced Tuesday that it leads the Power 4 college football conferences in Swift engagement.
No, that is not an advanced metric about how swiftly a player can remain engaged with a would-be tackler while blocking down the field.
Taylor Swift, a very successful singer, and Travis Kelce, a former Cincinnati Bearcat, are engaged to be married. Kelce, who currently plays for the Kansas City Chiefs, played for the Bearcats from 2008-12, when they were members of the Big East.
Nonetheless, Big 12 vice president of communications and strategy Clark Williams confirmed his conference touts the only former player to be currently engaged to Swift. He likely used StatsMuse and Sports-Reference.com to confirm that fact.
Game note: the Big 12 Conference is the only P4 league to have a student-athlete alumni currently engaged to Taylor Swift.
— Clark Williams (@_CEWilliams_) August 26, 2025
In the sports and the news world, that has disrupted the news cycle on a day where MLB released its full schedule and the NFL is set to cut down rosters to 53 players per team.
Thanks a lot, Taylor Swift. Now no one cares that next year's schedule is out.#GuardsBall pic.twitter.com/77SMUdbrl8
— Cleveland Guardians (@CleGuardians) August 26, 2025
Travis Kelce making cut down day all about himself, smh /s https://t.co/GcaYEiveYO
— TDT Media (@ThirdDownThurs) August 26, 2025
Can’t believe Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift announced their engagement on Naz Reid’s birthday
— SixOneTwoTees (@SixOneTwoTees) August 26, 2025
Thank you, Taylor Swift & Travis Kelce for getting your little news pushed through today.
The BIG news is coming tomorrow. š#GoUSA pic.twitter.com/DNHyOsCcwO
— Ryder Cup USA (@RyderCupUSA) August 26, 2025
By The Associated Press
In a five-photo joint post on Instagram, the superstar singer and football player revealed their engagement, the fairytale culmination of a courtship that for two years has thrilled and fascinated millions around the world, but especially Swifties, the pop star’s enormous and ardent fan base.
“Your English teacher and your gym teacher are getting married,” the caption read, accompanied by an emoji of a dynamite stick.
Kelce was a famous football player when they met — a star tight end for the Kansas City Chiefs and a Super Bowl champion — but Swift’s unique level of fame catapulted him into a different orbit entirely. Their relationship was documented in countless shots of Swift celebrating at Chiefs games and fan videos of Kelce dancing along at Swift’s Eras concert tour as it traveled the globe.
There were those who speculated, with no evidence, that the relationship was not genuine but a cynical ploy for more fame, while some even theorized it was a plot to influence the U.S. elections. In the end, those voices were quieted by a happy couple who simply looked in love — now with an engagement ring rivaling the size of Kelce’s three Super Bowl rings.
It’s unclear when and where the two got engaged. A representative for Swift did not immediately respond to The Associated Press’ request for comment.
It’s been just two weeks since Swift — and Kelce — last ignited a media frenzy, with the announcement of a new album, “The Life of a Showgirl.” Kelce and his brother, former Philadelphia Eagles center Jason Kelce, assisted Swift with the rollout, hosting her on their typically football-oriented podcast, “New Heights.” During the episode, she likened her career to her now-fiance’s, saying their jobs were “to entertain people for three hours in NFL stadiums.”
When Jason Kelce asked his brother and Swift, sitting side-by-side, how they handled the discourse around their relationship, Swift said they just didn’t.
“We don’t, really. I don’t see a lot of things,” she said. “My name can be in the actual headline, and it’s none of my business.”
The news broke in the middle of the Kansas City Chiefs’ media availability, though after head coach Andy Reid had departed. That left Chiefs defensive end Mike Danna to field questions about his teammate’s engagement.
“Man, it’s incredible. I was caught off guard but you know, great for them,” Danna said, a few minutes after the news raced across social media. “But you know, great for them. That’s a blessing. Any time you find that type of joy, blessing, love — that’s a beautiful thing.”
Like many of the Chiefs, Danna has hung out with Swift and Kelce at a New Year’s party and after most of their home games.
“I’ll think of a good little engagement gift,” Danna said. “Maybe some Pop-Tarts back to her. It won’t be homemade.”
The NFL, which has gained untold numbers of fans since the relationship became public, posted the news on X with their congratulations — then quickly deleted it and reposted it when they realized they tagged the wrong Swift account.
“Two of the most genuine people meet & fall in love. Just so happy for these two,” Brittany Mahomes, the wife of Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, said on Instagram. Brittany Mahomes and Swift have frequently shared a suite for games at Arrowhead Stadium. Meanwhile the Cleveland Guardians, the baseball team Kelce grew up rooting for, joked online: “Thanks a lot, Taylor Swift. Now no one cares that next year’s schedule is out.”
Kelce and Swift’s relationship featured prominently in the just-released six-part ESPN documentary “The Kingdom,” which chronicles the franchise’s ultimately foiled pursuit of an unprecedented third consecutive Super Bowl title last season. Kelce was joined by his parents, Donna and Ed Kelce, on the red carpet last Sunday for the premiere at the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts in Kansas City, Missouri.
“She’s very good for him. I don’t hesitate in saying that,” Ed Kelce said of his future daughter-in-law. “They are two people that truly deserve each other.”
TEMPE — The Arizona Cardinals began their initial 53-man roster cuts on Monday.
The team released 12 players a day before cutdown day, including quarterback Clayton Tune.
The writing was on the wall for Tune after the team brought in backup quarterback Jacoby Brissett this offseason. Brissett was arguably Arizona’s biggest outside offensive addition this year.
He played up to that thinking this preseason behind a pair of strong showings that included three touchdowns in abbreviated performances.
In 13 career games (one start) for the Cardinals, Tune completed 60.9% of his throws for 70 yards. He tossed two interceptions during that span.
– Wide receiver Andre Baccellia
– Cornerback Ekow Boye-Doe
– Tight end Oscar Cardenas
– Offensive lineman McClendon Curtis
– Cornerback Steven Gilmore
– Defensive lineman Patrick Jenkins
– Linebacker Vi Jones
– Offensive lineman Roy Mbaeteka
– Wide receiver Nate McCollum
– Quarterback Clayton Tune
– Offensive lineman Dohnovan West
– Linebacker Benton Whitley
While the list of players won’t make the initial 53-man roster, there is still a chance some find their way back to the team as practice squad members.
A good example of that is Baccellia, who has been a common Cardinals cut since joining the team in 2021.
He again finds himself on the cutting room floor but is expected to return as a practice squad body.
Offensive lineman Roy Mbaeteka should also be back with Arizona’s practice squad.
Much like tight end Bernhard Seikovits, Mbaeteka does not count toward the team’s 16 practice squad spots due to his International Player Pathway Program status.
The Cardinals must make the rest of their roster cuts by 1 p.m. Tuesday.
