Look at Leo Balcazar running away with the vote for spot #13 in this year’s edition of the Community Prospect Rankings!

Perhaps that’s an indictment of which prospects I included in this particular round of voting. Or, perhaps it’s an indication that you fine voters here at Red Reporter are awfully high on Balcazar’s prospects as, well, a prospect once again.

There was a time when that was something of a no-brainer. He mauled Dominican Summer League play with an .882 OPS in 2021 at just 17 years of age, and he backed it up the following year with an equally impressive .886 OPS in Arizona Complex League play in his first season in the states. Then, in a 19 game sample to begin the 2023 season with Class-A Daytona in the pitching-friendly Florida State League, he roared out of the gate with an .897 OPS only to tear his ACL and miss the remainder of the year.

When he returned in 2024, he was a shell of his former self. He’d been an athletic shortstop whose quickness helped make up for an average arm, but his quickness had been sapped. His work at the plate slumped, too, and suddenly there was wonder whether he’d be able to work his way back.

2025 was a much more positive step in the right direction. He posted a modest .720 OPS as he reached AA Chattanooga, but the athleticism began to return – as did some of the excellent exit velocities off his bat. He finished the year with a positive showing in 24 Arizona Fall League games, and he still won’t even turn 22 until this summer.

There’s beginning to be some buzz again about Balcazar, and I think it’s warranted, even if he’s destined to stick at 2B long term.

He’s the #13 prospect in this year’s CPR!

I hope everybody has a lovely start to their weekend. Please stay warm and safe out there if you’re in the path of the second winter storm in as many weekends! Here’s a random clip for you:

Hey! A signing that helps the Phillies shore up their infield depth, but maybe doesn’t move the needle much.

Dylan Moore and the Philadelphia Phillies are in agreement on a minor league contract that includes an invitation to major league spring training, league sources said. He can make up to $3.25 million with plate appearance and active roster bonuses.

— Will Sammon (@WillSammon) January 30, 2026

Insurance in case Otto Kemp doesn’t work out, Moore could be a good option for the team as a bench bat.

Tonight’s Pistons vs. Warriors predictions come down to how this game is likely to be played, not who looks better on paper. Detroit slows teams down, takes away easy second chances, and forces Golden State to win without leaning on its usual strengths.

That kind of game doesn’t just change the side, it creates value in one Warriors prop that’s tied directly to rebounding and role.

Read on for my NBA picks for Friday, January 30. 

Pistons vs Warriors prediction

Pistons vs Warriors best bet: Draymond Green Under 5.5 rebounds (-130)

Since Jimmy Butler’s ACL tear, Draymond Green has fallen short of this modest rebounding prop in three of four games, averaging just 4.25 rebounds per game.

The Golden State Warriors so needed Butler, in part, because Green’s game is aging faster than many realize. He is no longer equipped for this role.

Quite frankly, the time is probably coming when Green’s agitation with himself will start showing as he acts out against opponents. That could well come tonight, given the Detroit Pistons‘ physical playing style.

But even if Green plays the whole game, that may be as few as 24 minutes. He has played more than 24 minutes in any of his last four games, bothered by foul trouble in only one of them.

He does not have the fitness to play a long game. And he no longer has the athleticism to impact the game.

Pistons vs Warriors same-game parlay

Green has scored 12 points total in the four games without Butler, shooting just 5-of-25 from the field.

He is falling apart in every aspect. With Green posing such a liability, the Pistons should have an edge in a close game. 

Pistons vs Warriors SGP

• Draymond Green Under 5.5 rebounds
• Draymond Green Under 7.5 points
• Pistons moneyline

Our “from downtown” SGP: Cade!

With the Warriors shorthanded — also without Jonathan Kuminga tonight— Cade Cunningham‘s athleticism may feast.

Pistons vs Warriors SGP

• Draymond Green Under 5.5 rebounds
• Draymond Green Under 7.5 points
• Cade Cunningham Over 23.5 points
• Pistons moneyline

Pistons vs Warriors odds

• Spread: Pistons +2.5 | Warriors -2.5
• Moneyline: Pistons +120 | Warriors -140
• Over/Under: Over 224.5 | Under 224.5

Pistons vs Warriors betting trend to know

Detroit is 3-1-1 against the spread in its last five games on the second night of a back-to-back, as well as 5-0 outright. Find more NBA betting trends for Pistons vs. Warriors.

How to watch Pistons vs Warriors

Pistons vs Warriors latest injuries

This article originally appeared on Covers.com, read the full article here

College basketball‘s eligibility saga has its next addition.

Former UCLA men’s basketball guard Amari Bailey is attempting to return to college basketball after playing 10 games in the NBA with the Charlotte Hornets during the 2023-2024 NBA season, according to ESPN’s Dan Murphy.

“Right now I’d be a senior in college,” Bailey told ESPN in a statement. “I’m not trying to be 27 years old playing college athletics. No shade to the guys that do; that’s their journey. But I went to go play professionally and learned a lot, went through a lot. So, like, why not me?”

BRACKETOLOGY: Big Ten dominates NCAA tournament projection as Purdue slides

Per ESPN’s report, the 6-foot-3 guard has already hired an agent and an attorney to represent him in his case, in which he is looking for the NCAA to give him the right to play one more season.

“It’s not a stunt,” Bailey continued. “I’m really serious about going back. I just want to improve my game, change the perception of me and just show that I can win.”

The Chicago native joins a growing list of players to re-enter college basketball, though unlike the others, he has NBA regular-season experience. His request also comes at a time when the NCAA is currently in court fighting against the temporary restraining order that former Alabama and G-League forward Charles Bediako received from Tuscaloosa County Circuit Court Judge James H. Roberts Jr. to return to play for the Crimson Tide.

In a statement posted on X (formerly Twitter), NCAA senior vice president of external affairs Tim Buckley said that the NCAA “has and will not grant eligibility to any players who have signed an NBA contract.”

The NCAA has not and will not grant eligibility to any players who have signed an NBA contract. Congress can strengthen NCAA rules so professional athletes cannot sue their way back to competing against college students. https://t.co/hrSqL7xr8b

— Tim Buckley (@Tim_BuckleyMA) January 30, 2026

Buckley’s statement follows in line with what NCAA president Charlie Baker said in December when the college eligibility saga started to pick up.

“@NCAA has not and will not grant eligibility to any prospective or returning student-athletes who have signed an @NBA contract (including a two-way contract),” Baker wrote in a statement posted on social media. “… Rules have long permitted schools to enroll and play individuals with no prior collegiate experience midyear. While the NCAA has prevailed on the vast majority of eligibility-related lawsuits, recent outlier decisions enjoining the NCAA on a nationwide basis from enforcing rules that have been on the books for decades — without even having a trial — are wildly destabilizing. I will be working with DI leaders in the weeks ahead to protect college basketball from these misguided attempts to destroy this American institution.”

Bailey was a one-and-done at UCLA, where he started 28 games during the 2022-2023 season. In 30 games for the Bruins, Bailey averaged 11.2 points, 3.8 rebounds and 2.2 assists while shooting 49.5% from the field and 38.9% from beyond the arc.

He declared for the NBA draft after the Bruins were upset 79-76 by Gonzaga in the Sweet 16 of the 2023 NCAA Tournament. He was drafted by the Hornets with the No. 41 overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, where he’d play in just 10 games that NBA season.

Bailey spent most of the 2023-24 NBA season with the Hornets’ G-League affiliate, Greensboro Swarm, before spending the entire 2024-25 season with the Long Island Nets, the G-League affiliate of the Brooklyn Nets. He’s on a G-League roster this season, according to his G-League profile.

The USA TODAY app gets you to the heart of the news — fast. Download for award-winning coverage, crosswords, audio storytelling, the eNewspaper and more.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Amari Bailey played in NBA. He now seeks a college basketball return

RENTON, Wash. (AP) — When Zach Charbonnet went down with a season-ending knee injury against the San Francisco 49ers in the divisional round of the NFC playoffs, Kenneth Walker III rushed onto the field to check on his Seattle Seahawks backfield mate.

Initially, Walker was told Charbonnet – who led the Seahawks with 12 touchdown runs and became the first Seattle player since Marshawn Lynch in 2014 to rush for at least 10 scores in a season – was going to be OK.

Walker instead has taken on an increased role as the Seahawks move within one win of their second Super Bowl title in franchise history.

“Obviously, it’s unfortunate what happened to him,” Walker told The Associated Press. “But, I’ve been going through it all season. I’ve been prepared for whatever.”

Walker, who ran for over 1,000 yards this season (1,027) for the first time since his rookie year, has not only been prepared, he has excelled in Charbonnet’s absence. Including the game in which Charbonnet was injured, Walker has averaged 4.7 yards per carry in the postseason, caught all seven passes thrown his way for 78 yards receiving and plunged into the end zone four times on the ground.

Ahead of the Seahawks’ 31-27 win against the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC championship game, offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak pointed to the film as reason enough that Walker could handle a few more touches.

“He played some really good football,” Kubiak said last week. “We have all the confidence in the world with him to carry a heavier load, but it’s not all on him. He’s got help behind him. We’re counting on him.”

Over the Seahawks’ last three games of the regular season, Walker has also had at least 100 total yards twice. He credited his individual success to Seattle’s attention to detail in all aspects of the run game as a team.

“Linemen hitting their guys, picking up on who they were supposed to get,” Walker said. “Everybody just all around was more detailed in who they were supposed to get. Receivers, tight ends, everybody’s all on one accord.”

But nobody has been more on point — and received more attention — than Walker ahead of what could be his last game in a Seahawks uniform. The 25-year-old running back is in the final year of his rookie contract and is slated to become a free agent in 2026. Given his production, Walker figures to be in line for a significant pay bump.

General manager John Schneider, who drafted Walker in the second round in 2022, would be saddened to see him go should the Michigan State product choose to do so.

“Ken has been awesome,” Schneider said. “Explosive. I would say maybe a little bit more decisive the last month and a half. He’s a free agent. We’d love to have him back.”

To Schneider’s point, Walker picked up steam down the stretch after hitting a lull for much of the middle of the season. As Walker put it, it has been an up-and-down season personally while the team has enjoyed plenty of on-field success, which matters much more to him.

Walker has taken pride in stepping up in Charbonnet’s absence, especially since he considers him a brother. Simultaneously, Walker’s mental resilience has been tested amid the uncertainty of his future in the Pacific Northwest.

Rather than ponder whether the Super Bowl could be a sweet swan song to his time with the Seahawks, Walker has compartmentalized that aspect of his role in one of the biggest games in franchise history.

“I don’t really think on that,” Walker said. “If I worry about that, then I won’t be able to focus on what the hell I need to focus on.”

So what is occupying Walker’s mind these days?

“I just really want to win the Super Bowl,” he said.

___

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

Finding the right value on a Friday night slate is all about identifying trends and mismatches before the market catches up. For this January 30 lineup, I’ve put together a three-leg moneyline parlay that balances momentum with favorable matchups.

My