Sports
Cleveland Cavaliers Take a Massive Gamble Trading Darius Garland for James Harden
In a trade that had been brewing all day, the Cleveland Cavaliers had traded Darius Garland and a second-round pick for Clippers former MVP James Harden. Late last night, rumors of the deal were bubbling to the surface, but the two sides have officially come to an agreement to swap All-Star point guards.
Honestly, I’m not entirely sure if I like this move for Cleveland. It’s rumored that Garland’s foot/toe injury is worse than reported, and with how long this has continued to linger, that very well could be the case. He’s dealt with postseason injuries throughout his career, but moving on from your 26-year-old All-Star for James Harden feels like a massive risk.
Let’s look at the positives. At his best, Harden does everything Garland does, but better. He’s an elite playmaker who, paired with Jarrett Allen, could be one of the best pick-and-roll pairings in the league.
Harden has had a few injuries over the course of his career, but overall, he’s a more durable option than Garland. He has more ability to create his own shot than Garland and could help create more space for Donovan Mitchell.
They’re both limited in what they can provide on the defensive end, but at least Harden has some size and can pretend to add more value when he’s switched onto a bigger player. Of course, Harden is 37, so he might not have many good years left in him, but if he can give you another couple of good seasons, it might be worth the risk.
The deal was on hold all day as many believed the Cavs were looking for extra draft compensation to acquire a superstar — specifically Giannis Antetokounmpo.
The Bucks have not been impressed with the offers they’ve received so far for Giannis, but could a package centered around Evan Mobley and draft picks be the best deal they get?
Mobley is coming off a season in which he finished second-team All-NBA and won Defensive Player of the Year. If you plan to move Giannis to a contender, the picks you’ll receive from them may not be valuable until a couple of years down the road. Mobley would easily be the most impactful player for the Bucks to build around in these rumored trades.
On the other hand, Mobley was supposed to be Cleveland’s version of Giannis. He’s still only 24, and he’s only getting stronger in the paint. However, I think it’s fair to say he doesn’t have the Tim Duncan or Antetokounmpo upside that Cleveland was hoping for.
If you want to hang on to Mobley, how good does he have to be in order to not add him to a package for a top-three player in the world? Personally, if Cleveland can get away with their rumored deal of Mobley, Max Strus, Lonzo Ball, and draft compensation, you almost have to do it.
A core of Mitchell, Harden, and Giannis would put the league on notice. On the other hand, you could easily see these moves being short-sighted and blowing up in Cleveland’s face.
Sports
Qualifier Martin Damm upsets seventh seed in Montpellier
Mar 23, 2024; Miami Gardens, FL, USA; Martin Damm Jr. (USA) serves against Tommy Paul (USA)(not pictured) on day six of the Miami Open at Hard Rock Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images Martin Damm, a 22-year-old qualifier from Florida, took down Polish seventh seed Hubert Hurkacz 7-6 (5), 6-4 on Tuesday in the first round of the Open Occitanie in Montpellier, France.
While Hurkacz fired 14 aces without a double fault, Damm kept up with 13 aces of his own but also varied his attack, winning 13 of 17 net points. Ranked a career-high No. 160 in the world this week, Damm will meet Spaniard Roberto Bautista Agut in the second round.
Frenchmen won four of the six matches contested Tuesday, including No. 6 seed Arthur Fils outlasting countryman Valentin Royer 7-6 (7), 6-7 (4), 6-2 in nearly two hours and 33 minutes. It was Fils’ first match since August due to a back injury sidelining him for the fall.
Fils won an impressive 55 of 66 first-service points (83.3%).
Also from France, No. 5 seed Ugo Humbert eased past Botic van de Zandschulp of the Netherlands, 6-3, 6-4; qualifier Titouan Droguet conquered Great Britain’s Jan Choinski 6-2, 7-6 (2); and Ugo Blanchet beat Italian qualifier Andrea Vavassori 6-4, 6-3. Spain’s Pablo Carreno Busta rallied past Serbian Miomir Kecmanovic 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 (4).
–Field Level Media
Sports
Providence out to end four-game slide when it faces Butler
Jan 27, 2026; Storrs, Connecticut, USA; Providence Friars forward Jamier Jones (5) returns up court against the UConn Huskies in the second half at Harry A. Gampel Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-Imagn Images Something has to give when Providence returns to its home floor for a Wednesday night matchup with Butler in Big East action.
The Friars (9-13, 2-9 Big East) have dropped four straight and seven of their last eight games, including an 87-73 Friday loss at Villanova. The first two losses during their current streak were by one possession.
Butler (13-9, 4-7), which has lost back-to-back contests since a three-game win streak, threw the first punch in this head-to-head season series with a 113-110 win in double overtime in the Dec. 13 conference opener in Indianapolis.
“When you’re not disciplined, tough and connected throughout the game, you’re in those late-game situations where you have to execute at a really, really high level,” Providence coach Kim English said. “We’re down a lot of guys. I felt like (against Villanova) we were close to letting go of the rope, but our guys didn’t.”
Freshman Stefan Vaaks has pulled the rope all season long, leading the Friars in minutes (31.3 per game) and a 33.1% 3-point shooter. He had a game-high 25 points and went 5-for-11 from distance against Villanova.
Providence has played its last six games without leading scorer Jason Edwards (17.2 points per game) due to a foot injury.
Butler is coming off a 77-64 Saturday loss to Georgetown in which it shot just 5-for-33 in the second half and missed its last 14 shots from the field.
“I don’t know, I really don’t (know what happened),” coach Thad Matta said. “You can’t shoot 15 percent in the second half of a Big East game and have a chance to win. … I thought we got the ball to the rim, and how many of them just rolled off?”
It was not the Bulldogs’ day, but Jamie Kaiser Jr. had a career-high 19 points to lead the Bulldogs. It was his third straight double-figure scoring game.
In the December meeting, Finley Bizjack (17.1 points per game) scored 12 of his 26 points in the two overtime periods and Michael Ajayi had 28 points and 15 rebounds.
The Bulldogs canned 10 3-pointers, but allowed 14 to Providence. Edwards netted 32 points and Jaylin Sellers 26 for the Friars.
Matta’s next win will be the 500th of his career.
–Field Level Media
Sports
McCourty: 'Travesty' Bill Belichick's Hall snub will steal spotlight from others
NBC Sports analyst Devin McCourty speaks with the media in San Francisco ahead of Super Bowl LX on Feb. 4, 2026. SAN FRANCISCO — Devin McCourty agrees that his long-time coach should be enshrined into the Hall of Fame this summer, but said the real impact of Bill Belichick not getting voted in this year will be the attention stolen from those who are.
Belichick won a record six Super Bowl titles as head coach of the New England Patriots before parting ways with the team after the 2023 season. Eligible for the Hall of Fame for the first time this year, news broke last week that he will not be part of the 2026 Hall of Fame class that will be announced Thursday night.
Belichick was up for selection alongside Patriots owner Robert Kraft and three senior player candidates in Bengals quarterback Ken Anderson, 49ers running back Roger Craig and Steelers defensive end L.C. Greenwood. Kraft reportedly also did not make the final cut.
The widespread speculation is that voters did not support Belichick being a “first-ballot” Hall of Famer because of the 2007 Spygate scandal and the Deflategate drama that resulted in a suspension for quarterback Tom Brady. Other voters have said they prioritized what is viewed as a backlog of worthy candidates whose windows to be voted into the Hall of Fame are running out.
McCourty took issue with the various requirements, including that at least four — but no more than nine — candidates can be elected annually.
“Shouldn’t the Hall of Fame just be, ‘Is this guy a Hall of Famer, yes or no?’ And then we move forward,” McCourty said on Tuesday ahead of working Super Bowl LX as a commentator for NBC Sports.
McCourty was a first-round pick in 2010 by the Patriots and went on to win three Super Bowl titles while playing 13 seasons for Belichick. He believes his former coach will reach the hallowed halls of Canton one day, but is concerned that his omission this year will be a storyline that overrides the induction of others.
“I think the travesty of all of this is this summer, there’s gonna be a Hall of Fame induction and there’s gonna be guys who are deserving of being in the Hall of Fame. And we can probably all bet that the top topic is gonna be Bill Belichick not being there,” McCourty said. “And I think that’s unfortunate because there are going to be players, coaches, contributors that are Hall of Fame worthy, but because this feels like a huge mistake, the only talk is going to be about the guys that didn’t get into the Hall of Fame.”
–Field Level Media
Qualifier Martin Damm upsets seventh seed in Montpellier
Providence out to end four-game slide when it faces Butler
