Sports
Mavericks introduce Masai Ujiri as team president
Sep 30, 2024; Toronto, Ontario, Canada; Toronto Raptors vice chairman and team president Masai Ujiri talks to the media during media day at Scotiabank Area. Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images The Dallas Mavericks hired former Toronto Raptors executive Masai Ujiri as their new team president and alternate governor on Monday.
Ujiri, 55, spent 12 seasons in the Raptors’ front office (2013-25) and was the architect of the franchise’s first NBA championship in 2018-19.
“The Dallas Mavericks are committed to being a world-class organization with a strong culture and focused on winning championships. Masai Ujiri is one of the great basketball leaders of this generation and his addition to our franchise is a critical step in meeting our goals,” said Mavericks governor Patrick Dumont. “We are honored to have him join the Mavs family. We welcome his energy and determination along with his leadership, experience and many accomplishments as a basketball executive. We are very excited about the future of our team.”
Before joining Toronto, Ujiri was general manager of the Denver Nuggets from 2010-13 and was named the NBA’s Executive of the Year for 2012-13. The Raptors and Nuggets were a combined 690-504 with 12 playoff appearances in his 15 seasons in charge.
“I’m honored to join the Dallas Mavericks and step into this role at such an important time for the organization,” Ujiri said. “This is a franchise with a proud history, passionate fans, and a commitment to winning. I look forward to working with our players, coaches, and leadership team to build something that reflects that standard and competes at the highest level. We will win in Dallas.”
Ujiri’s hiring ends a six-month search process for a new leader in Dallas, which fired general manager Nico Harrison on Nov. 11. Harrison’s tenure ended after a 3-8 start to the 2025-26 season and the continued fan backlash over the February 2025 trade of superstar Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers.
Michael Finley and Matt Riccardi ran the Dallas front office as co-interim general managers following the dismissal of Harrison.
The Mavericks finished 26-56 this season, the team’s worst record since 2017-18 (24-58), despite the play of Rookie of the Year and No. 1 overall draft pick Cooper Flagg. The 19-year-old forward averaged 21.0 points, 6.7 rebounds and 4.5 assists in 70 games.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Chandler Simpson Is an Anomaly for Tampa Bay Rays
Chandler Simpson has become a hot-button topic in baseball conversations. To simplify the issue, old-school guys love his high-contact approach, while modern, analytical viewers hate his game because he provides below-average offensive production according to their stats.
I don’t think either group is absolutely right on Simpson. Both groups are leaning into narratives that better suit their arguments for or against him. To analyze Chandler Simpson, I think it takes a little bit more nuance.
To start, if you think Simpson has been an overall bad player in 2026, you are objectively wrong. He’s only been a slightly below league-average hitter, while playing some of the best defense out in left field and providing tremendous value on the base paths. If you don’t agree with those sentiments, you are simply hating a guy for no reason.
However, I’m not sure he can maintain his consistent performance at the plate like he has so far this year. Simpson does have some elite traits; he carries 99th percentile whiff%, K%, and squared up percentages. He creates a ton of contact and does as much damage as he can with the slowest swing in the sport. Also, he only strikes out 8.8% of the time, so he’s going to put the ball in play very frequently.
Since he puts the ball in play a ton, he, in turn, has a ton of bad batted ball data. Simpson rarely walks and chases after bad pitches, which really limits how productive he can be offensively. Additionally, his expected stats are a mixed bag. His xBA is higher than his actual batting average, but his xWOBA outpaces his actual WOBA. What we’re currently seeing from Simpson is one of the better versions we’ve seen, unless he starts becoming more patient at the plate.
Furthermore, he has generated only an OPS+ of 95 this year, 5% below the league average, but that doesn’t tell the whole story. Simpson has stolen 11 bases this year, and in my eyes, steals should be looked at similarly to doubles when it comes to OPS. His OPS would be nearly 100 points higher if you counted his steals as doubles to his stats, and he would have an OPS+ of 116, which would be a well-above-average hitter in baseball.
Chandler Simpson is a flawed baseball player, but his polarization has been completely unfair. He’s a solid player who gets on base, plays great defense, and can steal bases. As long as those things stay consistent, he’s going to play in the MLB for a very long time.
Sports
NBA Playoff Game 1 Bet Picks: 76ers vs Knicks and Timberwolves vs Spurs Bets
Apr 23, 2026; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves guard Ayo Dosunmu (13) talks with a reporter after the game with the Denver Nuggets at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Bruce Kluckhohn-Imagn Images Look at who has crashed the second round of the NBA Playoffs – Joel Embiid. Figured there was no invite coming for the Philadelphia 76ers and their star center after he underwent an appendectomy at a really unfortunate time.
But Embiid returned for the final four games of the first-round series against the Boston Celtics and the 76ers won the last three contests to surprisingly claim the Eastern Conference series. So the heat waiting for Embiid was transferred to the Celtics, coach Joe Mazzulla and NBA Executive of the Year Brad Stevens for a horrifying collapse.
Philadelphia now looks to upend the New York Knicks on the Eastern side, beginning with Monday’s Game 1. The Minnesota Timberwolves and San Antonio Spurs also open a Western Conference series on Monday with Anthony Edwards (left knee) listed as questionable for Minnesota.
PHILADELPHIA 76ERS AT NEW YORK KNICKS
The much-maligned Embiid can hold his head high after the last three games as he also fought through his knee getting banged up in Game 7 while recording 34 points, 12 rebounds and six assists in the clinching 109-100 win in Boston. He averaged 28 points in the four games he played and the only question will be if he can play with this much juice in Game 1 against the Knicks after also banging up his right hip.
The Knicks defeated the Atlanta Hawks in six games in the first round and the clinching victory was a 140-89 beat down on Thursday, furthering the confidence of a team primed for a deep run. Guards Jalen Brunson (26.3 average vs. the Hawks) of the Knicks and Tyrese Maxey (26.9 vs. the Celtics) of the 76ers figure to put on a stellar show, similar to two seasons ago when New York took down the 76ers in six games in the first round.
New York finished the Atlanta series with victories by 16, 29 and 51 points after losing both Games 2 and 3 by one point. OG Anunoby had 29 points on 11-of-14 shooting in the decisive game and averaged 21.5 points and shot 61.1% from the field in the series. Anunoby (18-plus points, -103) was so hot that his second-lowest shooting percentage in the first round was 56.3.
The teams split four meetings in the regular season with the Knicks delivering a 138-89 whipping on Feb. 11 in Philadelphia. New York will send deluxe defensive big man Mitchell Robinson inside to slow Embiid (27-plus points, -106) so this might be a game where either Brunson (28-plus points, -112) or Maxey (25-plus points, -123) shines brightest.
Knicks minus 7.5-point spread, -108 (DraftKings)
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MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES AT SAN ANTONIO SPURS
The Spurs cruised past the Portland Trail Blazers in five games in the first round and all four victories were by double digits. MVP candidate Victor Wembanyama, still just 22, returned from a concussion to average 22 points, 13 rebounds and 6.5 blocks over the final two games of the series.
Guards De’Aaron Fox (18-plus points, -114) and Stephon Castle (18-plus points, -104) are fine compliments to Wemby (30-plus points, +117) and big reasons why San Antonio’s win total is up to 66 this season. Fox averaged 20.2 points and 6.8 assists against Portland and Castle contributed 19.8 points and 6.0 assists.
Edwards missed the final two games of the six-game first-round series victory over the Denver Nuggets but is pushing hard to be on the floor Monday. What would really hurt Minnesota is if both Edwards and stellar reserve Ayo Dosunmu (calf) both miss the game. Dosunmu (18-plus points, -111) averaged a team-best 21.8 in the Denver series – led by his electric 43-point outing in Game 4 – before missing the finale.
Of course, Minnesota also lost Donte DiVincenzo (Achilles) in Game 4 so Julius Randle (21-plus points, -106) could be carrying the load and guys like Jaden McDaniels (18-plus points, -102) and reserve Naz Reid (13-plus points, -119) will need to step up. The Spurs have the upper hand to begin with but had lost five straight games to the Timberwolves before posting a 126-123 home win on Jan. 17.
Timberwolves plus 13.5-point spread, -115 (DraftKings)
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Sports
Jarrett Allen Saves Cavs in Game 7 To Secure Date With Pistons
After 26 quarters of basketball, the Raptors and Cavs were tied 718-718 in total points scored for the series. It had been a very underwhelming series for Cleveland up until that point. Donovan Mitchell and James Harden had been very quiet, and shots weren’t falling for the rest of the role players.
Someone had to step up to save the season for Cleveland, and it was Jarrett Allen. The man best known for the lights being too bright saved the Cavs’ season with a 14-point, 10-rebound third quarter. He took over this game for Cleveland, being the catalyst for a 38-19 third quarter, which Cleveland rode to a 114-102 finish.
More importantly than Allen showing up when it mattered, the Cavs finally played like the team we expected them to be this entire series. Instead of settling for bad isolation sets and last-second threes, the Cavs took it to the Raptors and would not let up with consistent rim pressure.
Cleveland has been out-physicalled by playoff teams during the Mitchell era, and they won this game by being the more physical team on both ends. The Cavs out-rebounded the Raptors 40-33, but more importantly destroyed them on the offensive glass 20-7. They also did a great job getting in the paint, shooting 37 free throws in this one.
Harden didn’t have an amazing game, but late into the second quarter, he started putting his head down and driving into the lane. He finished the game with 13 free throws and was a big spark to Cleveland’s offense whenever the game seemed to get tense. Most importantly for Harden, he only had 2 turnovers. He limited the possessions for a Raptors team that thrives on transition basketball.
Round two should be much different for Cleveland. Donovan Mitchell has to show up for the Cavs. Detroit has far fewer physical and talented defenders to throw at him. If he can’t attack the doubles they send at him, I’ll have questions on what he can ever provide for Cleveland in the playoffs.
It was an ugly first round for Cleveland, but I love their matchup with Detroit heading into the Eastern Conference Semis. The Cavs have a far more explosive offense than Orlando, and should be able to exploit a Pistons team that showed zero signs of offensive production outside of Cade Cunningham. Dean Wade did a tremendous job of slowing Cade in the regular season. If he can do that again, I think Donovan could end his streak of zero Conference Finals appearances in 2026.
Chandler Simpson Is an Anomaly for Tampa Bay Rays
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