Month: January 2025

The youngest players ever drafted

Check out the youngest players ever selected in the NBA Draft. Three of them were drafted as 17-year-olds, like the great Kobe Bryant.

The NBA has become a young man’s game over the past couple of decades, with more and more players getting drafted in their late teens as opposed to their early 20s after multiple years of college, as used to be the norm.

As such, we have seen many super young players getting drafted in the late ’90s and throughout the ’00s and ’10s.

Below, check out the youngest players ever selected in the NBA Draft who played in the league, led by the legendary Andrew Bynum, one of just three players ever to be chosen as 17-year-olds.

Twitter reacts to Russell Wilson’s loss hurting Broncos

Russell Wilson failed to lead a game-winning drive against the Bengals on Saturday and the Broncos now must win (or tie) on Sunday.

The Pittsburgh Steelers lost to the Cincinnati Bengals 19-17 on Saturday night, which means the Denver Broncos have to get a win (or tie) against the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday to qualify for the NFL playoffs. 

Pittsburgh could have had a chance to win the game against Cincinnati with a late field goal, but the team’s final drive stalled in part due to mistakes from quarterback Russell Wilson. 

Wilson was first tackled in bounds instead of throwing the ball away or running out of bounds, eating up clock. Wilson then took a sack, costing more time and field position. The QB’s fourth-down pass to tight end Pat Freiermuth fell incomplete and Pittsburgh turned the ball over on downs, sealing a 19-17 loss. 

Here’s a sampling of how fans and pundits reacted to the sequence on Twitter/X. 

The Steelers are now the No. 6 seed in the AFC’s playoff race. The Broncos can clinch the seventh and final seed in the AFC with a win (or tie) against the Chiefs on Sunday afternoon. 

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Commanders’ executive named a ‘potential future NFL GM’

Adam Peters’ top assistant could soon become a GM.

Washington Commanders owner Josh Harris knocked it out of the park last January when he convinced San Francisco 49ers assistant general manager Adam Peters to become his new general manager.

For years, Peters’ name was at the top of all future GM lists, but he remained loyal to the 49ers. Once hired, Peters went to work, hiring Dan Quinn and an impressive coaching staff. Harris spared no expense on Peters’ front office, allowing him to build a large, talented group of front-office executives.

One of those hires was Lance Newmark. Newmark had spent the previous 26 years with the Detroit Lions, most recently as their senior director of player personnel. Newmark played a key role in Detroit’s resurgence in recent years.

Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated recently revealed his list of potential future NFL general managers and included Newmark on his list.

Newmark is another guy who’s very highly thought of in the scouting community, and is drawing notice now with more and more wins attached to his reputation. Newmark spent 26 seasons in Detroit—he even overlapped with Barry Sanders there for a year—and was most recently a part of the Dan Campbell/Brad Holmes renaissance. Last year, Adam Peters plucked him to make him his No. 2, and the turnaround in Washington speaks for itself. I could see Johnson taking Newmark with him if he landed in a place like Jacksonville.

Peters doesn’t want to lose Newmark, but when you have success, these things result from that success. Peters and Quinn are also the types of leaders who encourage those who work for them to always pursue better opportunities for themselves.

Mike Tomlin completely dismisses 4-game losing streak

The Steelers are backing into the playoffs int he worst way.

The Pittsburgh Steelers are one of only three teams in NFL history to head into the playoffs on a four-game losing streak and the first team to do it since 1999. The last month of football has been terrible for Pittsburgh and has exposed this team against playoff-quality opponents.

But don’t talk to head coach Mike Tomlin about that. Because to Tomlin, none of that matters. Tomlin was asked about going into the playoffs on a losing streak and Tomlin completely passed it off, not giving the significance of it any credence.

“Neither here nor there,” Tomlin said.

While we can appreciate Tomlin hinting at the idea of having a short memory, these losses pile up and get in player’s heads. This is made worse by the fact that the most likely opponent the Steelers will face in the first round of the playoffs is the Baltimore Ravens who beat the Steelers soundly back in Week 16.

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Nicholas Singleton contemplating potential NFL future

Penn State’s Nicholas Singleton says he has not made a decision on his future just yet, but a decision will come after the season.

Penn State running back [autotag]Nicholas Singleton[/autotag] is not letting his future get in the way of his primary focus right now. Singleton and the Nittany Lions are gearing up for a massive showdown with Notre Dame in the Orange Bowl, the site of the first of two College Football Playoff semifinal games with a spot in the national championship on the line. Whenever Penn State’s playoff run comes to an end, Singleton will focus more of his energy on what comes next in 2025.

“I haven’t made a decision yet. I’m still worried about finishing this season off the right way,” Singleton told media this weekend when asked about his future, with the idea being he could declare for the NFL draft and turn pro to follow in the footsteps of guys like [autotag]Saquon Barkley[/autotag] and Miles Sanders.

Singleton went on to say he will revisit his decision at the end of the season, which Penn State is hoping comes later this month following a national championship celebration.

[autotag]James Franklin[/autotag] was also asked about Singleton’s future. Obviously, Franklin confirmed he and the staff would love to have Singleton return for another season in Happy Valley.

“We’d love him back, but if he decides to come out, we’ll fight like heck to get him drafted as high as possible,” Franklin told reporters.

Singleton just eclipsed the century mark in rushing yards for the season with his 87-yard performance in Penn State’s Fiesta Bowl victory over Boise State in the quarterfinal round of the College Football Playoff. It is his second 1,000-yard season in his three years at Penn State. For his career, Singleton has rushed for 2,828 yards and 29 touchdowns. He has also caught 76 passes for 735 receiving yards with 8 receiving touchdowns and he also has one career kickoff return touchdown.

Together with Kaytron Allen, Singleton gives Penn State a dynamic running back combo that is causing trouble for defenses in the College Football Playoff and should be a big test for the Notre Dame defense in the Orange Bowl semifinal.

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AFC playoff picture: There are now 2 possible opponents for Texans in wild card round

The Texans know they’re either hosting the Pittsburgh Steelers or the Los Angeles Chargers in the wild-card round.

The Houston Texans are locked into the No. 4 seed in the AFC Playoffs regardless of Sunday’s outcome against the Tennessee Titans.

Their opponent? It rests in the hands of Justin Herbert.

The Texans’ options for next week’s wild-card round are down to the Los Angeles Chargers or Pittsburgh Steelers. Since Pittsburgh lost at home to the Cincinnati Bengals, the fate of the No. 5 seed belongs to the Bolts.

If Los Angeles (10-6) beats Las Vegas on Sunday, it will lock up the fifth seed and travel to NRG Stadium to play the Texans in the wild-card round. With a loss, Pittsburgh (10-7) heads south for a winner-take-all showdown in what perhaps will be the Amazon Prime game of the weekend.

Pittsburgh would earn the No. 5 seed because of its head-to-head win over Los Angeles back in September.

The team that nabs the No. 6 seed is in for trouble. The Baltimore Ravens, who bested the Texans in a 31-2 Christmas chaotic outing, clinched the AFC North and the No. 3 seed with a dominant victory over the Cleveland Browns on Saturday afternoon.

The rest of the AFC is mostly set entering Sunday’s finale. Kansas City locked up the No. 1 seed at 16-1, while Buffalo is guaranteed the No. 2 seed.
Denver (9-7), Cincinnati (9-8) and Miami (8-8) are alive for the final spot.

With a win over the Chiefs, the Broncos are in at 10-7.

With a win over the New York Jets and a Denver loss, the Dolphins are in.

The Bengals did their job and have a head-to-head win over Denver, but they still need help to secure a postseason bid.

They’ll be pulling for the Chiefs and Jets to upset the Broncos and Dolphins, respectively.

Is Brock Purdy playing today? Injury updates for 49ers QB

49ers QB Brock Purdy is dealing with an elbow injury. Here are the latest updates.

San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy suffered an elbow injury in the final minutes of the team’s 40-34 loss to the Detroit Lions in Week 17. He exited the game and did not return.

What is his status for Week 18 against the Arizona Cardinals?

Brock Purdy injury update

Purdy was ruled out early in the week. He suffered an elbow contusion with nerve inflammation. It was good news because he had major surgery on that elbow last offseason. It is not related to his UCL.

How long will Brock Purdy be out?

Purdy did not practice all week and will not play against the Cardinals. Since it is the final game of the season, he will miss only the finale. It is not expected to carry into the offseason.

49ers QB depth chart

With Purdy out in Week 18, Josh Dobbs will make the start against the Cardinals. His backup will be Brandon Allen.

Get more Cardinals and NFL coverage from Cards Wire’s Jess Root and others by listening to the latest on the Rise Up, See Red podcast. Subscribe on Spotify, YouTube or Apple podcasts.

 

Kyle Van Noy did an epic ‘spending bills’ gesture to celebrate sack bonus

It wasn’t a “million dollar play,” but instead a quarter-million for Kyle Van Noy on Saturday.

It wasn’t a “million dollar play,” but a quarter-million for Kyle Van Noy. The Baltimore Ravens edge rusher needed a half sack in today’s regular-season finale versus the Cleveland Browns to reach 12 on the season and thus earn a $250,000 bonus.

The BYU product reached it when he dropped Browns quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson for a four-yard loss in the first half.

Given his post-sack celebration, he was well aware of earning the lovely piece of incentive-based pay.

As you can see, Van Noy mixed the universal signals for counting/spending money between his clapping. The gesture evoked the immortal words of Jermaine Dupri in his 1998 classic Money Ain’t a Thang:

“it’s all basic I been spending hundreds since they had small faces.”

What makes that specific lyric all the more memorable is that the portrait of Benjamin Franklin on the $100 bill was enlarged only two years before the song was released.

Younger readers may not remember this, but the previous bill design included a different and much smaller Franklin portrait. The change was part of several measures taken to combat counterfeiting.

But congratulations to Van Noy, who now has a whole lot of “Benjamins,” “C-Notes,” or “Hundos” to add to his already vast collection. According to Spotrac, KVN has earned over $47M during his NFL career.

 

Global Fight League’s list of male fighter signings is long and distinguished

The upstart Global Fight League’s list of current male fighter signings is a who’s-who of former standouts.

The upstart Global Fight League recently announced a slew of female signings. And just like the women, the men signed to the new promotion is a who’s-who of former standouts.

The new GFL will hold its inaugural draft later this month, and hundreds of fighters will be on the list.The GFL will be a team-based promotion that kicks off in April. Teams will be made up of both female and male fighters. Managers from six teams will take part in the draft Jan. 24.

The GFL has touted a 50-50 revenue split with fighters, as well as fighter retirement and insurance funds as a way to “prioritize fighters’ financial security and professional well-being, offering unprecedented profit-sharing opportunities to empower male and female athletes throughout their careers.”

Take a look at the current GFL roster of men’s fighters ahead of the Jan. 24 draft:

Sacramento Kings at Golden State Warriors odds, picks and predictions

Analyzing Sunday’s Sacramento Kings at Golden State Warriors odds and lines, with NBA expert picks, predictions and best bets.

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The Sacramento Kings (16-19) visit the Golden State Warriors (18-16) on Sunday. Tip-off from Chase Center is at 8:30 p.m. ET. Let’s analyze BetMGM Sportsbook’s NBA odds around the Kings vs. Warriors odds and make our expert NBA picks and predictions for the best bets.

Season series: First meeting; Kings won 3-2 last season

The Kings have won their last 3 games following a 6-game losing streak. They played on Friday, beating the Memphis Grizzlies 138-133 at home, covering the 3.5-point spread as favorites. The Over (242.5) cashed in.

The Warriors play the fifth game of their 6-game homestand. They are 3-1 so far. They played Saturday night, beating the Grizzlies 121-113, covering the 3-point spread as favorites. The Over (230) cashed in.

Kings at Warriors odds

Provided by BetMGM Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list of NBA odds. Lines last updated at 9:07 a.m. ET.

  • Moneyline (ML): Kings +125 (bet $100 to win $125) | Warriors -150 (bet $150 to win $100)
  • Against the spread (ATS): Kings +2.5 (-105) | Warriors -2.5 (-115)
  • Over/Under (O/U): 224.5 (O: -110 | U: -110)

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Kings at Warriors key injuries

Kings

  • G De’Aaron Fox (glute) doubtful
  • F Keegan Murray (ankle) questionable

Warriors

Not yet submitted — below is from Saturday’s game

  • G Stephen Curry (knee) out
  • G Gary Payton II (calf) out
  • G Brandin Podziemski (abdominal) out
  • F Andrew Wiggins (hamstring) probable

For most recent updates: Official NBA injury report.

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Kings at Warriors picks and predictions

Prediction

Warriors 114, Kings 109

Moneyline

Both teams enter the game playing well after some struggles. The Kings have won 3 straight games.  Golden State’s defense has been solid recently. They have allowed 108.4 pointes per game over their last 8 games and have found some offense, scoring 121 points and 139 points in their last 2 contests.

With both stars (Fox and Curry) out, I look more at Golden State’s defense to be the difference.

The Warriors should win but you are better betting the spread than the ML.

PASS.

Against the spread

Only 1 of the Warriors’ 18 wins has been by fewer than 4 points.

The Kings are 3-5 ATS as underdogs. They have not covered the spread in a loss this season.

BET WARRIORS -2.5 (-115).

Over/Under

Three of their 5 meetings last season had totals higher than 224 points.

Six of the Warriors’ last 8 games have not reached 225 points.

The Warriors are 7-10 O/U after a win and 0-4 O/U on the second game of a back-to-back.

BET UNDER 224.5 (-110).

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For more sports betting picks and tips, check out SportsbookWire.com and BetFTW.

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