Sports
Mavs may get Luka Doncic back against host Jazz
Nov 19, 2024; Dallas, Texas, USA; Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic (77) brings the ball up court against the New Orleans Pelicans during the second half at the American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images Injured star Luka Doncic will join the Dallas Mavericks on their upcoming road trip and could play as soon as Saturday in Salt Lake City against the Utah Jazz.
After missing the past five games due to an injured wrist, Doncic returned to practice with his teammates on Friday. It’s uncertain whether he’ll play against Utah or Sunday in Portland during the Mavericks’ weekend road trip, but he will be with the team.
“He’s doing his individual workouts. Everything I’ve heard or seen is trending in the right direction,” Dallas coach Jason Kidd said on Wednesday.
Unlike last season, when the Mavericks only won four of 12 games in Doncic’s absence, Dallas has fared well without their top gun since he was injured on Nov. 19 against New Orleans. The Mavs are 4-1 in that stretch, including a 129-119 win at Atlanta on Monday and Wednesday’s 129-114 victory over the New York Knicks.
Remarkably, Dallas had four players score at least 20 points in each of those most recent wins, setting a team record. Against the Knicks, Naji Marshall scored 24, Kyrie Irving had 23 and Quentin Grimes and Spencer Dinwiddie scored 21 each.
Marshall has been particularly effective in Doncic’s absence. He’s averaged 23 points on 63.3 percent shooting while hitting half of his 3-point attempts in the past four games.
Dallas’ depth has been critical to their 11-8 record. They’ve had at least six players reach double figures in each of their last six games. In the Mavericks’ 123-120 win over Denver on Nov. 22, seven players scored in double figures.
The Jazz haven’t had similar success on the scoreboard but their players are getting experience and playing time for a variety of reasons, including injuries.
In Wednesday’s 122-103 home loss to the Nuggets, Utah was without Lauri Markkanen (personal reasons), John Collins (left knee contusion), Jordan Clarkson (left plantar fasciitis) and Kyle Filipowski (lower leg inflammation).
“We will play some lineups tonight that none of us in this room have seen,” Jazz coach Will Hardy said before that game vs. Denver. “We will play some lineups tonight that maybe none of us in this room had even thought about. But in some ways, these nights are fun because we get to lean into our creativity as a staff and as a team.”
Collin Sexton led Utah with 26 points, Keyonte George had 23 points, Walker Kessler totaled 16 points and 12 rebounds, and Brice Sensabaugh tallied 13 points off the bench.
Nikola Jokic scored 21 of his 30 points in the opening half, helping the Nuggets turn a 12-point deficit into a 10-point lead en route to the blowout win.
“We still have these little windows of the game that turn into kind of like a little disaster,” Hardy said. “That four-to-five-minute window is really where the game was decided.”
The Jazz were grateful to give Congolese player Oscar Tshiebwe, the 2022 consensus national player of the year from Kentucky, his first playing experience with the team in the loss, too. He had three points and nine rebounds.
“I love everything about Oscar. He just makes you feel good,” Hardy said. “He’s such a good human being. I wish I was more like Oscar.”
–Field Level Media
Sports
Report: RB David Montgomery 'wants out' of Detroit
Dec 25, 2025; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Detroit Lions running back David Montgomery (5) looks on before the game against the Minnesota Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images Lions running back David Montgomery “wants out” of Detroit after three seasons, ESPN reported on Sunday.
Montgomery, however, immediately appeared to refute the report on X, posting: “Damn, Dmo told you that?”
The ESPN report claims the Lions would want “a decent Day 3 pick (possibly a fifth-rounder)” in the 2026 NFL Draft in return for Montgomery, who turns 29 in June and is owed $6 million next season.
The report follows general manager Brad Holmes’ remarks after the season about Montgomery being unhappy with his playing time in 2025. Sharing a backfield with Jahmyr Gibbs, Montgomery rushed for a career-low 716 yards and eight touchdowns in 17 games (no starts).
“Those are conversations that we’re going to have to have because I’ve got a lot of respect for that player,” Holmes said of Montgomery in January. “He deserves to be in a situation where his skillset can be utilized, and so yeah would love for it to be here, but if it can’t be here then you’d just love to see where could work out best for him.”
At the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis on Tuesday, Holmes said the situation with Montgomery is “fluid.” He signed a two-year extension during the 2024 season that runs through the end of the 2027 campaign.
“Yeah, I have been in touch with David’s agent, and his representation,” Holmes revealed. “Obviously, we love David, he’s a great player, we love to have him, you know, kind of want to put last year in the rear view, and just move forward. But, obviously, a player has to want to be at a certain place as well. The conversations are still fluid, but we’ll see how it goes.”
Montgomery has rushed for 2,506 yards and 33 touchdowns in 45 games (28 starts) in three seasons with Detroit (2023-25). He has 76 catches for 650 yards in that span.
He began his career with the NFC North rival Chicago Bears, who drafted him in the third round in 2019. Montgomery rushed for 3,609 yards and 26 scores in 60 games (51 starts) with the Bears (2019-22).
–Field Level Media
Sports
Yankees LHP Ryan Yarbrough joins U.S. roster for WBC
Jun 18, 2025; Bronx, New York, USA; New York Yankees relief pitcher Ryan Yarbrough (33) delivers a pitch during the first inning against the Los Angeles Angels at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images New York Yankees left-hander Ryan Yarbrough was added to the Team USA roster for the upcoming World Baseball Classic on Sunday.
The 34-year-old reliever replaces Minnesota Twins right-hander Joe Ryan, who is dealing with low back tightness. Ryan moves into the designated pitcher pool, meaning he is eligible for a call-up after each round of the WBC.
Yarbrough went 3-1 with a 4.36 ERA and one save in 19 games (eight starts) during his first season with the Yankees in 2025, striking out 55 batters and walking 19 in 64 innings.
Ryan Yarbrough has been added to our roster for the World Baseball Classic!#ForGlory???? pic.twitter.com/RrtKJQ20gz
— USA Baseball (@USABaseball) March 1, 2026
Team USA will play its first game of the 2026 WBC on Friday night, meeting Brazil in a Pool B contest in Houston.
Yarbrough has a career record of 56-41 with a 4.22 ERA and four saves in 215 games (76 starts) with the Tampa Bay Rays (2018-22), Kansas City Royals (2023), Los Angeles Dodgers (2023-24), Toronto Blue Jays (2024) and Yankees. The side-arming southpaw signed a one-year, $2.5 million deal in November to return to New York in 2026.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Ex-pitcher Dan Serafini gets life sentence for '21 murder
Dan Serafini (file photo) pitched in MLB with seven teams. He was convited of first-degree murder. Former major league pitcher Dan Serafini was sentenced to life in prison without parole on Friday for the 2021 shootings of his in-laws in North Lake Tahoe, Calif.
Serafini, 52, was convicted in July of the first-degree murder of father-in-law Gary Spohr and the attempted first-degree murder of mother-in-law Wendy Wood during a burglary. Spohr, 70, died from a single gunshot and Wood, then 68, survived but died by suicide the following year.
In the courtroom on Friday in Auburn, Calif., Placer County prosecutor Morgan Gire described Spohr and Wood as loving grandparents.
“The impact of this attack has extended far beyond the immediate victims, deeply affecting family members and the broader community, and highlighting the lasting harm caused by deliberate violence,” Gire said.
Serafini, who pitched for six MLB teams from 1996 to 2007, addressed the court and maintained his innocence. He said he was out partying with his wife, Erin Spohr, at the time of the shooting and referred to himself as a “broken, imperfect man that makes mistakes,” according to MyNews4.
The Minnesota Twins selected Serafini, a native of the San Francisco area, with the No. 26 overall pick in the 1992 MLB Draft. He made his debut in 1996 and went on to appear in 104 games (33 starts) with the Twins, Chicago Cubs, San Diego Padres, Pittsburgh Pirates, Cincinnati Reds and Colorado Rockies before his retirement in 2007.
He had a 15-16 record with a 6.04 ERA and one save. He threw 263 2/3 innings and struck out 127 batters.
–Field Level Media
Report: RB David Montgomery 'wants out' of Detroit
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