Tag: New York Post

Rumor: OKC Thunder have real interest in Knicks’ Isaiah Hartenstein

Report: OKC Thunder has real interest in Knicks’ Isaiah Hartenstein.

The Oklahoma City Thunder enter the 2024 offseason with over $35 million in cap space to spend. Coming off a top-seed finish and a Round 2 exit, OKC is better equipped than most to make some serious upgrades.

The Thunder are reportedly a serious threat to sign Isaiah Hartenstein away from the New York Knick. The New York Post broke the possibility on Monday.

“‘It’s real,’ an NBA source said of OKC’s interest in Hartenstein… One league source speculated the Thunder would offer a short-term deal (such as two years) with a high salary, providing both sides with long-term flexibility.”

If this materializes to reality, Hartenstien offers a quick fix to the Thunder’s size and rebounding woes. OKC was 27th in the league in rebounds per game this past season. A lack of a true backup big limited its lineup flexibility.

Hartenstein had a breakout year last season with the Knicks. He took over the starting center spot for them once Mitchell Robinson went down and was a starter for 49 out of 75 games.

The 25-year-old averaged 7.8 points on 64.4% shooting, 8.3 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.2 steals and 1.1 blocks. His 18.5% rebound rate would’ve easily ranked first among OKC’s regular rotation players.

If the Thunder adds Hartenstein, it will likely be on a bloated short-term deal. He could command $20 million a season, which means OKC would likely have to spend most of its cap space on the veteran center.

If they sign Hartenstein to a two-year deal, it’ll align perfectly for when the extensions of Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams likely kick in. This could make for a clean divorce between the two parties as OKC’s payroll will get very expensive, very soon.

It’d be a good fit on the court. Hartenstein was the Knicks’ starting center all playoffs and put up decent numbers. He’d be a legit lob threat and can be a great pick-and-roll partner. He’s also a decent passer and can keep the ball moving. The outside shot is nonexistent but that’s a decent price to pay for the defensive tandem of himself and Holmgren.

The Thunder have plenty of money to spend this offseason, overpaying for a position of need on a short-term deal is a sound strategy considering they smashed open a championship window last season.

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2022 NFL draft grades: How analysts feel about Chargers’ selections

A look at the experts’ grades and overall review of the Los Angeles Chargers’ eight selections.

The 2022 NFL draft is officially in the books.

The Chargers got better and faster on both sides of the ball, all while bringing in players that upgrade the special teams department.

In the eyes of national writers and analysts, how did they view Los Angeles’ haul?

A look at the experts’ grades and overall review of the Bolt’s selections:

NFL Media’s Chad Reuter

The Chargers sent their second-round pick to Chicago for Khalil Mack (an excellent move in the tough AFC West). With their only Day 2 pick, they selected Woods, who could work in the slot or at safety because of his athleticism and willingness to be physical.

Grade: A

Touchdown Wire’s Doug Farrar and Mark Schofield

“Thanks to a great pre-draft process, Zion Johnson worked his way into the first round. Johnson saw time at both tackle and guard during his college career, and even kicked inside to center during the Senior Bowl, and that potential versatility made him a first-round pick. He projects best at guard, and the Los Angeles Chargers can slot him in at right guard to start his NFL career. Getting their best five in front of Justin Herbert had to be a goal for Tom Telesco going into the draft, and the selection of Johnson is a huge step in that direction. Then in the third round they added J.T. Woods, the second Baylor safety to come off the board. With both Nasir Adderly and Derwin James in the fold, this is a nice option behind those two players. Woods is a speedy, rangy type of safety and you can see the Chargers perhaps using him as the center fielder in some three-safety packages alongside Adderly and James, who have both spent some time down in the box.

Perhaps their most intriguing selection was Georgia offensive lineman Jamaree Salyer, in the sixth round. Salyer was expected to be off the board well before the sixth round, and during his time at Georgia he played across the entire offensive line. Given the pick of Johnson and Salyer, it seems the Chargers are placing an emphasis on versatility along their offensive line.”

Grade: B

Sporting News’ Vinnie Iyer

“The Chargers mostly recognized they needed to pick to contend now with Justin Herbert, and getting Johnson to boost the interior offenisve line and Spiller to better complement Ausin Ekeler was huge. Ogbonnia filled a positional need and Salyer might end up solving right tackle, too. They didn’t need to do much to tweak in the draft after keeping Mike Williams and adding both J.C. Jackson and Khalil Mack in free agency.”

Grade: A-

Sports Illustrated’s Connor Orr

“Color me a bit surprised the Chargers did not address their run-support issues until later in the draft. Ogbonnia certainly has his moments, even though he sometimes gets vertical in conflict, which works to his disadvantage. Johnson was also interesting given the Chargers’ need at right tackle, however, there are some street free agents who still may be able to fill that spot; the post-draft veteran cutdown may also yield a workable veteran option if the Chargers want to add bodies to their competition. Woods completes an impressive secondary turnaround under Brandon Staley, who eyes a hybrid Belichick/Fangio kind of defense that wins with bodies in the secondary, something you can do when Joey Bosa and Khalil Mack are flying off the edge. Spiller will soon factor into the Chargers’ workload and patched a sneaky need for a team that relies far too much on Austin Ekeler, who factors so heavily into the passing game. Perhaps Spiller is more of a dependable, early down back who can log some miles and keep Ekeler fresh.”

Grade: B-

New York Post’s Ryan Dunleavy

“Strategy has been the same in free agency and the draft for two years: protect Justin Herbert. The drop-off was steep after two guards — and the Chargers nabbed the second. Woods was a reach in a deep safety class.”

Grade: C+

The Washington Post’s Mark Maske

“The Chargers were wise to address their offensive line with their first-round pick, given the urgency to properly protect QB Justin Herbert. But while G Zion Johnson was worth the 17th choice, it’s fair to wonder whether the Chargers made the proper move, with T Trevor Penning available at that point and all those imposing edge rushers in the AFC West. The Chargers’ draft was more about quantity than top-end quality, with plenty of Day 3 activity. Getting G Jamaree Salyer in the sixth round was a nice pickup.”

Grade: B-

CBS Sports’ Pete Prisco

“Best Pick: First-round offensive lineman Zion Johnson will add a nice inside presence to their offense. He can play up and down the line, which is key. He’s a good player.

Worst Pick: Do they really need third-round safety J.T. Woods? They have Derwin James and Nasir Adderley. It seemed like a luxury pick.

The Skinny: Getting Johnson to help up front was big. He will be a longtime starter. The rest of the draft was just OK for me. I do like sixth-round offensive lineman Jamaree Salyer.”

Grade: C

Sideline reporting shakeup coming to NBC’s Notre Dame coverage?

Could this happen?

A report from the New York Post indicates that Michelle Tafoya will leave sideline reporting after the NFL season. That means there will be a gap to fill on NBC’s Sunday Night Football coverage. While no replacement for Tafoya officially has been named, many signs point to recent fill-in Kathryn Tappen, the network’s sideline reporter for its Notre Dame coverage since 2014. That’s longer than anyone else currently on that broadcast team.

Just as the Irish are going through a coaching transition, this also could be a time of transition for their home TV partner. Mike Tirico is expected to replace Al Michaels as the Sunday Night Football play-by-play announcer next season. It certainly would be a heavy load to expect Tirico to handle both gigs at once. It already is a lot doing both the Irish and “Football Night in America” on the same weekend.

The times are changing indeed, and it’s happening in many ways.

Mike Westhoff blasts Jets’ handling of Mark Sanchez, Tim Tebow

Mike Westhoff criticized the Jets for the way they handled Mark Sanchez’s contract and Tim Tebow’s role on offense.

Former Jets special teams coach Mike Westhoff wasn’t a big of fan of Mark Sanchez and Tim Tebow during their time in New York.

Westhoff recently went on the NY Post’s “Gang’s All Here” podcast and was very critical of the way the Jets managed Sanchez’s contract and Tebow’s role within the offense. The Jets gave Sanchez a three-year extension worth $40.5 million in 2012, much to Westhoff’s dismay.

Sanchez’s numbers were underwhelming before he earned his contract extension. His completion percentage was 55.3 percent to go along with 55 touchdowns and 51 interceptions. The Jets, however, decided to pay the quarterback after two AFC championship losses — a decision that took assets away from Westhoff.

“Because we started this big contract, all of a sudden I’m going to lose guys and now I’m really upset,” Westhoff said on the podcast. “Mike Tannenbaum came by my office one day, I said, ‘Mike, why would you give Mark Sanchez this big new contract?’ He said, ‘Well that’s what a championship-game quarterback is paid.’ I said, ‘Well if he had anything to do with us getting there, I probably would agree with you. But for crying out loud, he had nothing to do with us getting there.’”

The Jets defense led the Jets to those two AFC Championships, not Sanchez, as Westhoff said. New York’s defense ranked No. 1 in 2009 and No. 3 in 2010.

As for Tebow, the Jets traded for him at about the same time they gave Sanchez the extension. Westhoff didn’t think the Jets used Tebow properly and that’s why his time as a Jet was so disappointing. Westhoff thought Tebow should have been used more in the Wildcat.

“Tony [Sparano] didn’t want to do it as an offensive coordinator,” Westhoff said. “Next thing you know, Tim had kind of bulked himself up. He got heavier. He can’t throw anyway, we all know that, so quit trying to make him a throwing quarterback, it’s not going to happen. It just didn’t happen. But he could run the football. As a Wildcat guy, I thought there’d be a place for him. It didn’t materialize.

All in all, Westhoff believed that Tebow did everything that was asked of him and the Jets simply failed him.

“If we had him in that role that he was really prepared for — I think that was really a misnomer on our part. We never even did give him a chance at all. … He kept his end of the bargain. I don’t think the New York Jets kept their end.”

Former New York Giant Carl Banks defends Deandre Baker after rocky NFL start

Former New York Giants linebacker Carl Banks said former Georgia football corner Deandre Baker is capable after mediocre rookie year.

Former New York Giants linebacker Carl Banks, now a Giants radio commentator and analyst, defended former Georgia cornerback Deandre Baker recently.

Banks said on Twitter that the Giants 2019 first-round pick is capable, but he has to show willingness to learn coming off a rough rookie year.

The former Georgia corner was a dominant defensive presence for the Bulldogs in his time in Athens. In 2018 at Georgia, Baker was a All-American and Jim Thorpe Award winner. (given to the country’s top defensive back)

Baker’s performance at UGA hasn’t exactly translated to the NFL yet. In his first year, Baker had seven touchdowns scored against him where he was the closest defender on the field. A big contrast to his four years at Georgia where he only allowed one touchdown. However, after a rocky start to his rookie season, Baker picked it up and began playing like we knew he could.

Via the New York Post:

“To whom much is given much is expected,” Banks said. “If he wasn’t held accountable and he didn’t have a structure by which he should have been held accountable from play to play, series to series, then you can expect that.’’

With the Giants hire of new head coach Joe Judge from the Patriots, Baker should have plenty of opportunities to improve and prove himself as a first-round pick moving forward.