LSU and women’s college basketball star Angel Reese took to a Vogue Magazine profile to announce her plan to enter the 2024 WNBA Draft. This comes days after the Tigers were knocked out of the NCAA Tournament by Caitlin Clark and Iowa in a highly-anticipated rematch that did not disappoint.
“I’ve done everything I wanted to in college,” Reese told Vogue. “I’ve won a national championship, I’ve gotten [SEC] Player of the Year, I’ve been an All-American. My ultimate goal is to be a pro—and to be one of the greatest basketball players to play, ever. I feel like I’m ready.”
With this, Reese is leaving a situation that was littered with drama around the LSU program for one reason or another after they failed to defend their National Title from a season ago. Head coach Kim Mulkey weighed in on her decision to go pro.
“Angel transferred to LSU after my first season in Baton Rouge and she helped transform our program,” Mulkey said. “When she came here, she said she wanted to be here for two seasons and she has lived up to that. What a remarkable two years it has been.”
Between Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese — the world of not only women’s college basketball but women’s sports as a whole has been transformed. They’ve provided two incredible matchups. Mulkey is aware what Reese has meant not only to her program but to the sport.
“We are all indebted to Angel Reese for the contributions she has given to this program, helping us win our first National Championship, and the contributions she made on our university as a whole. She not only helped grow our program but had an impact growing the game of women’s basketball across the country.”
This article first appeared on Men’s Journal and was syndicated with permission.
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Blue Jackets GM: Only one team has expressed interest in Patrik Laine
Late last month, Blue Jackets winger Patrik Laine exited the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program which allows for there to be contact between Laine and Columbus. With a known desire for a change of scenery, the team has granted permission for the winger to talk to other teams as well.
However, there hasn’t been much interest in Laine’s services just yet. GM Don Waddell told Brian Hedger of the Columbus Dispatch earlier this week that at this point, only one team has contacted him to express interest in acquiring his services. Given where we are in the offseason, Waddell isn’t particularly surprised nor does he expect the situation to change in the near future: “At this time of the year, people are less responsive. So, I don’t really know. I think it’s going to play out for a while.” Laine’s situation is well-known at this point.
He played in just 18 games last season before being shut down due to shoulder surgery in December; he entered the assistance program a little more than a month after that. The 26-year-old has been a high-end scoring threat in the past and is only two years removed from recording 56 points in as many games; he came close to the point-per-game mark in an injury-marred 2022-23 campaign as well.
However, Laine struggled in his limited action last season, notching just six goals and three assists. Suffice it to say, this isn’t a situation where Columbus could be trading him at peak value. Further complicating things is his contract, one which carries an AAV of $8.7M for the next two years while his actual cash payout each year is $9.1M (though $2M of that has likely already been paid in the form of a signing bonus for this year). Very few teams have that much cap space to absorb the contract outright. Waddell has indicated his preference would be to make more of a pure ‘hockey trade’ but that might be hard to come by at this point. To that end, the GM acknowledged that some retention might be required to ultimately push a move over the finish line: “We might end up eating some money.
If I wanted to eat half, I could’ve traded him by now, but that’s not my first choice.” With rookie camps about six weeks away, executives will likely try to take some time away before getting ready for training camps. Based on the tepid interest thus far, there’s a good chance that’s already the case. As a result, while Laine is now free to speak to potentially interested teams, it looks as if it will take some time for a potential market to materialize.
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Gordon Hayward’s retirement leaves one member of 2010’s weak draft class remaining
One-time All-Star forward Gordon Hayward announced his retirement on Thursday, leaving just one member of the 2010 NBA Draft class remaining in the league. Basketball fans likely won’t ever mistake the 2010 class for one of the more stacked 21st-century groups, such as 2003 (LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, Chris Bosh, Dwyane Wade) and 2011 (Kyrie Irving, Klay Thompson, Kawhi Leonard, Jimmy Butler). With nine All-Star honors, six All-NBA nods and four All-Defensive team appearances, Paul George is clearly the most accomplished member of the drafted players from 14 years ago. PG-13 was selected 10th out of Fresno State behind the likes of Wesley Johnson (fourth overall) and Ekpe Udoh (sixth overall) and just one spot after Hayward. George, Hayward, DeMarcus Cousins (fifth overall) and John Wall (first overall) were all top-10 picks and the only four players from the
to make an All-Star team, despite 51 of the 60 selections in 2010 playing at least one game in the NBA. Wall was a five-time All-Star and made one All-NBA and All-Defensive team while Cousins was a four-time All-Star and two-time member of an All-NBA squad. Hayward made his lone All-Star team in 2016-17. Each member of the trio had their career impacted by multiple serious injuries, however. Hayward cashed in on his All-Star campaign by signing with the Boston Celtics in July 2017 but suffered a season-ending fractured tibia and dislocated ankle just five minutes into the 2017-18 season opener.
Both Cousins and Wall missed the entire 2019-2020 season with ACL and Achilles injuries, respectively, never fully recapturing their form. George hasn’t escaped debilitating ailments either, as he went down with a compound fracture of both bones in his lower right leg in a freak incident during an intra-squad scrimmage for the FIBA Basketball World Cup U.S. national team on Aug. 1, 2014. He didn’t return to the Indiana Pacers until April and played in just six contests that season. George bounced back better than ever though, playing in all 81 games during the 2015-16 season and starting a streak of four consecutive All-Star campaigns.
He’s likely the only member of the class of 2010 to have a realistic shot of making the Basketball Hall of Fame and even though he just turned 34, still seems to have plenty left in the tank. George made his ninth All-Star team this past season, finishing the campaign averaging 22.6 points, 5.2 rebounds and 3.5 assists with a career-high .471/.413/.907 shooting line. All that’s left for him is to make an NBA Finals and while the Celtics will be the Eastern Conference favorite for the 2024-25 season, George has a good a shot as he’s ever had at winning a title after teaming up with Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey on the Philadelphia 76ers in the offseason.
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Takeaways from weather-shortened 2024 Hall of Fame Game
Due to inclement weather, officials suspended the 2024 NFL Hall of Fame Game with 3:31 left in the third quarter, awarding the Chicago Bears a 21-17 victory over the Houston Texans. But despite the premature ending, there’s plenty to talk about. Here are a few takeaways from Thursday’s preseason opener.
Hall of Fame Game comes to a unique weather-shortened end Weather delays are common at the annual Hall of Fame Game from Canton, but outright suspensions are not. According to NFL historian Kevin Gallagher, this is only the third permanent suspension of the game, with the only other occurrences taking place in 2003 (Kansas City Chiefs vs. Green Bay Packers) and 1980 (Green Bay Packers vs. San Diego Chargers). New kickoff rules make their debut This offseason, the NFL adopted the XFL’s kickoff rules, which gives the once uneventful play a little life.
The odd setup, which debuted on Thursday, will take some time to get used to and may take even longer to yield results, as the longest return in the Hall of Fame Game was 31 yards by John Jackson of the Bears. Field conditions weren’t ideal The field at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium was noticeably slippery, and several players had difficulty staying on their feet throughout the night. While most fans were disappointed but not shocked by the lack of starters playing for the Bears and Texans, in retrospect, it’s a good thing they didn’t.
Is Brett Rypien in the running for Bears’ No. 2 QB job? Rypien outshined Tyson Bagent in the Bears preseason opener, finishing 11-of-15 for 166 yards (11.1 yards per completion) with three touchdowns and zero interceptions. Bagent saw less work in the weather-shortened contest, going 2-of-3 for 16 yards, but Rypien’s outing gives Chicago something to think about. Texans’ backup QB battle heats up Davis Mills (10-of-13, 102 yards, one touchdown) and Case Keenum (7-of-9, 78 yards, one touchdown) had solid outings on Thursday, which may make deciding who backs up star C.J. Stroud a little more challenging.
It’s a great problem to have if you’re the Texans, who will want someone reliable behind the face of the franchise. Bears rookie pass-rusher impresses Fifth-round pick Austin Booker finished with only one tackle on Thursday night, but displayed his pass-rushing prowess on the edge, with one of his pressures leading to a strip-sack in the first quarter. It’s only one game, but the former Kansas standout may earn a spot in the Bears edge-rushing rotation. Rookie DB plays as advertised for Texans Calen Bullock, selected in the third round of the 2024 NFL Draft, made an impact Thursday night, displaying the skills the Texans expected. The former USC standout showed off his closing speed, athleticism and nose for the ball, recording a team-high five tackles (three solo) and a forced fumble.
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Olympics
Kevin Durant tips cap to Jayson Tatum, Joel Embiid after DNP-CDs for Team USA
While Team USA’s first two games of group play in men’s basketball at the 2024 Paris Olympics only strengthened their case as gold-medal favorites, their victories have come with a unique quirk. Head coach Steve Kerr has opted to change his starting lineup and rotations based on matchups, which in turn has led to high-profile players receiving DNP-CDs. This began with Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum and Indiana Pacers standout Tyrese Haliburton not playing during an impressive 110-84 win over Serbia in the opener.
Then on Wednesday, Team USA extended its record to 2-0 with a 103-86 victory against South Sudan, in which Kerr opted not to play 2023 NBA Most Valuable Player Joel Embiid, who started against Serbia. Kerr cited the shorter games (40 minutes) and focusing on matchups for the decision in the opener. He echoed a similar sentiment on matchups following the decision on Embiid against South Sudan. While it’s been strange to see the high-profile players on the bench, it appears they’ve taken it in stride.
On Wednesday, Kevin Durant tipped his cap to Tatum, Haliburton and Embiid, stating that they “didn’t complain” about not playing, as Ben Golliver of the Washington Post revealed. “Last game, we had a champion and an All-NBA guy not play any minutes, and tonight we had an MVP not play any minutes. They didn’t complain. We had guys who stepped up and filled those roles perfectly,” Durant said. It’s an extremely unique situation, but the Americans are loaded with talent from top to bottom.
Kerr also vowed that Tatum would make an impact in the tournament following his decision on the opener, and the 26-year-old received the nod to start against South Sudan, logging 17 minutes and scoring four points with five rebounds, two assists and one block. Embiid’s time on the sideline won’t be long, either. Golliver revealed that Kerr said Embiid will return to the starting lineup for Team USA’s third game, a matchup with Puerto Rico on Friday. But now the big question will be what the means for the rest of the group, as at least one player is likely bound for a DNP-CD in the third group-stage game.